David Gilmour – There’s No Way Out Of Here

Gilmour is one of those guitarists who you know by his tone. That’s all it takes to recognize him playing without knowing it. In the 1980s, Paul McCartney released “No More Lonely Nights,” and I knew right away that he must have called David Gilmour to do the solo…and he did. Gilmour is like Hendrix in that regard; it’s not hard to pick out his sound. 

I will admit, my favorite Pink Floyd music is the Syd Barrett years, although I do like some of the 1970s as well. Listening to Gilmour’s debut solo album, I’m really impressed. His songs were on point and not much wandering into Floyd land. Of course, you hear some; it’s hard not to with his voice. 

When David Gilmour began work on his first solo album, David Gilmour, the idea made sense. He wanted a break from the structure and pressure that surrounded Pink Floyd in the 1970s. As he said, to establish his own identity outside of the “claustrophobic shadow of Pink Floyd.”  The band had just finished the massive tour for Animals, and was entering a tense period that would lead to The Wall. Recording a solo record gave Gilmour a chance to work at his own pace and record songs that didn’t need to fit a concept.

Some songs came from outside writers. This song was written by Ken Baker and had first appeared on a record by the British country-rock group Unicorn. Gilmour liked the song and reshaped it with a heavier guitar sound and a slower feel to fit him perfectly. Once he puts that guitar on a song, it becomes a Gilmour song. 

The songs on this album were shorter and more straightforward. The guitar stayed at the center of the sound. It didn’t try to compete with the HUGE scale of Pink Floyd’s records. Over time, the album has come to be seen as a snapshot of where he was just before the The Wall era began.

The album peaked at #17 in the UK, #29 on the Billboard Album Charts, and #22 in New Zealand in 1978. 

There’s No Way Out of Here

There’s no way out of here
When you come in
You’re in for good
There was no promise made
The part you played
The chance you took

There are no boundaries set
The time and yet
You waste it still
So it slips through your hands
Like grains of sand
You watch it go
There’s no time to be lost
You’ll pay the cost
So get it right

There’s no way out of here
When you come in
You’re in for good

And never was there an answer
There an answer
Not without listening
Without seeing

There are no answers here
When you look out
You don’t see in
There was no promise made
The part you played
The chance you took

There’s no way out of here
When you come in
You’re in for good

And never was there an answer
There an answer
Not without listening
Without seeing

There’s no way out of here
When you come in
You’re in for good
There are no answers here
When you look out
You don’t see in

There was no promise made
The part you played
The chance you took

(When you come in)
(You’re in for good)