Wish You Were Here
In Part 76 of this blog, I wrote about seeing the Australian Pink Floyd during the 50th anniversary of ‘The Dark Side of the Moon’ album. I noted I hoped to see them again, and I did just that the other week. 2025 is the 50th anniversary of the ‘Wish You Were Here’ album, and the band are on tour playing this in its entirety, following it with various other tracks from the back catalogue.
The Hydro in Glasgow was a sell-out and was a fantastic night. We have a tradition of beer and burgers before such an event, this time at Lebowskis, which was packed with gig goers, and classic rock, including Pink Floyd, playing over the sound system.
Sign of the times these days, having to go through metal detectors before entry to the venue, but it’s all handled professionally, and I get why it’s necessary.
I know this music as well as I know any music, and the band absolutely nailed it. The sound and tone were as near perfect as you could wish for, and to do so live is such an achievement. The guitar solos, and for a good part of this set the guitarists have no place to hide, were spot on. As a guitar player myself, I was in awe. For me it was a fantastic night and one I will not forget.
The gig consisted of two sets. They opened with the ‘Wish You Were Here’ album, which consists of ‘Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts I-V)’; ‘Welcome to the Machine’; ‘Have a Cigar’; ‘Wish You Were Here’; ‘Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts VI-IX)’. The singalong to the title track, ‘Wish You Were Here’ was awesome.
They followed with In the Flesh?; The Happiest Days of Our Lives; Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2; Another Brick in the Wall, Part 3 and then closed the first half with Goodbye Cruel World, which ended with a single spotlight on the vocalist and then dropping the sound out on the word ‘goodbye’. I saw Pink Floyd perform The Wall at Earls Court in London, and I recall Roger Waters doing just that, with the final brick in the wall slotting into place as he said goodbye. The Australian Pink Floyd do not build a wall across the stage for these numbers, though who knows what they are planning for the 50th anniversary of that album in a few years time. The logistics would be huge for such an undertaking, but I’m keen to see how they will handle it. The music is what is important, so whatever they choose to do will be good for me. Of course, in two years time, it will be the album ‘Animals’ that will be toured, and that is going to be quite an event.
The second half consisted of ‘Arnold Layne’. The debut Pink Floyd single and a classic Syd Barrett song. ‘Shine On You Crazy Diamond’ is about Syd, so it was fitting they paid tribute by playing this. Next up some tracks from ‘The Dark Side of the Moon’. Time, the solo was just amazing to listen to, ‘Breathe (Reprise)’; ‘The Great Gig in the Sky’ had the three backing vocalists taking a section each and received an ovation for an astonishing rendition. Then it was ‘Money’. This was followed by ‘Sorrow’ from the album, ‘A Momentary Lapse of Reason’. ‘Marooned’, an instrumental from ‘The Division Bell’ album was up next. Again, no place to hide for the guitar and such a marvellous performance. ‘Coming Back to Life’, from ‘The Division Bell’ came next and then ‘One of These Days’ from the album ‘Meddle’ which was everything you could hope for. ‘Run Like Hell’ from ‘’The Wall’ was the closer, which Pink Floyd themselves used to do in concert.
The inflatable kangaroo made a welcome appearance as did the pig towards the end of the gig. During Brick in the Wall, there was a huge puppet of a teacher, in the style of the one used originally by Pink Floyd, based on artwork created by Gerald Scarfe for The Wall. Throughout the gig, graphics illustrating the songs were projected onto a large circular screen at the back of the stage, which was made famous by Pink Floyd. Good to see this is still being used today.
The band left the stage to a standing ovation, and then what seemed an age, but was only a minute or two, returned for an encore, which of course was Comfortably Numb. The solo was nailed. Simply magnificent.
There are several versions of ‘Comfortably Numb’ available, and it is interesting to see how David Gilmour has developed it over the years from the original studio cut on ‘The Wall’. I was lucky to see Pink Floyd in concert and to listen to David Gilmour standing on top of the wall playing this. The version from the album, ‘Is There Anybody Out There. The Wall Live’ is different from what it eventually became by the 1994 Earls Court gig, which for many folk is described as the greatest guitar solo of all time. David Gilmour has continued to perform this song as part of his live shows. You can hear those versions on vinyl or CD on the ‘Live in Gdansk’ 2006 and also the more recent ‘Live at Pompeii’ in 2016 and ‘The Luck and Strange’ concerts from 2024.
Pink Floyd performances on record include ‘Delicate Sound of Thunder’ from 1988, ‘Pulse’ which was recorded in 1994 and the’ Live at Knebworth 1990’. As an aside, note that ‘Delicate Sound of Thunder’ has been remixed, restored and reissued in 2020 and is well worth getting hold of.
I have a bootleg entitled ‘The Stockholm Syndrome, Sweden Broadcast 1984’. This is a double CD which includes a performance of Comfortably Numb. I also have another performance recorded at The Meltdown Festival, London June 22nd 2001, which again features Comfortably Numb.
David Gilmour is my favourite guitar player (obviously we guitar players all have Hendrix as number one, that goes without saying), so his takes on Comfortably Numb are my favourites. However, there are other musicians who have done a great job on this track, notably those supporting Roger Waters on his solo tours. These also include other versions of Pink Floyd songs to be listened to and enjoyed. Roger Waters ‘In The Flesh’ album is well worth a listen as is ‘The Wall’ from 2015, the soundtrack to a new film at the time. Also, ‘This is not a Drill – Live from Prague’ in 2025 features this track. However, this version it is a dark, slow rendition without the guitar solo, and it works.
If you love Pink Floyd, I reckon The Australian Pink Floyd is your best option for hearing their music live. They know the material and the level of respect in performing it for new generations of fans is second to none. I can thoroughly recommend and I’m looking forward to the next tour.
The Fiction Factory 