Pink Floyd guitarist gone solo.

David Gilmour - About Face (Columbia) 1984

1. "Until We Sleep" (5:15)
2. "Murder" (4:59)
3. "Love on the Air" (4:17)
4. "Blue Light" (4:34)
5. "Out of the Blue" (3:34)
6. "All Lovers Are Deranged" (3:13)
7. "You Know I'm Right" (5:03)
8. "Cruise" (4:39)
9. "Let's Get Metaphysical" [instrumental] (4:08)
10. "Near the End" (5:36)

What a wonderfully emotional album, although I am not really sure why this disc wasn't recorded with the guys from Pink Floyd. 'About Face' sounds like a great Pink Floyd disc to me, especially lead single and lone hit "Murder." Regardless of hits, the music on this disc is somewhat of a mellow nature, so I suppose the mood has to be right to really enjoy this disc. For me it may also be a bit of nostalgia, being that I have been a Pink Floyd fan since I was a kid in grade school. In anycase, the guitar playing is spectacular, although not overly flashy. The vocals are all sang by David, which just adds to the overall Pink Floyd likeness. There are some more upbeat moments as well, like the hard-driving "All Lovers Are Deranged". Should also make not the The Who's Pete Townsend co-wrote a few of these songs. This disc is an absolute must for Pink Floyd fans.

David Gilmour - On An Island (Columbia) 2006 1. "Castellorizon" (3:54) 2. "On an Island" (6:47) 3. "The Blu" (5:26) 4. "Take a Breath" (5:45) 5. "Red Sky at Night" [instrumental] (2:51) 6. "This Heaven" (4:24) 7. "Then I Close My Eyes" (5:27) 8. "Smile" (4:03) 9. "A Pocketful of Stones" (6:17) 10. "Where We Star" (6:46)

It has been 22 years since David Gilmore last recorded a solo album. In that time you might think that he would move away from the signature sound he created with Pink Floyd. However, if you thought this, you would be dead wrong. To be sure, the majority of "On An Island" could be Pink Floyd in all but name only. However, since Pink Floyd has covered such as wide musical ground themselves, this really doesn't describe the music. "On An Island" is a melodic, somewhat mellow release, yet it still has an edge to it that is created purely by the mood of the songs themselves. The CD opens with a dramatic number called "Castellorizon" complete with orchestral arrangements. This dramatic mood is carried throughout the album. The title track is all melancholy, strummed chords, with keyboards by Richard Wright, and ethereal vocals from Gilmour, backed by Crosby and Nash. If this doesn't leave any Floyd fan salivating, they probably aren't a Floyd fan to begin with. Wright also offers some backing vocals throughout the CD, which gives the CD even more of an air of classic Pink Floyd. "This Heaven" will no doubt be the single from this album. It has a very catchy groove to it that would work well on rock radio. "Smile" even brought me back to those early 1970's albums like "Meddle" and "Obscured by Clouds". The set ends with "Where We Star", which is a mellow and romantic song. Overall, however, "On An Island" is what you might expect from Gilmour. I just can't imagine how any Pink Floyd fan wouldn't like this CD.

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