Ever the impressive guitar player, David Gilmour has once more stunned with another live album single. Between Two Points (Live from the Luck and Strange Concerts) is a fantastic third song from the upcoming album. There are Pink Floyd goodies within, and those goodies come to those who wait. In the meantime, it’s clear Gilmour is confident not just in his contemporary material, but in performing it to a standard befitting his status as one of the greatest guitarists in history. Quite the high bar, and it’s a tall order Gilmour has managed, successfully, to hit in the last few years. His consistency is our gain as listeners, with the little intricacies and larger thrills of his sound made clear on this Between Two Points performance. Romany Gilmour remains an essential part of the Luck and Strange track, and it’s no surprise that her work on the live version is just as exhilarating. Head back and listen to those early years of Gilmour as a guitarist for Pink Floyd, he has not lost a step.
Brief the guitar work may be here; it’s a tremendous embrace of the instrument. Romany takes the lead with this softer tone, the flourishing highs of Polly Samson’s songwriting giving Between Two Points a heartbreaking, reflective tone. That much could be seen as an inevitability of acoustic guitar, of slowed tempo and softer voices, but it’s hard to make it feel as though it matters. Between Two Points is a staggering piece of work, likely one of the best in Gilmour’s solo career. A modern flourish pairing the master guitarist with a refreshing voice. Veteran songwriters heading into their twilight years are just as susceptible to inevitable feelings as the instrumental and written flourishes. Gilmour is in the final stages of creativity, as are his peers. Bob Dylan, Paul McCartney, Neil Young, all these greats who have given more than what was expected of them, are closer to the end than their start.
Sentimentality is a difficult beast when it comes to a song like Between Two Points. It’s an inevitability of the tone taken by Gilmour and Romany, but it works brilliantly. Those subtle, softer highs feel extremely earned, feverishly emotional moments which are already there in the song. A live scenario does not change the thrill of the track but it does add a suddenness which artists must always work with. Romany holds her own with this live rendition, a brilliant piece of work which has those inevitable, familial ties. Again, working those into place with honest intent is far more difficult than lumping them with some relatable strings and a high-pitched vocal. Between Two Points has a charm in its slowed tempo, a grace in its delivery, and a stunning instrumental reminder towards the end.
About as great as it gets for Gilmour as a live artist. A contemplative song which loses none of its spectacular, moving sense when taken on the big stage. If a song as quiet and calming, a track so at peace with itself as Between Two Points, can make it to the stage, then it is as reliant on competent playing as a patient audience. Between Two Points (Live from the Luck and Strange Concerts) is on par with the Luck and Strange album version. It’s the slight differences which will make all the difference to dedicated listeners, who will no doubt pick apart both and mesh them together like some Frankenstein’s musical monster. There is much to love about a song which layers its meanings gently for the live audience, especially when the album version was so touching.
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