Rattle that lock
After a bit of a breather, it was time to get back to doing what I do best, going to concerts. Tonight’s concert was David Gilmour at MSG on the last show of the North American leg of the Rattle That Lock tour. Despite breaking my rule of buying concert tickets greater than $100, I got my moneys and then some tonight.
For the uninitiated, Mr. Gilmour used to be the guitarist for a little band called Pink Floyd. My first encounter with the band and their music came during junior year of high school. It was one particular day in my US history class and the topic was unions. My teacher Ms.Devin handed out a leaflet describing the struggles of union formation, likening it to the Wizard of Oz. And that’s when I heard her bring up how the Wizard of Oz syncs up perfectly to Pink Floyd’s 1973 masterpiece, “The Dark Side of the Moon”. Sadly, I never had the chance to prove this true but my curiosity was struck. By coincidence, VH1 Classic aired an all Pink Floyd weekend and there was no turning back. About a year later as a high school senior on the bus ride home from school, my friend Doreen & I were discussing the music of the 1960’s and Pink Floyd came out of both of our lips at the same time. A kindred spirit on the same musical wavelength was found.
As high school turned into college, the fandom only grew. I would listen to my own copies of Dark Side and the following album Wish You Were Here repeatedly and lovingly. I would be entranced by their performances, whether it be on their Live at Pompeii DVD or waiting all day for those glorious 25 minutes at Live 8 not knowing that I wouldn’t be able to see them live at least once.
If I couldn’t see a full Pink Floyd concert in my lifetime, I would have to find a middle ground. My first chance at this would be when Roger Waters brought The Wall Live to Yankee Stadium in July 2012. For reasons unknown, I didn’t go and kick myself for that. I did see the tribute band Brit Floyd at the Beacon Theater in April 2014 and enjoyed every minute of the show. I didn’t think I would get to cross this off my musical bucket list.
That was the case until I heard about the David Gilmour Ratttle That Lock tour last summer. I wasn’t as familiar with his solo albums until his previous work, 2006’s “On An Island” and listening to the album was a calming influence. The first show at MSG was already sold out so I jumped on the chance for the second show. I was happy to be going, price tag and protestations over prioritizing concerts over my job be dammed.
The sunny April day would gradually turn to night. At about 8:15PM, David Gilmour appeared on stage alone for the instrumental, 5AM, the opening track from Rattle That Lock as the first set opened with the first three tracks from the album and ended with High Hopes from 1994’s “The Division Bell”. After intermission, the second set would go back to the very beginning aka Astronomy Domine from the 1967 debut album, “The Piper at the Gates of Dawn” and end with a literal and metaphorically blinding version of “Run Like Hell” from the 1979 album The Wall, everyone was wearing sunglasses due to the surrounding lasers. By the time of the encore, no one was sitting down, as “Time” and “Comfortably Numb ” drew the biggest cheers of the night.
I can say that at this point in time, this is my favorite concert this year. It was a nice mix of solo material and Pink Floyd songs and I sang along all the way. Tonight is proof positive that live music is the most joyous thing in life at present. The last time I was in this blissful of a state, was during my vacation in Spain last November. That extra shot of bliss may or may not have been attributed to the dual contact high from the smoke machine in the arena and the pot being smoked by the girls two seats away from where I was sitting. Tonight has a parallel to my favorite concert ever, Paul McCartney at Yankee Stadium in 2012. That night was as close to Beatlemania as I’ll ever get and tonight was as close to the psychedelic and life affirming experience of a Pink Floyd show as I’ll ever get. The next concert for me is Saturday June 18th, back at MSG to see The Cure. If only I had more time and/or another me to see all the concerts that interest me. I will never be ashamed to have live music be my niche as it brings much needed joy to my life, tonight’s another unforgettable experience!
