06-19-2008, 07:40 PM
NEW YORK, June 18 - David Gilmour Live In Gdansk' is a double live album plus concert DVD being released on September 16, 2008 on Columbia Records. 'David Gilmour Live In Gdansk,' the first solo live album from Pink Floyd's singer / guitarist, captures the magic of his concert held in front of 50,000 in the Gdansk shipyards, the final performance of his critically acclaimed 2006 'On An Island tour.' It also features the first ever recording of selected Pink Floyd classics performed with an orchestra.Former President of Poland Lech Walesa and Mayor of Gdansk Pawel Adamowicz invited David Gilmour and his band to perform this very special concert to mark the 26th Anniversary of the founding of trade union Solidarity. The concert, funded by the City of Gdansk and Solidarity, was titled "It Started in Gdansk -- The Space Of Freedom" and was held on August 26, 2006, a National holiday for the Polish people commemorating the founding in 1980 of The Solidarity Trade Union. Nine years later The Solidarity Trade Union toppled the Communist Government, with its leader Lech Walesa elected President of a democratic Poland.
The double live album 'David Gilmour Live In Gdansk,' produced by David Gilmour and Phil Manzanera, features the Gdansk concert and demonstrates a musician and his band playing at the very peak of their musical brilliance. The six piece band is accompanied for the only time on the 'On An Island tour' by an orchestra: the 40-strong string section of the Polish Baltic Philharmonic conducted by Zbigniew Preisner, orchestral arranger on David Gilmour's critically acclaimed solo album, "On An Island." It is the first ever live recording with an orchestra of Pink Floyd's 'High Hopes' and 'A Great Day For Freedom,' the latter performed here as a one-off for this special Solidarity anniversary.
Playing with Gilmour at this historic concert was his band of world renowned musicians:
Richard Wright -- Pink Floyd's keyboard player
Phil Manzanera -- Roxy Music guitarist and co-producer of On An Island
Guy Pratt -- bass player with Pink Floyd and Roxy Music
Jon Carin -- keyboards and long-time player with Pink Floyd
Steve Di Stanislao -- drums, recently played with Crosby and Nash
Dick Parry -- saxophone and long-time Pink Floyd collaborator.
The two and a half hour DVD which accompanies the live album is directed by Gavin Elder. The DVD evocatively portrays the drama of the Gdansk concert, set against the urban landscape of the shipyard and crane-filled skyline. Hung above the stage, suspended on two giant cranes, were six, 16 ton screens, each one focused on a band member and lit in a kaleidoscope of color and lasers by lightmeister Marc Brickman. As well as 113 minutes of concert footage, The DVD includes a riveting 36-minute documentary which includes Gilmour's private meeting with former President Lech Walesa, chats with the band and crew, concert rehearsals and a moving wreath-laying with Walesa at the Memorial to the shipyard workers killed in the 1970 uprising.
David Gilmour said of the Gdansk concert:
"This was my first concert in Poland and I was delighted that it marked one of the most important anniversaries in recent European history. The Gdansk shipyard is a deeply symbolic place and we were all honored to perform our music there. It was great to be accompanied by the Polish Baltic Philharmonic, and to have our friends Zbigniew Preisner and pianist Leszek Mozdzer also performing."
'David Gilmour Live In Gdansk' is available in several formats, all of which include all the orchestral tracks; the 113-minute 'Concert DVD' includes footage of all the orchestral songs, plus 'Echoes' and 'Astronomy Domine.' 'Wot's Uh...The Deal?' is included only on the vinyl LP set.
Formats:
1) David Gilmour Live In Gdansk -- 2 CD + 1 DVD set and 12-page booklet,
features:
Disc 1 -- Concert Audio CD
Disc 2 -- Concert Audio CD
Disc 3 -- Concert DVD and Gdansk Diary documentary
2) David Gilmour Live In Gdansk -- 2 CD and 12-page booklet, features:
Disc 1 -- Concert Audio CD
Disc 2 -- Concert Audio CD
3) David Gilmour Live In Gdansk -- 2 CD + 2 DVD set and 12-page booklet,
features:
Disc 1 -- Concert Audio CD
Disc 2 -- Concert Audio CD
Disc 3 -- Concert DVD and Gdansk Diary
Disc 4 -- Extras DVD including three previously unreleased 'Barn Jams'
and 5.1 audio version of 'On An Island'
4) David Gilmour Live In Gdansk -- 3 CD + 2 DVD Deluxe Box set and 24-page
booklet with collectable memorabilia items, features:
Disc 1 -- Concert Audio CD
Disc 2 -- Concert Audio CD
Disc 3 -- Concert DVD and Gdansk Diary
Disc 4 -- Extras DVD including three previously unreleased 'Barn Jams'
and 5.1 audio version of 'On An Island'
Disc 5 -- CD Bonus tracks (live from the 2006 Summer tour).
