NOTE: The following concert videos are being graded as
a guide to documenting the live performance history of
Pink Floyd and Roger Waters.
In our first issue, we began with a look back at Roger
Waters’ first solo concert tours for The Pros And
Cons Of Hitch Hiking in 1984-85. While we are proud to
present a review of a brand new video from the 1999 In
The Flesh tour we will also continue our look back at
past videos–in this case, videos from the 1987 Radio
KAOS tour.
Roger Waters, Madison Square Garden, New York, August
26, 1987
This video begins from the back left corner of Madison
Square Garden. The shots of the screen are the best of
the Roger Waters solo videos. The camera appears to be
more stable when it shoots the entire stage as opposed to
trying for close-ups from that distance. There is a cut
in Who Needs Information and a little over a half a
minute into Money the camera angle switches to the right
corner. While the camera is closer to the stage at this
point the screen is now obstructed by the overhead PA and
the most unique part of the video is now missing. The
stability of the camera is a problem through the course
of the video along with the occasional security duck.
There are also cuts in Not Now John, Nobody Home and the
last song on the tape, The Tide Is Turning. At the end of
watching this video, knowing that every Waters video
afterwards on the KAOS tour was shot from the right side
of the stage, my thoughts only centered on why the camera
was moved at the beginning of the show. I grade this
video “B-” and the audio “VG+.”
Roger Waters, The Omni, Atlanta, Georgia, September 2,
1987
Shot from the upper right
balcony of The Omni, Atlanta, GA. When the video starts
the camera is panned back and there is minor obstruction
then the zoom lens goes in for closer shots of the stage.
There is no obstruction. The focus is soft. Camera
stability starts out average and becomes excellent
through the course of the video, especially when the
camera is zoomed in as often as it is. Unfortunately the
video screen is obstructed by the lighting truss. The
color is a bit bright but solid for a camcorder.
The opening song, Tempted, performed by Paul Carrack,
Another Brick In The Wall, Part One, Home, and The Tide
Is Turning have cuts. I grade it a “B-” with
the audio a grade of “VG.”
Roger Waters, Market Square Arena, Indianapolis,
Indiana, September 5, 1987
The camera seems
level with the height of the stage at the start of this
video. Obstruction is a problem initially but when the
view is clear this is a very well shot video. The camera
angle is from the right side of the mezzanine section.
The camera is stable and steady. The focus is solid. The
circular screen is obstructed for the most part but when
there’s a clear shot the camera picks it up nicely.
When the camera is zoomed in, Waters fills 2/3 of the
screen from head to toe. There’s a nice shot of the
crew setting up the chair and TV for Nobody Home in the
background while the band is playing Another Brick In The
Wall, Part Two. The Powers That Be is the only song with
a cut besides the opening of the first song, Radio Waves,
and the final song, Four Minutes. I grade the video
“B” and the audio “VG.”
Roger Waters, Quebec City Coliseum, Quebec, November
7, 1987
This video begins
with a nice close up of Waters and the band members. When
the video zooms back the entire stage setup fits in the
screen. The close-ups are excellent. At some point in the
video it seems each of the band members are captured in a
close-up from head to toe that fills the screen. The
video is well focused and steady. This is the only video
from the KAOS tour that allows a clear unobstructed shot
of the message board at the back of the stage. While this
is the best shot of the KAOS videos there are problems.
The picture is unusually dark though it improves slightly
in the second set, the color is almost nonexistent, the
projection screen is covered by a lighting truss, and
there are audio problems. Only 2 of the songs have
cuts– Another Brick In The Wall, Part One (while the
tape is paused to switch to the second tape) and Home.
Despite the defects mentioned this is still the best of
the Radio KAOS tour videos. I grade the picture
“B” with the audio “VG.” Without the
defects, this video would easily merit a “B+.”
Roger Waters, Molson Centre Theater, Montreal, Quebec,
July 31, 1999
The first of the Roger Waters In
The Flesh tour videos reviewed in this column was shot in
a luxury box at the Molson Centre Theater in the upper
left corner of the theater. When the camera pans back you
can see just how high the luxury boxes are elevated.
There is a problem with soft focus on this video.
