David Gilmour On An Island CD

Personnel: David Gilmour (vocals, guitar, saxophone, piano, electric piano, percussion); David Gilmour; Polly Samson (vocals, piano); Crosby, David & Graham Nash, Richard Wright (vocals); Rado Klose (guitar); Lucy Wakeford (harp); Caroline Dale (cello); Leszek Mozdzer (piano); Chris E. Thomas (keyboards); Chris Laurence (double bass); Willie Wilson & The Tunemasters, Ged Lynch (drums); Alasdair Malloy (glass armonica); Ilan Eshkeri (programming); Graham Nash (vocals); Robert Wyatt (cornet, percussion); Phil Manzanera (piano, keyboards); Jools Holland (piano); Andy Newmark (drums, percussion); David Crosby.
Recording information: Astoria, NY; At Home; British Grove; EMI Abbey Road Studios, London, England; Gallery Studio.
Photographers: David Gilmour; Jeremy Young ; Sandra Kamen; Harry Borden.
The men of Pink Floyd have always taken their time, turning out stately epics at a less than hectic clip. Accordingly, 22 years separate ON AN ISLAND from ABOUT FACE, the previous solo album by Floyd axeman/singer David Gilmour. On the latter, Gilmour was still trying to distance his own sound from Floyd's, but with that band mostly a memory in 2006, he was free to honor its legacy, much as Paul McCartney's later albums acknowledged the Beatles' work.
The template for ON AN ISLAND seems to be tracks like "Breathe" from DARK SIDE OF THE MOON. The mood is an overwhelmingly mellow, spacious one, with Gilmour's trademark double-tracked vocals and plangent, liquid guitar tones flowing gracefully across almost exclusively slow-to-mid-tempo arrangements. But with Roger Waters missing from the equation, there's a notable lack of misanthropy in Gilmore's lyrical sentiments. The themes are more in keeping with the life of a fabulously wealthy elder statesman of British rock: placidly philosophical, with a luxurious air that finds its parallel in the elegant layers of guitar and keyboard lines that color the album in shimmering pastel shades.
To think that David Gilmour waited 22 years to record his third solo album is a pretty solid indicator that he's not the kind of bloke to merely cash in on his name. After all, he's the guy who sold his house for four million English pounds and gave the money to charity. Perhaps now that the Pink Floyd reunion happened and he and Roger Waters are at least civil to one another, the Floyd enigma can finally find its way into the annals of history and rock legend. Of course, this brings listeners to On an Island. Those wanting something edgy and dramatic will have to wait. Some of the more misanthropic Floyd heads (and there are many) will give voice to their ire that he's written six of these ten tunes with his wife, Polly Samson, who also plays a bit of piano and sings here. You can hear them now -- "She's the new Yoko Ono!" -- at which point the pair will rightfully smile, quietly and bemusedly. Musically, On an Island is mostly a laid-back, utterly elegant English record. It has the feel of taking place between twilight and dawn. There are a few rumblers here to upset the balance of tranquility and stillness, like flashes of heat lightning across the dark skies, but they only add dimension to these proceedings. Produced by Gilmour, Phil Manzanera (who appears on keyboards a lot), and Chris Thomas, the album features guest spots from the likes of Richard Wright, Robert Wyatt, B.J. Cole, Floyd/Sly Stone drummer Andy Newmark, Georgie Fame, David Crosby and Graham Nash, Jools Holland, Willie Wilson, and many others.
The set opens with "Castellorizon," a moody showcase with Gilmour's guitars backed by the orchestral arrangements of Zbigniew Preisner as conducted by Robert Zeigler. Preisner's arrangements throughout are wonderful and not quite as dark as one might expect, given his track record. Atmospheric and dramatic, it offers a lovely if off impression of the album. The title track, which follows, is all breezy strummed chords, keyboards by Wright, and dreamy vocals with Gilmour backed by CrosQ (p.121) - Ranked #45 in Q Magazine's "100 Greatest Albums of 2006" -- "[The songs] demonstrated the Floyd leader's mastery of the reflective vocal and grand guitar showdown..."
Uncut (p.108) - 3 stars out of 5 -- "[T]he tone is oceanic and the mood contemplative, with Gilmour's keening guitar lines soaring across cloudless skies, hitting with extraordinary clarity notes that can usually only be heard by dogs."
Mojo (Publisher) (p.p.88) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "[A] hugely sensual work, its prevailing mood one of Zen-like calm."