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Pink Floyd Reunited With Roger Waters 10 Years Ago This Week

By Andy Greene

Andy Greene

Exactly 10 years ago this week — on July 2nd, 2005, to be exact — the classic lineup of Pink Floyd reunited for a stunning four-song set at Live 8 . It was their first time playing together since T he Wall tour ended in June 1981, and the tragic death of Floyd keyboardist Richard Wright in 2008 means it’ll be the last time as well.

Pink Floyd hadn’t existed in any form for over a decade when Bob Geldof began assembling a lineup of bands to play the international Live 8 concerts, which were designed to pressure the world leaders at the coming G8 summit in Scotland to dramatically increase their aid to poor nations. Twenty years earlier, Geldof commanded a great deal of media attention when he reunited Led Zeppelin, the Who, Black Sabbath and CSNY at Live Aid, so he knew reforming another legendary band would be crucial to the success of the shows.

Aware that David Gilmour would likely be the member of the band most opposed to the idea, he called him first — and was quickly shot down. Undeterred, Geldof hopped a train down to Gilmour’s home, and kept going when Gilmour phoned him midway through the trip to say, “Don’t bother.” Gilmour didn’t budge even after a home visit, so Geldof phoned up Floyd drummer Nick Mason next. “Bob asked if I could help broker a deal with David,” Mason wrote in his 2005 memoir Inside Out: A Personal History of Pink Floyd . “I said no, simply because I thought that adding my voice to the swell might not sway him — in fact, it might have completely the opposite effect.”

Mason decided instead to e-mail Roger Waters . The former bandmates were estranged for years, but a chance encounter three years earlier on the Caribbean island of Mustique lead to a renewal of their friendship. Waters was immediately down with the idea and phoned up Gilmour, who expressed fear that they didn’t have adequate time to rehearse and he was simply too out of practice. But just one day later, he called back and said he was willing to do it.

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Richard Wright was quick to sign onto the plan after Gilmour agreed, and just 10 days before the show they group came together at the Connaught Hotel in London to craft a set list. Old tensions quickly resurfaced. “The first meeting was pretty stilted and cagey,” said Gilmour. “The songs that Roger wanted to do where not the same ones that I thought we should do. Roger wanted to do ‘Another Brick in the Wall,’ but I didn’t think it was appropriate. This was a thing for Africa and I didn’t think that little children in Arica should be signing, ‘We don’t need no education.’ There was no argument. I was absolutely right.”

Waters countered with the idea of playing “In the Flesh” and “Run Like Hell,” but the others felt they were too confrontational. They ultimately went with “Breathe,” “Money,” “Wish You Were Here” and “Comfortably Numb.” They were joined by guitarist Tim Renwick, keyboardist Jon Carin, saxophonist Dick Parry and backup singer Carol Kenyon.

The reunited Pink Floyd took the stage at London’s Hyde Park at 11:23 p.m., right after the Who. “It’s actually quite emotional standing up here with these three guys after all these years,” Waters said before ‘Wish You Were Here.’ “Standing to be counted with the rest of you. Anyway, we’re doing this for anyone that’s not here. But particularly, of course, for Syd [Barrett].”

The 24-minute set was the highlight of the entire worldwide concert. They could have easily taken the momentum and organized a worldwide reunion tour that would have earned all four of them unimaginable sums of money, but that didn’t even come close to happening. “I don’t really need it,” Waters told Rolling Stone one month after Live 8. “It would be a very hot ticket. That said, I didn’t mind rolling over for one day, but I couldn’t roll over for a whole fucking tour.”

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That said, the show did help bring Waters and Gilmour marginally closer together. “[David] did send me an e-mail afterward,” Waters said. “It said, ‘Hi, Rog, I’m glad you made that phone call. It was fun, wasn’t it?’ So he obviously had fun.”

The Gilmour-led lineup of Floyd reunited in May 2007 at a Syd Barrett tribute show, and Gilmour and Mason joined Waters at one of his Wall shows in London four years ago. But Gilmour has made it abundantly clear that he’s done with Pink Floyd forever. “The thought of it makes me break out in a cold sweat,” he told Rolling Stone last year. “I’m an older person. I’m really enjoying my life. I’m really enjoying the music that I am making, and there’s no room for Pink Floyd.”

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The Day Pink Floyd Played Their Final Concert With Roger Waters

Roger Waters played his last complete concert with Pink Floyd more than four years before officially parting ways . Waters joined David Gilmour , Richard Wright and Nick Mason on June 17, 1981 at Earls Court in London for the final date of The Wall tour.

But this wasn't the end of any old tour . To promote Pink Floyd's sinister rock opera, the band created a massive stage show that required eight additional musicians and more than 80 crew members. Gerald Scarfe's gruesome animations played on giant projectors, huge balloon characters menaced the audience and (in a moment of sledgehammer symbolism) an enormous wall was erected onstage between the band and its fans.

Because of the all of the unparalleled spectacle of The Wall shows, Pink Floyd eschewed the usual multi-city tour in favor of setting up camp in a few cities in the U.S. and Europe and doing short runs of performances. Between February 1980 and June 1981, the band played 31 of these concerts in Los Angeles, New York, London and Dortmund, West Germany, before returning to London for five more shows.

The story goes that Waters — who conceived and wrote the majority of the songs on The Wall   — pushed for the last five London shows in order to film them and then include the footage in a feature film. Waters' original plan was that he would star in The Wall movie, which would incorporate scenes from Pink Floyd concerts. In the end, Waters was replaced as lead actor by another singer, Bob Geldof , which made the concert stuff with Waters incompatible. Regardless, the live footage was determined to be dark, grainy and unsuitable for theatrical presentation.

Alan Parker, who would direct Pink Floyd's The Wall , later described the attempts to film the concert version of The Wall as "five blown opportunities." Meanwhile, guitarist and singer Gilmour would claim that only a handful of songs were appropriately captured by the cameras. "About 20 minutes were shot — for example, 'Hey You,' where the camera was behind the wall focusing on us, then it went up and over the wall onto the audience," Gilmour told Record Collector . "That's a great bit of footage. But only three tracks were filmed."

Even though the impetus for the concerts failed to pan out, the last five gigs still served as a swan song for Floyd's core four — not that it was the most pleasant of experiences. For instance, keyboardist Wright had previously been ushered out of the band by Waters and participated in The Wall  shows as a salaried sideman. Ironically, Wright was the only member to make money off the shows. The other guys all took losses on the deal because of the expense of such a spectacle.

Years later, Wright would become a full member of Pink Floyd once again, but only after the exit of Waters. Before he left, Waters made one more Floyd record, 1983's  The Final Cut , which many fans consider a Waters solo album in all but name, because of his bandmates' limited involvement.

After releasing an actual solo disc, The Pros and Cons of Hitchhiking , in 1984, Waters tried to disband Pink Floyd, only to discover that the other guys were interested in keeping the group alive. After some ugly litigation, Gilmour, Wright and Mason soldiered on under the Pink Floyd banner. Waters retained the rights to The Wall , which he later performed in concert as a solo artist.

Pink Floyd's most famous lineup got together one more time, though it wasn't for a complete performance. Gilmour, Wright, Mason and Waters gathered for a brief set at the request of Geldof (Waters' replacement in The Wall  movie) during 2005's Live 8 benefit concert in London, playing a handful of songs – including one that Pink Floyd last performed with all four members back in June 1981: "Comfortably Numb."

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Pink Floyd Setlist at Hyde Park, London, England

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• Song played from tape Speak to Me Play Video
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Note: First and only concert with Roger Waters since 1981.

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31 activities (last edit by GorgeMutonChop , 11 Mar 2024, 23:34 Etc/UTC )

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So launched ten hours of music and message - billed as "the biggest and best rock concert the world has ever seen", Live 8, on 2nd July 2005, was a collection of some of music's greatest acts from the past and present, with concerts held in countries worldwide. The shows were in aid of a message, not money - the message being that poverty and death in Africa is avoidable if just eight men, gathered in a room in Edinburgh in July, make the right decisions.

Twenty years previously, the world was witness to a unique event - the original Live Aid. Sadly, present day conditions in the African continent forced the hand of Bob Geldof to act again, to raise the profile of the problem, with the hope that, once and for all, the situation is resolved for good. As we were shown on the video screens, 50,000 children die a day from extreme poverty.

As a father to two small boys, the message hit home on a very personal level. From the atmosphere in London's Hyde Park during the day (where the UK show was), many of the other 205,000 felt the same.

The day began with good natured streams of people converging on the park, which is right in the centre of the capital. An optomistic vibe travelled along the streets, a flutter of excitement and wonder.

Standing halfway along Park Lane, looking at the preparations for the event (and for the Gay Pride March taking place around lunchtime, next to the park), we heard some last minute rehearsals. It was very strange to be in London, at 10:30am on a Saturday morning, hearing Paul McCartney and U2 going through their set!

Despite long queues (stretching some three kilometres around the perimeter of the park) the crowds waiting to go in seemed very good natured, and the British spirit of queuing showed itself in its best light. Matters were helped by the Live 8 signs dotted along the route, giving encouraging messages to those waiting.

Fast forward a few hours - the gates are open, people are streaming into the park, getting into position for what promises to be a fascinating show (and a longer one than anyone suspected). A predictable scrum surrounds the merchandising, with t-shirts and programmes being snapped up, and tempers start fraying as the concert start looms and the harried staff, overstretched, struggle to serve their customers.

