Der Tag, als mich David Gilmour anrief!

Die Aufregung war immens, als am 11. September um genau 14:16 Uhr das Telefon läutete und David Gilmour mich freundlich begrüßte! Ohne Zweifel der aufregendste Moment meines “Pink-Floyd-Fan-Daseins”.

Nach Nick Mason im Jahr 2005 mein zweites Interview mit einem Mitglied von Pink Floyd! Wie man zu dieser Ehre kommt? Nun, es wäre schön gewesen, wenn es einfach an meiner Person gelegen wäre. Aber so war es natürlich nicht. Mein Freund Thomas Zeidler, der als Musikjournalist arbeitet, hätte das Interview mit Gilmour führen sollen. Aber aus terminlichen Gründen fand er keine Zeit dafür! Also rief er mich an und fragte: “Werner, möchtest du David Gilmour interviewen?”. Ihr könnt euch vorstellen, wie meine erste Reaktion lautete! Selbstverständlich, ja logo, klar, unbedingt! Nach meiner für Thomas nicht sehr überraschenden Zusage vermittelte er mich an EMI-Austria zur Abklärung der weiteren Details! Und da saß ich jetzt, auf der einen Seite voller Freude und Aufregung, auf der anderen Seite kam nun doch etwas gröbere Nervosität auf. Meine Güte was soll ich ihn eigentlich fragen? Wie wird seine Stimmung sein? Wird mein Englisch gut genug sein? Hoffentlich ist er mit den Fragen zufrieden? Will ich Gilmour überhaupt so nahe kommen? Was, wenn er total unfreundlich ist? Und so weiter und so fort.

Im Wissen des bevorstehenden Interviews mit Gilmour befand ich mich tagelang in einer Art Ausnahmezustand. Tag und Nacht musste ich daran denken! Es war, als ob mir demnächst eine schwere Prüfung bevorstand. Mein Appetit ließ schon nach. Der Tag und die genaue Uhrzeit unseres Gespräches waren noch offen. Meine Arbeitskollegen hatte ich auch bereits in Aufruhr versetzt! Alle freuten sich irgendwie für mich, auch wenn die wenigsten wussten, wer denn dieser Gilmour eigentlich ist.

Am 10.9. rief Clare Singers (Phil Manzaneras Ehefrau und Gilmours Pressebeauftragte) bei uns zu Hause an. Meine Telefonnummer wurde von EMI übermittelt. Maria, meine Frau, hob ab und bekam einen ordentlichen Schock, sie dachte, dass “um Gottes willen” vielleicht schon Gilmour dran war und weil ich nicht zu Hause bin, sie jetzt das Interview mit ihm führen sollte! Clare Singers war sehr freundlich und teilte Maria mit, dass Gilmour mich morgen (11.9.) um 14:00 Uhr selbst anrufen wird!

Für mich stand fest, dass ich Gilmour nach seiner musikalischen Gegenwart befragen werde! Ich weiß, dass das ihm sehr wichtig ist, aber es ist auch etwas das mich interessierte. Ich wollte ihm keine Fragesalven über etwas das 30 Jahre zurücklag stellen. Ich denke, das hat ihn sehr gefreut, nach seinem hier und jetzt befragt zu werden. Ich konnte Gilmour viele Fragen über die Tour 2006, dem On an Island Album, Live In Gdansk und natürlich auch über Pink Floyd stellen.

David Gilmour: Roger ist Roger, und ich bin ich – wir sind sehr unterschiedliche Persönlichkeiten. Das Live 8 Erlebnis bestärkte mich darin, nicht mehr mit Pink Floyd spielen zu wollen – es ist genug.

Am nächsten Tag wurden drei Fragen meines Interviews für die Tageszeitung Österreich online veröffentlicht!

Das Reunion-Konzert von Pink Floyd war einer der Höhepunkte von Live 8. Doch wie zu hören ist, verliefen die Proben nicht konfliktfrei. Haben Sie deshalb beschlossen, nicht mehr mit Pink Floyd zu arbeiten?

