David Gilmour Addresses The Dark Side of the Moon and The Wizard of Oz

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon - David Gilmour Addresses The Dark Side of the Moon and The Wizard of Oz

Release Date: January 2, 2025
Host: Jimmy Fallon
Guest: David Gilmour, renowned musician and former member of Pink Floyd

---

Introduction and Album Celebration

The episode opens with Jimmy Fallon warmly welcoming David Gilmour to the show. Fallon commends Gilmour on his latest work, stating, “Congrats on the new album, Luck and Strange” (00:12). Gilmour expresses his gratitude, highlighting his admiration for both Fallon and the legacy of Syd Barrett, a former Pink Floyd member. He shares his excitement about his fifth solo album, “Luck and Strange,” mentioning the positive reception it has garnered: “You're getting five-star reviews all across the board. People are loving this” (00:36).

Reflections on Critical Acclaim and Artistic Integrity

Fallon probes into the importance of reviews for Gilmour, to which Gilmour responds candidly: “Of course you do. You do. Yeah. You have to a little bit” (00:50). The conversation shifts to Gilmour’s assessment of his work, where he boldly declares, “I think it’s your best work since Dark Side of the Moon” (00:53). Gilmour elaborates on the creative process behind “Dark Side of the Moon,” reminiscing about the meticulous editing and the collective feeling of creating something “quite amazing” (01:08), drawing a parallel to his current work on “Luck and Strange.”

Family Collaboration and Creative Process

A significant portion of the discussion revolves around the collaborative nature of Gilmour's latest album. Fallon highlights the involvement of Gilmour’s family, noting, “Your wife and longtime collaborator Polly Sampson wrote the lyrics. Your kids contributed. Yeah, they're singing as well” (02:00). Gilmour explains how the lockdown period inspired a family project dubbed “The Von Trapped,” where songwriting and musical contributions flowed naturally: “We started a little kind of fun thing… we started doing that and we started singing a song or two” (02:35).

Gilmour shares anecdotes about informal jam sessions in a barn, emphasizing the organic and magical nature of their collaborations: “Romani's voice with mine was doing something special that we felt had a magical thing to it” (03:07). This familial synergy is credited with the heartfelt and cohesive sound of the album.

Collaboration with Richard Wright and Technological Advances

The conversation shifts to the title track, “Luck and Strange,” featuring the late Richard Wright, Pink Floyd’s keyboardist. Gilmour recounts the recording process from January 2007, just before Wright’s passing in 2008: “We were in a barn, wooden barn with great holes in it… Freezing” (04:36). He describes the spontaneous creation of the track’s main riff and the role of modern technology like Pro Tools in shaping the final sound: “I could cut chunks out and create a bridge, create a chorus and add those into the song” (05:00).

Fallon inquires about the ease of musical production today versus the analog methods of Pink Floyd’s era. Gilmour praises current technology, stating, “I love the technology, pro tools, things like that. It's fun. It's a lifesaver” (05:56).

Debunking Rumors and Personal Anecdotes

Fallon shifts gears to address various rumors surrounding Gilmour’s personal life. One notable rumor involves the song “Wish You Were Here” aiding Gilmour in quitting smoking, sparked by coughing sounds in the track (06:23). Gilmour clarifies his stance on smoking, sharing a childhood deal with his father and revealing that he has never smoked: “I never smoked” (07:30). He humorously recounts a misinterpreted photo of him appearing to smoke, explaining, “Just take the car. Just take the car. Go. Just don't tell anyone” (08:14).

Another rumor questioned Gilmour’s stint as a model before his music fame. Gilmour dismisses this with a chuckle, explaining his practical approach to earning money: “I was driving a van around England and you go, hey, come on. That's what I'm talking. Come on, you got to take the money” (08:38). He emphasizes the necessity of such jobs in building his musical career, stating, “It was a way of, you know, building up my resources to buy a new guitar or something that I needed” (09:42).

The “Dark Side of the Moon” and “The Wizard of Oz” Synchronization Myth

A fascinating segment delves into the longstanding rumor that Pink Floyd’s “Dark Side of the Moon” was intentionally synchronized with the movie “The Wizard of Oz.” Fallon mentions this conspiracy, prompting Gilmour to respond skeptically: “We listened to it, Polly and I years ago, but you. There's no planning that out. There's no way” (09:50). Gilmour acknowledges that while fans have created videos to showcase coincidences, there was no deliberate synchronization: “We never know” (10:49).