5) David Gilmour Live In Gdansk (Vinyl) -- 5 LP Box Set and 20-page
booklet, plus web-pass to download the album, features:
The full Live In Gdansk concert including 'Wot's...Uh The Deal?,' plus
extra audio tracks that include two of the private recording sessions
known as the 'Barn Jams.'
The full track listings for David Gilmour Live In Gdansk are as follows:
Disc 1 -- CD
Speak To Me
Breathe
Time
Breathe (reprise)
Castellorizon *
On An Island *
The Blue *
Red Sky At Night *
This Heaven *
Then I Close My Eyes *
Smile *
Take A Breath *
A Pocketful Of Stones *
Where We Start *
Disc 2 -- CD
Shine On You Crazy Diamond
Astronomy Domine
Fat Old Sun
High Hopes *
Echoes
Wish You Were Here
A Great Day For Freedom *
Comfortably Numb *
Discs 1 & 2 -- CD
Credits
Produced By:
David Gilmour &
Phil Manzanera
Audio Mixing:
Andy Jackson
David Gilmour
Devin Workman
Damon Iddins
* Accompanied by the 40-strong section of the Polish Baltic Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by: Zbigniew Preisner
Disc 3 -- DVD
Part 1 -- David Gilmour Live in Gdansk
Castellorizon
On An Island
The Blue
Red Sky At Night
This Heaven
Then I Close My Eyes
Smile
Take A Breath
A Pocketful of Stones
Where We Start
Astronomy Domine
High Hopes
Echoes
A Great day For Freedom
Comfortably Numb
Disc 3 -- DVD
Part 2 -- Gdansk Diary
36 minute film documenting the Solidarity Concert events
Disc 3 -- DVD
Credits
Part 1 -- Concert
Produced by:
Dione Orrom
Directed by:
Gavin Elder
Part 2 -- Gdansk Diary
Produced by:
Dione Orrom
Director, Cameraman, Editor:
Gavin Elder
Disc 4 -- DVD
Extras
Live At the Mermaid Theatre, London, March 2006
Shine On You Crazy Diamond
Wearing The Inside Out
Comfortably Numb
Live from the AOL Sessions, New York, April 2006
On An Island
High Hopes
Live From Abbey Road, London, August 2006
The Blue
Take A Breath
Echoes (Acoustic)
Barn Jams 2007 (previously unreleased), recorded live in the UK, January
2007
Barn Jam 166
Barn Jam 192
Barn Jam 121
Disc 4 - DVD
Credits
Filming Directed by David Mallet
Filming Directed by Gary Corrigan and Shauna O'Brien
Filming Directed by A J Jankel
Filming Directed by Gavin Elder
'Barn Jam' only personnel:
David Gilmour: Guitar / drums
Richard Wright: Keyboards
Guy Pratt: Bass / Guitar
Steve DiStanislao: Drums / bass
Disc 4 -- DVD
Audio
5.1 Surround Sound Version
Castellorizon
On An Island
The Blue
Take A Breath
Red Sky At Night
This Heaven
Then I Close My Eyes
Smile
A Pocketful Of Stones
Where We Start
Produced by David Gilmour, Phil Manzanera and Chris Thomas
Disc 5 -- CD
Bonus Tracks from the 'On An Island' Tour, 2006
Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Vienne, July 31/Venice August 12)
Dominoes (Paris, March 15)
The Blue (Vienne, July 31)
Take A Breath (Munich, July 29)
Wish You Were Here (Glasgow, May 27)
Coming Back To Life (Florence, August 2)
Find The Cost Of Freedom (Manchester, May 26)
This Heaven (Vienne, July 31)
Wearing The Inside Out (Milan, March 25)
A Pocketful Of Stones (Vienne, July 31)
Where We Start (Vienne, July 31)
On The Turning Away (Venice, August 31)
Disc 5 -- CD
Credits
Produced by David Gilmour and Phil Manzanera
Audio mix by Phil Manzanera, Andy Jackson, Devin Workman, Damon Iddins,
www.davidgilmour.com
