| On an Island | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studio album by David Gilmour | ||||
| Released | 6 March 2006 (UK) March 7, 2006 (US) |
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| Genre | Progressive rock, art rock, blues rock, space rock | |||
| Length | 51:36 | |||
| Label | EMI (UK) Columbia Records (US) |
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| Producer | David Gilmour, Phil Manzanera, Chris Thomas | |||
| David Gilmour chronology | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic | [1] |
| Rolling Stone | [2] |
| This table needs to be expanded using prose. See the guideline for more information. | |
On an Island is the third solo album by David Gilmour, best known as vocalist and lead guitarist for Pink Floyd. It was released in the UK on 6 March 2006, Gilmour's 60th birthday, and in the United States the following day. It was Gilmour's first new solo album in 22 years. The song "Castellorizon" received a Grammy Award nomination for best rock instrumental.
The album has achieved platinum status in Canada for shipping 100,000 units.[3]
Contents |
Notable appearances include Robert Wyatt, Jools Holland, Georgie Fame, David Crosby, and Graham Nash, as well as the late Pink Floyd keyboardist Richard Wright and a member of an early incarnation of Pink Floyd, Bob Klose. Guy Pratt, who has done studio work and toured with Pink Floyd, also appears. Chris Thomas and Roxy Music's Phil Manzanera assisted with production.
Much of the album was recorded in Gilmour's private studio aboard his houseboat Astoria. The track "Smile" was heard briefly in an unmastered form on the BBC2 show Three Men in a Boat which retraced a trip on the River Thames that passed the houseboat.
Orchestrations on the album were arranged by noted Polish film composer Zbigniew Preisner and conducted by Robert Ziegler
David Gilmour's page on MySpace features a single edit of the title track for his new album and is available for all to listen to. Single edits of "Take a Breath" and "This Heaven" were issued to coincide with the U.S. leg of the tour, while "Smile" was the second single in the UK.
Copies of the album initially purchased from Best Buy in the U.S. contained an exclusive bonus audio CD with the instrumental track Island Jam which was subsequently released on the CD single for "Smile" in Europe.
On an Island entered the UK charts at #1, giving Gilmour his first ever chart-topping album outside of Pink Floyd. It reached #1 on the European Chart, and #2 in Canada, Portugal and Iceland. It has also provided Gilmour with his first U.S. Top 10 album, reaching #6. The album has achieved platinum status in Canada and has sold over 1,000,000 copies worldwide.
The album also produced two minorly successful singles; the title track "On an Island" and "Smile", both peaking at #72 on the UK Singles Chart. "On an Island" also peaked at #27 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart[4]
The album was re-released in November 2006 with a bonus DVD of live tracks and other material.
In 2009, it was chosen The Greatest Solo Album by a former Pink Floyd band member by classic rock station Planet Rock.
Live from the AOL Sessions, New York, April 2006.
Live from Abbey Road television series, London, August 2006
'Live at the Royal Albert Hall, London, May 2006 (from Remember That Night).
Richard Wright, Phil Manzanera and Guy Pratt joined Gilmour on tour to promote the album. The tour also featured Dick Parry, who played saxophone on Pink Floyd songs "Money", "Shine On You Crazy Diamond", "Us and Them" and "Wearing the Inside Out" also he performed solo in "Then I close my eyes", and Jon Carin, who in 1980s and 1990s toured with Pink Floyd and helped in studio. Zbigniew Preisner conducted orchestra in concert in Gdansk. Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason joined for an encore of the London show. David Bowie made a guest appearance in London, performing vocals on Comfortably Numb and Arnold Layne, the latter subsequently released as a live single. David Crosby and Graham Nash also appeared on select dates, reprising their studio performance of "On An Island", as well as singing on three other songs.
The tour was documented by the release of a live DVD, Remember That Night recorded at the Royal Albert Hall in May 2006 and a live album, Live in Gdańsk a recording of the final show of the tour at the Gdańsk Shipyard, Poland in August 2006.
Set one:
All above tracks were present at every show.
Set two: The second set featured a selection of these tracks:
Encore:
Album – Based on stock pushed to shops, not actual sales in North America
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Billboard 200 | 6 |
| 2006 | Canadian Albums Chart | 2 |
| 2006 | UK Albums Chart | 1 |
| 2006 | Norwegian Albums Chart | 1 |
| Preceded by Corinne Bailey Rae by Corinne Bailey Rae |
UK number one album 12 March 2006 – 18 March 2006 |
Succeeded by Corinne Bailey Rae by Corinne Bailey Rae |
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