The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking
By Roger Waters
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Track listing
Show track credits
- The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking (Parts 1-6)
- A1 4:30 AM (Apparently They Were Travelling Abroad) 3:12
- A2 4:33 AM (Running Shoes) 4:08
- A3 4:37 AM (Arabs with Knives and West German Skies) 2:17
- A4 4:39 AM (For the First Time Today, Part 2) 2:02
- A5 4:41 AM (Sexual Revolution) 4:49
- A6 4:47 AM (The Remains of Our Love) 3:09
- The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking (Parts 7-12)
- B1 4:50 AM (Go Fishing) 6:59
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lyrics
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- B2 4:56 AM (For the First Time Today, Part 1) 1:38
- B3 4:58 AM (Dunroamin, Duncarin, Dunlivin) 3:03
- B4 5:01 AM (The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking, Part 10) 4:36
- B5 5:06 AM (Every Stranger's Eyes) 4:48
- B6 5:11 AM (The Moment of Clarity) 1:28
- Total length: 42:09
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Review
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25 Issues
- Release view [combined information for all issues]
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The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking [p] 33 rpm, Gatefold
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The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking 33 rpm, Gatefold
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The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking 33 rpm, Gatefold
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1984 Cassette IMD 5586
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The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking Gatefold
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The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking Gatefold
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The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking Remastered
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The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking Remastered
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The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking CD Sized Album Replica, Limited Edition
83 Reviews
On mature reflection it appears that Mr. Gilmour was correct in supporting 'The Wall' in its embryonic genesis state; to call what reaches fruition of sorts here "second hand goods" does not accurately reflect reality either. Yes it's a heavy paranoid obsessive Roger walking with pronounced heavy footsteps, breathing forcefully into the icy wind so people can see as well as hear that he is sighing, this much can be expected, anyone who expected him to pull up his pants around his knees, do the Can Can, and holler 'Love Grows Where My Rosemary Goes' can slip into full dementia now. Roger was always the scientific type, at his mid 1970s peak, Pink Floyd though still in creative good health, he began to become a Syd in reverse, as if bullshit had fucked up his head rather than LSD or magic mushrooms; 'The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking' caters for him now exclusively, cryptic (sometimes even welcome in this context) essays with music as opposed to far-fetched songs which perhaps made him so vicious towards Pink Floyd, glaring glossy soundscapes no different from 'The Final Cut', muddled themes with bombastic epic 1980s sounds, Waters himself huddled up in his hermit state speaking his visions like Chris De Burgh consumed by asbestos poisoning, all by-products of his hunchback rage. Imagine trying to throw some of this shit on to a mixtape, honestly; Waters would probably be standing behind the pool miserable soul with a scythe and grim reaper top on as he lay back on his bed ready to boogie woogie along.
Published
It's really hard to find any sort of sustained enjoyable melody anywhere in this. I've given it a rare spin over the years, and it's always left me feeling empty of it all. It's forgettable. Nothing sticks in my mind.
I don't know how many times I'd need to force myself to listen to this before songs start clicking with me, or until I feel compelled to read through all those words. I just, don't really care. It doesn't make me want to.
I'm still baffled by the thought though that when he presented the concept of this album to the members of Pink Floyd at the same time he presented the idea for The Wall, David Gilmour thought this was the stronger of the two. I'll never understand that.
It's all... I can't really say much more because I'm entirely unaffected by it. I may as well have not just listened to it. It just, exists. I'm still not sure if I can take even a song from this to enjoy outside the context of the whole. There's just so many sounds and segments crammed in there, that I can't make sense of anything. It all tends to sound rather silly and contrived when I can't even find the basic underlying quality of song strength beneath it all.
I'm not sure if I'd eventually end up enjoying it, or despising it, in what seems an almost impossible scenario where I'd actually be reasonably familiar with it all.
