Not Now John
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| "Not Now John" | ||
|---|---|---|
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| Single by Pink Floyd | ||
| from the album The Final Cut | ||
| B-side(s) | "The Hero's Return (Parts 1 and 2)" | |
| Released | 1983 | |
| Recorded | July-December 1982 | |
| Genre | Progressive rock, Hard rock | |
| Length | 5:02 | |
| Label | Harvest Records (UK) Capitol Records (US) |
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| Writer(s) | Roger Waters | |
| Producer(s) | Roger Waters, James Guthrie and Michael Kamen | |
| Chart positions | ||
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| Pink Floyd singles chronology | ||
| "When the Tigers Broke Free" (1982) |
"Not Now John" (1983) |
"Learning to Fly" (1987) |
| The Final Cut track listing | ||
| "The Final Cut" (Track 11) |
"Not Now John" (Track 12) |
"Two Suns in the Sunset" (Track 13) |
| Alternate cover | ||
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"Not Now John" is a song from Pink Floyd's 1983 album, The Final Cut. It is the only song on the album that features David Gilmour on vocals. It was released, overdubbed for language, as a single for the album.
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[edit] Meaning
The lyrics, written by Roger Waters, deal with many of the themes he explored in other songs from the album, including war (particularly the Falklands War and British involvement therein) and criticism of UK prime minister Margaret Thatcher, as well as general criticisms of the greed and corruption that Waters saw as dangers to society.
[edit] Composition
The song is 5 minutes and 2 seconds long, making it the third longest song on the album. It consists of an upbeat tempo with heavy use of guitar. Unlike the majority of other tracks on The Final Cut, "Not Now John" remains rather intense throughout its duration, instead of switching back and forth between heavy/soft segments (although there are some "down" tempo periods in the song). Gilmour and Waters split vocals duties, similar to the song "Comfortably Numb" from The Wall, and they represent different "characters" or points of view - Gilmour is the self-serving ignorant layperson while Waters is the intellectual, responsible observer of the world's woes. [1] However, Waters sings verses associated with Gilmour's character near the end of the song. When the album was in demo stages the song was actually sung by Roger Waters only.
[edit] Single
Not Now John was released as a single on May 3, 1983. The chorus line "fuck all that" was overdubbed "stuff all that" by Gilmour and the female backing singers. The Hero's Return was released as the B-side featuring an additional verse. The single hit #7 on the Mainstream Rock Charts.
- 1. Not Now John - 4:56
- 2. The Heros Return Part Two - 2:32
[edit] Trivia
- During the fadeout of the song, Waters shouts "Rule Britannia! Britannia rules the waves!" and "Hammer! Hammer! Hammer! Hammer! Now!" In The Wall's song Waiting for the Worms, it asks "Would you like to see Britannia rule again?" and repeats "Hammer!" during the outro. Many of the other songs on The Final Cut have connections to The Wall similar to this one.
