David Gilmour in Concert - Live at Robert Wyatt's Meltdown

If David Gilmour's music had evidenced this kind of vision for the last decade and a half, he might have immunized himself from the scorn of those who thought Pink Floyd suffered a beheading when Roger Waters departed. Gilmour has absolutely reinvigorated many of these songs. Some are performed with substantially new arrangements for the very first time, no longer suffocated by Gilmour's almost military precision during Pink Floyd's last two tours. Gilmour even includes two songs from Syd Barrett's solo repertoire, "Terrapin" and "Dominoes," preserving their surreal playfulness without succumbing to the frustration and anxiety that pervade Barrett's own recordings. Most refreshing of all, Pink Floyd classics such as "Comfortably Numb," which has never sounded quite right without a united Floyd, finally bloom under the stewardship of a band capable of recapturing some elusive but essential qualities of the original recordings. This great song has suffered endless failed makeovers, including execrable vocals by Van Morrison in Berlin and Bruce Hornsby in Seville as well as Gilmour's soulless arrangement from 1984 to 1994 that sounds in retrospect not altogether unlike grunge metal. The versions on this DVD begin at a slow, sedate pace that should transfix listeners of such bands as the Grateful Dead and the Cowboy Junkies. Each features a different vocalist substituting for Roger Waters. I slightly favor Bob Geldof, whose starring role in The Wall film certainly bolsters his credibility here, but both successfully execute the hushed expressiveness that characterizes Waters' vocals. The atmosphere unravels as it was intended, fraught with trepidation in the beginning, anasthetized on a cushion of air when Gilmour's chorus melts the tension, and soaring above everything once Gilmour unleashes the greatest guitar solo ever played, which always sounds as though it wants to continue wailing forever.Other highlights of the performance that merit special comment include "Smile," debuting here, a beautiful new song similar in style to "Green is the Colour"; "Je Crois Entendre Encore," a serene but haunting Bizet aria; "Fat Old Sun," Gilmour's first performance of his 1970 composition since that era; and "Breakthrough," from Floyd keyboardist Rick Wright's underappreciated 1996 solo album, Broken China. Although Sinead O'Connor sang "Breakthrough" on the album, Wright appears here as a guest (to great applause) and performs the vocals with Gilmour's band. Accordingly, this is the only version of one of Wright's best songs that he actually sings himself. One should also take care not to neglect the special features the DVD offers in addition to the main performance. Even presented alone, they would stand among the most interesting artifacts in the Pink Floyd universe, and longtime fans should applaud the powers that be for finally realizing that these experiments and curios merit commercial release. The most interesting is the choral version of "High Hopes," where Gilmour brings his dozen background vocalists to the foreground and treats the audience to a haunting tone poem. Minimalism triumphs as the choral component alone proves more arresting than "High Hopes" itself, as beautifully chilling as the "Celestial Voices" part of Floyd's psychedelic melange, "A Saucerful of Secrets." Also included is William Shakespeare's Sonnet 18 ("Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? . . ."), sung by Gilmour to music by Michael Kamen, Gilmour's current pianist and an alumnus of Roger Waters' band (and also the man who paired Guns n' Roses and Metallica with the Philharmonic). Kamen's "lite FM"-style arrangement is almost muzak, exacerbated by accompanying imagery reminiscent of Japanese karaoke footage, but it's a nice song and an interesting companion to "Golden Hair," Syd Barrett's 1970 adaptation of a James Joyce poem.Who can ignore the elephant in the living room of any Floyd solo project: What new evidence does this present in the ongoing inquisition into "Which one is Pink?" Gilmour's efforts on this DVD unquestionably make a stronger case for his role in crafting Pink Floyd's sound than does any other project since Waters' departure. The world tours he organized for the fractured Pink Floyd in 1987 and 1994, notwithstanding the awesome spectacle of the stadium shows, would not have sounded substantially different had the band simply left a greatest hits compilation playing on a turntable. Gilmour had seemed to reason that a less guarded performance would have betrayed the band's radical reconstitution and therefore elected to play it safe and assemble a glorified tribute band. Presently Gilmour proves more adventurous, and it pays off, as he demonstrates with "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" that he can interpret the song as authentically when he stands alone with his acoustic guitar (parts I-V) as when he performs it with a well-rehearsed band (parts VI-IX). Gilmour's new material, moreover, is tender and etheral, knit together by lead guitar parts woven with classical meticulousness and perfectly seasoned with background vocal harmonies, plodding percussion, and even Dick Parry's saxophone -- essential properties of Floyd's most characteristic albums. Suddenly it seems that Gilmour's signature on the Pink Floyd sound faded in direct proportion to the increasing responsibility he assumed in the group. When he played sole bandleader, he was barely there, and if that story seems familiar, it proves the timelessness of a certain album and the pertinence of its infinitely recurring question, "Isn't this where we came in?" Finally, in 2002, David Gilmour has come back to life, and with this concert appears to have broken through his own Wall.