M. E. H.
I don't know how many times I'd need to force myself to listen to this before songs start clicking with me, or until I feel compelled to read through all those words. I just, don't really care. It doesn't make me want to.
I'm still baffled by the thought though that when he presented the concept of this album to the members of Pink Floyd at the same time he presented the idea for The Wall, David Gilmour thought this was the stronger of the two. I'll never understand that.
It's all... I can't really say much more because I'm entirely unaffected by it. I may as well have not just listened to it. It just, exists. I'm still not sure if I can take even a song from this to enjoy outside the context of the whole. There's just so many sounds and segments crammed in there, that I can't make sense of anything. It all tends to sound rather silly and contrived when I can't even find the basic underlying quality of song strength beneath it all.
I'm not sure if I'd eventually end up enjoying it, or despising it, in what seems an almost impossible scenario where I'd actually be reasonably familiar with it all.
M. E. H.
Published
Just awful, from the cover art straight out of a Motley Crue fantasy to the hokey 'concept' and tune-free delivery.
Can't believe I once forked out cash for this prize turd.
Can't believe I once forked out cash for this prize turd.
Published
Concept doesn't redeem it
I like the concept of the album, but some of the music is so bad I just can't listen to it. Musically, it swaps between pointless quiet noodling, and really cliche-sounding centerpiece loud moments. It all sounds pretty bad to me, but the worst part is probably Waters' voice, constantly off key, and reaches untold pinnacles of awfulness when he tries to sing-shout the big parts. It's a shame, because I think the concept has a lot of potential -- the emotional vulnerability of sleepiness and the narrative looseness inherent in dreams seems like it could have led to a truly great album.Published
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A1
4:30 AM (Apparently They Were Travelling Abroad)
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A2
4:33 AM (Running Shoes)
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A3
4:37 AM (Arabs with Knives and West German Skies)
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A4
4:39 AM (For the First Time Today, Part 2)
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A5
4:41 AM (Sexual Revolution)
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A6
4:47 AM (The Remains of Our Love)
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B1
4:50 AM (Go Fishing)
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B2
4:56 AM (For the First Time Today, Part 1)
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B3
4:58 AM (Dunroamin, Duncarin, Dunlivin)
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B4
5:01 AM (The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking, Part 10)
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B5
5:06 AM (Every Stranger's Eyes)
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B6
5:11 AM (The Moment of Clarity)
So, the album does a fine job of making listenable music up until the midway point. Then it becomes cringe. Also, the lyrics are unimportant to me because they suck.
Do not ruin your sleep schedule to coincide with Roger Waters' rip-off of Pink Floyd's output. It was a mistake.
Published
I don't know what led me to the cursed land of Roger Waters albums again, but here I am! I think this could easily be the best thing the man made since the Wall at least. The story it has to tell is fun and while I'm never so into the songs, the music always has something fun or some awesome section.
Published
The Wall and The Final Cut
It’s funny that this is literally just “The Wall” but 10x more whiny.
“The Pros and Cons of Hitchhiking” is the first post-Pink Floyd endeavor from Waters and it’s about what you’d expect. Waters copying the Floyd formula in a sneak-diss attempt to Gilmour. It’s ok, and a neat idea having every song blend into one another, but there’s nothing really here to keep my attention.
Published
Roger Waters somehow manages to make an album that is functionally identical to what Weird Al would make if he made an entire album style parodying Roger Waters and was a bit meaner than he usually is. The "plot" is incomprehensible, the music all sounds like every other song on the album, which also sound like various songs from The Final Cut and The Wall, the guitarwork by Eric Clapton is very transparently just trying to be David Gilmour and failing miserably, and the lyrics are both insufferably whiny and reek of being written by someone trying way too hard to be smart. But it is extraordinarily funny, so if you're looking for a good Pink Floyd parody album, skip Nostalgia Critic's The Wall and check out this instead, because it (accidentally) does a way better job of making fun of the Rogers-dominated era of the band's history.
Published
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