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What Shall We Do Now? is a song by English progressive rock band Pink Floyd. It was meant to be featured as the eighth track on their 1979 rock opera The Wall, but ended up being replaced by Empty Spaces due to vinyl format issues.

Removal
The song was originally meant to be featured on The Wall. However, the song was almost 5 minutes long and the vinyl wouldn't support its length alongside the others tracks in the album without making them lose audio quality because of the format's time restraints. The band members didn't count with this fact and, to solve the problem, had the idea of removing a song from the record. The chosen one was What Shall We Do Now?, but instead of cutting it in its entirety, the band decided to just reduce it to a 2 minute long version named Empty Spaces.

Different versions
The decision of cut What Shall We Do Now? off the album was a last minute decision. That's why, in some editions of The Wall album sleeves, the lyrics to "What Shall We Do Now?" can still be found, even though the song itself is not on the record. This has caused confusion for some listeners who may have expected to hear the song based on the printed lyrics. Although it has never received an official release by Pink Floyd in any major album or single, the original studio version of What Shall We Do Now? is featured in the musical film The Wall (1982 film).

The Wall Live, 1980-81
The first time audience had the opportunity to listen to What Shall We Do Now? was during The Wall Tour (1980-1981). In these concerts, the song replaced Empty Spaces, being played right before Young Lust. The track appears on Is There Anybody Out There? The Wall Live 1980-81, a live album featuring The Wall performances recorded at Earls Court between 7-9 August 1980 and 14-17 June 1981.

The Wall (1982 film)
In the theatrical adaptation of The Wall, Empty Spaces was replaced by What Shall We Do Now? again. The version that appears on the film is the one, which was originally intended by Pink Floyd to be part of the album.

The Wall - Live in Berlin
What Shall We Do Now? was also played during The Wall - Live in Berlin, a 1990 live concert performance by Roger Waters to commemorate the fall of the Berlin Wall eight months earlier. In this version of the song, Roger Waters sings its first part and Bryan Adams leads the vocals in the second one, while Waters only does backing vocals.

The Wall Live (2010-2013)
The last time What Shall We Do Now? was performed live was during The Wall Live (2010–2013), a worldwide concert tour by Roger Waters in which he played The Wall album in its entirety. The song replaced Empty Spaces once again during the tour concerts, even though for the streaming release of Roger Waters: The Wall, What Shall We Do Now? was split in two tracks. This might confuse some casual listeners. The first track, named Empty Spaces, features the first part of What Shall We Do Now?, the slower half. While the second song, named What Shall We Do Now? just like the original, contains the second and faster half of it.