It was the first time that Macca had performed the full version of "Sgt Peppers", and with U2 as his backing musicians, a great way to start the show. Into the U2 set proper, and "Beautiful Day" sets the mood wonderfully. What could be seen as cheesy, watching at home on TV, hits exactly the right chord in the park, when a flock of doves are released midsong, to wheel over the crowd. At one point, Bono reminds the crowd: "This is our chance to stand up for what's right".

Sir Elton John is introduced (no doubt to utter bewilderment worldwide!) by Lou and wheelchair-bound Andy, characters from the BBC's popular comedy series "Little Britain", and gives the crowd a couple of his livelier tracks - "Bitch Is Back"/"Saturday Night's Alright", before introducing "one of the best new talents of the moment, Pete Doherty ".

The Babyshambles singer staggers onto the stage, and gives his carcrash performance of T Rex's "Children of the Revolution". Mouths are agape as the song comes to an end...

Female singer Dido runs through a well-judged, calm set, with Youssou N'Dour guesting on "Thank You" and "7 Seconds", which was received extremely well. This was followed by the Stereophonics , who got a good but not ecstatic reception.

Despite her best efforts, Miss Dynamite failed to grab much attention, and provided a good time for many to head off for the burger vans and dubious portable toilets, being around three hours into the show.

Many people see Bob Geldof as a hero, and who would therefore deny him a turn on the stage to run through "I Don't Like Mondays"? The expected pause came with "...and the lesson today, is how to die", and even if the impact felt at that moment in the original Live Aid concert was lesser, 20 years later, it still sent a shiver down the spine.

The poignant "Why" started Annie Lennox 's emotional performance, with video footage of AIDS-ridden little children - especially poignant when the footage ended, telling us that a large number of the children in the film had since died. "Sweet Dreams", the Eurythmics classic, concluded her set, to tumultuous applause.

For many, another lull in the acts followed, with UB40 running through a competent if rather tired set of their better known singalongs, Snoop Dogg and his cohorts throwing in lots of unnecessary swearwords, and Razorlight , a new band out to make an impression. As one of my friends said during their act: "If they are half as good as they think they are, they are absolutely fantastic!" The lead singer, Johnny Borrell, did both the standard media attention grabbers of taking off the shirt, and jumping off the stage to get closer to the audience. Or was it the cameramen?

Bob returns to the stage while the crew do the changeover for the next act. To the eventual accompaniment of The Car's "Drive" (a technical glitch had Geldof bellowing at the crew to sort out the sound), we see the 1985 footage that shocked the world into action. Bob stood in the middle of the stage, watching the footage, and at the end, dared anyone to applaude. With tears in most eyes, the film had obviously lost none of its power.

Madonna went down as one of the best received acts on the day, getting the crowd clapping along with "Ray Of Light" and "Music". Dressed all in white, along with her band and large choir, Madonna caught the attention and despite not dancing as vigorously as she might have done in the past, she still showed her command of an audience.

Five artists followed - all of which of smaller stature, and keeping the crowd going until the heavyweights arrived on stage later on. Hamstrung by most of the audience being unfamiliar with their work, the bands still gamely plugged away, making an impression on many, if not for the music, for the effort they put in.

With time moving apace, it certainly felt like the first of these - Snow Patrol and The Killers - had their sets chopped down (indeed, The Killers even used some of Snow Patrol's instruments). Joss Stone hit the stage some seven hours into the show, and her impressive vocal talents nudged a weary crowd into life.

Next up, the Scissor Sisters . Presumably in deference to Pink Floyd, there was no airing of their biggest hit, but "Laura" and "Take Your Mama" got the crowd bouncing up and down, as the clouds parted for the first time that day, giving a glorious sunset over the back of the crowd.

With time cracking on, it was getting on for 9:30pm when Sting reached the stage. The ex-Police frontman had the crowd singing along with "Message In A Bottle", delivered a powerful "Driven To Tears", and changed the lyrics to "Every Breath You Take", putting a new focus on the G8 leaders - who appeared on the screens behind him.

Certainly, many of us in the audience were feeling very twitchy when Mariah Carey appeared at around 10pm. The show was already half an hour over it's extended finishing time, and looking at the running order, there were still many artists to go. Would they all appear? Would they have their sets curtailed?

Alternately booing and laughing at her, the audience, in my section at least, seemed aghast at her behaviour. With the clock ticking, no-one was interested in her fancies. To make matters worse, Carey then, cynically, performed her new single.

Thankfully, with the schedule dramatically askew, and public transport services close to their nighttime end, the stage crew were starting to get a lot snappier, and the transition for the final acts was much better (even if The Who took their time reaching the stage).

Next up, the irrepressable Robbie Williams , someone who easily won over the crowd and had everyone singing along. Never taking himself seriously, he's a great entertainer with great songs - the perfect combination for big gigs. Starting with "We Will Rock You", a tribute to the absent Queen, he ran through "Let Me Entertain You", "Feel", and an emotional "Angels" which was THE singalong of the whole show.

The Who , looking older and not in the best of moods, thundered their way through "Who Are You?" and a blistering "Won't Get Fooled Again". They may be not as young as many of the other artists (and the black and white used throughout their set on the videoscreens certainly added to the years on their faces), but they still showed just how powerful they could be. One curious thing though... part way through their set, the screen behind them showed a green heartbeat for around 10 seconds. A bit of a giveaway of what was to follow!

"Home, home again..."

Almost on the dot of 11pm, came the only band that didn't have (or didn't need?) an introduction. The stage shrouded in darkness, with the heartbeat showing on all the screens this time, and the sound of that vital organ thudded around Hyde Park. I spot the backstage curtain being moved, stage right, and see David Gilmour, with a huge smile on his face. This bodes well...

A hushed anticipation gripped the crowd. Even the non Floydheads were aware of how big a moment this was - and the atmosphere was electric.

On walk the band - Gilmour, Nick Mason, Richard Wright, Jon Carin (who is stationed in the dry ice and darkness, behind Richard), and Tim Renwick. Oh and Roger Waters... Us fortunate ones down the front send up a roar of appreciation, which spread like a wave to the back of the park, adding to the cheers for the start of Speak To Me. An incredible reception - the biggest of the show?

Whilst we all knew that Roger was appearing with them - after all, it was THE story of the event, for a couple of weeks beforehand (following those momentous phone calls on the night of Friday 10th June), it was still a very strange, but wonderful, sight to see him on stage next to David. After all, most Floyd fans in the audience were either too young, or not even born, the last time that happened!

With the heartbeats in the air building, and the trace on the screen slowing disolving to a moon, the lights around the stage died, leaving everything shrowded in darkness. The scream builds, and "Breathe" starts with no indication that the four of them had ever been away, or apart for all those years. The tightest of starts, fluid and beautiful, and setting the scene for their whole set.

In a nod to the location, and the history of the band, the screen behind showed Algie the pig floating between the chimneys of Battersea Power Station. (I was later to discover that a BBC cameraman panned across to the REAL building, to the right of the stage in the distance. Nice!)

As David moved from his slide guitar to take the vocal, faces within the band were still pretty serious. The occasion seemed to be impressing itself on them; maybe not the 205,000 in the park, nor the 2 billion-plus worldwide audience, but the occasion of being back after some 24 years, playing a song they last did as a team back in 1975.

First line over, and faces relaxed. This was going well - very well indeed. Roger mouths some of the lyrics, turns and exchanges a huge smile with Nick. Richard, along with Nick and Roger, looks around too - David is the only one faced forward throughout - concentrating on delivering the words. A powerful bridge between "Breathe" and "Breathe Reprise" is a nice touch. "Breathe Reprise" commences with a great run down the fretboard from Roger, during "Home, home again...", taking the mood down again from the dynamic bridge.

David still looks pretty nervous at this point, but seems to calm a little after exchanging a brief smile with Roger. A wonderful start to proceedings...

They bring the song to its conclusion, and a "Thank You!" from Roger leads to the sound of coins jingling. The familiar bass refrain of "Money" kicks in, and despite a slight timing issue at the start (the looped sound effect running at a different speed to the instrumentation) the band soon fell into the groove of a song that they've played so many times before.

This was the first time I'd seen them so visibly enjoy running through it, though. The tiredness seen on the umpteenth performance, as part of a long tour, was nowhere to be seen. And neither were backing singers, adding in a tired "woo-hoo" throughout. This was a stripped-back-to-basics performance - how the song should be heard. With Dick Parry coming on to provide sax duties, and a great reading from all the musicians, this was a joy.

Missed on the TV broadcast was the way that messrs Gilmour and Waters delivered the final, crashing note of the song - facing each other, bringing the almost vertical necks of their guitars down decisively and in unison.

It is Syd who's face appears on the screen behind them, and provides the focus for the vocal, shared between David and Roger.

And so, onto the song that was to conclude this most remarkable and unexpected reunion. With a matter-of-fact "Here we go" from Roger, the band launched into one of the tightest, and certainly the most memorable, versions of "Comfortably Numb" I've ever heard.

