David Gilmour is one of the rarified guitar players who has reached the level of being recognisable after hearing a few notes, and so it proves with his guest turn on Donovan's new song Rock Me.
He said my album track Three Kingfishers, off my Sunshine Superman album of 1966, had launched him in a celestial music direction
The acoustic / electric crossover song will feature on Donovan's forthcoming Gaelic roots-influenced album, Gaelia: The Sulan Sessions and Gilmour has also contributed to the closing song Lover O' Lover.
“David and I chatted about how he had bought my cottage in the ’60s when I married Linda [Lawrence] and moved on," Donovan told Variety about how he and Gilmour met through mutual friends. "Why, I asked? He said my album track Three Kingfishers, off my Sunshine Superman album of 1966, had launched him in a celestial music direction, and so when I was selling my cottage, where so many of my songs were written, he wanted to be in my creative space. Makes sense in a Floyd sort of way.”
It sounds like Gilmour was keen to repay the favour.
“David had already learned to fly (he wrote a song about it, too ) and flew himself in to Ireland for the session," continues Donovan. "David brought his guitar roadie, who set up two amps in the studio, handed David his pink Strat, and his unique signature sound enthralled us all.”
Gaelia: The Sulan Sessions is released on 15 December and you can preorder it here.
Donovan on claw-hammer, classic songs and Celtic influences
