Poll: How do you rate Roger Waters's "The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking" album?

"I recognise... Myself in every stranger's eyes."

The rules for this series: this poll is designed for people familiar with the album in question and with at least some familiarity with some of their other catalog (for comparison purposes). If the poll doesn't interest you, please kindly move on to a thread that does. Please simply consider how YOU would rate the album in question, in comparison with the rest of the Floyd's discography! And as always, a shout-out to member mrjinks for creating all the groundwork for this series.

Note: please use the same criteria for rating these solo albums as you would Pink Floyd as a band albums, so we can compare the results of this poll to, say, The Division Bell. A poll like this only makes sense rating the few - or only - albums of each solo member against something else - the logical choice is their works as a band. This will not change.

So, how do YOU rate this album?

Album history: "The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking is the first solo album by Roger Waters; it was released in 1984, the year before Waters announced his departure from Pink Floyd. The album was certified gold in the United States by the Recording Industry Association of America in April 1995."


Tracklist:
1. 4:30 AM (Apparently They Were Travelling Abroad) 3:12
2. 4:33 AM (Running Shoes) 4:08
3. 4:37 AM (Arabs With Knives And West German Skies) 2:17
4. 4:39 AM (For The First Time Today - Part 2) 2:02
5. 4:41 AM (Sexual Revolution) 4:49
6. 4:47 AM (The Remains Of Our Love) 3:09
7. 4:50 AM (Go Fishing) 6:59
8. 4:56 AM (For The First Time Today - Part 1) 1:38
9. 4:58 AM (Dunroamin, Duncarin, Dunlivin) 3:03
10. 5:01 AM (The Pros And Cons Of Hitch Hiking - Part 10) 4:36
11. 5:06 AM (Every Stranger's Eyes) 4:48
12. 5:11 AM (The Moment Of Clarity) 1:28




Previous polls:
Pink Floyd (updated 11/13):
The Piper at the Gates of Dawn. Currently 674 people have voted, with an average of 4.23.
A Saucerful of Secrets. Currently 377 people have voted, with an average of 3.80.
More. Currently 310 people have voted, with an average of 3.38.
Ummagumma. Currently 447 people have voted, with an average of 3.09.
Atom Heart Mother. Currently 482 people have voted, with an average of 3.73.
Meddle. Currently 525 people have voted, with an average of 4.70.
Obscured by Clouds. Currently 463 people have voted, with an average of 3.86.
The Dark Side of the Moon. Currently 644 people have voted, with an average of 4.75.
Wish You Were Here. Currently 785 people have voted, with an average of 4.77.
Animals. Currently 750 people have voted, with an average of 4.62.
The Wall. Currently 861 people have voted, with an average of 4.02.
The Final Cut. Currently 600 people have voted, with an average of 3.09.
A Momentary Lapse of Reason. Currently 451 people have voted, with an average of 2.97.
Delicate Sound of Thunder. Currently 263 people have voted, with an average of 2.87.
The Division Bell. Currently 508 people have voted, with an average of 3.29.
Pulse. Currently 357 people have voted, with an average of 3.36.
Is There Anybody Out There? The Wall Live 1980-81. Currently 257 people have voted, with an average of 3.67.
The Endless River. Currently 483 people have voted, with an average of 2.51.

Syd Barrett:
The Madcap Laughs. Currently 239 people have voted, with an average of 3.81.
Barrett. Currently 166 people have voted, with an average of 3.79.
Opel. Currently 92 people have voted, with an average of 3.39.

Nick Mason:
Fictitious Sports. Currently 65 people have voted, with an average of 2.65.

David Gilmour:
David Gilmour. Currently 243 people have voted, with an average of 3.86.
About Face. Currently 116 people have voted, with an average of 3.31.
On An Island. Currently 138 people have voted, with an average of 3.43.
Rattle That Lock. Currently 111 people have voted, with an average of 3.36.

Richard Wright:
Wet Dream. Currently 66 people have voted, with an average of 3.38.
Broken China. Currently 29 people have voted, with an average of 3.45.

Spoiler: The albums - ranked by average!

Updated 11/13
1. Wish You Were Here: 4.77
2. The Dark Side of the Moon: 4.75
3. Meddle: 4.70
4. Animals: 4.62
5. The Piper at the Gates of Dawn: 4.23
6. The Wall: 4.02
7. Obscured by Clouds: 3.864
8. David Gilmour - David Gilmour: 3.860
9. Syd Barrett - The Madcap Laughs: 3.81
10. A Saucerful of Secrets: 3.80
11. Syd Barrett - Barrett: 3.78
12. Atom Heart Mother: 3.73
13. Is There Anybody Out There?: 3.67
14. David Gilmour - On An Island: 3.43
15. Syd Barrett - Opel: 3.385
16. More: 3.381
17. David Gilmour - Rattle That Lock: 3.360
18. Pulse: 3.359
19. Richard Wright - Wet Dream: 3.35
20. David Gilmour - About Face: 3.31
21. Ummagumma: 3.091
22. The Final Cut: 3.088
23. A Momentary Lapse of Reason: 2.97
24. Delicate Sound of Thunder: 2.87
25. Nick Mason - Fictitious Sports: 2.65
26. The Endless River: 2.51

 

I went with "a pretty solid effort". This isn't a casual listen, by any means, and took me a while to appreciate.

