Even though Pink Floyd is no longer active, their songs have remained popular for decades. Nonetheless, the demand to hear their music live remains unabated. A reunion of Pink Floyd’s surviving members is unlikely due to David Gilmour and Roger Waters’ problems. Both men continue to sell out arenas around the world performing the band’s hits. Furthermore, drummer Nick Mason is out on the road playing material from the Syd Barrett era of the group.
Despite the rivalry between the former bandmates, Pink Floyd’s music is still relevant today as new generations discover its magnificence. Therefore, rather than exclusively play solo work in their concerts, they all rely on the back catalog they helped create.
When Gilmour last toured in 2016, he was promoting his fourth solo album, Rattle That Lock. Nonetheless, he played several Pink Floyd songs. Many acts play tracks from their former band with reluctance and gritted teeth, but Gilmour savors every second of two specific songs.
During an interview with Louder, he stated about his favorite songs to perform live. “For the very palpable joy that things like ‘Comfortably Numb’ and ‘Wish You Were Here’ give to an audience, I never tire of them. It was because I knew what they were doing. I suppose doing the same thing over and over again can be boring. But I’m always happy to do what people enjoy.”
Gilmour has performed those two songs countless times. Still, the sensation he gets when he takes off solo in ‘Comfortably Numb’ or delivers the mind-bending ecstasy of ‘Wish You Were Here’ is a drug he’ll always want.
Meanwhile, in a previous interview with Billboard, the guitarist discussed the exhilarating joy of performing ‘Comfortably Numb’ in front of a crowd. He recalled: “I’m in complete darkness, and no one knows I’m there yet.” And Roger’s down, and he finishes his line, and I begin mine, and the big back spots and everything goes on, and the audience looks straight ahead and down. And there’s this thing up there, and the sound’s coming out and everything.”And then there’s this bright light up there, and they all sort of lift their heads.
David Gilmour continued: “Every night, there’s this sort of ‘[gasp!]’ from about 15,000 people. And that is quite something, let me tell you.”
While ‘Comfortably Numb’ is one of Gilmour’s favorite songs, Pink Floyd’s creative process to create it was a rollercoaster. In the studio, the band was having heated debates about how it should be mixed. As Gilmour fought for one take to be the final mix, Waters demanded another. And they eventually agreed to combine the two in an unusually diplomatic manner. Although this atmosphere helped Pink Floyd achieve greatness, it proved unsustainable.
