David Gilmour (album)

1978 studio album by David Gilmour

David Gilmour

Studio album by

David Gilmour

Released| 26 May 1978
Recorded| February–March 1978
Studio| Super Bear Studios, Nice, France
Genre|

* Art rock
* progressive rock
* blues rock

Length| 46:19 (Original LP version)
48:13 (2006 Remastered CD version)
Label|

* Harvest
* Columbia

Producer| David Gilmour
David Gilmour chronology
|  | David Gilmour
(1978)  | About Face
(1984)

|
|

Singles from  David Gilmour

1. "There's No Way Out of Here"
Released: August 1978 [1]

David Gilmour is the debut solo studio album by Pink Floyd guitarist and co-lead vocalist David Gilmour, released on 26 May 1978.[2] The album reached number 17 in the UK[3] and number 29 on the Billboard US album charts; it was certified Gold in the US by the RIAA. The album was produced by Gilmour, and consists mostly of blues and guitar-oriented rock songs, except for the piano-dominated ballad "So Far Away".

## Production and recording

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The tracks used for the album were recorded between February and March 1978 with engineer John Etchells at Super Bear Studios in France.[4] They were then mixed at the same studio by Nick Griffiths. Session musicians included bass guitarist Rick Wills and drummer Willie Wilson, both of whom used to be part of Jokers Wild with Gilmour.[2] The album was recorded at the same studio where Pink Floyd bandmate Richard Wright had recorded his first solo album Wet Dream just weeks before, though it would not be released until September 1978.

## Album's cover artwork

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The album cover used for the first EMI pressings of the album LP was done by Hipgnosis and Gilmour and includes Gilmour, Rick Wills and Willie Wilson in the cover photo; Gilmour was credited on the cover for contributing "Keyboards, Vocals" though he was primarily a guitarist. The CBS/Columbia pressings (outside Europe) listed Gilmour as contributing "Guitars, Keyboards, Vocals". Among those depicted on the inner sleeve is Gilmour's then-wife, Ginger.

## Single and songs

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The album's only single was "There's No Way Out of Here." The single flopped in Europe, but became popular on album-oriented rock radio stations in the US.[citation needed] The song was originally recorded by the band Unicorn (as "No Way Out of Here") for their 1976 album Too Many Crooks (Harvest Records, US title Unicorn 2), which Gilmour produced.[5][6] It was also recorded later by New Jersey stoner rock band Monster Magnet on their Monolithic Baby! album,[citation needed] and by Iron & Wine on his 2015 covers album Sing Into My Mouth.[citation needed]

One unused tune that was written and demoed at the time would later evolve, with lyrics by Roger Waters, into Pink Floyd's "Comfortably Numb" on The Wall.[2] However, a song included on this album, the piano ballad "So Far Away", uses a chorus progression not unlike the chorus to "Comfortably Numb", albeit in a different key.[7]

Likewise, the song "Short and Sweet" can be seen as a musical precursor to "Run Like Hell" (also from The Wall), with its shifting chords over a D pedal point, using a flanged guitar in Drop D tuning.[8] "Short and Sweet" was written in collaboration with Roy Harper, who recorded a version, on which Gilmour played, for his 1980 album The Unknown Soldier.[2]

## Promotion

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A five-song promotional film was made to promote the album.[2] The band comprised Gilmour on guitars and vocals, the two musicians on the album (bass player Rick Wills and drummer Willie Wilson) plus David Gilmour's brother Mark on rhythm guitar and Ian McLagan on keyboards. They performed "Mihalis", "There's No Way Out of Here", "So Far Away", "No Way", and "I Can't Breathe Anymore".[2] There were three female backing singers on "There's No Way Out of Here" and "So Far Away": Debbie Doss, Shirley Roden, and Carlena Williams. The promo was recorded live at The Roxy, London.[9]

Also, Gilmour promoted the album with his first ever[citation needed] interviews with North American media and FM rock radio stations. The album peaked at number 29 on the Billboard album charts, which - until 2006's On an Island \- was Gilmour's highest charting solo album in the US, eventually going Gold.

## Release and reception

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Professional ratingsReview scores

Source| Rating
AllMusic| [10]
Classic Rock| [11]
Sputnikmusic| 3.5/5[12]
Tom Hull| B[13]

The album was released in the UK on 26 May 1978,[2] and in June 1978 in the US, on Harvest and Columbia respectively.

In an interview with Circus in 1978, Gilmour said: "This album [David Gilmour] was important to me in terms of self-respect. At first I didn't think my name was big enough to carry it. Being in a group for so long can be a bit claustrophobic, and I needed to step out from behind Pink Floyd's shadow."

## Track listing

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All music composed by David Gilmour except "There's No Way Out of Here" written by Ken Baker.[2] All lyrics by Gilmour, except where noted.

Side oneNo.| Title| Lyrics| Length

|
|
|

1.| "Mihalis"| [instrumental]| 5:46
2.| "There's No Way Out of Here"| Ken Baker| 5:08
3.| "Cry from the Street"| Gilmour, Electra Stuart| 5:13
4.| "So Far Away"|  | 5:50
Total length:| 21:57

Side twoNo.| Title| Lyrics| Length

|
|
|

5.| "Short and Sweet"| Gilmour, Roy Harper[2]| 5:30
6.| "Raise My Rent"| [instrumental]| 5:33
7.| "No Way"|  | 5:32
8.| "Deafinitely"| [instrumental]| 4:27
9.| "I Can't Breathe Anymore"|  | 3:04
Total length:| 24:06

### 2006 Remastered Edition

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David Gilmour was re-released by EMI Records in Europe as a digitally remastered CD on 14 August 2006.[2] Legacy Recordings/Columbia Records released the remastered CD in the US and Canada on 12 September 2006. It features slightly extended versions of some of the tracks.

