On an Island | 
| Artist: David Gilmour
Label: Sony
Category: Music
List Price: $18.97
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Rating:  413 reviews
Sales Rank: 2622
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 5.5 x 4.9 x 0.4
MPN: 80280
UPC: 828768028025
EAN: 8287680280256
ASIN: B000E6UK5K
Release Date: March 7, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Condition: Brand new, factory sealed original. Free First class U.S. upgrade. International orders ship airmail. (excludes multi disc items). Authentic and fully guaranteed.
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| Tracks:
| • | 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 |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com
David Gilmour's solo career hasn't exactly been creatively restless; this is but the third album by the Pink Floyd guitarist, and first in 18 years. But that seemingly lackadaisical career ethos hasn't prevented Gilmour from producing some of his finest work here, an album whose soaring, lyrical guitar lines will be familiar to Floyd fans, yet one also blessed by often surprising nuances and delicate musical textures. Gilmour's Division Bell collaborator Polly Samson is credited with most of the writing, helping conjure a moody, texturally rich "island" that's as much musical as it is personally and lyrically metaphorical. "Castellorizon," the impressionistic opening instrumental collage, presages much of what's to come in subtle ways, with Gilmour's emotionally-charged guitar lines climbing into realms usually staked out by contemporary Jeff Beck. Gilmour's choice of collaborators is equally compelling, from the evocative orchestrations of Polish classical modernist Zbigniew Preisner and expected contributions from Floyd (Richard Wright and proto-Pink mate Rado "Bob" Klose) to a host of guest turns that span both decades and styles: Georgie Fame, Phil Manzanera, Jools Holland, Caroline Dale and Robert Wyatt. The title track is graced by the stately harmonies of David Crosby and Graham Nash while the instrumental "Then I Close My Eyes" spins a hypnotic, bayou-meets-boho ethos where Dale's gentle cello lines meet the melancholy cornet flourishes of Wyatt to challenge the very notions of genre itself. "This Heaven" finds Gilmour in unexpected R&B territory, weaving playful riffs with `60s London scenester Fame's Hammond organ and finding its lyrical spirituality in simple, personal intimacy, a subtext that wafts through the upbeat airiness of "The Blue" to the spare "Smile," spinning a surprisingly romantic elegy that co! mes satisfyingly full circle on the closing "Where We Start." No man may be an island, but Gilmour has nonetheless crafted a rewarding artistic oasis on this, his finest and most gently personal album. -- Jerry McCulley Recommended David Gilmour & Pink Floyd
David Gilmour
David Gilmour | 
About Face
David Gilmour | 
Dark Side of the Moon
Pink Floyd | 
Wish You Were Here
Pink Floyd | 
Meddle
Pink Floyd | 
The Wall
Pink Floyd |
Album Description
Japanese Digipak pressing. On An Island is the third David Gilmour solo album and his first studio recording since Pink Floyd's 1994 multi-platinum 'The Division Bell'. From the first moments of the sound collage that begins 'On An Island', you know it's a special experience that not only bears comparison with the best of Pink Floyd, but also confirms their lead guitarist and singer as an outstanding solo artist. Here he reveals a personal vision and a breadth of styles - folk, jazz, orchestral and rock - brought together as a unified piece by his lyrical guitar playing and instantly recognisable voice. On An Island is a collection of songs and instrumentals that had its genus in the critically acclaimed 2002 London Festival Hall concerts. Gilmour has stepped out of his super-group to discover he's still at his peak - and he's rightly pleased. 'It's my best and most personal work,' he says. 'Making it with my musician friends has been a positive experience on so many levels.' EMI. 2006.
