Our very best wishes, and many happy returns, to David Gilmour who is celebrating his 80th birthday today (March 6th)!

Born and raised in Cambridge, David became involved with various bands in the area, principally Jokers Wild who were a popular draw when they played, before joining Pink Floyd at the start of 1968. More recent years have seen David concentrating on his solo career, and helping out chums on their musical projects on an ad hoc basis.

In 2019, some 120+ of David's guitars were auctioned, raising $21.5 million (including some record-breaking amounts for individual instruments) which went to the environmental charity ClientEarth. One of these guitars - the Black Strat - is featured in an upcoming auction of instruments following the death of Jim Irsay, which you can bid on this month if you have sufficiently deep pockets!

David also appeared as a guest performer at the Richard Thompson 70th Birthday Concert that year, playing Dimming Of The Day and Fat Old Sun, and joining the encore. In 2020, on February 25th, shortly before all activity stopped around the world due to Coronavirus, David joined the stellar bill for the Mick Fleetwood & Friends Celebrate The Music of Peter Green and The Early Years of Fleetwood Mac concert at London's Palladium, which has been released as a 4LP, 2CD, Blu-ray and book box set. The concert was in aid of the Teenage Cancer Trust charity. During lockdown, he and his family kept busy with live streams of the Von Trapped sessions.

Then, of course, in 2024 he was back with a bang with his new album Luck and Strange. Critically acclaimed, the album topped charts around the world, and was taken to the hearts of many Floyd fans. He also went on the road with the new material and a selection of old favourites. Shows in Rome were filmed and the Live At The Circus Maximus/The Luck And Strange Concerts releases came out in October last year and were eagerly received by fans.

It just remains for us to wish David a very happy day! If you want to add your thoughts and wishes, you can do so at our Facebook page...