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The Us + Them Tour was a
concert tour A concert tour (or simply tour) is a series of concerts by an artist or group of artists in different cities, countries or locations. Often, concert tours are named to differentiate different tours by the same artist and to associate a specific ...
by rock musician
Roger Waters George Roger Waters (born 6 September 1943) is an English musician and singer-songwriter. In 1965, he co-founded the rock band Pink Floyd as the bassist. Following the departure of the group's main songwriter Syd Barrett in 1968, Waters became ...
. The tour visited the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Australia and countries in Europe and Latin America, showcasing songs from Waters' career with
Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experiments ...
and his 2017 album '' Is This the Life We Really Want?'' It opened on 26 May 2017 in
Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more t ...
, United States and ended on 9 December 2018 in
Monterrey Monterrey (, , abbreviated as MtY) is the capital and largest city of the northeastern Mexican state of Nuevo León. It is the ninth-largest city and the second largest metropolitan area, after Greater Mexico City. Located at the foothills of th ...
, Mexico.


Background

In mid-October 2016, Waters announced that he would return to North America in 2017 with a pioneering new tour named "Us + Them", stating: "We are going to take a new show on the road, the content is very secret. It'll be a mixture of stuff from my long career, stuff from my years with Pink Floyd, some new things. Probably 75% of it will be old material and 25% will be new, but it will be all connected by a general theme. It will be a cool show, I promise you. It'll be spectacular like all my shows have been." The tour is named after the track " Us and Them", from Pink Floyd's 1973 album ''
The Dark Side of the Moon ''The Dark Side of the Moon'' is the eighth studio album by the English rock band Pink Floyd, released on 1 March 1973, by Capitol Records in the US and on 16 March 1973, by Harvest Records in the UK. Developed during live performances before ...
''.


Personnel

*
Roger Waters George Roger Waters (born 6 September 1943) is an English musician and singer-songwriter. In 1965, he co-founded the rock band Pink Floyd as the bassist. Following the departure of the group's main songwriter Syd Barrett in 1968, Waters became ...
lead vocal The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of the ...
s,
bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...
,
acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked, its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...
,
electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external electric Guitar amplifier, sound amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar. It uses one or more pickup (music technology), pickups ...
on "Welcome to the Machine" and "Picture That" * Dave Kilminster – acoustic and electric guitars,
talk box A talk box (also spelled talkbox and talk-box) is an effects unit that allows musicians to modify the sound of a musical instrument by shaping the frequency content of the sound and to apply speech sounds (in the same way as singing) onto the so ...
, backing vocals * Jon Carin – piano, keyboards, programming,
lap steel guitar The lap steel guitar, also known as a Hawaiian guitar or lap slide guitar, is a type of steel guitar without pedals that is typically played with the instrument in a horizontal position across the performer's lap. Unlike the usual manner of pla ...
, acoustic and electric guitars, backing vocals * Gus Seyffert – acoustic and electric guitars, bass, backing vocals * Jonathan Wilson – acoustic and electric guitars, lead and backing vocals * Drew Erickson –
piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...
, keyboards,
Hammond organ The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert, first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding #Drawbars, drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, sound was created ...
(withdrew from tour before Newark date, due to injury) * Bo Koster – piano, keyboards, Hammond organ (replaced an injured Erickson, from Newark date onwards) * Ian Ritchie
saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to p ...
, bass *
Joey Waronker Jon Joseph Waronker (born May 20, 1969) is an American drummer and music producer. He has performed with acts including Beck, R.E.M., Oasis and Roger Waters, and is a member of the experimental rock bands Atoms for Peace and Ultraísta. Back ...
drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...
,
percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a percussion mallet, beater including attached or enclosed beaters or Rattle (percussion beater), rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or ...
* Jess Wolfe – backing vocals, percussion, lead vocals on "The Great Gig in the Sky" and "Mother" * Holly Laessig – backing vocals, percussion, lead vocals on "The Great Gig in the Sky" and "Mother"