The screens fade to black, and the lights on the stage dim. A solid red screen fades up, which is repeated throughout the concert arena (meaning only those close to the stage can see what the musicians are doing - but then I guess this echoes the original 1980/81 shows with the band behind The Wall) as Roger takes up the vocal. Another lovely duet with David, who has his vocal augmented with Carol Kenyon, providing added depths to his tender delivery.

The first solo starts, Nick takes off his headphones (worn just for the first part of this song), and the red screen turns into a white wall. Next verse, and the wall has turned blood red again; Nick looks lost in the moment, eyes shut, taking it all in.

The final solo sees the white wall again, and Gerald Scarfe's red pen slowly and deliberately writes MAKE POVERTY HISTORY over the left, middle and right hand stage screens...as David rips out one of the most blistering solos ever on his black Strat. And then it was over, with the final crashing chords echoing into the London night sky.

Instruments get put down, and the foursome convene at the front of the stage. Then came the moment we never thought we'd see - the four of them, arm-in-arm, revelling in the moment and thanking the crowd for the incredible reception. Any doubts they must have had before going on, surely were swept away.

At almost 25 minutes long, Pink Floyd had the longest set in the show. And they made the most of it - a remarkable, moving, unforgettable performance...and with the songs stripped back to basics, with little of the (in some cases) unneccessary frills added in later years. Each member of the band appeared at various point to be lost in the music, the angst and anger of the preceeding years stripped away and forgotten, to leave a band, together, playing its heart out - standing up to be counted for what they believe in, and showing an awareness of what is really important in this brief thing we call life.

Throughout their set, the electronic message board above the stage was unchanged: "NO MORE EXCUSES" it read. Referring to the G8 summit, it made a fitting message from the band, even if it was unintentional. It might well have proved too much of a distraction to cycle round the messages that it was displaying the whole day.

Some fifteen minutes later (if you're going to overrun, you might as well do it in style!) on comes the man who started the show, some nine and a half hours earlier. Beatles legend Paul McCartney was a great choice to finish the show... and launched straight into "Get Back". "Drive My Car" sees George Michael come on to sing with Macca, George's excellent vocal proving the perfect blend.

I was astonished to hear "Helter Skelter" performed next - this Lennon and McCartney song from "The White Album" is rarely heard performed or on the radio, so many of the audience, whilst enjoying it, didn't seem to know it. It's one of their rockier tracks (and indeed, at the end Ringo screams "I've got blisters on my fingers!") and went down a storm. Wonderful to hear this!

"The Long And Winding Road", as promised, finished the concert proper. The idea of the concert, was to start the journey to Edinburgh to present the people's views to the G8 leaders - and it would indeed be a long and winding road for many.

All that was required, was the big singalong finale. On comes Gilmour, one of the first, who plonks himself down next to Macca on his piano stool and takes his microphone. Stationing himself behind the grand piano, Gilmour is joined by many of the artists for "Hey Jude". Amongst those was Nick and Rick - but, curiously, no sign of Roger for this last song.

Streaming out of Hyde Park, virtually everyone is in a tired, but exhilerated mood. The now-finished public transport for most preys on the mind, but fails to dampen the spirits. When you are faced with a once-in-a-lifetime show, it is very difficult to leave before the end. A number of people had to make that incredibly difficult decision, and their sadness was written all over their faces as they made their way through the crowd, while the headliners were still to make their appearance.

With hindsight, there was plenty the organisers could have done to improve the situation, and stop the show from overrunning some two and a half hours. The stage changes in the early stages were painfully slow, and the antics of some performers, either taking too long to reach the stage (The Who) or spending too long on stage, not doing much (Mariah Carey), had a huge impact.

Still, it was a wonderful, memorable, emotional day, with a hugely important message that made itself felt throughout the crowd - and nothing on this scale could ever have gone totally smoothly. The many highlights thoroughly outweighed minor niggles, and made them seem almost insignificant. On a mixed bill, too, there will always be parts of the show less interesting than others.

It was clear though, that whilst most artists were content to just come on and play some songs (and in many cases, did so extremely well), it was only the Floyd that really made the most of it, and put on a proper show to stick in the memory. There were no tricks - no elaborate fireworks, no shirts taken off - just the music and the emotion. And much of this, sadly, could never be captured by television cameras.

As someone said to me in a text message in the morning: "We are part of history. Enjoy it." And boy - we certainly did!

• 11th Jun 24 - Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets - Stoke-on-Trent, - England - Buy Tix
• 12th Jun 24 - Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets - York, - UK - Buy Tix
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• 19th Jun 24 - Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets - Manchester, - England - Buy Tix
• 21st Jun 24 - Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets - Glasgow, - Scotland - Buy Tix
• 22nd Jun 24 - Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets - Gateshead, - England - Buy Tix
• 24th Jun 24 - Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets - Cardiff, - Wales - Buy Tix
• 25th Jun 24 - Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets - Poole, - England - Buy Tix
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• 2nd Jul 24 - Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets - Utrecht, - The Netherlands - Buy Tix
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• 10th Jul 24 - Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets - Portoroz, - Slovenia - Buy Tix
• 16th Jul 24 - Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets - Graz, - Austria - Buy Tix
• 18th Jul 24 - Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets - Milan, MI - Italy - Buy Tix
• 19th Jul 24 - Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets - Vicenza, - Italy - Buy Tix
• 20th Jul 24 - Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets - Bologna, BO - Italy - Buy Tix
• 21st Jul 24 - Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets - Rome, RM - Italy - Buy Tix
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• 30th Jul 24 - Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets - Berlin, - Germany - Buy Tix
• 31st Jul 24 - Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets - Hamburg, - Germany - Buy Tix
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'Welcome to the greatest rock concert in the world'

"Ladies and gentlemen, it's two o'clock. Welcome to the greatest rock concert in the world." Thus began simultaneous Live 8 shows in London, Paris, Rome and Berlin. Other concerts worldwide made this the biggest ever music event, with millions attending and billions more watching on television.

Backstage, Bob Geldof said: "Everything that's rock 'n' roll is ever meant to be is happening now." The man who organised the whole spectacle admitted that he only finally relaxed once the concert got under way. "There's nothing more to do now - it's either crap or it's great and so far it's great," he told reporters a couple of hours into the blockbusting event.

First off was Paul McCartney who opened proceedings in Hyde Park with a rendition of Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (opening line, "It was 20 years ago today"), backed by musicians dressed in the iconic Sgt Pepper brightly coloured uniforms. Bono and U2 then took over, performing It's a Beautiful Day with lyrics especially customised for the event. Overhead, grey clouds gathered, but the crowd greeted the performers enthusiastically.

Following U2 were Coldplay , who opened with In My Place. Among the spectators were Chris Martin's wife, Gwyneth Paltrow and their daughter Apple. Richard Ashcroft sang his best known song, Bitter Sweet Symphony, backed by Coldplay. Martin sneaked in a small tribute to Status Quo - who opened Live Aid 20 years previously, singing a few words from their song Rocking All Over The World. The singer called Bob Geldof "a hero" and thanked the organiser, referring to those who were cynical as "stupid". Their brief set ended with Fix You. Elton John performed next, closing with a duet with Pete Doherty . The two sang Children of the Revolution.

Geldof then made a brief appearance, to introduce Bill Gates as "the greatest philanthropist of our age." Gates - the richest man in the world - and his wife Melinda have given $5bn (£2.82bn) towards relieving poverty. Gates paid tribute to Geldof and the event's other organisers. "I believe that if you show people the problems and you show them the solutions they will be moved to act," he said.

"I have learned that success depends on knowing what works and bringing resources to the problem. We know what to do. The generosity we are asking for can save millions of lives. Some day in the future all people no matter where they are born will be able to lead a healthy life."

Dido was up next. The North Londoner sang White Flag, and then was joined on stage by Sengalese singer Youssou N'Dour to sing her breakthrough hit, Thank You. The two also performed N'Dour's 1994 smash hit Seven Seconds. Both singers played later at the Eden Project in Cornwall, where over 4,000 people were watching some of Africa's best musicians. Acts on the bill there included Thomas Mapfumo from Zimbabwe and his group the Blacks Unlimited, dynamic female vocalist Maryam Mursal from Somalia, and Senegalese hip hop group Daara J.

Eden's organiser Peter Gabriel spoke earlier of his "disappointment" that Geldof could not have made more space for black artists on the bill at Hyde Park. "I am very happy that we are here today," he said. "It was important that there was the opportunity for African voices to be heard." Guest presenters at the Cornwall event included Angelina Jolie.

Eden's chief executive Tim Smit said: "What is so exciting about hosting this is that what has been created is a cultural palette and people can get a chance to hear a wide range of sounds of Africa. It is very moving and emotional and I hope it catches the mood of the time."

At Hyde Park, Stereophonics followed Dido, and then Ricky Gervais introduced REM . Gervais reprised his famous dance routine from BBC TV series The Office, for "the first and last time only" to the delight of the crowd.

Thousands of people gathered in city centres in Manchester, Wrexham, Cardiff, Birmingham, Liverpool, Hull, Leeds, Gateshead, Bournemouth, Plymouth, Belfast, Inverness and the Channel Islands where screens had been erected to allow people to watch the event free of charge.

Ms Dynamite was followed by Keane , who played Everybody's Changing and Somewhere Only We Know, to roars of approval.

