NEW YORK
The atmosphere at Madison Square Garden on Sunday evening was electric: 19500 spectators attended the concert by legendary Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour. The program featured his latest album, Luck and Strange, created in collaboration with his wife, author Polly Samson.
It’s been almost 10 years since the arrival of this solo album, which incidentally topped the UK Billboard charts on its release last September.
Dressed in a T-shirt, black jeans and equipped with his Black Cat Strat guitar, the master of space/prog rock quickly took matters into his own hands, performing the song 5 AM, a track from the 2015 album Rattle that Lock.
He then followed up with the first tracks from his latest recording, Black Cat and Luck and Strange. According to the man himself, this is probably his best solo album since Dark Side of the Moon in ’73 – a statement he made during an appearance on NBC’s The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon last week. Matter for debate, no doubt.
Given the musician’s stature, you obviously had to pay a small fortune to attend this concert and, in my case, fly almost 600 kilometers to hear one of the world’s most influential guitarists. And, believe me, he didn’t disappoint anyone!
Despite his 78 years, Gilmour hasn’t lost an ounce of energy on stage. From the very first guitar notes, Gilmour’s sound and voice were unmistakable, as he effortlessly strummed his guitar strings.
This is David Gilmour’s fifth solo album, and the crowd at this legendary venue was delighted to see that the guitarist had taken care to recall his talent by playing, among others, Fat Old Sun from the album Atom Heart Mother (released in 1970). After this piece, he received a huge ovation from the colourful crowd, whose ages ranged from 25 to 77.
The visual environment for this show was entrusted to a long-time colleague, lighting designer Marc Brickman, who worked with Pink Floyd for many years in the late 70s. He was responsible for the set and lighting design of the famous 1979 show The Wall.
During the first part of the show, Gilmour played no less than 9 pieces from the Pink Floyd repertoire. Another highlight of the concert was The Great Gig in the Sky, one of the legendary pieces from Dark Side of the Moon (1973), an album released 50 years ago. For the performance, pianist Louise Marshall, the Webb sisters and the guitarist’s daughter, Romany Gilmore, were entrusted with the task. The ambience was spectacular, with candles arranged over the piano and those gorgeous voices i contrasting with Clara Tory’s mythical vocals on the original recording.
To mark this anniversary, the London-based group launched a vast promotional campaign. In the wake of this release, special screenings took place in Montreal and elsewhere around the world, at the Planetarium and SAT.
The Madison Square Garden crowd was in full voice too! We sang Wish You Were Here (1975) in unison, and I was there too, because without betraying my age, it brought back very old memories. David’s sensual guitar and warm voice took many back to the great years when Pink Floyd reigned unchallenged at the pinnacle of prog and space rock. David Gilmour has also surrounded himself with excellent musicians on guitar, keyboard, bass and drums.
The end of the show did not disappoint. As an encore, David Gilmour and his band played Comfortably Numb from the famous album The Wall, written by Roger Waters.
This show marked the end of a series of concerts that began in London, at the famous Royal Albert Hall, followed by Italy (Rome), a country the guitarist is particularly fond of.
Photo Credit: David Gilmour’s Instagram account
