Is Gilmour Slightly Losing it Slightly

Travisthedog · August 2013

First up, Ol' DG was the reason i picked up the guitar how ever many years ago it was now, and since then i admit i have put him on a pedestal above pretty much all other guitarists.

When I finally got to see him live in 2006 at the RAH, it was like a religeous experience for me, and i actually cried like a girl when the first chords of "Breathe" rang out, but i came away thinking not only "that was the best gig ive ever seen" but also that i was glad that i had heard a few bum notes, as it showed that even god-like status players can have an off moment.

Up until that point my only floyd live experience had been the mighty Delicate sound of thunder CD and then Pulse, all of which i am relialbly informed were recorded off the desk with NO touch up afterwards (i.e overdubbing solos and fuck ups etc)

Forward wind to 2011 at the Roger Waters Wall Tribute shows, imagine my delight when i had heard that DG had joined for Comfortably Numb. Imagine my pain when i heard this

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hUYzQaCCt2o

Its dire, to the point that with a following breeze and on a good day, i could have kicked his arse.

I saw him guest with someone else on a german TV show a few weeks ago, and that was crap too. I have this feeling that his heart just isnt in it any more. compare the above with this

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ges_1E6OocE

Deijavoo · August 2013

That's horrific and very sad actually.

ICBM · August 2013

It sounds to me like he's deliberately trying to introduce a bit of life into it regardless of the slightly erratic results, rather than just going through the motions and playing it exactly like the record.

Waters looks a bit of a buffoon though...!

Travisthedog · August 2013

i wondered if he was trying to sabotage it becasue although they say theve kissed and made up, they actually havent!

Gulliver · August 2013

In DG's defence, those two videos were filmed 17 years apart, and I imagine that aged 65+ we'd all have a few off days!!

jaygtr · August 2013

I realise he's being doing it a long time, but he could have just been a bit nervous.
It happens to all of us at times especially the first song

dindude · August 2013

Maybe he's scared of heights.

stickyfiddle · August 2013

Little to no rehearsal, that's all. It's still really good IMO, just not quite as good as the Albert Hall or Live8 versions, but it's still more musical than almost every cover I've heard.

I was at Live8- the only time the "Proper" Floyd played together in my lifetime. Fucking awesome.

Barney · August 2013

it could have been a while since he played comfortably numb....and maybe having a off day.....could have been bad mix back to him through the ear monitor or anything like that...when you dont have the sound its detrimental affect on your playing....i dont think hes doing bad with all the youtube vids out this is one of the only ones he looks and sounds uncomfortable....no ..i dont think hes loosing it...just having a off day that could be due to various reasons...

fatherjack · August 2013

The version of Comfortably Numb that DG's been playing post Roger Waters is quite different from the album version - the end solo goes on a lot longer. Roger's version is much nearer the album version, and without rehearsal DG had to, in his mind, 'cut it short' rather on the fly, with unfortunate results.

I saw this when it first hit youtube; he was repaying the favour that RW did by turning up to duet 'To Know Him Is To Love Him' at a small charity gig.

ourmaninthenorth · August 2013

Mr Gilmour seems to have been around forever, he's certainly accompanied me all the way on my musical journey. The one thing I've always admired about him is his phenomenal "touch" , instantly recognizable and on occasion breathtakingly beautiful. This clip perversely reminds me how good he is, because when he slips a small percentile off his mark, it's like the end of the bloody world.

This clip also reminds me personally how old I'm getting, I saw them perform this set at Earls Court on it's first outing... what a show. Is Mr Gilmour losing it slightly? Of course he is, we all are.

8-}

John_P · August 2013

I still enjoyed it even if it's not his best performance - that's a big pressure gig though - apart from where he had to stand there won't have been a lot of adjusting the monitor mix or time to get into the gig.... just straight into a huge and probably emotional moment so I can forgive him being slightly less than perfect

Lexie1 · August 2013

Like so many from that era and before, we are all getting older and we do things differently, making adjustments here and there to accommodate arthritic joints etc, etc.

We all have off days, there is no reason why our Heroes shouldn't do the same. I have seen various heroes of mine on some blinding gigs and then seen them die a death on other occasions. Name of the game I am afraid.

randomhandclaps · August 2013

It's entirely possible the second clip is actually this guy: http://www.metro.us/newyork/entertainment/2013/05/05/minnesota-man-tells-hospital-hes-pink-floyds-david-gilmour-hospital-says-ok/

Alternatively, Dave Kilminster may have his family at gunpoint.

ftumch · August 2013

I was there! Imagine the pressure he was under for that moment, he wasn't even playing the rest of the song, just pop up in front of how many people and launch straight into one of the worlds most well known solos it's no wonder he may have choked a little. I don't think any less of him for it, he's only human.