Razorlight frontman Johnny Borrell chatted backstage before his band's set. "I'm not nervous," he told reporters. "I can't wait to get out there. It's great to be here, taking part in something that needs to be done," he said. Borrell is too young to remember the original Live Aid concert of 1985. "This is not about what happened 20 years ago," he said, "This is about today. My message to the G8 leaders is that this is their chance to make a lot of difference in the world and to come back fulfilling their promises rather than coming back with empty promises. This is their chance to show the world politics is not just showbusiness for ugly people."

At 5pm Geldof came on stage to announce that more than three billion people were watching the event. Over in Philadelphia, events were just beginning, with Will Smith on stage to open the US's Live 8 concert. The actor and singer introduced live link-ups with the crowds in Berlin, Paris and Canada. He spoke of a Declaration of "Interdependence," and urged the crowds to help end world poverty. "Every three seconds, somebody's son, somebodys' daughter, somebody's future is gone. Dead" he said. "With a stroke of a pen eight men can make a difference and end the misery of millions of people."

Geldof returned to the stage in London, this time as a performer. "I know it's cheeky, but I couldn't resist playing on this stage," he told the crowd. He sang a powerful version of the Boomtown Rats' hit single, I Don't Like Mondays. "Thanks for letting me do that," he said, leaving the stage to huge cheers.

Annie Lennox was introduced by Brad Pitt . The Hollywood star talked about the first trip he made to Africa: "I was startled by a young woman with Aids, who grabbed my arm and said 'Please bring us the drugs, please help'.

"By this time tomorrow evening, another 30,000 Africans will have died because of extreme poverty. This does not make sense. This is why we are here tonight."

Former Eurythmics singer Lennox picked up where Pitt had left off. "We are here today to urge the leaders of the G8 summit to take action for the people of Africa and all the nations where poverty and despair are a way of life," she said.

Her set included Why, Little Bird, followed by the Eurythmics' classic single Sweet Dreams.

UB40 were next on stage. They performed a crowd-pleasing set consisting of a medley of Food for Thought, Who you Fighting For, Reasons, Red Red Wine and Can't Help Falling in Love with You.

As evening drew on, US rapper Snoop Dogg upped the ante with Ups and Downs, What's My Name, Drop It, and Nuthin But AG Thang. Celebrities including Sir Paul McCartney and Victoria and David Beckham were spotted nodding in time to the music in the crowd.

"It's the biggest event that ever happened in my career, in my life," said the rapper after his performance. "There are so many people watching around the world and it's for a great cause."

Snoop, sporting a white jacket with a large gold medallion in the shape of a pistol underneath, was also the first act to swear live on stage.

He certainly wasn't the last. Young guns Razorlight strutted on stage, determined to make an impact. Frontman Johnny Borrell got the crowd going with chart hits Somewhere Else, Golden Touch and Vice. "We are here to make poverty history and we have a chance," said the singer. "If we can make enough noise then we can make them listen so have a good time and whatever you do, make sure you make a lot of fucking noise."

Geldof reappeared to introduce 24-year-old Birhan Woldu, one of the starving children featured in footage broadcast during the original Live Aid concert. Geldof explained that through Live Aid money, Ms Woldu's life was saved, and now, 20 years later, she has just passed her agricultural exams at home in Ethiopia. Madonna clasped the young woman's hand, keeping tight hold while performing set opener Like a Prayer.

The queen of pop and her band were dressed all in white, like many of tonight's performers. The famously foul-mouthed singer asked London if it was "fucking ready? Ready to start a revolution? Ready to change history?"

She also sang Ray of Light and Music. "I was so hyped up with adrenaline I don't remember it actually happened," Madonna said afterwards. "It's surreal to see so many people in front of you. It's the biggest audience I've ever played to and the closest to home I've ever played. I'm pretty sure my kids could hear me singing, they live just down the street from the park."

Next on were Snow Patrol who played Chocolate, followed by the anthemic Run. A barefoot Joss Stone - at 19 the youngest performer on the London lineup, performed Super Duper Love and I had a Dream.

Shortly after 8pm The Scissor Sisters bounced onto stage. Singer Ana Matronic told the crowd to "put on your dancing shoes", and the New York group sang Laura, Take Your Mama, and a new song - the first act to do so - called Everybody Wants the Same Thing.

Matronic told the crowd they were going to "rewrite history."

A definite change of pace and style came with Velvet Revolver , just before 9pm. The American quintet, an offshoot of Guns 'n Roses, sang Do It for the Kids, Fall to Pieces, and Slither. Among those in the audience at Hyde Park apparently enjoying the generic heavy metal set was Paris Hilton. Jonathan Ross, having a Spinal Tap moment, was less enthusiastic. "You can come out now," he told TV viewers.

Sting followed, performing hits including Message in a Bottle and Every Breath You Take. Mariah Carey , backed by the African Children's Choir, and, true to form, wearing a dress at least two sizes too small, sang Make It Happen, Hero and We Belong Together.

As night fell, David Beckham came on stage to introduce "his good friend" Robbie Williams . Williams is one of the day's most eagerly anticipated performers. His arrival brought a much needed shot of adrenalin; he opened with Queen's We Will Rock You, segueing into Let Me Entertain You, mixed with the Killers' "I've got soul but I'm not a soldier" riff. A rendition of his classic track Angels finished the brief set.

Peter Kay apologised for not being Robbie, and led the crowd in a mass karaoke version of Do You Know the Way to Amarillo? The comedian introduced "the Spice Girls! No. The Who ? The Who! " Appropriately enough, the classic band performed Who Are You and Won't Get Fooled Again. Half an hour later, huge applause greeted Pink Floyd 's arrival on stage at 11pm. Today's concert marks the first time the legendary band have played together in over 20 years. Speaking earlier to reporters, they were reluctant to suggest this could be the start of a reunion tour.

Under the slogan NO MORE EXCUSES the band played Breathe, Money, Wish You Were Here and then finished with Comfortably Numb.

And finally, nine and a half hours since he opened the extraordinary day, Paul McCartney returned to the stage, wearing jeans and a white shirt, carrying his guitar. Macca, looking tired, opened with Get Back. "I remember you lot from this morning," he quipped. George Michael joined McCartney for Baby You Can Drive My Car.

The concert closed at midnight, three hours late, with a mass rendition of Hey Jude. Most of the day's performers - including Geldof - joined the former Beatle on stage to sing the much-loved tune. The TV coverage continued with The Kaiser Chiefs in Philadelphia, but Jonathan Ross, joined briefly by Michael Buerk, whose TV reports on the Ethopian famine kickstarted the whole Live Aid movement over 20 years ago, and the team at Hyde Park signed off for the night.

The first of the world's concerts kicked off this morning in Tokyo at 6am, and the final notes of music will come from Molson Park in Barrie, Canada, 19 hours later, with today's other concerts in Philadelphia, Moscow, Johannesburg, Paris, Rome, Berlin, Cornwall and London. The Hyde Park concert was broadcast to 85% of the world's population.

Special guest presenters included Brad Pitt introducing Annie Lennox, David Beckham doing the honours for Robbie Williams, Ricky Gervais, and Little Britain stars Matt Lucas and David Walliams. Kofi Annan, Cat Deeley, Davina McCall, Michael Portillo, Chris Evans, Harvey Weinstein and the BBC's political editor Andrew Marr were among the onlookers, with Jonathan Ross introducing the live television coverage.

Earlier in the day, Nelson Mandela appeared on stage in Johannesburg. "Sometimes it falls upon on a generation to be great. You be that great generation. Let your greatness blossom," said the former president of South Africa. "Of course the task will not be easy. But not to do this would be a crime against humanity, against which I ask all humanity now to rise up."

The aim of the concerts is to raise awareness of poverty in developing nations in the run-up to the G8 summit, which takes place in Gleneagles on July 6.

"This is without doubt a moment in history where ordinary people can grasp the chance to achieve something truly monumental and demand from the eight world leaders at G8 an end to poverty," Geldof said.

• Guardian Hear Africa campaign 2005

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Pink Floyd – A Fleeting Glimpse

By the fans - for the fans - est. june 1998.

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Roger Waters This Is Not A Drill 2023 Tour

Roger Waters has announced that he will be taking his This Is Not A Drill tour to Europe in 2023 on what he’s cheekily teasing as his “first farewell tour,” With dates in Spain, Italy, Poland, Czech Republic & additional dates still to follow.

Tickets are on sale now via RogerWaters.com .

“This Is Not A Drill is a groundbreaking new rock & roll/cinematic extravaganza, performed in the round,” Waters wrote in a statement. “It is a stunning indictment of the corporate dystopia in which we all struggle to survive, and a call to action to love, protect, and share our precious and precarious planet home. The show includes a dozen great songs from Pink Floyd’s Golden Era alongside several new ones — words and music, same writer, same heart, same soul, same man. Could be his last hurrah. Wow! My first farewell tour! Don’t miss it. Love, R.”

Tickets may be purchased from Roger Waters.com  OR Ticketmaster

2023 Band Lineup Roger Waters – Bass Guitar / Guitars / Vocals Jon Carin – Keyboards / Guitars / Vocals Robert Walter – Organ Jonathan Wilson – Guitars / Vocals Gus Seyffert – Bass Guitar / Guitar Dave Kilminster – Guitar / Vocals Joey Waronker – Drums / Percussion Seamus Blake – Saxophone Amanda Belair  – Vocals Shanay Johnson   – Vocals

9th December 2023 – Roger Waters concludes his This Is Not A Drill tour in Ecuador! Congratulations to Roger and team! As of now there are no plans for 2024 but as always stay tuned for more information as we get it. 