Set list

The following set list was obtained from the concert held on September 12, 2017 at the
Barclays Center Barclays Center ( ) is a multi-purpose list of indoor arenas, indoor arena in the New York City Boroughs of New York City, borough of Brooklyn. The arena is home to the Brooklyn Nets of the National Basketball Association and the New York Liber ...
in Brooklyn. It does not represent all concerts for the duration of the tour. ;Set 1 # "
Speak to Me "Speak to Me" is the first track on English rock band Pink Floyd's 1973 album, ''The Dark Side of the Moon'', on which it forms an overture. Nick Mason receives a rare solo writing credit for the track, though recollections differ as to the reas ...
" # " Breathe" # " One of These Days" # "
Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...
/ "Breathe" (Reprise) # "
The Great Gig in the Sky "The Great Gig in the Sky" is the fifth track on ''The Dark Side of the Moon'', a 1973 album by English rock band Pink Floyd. The song features music by keyboard player Richard Wright and improvised, wordless vocals by session singer Clare Tor ...
" # " Welcome to the Machine" # " When We Were Young" # "
Déjà Vu ''Déjà vu'' ( , ; "already seen") is the phenomenon of feeling like one has lived through the present situation in the past.Schnider, Armin. (2008). ''The Confabulating Mind: How the Brain Creates Reality''. Oxford University Press. pp. 167–1 ...
" # " The Last Refugee" # "Picture That" # "
Wish You Were Here Wish You Were Here may refer to: Film, television, and theater Film * ''Wish You Were Here'' (1987 film), a British comedy-drama film by David Leland * ''Wish You Were Here'' (2012 film), an Australian drama/mystery film by Kieran Darcy-Smith ...
" # "
The Happiest Days of Our Lives "The Happiest Days of Our Lives" is a song by the English rock band Pink Floyd. It appeared on their eleventh studio album '' The Wall'' (1979). Composition The song is approximately one minute, 46 seconds in length, beginning with 24 seconds of ...
" # " Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2" # "Another Brick in the Wall, Part 3" ;Set 2 #
  • "
    Dogs The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the gray wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it was selectively bred from a population of wolves during the Late Pleistocene by hunter-gatherers ...
    " # "
    Pigs (Three Different Ones) "Pigs (Three Different Ones)" is a song from Pink Floyd's 1977 album ''Animals''. In the album's three parts, "Dogs", "Pigs" and "Sheep", pigs represent the people whom the band considers to be at the top of the social ladder, the ones with weal ...
    " # "
    Money Money is any item or verifiable record that is generally accepted as payment for goods and services and repayment of debts, such as taxes, in a particular country or socio-economic context. The primary functions which distinguish money are: m ...
    " # " Us and Them" # " Smell the Roses" # "
    Brain Damage Brain injury (BI) is the destruction or degeneration of brain cells. Brain injuries occur due to a wide range of internal and external factors. In general, brain damage refers to significant, undiscriminating trauma-induced damage. A common ...
    " # "
    Eclipse An eclipse is an astronomical event which occurs when an astronomical object or spacecraft is temporarily obscured, by passing into the shadow of another body or by having another body pass between it and the viewer. This alignment of three ...
    " ;Encore #
  • "
    Vera Vera may refer to: Names *Vera (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) * Vera (given name), a given name (including a list of people and fictional characters with the name) **Vera (), archbishop of the archdiocese of Tarr ...
    " #" Bring the Boys Back Home" # "
    Comfortably Numb "Comfortably Numb" is a song by the English rock band Pink Floyd, released on their eleventh studio album, ''The Wall'' (1979). It was released as a Single (music), single in 1980, with "Hey You (Pink Floyd song), Hey You" as the A-side and B- ...
    "


    Notes

    The following songs were performed during the tour, with each song noted the city and date it was performed: *"Vera" / "Bring the Boys Back Home" (medley) (all shows until 11 August 2017; Oslo, 14 August 2018; Stockholm, 18 August 2018) *"
    Mother A mother is the female parent of a child. A woman may be considered a mother by virtue of having given birth, by raising a child who may or may not be her biological offspring, or by supplying her ovum for fertilisation in the case of ges ...
    " (Nashville, 13 August 2017; Boston, 27 & 28 September 2017; Québec, 6 & 7 October 2017; Ottawa, 10 October 2017; Toronto, 13 October 2017; Montreal, 16, 17 & 18 October 2017; Winnipeg, 22 October 2017; Vancouver, 28 October 2017; Auckland, 24 & 26 January 2018; Dunedin, 30 January 2018; Sydney, 2 & 3 February 2018; Melbourne, 10, 11 & 13 February 2018; Adelaide, 16 February 2018; Bologna, 21, 24 & 25 April 2018; Budapest, 2 May 2018; Zagreb, 6 May 2018; Lyon, 9 May 2018; Antwerp, 11 May 2018; Rome, 14 July 2018; Kraków, 3 August 2018; São Paulo, 9 & 10 November 2018; Brasília, 13 October 2018; Rio de Janeiro, 24 October 2018; San José, 24 November 2018) *" Wait for Her" / "Oceans Apart" / "Part of Me Died" (medley) (Vancouver, 29 October 2017; Perth, 20 February 2018; Bologna, 22 April 2018; Prague, 28 April 2018; Antwerp, 12 May 2018; Lisbon, 20 May 2018; Amsterdam, 18 June 2018; Glasgow, 29 June 2018; Gdańsk, 5 August 2018) *" Danny Boy" (Dublin, 26 & 27 June 2018) *" Broken Bones" (Copenhagen, 10 August 2018; Oslo, 15 August 2018; Helsinki, 21 August 2018; Bogotá, 21 November 2018) *" The Bravery of Being Out of Range" (Riga, 24 August 2018; Kaunas, 26 August 2018; St. Petersburg, 29 August 2018; Moscow, 31 August 2018) *" Two Suns in the Sunset" (Salvador, 17 October 2018; Belo Horizonte, 21 October 2018; Montevideo, 3 November 2018; Lima, 17 November 2018) *" The Gunner's Dream" (Santiago, 14 November 2018)