 

I found this one quite repetitive and seem to recall some of the repetitive motifs also appear in the Wall, though I am not certain of that as it has been a long time since I spun this one.

 

To me, this is the album that encapsulates both Roger Water's best and worst instincts. The music is repetitive and every song is lyrically cluttered - you couldn't fit another word in there if you tried! But then, that repetitiveness feeds into the dream-like quality of the music, enhancing the album as a singular listening experience. And the lyrics, stuffed to the brim though they may be, are often incredibly powerful, some of Water's best work. I love it, warts and all.

It's helped along by a myriad of great Clapton solos as well, which kicks it up a few notches.

"A pretty solid effort - Worth Recommending"

 

Ten out of ten, absolute excellence. A must have, about time it was mixed into 5.1 surround sound..

 

Boring, boring boring. A friend of mine was way into this when it came out and we even listened to it twice in one night, but the whole thing (like The Final Cut) just blended into an uninspired string of boring songs to my ears.

 

I voted 'recommended' but with the caveat that you be a massive Floyd, Waters or Clapton fan. It's nowhere near as good as Amused To Death and not something I ever desire to play these days.

 

Apart from the great Every Strangers Eyes and the fine contributions of Messers Kamen and Clapton, I hate it with a passion. I remember the first time I heard it. My friend and I were huge fans of the Final Cut (I still am) and were really looking forward to hearing what Roger came up with next. We put it on and my friend studied the lyric sheet while we both listened in disbelief. "Oh good, we get another "Oooo, babe" in a minute" he said. Hard to believe that something this banal and joyless could have been made by a man as talented and intelligent as Roger Waters.

 

Pretty solid. I like it a lot. I can't quite say why, exactly, but I find the record rather pleasing.

 

I give kudos to Waters for not only managing to craft an album as good as what he gave the Floyd, but also for getting something interesting out of Eric Clapton, otherwise the most overrated guitarist in history.

'Go Fishing' is one of Waters' greatest moments.

 

I discovered it late and only listened one night when I also heard The Final Cut for the first time.

So thats turned into a ritual. Essential late night headphone mind movies.

 

A tough one to rate. The production is absolutely amazing and I can listen to it just for that, but the songs on it are not very strong individually (with a couple of exceptions). I rate it So-So, but would still recommend it as an amazing headphone experience.

 

This.
The only Waters album I really love.

 

Beautifully recorded, smoking leads from Clapton, poetic and moving words — sure, a couple of duff tracks, but considering when it came out this is really excellent and holds up well

 

I was originally aghast at the lack of melody and the numerous quotes and motifs shamelessly borrowed from the last two Floyd albums, but it really started to grow on me, and is now the only solo Roger I go back to once in awhile. For that reason I voted essential.

 

One of the worst. I'm honestly a bit surprised at some of the more positive appraisals here. To each their own, but this is positively tuneless to me.

 

Upon reflection, I changed my vote to the middle rank. To me, it wasn't an easy listen...so can't see myself recommending this to someone.

 

I like the bare assed Euro cover, but have never really been enamored with any Waters' solo. I still have this and Radio Chaos, but that's as far as I go with Waters solo.

 

For some reason, I thought we had done this one already.

I feel like I heard this one for the first time properly within the context of having already digested Animals, The Wall & The Final Cut beforehand. It was my Floyd-loving friend who found a used copy of the CD back in the 90's, which I taped.

Think there is some decent stuff here. To me, this was the most Floydian of Waters' solo output for a long time (and apparently he presented the band these demos along with The Wall).

Listened to it recently, and found it overly repetitive musically, especially the first half. Having Clapton helps, but there still isn't much for him to do with these songs.

Top cuts for me: "Sexual Revolution" (which would've fit seamlessly on The Wall) and "Go Fishing". Title track is ok.

Overall, I find this to be an interesting record, but it does fall short. Waters' first real misfire in some ways, not his strongest concept. Still, I voted pretty solid, worth recommending. Way better than Radio KAOS.

 

I, like others it seems, have mixed feelings about this album. As a seamless piece, it's great. The individual songs are nearly all pretty weak though. It's a good listen as a whole, but as music it doesn't really pick up until 5:01 AM. This album also depresses me like crazy for some reason. I'm fine with The Final Cut and The Wall, and Is This The Life? is different. I'm not sure why, but that's one more reason I don't pull it out often. I voted "Not bad".

 

It sucks but has some good moments thanks to the guitarplayer what's his name.

 

I like it, but I wouldn't necessarily recommend it to anyone. I think it's great and flawed all at once. So . . . there ya go.

 

Funny, I'd say you stopped before he started being worth listening to. I think both Amused to Death and ITTLWRW are his two best.

 

I loved it from the get-go, and seeing him perform the entire album live cemented it for me.

 

I've just finished listening to it for the nth time and, yes, it's still a brilliant touching piece.
Clapton just shines here.