DAVID GILMOUR: Wir spielten dieses Konzert als ich mitten in den Aufnahmen zu meinem Album On An Island war. Das Konzert machte Spaß, aber die Proben waren schwierig. Roger ist Roger, und ich bin ich – wir sind sehr unterschiedliche Persönlichkeiten. Dieses Erlebnis bestärkte mich darin, nicht mehr mit Pink Floyd spielen zu wollen – es ist genug.

Wird es in näherer Zukunft vielleicht eine Pink-Floyd-DVD geben?

DAVID GILMOUR: Möglicherweise. Es ist aber ein Faktum, dass viel Material unserer frühen Karriere einfach nicht gefilmt wurde. Es existiert zum Beispiel keine Aufnahme von Dark Side Of The Moon mit ordentlichen Bildern und gutem Ton.

Live in Gdansk ist Ihr erstes Live-Album.

DAVID GILMOUR: Ich hatte das schon lange vor, es sollte ein Album mit Songs von verschiedenen Konzerten werden. Doch beim durch hören stellte sich heraus, dass die meisten guten Aufnahmen aus Danzig stammen.

Mein Interview mit David Gilmour

Bei den ersten beiden Fragen klang meine Stimme etwas unsicher, aber nachdem Gilmour freundlich und ruhig geantwortet hatte, verschwand die Unsicherheit und schließlich stellte ich ihm Fragen, die ich gar nicht vorbereitet hatte. Eines vorweg, Gilmour war ein äußerst angenehmer und freundlicher Gesprächspartner! Er machte es mir wirklich einfach.

Mein Interview war möglicherweise eines der letzten vor Rick Wrights Tod. Interessant in diesem Zusammenhang sind meine Fragen nach Glastonbury und ob er den wieder mit Rick zusammenarbeiten wird. Bestimmt wusste Gilmour zu dieser Zeit bereits von Wright’s sehr ernsten Zustands. Aber er ließ sich nichts anmerken und antwortete: “Wer weiß, … ja, sicher werde ich wieder mit Rick arbeiten.” Nach 26 Minuten war der Zauber vorbei!

The telephone rings ….

DAVID GILMOUR: Hello Werner?

Werner: Hello Mister David Gilmour!

DAVID GILMOUR: How are you?

Fantastic! It’s a great pleasure for me, to get the chance to talk to you and ask you a few questions for your Austrian Fans and the readers of the daily newspaper Österreich.

DAVID GILMOUR: Good.

Of course I would like to start this Interview with your latest Album “On an Island”. It all started with the birth of your Website in December 2005. Followed by your Album “On an Island”, which went on to become a great success! It must have been a good feeling to receive such an overwhelming and positive feedback after, I don’t know, 12 years of Family affair?

DAVID GILMOUR: It was lovely, fantastic. The response I got from the album and being on tour and playing all the lovely concerts in all the beautiful cities around Europe and America, it was fantastic!

Of course I have to ask you about your Concert in Austria at Castle Clam. It was a fantastic evening, a wonderful warm summer evening and what a blinder of a Concert! Can you remember how it was when you first arrived at the location? And how was it to play this first open Air concert?

DAVID GILMOUR: Yes it was lovely; I loved that one at Clam Castle. A beautiful place, we had a lovely area backstage, where we could all could relax and get on with stuff. A very unusual setting, with that beautiful old castle.

You’re “On an Island” Tour had so much to offer for the Fans! First a fantastic Band including Phil Manzanera and Rick Wright! Then the rendition of a completely new Album! I don’t think there are too many artists these days, which perform their new Album in its entire length! Most of them play a greatest hits program.

DAVID GILMOUR: Well I really enjoy doing that and I try to achieve a balance between pleasing myself with new material and making everyone happy, the fans and everyone happy by playing some old material to. And in fact a lot of the old material that I played, old Pink Floyd material, was material that we haven’t played very much with Pink Floyd or we haven’t played for a very long time. And a few of them in fact we never played with Pink Floyd.

I mean even Mr. Waters toured the World for 3 Years with Dark Side of the Moon! But you played a complete new album. Where you ever doubtful about it, to play “On an Island”?

