Royal Albert Hall, London
Wednesday, 9th October 2024
It has been more than eight years since legendary Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour was seen live on stage. However, well-received new album, Luck and Strange, and the eternal adoration of the audience can quickly turn things around. Resulting in a completely sold-out Royal Albert Hall in London, including the standing room in the roof of the stately building. Meaning more than 5,300 tickets sold, quite expensive too. But that does not lead to difficult sales, on the contrary: all six performances in the London metropolis were sold out in no time. This also applied to the six shows that Gilmour cum suis gave in Rome, and will undoubtedly also apply to the four concerts in Los Angeles/Hollywood and five shows in New York at the end of the tour.
Because, make no mistake, Gilmour is an absolute top performer within the genre. In football terms, you could say he is top of the Champions League, comparable to City and Madrid. In a class of his own. Of course, this is largely due to his Pink Floyd past, but with his new album he proves to still be relevant in (pop) music. David Gilmour is an impressive, legendary, almost mythical figure. Or in the eloquent words of his wife Polly Samson: ‘he’s David Gilmour and he’s a f***ing legend!’.
A well-balanced setlist too, although exactly the same every night. A lot of material from the new album, of course, but also a few tracks from its predecessor Rattle That Lock from 2015. A large part of the audience naturally comes mainly for his interpretation of Pink Floyd songs. For example, there is a nice section of The Dark Side of the Moon and especially The Division Bell from 1994, clearly a favourite of his, comes out well with no less than four songs. No Us And Them, Money, Shine On You Crazy Diamond or a single song from On an Island, but no one complained.
5 A.M. is a great opener, sharp at a quarter to eight, the tension is palpable when the recognizable tones of Gilmour’s guitar ignite the room. Two songs from the new album, Black Cat with slide guitar solo by ‘new boy’ Ben Worsley seamlessly flows into title track Luck and Strange, that wonderful lazy groove, with fantastic harmony vocals, Gilmour himself has some trouble with his voice. Then follows a section from The Dark Side of the Moon with successively Speak to Me, Breathe (In the Air), Time, with the well-known clocks film on the big screen, and Breathe (Reprise). The audience clap their hands, shout and whistle until they are blue in the face.
Fat Old Sun will never be my favourite but the opposite applies to Marooned, partly due to the excellent light show and the superb solo by Gilmour, the band members watch in awe. Wish You Were Here is sung along loudly as always, it remains an iconic song. Two new songs again, Vita Brevis is a stepping stone for Between Two Points. This also means the entry of daughter Romany, who convincingly performs the song by the Montgolfier brothers, accompanying herself on harp.
The last song before the break is from The Division Bell, High Hopes is a great song with a beautiful ending with acoustic guitar and fading piano. The large balloons that are thrown into the hall contribute to the festive atmosphere but, in my opinion, could have been left out: they are only distracting. The band members leave the stage to thunderous applause, the star of the show last.
The ultra-sharp large screen above the stage makes it painfully clear that time has not passed by the great guitarist. His hands and face in particular have suffered, it seems. His first words to the audience are not spoken until after forty minutes into the show, he has never been much of a talker. The interaction with the audience is limited anyway, the shouted ‘we love you David!’ remains unanswered, at most a smile betrays some emotion. The large number of guitars that the master uses during the show is striking: I count a small dozen, including two black signature Fender Stratocasters, but also a fiery red one, an old battered Telecaster, both a black and a gold Les Paul, but also a Gibson ES 335 belong to the electric instruments played this night. In addition, there is of course a beautiful acoustic specimen (Martin) and the inevitable Fender steel.
After about twenty minutes, the second part starts, not everyone has found their place yet. The ominous Sorrow gets a formidable rendition, Romany supports her father vocally in The Piper’s Call. A Great Day for Freedom is a new climax in a set that already has many highlights. Another typical Gilmour song, In Any Tongue, especially because of the animation video and the guitar solo at the end. The solo vocals during the second part are provided by Ben Worsley, he does so impressively.
The Great Gig in the Sky is performed in an acoustic version this time, reinvented as it were, with the eminent Louise Marshall on grand piano, four heavenly female voices, one slide guitar and a whole lot of candlesticks. The subsequent A Boat Lies Waiting, an ode to the unfortunately much too early deceased Rick Wright, is extremely emotional with multiple harmony vocals, goose bumps.
Another highlight, Coming Back to Life, it just doesn’t stop. Dark and Velvet Nights, with an animated film in Steven Wilson style and a beautiful guitar duet, is yet another new song. The same goes for Sings, with strong references to On an Island, and Scattered, the triptych is also in that order on Luck and Strange. These are the last songs of the official part of the show.
There is hardly any other encore imaginable than Comfortably Numb, the ultimate Pink Floyd song, accompanied by a sensational laser show including mirror ball and the guitar solo to end all guitar solos. The entire hall goes completely crazy and a standing ovation of all 5,300 people is the rightful reward for so much beauty. Even Gilmour himself is visibly moved by it.
The experienced and smoothly playing backing band this time contained a mix of old faithfuls and talented newcomers. For example, there is guitarist Ben Worsley who impressed with both inventive guitar playing and excellent singing. Drummer Adam Betts is also quite a talent, in addition to mighty hits there’s also refined percussion and even a life-size clock (High Hopes). Second keyboardist Rob Gentry is also relatively unknown, both aforementioned also contributed to Luck and Strange. Veterans Greg Phillinganes (Eric Clapton, Phil Collins, Toto) on keyboards and permanent bassist since 1987 Guy Pratt complete the band. I surely must not forget singers Hatty and Charley Webb and especially Louise Marshall. And to top it all off Romany Gilmour, daughter of, and now best known for her lead vocals on Between two Points, the most recent single from the new album. The very same album that has now reached number 1 in a considerable number of countries, not bad for a 78-year-old.
No expense or effort has been spared for this tour, starting with the large screen which is of super HD quality. The light show above the stage is unparalleled, rarely seen anything like it. Hundreds of small LED lamps together form a carpet of light and can take on any kind of shape and colour. The laser show has always been an integral part of shows by Gilmour and Pink Floyd, but this time he manages to surpass previous tours by far. Add to this the already mentioned mirror ball and not forgetting the fantastic crystal clear sound and you have the ingredients for a top-notch evening.
The entire show takes approximately 2.5 hours. After which the now familiar journey around the world by train, taxi and tube can begin. It was a memorable evening, in more ways than one. The lucky ones who attended will no doubt address each other in a few years as follows: Remember that night?
[Photos by Alex Driessen]
SETLIST
Set 1:
5 A.M.
Black Cat
Luck and Strange
Speak to Me
Breathe (In the Air)
Time
Breathe (Reprise)
Fat Old Sun
Marooned
Wish You Were Here
Vita Brevis
Between Two Points
High Hopes
Set 2:
Sorrow
The Piper’s Call
A Great Day for Freedom
In Any Tongue
The Great Gig in the Sky
A Boat Lies Waiting
Coming Back to Life
Dark and Velvet Night
Sings
Scattered
~ Encore:
Comfortably Numb
MUSICIANS
David Gilmour – Guitars, Vocals
Guy Pratt – Bass, Vocals
Greg Phillinganes – Keyboards, Vocals
Rob Gentry – Keyboards, Vocals
Adam Betts – Drums, Vocals
Ben Worsley – Guitars, Vocals
Louise Marshall – Vocals, Piano
Romany Gilmour – Vocals, Harp
Hattie Webb – Vocals, Mandolin, Harp
Charley Webb – Vocals, Guitars, Ukulele
LINKS
David Gilmour – Website | Facebook | YouTube | X | Instagram