    Reception

    As of July 2017, the Us + Them Tour, which had cost $4 million to produce, had grossed over $25 million in North America and ranked 19th in highest grossing shows in North America for that year. The tour has been highly praised for its setlist, which is heavy on songs from Waters' tenure in Pink Floyd, along with its visuals and technology. Anti-Donald Trump imagery from the tour One portion of the show features extensive anti-Donald Trump imagery, which led some attendees to boo or even walk out of the show. Waters responded to the anti-Trump critics by saying, "I find it slightly surprising that anybody could have been listening to my songs for 50 years without understanding", and said to those critics if they didn't like what he was doing, "Go see
    Katy Perry Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson (born October 25, 1984), known professionally as Katy Perry, is an American singer, songwriter, and television personality. She is one of the List of best-selling music artists, best-selling music artists in hist ...
    or watch the
    Kardashians The Kardashian family ( ), also referred to as the Kardashian–Jenner family, is an American family prominent in the fields of law, entertainment, reality television, fashion design, and business. Through different ventures, several members of ...
    . I don't care." Waters also said that due to his anti-Trump images that he lost sponsors such as
    American Express American Express Company or Amex is an American bank holding company and multinational financial services corporation that specializes in payment card industry, payment cards. It is headquartered at 200 Vesey Street, also known as American Expr ...
    , who refused to have their company associated with his shows in the U.S., although they are still sponsoring the tour in Canada, according to Waters. In
    Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
    , Waters similarly attacked then presidential candidate
    Jair Bolsonaro Jair Messias Bolsonaro (; born 21 March 1955) is a Brazilian politician and former military officer who served as the 38th president of Brazil from 2019 to 2023. He previously served as a member of Brazil's Chamber of Deputies (Brazil), Chamb ...
    and was repeatedly booed by crowds on all shows. Some imagery mentioned "neo-fascism is on the rise", and also cited multiple other politicians such as
    Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...
    and
    Marine Le Pen Marion Anne Perrine "Marine" Le Pen (; born 5 August 1968) is a French lawyer and politician of the far-right National Rally, National Rally party (RN). She served as the party's president from 2011 to 2021, and ran for the French presidency in ...
    . Waters also was met with some backlash, boycotts and even attempts to cancel his show by some lawmakers in various cities due to his anti-Israel boycott which some felt was
    anti-semitic Antisemitism or Jew-hatred is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who harbours it is called an antisemite. Whether antisemitism is considered a form of racism depends on the school of thought. Antisemi ...
    . Prior to his performances in Washington, D.C., the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington produced a video criticizing Waters' support of BDS, the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement that compares the country's treatment of
    Palestinians Palestinians () are an Arab ethnonational group native to the Levantine region of Palestine. *: "Palestine was part of the first wave of conquest following Muhammad's death in 632 CE; Jerusalem fell to the Caliph Umar in 638. The indigenou ...
    to
    apartheid Apartheid ( , especially South African English:  , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...
    . In October 2016, Waters lost $4 million in sponsorship after
    American Express American Express Company or Amex is an American bank holding company and multinational financial services corporation that specializes in payment card industry, payment cards. It is headquartered at 200 Vesey Street, also known as American Expr ...
    refused to fund the tour due to his anti-Israel rhetoric at a previous festival sponsored by the financial company. In November 2016,
    Citibank Citibank, N.A. ("N. A." stands for "National bank (United States), National Association"; stylized as citibank) is the primary U.S. banking subsidiary of Citigroup, a financial services multinational corporation, multinational corporation. Ci ...
    joined American Express in cutting ties to Waters.


    Movie and live album

    The Amsterdam shows of 18 – 23 June 2018 at the Ziggo Dome were filmed for '' Roger Waters: Us + Them''. The movie was premiered at
    Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival (, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival held in Venice, Italy. It is the world's oldest film festival and one of the ...
    in 2019. A live album with the songs from the movie was released on 2 October 2020.


    Tour dates


    Notes


    References

    {{Roger Waters 2017 concert tours 2018 concert tours Roger Waters concert tours