Eric Clapton, Peter Gabriel, Nick Mason and more join list of artists calling for Roger Waters' concert ban to be reversed

Roger Waters walks the red carpet ahead of the Roger Waters Us + Them screening during the 76th Venice Film Festival at Sala Darsena in 2019 — (Image credit: Alessandra Benedetti - Corbis)

A petition has been launched to reverse the decision made by officials at Frankfurt City Council to bar Roger Waters' from performing in the city.

Waters was originally scheduled to play on May 28 at the Festhalle concert hall as part of the This Is Not a Drill tour, but the show was pulled by the city council, who cited "the persistent anti-Israel behaviour" of the former Pink Floyd frontman.

The petition was initiated by US comedian and political commentator Katie Halper earlier this month, and has attracted support from the likes of Brian Eno, Peter Gabriel, Eric Clapton, Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason, Rage Against The Machine man Tom Morello and Soft Machine founder Robert Wyatt.

Notable people from other fields who've signed the petition include academics Noam Chomsky and Cornel West, actors Susan Sarandon and Julie Christie, film director Ken Loach and comedian Alexei Sayle.

"Waters’ criticism of Israel’s treatment of Palestinians is part of his long-term advocacy on behalf of human rights across the globe," reads the blurb accompanying the petition. "Waters believes 'that all our brothers and sisters, all over the world irrespective of the colour of their skin or the depth of their pockets deserve equal human rights under the law.'

"With regard to Israel and Palestine, he says, 'My platform is simple: it is implementation of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights for all our brothers and sisters between the Jordan River and the sea. Antisemitism is odious and racist and I condemn it, along with all forms of racism, unreservedly.'

"Officials in Germany, concert organisers, and music platforms must not succumb to the pressure of those individuals and groups who would rather see Waters’ music removed than engage with the issues his music highlights."

The petition, which currently has more than 10,000 signatures, is at change.org. A second petition, opposing the first, has also been launched.

Last month, Waters revealed that he has rerecorded Pink Floyd's classic The Dark Side Of The Moon without any of the current members of Pink Floyd.

Artists

Online Editor at Louder/Classic Rock magazine since 2014. 40 years in music industry, online for 27. Also bylines for: Metal Hammer, Prog Magazine, The Word Magazine, The Guardian, The New Statesman, Saga, Music365. Former Head of Music at Xfm Radio, A&R at Fiction Records, early blogger, ex-roadie, published author. Once appeared in a Cure video dressed as a cowboy, and thinks any situation can be improved by the introduction of cats. Favourite Serbian trumpeter: Dejan Petrović.