Wearing the inside out

First things first, I don’t consider myself a great Pink Floyd fan — I haven’t listened to every song of every album 27 times but I’m knowledgeable enough not to wear a Division Bell shirt to a Roger Waters concert (people like that do exist, watch MTV India’s rock on if you don’t believe me). This post isn’t about proving how “cool” I am or being a “rocker”, it’s about Rick Wright.

Yeah, we all know he wasn’t best friends with Roger Waters, we all know a lot of not so good things happened when the band was breaking up, but given that it’s been a little more than a year since he left us, I’d like to focus on what he did. I think WTIO is about a man working his way out of depression, and ultimately succeeding, it could also be about Rick’s addictions, but I’m glad it ended on a positive note. I don’t think I can add much more to this discussion (this song means a lot of things to a lot of people) so it’s best if you listen to it on your own, make sure you hear the live version and the studio version (which I think is depressing but maybe that was the point), the live version has been embedded here.

Lyrics:

From morning to night I stayed out of sight
Didnt recognise what Id become
No more than alive Id barely survive
In a word…overrun

Wont hear a sound
From my mouth
Ive spent too long
On the inside out
My skin is cold
To the human touch
This bleeding hearts
Not beating much

I murmured a vow of silence and now
I dont even hear when I think aloud
Extinguished by light I turn on the night
Wear its darkness with an empty smile

Im creeping back to life
My nervous system all away
Im wearing the inside out

Look at him now
Hes paler somehow
But hes coming round
Hes starting to choke
Its been so long since he spoke
Well he can have the words right from my mouth

And with these words I can see
Clear through the clouds that covered me
Just give it time then speak my name
Now we can hear ourselves again

Im holding out
For the day
When all the clouds
Have blown away
Im with you now
Can speak your name
Now we can hear
Ourselves again

Hes curled into the corner
But still the screen is flickering
With an endless stream of garbage to
…curse the place
In a sea of random images
The self-destructing animal
Waiting for the waves to break

Hes standing on the threshold
Caught in fiery anger
And hurled into the furnace hell
…curse the place
Hes torn in all directions
And the screen is still flickering
Waiting for the flames to break

Richard Wright, wish you were here.