DAVID GILMOUR: No I wasn’t doubtful about it. I mean that’s where I am at the moment in my life at my musical career. That is my latest work, I think its very good work, just as good work that I ever done really. And to be able and play that to people is fantastic. It’s very nice too and it wasn’t that I didn’t play a lot of other stuff, a balance you have to achieve a balance. I’m not interested in going out; I never done it just go out and play the greatest hits.

Perfekte Vorbereitung: genaue Uhrzeit, ein Aufnahmegerät, Skript mit vorbereiteten Fragen, und ein Foto von Gilmour um immer zu Wissen mit wem ich es zu tun habe.

You changed the set list around quite a bit! You played some Floyd songs for the first time live, like Wearing the inside out and “Wots.. Uh the Deal”! Was there a moment when you were actually toying with the idea of performing songs from one of your first two solo albums?

DAVID GILMOUR: Well you know, I listened to those Solo albums and considered them. And the songs that I liked the best are dated a little bit. I didn’t feel so comfortable with them. We never really quite got round to it. It doesn’t mean I say I wouldn’t, there are defiantly songs around I might do again one day. There wasn’t room for so much material from solo albums, because I was doing a whole new Album. If I was doing it again maybe I don’t do the whole of the next album. Who knows I haven’t really got a plan. You know you do it different every time. You get a list of songs that you enjoy playing. Part of it comes from being in the rehearsal room before the tour starts and you have to try a lot of songs out and some of them you play and think yeah that’s going to work even with this musicians and other ones you play and think, hmm I don’t know if that’s really going to work. And leave that for later. Things just make there own decisions.

And you played the all time favourite “Echoes” in its entirety! And what a mind-blowing Version it was! How did it feel for you, on stage and playing this Song after all these years?

DAVID GILMOUR: Well you know with Pink Floyd we played it a couple of times in 1987. But for some reason then it wasn’t really working. So we dropped it again and other then those we didn’t really played it since the early 70ies. So playing it this time, me and Rick and those other guys playing, it seemed right, it was great and it was the highlight of the show i think. I very enjoyed it!

Are you aware that you actually fulfilled the wish list of your Fans?

DAVID GILMOUR: Well I played everything that I wanted to play and if that coincided with what the fans wanted to hear that’s fine with me!

Was there a difference for you between the Spring Tour where you played small Theatres and Arenas and the Summer Open Air Concerts?

DAVID GILMOUR: I think you know, at the beginning the Band, we was very good band, most of us had played together before, but we didn’t have that sort of band celebrative that you get – and that build up during the length of the tour and we sort of gearing ourselves up for the big shows at the Albert Hall in London and then recording those and then going of around Europe afterwards was like a bonus and it was very relaxed we didn’t fell we had to compete with anything. You know the album had done well, and everything was nice it just had a more relaxed summer outdoor feeling to it. That summer tour, it really was more enjoyable, then the one before.

Venice seems to be a very special city for you and your Bands! After the big troubles in 1989 with Pink Floyd again it didn’t work without Complications!

DAVID GILMOUR: Yeah. Just don’t talk about troubles in 1989. Certainly the trouble was not court by us (laughs). It was not something we were ever very worried about. The new concert, yes we had the stage collapsed and we had to cancel for a week. That was unfortunate to do that in a City like Venice, were all the people who are there had to travel to get there. So that was very unfortunate. Sometimes these things happen; there is nothing you can do about them.

On your “Remember That Night” DVD there is a nice scene were you play a Song that your Band didn’t rehearsed! You played “On the Turning Away” and Guy Pratt looks very nervous about it!

DAVID GILMOUR: Yeah, that’s right (laughs)!

LIVE IN GDANSK

Live in Gdansk marks your very first Livealbum – and it is a huge Production! When did you decide to bring out a Livealbum from the “On an Island” Tour?

DAVID GILMOUR: We always wanted to bring out a Live album. But we thought we bring one out with songs from different cities, you know, we recorded every night on the tour. But when we listened to all the stuff at the end, we had to make decisions which song will come from where and so many of the good recordings where from the Gdansk show, that eventually we thought; oh let’s make the whole show from Gdańsk. Because we mixed some other stuff and so that’s one reason why it took so long to get it out. We changed our minds halfway thru.