Album Details
The Third Solo Album from the Pink Floyd Singer/Guitarist.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 408 more reviews...
a very low-volume effort, and highly satisfying, with excellent production values March 8, 2006
Dave (United States)
198 out of 217 found this review helpful
David Gilmour really deserves credit for his "On An Island" album, released today. The man clearly doesn't give a damn about following any trends, and I say more power to him. The album does indeed sound very Floyd-ish, which Gilmour himself admits, but it's not merely some toothless rehash of past glories, and the production values here are really excellent (the album was produced by Gilmour, Phil Manzanera, and Chris Thomas). And Gilmour's in excellent voice too, sounding as though he's barely aged a day in the past 20 years. You needn't have any worries about this being a "modernized", high-tech disaster--the album sounds more like something that was recorded in 1980 than in the 2000s, and I really mean that as a compliment.
I think it's off the mark and misleading to bluntly say that Gilmour has "gone adult contemporary" with this album--that might get certain people thinking he's chosen a bland synthesizer-heavy approach. Quite the contrary, synthesizer is only used for a light sprinkling of effects on the title track, and synths are nowhere to be heard on songs such as "The Blue" and "Where We Start"--instead, David favors real piano, real electric piano, and especially real Hammond organ (which all three of these have), and that plays a huge role in them sounding so wonderfully organic.
Yes, this is a VERY low volume album, but for the most part, it's very appealing, not just thanks to the production, but also because the songwriting is generally at a really high level. Frankly, I think you could throw the same kind of praise at much of the Floyd's work--"Wish You Were Here", great album as it is, never rocks very hard at all.
Most of the lyrics here were written by Gilmour's wife Polly Samson, and although they occasionally lean towards the sickly-sweet end of things, as on "Smile", they're hardly as embarassing as some of the reviewers make them out to be. And ultimately, Gilmour makes up for it with the music. The title track is sumptuous--it sounds kind of like an acoustic modification of Floyd's "Breathe", featuring superb guitar work, live orchestration, and vocal harmonies from Crosby & Nash that really take the song to the next level (Richard Wright plays the Hammond on this track as well). The super-mellow "The Blue" has a wonderfully serene, blissful feel to it, with gentle harmonica and a remarkably effective back-and-forth piano line, and Gilmour's extended soloing, even if he overdoes those swooping sounds a bit, is still really really nice, with extremely impressive tone. The relatively short instrumental "Red Sky At Night" is an intriguing change of pace, with Gilmour switching over to saxophone, and to excellent effect--he brings the same kind of unique feeling to his sax soloing as he does to his emotional guitar leads. "A Pocketful Of Stones" is also a really fine ballad, with Gilmour's vocal making the most of the wonderful lilting melodicism on the verses. "This Heaven" adds a welcome diversity to the proceedings, shuffling along nicely and containing a nice bluesy acoustic riff. "Smile", like I said, is kind of on the sugary side, but the acoustic slide guitar work, Gilmour's somewhat jazz-tinged lead vocal, and the sheer tunefulness give it much appeal.
Gilmour's previous solo album, 1984's "About Face", ends with the song "Near The End", and he ends "On An Island" with "Where We Start" which seems like a sequel to the former song. "Where We Start" is the one non-instrumental track on the album that Gilmour wrote entirely himself. Yes, the lyrics leave a little to be desired, but the song has an undeniably soothing and reflective feel, somewhat melancholy and yet with hope for what's still to come, a trademark Gilmour touch. It makes for a highly fitting finale to the album.
As for the few remaining tracks... "Castellorizon", the obligatory album-opening instrumental, starts off as a sound collage before Gilmour starts wailing away backed by a full orchestra--it's certainly more enjoyable than the somewhat similar "Let's Get Metaphysical" from his "About Face" album, but it's still pretty forgettable. Likewise, the instrumental "Then I Close My Eyes" is okayish, but pretty dull. The one track that particularly sticks out like a sore thumb and that you're better off skipping happens to be the album's hardest-rocking song--"Take A Breath" has annoying, repetitive spoken chanting, plus it's sorely lacking in terms of melody and catchiness; it considerably hurts the overall flow of the album, and it suggests that Gilmour isn't sure how to rock out effectively anymore, making it easy to see why the album is so ballad-heavy.
