David Gilmour will forever be associated with Pink Floyd. He has been a solo artist for far longer than a member of the pioneering band. Despite the magnificence of his work outside of Pink Floyd, his cultural impact is minuscule in comparison, as even Gilmour would likely admit.
Since his eponymous debut album in 1978, Gilmour has released three more solo albums. They released the most recent one in 2015. Only with the support of a band, does he fully commit to life. It appears to be his most comfortable environment. Gilmour has never enjoyed being the center of attention, preferring to let his music speak for itself.
If Gilmour had stayed true to his plans, he would never have made any solo records. However, due to growing tensions within Pink Floyd, he felt he had no choice. Roger Waters was asserting dominance over their creativity at the time. But more agonizingly for Gilmour, every small decision was taking an eternity to make.
After Pink Floyd’s 1977 album Animals, he released his first solo album. Pink Floyd spent much of 1975 overseeing the redevelopment of a three-story building in Islington into a recording studio. There they eventually made the record before they could begin work on the LP.
After five months of sessions, Gilmour felt compelled to prove himself outside of the Pink Floyd mechanism and see if he had what it took to thrive in the solo realm. However, if the guitarist had been pleased with how things were going with the band, he would not have developed this chip on his shoulder.
In a 2015 interview with Mojo, Gilmour explained why he never imagined himself as a solo act. He said, “I don’t think I could have ever seen myself as a solo act.” Maybe it was laziness. But Dylan’s pithy, acerbic political stance was never going to be my strong suit. I was a major Dylan fan. But I didn’t think I could do that myself. Again, I liked the idea of having that little support network… Even if we might later rather laughingly call Pink Floyd a support network.”
However, in the same interview, David Gilmour mentioned the point at which this changed and why he went solo. “That first solo album arose from my frustration with how drawn out things had become in Pink Floyd… It was before returning to another Floyd album that took even longer [laughing]…”The Wall,” he remarked.
All of the “rows” between Gilmour and Waters during this period were about music rather than personal disagreements. He did, however, add, “Roger’s dominance did become an issue.” I don’t think he intended to put people down; he was just being himself. It can be difficult to be aware of how much your characteristics can harm others.”
Pink Floyd went on to create The Wall and The Final Cut after Gilmour released his debut solo album. They predetermined their demise. They were no longer all pulling in the same direction. This was essential for any group, leaving Gilmour in the awkward position of sailing alone.