31st October 2023 – THANK YOU, RIO! 

22nd October 2023 – This Is Not A Drill arrives in South America

10th October 2023 – Roger breaks down track by track The Dark Side Of The Moon Redux, the video was shown live at the London Palladium on both nights before the band played the album in its entirety. The band consisted of a six piece string section fronted by Gabe Noel, a few of the members from Roger’s current touring band: Jon Carin (keyboards/guitars/synth), Jonathan Wilson (guitar), Gus Seyffert (bass), Robert Walter (keyboards/organ) and Joey Waronker (drums) along with Johnny Shepherd (organ, piano, and vocals), Via Mardot on the theremin, and Azniv Korkejian on vocals.

22nd September 2023 –  Longtime Roger Waters guitarist Dave Kilminster appears in a new video from That Pedal Show, its an intriguing interview preceded by a build of his current pedalboard he’s using on Roger’s This Is Not A Drill tour. This one is definitely for the gear enthusiasts! 

29th July 2023 –  Roger adds a 2nd performance for his DSOTM Redux live at the London Palladium taking place on October 9th, 2023. 

Due to demand, a second The Dark Side Of The Moon Redux live performance has been added for October 9th at The London Palladium. Tickets on sale starting today 7/28 at 10am BST here  BUY TICKETS NOW

Joining Waters on stage will be many of the musicians who worked with him on the new recording, including Gus Seyffert (bass), Joey Waronker (drums), Jonathan Wilson (guitars), Johnny Shepherd (organ), Via Mardot (theremin), Azniv Korkejian (vocals), Gabe Noel (strings), Jon Carin (keyboards) and Robert Walter (piano).

25th July 2023 – Roger announces his Dark Side of the Moon Redux being performed live at the London Palladium on October 8th 2023.

“We’re going to do it live at the London Palladium, in October,” confirms Waters. “We look forward to that… hopefully performing it live on other occasions in the future.”

Joining Waters on stage will be many of the musicians who worked with him on the new recording, including Gus Seyffert (bass), Joey Waronker (drums), Jonathan Wilson (guitars), Johnny Shepherd (organ), Via Mardot (theremin), Azniv Korkejian (vocals), Gabe Noel (strings), Jon Carin (keyboards) and Robert Walter (piano).   Tickets go on sale starting July 27th and can be purchased   here

11th June 2023 –   Roger concludes the 2023 ‘This Is Not A Drill’ EU/UK tour in Manchester, UK

26th May 2023 – UPDATED:  Roger adds more South American 2023 ‘This Is Not A Drill’ tour dates!

• October 24th – ARENA BRB MANE GARRINCHA, BRASILIA, BRAZIL –  TICKETS
• October 28th –  ENGENHAO STADIUM, RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – TICKETS
• November 1st –  ESTADIO BEIRA-RIO, PORTO ALEGRE, BRAZIL –  TICKETS
• November 4th – ARENA DA BAIXADA / ESTÁDIO JOAQUIM AMÉRICO GUIMARÃES, CURITIBA, BRAZIL –  TICKETS
• November 8th –  ESTADIO MINEIRAO, BELO HORIZONTE, BRAZIL –  TICKETS
• November 11th –  ALLIANZ PARQUE, SAO PAULO, BRAZIL – TICKETS
• November 12th – ALLIANZ PARQUE, SAO PAULO, BRAZIL – TICKETS 
• November 17th – ESTADIO CENTENARIO, MONTEVIDEO, URUGUAY – TICKETS
• November 21st – ESTADIO RIVER PLATE, BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA – TICKETS
• November 22nd – ESTADIO RIVER PLATE, BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA – TICKETS
• November 25th – ESTADIO MONUMENTAL DAVID ARELLANO, SANTIAGO, CHILE – TICKETS
• November 26th – ESTADIO MONUMENTAL DAVID ARELLANO, SANTIAGO, CHILE – TICKETS
• November 29th – ESTADIO NACIONAL DEL PERU, LIMA, PERU – TICKETS
• December 2nd – ESTADIO NACIONAL, SAN JOSE, COSTA RICA – TICKETS
• December 5th – COLISEO LIVE, BOGOTA, COLUMBIA – TICKETS 
• December 9th – ESTADIO OLIMPICO ATAHUALPA, QUITO, ECUADOR – TICKETS 

5th May 2023 – Roger announces South American 2023 dates! “This Is Not A Drill” is a new, surprising and extravagant rock and roll cinematic experience, it is an impressive denunciation of the corporate dystopia in which we all fight to survive, and a call to action to Love, Protect and Share our precious and precarious planet. The show includes a dozen great songs from the Golden Age of Pink Floyd along with several new ones. Lyrics and music, same writer, same heart, same soul, same man. It could be his last hurrah. Wow! My first farewell tour! Don’t miss it.” With love R. 

URUGUAY – THIS IS NOT A DRILL NOVEMBER 17TH – CENTENARY STADIUM https://accesoya.com.uy/events/roger-… ARGENTINA   – THIS IS NOT A DRILL NOVEMBER 21ST – RIVER PLATE STADIUM https://www.allaccess.com.ar/event/ro… CHILE – THIS IS NOT A DRILL NOVEMBER 25TH – ESTADIO MONUMENTAL https://www.ticketmaster.cl/event/rog…

18th April 2023 – For one night only, Roger Waters, the creative force behind the golden years of Pink Floyd, presents his first Farewell Tour, “This Is Not a Drill”, Live from Prague, in cinemas around the world. This cinematic extravaganza is a stunning indictment of the corporate dystopia in which we all struggle to survive and will include 20 Pink Floyd and Roger Waters classic songs, including: “Us & Them”, “Another Brick In The Wall, Pt. 2”, “Wish You Were Here”, and “Is This The Life We Really Want?”. Waters will also debut his new song, “The Bar”.

29th March 2023 – A behind-the-scenes look at the production of Roger Waters current This Is Not A Drill Tour. The video is narrated by production manager Chris Kansy, who gives a detailed breakdown of the equipment and logistics used on Rogers current run of shows.

27th February 2023 – The city of Frankfurt on Friday announced that it was canceling the forthcoming concert of former Pink Floyd vocalist Roger Waters scheduled for May 28th 2023

A statement from the Central Council of German further urged venues in Hamburg, Berlin, Munich and Cologne hosting Waters’ “This is Not A Drill 2023” tour to reconsider however at the moment of writing no further German dates have been cancelled.

25th September 2022 – R oger Waters’ concerts in Poland have been canceled after he commented on the war in Ukraine. Krakow City Council has said it will discuss declaring the Pink Floyd musician “persona non grata.”

Concerts by Pink Floyd co-founder Roger Waters have been canceled by a venue in the Polish city of Krakow, organizers said on Sunday after the artist’s comments on the war in Ukraine sparked a storm of criticism.

“Live Nation Polska and Tauron Arena Krakow have canceled Roger Waters’ concert,” organizers said in a statement on the venue’s website. However, they did not elaborate on the reason for the cancellation.

On Saturday, state news agency PAP reported that a spokesman for Tauron Arena said Waters’ management had canceled the concert without giving a reason.

Waters was due to perform in Krakow in April 2023, but Polish media reports of an open letter he wrote earlier this month to Ukrainian first lady Olena Zelenska sparked backlash.

In the letter, Waters said the West should stop providing arms to Ukraine, accusing President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of allowing “extreme nationalism” in Ukraine and urging him to “put an end to this deadly war.”

Poland counts itself among Kyiv’s most loyal allies, and public support for the Ukrainian cause is very high.

The Krakow city council is scheduled to debate a motion on Wednesday that would declare Waters “persona non grata.” One of the councillors, Lukasz Wantuch, had urged city residents to boycott the Waters concerts.

“Roger Waters, an open supporter of Putin, wants to play in Krakow … It would be shameful for our city,” Wantuch said earlier on social media. “Let him sing in Moscow.”

In a social media post, Waters denied that he or his management had canceled the concerts and criticized Wantuch, accusing him of “draconian censoring of my work.”

“Lukasz Wantuch seems to know nothing of my history of working, all my life, at some personal cost, in the service of human rights,” Waters said.

Paraphrasing the words of his hit single “Another Brick in the Wall”, Waters also wrote: “Hey! Lukasz Wantuch! ‘Leave them Kids Alone!'”.

He said he had only wanted to urge the countries involved “to work towards a negotiated peace rather than escalate matters towards a bitter end.”

Wantuch said in a Facebook post on Sunday morning that he was in Ukraine and would respond to Waters’ statement in the evening.

David Gilmour says it's 'a possibility' Pink Floyd will perform live again

So you're telling us there's a chance?!

David Gilmour has refused to rule out performing live with the latest incarnation of Pink Floyd .

Back in March 2021, Gilmour categorically ruled out another Pink Floyd reunion saying the band had “run its course” and “I absolutely don’t want to go back.”

However, last month Gilmour and Nick Mason reunited Pink Floyd alongside bass player Guy Pratt and Nitin Sawhney on keyboards, and they premiered the video for their first all-new song in 28 years, ‘Hey Hey Rise Up.’

