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“I’m not sure of his exact reasoning”: How Roger Waters fired his son from his touring band
“The other guys that got the sack weren’t his son, so it was doubly hurtful for me,” says Harry Waters.
Image: Nick Harvey / Getty Images
Harry Waters, the son of former Pink Floyd rocker Roger Waters, has opened up about how he got the boot from his father’s touring band in 2016.
In a new interview with Rolling Stone, Harry looks back on the fateful day before Christmas that year when his dad visited him at his Santa Monica home to deliver some bad news—that his time as keyboardist in Roger’s band has come to an end. A decision that meant Harry would not be joining the band’s upcoming Us + Them tour.
“I was fired,” says the young Waters. “It was pretty miserable.”
Harry, who still isn’t completely sure why he was let go at the time, adds, “I think he just wanted a change of blood, something new, something fresh. I’m not sure of his exact reasoning, but everyone except two people got fired.”
“But the other guys that got the sack weren’t his son, so it was doubly hurtful for me.”
That said, the musician isn’t letting all that experience playing his dad’s music go to waste, as he plans to join ex-Floyd background singer Durga McBroom and former Floyd saxophonist Scott Page in the famed Pink Floyd tribute band Brit Floyd for a string of shows behind the keys.
“Their manager emailed me just a few days ago and asked if I wanted to sit in on some gigs,” he says. “I’ve never met any of them, but I’ll just turn up and play. I’ve been playing this music for 30 years or so. I think we’ll be OK without a rehearsal.”
In the meantime, Harry recently wrapped up a 57-date tour with Les Claypool’s Fearless Flying Frog Brigade, during which he covered Pink Floyd‘s Animals in its entirety.
Also in the interview, Harry touches on his father’s controversial political views, arguing that “It’s just not true at all that he’s an antisemite.”
“People say, ‘Oh, he dresses up in an SS uniform, and he has a Star of David on the [inflatable] pig,” he continues. “And I just want to say, ‘You fuckin’ idiots. He’s been doing that for 40 years. It’s satire.’ There’s also a Mercedes sign, a hammer and sickle, and a dollar sign on the pig … He’s bringing to light all the evils of the world. But people confuse that and think he’s an antisemite, which is really stupid.”