Paul McCartney, an iconic figure in the music world, is no stranger to identifying extraordinary guitarists.
His tenure in The Beatles, alongside George Harrison and John Lennon, was marked by collaborations with virtuoso guitarists, such as Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, and Keith Richards, among others.
Like any music enthusiast, McCartney too has his favorite guitarist and unsurprisingly, it’s David Gilmour.
David Gilmour, revered in the annals of rock guitar history, is an integral part of any ‘great guitarist’ list. He is renowned for recording the impeccable solo in the legendary song “Comfortably Numb”, a testament to his exceptional skills.
However, McCartney’s admiration for Gilmour’s prowess on the guitar reached new heights due to the latter’s contribution to one of Paul McCartney’s most mellifluous compositions, “No More Lonely Nights”.
This song emerged during a challenging period for McCartney, with his mid-life crisis and the lukewarm response to his 1984 film, “Give My Regards to Broad Street”.
Yet, despite the circumstances, “No More Lonely Nights” achieved tremendous success, securing a Top 10 position on charts on both sides of the Atlantic.
The song, a mostly gentle ballad, was given a unique twist with Gilmour’s fiery lead guitar lines.
In his book ‘The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present’, McCartney reminisces about Gilmour’s participation, “David Gilmour plays the solo on the record.
I’ve known him since the early days of Pink Floyd. Dave is a kind of genius, so he was pulling everything.”
He further expressed his admiration,
“I really admired his playing and I’d seen him around; I think he’d just done his ‘About Face’ solo album. So I called him up and said, ‘Would you play on this?’ It seemed like his thing.”
This call marked the beginning of an unforgettable collaboration that would go on to shape music history.