Did your record company have any doubts when the saw all the different formats?

DAVID GILMOUR: I haven’t asked them. I don’t really know or understand the different formats thing. My managers and people tell me that this is the way to do it. I don’t really know. There is a lot of material and it’s nice to put a lot of material out and having it available for people. But obviously there are some people who can’t afford to have, or buy all that, everything you put in has a cost. So you have to, you try, to have a cheaper version so that the people can get the main record and another one which has anything you can possible give.

Again its sheer joy for all the fans – there’s nothing comparable by Pink Floyd.

DAVID GILMOUR: No.

I’m quite sure it’s not very important for you but do you have any commercial expectations for this album?

DAVID GILMOUR: Well you know, when you do these things, you invest a lot of money. I don’t know how to do things quickly and cheaply. Everything has to be done properly. I want my work to be done with the best possible quality in every area and of course that costs a lot of money. So yes I mean I’m hoping that it will sell enough do cover all the money that we invested in it and I’m hoping that it will make me little bit of a profit, but you know …, I can survive without that. But I’m very rare and lucky in that sort of way; a lot of people can’t, the work is their life.

The last Concert of your Tour was in Gdansk! Over 50.000 Fans didn’t want to miss you and came to see you play! You’re “On an Island” Album was very successful in Poland. Did the sheer capacity of this crowd take you by surprise?

DAVID GILMOUR: Well yes, it was a surprise. We never played in Poland before, in that part of Eastern Europe, and it had another objective which was to celebrate the 26 anniversary of Solidarnosc union in polish shipyard there. So I’m sure all of that came together to creating that rather great evening.

Just before this Interview I watched “The Blue” Live version on YouTube and the Footage looks magnificent. To see how you play this Song, bending the strings, gives one Goosebumps! It is unbelievable, a wonderful Song! What was you feeling when you watched the footage?

DAVID GILMOUR: Oh, it’s a fantastic show. I mean I’m very glad that you like that Song “The Blue”, its one of my favourites. You know it’s a Song that for me stands up to anything what I’ve done in my career with or without Pink Floyd. It’s a beautiful Song and being able to perform it live with those musicians in a beautiful place like Gdańsk or in Clam Castle indeed is such a privilege for me. The DVD that’s goes along with the CD is a pretty magical thing to!

I’m sure when you go on tour again you will play such Songs like The Blue or On An Island again. I mean they are such masterpieces!

DAVID GILMOUR: Yeah absolutely.

The Concert was filmed from Mr. Gavin Elder, who is relatively unknown compared to David Mallet? What is the main difference between the two Concert-DVDs Remember That Night and Live in Gdansk?

DAVID GILMOUR: Well you know when we did the main DVD for the tour which was at the Albert Hall we got David Mallet who worked with us before and is very well known to make the highest possible quality thing. And when we were going out to do Gdansk we thought we should film it because, its solidarity, its in Poland, its in the shipyard and Gavin Elder was the guy who did the documentary stuff on Remember That Night DVD. He is very capable young chap and we thought we give him the job of filming it and putting it together. David Mallet was busy. As we done one DVD we didn’t thing that we could sell a second DVD from that Tour, and there wasn’t so much money on there shoot, and we got Gavin to do it in a slightly different way, that could be filmed much cheaper and we gave it to him as a challenge to try and he did very well.

THE BARN SESSIONS

Mr. Elder also filmed the Barn-Sessions and I recognized that there also a few Bonus tracks from these Sessions on the second DVD. And you play the drums as well on one track. How often to you play at your Farm in the Barn! There must be some very interesting kind of Sessions going on at your home?

DAVID GILMOUR: No, not really. I mean, that was just a one off. That was one Moment where we had the musicians came over and we spent some time jamming and having a bit of fun. We got a lot of stuff from that, four, five days just playing for fun. But that’s not something that happens every week (laughs).