Creation of “Dark and Velvet Nights”

As the episode nears its conclusion, Gilmour introduces a new track titled “Dark and Velvet Nights” from “Luck and Strange.” Fallon inquires about Gilmour’s creative process, to which Gilmour explains that music typically precedes lyrics: “The music is pretty well, nearly always the first thing” (10:57). He describes capturing musical ideas through humming into his phone, which later serve as the foundation for his compositions: “I have a phone… I think I've got a thousand little tiny segments of music” (11:05).

When asked about the lyrics for “Dark and Velvet Nights,” Gilmour reveals that they originated from a poem his wife, Polly, wrote for their wedding anniversary. This personal touch underscores the intimate and collaborative spirit of his work: “Polly and I talk about it… she came up with something brilliant” (11:36). Gilmour concludes by celebrating the magic of songwriting and the deep connection between his personal life and musical creations.

Conclusion

The episode wraps up with Fallon expressing his delight in having Gilmour on the show and teasing his upcoming performance: “David Gilmour, everybody. Luck and Strange is out now. David is performing for us after the break” (13:03). Although the transcript cuts off before the performance, the conversation offers a deep dive into Gilmour’s creative journey, personal anecdotes, and the collaborative essence of his latest work.

---

Notable Quotes:

• “You have to a little bit. Right.” – David Gilmour (00:50)
• “I think it’s your best work since Dark Side of the Moon.” – David Gilmour (00:53)
• “It’s a way of building up my resources to buy a new guitar or something that I needed.” – David Gilmour (09:42)
• “We never know.” – David Gilmour (10:49)
• “That's the magic of writing music right there. That's the coolest.” – David Gilmour (13:03)

Timestamp Key:

• All timestamps are in (MM:SS) format and correspond to the provided transcript sections.

---

This episode offers fans and newcomers alike an insightful look into David Gilmour’s artistic process, personal life, and the enduring legacy of his music. From heartfelt discussions about family collaborations to debunking enduring myths, Gilmour’s appearance on The Tonight Show enriches the understanding of his contributions to music and his continuous evolution as an artist.

Transcript

[Jimmy Fallon]

You're listening to a special Fallon flashback episode of the Tonight Show. And now, here he is, Jimmy Fallon.

[David Gilmour]

Welcome, David. It's an honor to have you here. Congrats on the new album, Luck and Strange.

Looks good.

It looks pretty good. Yeah. You look fantastic. Yeah. I just want to thank you. I'm just a fan of you and I'm also a fan of Syd Barrett and thanks for everything you've done for Sid and for music in general. But I'm just a big fan. I can't wait to get into all this stuff you put out this album. It's your fifth solo album.

Yeah, I think.

Something like that. Yeah. Something like that, yeah. And you're getting five star reviews all across the board. People are loving this. It's gotta.

That's what they tell me.

Yeah. Do you. I know you probably don't care about reviews, but do you? A little bit.

Of course you do.

You do. Yeah. You have to a little bit. Right.

You can't help having a look. It feels good and raging at the ones that have given me back three and said something dumb, you know?

Yeah. You said that you think it's your best work since Dark side of the Moon.

I did, yeah.

Yeah. Well, how'd you get that feeling? How'd you get that vibe?

When we finished Dark side and there was a lot of crossfades and stuff between all the tracks, they had all to be done separately and then they all have to be edited in. In the old days, before Pro Tools, when it was finally finished, we sat down in the control room at Abbey Road, listened to it all the way through and. Wow. I. I guess all of us had the feeling that it was something quite amazing.

Yeah.

That we got to. And at the same point on this album, I had a very similar feeling, which is why I said that. Which might sound a little arrogant, but.

No, I think you're.

Hey, I mean, but you're allowed to.

If anyone can say it, you can say it. Please.

This is very special.

But it is touching. But what's great is kind of a family affair here. Your wife and longtime collaborator Polly Sampson wrote the lyrics. Your kids contributed. Yeah, they're singing as well. When did you realize that the whole family was going to be contributors?

Well, Paulie's been writing lyrics with me way back to the division bell, Pink Floyd album 94. But during the lockdown, whole thing.

Oh, yeah.

