David Gilmour said he's amazed that Pink Floyd didn't "fizzle out"

3 September 2024, 18:11 | Updated: 4 September 2024, 12:11

They're undoubtedly one of the greatest music groups to ever exist.

Pink Floyd altered the way people consumed music, and introduced mainstream audiences to the very notion of a concept album.

The proof is in the pudding - their landmark 1973 album The Dark Side Of The Moon became the fourth best-selling album of all time even today, and was the best-selling album of the entire seventies.

Though, they psychedelic rock mainstays very nearly never made it to that point, with the departure of their co-founder and creative lynchpin Syd Barrett.

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The mercurial Barrett became one of rock music's greatest casualties during the LSD generation, with bassist Roger Waters taking the reins from then onwards.

It was only during Barrett's breakdown that Pink Floyd recruited guitarist David Gilmour, who later became intrinsic to their success and unique song craft.

in a new interview with The Sun, on the eve of the release of his new solo album Luck And Strange, Gilmour admitted: "It’s always amazing to me that Pink Floyd didn’t fizzle out."

Two years after acrimoniously quitting Pink Floyd, Waters explained how he fell into Barrett's leadership role in the band.

"I simply took responsibility, largely because no one else seemed to want to do it, and that is graphically illustrated by the fact that I started to write most of the material from then on, I’m perfectly happy being a leader," he said in 1987.

Gilmour reflected on the band's earlier days, admitting: "In the earlier stages of Pink Floyd, we could be as rude and insulting to each other about our personalities and our music as we wanted."

"And yet everything would be all right in the end. No one ever stomped off permanently - until that bloke did," referring to Waters, of course.

Whilst the pair have reunited for a handful of shows since then, their relationship is more strained than ever having traded insults online in recent years.

Once Waters left the band, it was up to David Gilmour to steer the proverbial ship given his key role in the band's sound. Yet it wasn't one that came naturally to him.

"I was thrust into being band leader of Pink Floyd and, later, into being a solo artist," he said. "But I feel a more collaborative approach is better for me."

Joining the band and having that whole life with it was wonderful," he admitted later in the interview.

"It’s always amazing to me that Pink Floyd didn’t fizzle out the way others do. In some way, it has kept going to the present day."

It can't be overstated that Pink Floyd remain as intriguing and influential today as they ever have, which is likely why there's still demand for Gilmour to make music and perform live.

Elsewhere in the interview with The Sun, Gilmour reveals that a certain Richard 'Rick' Wright - the late Floyd keyboardist - will also feature on his new album Luck And Strange.

"Why my guitar playing doesn’t sound like anyone else’s - and I admit it doesn’t - I’ve no idea. Adding that Rick's style of playing "doesn’t sound like anyone else’s either."

"How we got to be in a band together, God knows! It’s a strange admission that I’m using pieces recorded over twenty years ago."

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Wright contributed to Gilmour's 2006 solo album On An Island as the keyboardist was an integral member of his musical set-up at the time.

In a sense he's paying tribute to his former colleague by including their collective creativity on his new album, crediting Wright in the process.

Taking a moment to ponder his late friend, Gilmour added: "He was a one-off with a very singular style. Rick had heart and soul. We didn’t always see eye to eye but he was a valuable partner."