It's Pink Floyd. What else could you want to hear?ANYONE who likes music.Any music.I don't know how anyone could NOT like this.

David Gilmour in Concert (2001 & 2002) takes place at the Royal Festival Hall from three concerts. Guest appearances are made by Floyd colleague Richard Wright, as well as Robert Wyatt, & Bob Geldof.Main Tracks include the following, but be sure to watch the Special Features too:"Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts I–V)" (David Gilmour, Roger Waters, Richard Wright)"Terrapin" (Syd Barrett)"Fat Old Sun" (Gilmour)"Coming Back to Life" (Gilmour)"High Hopes" (Gilmour, Polly Samson)"Je crois entendre encore" (Georges Bizet)"Smile" (Gilmour, Samson)"Wish You Were Here" (Gilmour, Waters)"Comfortably Numb" (with Robert Wyatt) (Gilmour, Waters)"Dimming of the Day" (Richard Thompson)"Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts VI–VIII)" (Gilmour, Waters, Wright)"A Great Day for Freedom" (Gilmour, Samson)"Hushabye Mountain" (Robert B. Sherman, Richard M. Sherman)"Dominoes" (Barrett)"Breakthrough" (with Richard Wright) (Wright, Anthony Moore)"Comfortably Numb" (with Bob Geldof) (Gilmour, Waters)Here are the pros & cons of this video as I see it, I hope this helps youPros:1. Overall brilliant2. Gilmour & Wright as usual do a masterful job3. Special features are also worth watching4. Caroline Dale plays the cello with so much passion & so much talent & is beautiful in addition tooCons:1. I was not impressed with Dick Parry on baritone or tenor saxophones, and thought he was showboating

Many of the reviewers have already gone deeply into individual song reviews and what they liked, what they didn't like and the nonce. Allow me to say that this is one of the finest live solo albums ever. David Gilmour takes a collection of songs from Syd Barrett, Pink Floyd, himself and a few others he just wanted to perform and blends them into a great DVD.The players and singers he surrounds himself with are first rate and the performance showcases everyone. What is predominately showcased is the music itself. Comfortably Numb is one of my all-time favorite songs (or in that stratosphere of musical numbers that I consider all-time greats) and the version, actually two versions, on this DVD leave no doubt to the greatness of the song. The arrangement of it is wonderful and includes subtleties not generally heard in rock music, and yet, it kicks butt.David Gilmour is one of the masters of guitar tone whether playing acoustic or electric guitar and this DVD is no exception to the rule of great tone. His relationship with the guitar is one of pure magic and, as such, brings out the magic in the performances of others.The additional bits are also quite excellent. I particularly enjoyed the "Digits" as one for those of us that play the guitar. Not many guitarists would release close up DVD images of them playing. The "Home Movie" is also wonderful as it shows us a rehearsal of a work in process. How good can it get?