2024-09-09 14:32:44
A short instrumental piece opens the doors to magic. It is called “Black Cat,” and announces that David Gilmour He will never cease in his purpose of searching for beauty through his guitar. From his 78 years of life to date, he has been doing it for almost sixty years. Not only for what it meant to tone down the dramatic, tormented tone of the other genius of Roger Waters, en Pink Floyd; but also because he had to take charge of such a band after the final cut in 1982 –and steer the ship to a safe harbor, of course-, in addition to accompanying this process with a solo performance at the height. What “Black Cat” announces, then, is another step in the battle in the future of this genuine guitar hero who never needed poses, histrionic gestures or caretaje scenic, to become one of the most revered guitarists in the history of rock.
What “Black Cat” announces is ultimately where it will go Luck and Strange, Fifth solo album by the English musician in almost fifty years of careerwith a zero milestone in that eponymous debut of 1978. Recorded between the cities of London and Brighton, published on vinyl, CD, Blu Ray, and digital, and produced by Charlie Andrew –besides David himself- the first album that the ex Floyd publishes in nine years –the last one had been Rattle That Rock (2015) – a systemic march through the elegant, reflective and climatic sound world that the guitarist usually travels through and that, as expected, does not obstruct the possibility of surprising.
Surprising for its nostalgic touch, for example, which can be seen in the eponymous track, because it was recorded with Rick Wright, keyboardist for all eras of Pink Floyd, who passed away in September 2008. It turns out that one night the previous year, the two of them got together to jam in the barn of old David’s house, and the result was this warm bluesy gem, in whose twilight Wright’s electric piano and Hammond organ shine.
The surprise factor also comes from the involvement of almost his entire nuclear family. Romany, his daughter, accompanies him in “Between two points”whose substrate is anchored in a very fine revisit of the theme recorded by the duo The Montgolfier Brothers, in Seventeen Stars (1999). Gilmour’s daughter stands out not only for the genetically consistent phrasing of her voice, but also for her harp playing, whose flight is just like her father’s intrinsic flight. And she enchants the rest with her cloudy and dreamlike English grey, very, very much in keeping with the story. A beautiful conjunction between a voice and a guitar that know each other beyond music. A beautiful song.
Father and daughter also merge in “Yes, I Have Ghosts”, a gem where Will Gardner’s strings dress the pen of the novelist Polly Samson, David’s current wifeand Romany’s mother. “The album is written from the point of view of someone of advanced age… mortality is the constant,” she says, who wrote the lyrics for most of the songs. Like “The Piper’s Call,” for example, a song in a Celtic-folk key in which the guitar solo points directly to the clear side of the soul, as do those of “A Single Spark,” and the epiphanic “Scratted,” both of which are a delight for the most Floyd fans.
David’s company extends to his three sons – Charlie, Joe and Gabriel -, two bassists (Guy Pratt and Tom Herbert), three drummers (Adam Betts, Steve Gadd and Steve Di Stanislao), two keyboardists (Rob Gentry + Roger Eno), and the aforementioned Gardner, on strings. And unfortunately – David is not Roger – the third-world Buenos Aires is not one of the places chosen to present the brand new work.. Yes, the first-world cities of Rome, London, Los Angeles and New York, where old David will be touring with his troupe during the second half of the year.