How David Gilmour Helped Paul McCartney Create the Only Hit From ‘Give My Regards To Broad Street’

Paul McCartney‘s solo career is arguably one of the best solo careers in the context in which he did it. After all, how many musicians could leave the greatest band of all time and still create a career worthy of the highest of praise? The answer is, not many, because, well, not too many have. While McCartney’s solo career is primarily filled with gems, there is one album that is often perceived as not that, and that is his 1984 album, Give My Regards To Broad Street.

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For context, Give My Regards To Broad Street is not just an album; it is also a musical film that McCartney wrote and starred in. McCartney did receive a Golden Globe for the film, but it was reportedly not received well by the critics and masses. And as for the album, that didn’t do too well, either, as it was McCartney’s worst showing on the Billboard 200 at the time. Which, in the grander scheme of things, No. 21 isn’t that bad, but this is Paul McCartney, so anything below the top 10 isn’t ideal.

The album seemingly didn’t reach McCartney’s expectations on the Billboard 200 simply because it only had one hit song. The only hit song to come from the original version of the album was the track “No More Lonely Nights”, which peaked at No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100. However, it might not have achieved that placement if it weren’t for David Gilmour of Pink Floyd.

David Gilmour Paid It Forward to Paul McCartney

When Pink Floyd was starting, Paul McCartney was a huge supporter of them. Not only did he applaud them as the new sound of the next generation, but he also financed their first major headlining show in 1967. These contributions didn’t stay one-sided, as David Gilmour went on to help Paul McCartney create the only hit single from his relatively mediocre album, Give My Regards To Broad Street

Regarding the decision to call up Gilmour, McCartney wrote in the book, The Lyrics: 1956 To The Present, “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.” “So I rang him up and said, ‘Would you play on this?’ It sounded like his kind of thing.”

There is no telling what this song would have been without David Gilmour, but given that it was Paul McCartney, it still likely would have been above average. Nevertheless, without Gilmour, this song might not have been a hit, but at the end of the day, who can truly say?

Photo by Mick Gold/Redferns