Search - David Gilmour :: X2:(David Gilmour/ About Face)

A cheap and convenient way to acquire David Gilmour's first

Terrence J. Reardon | Lake Worth (a west Palm Beach suburb), FL | 10/19/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"One time Pink Floyd singer/guitarist David Gilmour's US record label Columbia Records (who handles the distribution rights to his catalog in all countries outside Europe (in Europe he is on EMI)) has just re-released his first two solo albums as a convenient 2-CDs for the price of 1-CD package called David Gilmour X2 (coincidentally this set comes out at the same time that his new Live in Gdansk album (available in five configurations) was released).

The two CDs in David Gilmour X2 consists of his first two solo albums (which are his self titled solo debut from 1978 (which contains classics like "There's No Way Out of Here", "So Far Away", "No Way" and "I Can't Breathe Anymore") and his second solo album About Face from 1984 (which contains tracks like "Until We Sleep", "Murder", Blue Light", "Out of the Blue" and "All Lovers Are Deranged")) together at a low price rather than buying the CDs individually.

The versions of his first two solo albums contained in this special 2-for-1 set are the remastered CD versions that were first released in September of 2006 here in the US and the other territories where David is signed to Sony BMG (see my reviews for the self-titled David Gilmour remaster and the About Face remaster to save time for re-writing the reviews here).

Interesting that this package is only available in the US and Canada as Columbia/Sony owns the licensing rights to David Gilmour's solo catalog whereas EMI in Europe has the licensing rights to DG's catalog (in a similar manner like Pink Floyd licensing their catalog to EMI/Capitol and/or CBS/Sony (before the band switched all licensing rights to EMI for the whole world)).

If you want to acquire both of David's two pre-On an Island solo albums and either not spent lots of money or upgrade the 1980s CDs to new remastered CD versions, this is the best bet and an actual money saver to do so unlike buying them separately. If you own the 2006 remasters already then steer clear.

RECOMMENDED!"

Sadly lacking

Mihalis | Minneapolis MN | 11/16/2008

(2 out of 5 stars)

"In this day and age when it seems like every remastered re-release is scrounging up extra material, About Face skips the extended version of Blue Light which had come out during it's original release. There's no reason that it shouldn't have been included in this."

A Fine Bargain for Gilmour Fans

Moldyoldie | Motown, USA | 04/15/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Anyone who takes delight in the singular guitar stylings heard in post-Barrett Pink Floyd, and wishes to eschew the group's heavy lyrical angst, will certainly enjoy David Gilmour's initial solo foray from 1978, the year following PF's Animals. Right off in the initial cut, a simple extended instrumental titled "Mihalis", are heard those marvelous, dream-laden chords put to a simple beat before branching out into a diverse working of Gilmour's signature guitar sound. The following tune, "There's No Way Out of Here", received some extensive radio airplay in certain quarters -- it's certainly a decent enough tune in the Floyd mold replete with female choral backing. "Cry from the Street" develops as a fairly mundane blues, also in the Floyd mold, before jumping headlong into a tasty coda. "So Far Away" is a soaring ballad. In "Short and Sweet", an otherwise unexceptional tune, are first heard those familiar chords so memorably proffered a year later in the refrain of PF's "Run Like Hell" from The Wall. "Raise My Rent" is another dreamy instrumental blues styling. "No Way" is often taken as a statement on the state of Pink Floyd at the time -- I wouldn't know, but it again attaches a dreamy blues and Gilmour's soft-core voice to a Floydian arrangement. In "Deafinitely", Gilmour goes techno in an instrumental dialogue between his guitar and a howling synth. "I Can't Breathe Anymore" begins as a beautiful ballad before the guitar takes flight in bringing the album to a satisfying close. The re-mastered sound is exemplary.



About Face from 1984, co-produced by Bob Ezrin, gives us much more elaborate arrangements and diverse stylings than Gilmour's eponymous first solo outing. The opener "Until We Sleep", a fan favorite on tour, is also a personal favorite along with the funky brass-infused "Blue Light". "Murder" begins as a poignant, movingly sung ballad before exploding into a vocal and guitar workout. "Love on the Air" and "Out of the Blue" are mostly delightful tunes. Gilmour grabs Pete Townshend's lyric in "All Lovers Are Deranged" and gives us a powerfully compact, straight-ahead rocker that displays an edge in his voice rarely heard. Elsewhere, the tunes are mostly variable and the lyrics often inscrutable. The closing tunes, two ballads, are disappointingly innocuous. However, despite some bombast and indulgence, good musical taste often prevails throughout the album. Again, the remastered sound from Columbia is excellent, more vivid than my LP."