Zodiac51 · August 2013

I'm thinking "Walk on part, and it wasn't his gig" to be fair it wouldn't be like he was familiar with the Waters touring set-up.

I don't think he has to answer to anyone for the odd performance that doesn't come off in his usual seamless fashion, dude is 100% pro and I doubt that anyone anywhere has coaxed more out of a pentatonic scale than him. ^:)^

He probably has more tone in his turds than most mortals could dream about having.

)

Travisthedog · August 2013

Good

Then I'm convinced

God lives on

stonevibe · August 2013

Not bad, not great.

p90fool · August 2013

Travisthedog said:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hUYzQaCCt2o

I never got far enough into a Pink Floyd song to even realise they HAD a guitarist.
Will someone tell me what time he starts? Only me kebab's going cold, like.

Bellycaster · August 2013

I think around at the 5:44 moment, he stumbles a bit on that run down the Pentatonic and I think it shook him a bit, like he's thinking in his own head "F*ck, I can't believe it".

Considering the size of the occasion, I do think he did his damn best to recover it, albeit with a couple more mini glitches. One minor fuck up like that can freak out even the most experienced I suppose.

I love D.G by the way.

[Deleted User] · August 2013

Having just watched it, it was no where near as bad as I had expected based on the OP's comments. The reaction from the audience when they realised it was actually Gilmour singing was very moving, even watching it on my iPhone. I can't imagine how it must have felt to DG. One thing's for sure, I bet he felt a considerable weight of expectation, which probably did make him nervous. As others have said, his playing is usually so perfect, even the slightest slip is very noticeable.

I wholehearted agree with ICBM; Rogers is embarrassing. If he can't find anything better to do with his hands, stick to playing bass....

Travisthedog · August 2013

Maybe I was being harsh. I still want his babies even though I understand that not biologically possible at the moment.

Never liked waters although he is by far the better songwriter of the two. But he certainly ha mellowed with age but I go with the consensus here, he should have stayed behind the wall with the others!

[Deleted User] · August 2013

Travisthedog;13441" said:
Never liked waters although he is by far the better songwriter of the two. But he certainly ha mellowed with age but I go with the consensus here, he should have stayed behind the wall with the others!

Did you hear the Desert Island Disks he did? Worth checking out on iPlayer. He came across very well-which TBH surprised me.

He looks so much better behind a P Bass though....

Fretwired · August 2013

stickyfiddle said:

Little to no rehearsal, that's all. It's still really good IMO, just not quite as good as the Albert Hall or Live8 versions, but it's still more musical than almost every cover I've heard.

I was at Live8- the only time the "Proper" Floyd played together in my lifetime. Fucking awesome.

This.

He just doesn't play live enough any more. There are plenty of artists in the same boat. Back in his PF days the band would have rehearsed for a month and then be on the road for a year, hence the high standard.

randomhandclaps · August 2013

Also, it is Gilmour. Quite frankly if it had got to the solo and he had thrown his guitar to the ground, raised his middle finger and then bit the head of the world's last living dodo he would still be an untouchable legend.

If you look at Live 8 (not that long ago), he was spot on - after weeks of rehearsals.

Travisthedog · August 2013

randomhandclaps;13529" said:
Also, it is Gilmour. Quite frankly if it had got to the solo and he had thrown his guitar to the ground, raised his middle finger and then bit the head of the world's last living dodo he would still be an untouchable legend.If you look at Live 8 (not that long ago), he was spot on - after weeks of rehearsals.

That's genius !

geepers0677 · August 2013

I went to one of the Pulse shows when I was 17. Probably best gig I've ever been to... closely followed by Van Halen supporting Bon Jovi at Wembley in the mid 90s. DG has incredible timing and tone, but I can only imagine he was in one of those situations at the O2, when it starts to go wrong, and no matter what you do it just gets worse...

Skipped · August 2013

I am absolutely certain that next time he plays it - in front of a small crowd and with his feet planted firmly on the ground - his timing will be immaculate.
I think it is very unlikely that Dave will ever ask me for advice about anything but if he did I would tell him - If that situation ever arises again, for example - Playing the solo strapped to a parachute as he slowly drops into the next Global Charity Event to finish the song with a Symphony Orchestra that he has never actually been in the same room with - I would probably say: "Play less notes".

Fretwired · August 2013

Here's a track with Dave playing with John Paul Jones and Rod Stewart .. great tone and tasty licks ...

[Deleted User] · August 2013

Fretwired;14462" said:
Here's a track with Dave playing with John Paul Jones and Rod Stewart .. great tone and tasty licks ...

Just couldn't be mistaken for anyone else.... Fantastic.

Travisthedog · August 2013

Oh that's just sublime he did some fantastic work on Sam Browns first album too

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Is Gilmour Slightly Losing it Slightly

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