One Last Thought about RP (with a Comparison to Pink Floyd)

[Wyatt Brake <wyattbrake@xxxxxxxxx>]

I was listening to Pink Floyd's 1983 album The Final Cut (which was
virtually a Roger Waters solo album) tonight and simultaneously
reading up on the band on various websites.  I began reading David
Gilmour's wikipedia page and a few passages caught my attention in
regard to the recent discussion on FBO about Robert Plant not wanting
to continue the momentum of Led Zeppelin after the success and
generally extremely positive reviews of the Ahmet Ertegun tribute
concert at the O2.

Passages from the wiki page with my comments follow
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Gilmour

>>>>>On 2 July 2005, Gilmour played with Pink Floyd — including Roger Waters — 
>>>>>at Live 8. The performance caused a temporary 1343% sales increase of Pink 
>>>>>Floyd's album Echoes: The Best of Pink Floyd. Gilmour donated all of his 
>>>>>resulting profits to charities that reflect the goals of Live 8...

No idea what the increase in sales was for Zeppelin's greatest hits
compilations like Mothership and other releases from the back catalog
after the O2 show, but one can bet it was substantial.  While Raising
Sand might have received a modest bump, in my experience, Robert Plant
is simply not the household name that Led Zeppelin is, so any releases
with the band's name on them had far more to gain that any Plant solo
offerings.  Similarly, Pink Floyd got a substantial boost from Live 8
and I doubt much of that enthusiasm translated to any massive
increases for the solo albums of Gilmour or Roger Waters.  Fully admit
I don't have the data to back that assertion... it's just my own
opinion.

>>>>>Shortly after [Live 8], he called upon all artists experiencing a surge in 
>>>>>sales from Live 8 performances to donate the extra revenue to Live 8 
>>>>>fund-raising. After the Live 8 concert, Pink Floyd were offered £150 
>>>>>million to tour the United States, but the band turned down the offer.

What was Zeppelin reportedly offered?  200 million dollars or pounds
sterling or more?  Either way, it shows that money is not the main
motivator for either band at this point.

>>>>>On 3 February 2006, he announced in an interview with the Italian 
>>>>>newspaper La Repubblica that Pink Floyd would most likely never tour or 
>>>>>write material together again. He said:
>>>>>“I think enough is enough. I am 60 years old. I don't have the will to 
>>>>>work as much anymore. Pink Floyd was an important part in my life, I have 
>>>>>had a wonderful time, but it's over. For me it's much less complicated to 
>>>>>work alone.”

The 'much less complicated to work alone' is something that many of us
have said is probably also the case with Plant, and accounts for some
of his reluctance to consent to a tour.

>>>>>He said that by agreeing to Live 8, he had ensured the story of Floyd 
>>>>>would not end on a sour note.
>>>>>“There was more than one reason, firstly to support the cause. The second 
>>>>>one is the energy consuming an uncomfortable relationship between Roger 
>>>>>and me that I was carrying along in my heart. That is why we wanted to 
>>>>>perform and to leave the trash behind. Thirdly, I might have regretted it 
>>>>>if I declined.”

I don't think the animosity between Page and Plant ever approached
that which existed between Gilmour and Waters.  Luckily we Zep fans
have never had to witness a legal battle between the two principal
songwriters of our favorite band.  It's worth noting that things could
have been a lot worse...  The other reason I included this is because
Gilmour is expressing something that Plant did in that Rolling Stone
interview that came out before the show, in which he talked about his
desire to put on one last great Zeppelin show.  Personally, I think
there was less ambiguity about his intentions to make the Ertegun
tribute gig the final live legacy of Led Zeppelin, and that interview
is a good example of it.  Others have disagreed with that, which is
fine.  We all have our own interpretations.

>>>>>On 20 February 2006, Gilmour commented again on Pink Floyd's future when 
>>>>>he was interviewed by Billboard.com, stating, "Who knows? I have no plans 
>>>>>at all to do that. My plans are to do my concerts and put my solo record 
>>>>>out."

Of course, Gilmour supported his solo record (On an Island) with a
massive tour and two high-profile live releases (Remember that Night
and Live in Gdansk) that were roughly half-Floyd.  Perhaps many of you
have already dismissed this comparison because Gilmour is both a
guitarist and vocalist, but Waters wrote the majority of the lyrics
for Pink Floyd unless I'm very much mistaken.

Well, that's all - just some food for thought.  Obviously there are
many areas where the comparison simply doesn't work; until Rick Wright
died, the 'core' or 'classic 1970s' lineup of Pink Floyd was intact,
alive and well, and all four were present at the Live 8 reunion in
2005.  Gilmour had performed with Wright and Mason under the name Pink
Floyd after winning the right to use the band name in court.

Late night ramblings...