First of all, let’s answer the question posed in the headline: not very close at all.
The paths of Paul McCartney and Dave Gilmour have however crossed several times over the years, and there was a moment during the recording of Pink Floyd’s classic Dark Side of the Moon when McCartney came very close to adding a contribution to the album.
It was late autumn in 1972. Pink Floyd were recording their magnum opus at Abbey Road studios. Across the hall, Wings were working on Red Rose Speedway.
Pink Floyd was looking for dialogue to be spoken throughout the album’s transitions between songs. They went around the studio and asked for various employees to come in to complete an interview with vague and open-ended questions, which they would then splice into a short line between songs.
After receiving some dialogue from the studio’s doorman and their road manager, they went across the hall to ask if the band in the next studio wanted to help out.
It helped that Alan Parsons (the engineer in charge of Dark Side of the Moon) assisted The Beatles with their Abbey Road and Let It Be albums so there was a familiarity. In any case, Wings agreed, and they ended up interviewing Paul and Linda McCartney, Denny Laine, drummer Denny Seiwell, and guitarist Henry McCullogh.
The voices of the McCartneys were not used in the end. Paul and Linda were interviewed together, and Parson later said that they sounded a bit too automated. The word is that their answers were a bit short with a lot of ‘yes’ and ‘no’ responses.
There is also a popular opinion that the Floyd were wary of putting Macca’s very well-known voice on the album as it would likely distract listeners from what they were trying to achieve. I can definitely see that being a valid concern.
However, Wings guitarist Henry McCullough was used. He delivered the line, “I don’t know, I was really drunk at the time.” It can be found in the transition before Us And Them.
The McCartney’s wouldn’t have too much contact with Pink Floyd as a group in the future. Paul McCartney and David Gilmour, however, must have struck up a friendship. They started hanging out, and among other things were spotted at a Led Zeppelin concert together the following year.
They would not just stay in touch. Macca invited Gilmour to particulate in his projects several times.
In 1979, David Gilmour and members of The Who, Led Zeppelin, the Faces and several other legends joined Wings for the recording of Rockestra Theme for the album Back to the Egg.
In his book The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present released in 2021, Paul McCartney called David Gilmour a genius. He said, “David Gilmour plays the solo on the record. I’ve known him since the early days of Pink Floyd. Dave is a genius of sorts, so I was pulling out all the stops. I admired his playing so much, I’d seen him around; I think he’d just done his solo ‘About Face’ album. So I rang him up and said, ‘Would you play on this?’ It sounded like his kind of thing.”
When McCartney recorded his half-soundtrack, half-new studio album Give My Regards To Broad Street in 1984, he asked Gilmour to add a guitar solo to the lead-off single No More Lonely Nights. This is exactly the type of soaring guitar solo that Gilmour provided on some of his best work with Pink Floyd.
Gilmour also guested McCartney as he recorded the album Flowers In the Dirt (1989). He plays guitar on the track We Got Married.
Finally, Gilmour agreed to join McCartney’s backing band for the Run Devil Run album (1999). This was his tribute album of old rock and roll standards, which was his way of working his way through the death of his wife Linda. Gilmour had been friends with her as well and was happy to be there for his friend, alongside other musicians like Mick Green (guitar), Ian Paice (drums), Pete Wingfield (keys) and Chris Hall (accordion). This line-up also played a one-off showcase performance at the Cavern Club which was shown on TV in multiple countries and released on DVD.
During that same year, Gilmour answered fans questions in a MSN webcast and talked about that show. “I’ve completed all the stuff that Paul has so far asked me to do with him. I don’t know if he’s doing anymore but it was really good fun to get back to that kind of music for a change. Getting to be a Beatle for that night at the Cavern was unforgettable.”
He was then asked if he saw any parallels between Pink Floyd and The Beatles, like the songwriting relationship Paul and John had. “You make that comparison with a number of different bands. I’m a huge fan of the Beatles, but I don’t know what parallels are between us except we were both pretty good at what we did.” He also cited The Beatles when answering if his kids were Pink Floyd fans: “I think they’re all fans, but possibly they prefer the Beatles.”
In a conversation with the French Guitarist magazine in 2002, David Gilmour revealed an admiration for Paul McCartney. “He is a musician in the broadest sense of the word. He can play everything: bass, guitar, piano, drums … And on all these instruments, he has a very good level. We cannot therefore mystify him, he knows exactly what he wants. We owe him certain productions which were not of the greatest interest. But he definitely deserves the success and respect he enjoys,” David Gilmour said.
In an interview with Mojo Magazine in 2016, Gilmour revealed: “I really wish I had been in the Beatles. [They] taught me how to play guitar; I learnt everything. The bass parts, the lead, the rhythm, everything. They were fantastic. […] You get into Studio Two at Abbey Road, you’re sitting there with Paul McCartney and your guitar is plugged in. You think that’s an ordinary day’s works, but of course, it isn’t it’s magical! Managing to persuade him to sing I Saw Her Standing There at the Cavern, with me doing the John Lennon parts, was absolutely fantastic.”
With a glimt in his eye, he adds: “I’ve been in The Who, I’ve been in The Beatles and I’ve been in Pink Floyd! Top that, mother***er!”
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