Robert Walter is rebuilding Pink Floyd’s Wall

“I had never seen either [Pink Floyd or Roger Waters]; I regret not going when I was younger,” says Robert Walter (Greyboy Allstars, Robert Walter’s 20th Congress), who occupies maybe the best seat in the house while he’s playing organ on Roger Waters’ current This Is Not A Drill tour. “I met drummer Joey Waronker and bassist/guitarist Gus Seyffert [both of Waters’ current band] from my recording work in Los Angeles. The Greyboy Allstars guitarist Michael Andrews [aka Elgin Park] is a film composer and producer, and we had all ended up on sessions together over the years. They needed an organ player for this tour, so Gus called me up.” Walter can be seen manning the keys in YouTube videos from the opening tour dates, uploaded by fans.

Continues Walter, “I have loved Pink Floyd since I was a kid. The Wall was one of the first records I went out and bought with my own money. I still have that copy and play it often. I think a lot of the Hammond organ language in rock music comes directly from this music.” But that doesn’t mean that Walter performs a musical Xerox of the tunes. “The idea is that these are living songs and need to exist in the moment as well. Being a fan, though, I do go back and reference the originals often. As an organist that grew up during the time I did, some of the style is inevitably baked into your playing.”

Regarding Waters’ solo work, Walter favors 1984’s The Pros And Cons Of Hitchhiking and 2017’s Is This The Life We Really Want. His personal high points on the tour so far have come from vintage Floyd deep cuts and radio staples. “I love ‘Sheep;’ it’s long and epic and has really fun organ parts to play. I love the lyrics, too: What do you get for pretending the danger’s not real? When Roger sings ‘Wish You Were Here’ to a receptive crowd, it’s really emotional and cathartic. I still get chills.”