| abstract | - Song Name: Run Like Hell Artist: Pink Floyd Album: The Wall (Disc Two), Shine On Run Time: 4:19 Year: 1979 Track Number: 22 Sung By: Roger Waters, David Gilmour (Backing vocals) Written By: David Gilmour, Roger Waters Info:
* The song is from the point of view of anti-hero Pink during his hallucination, in which he's a fascist dictator and turns his concert audience into a hate mob. He sends the mob out to raid neighborhoods that are full of minorities.
* The Music was written by Waters and Gilmour (This is 1 of 3 songs on The Wall for which Gilmour wrote music), while the lyrics were by Waters alone. On the record, Waters provided the vocals, though it sounds like two people are singing because different lines come from different speakers, creating the illusion of multiple voices. In the concert version of The Wall, it was sometimes introduced by Waters as "Run Like Fuck!" and Waters and Gilmour sang the different lines (following Waters' departure, was sung by Gilmour and Guy Pratt.) This features the only keyboard solo on The Wall (however, when in concert, "Young Lust" and "Another Brick In The Wall (Part II)" would feature keyboard solos as well); after the last line of lyrics, a synthesizer apparently takes over Waters' singing. Also in the song are the sound of the mob's maniacal laughter, running footsteps, panting, skidding tires, and a loud scream. Run Like Hell's one of the most recognized and popular songs from The Wall.
* This was originally much longer, however it had to be cut down because of vinyl's time limits. Though the lyrics "You better run like Hell" appear several times in the liner notes, they're never heard in the song. Near the end, the same eagle-like shriek can be heard, almost identical to that heard during "The Happiest Days Of Our Lives" when it segues into Another Brick In The Wall (Part II), perhaps to share the theme of protest and uproar, but in this case it's an oppressive type.
* Pink sends his neo-Nazi followers on poor, helpless people. Jews and Blacks have their homes raided and shops destroyed. A scene depicts a mixed race couple (he's black, she's white) cuddling in the back seat of a car when a group of neo-Nazis accosts them. The man is dragged from the car and beaten while another neo-Nazi rips the woman's clothes off and rapes her. (This relates to a lyrical segment from the second verse: 'Cause if they catch you in the backseat tryin' to pick her locks / They're going to send you back to Mother in a cardboard box! / You better run!"). The song length is reduced once again, with the second verse being sung over the keyboard solo.
* During the previous song, "In The Flesh", a giant black inflatable pig with the crossed hammers logo was released, which Waters referred to in a speech between both songs. The speech between each concert varied slightly, so this is used to identify which show a recording came from. On Is There Anybody Out There? The Wall Live 1980-81, the speech is a mix of the June 15, 1981 and June 17, 1981 speeches.
- A song on Pink Floyd album The Wall. This article is a stub. You can get a Tip of the Hat* from Stephen by adding only truthiness to it.*Tip of the Hat not guaranteed.
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