No.| Title| Lyrics| Length

|
|
|

1.| "Mihalis"| [instrumental]| 5:55
2.| "There's No Way Out of Here"| Ken Baker| 5:20
3.| "Cry from the Street"| Gilmour, Electra Stuart| 5:13
4.| "So Far Away"|  | 6:06
5.| "Short and Sweet"| Gilmour, Roy Harper| 5:30
6.| "Raise My Rent"| [instrumental]| 5:47
7.| "No Way"|  | 6:12
8.| "Deafinitely"| [instrumental]| 4:27
9.| "I Can't Breathe Anymore"|  | 3:43
Total length:| 48:13

## Personnel

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* David Gilmour – lead and backing vocals, electric and acoustic guitars, lap steel guitar, keyboards, piano on "So Far Away", harmonica on "There's No Way Out of Here", production, cover design
* Rick Wills – bass guitar, backing vocals
* Willie Wilson – drums, percussion

Additional personnel

* Mick Weaver – additional piano on "So Far Away"
* Carlena Williams – backing vocals on "There's No Way Out of Here" and "So Far Away"
* Debi Doss – backing vocals on "There's No Way Out of Here" and "So Far Away"
* Shirley Roden – backing vocals on "There's No Way Out of Here" and "So Far Away"[4]

Production team

* Hipgnosis – cover design; photography

## Charts

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Chart  | Peak
Position

|

New Zealand Albums Chart[14] | 22
Swedish Albums Chart[15] | 20
UK Albums Chart[3] | 17
US Billboard Top LPs & Tape[16] | 29

## References

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1. ^ Fielder, Hugh (2013). Pink Floyd - Behind The Wall (1st ed.). Race Point Publishing. p. 218\. ISBN 978-90-8998-451-7.
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Mabbett, Andy (2010). Pink Floyd - The Music and the Mystery. London: Omnibus. ISBN 978-1-84938-370-7.
3. ^ a b "David Gilmour | Artist". Official Charts. Retrieved 12 July 2012.
4. ^ a b "David Gilmour | Music | David Gilmour | Official Website". www.davidgilmour.com.
5. ^ "Unicorn official site". Unicornmusic.net. Retrieved 14 May 2012.
6. ^ Unicorn discography at Discogs
7. ^ Carruthers, Bob (2011). "The Wall". Pink Floyd – Uncensored on the Record (E-book ed.). Cooda Books Ltd. ISBN 978-1-908538-27-7. Retrieved 11 October 2012.
8. ^ Matt Resnicoff (August 1992). "Careful With That Axe David Gilmour Interview". Musician. Archived from the original on 2 January 2011. Retrieved 16 August 2010.
9. ^ "David Gilmour: Wider Horizons". BBC. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
10. ^ Raggett, Ned. "Allmusic review". Allmusic.com. Retrieved 14 May 2012.
11. ^ Magazine, Classic Rock (27 January 2025). ""As a guitarist he has few peers but as a songwriter he's no Roger Waters": David Gilmour soars on beautifully crafted if ultimately unchallenging debut solo album". Classic Rock. Retrieved 12 April 2025.
12. ^ EMERITUS, Irving (26 December 2010). "David Gilmour - David Gilmour". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved 12 April 2025.
13. ^ Hull, Tom. "Grade List: David Gilmour". Tom Hull – on the Web. Retrieved 12 April 2025.
14. ^ Hung, Steffen. "David Gilmour - David Gilmour". charts.nz. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
15. ^ Hung, Steffen. "David Gilmour - David Gilmour". swedishcharts.com. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
16. ^ "David Gilmour - David Gilmour | Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 1 November 2013.

## External links

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* David Gilmour at Discogs (list of releases)

* v
* t
* e

David Gilmour

Studio albums|

* David Gilmour (1978)
* About Face (1984)
* On an Island (2006)
* Metallic Spheres (2010, with the Orb)
* Rattle That Lock (2015)
* Luck and Strange (2024)

Live albums|

* Live in Gdańsk (2008)
* Live at Pompeii (2017)

Singles|

* "Love on the Air"
* "Smile"
* "Arnold Layne (live)"
* "Chicago – Change the World"
* "Faces of Stone"
* "One of These Days (live)"
* "Run Like Hell (live)"

Videos and DVDs|

* David Gilmour Live 1984
* David Gilmour in Concert
* Remember That Night
* Live in Gdańsk
* Live at Pompeii

Concert tours|

* On an Island Tour
* Rattle That Lock Tour
* Luck and Strange Tour

Guest appearances|

* Back to the Egg
* Boys and Girls
* Brother Where You Bound
* Count Three & Pray
* The Dreaming
* Flowers in the Dirt
* Headline News
* HQ
* No More Lonely Nights
* Once
* Run Devil Run
* The Sensual World
* So Red the Rose
* The Unknown Soldier
* White City: A Novel

Related articles|

* Discography
* Pink Floyd
* Roger Waters
* Deep End
* Jokers Wild
* The Law
* Ginger Gilmour
* Polly Samson
* Astoria
* Hookend Recording Studios
* Roy Harper
* The Black Strat
* The Madcap Laughs
* Barrett
* Two Weeks in September

* Category

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz release group

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