David Gilmour - On an Island (CD/DVD)
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Music CD Cover
Artist: David GilmourEdition: Music CD
Format: Special Edition
CD Release Date: 2006-11-28
Music Label: Sony
Soundtracks:
Music CD 1
- Castellorization
- On An Island
- The Blue
- Take A Breath
- Red Sky At Night
- This Heaven
- Then I Close My Eyes
- Smile
- A Pocketful Of Stones
- Where We Start
- Take A Breath (Live From The Royal Albert Hall)
- Astronomy Domine (Abbey Road Session)
- On An Island (The AOL Sessions)
- This Heaven (The AOL Sessions)
- Smile (The AOL Sessions)
- Take a Breath (The AOL Sessions)
- High Hopes (The AOL Sessions)
- Comfortably Numb (The AOL Sessions)
Free Music Notes for On an Island (CD/DVD)
Free Music Review: Gilmour's newest solo gem gets a deluxe makeover
Hit: 5 Stars
Pink Floyd's legendary guitarist and vocalist David Gilmour's most recent solo album entitled On an Island was released in March of 2006.
On an Island is Gilmour's first new studio recordings since the 1994 Pink Floyd studio effort The Division Bell and his first proper solo album since 1984's About Face.
The album was co-produced by Gilmour along with Roxy Music guitarist Phil Manzanera and Chris Thomas (who mixed Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon and Division Bell albums and has produced albums for Roxy Music, INXS, Pete Townshend, Paul McCartney, The Pretenders, The Sex Pistols and so on) and this album's musical styles run the gamut from Floydish sounding tunes to jazzy to blues, it has it all.
Castellorizon is an awesome instrumental and what a way to start the album. I subtitled this piece Let's Get Metaphysical Part 2 with DG's Stratocaster duetting superbly with an orchestra over 2 minutes into the instrumental. We then segue into the title cut to On an Island. It is an awesome song and is already a masterpiece which would not have sounded out of place on a Pink Floyd record. The highlight of this track is Gilmour harmonizing with 66% of Crosby Stills and Nash that being David Crosby and Graham Nash. Also, the guitar solos on this track of course are amazing. The Blue follows and is amazing with DG and fellow Floyd member keyboardist Rick Wright harmonizing on vocals very well. Gilmour's whammy pedal solos at the end of the track are amazing and cry shades of Marooned (if they don't sound like Marooned to you then you need ears cleaned). Take a Breath follows and musically reminds me of Coming Back to Life and is a great rocker though some will whine and complain about it and has Gilmour pulling out the stops on both lap steel and Stratocaster for the ending solos. The instrumental Red Sky at Night is awesome and David does a fine job on alto saxophone showing he can play any instrument and he also does some superb lap steel guitar effects here.
This Heaven follows and is a great song which has dirty blues rock guitar over a jazzy shuffle that positively swings and shows David can play any genre of music (he proved this on his David Gilmour in Concert DVD in 2002 where he sang an excerpt of a French Opera in French and also performed a version of the lullaby Hushabye Mountain). Then I Close My Eyes is a great instrumental in a different sort of tone, kind of reminds me of Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast's second section but with some cumbus, glass harmonica and bass harmonica and Robert Wyatt's cornet added. Also, BJ Cole did some great dobro on this track and Gilmour's electric guitar playing here is amazing. Smile follows. I have always liked this song ever since Gilmour first performed it in 2001 and now sounds complete with David playing some great dobro on this track and strangely enough it is the original demo with an orchestra added. A Pocketful of Stones follows and is a nice ballad which is hard to put into words, arguably the best solo ballad Gilmour has recorded, especially the ending guitar solo gives me a shiver down the spine. The ironically titled Where We Start is a great way to end the album in a nice relaxing tone and cries shades of A Pillow of Winds from Meddle. Like Smile, the vocals and instruments were the actual demo recorded except for the drums and orchestra which were added on later. Still a great song.
On the versions that were initially sold at the Best Buy chain, there was a bonus track of an almost 7 minute blues instrumental jam called Island Jam which is a great number.
Then in November of 2006, the album was re-released again this time with a DVD which consisted of David Gilmour's AOL Music Session from April of 2006 filmed in New York City with stellar performances of On an Island's title cut, a spirited This Heaven, a laid back version of Smile, a rocking version of Take a Breath, an unearthly version of High Hopes with an ending that will bring a tear to your eye and a stellar version of Comfortably Numb with Gilmour's Pink Floyd bandmate keyboard player Rick Wright sharing the lead vocal. Also on the DVD is a taster of Gilmour's Royal Albert Hall DVD due out in 2007 with a excellent version of Take a Breath filmed this past May and an excellent version of Astronomy Domine from Abbey Road filmed in August of 2006.
If you go into this album with expectations ala David Gilmour's previous two solo album or even a Pink Floyd album then you will be slightly disappointed but if you are an unbiased fan and appreciate music like yours truly, take a listen!
Highly recommended!
On an Island (CD/DVD) Poster
On An Island is the third David Gilmour solo album and his first studio recording since Pink Floyd's 1994 multi-platinum 'The Division Bell'. From the first moments of the sound collage that begins 'On An Island', you know it's a special experience that not only bears comparison with the best of Pink Floyd, but also confirms their lead guitarist and singer as an outstanding solo artist. Here he reveals a personal vision and a breadth of styles - folk, jazz, orchestral and rock - brought together as a unified piece by his lyrical guitar playing and instantly recognisable voice. On An Island is a collection of songs and instrumentals that had its genus in the critically acclaimed 2002 London Festival Hall concerts. Gilmour has stepped out of his super-group to discover he's still at his peak - and he's rightly pleased. 'It's my best and most personal work,' he says. 'Making it with my musician friends has been a positive experience on so many levels. Bonus DVD of AOL Live Sessions tracks - formatted for NTSC / Region 0.Classic Rock Music CDs
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