We started a little kind of fun thing.

Yeah.

Which we called the Von Trapped. Because we were, you know.

The Von Trapped.

Yeah.

Yeah. That's Fantastic. That's good.

That was good. And that was an idea why one of our other sons, Charlie, who suggested that we could help to promote Polly's book, which got lost in the wash a little bit with that whole lot. And so we started doing that and we started singing a song or two. Leonard Cohen appears in Polly's book. And so I was doing mostly in Leonard Cohen covers, but Romani, who had about.

Oh, she's fantastic.

Three lessons on the harp or something, nothing very much. She would come in, yeah, she's here somewhere, and she would start playing and we'd just leave her to it for five minutes while we sort of gathered ourselves and had another glass of wine. Before we did this two air thing, I mean, we were running our own TV station from a barn. Yeah, yeah, it was. It was great fun. And people seem to come back every week, but Romany, I guess all of us actually were singing along to these Leonard Kern songs, joining in. But gradually they all pulled out because Romani's voice just, with mine just was doing something special that we felt had a magical thing to it. So it's sort of become quite obvious.

And then with the title track, Luck and Strange, this features the keyboardist of Richard Wright from Pink Floyd, who's the late great Rick Wright. When did. Did you record this with Richard?

January 2007, believe it or not. He died in 2008. I just finished a tour. My band was quite hot at the time and I thought, we're just going back to slacking around now and I thought that we should gather together in a barn and just sort of jam and play some little musical ideas that I'd had for a few days while. While the band was still cooking. You know what it's like.

Yeah.

Anyway, so. So that's what we did. And on the very. I mean, my big mistake was I forgot this was Britain and it was January and we were in a barn, wooden barn with great holes in it.

Freezing.

Yeah, it's howling through and it's.

You're like, I think we got it, you guys. Yeah, I think we got a distance.

Anyway, the first morning, the Monday morning, we got in there and I just had this little guitar riff thing and I just started playing it and people picked up, joined in and we just jammed away on it for about 15 minutes. Yeah, and that's it. I mean, that is the recording that's on there, which wasn't. Rehearsed it completely then, obviously, with the wonderful technology we have these days, I could cut chunks out and create a bridge, create a chorus and add those into the song.

Is it easier now or is it just as difficult as it was when you come up with, I mean, Pink Floyd? I mean, you go, you're playing stuff that's next level stuff, but that's. You're cutting tape. And now it's digital. And you go like, well, I can add that. Wait, hold on. You know, Romany just did a great, you know, heart.

I love the technology, pro tools, things like that.

It's fun.

It's. It's a lifesaver.

You knocked it out of the park with this one. With luck and strange. Congrats. I. Your career has been, gosh, over 60 years and there's a lot of rumors. Sorry, that's what I heard. That's what I heard. There's a lot of folklore. There's a lot of rumors out there about David Gilmore. And I was just wondering maybe if I can go over a couple of them and you could tell me if they're true or not.

Well, give it a. Give it a.

Well, yeah, the song, wish you were here.

Yeah.

Helped you quit smoking after you heard yourself coughing in the background of the song. I think, like 26 seconds into it, you hear coughing, and that's you and you quit smoking.

Well, when I was. Let me digress a tiny bit. When I was about 14, my dad said to me some, if you get to 17, which is the legal age for driving in the UK and you're not smoking, I'll teach you to drive the car and you can use it sometimes. I said, deal. So three years went by. I got to 17, I went to my dad, I said, dad, I'm 17. I still don't smoke. He said, yeah. And I said, car lessons.

Driving, remember?

And he said, no, no way.

He didn't remember the deal.

Didn't remember the way. And you might think that that would send me immediately off to buy a. Yeah. But it didn't. I never smoked.

You never smoked?

No. I mean, no. I said before that I've. I've never really smoked. Mind you, when the Internet comes along, find that. Because I told all my kids that's what had happened, and I'd cut them the same deal and I would honor it.

Yeah. So cut to the Internet.

Yeah, it's a. Cut to the Internet. Sorry. And one of my kids came up to me years later and had a picture of me, I think it was at a Nebworth concert standing with Paul McCartney. And I had a great big joint in my hand. He said, dad, you say you. He didn't Smoke? What is that?

