The lack of consensus on the best Pink Floyd album is a testament to their greatness, although few would argue with those who pick The Wall.
While some may disagree that it's the group's greatest record, it certainly is the finest moment of Roger Waters' entire career. Political activism has become the core focus of his public presence over the past few decades, so the imagery and symbolism of the wall have also evolved accordingly over time. After all, it is his brainchild and he has chosen to utilise it for the greater good.
The concept, however, was far more personal for the legendary songwriter when it was conceived. While on tour in 1977, he found himself growing increasingly frustrated with the demands and pressure of the music industry, which had him recording new material and constantly being on the move to perform, and that took its toll on him.
Shaped by his own experiences and the deteriorating mental health of former bandmate and friend Syd Barrett, The Wall's primary character Pink's descent into madness, as heard on the album and depicted in the film, was a reflection of the disconnect Waters felt from his fans and bandmates. Ultimately, he felt like there was a wall separating him from everyone else who made Pink Floyd possible.
Unlike the group's last three albums, he decided not to work with design group Hipgnosis for the cover art of their next record and instead summoned cartoonist Gerald Scarfe, who had helped with the stage design of the Wish You Were Here tour. Sharing a similar worldview, which the animator described as "ironic" and "sardonic" in a 2022 interview with The Telegraph, the two had become friends, revelling in a level of trust between both creatives that allowed the artwork to take shape effortlessly and organically.
"From my point of view, it was a happy arrangement," Scarfe shared, "because Roger in no way tried to impose himself on my work. He had the philosophy that if you employ an artist, you don't try to change what he does. We were working in separate fields, music and art, and yet the two helped one another. He saw the whole sleeve as being designed by me, but it was Roger's idea from the beginning that it should be a blank wall."
What's more, the writing on the wall (there's a clever joke in here somewhere) as seen on the cover that reads 'Pink Floyd' and 'The Wall' was actually scribbled in a rush. Although the artist says he would put a lot more time and effort into the illustration if he had the opportunity to redo it, the font has since become an essential part of the package.
"We were actually worried about blemishing the purity of the cover, and almost wanted not to have a logo on the front," he revealed. In fact, several physical editions of the double album feature just a blank wall, which captures the essence of the rock opera from a different angle.
Different from the intricate concepts and designs by Hipgnosis, the façade of The Wall was plain, simple and straightforward, but what made it particularly haunting was the fact that the album's music and its themes were the exact opposite: disturbing, mind-boggling and nightmarish.