All in all, I can't see anyone who loves '72-'75-era Floyd or Gilmour's previous solo work not taking a strong liking to "On An Island". I'm well aware that this album is taking quite a beating from a lot of so-called professional critics, and I can't help but suspect it's partly because of the album's mellow tone and a lack of patience on their part to really *listen*. Maybe some folks were hoping Gilmour would push the envelope more, and I'll admit I do understand the feeling that if an artist just cranks out an album that sounds like a copy of earlier work, there's no point to it. That said, this is an album for diehard David Gilmour/ mid-'70s Floyd fans who have listened to those records religiously and want something familiar, yet new, and for an artist of Gilmour's age and stature, it's understandable that he'd put out a record to fit that bill, and the fact that the result sounds this fresh and effective, it not only justifies the exercise, it actually provides an additional demonstration of just how deep Gilmour's talent is. It also underlines that this is clearly the album he wanted to make, and I give him a lot of credit for following his instincts.
(P.S. My copy of "On An Island" includes a bonus disc featuring the laidback bluesy instrumental "Island Jam"--it's a nice little bonus. On the downside, the book-style packaging of the album is marred by the vulnerable foam rubber piece that's meant to hold the CD--you may very well end up needing a separate case to hold the disc itself.)
On an island but not alone March 8, 2006
Wayne Klein (My Little Blue Window, USA)
79 out of 92 found this review helpful
"On An Island" features the type of music that Pink Floyd and David Gilmour fans have come to expect from the man--there's lots of moody, atmospheric playing, Gilmour's memorable raspy vocals and some of the best material he's written in years. Collaborating with guitarist/songwriter Phil Manzanera of Roxy Music and veteran producer Chris Thomas (The Pretenders), Gilmour has crafted an atmospheric album full of hazy instrumentals and songs that may not rock out the way fans are used to but are still filled with passion and emotion. By the way, if you decide not to buy this locally some retail outlets are offering a bonus disc that includes an additional song. How does this compare to his other solo albums? Well each one represented a different decade in Gilmour's life so they are all quite different and difficult to compare but the quality of the songwriting is top notch here as on those. This effort is a little more focused than his first ("David Gilmour") and a little less commercial than his second ("About Face").
Written solo and in collaboration with Polly Samson (a journalist and writer who wrote some of the lyrics for "The Division Bell" as well as Mrs. Gilmour)providing words on most of the tracks "On An Island" features a wide variety of memorable guest players (Floyd's Richard Wright, David Crosby & Graham Nash on backing vocals, Jools Holland formerly of Squeeze, Robert Wyatt and--surprisingly--guitarist Phil Manzanera playing keyboards). I'll be the first to admit that Samson isn't Waters as a lyricist but her words are servicable for the songs and occasionally inspired (hence the four stars and not five). The production by Gilmour, Manzanera and Thomas is atmospheric providing the perfect sonic backdrop for Gilmour to do what he does best--play and sing.
"On An Island" does allows Gilmour to experiment a bit as well with the material but what's most interesting as how emotionally direct the songs are. Clearly no man's an island and that's true of Gilmour as well--he works well with his collaborators building a sonic home on this solo album. The album does have flaws for example the pacing is a bit turgid at times and truly it would have helped to have a solid hard rock number here to break through the haze on the album but overall it's a terrific effort and a worthy follow up to his work leading Floyd and solo efforts. It's a shame we had to wait for so long Gilmour to assert himself on record again but it was well worth the wait. David, don't make us wait another decad! Oh, by the way, happy birthday!
 Gilmour's "Island" Is A Place Of Beauty March 11, 2006
John Peregrim (The Sierra Nevada Foothills)
20 out of 23 found this review helpful
Life is change. Some things seem to remain constant, but only because of our limited human perspective. People age. Some aspects of life appear rather constant, others shift as we grow older. Musicians and other artists are in a peculiar position of having those changes under more public scrutiny than most. When a piece of work moves someone with power and force, the impact is so breathtaking, so overwhelming, even life-changing that they want to experience that moment of awakening again and again. And so some will always want to freeze the artist in time, demanding that they replicate their favorite work over and over out of a desire to experience the same powerful feeling again and again.
