David Gilmour arrived at his unmistakable guitar type fairly merely. “I spotted my fingers have been simply by no means going to go a lot sooner,” the Pink Floyd legend informed UCR in an interview this previous summer time.”

“You’ve received to seek out your personal path on this factor,” he defined. However later, he concluded his thought, “I do want I might do it a bit higher generally,” punctuating these final phrases with a wry chuckle.

The capability crowd in attendance on the first gig (Nov. 4) of Gilmour’s five-night run at Madison Sq. Backyard seemingly would collectively discover no room for enchancment on the subject of the 2 and a half hour present they witnessed.

You possibly can see unique images from the MSG present under.

The guitarist is touring in assist of Luck and Unusual, his first solo album in almost a decade and is performing the entire report, with quite a lot of Pink Floyd songs interspersed with the brand new tracks, alongside a number of choices from his earlier solo outing, 2015’s Rattle That Lock.

READ MORE: David Gilmour, ‘Luck and Unusual’: Album Evaluation 

That ended up being a clever transfer from a pacing and sequencing standpoint. After one specific stretch that includes Luck and Unusual’s “The Piper’s Name,” “A Nice Day for Freedom” from Pink Floyd’s 1994 album The Division Bell, Rattle That Lock’s “In Any Tongue” and the Darkish Aspect of the Moon traditional ,”The Nice Gig within the Sky,” an viewers member shared his suggestions with the individual subsequent to him. “If all of these songs are from his new album, that new album is fairly good.”

Initially, Gilmour expressed an “unwillingness to revisit the Pink Floyd of the ‘70s,” when the tour dates have been first introduced, one thing which many assumed was associated to his ongoing feud with former bandmate Roger Waters. He later softened on that stance, telling UCR that there could be “one or two from the ‘70s” within the set that was taking form. “However numerous the music shall be newer and youthful than 50 years previous.”

The set record — and viewers response — proved that Gilmour wasn’t off-base in turning his focus to a number of the lesser-known corners of his catalog. Fan-shot video of the guitarist’s fiery solo on “Fats Outdated Solar,” from 1970’s Atom Coronary heart Mom has been making the rounds for the reason that tour started — and with good motive. He deservedly acquired his first standing ovation of the evening on the track’s conclusion.

Watch David Gilmour Carry out ‘Fats Outdated Solar’ at Madison Sq. Backyard

Materials from The Division Bell, too, was a welcome Inclusion. Notably, “A Nice Day for Freedom,” has made its first vital common appearances in Gilmour’s solo set lists on this present tour, having solely been aired out a handful of occasions within the early 2000s. “The Nice Gig within the Sky” was one other beautiful second, with the legendarily emotional vocal improvisations of the unique now dealt with as a quartet by vocalist and pianist Louise Marshall, the Webb Sisters and Gilmour’s daughter, Romany. The trio of singers surrounded Marshall on the piano, accented by candles throughout them, with Gilmour off to the aspect, including contemplative pedal metal elements.

Anybody who’s ever seen a Pink Floyd or Gilmour live performance will know that the visuals play an enormous half and that was actually true at Madison Sq. Backyard. There is a specific second in “Excessive Hopes” that with out ruining the shock, marries what’s occurring with the video on-screen completely with an sudden added element inside the sector.

It is no shock that songs like “Want You Have been Right here” and “Comfortably Numb” (the latter being the encore and ultimate track of the evening) introduced a number of the largest reactions with the viewers singing each phrase with substantial quantity. However the materials from Luck and Unusual fared equally effectively — and “Scattered,” which closed out the second a part of the principle set with yet one more unimaginable Gilmour solo, is only one of a number of that made a significant influence.

Watch David Gilmour Carry out ‘Scattered’ at Madison Sq. Backyard

This week’s live shows in New York are the final in a collection of world residencies that the guitar legend started on Sept. 27 in Rome. Italy, the place he carried out a complete of six exhibits. An extra six dates adopted in London, England on the legendary Royal Albert Corridor. Gilmour’s present promotional run then got here to the USA for his first exhibits right here in eight years, with 9 dates unfold between Los Angeles and New York Metropolis.

READ MORE: David Gilmour Performs in Los Angeles

If Gilmour has his method, followers received’t have to attend as lengthy for the follow-up to Luck and Unusual to reach. Through the dialog with UCR, he confirmed that he already had concepts for brand new music starting to take form. “I’ll undoubtedly be shifting onto that within the new yr.”

The New York dates proceed tonight (Nov. 6) at Madison Sq. Backyard.

David Gilmour Nov. 4, 2024 Madison Sq. Backyard, New York Metropolis Set Checklist
1. “5 A.M.”
2. “Black Cat”
3. “Luck and Unusual”
4. “Breathe (Within the Air)
5. “Time”
6. “Breathe” (Reprise)
7. “Fats Outdated Solar”
8. “Marooned”
9. “A Single Spark”
10. “Want You Have been Right here”
11. “Vita Brevis”
12. “Between Two Factors”
13. “Excessive Hopes”
14. “Sorrow”
15. “The Piper’s Name”
16. “A Nice Day for Freedom”
17. “In Any Tongue”
18. “The Nice Gig within the Sky”
19. “A Boat Lies Ready”
20. “Coming Again to Life”
21. “Darkish and Velvet Nights”
22. “Sings”
23. “Scattered”
24. “Comfortably Numb”