The charity single features vocals by Andriy Khlyvnyuk of Ukrainian band Boombox and all proceeds from its release are being donated to Ukrainian humanitarian relief following the Russian invasion.

In a recent interview to promote ‘Hey Hey Rise Up’, 76-year-old Gilmour was asked whether he’s planning to take Pink Floyd on the road again.

Although not exactly affirmative in his response, the good news is that he didn’t totally snub the idea.

“We haven’t even thought about doing live shows, but I suppose it’s a possibility,” he says in response to the big question. “I haven’t done one in such a long time, but who knows – I don’t know.”

Back in 2019, Nick Mason said he was "ready" for a Pink Floyd reunion , however he added "I'm certainly not going to hold my breath" due to the conflict between Gilmour and Roger Waters.

Pink Floyd’s last live performance was at Live 8 in 2005, however their last full concert was almost three decades ago at Earls Court in London in October 1994 on the final date of The Division Bell Tour.

Although Nick Mason is on the road right now with Nick Mason’s Saucerful of Secrets, David Gilmour hasn’t played a full live show since his Royal Albert Hall residency in the autumn of 2016.

The cover stars of famous albums revealed, including Pink Floyd's 'Wish You Were Here':

Led zeppelin – ‘led zeppelin iv’ (1971).

On the 52nd anniversary of the release of 'Led Zeppelin IV' on 8th November 2023, it was revealed that the man on the cover was a 19th Century thatcher from Wiltshire called Lot Long. Robert Plant bought the framed colourised photo that adorns the cover of 'Led Zeppelin IV' at an antique shop in Reading, Berkshire, however for over half a century the man's identity remained a mystery. In 2023, Brian Edwards, from the University of the West of England (UWE), discovered the original image in a late Victorian photograph album called 'Reminiscences of a visit to Shaftesbury. Whitsuntide 1892. A present to Auntie from Ernest' by photographer Ernest Farmer. The man in the photo was a thatcher called Lot Long who was born in the market town of Mere, Wiltshire in 1823 and died in 1893. At the time the photograph was taken, Lot was a widower living in a small cottage in Shaftesbury Road, Mere. Brian Edwards said: "Led Zeppelin created the soundtrack that has accompanied me since my teenage years, so I really hope the discovery of this Victorian photograph pleases and entertains Robert, Jimmy, and John Paul."

The photograph of Lot Long is going on display at an Ernest Farmer exhibition called A Photographic Journey through Victorian Wessex that runs at Wiltshire Museum from 6th April to 15th September 2024. "Through the exhibition, we will show how Farmer captured the spirit of people, villages and landscapes of Wiltshire and Dorset that were so much of a contrast to his life in London," says David Dawson, Director of Wiltshire Museum. "It is fascinating to see how this theme of rural and urban contrasts was developed by Led Zeppelin and became the focus for this iconic album cover 70 years later."

Supertramp – Breakfast In America (1979)

The highly comic sleeve for Supertramp's sixth album was designed by Mike Doud and Mick Haggerty, and it resembles the view Manhattan through a plane window. Hilariously, actress Kate Murtagh, dressed as a waitress named "Libby" from a diner, plays the part of The Statue of Liberty, while the buildings in the background features various items of breakfast food, packing, cutlery and condiments.

Kate Murtagh

Los Angeles actress Kate Murtagh in 2014. She sadly died in September 2017 at the age of 96.

Rage Against The Machine – ‘Rage Against The Machine’ (1992)

In keeping with the abrasive and politically-charged music, the hard-hitting cover to Rage Against The Machine's debut album features Malcolm Browne's famous photograph of the self-immolation of Thich Quang Duc, a Vietnamese Buddhist monk, in Saigon in 1963. The monk was protesting President Ngo Dinh Diem's administration for oppressing the Buddhist religion. The photograph drew international attention and persuaded U.S. President John F. Kennedy to withdraw support for Diem's government.

Thich Quang Duc

John F Kennedy said of the Thich Quang Duc photograph: "No news picture in history has generated so much emotion around the world as that one." Malcolm Browne won the World Press Photo of the Year for his photograph of the 65-year-old monk's death. Pictured is The Venerable Thich Quang Duc Monument in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

Van Halen - '5150' (1986)

Van Halen's seventh album '5150' is adorned with an image of the Greek titan Atlas holding a metallic sphere emblazoned with the Van Halen logo. Atlas was played by competitive bodybuilder and host of the ESPN television show BodyShaping, Rick Valente.

Rick Valente

Bodybuilder and Van Halen cover star Rick Valente working out in 2023.

UFO - 'Force It' (1975)

When UFO released their fourth album 'Force It' in 1975, the identity of the semi-nude couple getting amorous in a bathtub remained a mystery. It was later revealed that the models were Genesis P-Orridge and Cosey Fanni Tutti, who founded the music and visual arts group Throbbing Gristle in 1976.

Genesis P-Orridge & Cosey Fanni Tutti

Throbbing Gristle's Genesis P-Orridge (Neil Andrew Megson) and Cosey Fanni Tutti (Christine Carol Newby) standing in a backyard in Hackney, London in 1978.

Van Halen - 'Van Halen III' (1998)

The man on the sleeve to Van Halen's eleventh album 'Van Halen III' is American carnival and vaudeville performer Frank 'Cannonball' Richards. Richards' act involved taking blows to the stomach, including punches heavyweight champion Jack Dempsey, people jumping on his belly, being struck by a sledgehammer and being fired at by a cannon.

Frank ‘Cannonball’ Richards

Here's Frank 'Cannonball' Richards in action in the 1930s stock video that Van Halen lifted their album cover from. Richards died aged 81 in 1969.

Nirvana – 'Nevermind' (1991)

Arguably one of the most famous babies in the world, Spencer Elden was just four months old in 1991 when his parents' friend, photographer Kirk Weddle, shot an image of him submerged in a swimming pool seemingly chasing a dollar bill on a fishhook. Spencer's parents were paid $7,500 for the shoot with Elden's father helping out with the lighting. In 2016, Spencer marked the 25th anniversary of 'Nevermind' by recreating the cover at Rose Bowl Aquatics Center in Pasadena, California with photographer John Chapple. He'd previously recreated it in 2008 aged 17. "It's strange that I did this for five minutes when I was four months old and it became this really iconic image," Spencer said in 2016. "It's cool but weird to be part of something so important that I don't even remember."

Spencer Elden

Here's Spencer Elden in 2016 during an interview with journalist and photographer John Chapple clutching a copy of 'Nevermind' on its 25th anniversary. Spencer now works as an artist and he bears a striking resemblance to a certain late frontman from a 1990s grunge band. In August 2021, Spencer Elden launched legal action against Nirvana accusing them of child sexual exploitation and violating federal child pornography statutes. After multiple rounds of his lawsuit being dismissed, Nirvana's representatives insisted "This case must end."

Alice In Chains – ‘Dirt’ (1992)

For almost two decades it was assumed that the woman buried in sand on the eerie sleeve to Alice In Chain's second studio album 'Dirt' was the late-great Layne Staley's then girlfriend Demri Parrott. However, photographer Rocky Schenck revealed in a 2011 interview with Revolver Magazine it was in fact model and actress Mariah O'Brien. "Everyone always asks if that is Demri Parrott on the "Dirt" Cover," Schenck said. "I think Demri's name might have been mentioned as a possible model once or twice, but it was never a serious consideration."

Mariah O’Brien

Mariah O'Brien pictured at the 2016 Monster Mania Con in New Jersey. After anonymously appearing on the sleeve to 'Dirt', O'Brien starred in movies including Gas, Food Lodging, Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers, Being John Malkovich, and TV shows including Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Charmed and The Nanny. She now works as an interior designer in Los Angeles and owns the company Mariah O'Brien Interiors.

Just a few months before the release of 'Dirt', Mariah O'Brien appeared on the slightly risqué sleeve to Spinal Tap's glam rock 1992 single 'Bitch School.'

Led Zeppelin – 'Houses of the Holy' (1973)

The otherworldly cover image that adorns Led Zeppelin's fifth studio album 'Houses of the Holy' is a collage of several photographs taken at the Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland by Aubrey Powell of Hipgnosis fame. The two children on the cover were siblings Stefan and Samantha Gates who were aged five and seven respectively at the time, and the gruelling shoot took 10 days. The now 53-year-old Stefan Gates is a television presenter and food writer who is perhaps best known for his documentary series Cooking in the Danger Zone. Amazingly, Stefan only listened to 'Houses of the Holy' for the very first time on a boombox at Giant's Causeway in 2010 for a BBC show called Stefan Gates' Cover Story. Stefan also told a BBC Four documentary that he believed there was something slightly 'sinister' about the sleeve, however his sister Samantha disagreed.

Stefan Gates

Houses of the Holy cover star Stefan Gates today hosting his GastronautTV show on YouTube.