Such is the fate of David Gilmour and his solo work. With the release of "On An Island," the cry goes out "It's not Pink Floyd!" "It's terrible," "He's lost it!" "He's over the hill!" But this reaction is not actually valid artistic criticism, but a reflection of the disappointed listener's desire to have "The Wall" or "Wish You Were Here" come out for the first time again, triggering that same feeling they experienced when they first encountered these masterworks. Gilmour is not an machine, despite the desire of some to freeze him in a past time and have every guitar solo to tear their heads and hearts like "Comfortably Numb." He's a person who lives, loves, learns and changes like all of us. The mature listener knows how to change and accept change, growing with the musician, hearing each new work with a "beginner's mind," to borrow a concept from Zen. The mature listener is able to hear the aspects of the artist's sound that are so unique and instantly identifiable, yet are also able to hear the greatness in the inevitable new aspects of their favorite's creativity and art. David Gilmour is not a slave of the public, nor is he an automaton who rewrites the same formulaic song over and over again.
Nor is he Roger Waters.
I suspect that the criticism that "On An Island" isn't Pink Floyd simply reflects a preference for Waters' work, for the hard-edged, bitter cynicism that permeates so much of his work, and which I have enjoyed myself. The out of hand dismissal of the excellent work on "A Momentary Lapse Of Reason" and "The Division Bell,"as well as on Gilmour's first two solo efforts, suggests that the complainers should be following the career of Waters' post-Floyd work if that is what they prefer.
Yes, David has aged and, in some respects, mellowed, but the genius has not dimmed, it now illuminates the parts of his life experiences he wants to share, which are, after all, the only real source of inspiration and artistic creativity. "On An Island" is a beautiful work of maturity and insight. Gilmour hasn't lost a thing. On the contrary, he's placed his creativity in the service of the perspectives and insights he's gained in life; perspectives that rarely come except with age and wisdom. True, with the exception of "Where We Start," the lyrics are courtesy of his wife, Polly Samson, but their marriage has extended well beyond their personal lives and into their art producing a fine union of words and music. Perhaps you have to experience this kind of togetherness to fully appreciate their combined artistry, but I think not. The real question is whether the words and music form an artistic whole, and they certainly do just that on this wonderful "solo" effort. (Is any work that employs the artistic contributions of others ever truly "solo"?) Do Polly's lyrics have the searing cynical power of Waters'? Certainly not. But why should they? Should we dismiss the poetry of Emily Dickinson because she wasn't a Roger Waters? Certainly not. And why even go there in the first place since the human condition can't be contained in the work of any single writer - even Roger's. Even Shakespeare's, although he probably came closer than anyone. There's room in the world for beauty, loveliness, even sentimentality and tenderness, all of which are exhibited here.
How sad for those who want only raging cynicism or anger, rather than being open to experience all that life has to offer. How sad to only want hard rock and never experience the wonders of a string quartet or a folk ballad. Yes, the overall tone of "On An Island" is slower and more mellow than some previous Gilmour compositions (though "Take A Breath" should certainly remind us that David hasn't forgotten that life produces some harder edges in a person than others). And, as in so much of the classic Pink Floyd material, there are the self-referencing melodic lines and lyrics. "The Blue" suggests the Pink Floyd of "Meddle" while the opening phrasing of the title track easily yields a memory of "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" and even begins with the same word: "Remember." The ambient sounds of children, the city and nature harken to view the same elements of earlier works in a new light of age and maturity.
David has done fine work here and we should be thankful that he's out there still making music for those who can grow with him.
