What, you don’t like David Gilmour? Tell that to the nearly 64 million people who have watched this YouTube video over the past decade! I am unabashed fan; have been since Pink Floyd‘s Ummagumma album came out in the fall of ’69; had it reinforced when I saw the band for the first time at the Fillmore East the next year on their Atom Heart Mother tour, and on every PF American tour after that until The Wall. Hell, I even loved the Division Bell tour, sans Mr. Waters. Anyway, I’ve always admired Gilmour as both an electric and acoustic player (“Grantchester Meadows”!): He has marvelous touch and exquisite taste—even when he’s wailing—capable of amazing delicacy and tremendous power.
What inspired me to choose a Gilmour track for this TTB selection was the recent announcement that Gilmour is selling off more than 120 pieces of his vaunted guitar collection for charity via a Christie’s auction on June 20! Though most of the guitars are, as you might expect, electric (Fender Strats, Teles, Broadcasters and Esquires, along with many by Gibson, Gretsch, Rickenbacker, and a slew of other makers), there are also 36 acoustic models including a slew of Martins, Gibsons, Ovations, Takamines, Washburns, and much more. Some have a famous pedigree—such as the actual Martin D-35 he used on “Welcome to the Machine” and the D-12-28 from “Wish You Were Here.” The entire collection was put on display in London for five days at the end of March, and some pieces will be shown in L.A. in June. You can see pictures and estimated prices/values here. It’s a kick to check out the many cool instruments he acquired through the years, and keep in mind he’s obviously keeping a whole bunch that he’s not selling! And be sure to read “My Life in Guitars” on the Christie’s site, in which DG riffs on his personal guitar history; very cool!
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The video is from a 2001 concert and features Neill MacColl playing Gilmour’s iconic 12-string line and DG on 6-string. The song, of course, was the title track, co-written by Gilmour and Roger Waters, of a gazillion-selling 1975 Pink Floyd album. —Blair Jackson