10 Perfect Anti Rock Star Songs
1. In the Flesh - Pink Floyd
Out of all the giants of rock music in the '70s, Roger Waters was the biggest rock star who tried to actively reject his own fame. As Pink Floyd started to get bigger and bigger in the wake of Dark Side of the Moon, things were getting out of hand at their shows, with virtually no connection happening between band and audience whenever they played. Roger could have easily decided to retire from music right then and there, but he ended up pouring most of his conflicting feelings into the centerpiece of the Wall.
Upon first listen, In the Flesh seems like the ideal song that's meant for stadiums of people, with the rolling riff sounding like the show opening up. This is a rock opera though, and Roger's voice almost sounds like a carnival barker as the song starts, questioning if we really want to take this sort of journey to the show. While this does set us off in the right direction, the second version of the song further down the album shows us the cost of this kind of living.
With Pink being emotionally unavailable behind his wall, this version with different lyrics shows what happens when you start to lose yourself to the rock star persona, becoming more and more insufferable and ending with Pink going on a power trip by acting like a fascist dictator singling out members of the audience. Out of all the songs on this list that sound bitter or jaded towards fame, this song gives you a clear picture of what happens when you reach that level. It can be fun at first, but if you're not careful, you're bound to lose yourself.