The Smashing Pumpkins – 'Siamese Dream' (1993)

The two young girls on the cover of The Smashing Pumpkins are called Ali Laenger and Lysandra Roberts. When the classic Smashing Pumpkins line-up reformed for a tour in 2018, Billy Corgan shared a photo of Laenger and Roberts as adults recreating the iconic artwork. He wrote: "On such a special day in SP history, I want to take a moment to thank Ali and LySandra, who you might know were the little girls that I stood by and watched have their picture taken some 23 years ago (on what was a perfect LA afternoon). Never realizing that this moment in time would forever tie us, and go on to become such an iconic image in rock history. What's amazing is their chemistry with one another still leaps through the camera to this day and yet if memory serves they'd never met before that Siamese shoot. Which tells me their coming together, and the beauty that Melodie's shot captures, of youth and innocence, was meant to be SP's own, personal lucky star. So thank you thank you thank you Ali and LySandra, we adore you, and having you be a part of today's launch brings tears to my eyes. For life goes fast, and I can still see you in my mind's eye wearing crisp white dresses in a stranger's backyard, looking like little Mother Mary's, smiling and laughing into the sun."

Ali Laenger and Lysandra Roberts

The adult Ali Laenger and Lysandra Roberts were also used in the promotional poster and video for The Smashing Pumpkins' classic line-up reunion tour in 2018. Laenger now works as a nurse and Roberts works in IT.

Rush – ‘Hemispheres’ (1978)

Designer Hugh Syme started work on the surrealist painting that adorns 'Hemispheres' before Geddy Lee, Neil Peart and Alex Lifeson had played him a note of music. The naked Dionysus-like man on the right standing on the gargantuan human brain was an unnamed dancer from the Toronto Ballet School, while the man in the bowler hat – inspired by René Magritte's famous 1964 painting 'The Son of Man' – is Syme's close friend Bobby King who soon became a semi-permanent fixture on Rush sleeves appearing on 1981 live album 'Exit... Stage Left' and 1981's 'Moving Pictures.' "I made good use of his good will … and his cheap modelling fees," Syme joked to Ultimate Classic Rock.

Bobby King as Starman

Together with featuring on three album sleeves, Bobby King is the "bare-assed" male (Syme's words, not ours) on Syme's iconic Rush "starman" logo. The image first appeared on the inside gatefold sleeve to Rush's 1976 album '2112' and has been a mainstay of merchandise ever since. The late-great Neil Peart said of the logo: "All (the naked man) means is the abstract man against the masses. The red star symbolizes any collectivist mentality."

Rush – ‘Permanent Waves’ (1980)

The apocalyptic scene that forms the backdrop of the cover to Rush's seventh album 'Permanent Waves' was taken by the late photographer Flip Schulke of the Galveston Seawall in Texas during Hurricane Carla on in 1961. Somewhat juxtaposing this is the woman in 1950s attire in the foreground who is smiling and unaffected by the horrific devastation behind her. The woman in question is Canadian model Paula Turnbull – who was very famous in Europe at the time - and the photo was taken by British photographer Fin Costello. Hugh Syme, who created the collage art sleeve, can be seen waving in the background of the 'Permanent Waves' cover too.

Paula Turnbull

Here's a Fin Costello photo of Paula Turnbull at the photoshoot for 'Permanent Waves' in Quebec, Canada in October 1979. Rush's seventh album, which boasted their huge single 'The Spirit of Radio', was released three months after the shoot.

Rush - ‘Exit... Stage Left’ (1981)

The gatefold sleeve to Rush's seminal live album 'Exit... Stage Left' unites four characters from previous Rush record sleeves – the "grotesque puppet" from 1977's 'A Farewell to Kings', Bobby King and the naked man from 'Hemispheres', and, most notably, Paula Turnbull from 'Permanent Waves'. Canadian photographer Deborah Samuel who worked on the artwork with Hugh Syme said: "Paula Turnbull was living in Paris and a top model there. We had to bring her to Toronto from Paris for 1 night to shoot this cover. ... I contacted the vintage clothing store where I had rented her costume before and they still had the original sweater and the skirt in their inventory, which was a miracle really."

Pink Floyd – ‘Wish You Were Here’ (1975)

The two businessmen shaking hands on the iconic artwork to Pink Floyd's 'Wish You Were Here' were stuntmen Ronnie Rondell and Danny Rogers. The photograph was taken by Aubrey "Po" Powell of Hipgnosis at The Burbank Studios in California. Decades before the advent of CGI, one of the stuntmen had to be set on fire wearing a flame-retardant suit and Rondell drew the proverbial short straw. Aubrey Powell told Rolling Stone in 2017: "(Rondell) agreed to be set on fire a number of times... As you can imagine, it's a very unpleasant experience being set on fire, and it's very dangerous because you're standing still. Normally, with a fire shot, somebody's moving. They're running away from your face. But we were lucky that afternoon. There was no wind. I shot it 14 times. On the 15th time, a gust of wind caught up and blew the fire straight into his face. Immediately, his team jumped on him, sprayed him with extinguishing foam and saved his life. He just got up from that and said, 'That's it. I'm never doing this again.' But I had it in the can."

Ronnie Rondell

Pictured is legendary stuntman Ronnie Rondell at the Taurus World Stunt Awards in California in 2005. Also an actor and director, Rondell's career has spanned more than half-a-century and he has worked on over 100 movies including Spartacus, Predator 2, Diamonds Are Forever, Lethal Weapon, Tango & Cash, Demolition Man, The Crow and Speed to name but a few.

Mott The Hoople – ‘Hoople’ (1974)

Designed by Roslav Szaybo, the cover to Mott The Hoople's eponymous seventh album 'Hoople' features a stylised portrait of actor and model Kari-Ann Muller with members of the band in her hair. Muller had a short acting career in the 1960s and 1970s and landed parts in the Joan Collins movie The Bitch and George Lazenby's only Bond film, On Her Majesty's Secret Service. She eventually gave up her acting and modelling career and trained to be a yoga teacher. However, she has retained her connections to the rock world as she has been married to Chris Jagger, the younger brother of Mick Jagger, for several decades.

Kari-Ann Muller

Two years prior to 'Hoople', Kari-Ann Muller famously appeared on the sleeve to Roxy Music's self-titled debut album. Singer Bryan Ferry personally selected Muller for the shoot, and years later she told Q Magazine she got paid a "meagre" amount for the shoot. "Bryan saw me doing a fashion show and decided he wanted to use me, and I thought it would be fun," she explained. "I got a meagre £20 (around £286 in today's money), as Roxy were unknown at the time, and had no money. Ironic, isn't it, that it would be voted the best record cover of the decade? It always seems to be flashing up on TV for some reason. But it was great watching them being turned from boys next door into superstars." Roxy Music would later draft in big name stars including Jerry Hall, Marilyn Cole and Amanda Lear for their album sleeves.

Model Kari-Ann Muller, later a cover star of 'Hoople' and 'Roxy Music', at a London photoshoot in 1971.

Led Zeppelin – ‘Led Zeppelin II’ (1969)

The front cover of 'Led Zeppelin II' is based on a photo of Baron Manfred von Richthofen and his 'Flying Circus' Jagdstaffel 11 Division during World War I in 1917. Nicknamed The Red Baron and widely considered the ace-of-aces of the war, von Richthofen shot down more than 80 aircraft before he himself died when he suffered the same fate near Vaux-sur-Somme, France aged 25 in 1918. The album cover design was created by David Juniper, who airbrushed John Paul Jones, Jimmy Page, Robert Plant and John Bonham's faces onto members of von Richthofen's squadron from a 1969 press photo of the band. Other faces featured on the cover include Led Zeppelin's manager Peter Grant, tour manager Richard Cole, astronaut Neil Armstrong, Andy Warhol's friend Mary Woronov and jazz legend Miles Davis.

Baron Manfred von Richthofen and his Flying Circus

The original photo of Baron Manfred von Richthofen (pictured sitting in the cockpit of his Albatros fighter) and his 'Flying Circus' Jagdstaffel 11 Division. Interestingly, Baron Manfred von Richthofen doesn't feature on Juniper's 'Led Zeppelin II' cover at all as the cockpit, where he's sitting in the original photograph, is obscured by plumes of smoke emanating from the silhouette of the Zeppelin airship.

Rage Against the Machine – ‘Evil Empire’ (1996)

Created by late pop artist Mel Ramos, the painting of the boy with a slightly sinister glare on Rage Against The Machine's 'Evil Empire' is based on the 1940s fictional comic book boy hero Crimebuster - the character's 'c' emblem was switched for 'e' (evil). The artwork was actually a tweaked version of an earlier painting Ramos had created of a young boy called Ari Meisel. Now an author and a business entrepreneur, Meisel explained Kerrang in 2020: "I didn't model nor meet the band. My father was and is an art dealer and he represented the painter, Mel Ramos. Mel painted the original painting of me, entitled CrimeBusters, as a birthday present for me when I turned 11. The group saw the painting in a book of Mel's and liked it, then adapted it for their album cover."

'Evil Empire' cover star Ari Miesel speaking at Startup Battlefield in New York in 2017 to promote his company Leverage. Asked by Kerrang whether he ever got recognised from the 'Evil Empire' sleeve, Meisel said: "When I had hair, I was recognised a lot. There were people wearing shirts of it, there was a billboard of it in Times Square. It was surreal."

