Pink Floyd Lyrics, Themes & Meanings: One Of My Turns (Wall album)

One Of My Turns 3:41
(written by Roger Waters)

Lyrics:
American Groupie:
Oh my God, what a fabulous room!
Are all these your guitars?
God, this place is bigger than our apartment!
Uh, can I get a drink of water?
You want some, huh?
Oh wow! Hey, look at this tub!
You wanna take a bath?
What are you watching?
Hello?
Are you feelin' okay?

TV:
I'm sorry sir, I didn't mean to startle you!
Let me know when you're entering a room.
Yes, sir!
I was wondering about this.
Yes.
I'll have to find out from Mrs Bancroft what time she wants to meet us, for her main meal.
If you'll just let me know as soon as you can when you and Mrs. Bancroft want to meet.
Uh, Mrs Bancroft will be dining alone.
I don't understand.
You're not expected to.

Day after day, love turns grey ...sir, since you've just arrived.
Like the skin on the dying man
And night after night
We pretend it's all right,
But I have grown older
And you have grown colder
And nothing is very much fun any more
And I can feel one of my turns coming on

Mrs... would you like to be...
can't sit down and be quiet...
22.50 and pay seven...
...direct or collect; call custom...

I feel
Cold as a razor blade
Tight as a tourniquet
Dry as a funeral drum

Run to the bedroom
In the suitcase on the left
You'll find my favorite axe
Don't look so frightened
This is just a passing phase
One of my bad days
Would you like to watch TV?
Or get between the sheets?
Or contemplate the silent freeway?
Would ya like something to eat?
Would ya like to learn to fly?
Would ya?
Would ya like to see me try?
Oh, no!

Would ya like to call the cops?
Do ya think it's time I stopped?
Why are you running away?

In terms of the progressing narrative, Pink has now brought a groupie to his hotel room, in a halfhearted attempt to exact his revenge upon his unfaithful wife. However, he seems singularly uninterested in her, and sits watching television as she looks around the room. His mind is on the pain he feels - which rapidly erupts into an insane explosion of anger, in which he violently trashes his hotel in traditional rock star style, causing the groupie to make a quick and fearful exit.

Roger Waters: "One of My Turns is supposed to be his response to a lot of aggro [aggravation] in his life... he's just splitting up with his wife, and in response he takes another girl up to his hotel room. He's had it now, he's definitely a bit 'yippee' now, and One of My Turns is just, you know, him coming in and he can't relate to this girl either, that's why he just turns on the TV, they come into the room and she starts going on about all the things he's got and all that he does is just turn on the TV and sit there, and he won't talk to her."

This incident is based on another real-life event, this time not involving Roger, but the famed English folk singer Roy Harper. At the Knebworth concert premiere of Wish You Were Here on 5 July 1975, Harper, getting ready to go on, discovered his stage costume had disappeared. He threw a destructive trantrum in the Floyd's van, in which he cut himself badly. This 'tempermental artiste' scenario became the inspiration for this song.

Dave Gilmour: "I got a rhythm player in on One of My Turns because I couldn't think of a good part to play. Lee Ritenour played that part on the last half of that..." [Shine On 102]

In the stage show at this point, the building of the actual wall is nearing completion; for this song and the next, Roger appears in a fabricated 'hotel room' set into the wall itself, about 20 feet up. Large windows look out onto the audience, and during the course of his 'turn,' Roger flings various objects out to the floor below.

TRACK LISTING
Disc One