Everything seems a bit hazy. To make up for this, a
tripod was used. In the early songs of the show, the
camera is slightly unstable before the tripod is set
correctly. Around five songs into the show, the stability
is set but the focus always seems to be soft. From that
point forward this a very well shotvideo. There are
moments where the camera is moved to follow Waters on
stage. Then the video must be stabilized again. This
process flows better as the video continues.
Unfortunately, there is a cut at the very end of Dogs.
While there is also some color distortion at the top of
the screen I grade this video “B” and grade the
audio “VG.”
VIDEO QUALITY RATINGS A Broadcast quality
B Very good, typically a well shot, low generation single
camera recording
C Fair, watchable but with defects, color distortion or
loss of clarity due to high generation
D Poor, difficult to watch
Videos are compared to broadcast quality standards. All
videos are subject to loss of quality through multiple
generations. Single camera recordings may be dark,
obstructed, unstable, out of focus and distant.
“B+” is the top rating for a single camera
video though on rare occasions an exceptional single
camera video may receive an “A” or
“A-.”
AUDIO QUALITY RATINGS
E Broadcast quality
VG Average audience recording
G Difficult to listen to
Audios are compared to FM broadcast quality standards.
Audio audience recordings may lack clarity or include
excessive crowd noise. “VG-E” is usually the
top rating for an audience recording.
Shot from the upper right
balcony of The Omni, Atlanta, GA. When the video starts
the camera is panned back and there is minor obstruction
then the zoom lens goes in for closer shots of the stage.
There is no obstruction. The focus is soft. Camera
stability starts out average and becomes excellent
through the course of the video, especially when the
camera is zoomed in as often as it is. Unfortunately the
video screen is obstructed by the lighting truss. The
color is a bit bright but solid for a camcorder. 
The camera seems
level with the height of the stage at the start of this
video. Obstruction is a problem initially but when the
view is clear this is a very well shot video. The camera
angle is from the right side of the mezzanine section.
The camera is stable and steady. The focus is solid. The
circular screen is obstructed for the most part but when
there’s a clear shot the camera picks it up nicely.
When the camera is zoomed in, Waters fills 2/3 of the
screen from head to toe. There’s a nice shot of the
crew setting up the chair and TV for Nobody Home in the
background while the band is playing Another Brick In The
Wall, Part Two. The Powers That Be is the only song with
a cut besides the opening of the first song, Radio Waves,
and the final song, Four Minutes. I grade the video
“B” and the audio “VG.”
This video begins
with a nice close up of Waters and the band members. When
the video zooms back the entire stage setup fits in the
screen. The close-ups are excellent. At some point in the
video it seems each of the band members are captured in a
close-up from head to toe that fills the screen. The
video is well focused and steady. This is the only video
from the KAOS tour that allows a clear unobstructed shot
of the message board at the back of the stage. While this
is the best shot of the KAOS videos there are problems.
The picture is unusually dark though it improves slightly
in the second set, the color is almost nonexistent, the
projection screen is covered by a lighting truss, and
there are audio problems. Only 2 of the songs have
cuts– Another Brick In The Wall, Part One (while the
tape is paused to switch to the second tape) and Home.
Despite the defects mentioned this is still the best of
the Radio KAOS tour videos. I grade the picture
“B” with the audio “VG.” Without the
defects, this video would easily merit a “B+.”
The first of the Roger Waters In
The Flesh tour videos reviewed in this column was shot in
a luxury box at the Molson Centre Theater in the upper
left corner of the theater. When the camera pans back you
can see just how high the luxury boxes are elevated.
There is a problem with soft focus on this video.
Everything seems a bit hazy. To make up for this, a
tripod was used. In the early songs of the show, the
camera is slightly unstable before the tripod is set
correctly. Around five songs into the show, the stability
is set but the focus always seems to be soft. From that
point forward this a very well shotvideo. There are
moments where the camera is moved to follow Waters on
stage. Then the video must be stabilized again. This
process flows better as the video continues.
Unfortunately, there is a cut at the very end of Dogs.
While there is also some color distortion at the top of
the screen I grade this video “B” and grade the
audio “VG.”