Blink-182 – ‘Enema of the State’ (1999)

The woman wearing a nurse's outfit and rubber gloves on the cover to Blink-182's blockbuster 1999 album was adult movie star Janine Lindemulder. The pop punk trio claimed they were unaware Lindemulder was a porn star until producer Jerry Finn told them and apparently only picked her for the sleeve when their label sent them some images of potential cover stars. Lindemulder later reprised the nurse role for the 'What's My Age Again?' and 'Man Overboard' videos. Photographer David Goldman said of the concept behind the sleeve: "Up until the very last minute, the album was going to be called Turn Your Head and Cough. And that's why I came up with the idea of the glove. Obviously, an enema is not really a glove type of thing. I thought it was a good visual."

Janine Lindemulder

Blink-182 'Enema of the State' cover star Janine Lindemulder in 2017.

Hole – ‘Live Through This’ (1994)

The prom queen on the sleeve to Hole's 1994 album 'Live Through This' is Hawaiian fashion model Leilani Bishop. The image was shot by photographer Ellen von Unwerth and it depicts Bishop dressed up as a beauty pageant complete with a tiara and a bouquet of flowers, with mascara running down her face. Courtney Love stated in 2009: "I wanted to capture the look on a woman's face as she's being crowned... this sort of ecstatic, blue eyeliner running, kind of 'I am, I am—I won! I have haemorrhoid cream under my eyes and adhesive tape on my butt… but I won Miss Congeniality!'

Leilani Bishop

Now aged 47, Leilani Bishop has enjoyed a highly successful modelling career working with the likes of Tommy Hilfiger, Balenciaga, Esprit, and Victoria's Secret, and in 2000 she had an acting role in the comedy satire film The Intern. Speaking to Kerrang!, Bishop said of the Hole shoot: "I was a Nirvana fan and had at that point only heard a couple of (Hole) songs, but was thrilled to be a part of the project, knowing who (Courtney Love) was and what she was capable of… I actually have never met the band. Courtney was supposed to come by the shoot that day, but her girlfriend had a baby and even though she and I have friends in common still have not crossed paths, which I kind of love. The alter ego that is still somewhere out there…"

Roger Waters – ‘The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking’ (1984)

The somewhat risqué cover to Roger Waters' debut solo album 'The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking' features a naked woman (except for the stiletto heels and backpack) hitching a lift. Illustrator Gerald Scarfe, who famously worked on Pink Floyd's 'The Wall' album, created the graphics for the sleeve. The woman who modelled is Bristol-born glamour model, producer, adult model and pornographic actress Linzi Drew.

Linzi Drew pictured in London in February 2023 aged 64.

Ratt - 'Out of the Cellar' (1984)

The model on the front of Ratt's debut album 'Out of the Cellar' is model Tawny Kitaen, who was the girlfriend of Ratt guitarist Robbin Crosby at the time. Kitaen went on to achieve global fame in the MTV era as the star of the Whitesnake videos, 'Still of the Night', 'Is This Love', 'Here I Go Again' and 'The Deeper the Love.'

Tawny Kitaen

Tawny Kitaen has numerous acting credits on the big screen and television. In her personal life, she married Whitesnake lynchpin David Coverdale in 1989 but they separated two years later. Sadly she passed away aged just 59 in May 2021.

Scorpions – ‘Blackout’ (1982)

Scorpions' eighth studio album 'Blackout' is adorned with a visually striking self-portrait created by Austrian-Irish hyperrealist artist Gottfried Helnwein.

Gottfried Helnwein

Gottfried Helnwein pictured in 1995. The esteemed 75-year-old artist's work often deals with themes of psychological and sociological anxiety, history and politics. Alongside Scorpions, he has also worked with The Rolling Stones and Rammstein.

Faith No More - 'Album of the Year' (1997)

Faith No More's boldly titled sixth studio effort 'Album of the Year' came with a photo of Czechoslovakia president Tomas Garrigue Masaryk on the sleeve. The image depicts Masaryk accepting flowers from the public while leaning out of a train window.

Tomas Garrigue Masaryk

Tomas Garrigue Masaryk served as the first President of Czechoslovakia from 1918 to 1935 and he's widely regarded as the founding father of Czechoslovakia. He died aged 87 in 1937.

Faith No More – ‘Who Cares a Lot? - The Greatest Hits’ (1998)

The United Kingdom, European, Argentine, and Oceanian releases of Faith No More's 1998 compilation album 'Who Cares a Lot? - The Greatest Hits' featured none other than comedy legend Benny Hill on the sleeve.

Embracing slapstick and double entendre on his long-running TV series The Benny Hill Show, Benny Hill was one of the most popular faces on British television. He died aged 68 in 1992.

The Rolling Stones – ‘Sticky Fingers’ (1971)

In keeping with the highly suggestive album title, The Rolling Stones' 1971 album 'Sticky Fingers' is adorned with a controversial close-up image of the bulging crotch of an anonymous male figure. The idea for the album sleeves was conceived by legendary artist Andy Warhol, however there was an air of mystery about the identity of the model with some speculating that it could be fashion designer Jed Johnson or even Mick Jagger. However, actor and Warhol superstar Joe Dallesandro claims that it was himself. Commenting on the origins of the image, Dallesandro told biographer Michael Ferguson: "It was just out of a collection of junk photos that Andy pulled from. He didn't pull it out for the design or anything, it was just the first one he got that he felt was the right shape to fit what he wanted to use for the fly."

Joe Dallesandro

Now in his early seventies, Joe Dallesandro is arguably one of the most famous male sex symbols of American underground films of the 20th century. His lead role as heroin addict Joe Smith in Andy Warhol's 1970 film Trash won critical acclaim and the movie was named Best Film of the Year by Rolling Stone magazine. The line "hey Joe" in Lou Reed's 1972 song 'Walk on the Wild Side' is a reference to Dallesandro. Just over a decade after the release of 'Sticky Fingers', Joe Dallesandro appeared on the cover to The Smiths' 1984 self-titled debut album.

Placebo – ‘Placebo’ (1996)

The boy with his hands on his face and wearing an oversized red jumper on the sleeve to Placebo's self-titled debut album was 12-year-old David Fox. The photo was taken by his cousin Saul Fletcher and Fox said he was irked when he discovered his image was being used. "Within a week it was out in the shops," Fox said. "It was in Virgin, it was in HMV, it was in Tesco, it was all over the place. I was watching EastEnders with my mum and I saw one of the billboards by the Tube station and it had my face on there." Incredibly, in June 2012, Fox threatened Placebo with a lawsuit saying album cover ruined his life. "When I was in school I used to be well known and have loads of mates. We used to play football together and I was really happy. But when the album came out, the friends I did have began to pick on me. I think they might have been jealous. Or they saw a boy pulling a silly face and didn't want to hang out with him anymore because he looks weird."

David Fox appeared on an Identity Parade on Never Mind The Buzzcocks in 2013. In case you hadn't guessed, he's second from the right.

U2 – 'Boy' (1980)

The young lad who graced the cover of U2's debut album 'Boy' four decades ago was the then six-year-old Peter Rowen. The younger sibling of Bono's close childhood friend Guggi (who first gave Paul Hewson the nickname 'Bono'), Rowen lived over the street from Bono in Dublin and he still keeps in touch with the frontman and The Edge to this day. Rowen previously appeared on U2's debut EP 'Three' in 1979 and later appeared, aged 8, on the cover of 'War' in 1983. A childhood photo of Rowen was also used on the compilation album 'The Best of 1980–1990' in 1998. The experience of being a U2 cover star clearly had an indelible impact on Rowen as he became a professional photographer as an adult.

Black Sabbath – ‘Black Sabbath’ (1970)

The timeless and highly eerie cover for Black Sabbath's eponymous debut album in 1970 was shot by photographer Keith McMillan at the 15th Century Mapledurham Watermill, located on the banks of the River Thames in Oxfordshire. Of course, central to the eerie 'Black Sabbath' sleeve is the ghostly, enigmatic woman in black, who is seemingly referenced in the opening lines of the title track and opening song on the record: "What is this that stands before me? / Figure in black which points at me." For decades there's been an air of mystery around the woman on the sleeve, however in a February 2020 interview with Rolling Stone, McMillan revealed it was a woman called Louisa Livingstone who was around 18/19 at the time of the shoot. Sourced from a London model agency, McMillan remembered: "She was a fantastic model. She was quite petite, very, very cooperative. I wanted someone petite because it just gave the landscape a bit more grandeur. It made everything else look big." Livingstone told the magazine: "When I saw the cover, I thought it was quite interesting, but I thought, 'Well, that could be anybody,' so it's not like I got any kind of ego buzz out of it. But, yeah, I thought it was a very nice cover."

Van Halen – ‘1984’ (1984)

The young cherub that is smoking a cigarette on the sleeve to Van Halen's blockbuster album '1984' was a three-year-old boy called Carter Helm. Created by graphic artist Margo Nahas, Van Halen originally wanted a cover featuring four women dancing but the idea was abandoned. Instead, Nahas brought her portfolio to the band and they picked the painting of the smoking putto, which was based on a photograph she took of her best friend's toddler Carter Helm holding a candy cigarette. Reflecting on the shoot, Nahas told Cover Our Tracks in 2016: "Carter was happy to see me when I arrived but had a tantrum when I tried to style his hair with Dippity-do to make it a little punkish. My all-knowing, brilliant friend and Carter's mother, Colleen, suggested I 'give him a few more minutes to get comfortable.' And she was right. I gave him an hour, and I got out my candy, which was this bag of candy cigarettes. Then he was just ready for me to do it."

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