'David Gilmour Live In Gdansk' - details confirmed |
Written by Matt | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Thursday, 19 June 2008 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Over the last few weeks, David Gilmour's entertaining official blog has been gradually revealing details of the upcoming Live In Gdansk release. For those who've missed them, fear not, as the official announcement has now been issued by Columbia Records. With no less than FIVE different formats of the package, from a 2CD set through to a 3CD and 2DVD deluxe box set, there's plenty of goodies in store! Included in some of the packages will be a two and a half hour DVD, and the long-awaited 5.1 surround sound version of On An Island, along with many other things that haven't appeared elsewhere. With a release date of September 22nd in Europe, and September 23rd in North America, the various packages, detailed below and available for preorder, will be very eagerly awaited by fans across the world... The album, 'David Gilmour Live In Gdansk,' his first solo live album, is a recording 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.' 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 26th, 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. For this concert, the band were accompanied by an orchestra: the 40-strong string section of the Polish Baltic Philharmonic conducted by Zbigniew Preisner, orchestral arranger on David's "On An Island" album. 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 colour and lasers by lightmeister Marc Brickman. As well as 113 minutes of concert footage, the DVD includes a 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 the first time I have played in Poland and it was a thrill to be there helping to mark one of the most important anniversaries in recent European history. The Gdansk shipyard is a deeply symbolic place and it was an honour to perform our music there. It was particularly exciting to have my friend Zbigniew Preisner there conducting the Polish Baltic Philharmonic Orchestra and to be able to perform my album for the first time as it was intended". All formats of 'David Gilmour Live In Gdansk' 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. For a handy table of what includes what, visit this page at David's blog.
ORDERING INFORMATION
* Currently the best place for our US friends to secure their copy of the 3CD/2DVD set is their local Best Buy store. The chain has the exclusive on the set in the US, and their website has just (Sept 19th) dropped it to a staggering $49.99, far cheaper than Amazon.com's current price. They do sell by online mail order as well as instore, but please note that Best Buy only ship orders to these countries: US, the Virgin Islands, Guam, or an FPO or APO address. They are not able to ship internationally to other countries. We will endeavour to keep this chart up to date, but please be aware that prices can change on a daily basis. We hope you find this chart useful! Should the price reduce after you have pre-ordered it from Amazon, they should automatically reduce the amount you pay when the item is released and you are charged for it (on despatch). As they list the remaining versions, we will update this story accordingly. There are of course other retailers that you can choose, including our friends over at www.floydstuff.com, and at Play.com who will also be offering the various editions. As with Amazon, prices at other retailers change on a regular basis, so shop around for the best deals. We hope this chart will help you in your buying decisions, whichever retailer you choose.
Formats:
The full track listings for David Gilmour Live In Gdansk are as follows:
Disc 1 -- CD
Disc 2 -- CD * Accompanied by the 40-strong section of the Polish Baltic Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Zbigniew Preisner
Discs 1 & 2 -- CD Credits
Disc 3 -- DVD
Part 2 -- Gdansk Diary
Disc 3 -- DVD Credits
Disc 4 -- DVD Extras
Live from the AOL Sessions, New York, April 2006:
Live From Abbey Road, London, August 2006:
Barn Jams 2007 (previously unreleased), recorded live in the UK, January 2007:
Disc 4 - DVD Credits:
'Barn Jam' only personnel:
Disc 4 -- DVD Audio 5.1 Surround Sound Version Produced by David Gilmour, Phil Manzanera and Chris Thomas
Disc 5 -- CD Bonus Tracks from the 'On An Island' Tour, 2006:
Disc 5 -- CD Credits |