The song has a short introduction, consisting only of a sharp inhalation and rapid exhalation before the first verses are sung by Roger Waters.
Waters explained to Mojo magazine that the song is about "the idea that we can be controlled by our parents' views on things like sex.
This change ties in with a brief subplot in the film where Pink contracts a fever after caring for a sick rat that died from it.
[7] On October 3, 2011, Pearl Jam performed "Mother" on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, marking the end of the show's "Pink Floyd Week".
[8] The 1990 The Wall – Live in Berlin concert featured a version of the song with Sinéad O'Connor on vocals, with Rick Danko, Levon Helm, and Garth Hudson of The Band on guitar, drums, and accordion, respectively, and Waters and The Hooters providing acoustic backup.
[9] In 2003, A Fair Forgery of Pink Floyd, a tribute album of Pink Floyd covers was released; it included a version of "Mother" by Quetzal, called by AllMusic a "heart-ripping country rendition", and featuring a cajón, an accordion, and a violin solo.
According to critic Ann Powers, Maines' "interpretation of Roger Waters's lyrics helps the original becomes something new—something bigger".
[12] In the final episode of the FX cable TV series, Legion, "Mother" was sung by Dan Stevens (as David Haller) and Stephanie Corneliussen (as Gabrielle Xavier).