David Gilmour Happy To Be Done With ‘Arguments & Fighting & Idiocies’ Over Pink Floyd Catalog

Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour was pleased last month when Sony bought the band’s recorded music, name and likeness for a reported $400 million. Beyond the money, the deal means the end of infighting within the Pink Floyd camp.

David Gilmour explained his stance in a new interview with the Los Angeles Times. Asked if he was worried if the same would lead to instances where the music was presented in a way he opposed, Gilmour said “no” and added, “It’s history — it’s all past. This stuff is for future generations.”

The guitarist then discussed the issues he ran into dealing with Floyd bassist Roger Waters and drummer Nick Mason as well as the camp of the late bandmate Richard Wright without naming names.”I’m an old person. I’ve spent the last 40-odd years trying to fight the good fight against the forces of indolence and greed to do the best with our stuff that you can do. And I’ve given that fight up now,” Gilmour continued.

“I’ve got my advance — because, you know, it’s not fresh new money or anything like that. It’s an advance against what I would have earned over the next few years anyway. But the arguments and fighting and idiocies that have been going on for the last 40 years between these four disparate groups of people and their managers and whatever — it’s lovely to say goodbye to. And I haven’t sold the publishing rights,” the 78-year-old stated.

When asked why he decided to keep the publishing rights, Gilmour laid out his position. “That’s a very, very different issue. You have to have an agreement about synchronization licenses and all that sort of stuff. [Sony] bought the records, the recordings, and can do what they want. But if it comes on an advert, I’m not gonna give a shit. I’m just not going to. There are all sorts of things that are just as distasteful as that.”

David Gilmour is in the middle of a five-show run at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Gilmour will swing by The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon tonight for his first U.S. television appearance since 2016.

The guitarist returns to The Garden on Saturday, November 9. David Gilmour finishes his tour in support of his new album, Luck And Strange, at the venue on Sunday.