 Should have stayed on that island March 7, 2006
Royalecheese2001 (Tejas)
19 out of 32 found this review helpful
Isn't it funny how a band like Pink Floyd could do no wrong even when Waters left? They sounded almost the same, and their stage show was almost the same. But some of the anger and spite that powered Floyd left with Waters. The only thing that kept Floyd together was the wonderful blues sound of Gilmour and his guitar. That was at least 40% of their greatness, and it was just enough to make up for Roger's absence. But it's not enough here. Am I impressed by Gilmour's Clapton-esque slowhand moves with the guitar? The answer is yes, and I always have been. Am I impressed with his songs? Well........
Reflecting back on the past and hoping for the same future is not the way to approach this CD, but how can you not expect that from a member of one of the most influential bands of all time? This is the first solo Gilmour CD in 18 years, so you think he'd have a little more to offer. Apparently not. I am still trying to figure out the Floyd references in some of the reviews. The guitar sound belongs to Floyd. Music and lyrics: Deinitely not.
Granted, I've only listened to this CD twice, and twice seems to be my limit. Usually on a second listening, I find something that will grab me. It almost happened...... But not quite.
The guitar solos stand out (as they always do) but the rest just doesn't appeal to me in any way. Believe me, I've tried. But listening a third time tried my will, and I ejected the CD after the third song. As I said, the guitar work is still strong as ever. If Mr. Gilmour had made a fully instrumental album focusing on his talents as a guitarist, and used the same songs, my rating and praise would be so much higher. I'm sorry to say something doesn't seem right with the content.
This CD is very personal, and that is a problem. From what I understand, Gilmour's wife wrote the majority of the songs. For David, I guess that's alright. For me as a fan of 'his' music, it's not. The songs are nothing more than willowy and breathy pinings. David Crosby and Graham Nash (of Crosby, Stills, & Nash fame) add harmony on the title track. While it's a nice touch, it can't save the rest of the album. I thought about this song a few weeks back when it fist came out. Usually you realease your strongest material to generate some buzz. My first thought after hearing it was: "And what else?????" If that was Mr. Gilmour's strongest material, this CD would head down the toilet fast.
I suppose it's inevitable to feel let down by the end product because you've secretly wanted Dark Side of the Moon Part 2 for the last 30 years. How can you not dream of that after seeing all of Pink Floyd together for Live 8? I should have known better than expect something as grandiose as that! But my question to Mr. Gilmour (and Mr. Waters for that matter) is this: Is your downfall in recording and content over time simply the result of a desire to distance yourself from what paid the rent for 30 years? Or is it fading into soft middle age with all the money coming from royalty checks that drives off the hunger you once had in your music?
Is the CD listenable? Sort of.
Is it good? I wouldn't go that far.
Is Mr. Gilmour a brilliant musician? Yes. Always. But this effort is not worthy of what I expect. Finally: Will it grow on me? Hard to say, but I doubt it.
 Paging Paul and Linda McCartney... March 20, 2006
jaman57 (Toms River, NJ USA)
18 out of 37 found this review helpful
David: Hey dear, I have some ideas for an album.
Polly: Oh, can I help?
David: Sure, write lyrics and we'll even bury your vocals in a couple of spots.
OK, maybe that is a little bit sarcastic, but unfortunately that is what this album reminds me of; a domestic happiness project. Of course the sound is Gilmour's, not Macca's, but the feel of mediocre, fluffy contentment is the same. Now there is no reason why someone as successful as Gilmour shouldn't be content and happy, and make an album reflecting the same. But looking in from the outside it's just dull and boring. The opening track has some promise, but for the most part it is all downhill from there. "The Division Bell" showed that Gilmour could follow his own vision and still come up with something with an edge to it, even if it was a different type of "edge" than Roger Waters'. But this album is not only edgeless (only "Take a Breath" has some life to it, and that track seems out of place consdiering how the rest of the album sounds), it also seems endless, as in "will this ever end?".
When one is "on an island" on a calm day one can stand on the beach and look out over a featureless expanse of sea that fades to the horizon. That is this album.
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