Yeah. And you go, well, just take the car. Just take the car. Yeah, just take the car. Go. Just don't tell anyone. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. How about this? Before you were a famous musician, you were a model.

Well, you know, that was my, my life's course, you know, But I failed, you know, I know. They, I had to go for second best and be a musician.

Yeah, yeah, you went for second. But you were, you were. Did you model?

Yeah. I mean, people would offer you money. I was working as a van driver.

Yeah.

At the moment, at that moment in time. And my wages as a van driver were £7 a week.

Yeah.

No, you won't. I'm lying. That was what I got when I first joined Pink Floyd. No, it's £15 a week. True story. But, you know, I was getting £15 a week for driving a van eight hours a day. Yeah. And one day of modeling and you get £50.

So it's like, hello, do the math.

I mean, come on, let's go.

I don't want to drive this fan.

If I, I mean, these jobs didn't come flying along all the time.

You had this driving a van around England and you go, hey, come on. That's what I'm talking. Come on, you got to take the money. Well, you know, this is the money. This is.

I, I, I. It was a way of, you know, building up my resources to buy a new guitar or something that I needed.

Good for you. How about this? The Pink Floyd album Dark side of the Moon was written to synchronize with the movie wizard of Oz.

Well, of course it was.

Okay. There you go.

You actually, no, no, it's. We listened to it, Polly and I.

Years ago, but you. There's no planning that out. There's no way.

No, no, I, I don't know. I mean, I only heard about it years later.

Have you ever tried.

Someone said you, you put the needle on. This is vinyl, you know.

Yes.

And on the third, and you know, you've got the, the film running somehow. And on the third roar of the MGM line, you put the needle on for the beginning of Dark side. And there's these strange synchronicities that happen that.

Have you ever tried it? Yeah.

Well, now people have done. Done the donkey work, the chore work, and added. It's on the Internet, on YouTube. You can watch bits.

Kind of amazing.

And there are these strange coincidences. I'll call them co. Maybe if you.

Play this while you watch the movie.

Wicked. Yeah. Who knows?

Who knows? We never know tonight you're performing a song. Dark and Velvet Nights.

Yeah.

From the new album. What usually comes first with you?

The.

The music or the.

The music is pretty well, nearly always the first thing.

And do you hum into your phone or what do you just remember?

I hum it into my phone. Yes, I have a phone. I mean, I think I've got a thousand little tiny segments of music. I mean, sometimes they're five seconds long.

Yeah.

And sometimes they're just me holding it to the radio and say, hey, that's a groove I might have a look at one day. But yeah, eventually you listen through and throw 95 of them away and think, oh, well, that one's maybe got a tiny bit of.

So how'd you get the lyrics for. For that.

This. This one. Dark and Velvet Nights.

Yes.

Actually, I can't say which came first. Actually, I think the words did come first, but they weren't for that song. They were a poem that Polly wrote for me for our wedding anniversary, either last year or the year before. We're not 100% certain, either our 29th or our 28th wedding anniversary. We've just had our 30th.

Congratulations. How cool. She's cool.

She is. She's unbelievable.

The best. But Sushi, she wrote you a poem and you go, she wrote me a poem?

And I was. I came up with this little groove for this track and was sort of working on it, doing everything myself on, you know, you. You put the bass on. So boring. Sorry. No, I like on the line, on a. On a grid, you know, and then you play some stuff over it. Anyway, I had this nice little groove going and I think, yeah, this has got something to it that I really like. And now's the moment. I could sing something if I only had. But usually what I do is I just sing really a little melody over it and. And then we. Polly and I talk about it and. And. And she listens to it for weeks and. And comes up with some. Something brilliant. On this occasion, I was sitting there and on piece of paper next to me was this poem that she had written to me. And I sort of picking up the paper, looking at scansion, sounds like it might be about right.

So it just all worked out.

I just sang her poem to this track. And that is pretty much how it came out. A little bit of adjusting later on.

But that's the magic of writing music right there. That's the coolest. I'm so happy you're here. David Gilmore, everybody. Luck and Strange is out now. David is performing for us after the break. Stick around, everybody.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Thanks for listening to the Tonight show starring Jimmy Fallon. Don't forget to subscribe to get the latest episodes weekday mornings. Wherever you get your podcasts, watch the Tonight show starring Jimmy Fallon, weeknights on NBC and streaming on Peacock.