Imagine it's 1987 again . . . and you're grooving to the new PINK FLOYD single "Learning to Fly".

But instead of DAVID GILMOUR'S guitar solo . . . a beat drops, and David busts out a RAP about flying or something.

--Sounds like a HORRIBLE idea right? Well, it almost happened.

--BOB EZRIN co-wrote the song and co-produced the "A Momentary Lapse of Reason" album with David. He was ALL ABOUT the hip-hop craze that was going on in the mid-'80s, and suggested that they incorporate a rap break into the song.

--He tells Spinner.com, quote, "I became fascinated with [rap] in the Afrika Bambaataa days. I'm an early adopter. I actually brought some in when we were doing [the album].

--"I brought [it] to David Gilmour [saying], 'Boy, I think this stuff with a rock beat would be awesome.' He said, 'Oh my God, that would be terrible.' He couldn't believe it. He hated the idea."

--Ezrin seems to acknowledge that it probably wouldn't have worked . . . but he was right. The rap-rock thing would eventually take off, for better or worse.

(--Ezrin is a legit producer. He also co-produced "The Wall", and worked on many ALICE COOPER albums, including "Welcome to My Nightmare". He also produced the KISS album "Destroyer", and LOU REED'S "Berlin".)

(--He's also in the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, if that means anything to you.)

--It should be noted that "A Momentary Lapse of Reason" did include a lot of samples . . . mostly spoken-word clips . . . so in a way, maybe they did kind of take something from early rap.

--Ezrin didn't specify where the rap break would've fit in "Learning to Fly" . . . but Spinner.com suggests it would've replaced David's guitar solo at the 3:50 mark, at the end of the song.

(--But there's a more logical spot. Just over two minutes in, there's a muted, spoken word interlude that lasts about a minute. They could've fit some rhymes into that part . . . although, again, that would have been NOT GOOD.)