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Releasing his first studio album in nearly nine years, guitarist David Gilmour continues his creatively fruitful journey beyond Pink Floyd. While Gilmour made his name as a member of that group \u2013 effectively replacing founder Syd Barrett in 1968 and remaining to its end \u2013 he has always had more to offer musically than what could fit within the confines of that group.<\/p>\n
A musician\u2019s musician, Gilmour is best known for his signature lead guitar work, mellifluous vocals and a dedicated work ethic. Though Gilmour is a gifted songwriter, in recent years his wife, novelist\/journalist Polly Samson has taken on the role of primary lyricist. And that move has helped to set Gilmour\u2019s music apart from the body of work he helped create with Pink Floyd.<\/p>\n
As a solo artist, Gilmour has not been prolific; in the years since his self-titled debut in 1978, he has released only four studio albums and two live sets. Instead, he values quality over quantity, releasing an album only when it suits him. His newest, Luck and Strange<\/i> is a finely-crafted album that manages a tricky feat: it serves up songs that should satisfy listeners who cherish his \u201cFloydian\u201d approach to songcraft, while elsewhere moving boldly beyond the borders of that style to explore other musical landscapes.<\/p>\n
In some ways, Luck and Strange<\/i> is a family album, making intelligent use of the creative energies of Gilmour\u2019s relations. Samson\u2019s lyrics are emotionally resonant, yet with a character completely different than the acerbic, sometimes cynical lyricism of Gilmour\u2019s long-estranged Pink Floyd band mate Roger Waters. As befits an album made in part the lockdown era, Samson\u2019s lyrics deal with themes of mortality and the great unknown. \u201cThe Piper\u2019s Call\u201d speaks of the empty promise of eternal youth. And the title track reflects upon the metaphorical final curtain. Yet there\u2019s a contemplative warmth that pervades all of the lyrics, and Luck and Strange<\/i> is all the richer for it.<\/p>\n
Many years ago, Gilmour\u2019s and Samson\u2019s son Joe was recorded as he implored his dad to sing. Captured and preserved on the medium of that time \u2013 a Minidisc \u2013 Joe\u2019s vocal is subtly featured in \u201cSings.\u201d Son Charlie is co-credited for some of the lyrics on the lush and deeply textured \u201cScattered.\u201d Another son, Gabriel Gilmour provides backing vocals on two tracks.<\/p>\n
But the family contribution that\u2019s getting the most attention is also the most remarkable: 22-year-old Romany Gilmour provides harp and an evocative, soul-stirring lead vocal on \u201cBetween Two Points.\u201d A cover of a little-known 1999 tune from the Montgolfier Brothers, Gilmour\u2019s reading of \u201cBetween Two Points\u201d is more than a fine song with a guest vocal. Thanks to Romany\u2019s performance, it\u2019s a true collaboration<\/p>\n
The album makes extensive use of orchestration \u2013 strings, chorus and more \u2013 giving it a wide-screen feel. The bluesy \u201cDark and Velvet Nights\u201d is smoldering, sinister and catchy. A pair of instrumentals, \u201cBlack Cat\u201d and \u201cVita Brevis\u201d explore subtle and ethereal sonic spaces. Listeners who want more of Gilmour\u2019s classic soaring guitar work will luxuriate in Luck and Strange<\/i>, especially during the second half of \u201cBetween Two Points.\u201d<\/p>\n
But at its core, David Gilmour\u2019s fifth studio album is about much more than all that. It\u2019s a fully-realized artistic statement from an artist who has nothing left to prove, but who \u2013 at age 78 \u2013 is nevertheless crafting some of the best music of his lifetime.<\/p>\n