David Gilmour won't play Pink Floyd's Echoes without Richard Wright

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Former Pink Floyd man David Gilmour says he won't perform track without late keyboardist and composer Richard Wright at the helm

A picture of David Gilmour and Richard Wright at London's Royal Albert Hall, 2006
David Gilmour and Richard Wright (Image credit: Getty)

David Gilmour says he won’t play Pink Floyd track Echoes without late keyboardist and composer Richard Wright.

Founding member, keyboardist and composer Wright played a major role in the rise of Pink Floyd during the 60s and 70s. He drew back from songwriting in the late 70s, eventually becoming a session musician with the group until he went back full-time in 1994.

He died of lung cancer, aged 65, in 2008.

As singer and guitarist Gilmour prepared to play the first-ever rock show for an audience in Pompeii’s amphitheatre in Italy since Pink Floyd’s 1971 recorded show at the site, his lyricist wife Polly Sampson admits they felt Wright’s absence keenly as “one of the ghosts” among the ancient runes.

Gilmour tells Rolling Stone: “It would be lovely to play Echoes here, but I wouldn’t do that without Rick. There’s something that’s specifically so individual about the way that Rick and I play in that, that you can’t get someone to learn it and do it just like that. That’s not what music’s about.”

He adds: “Being a solo artist is what I do. It’s what I’ve been doing for the last 20 years and a bit before then. I can’t remember really what it’s like to do it within Pink Floyd. In my mind, that’s a thing of the past.”

Gilmour continues his Rattle That Lock world tour over the summer.

David Gilmour Rattle That Lock tour 2016

Jul 08: Pompeii Amphitheatre, Italy
Jul 10: Verona Arena Di Verona, Italy
Jul 11: Verona Arena Di Verona, Italy
Jul 14: Stuttgart Schlossplatz, Germany
Jul 16: Paris Chateau De Chantilly, France
Jul 18: Wiesbaden Bowling Green, Germany
Jul 20: Nimes Les Arenes De Nimes, France
Jul 21: Nimes Les Arenes De Nimes, France
Jul 23: Besancon Saline Royale d’Arc Et Senans, France
Jul 27: Tienen Grote Markt, Belgium
Jul 28: Tienen Grote Markt, Belgium
Sep 25: London Royal Albert Hall
Sep 28: London Royal Albert Hall
Sep 29: London Royal Albert Hall
Sep 30: London Royal Albert Hall

Rick Wright Remembered

Christina O'Neill

Former TeamRock news desk member Christina joined our team in late 2015, and although her time working on online rock news was fairly brief, she made a huge impact by contributing close to 1500 stories. Christina also interviewed artists including Deftones frontman Chino Moreno and worked at the Download festival. In late 2016, Christina left rock journalism to pursue a career in current affairs. In 2021, she was named Local Weekly Feature Writer of the Year at the Scottish Press Awards.