THE BLACK STRAT

I saw you the first time playing with Pink Floyd in Vienna 1988. And for me a big difference now of course was the Guitar, you played the Black Stratocaster. Phil Taylor wrote in his Book lately: “The Black Strats return to prominence was during the Pink Floyd Live 8 rehearsals. During the third day David tried the Black Strat! David’s Guitar Sound instantly ascended to what can only be described as “another level”. His Body Language changed, becoming animated and interacting with the guitar as if he had just discovered an old long lost friend.”

DAVID GILMOUR: (laughs).

Can you yourself remember this specific moment? What makes this Guitar so special for you?

DAVID GILMOUR: No I can’t. Too much fuzz is made about the instrument, you know, I’ve got several lovely Guitars. The Black Start is certainly one of the lovely ones, but you know, I don’t think that makes that much difference. There are other black, and there are other Strats, black or otherwise which would sound just as good (laughs). I can’t touch that thing from the point of important of the instrument really.

PINK FLOYD

I don’t want to torture you with Questions about Pink Floyd. But I would like to ask you about the Pink Floyd Concert at Live8. Your performance was one of the highlights! But from what I heard the rehearsals for the concert seemed to be not exactly easy going. Did this experience somehow influence your decision that you don’t want to work with Pink Floyd anymore?

DAVID GILMOUR: Well, you know, I was in the middle of making the On an Island Album, when we did Live8. And Live 8 came along in the middle, and was slightly inconvenient, but was wonderful to do, and you know …. Roger is Roger and I am me, and very different. We spent a long time being in charge of things ourselves of what we do. And yes, the rehearsals were difficult. But it was okay. But it did confirm me that I don’t want to do that any more, that was enough for me. The pleasure that I got, and the pleasure and enjoyment that the fans seem to get from the album and the performances on the tour seem to be enough conformation. They reasonably happy with the way I’m conducting my career.

One interesting thing is, I know that Mr. Robert Plant was at your DVD Premiere in London last Year.

DAVID GILMOUR: That’s right.

What’s quite interesting about it is: Of course there is Led Zeppelin and Mr. Plant has the same opinion about reforming a super group as you maybe. If he would say: “Yes of course, we go out and tour again as Led Zeppelin”. I mean they would sell millions of tickets. And on the other side you are in the same position with Pink Floyd. And I thought that was quite interesting. I didn’t knew that there was any contact between you at all.

DAVID GILMOUR: Well, you know, he came along, and it was very nice to see him. I don’t know him that well. But yeah, he seems to following the similar path. He is going out doing this tour with Alison Kraus, isn’t it? And enjoying himself. What will happen to them in the future? Any ones guess. (Laughs) I’m not privileged to that kind of information.

I would like to ask you two more questions about the Pink Floyd back catalogue. Any chances to maybe see the release of any kind of Pink Floyd DVD in the near future? Because I think the only one so far is “Pulse”. Pink Floyd was such a visual band, and there is just one DVD out.

DAVID GILMOUR: Well you know, there is the possibility that we will do something one day. But the reality is that, well one has to accept, that an awful lot of things that we did, in our early career just wasn’t filmed. And you cant magical create Film when there isn’t any. So if it were possible to dig out an original “Dark Side Of The Moon” Show that was filmed properly and properly sound recorded, we loved to, but we just don’t have those things (laughs). They just don’t exist. There’s an awful lot of stuff that does exists, in one way or in another. Who knows one day we might do something together, but my focus is on looking forwards more then looking back

You mentioned during an interview that you want to remix the Pink Floyd Album A Momentary Lapse of Reason? Is this still something you would like to do one day?

DAVID GILMOUR: Yes, that is something, that is one of my thoughts, one of my line of thought, cause I think we were rather to enchanted with some of the 80ties technology. And we could make it sound like a much nicer album if we would remix it. So, that’s a possibility.

FUTURE

And of course I have to ask you about your future. Will your 2006 Live band be the band for the next album recording and tour?

DAVID GILMOUR: Who knows? There is no point in speculating, or thinking about what I will do when I start working again in the future. One can change one’s mind. I don’t want to say something to you, and then it will come back on me, you know (laughs).

What was also very special, was to see how close you and Richard Wright came during the “On An Island” Tour. Will Rick Wright be enclosed in a new Project again?

DAVID GILMOUR: Who knows, it’s very possible.

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