About Face (album)

Untitled

About Face is the second solo album by the Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour, released in March 1984. The album was co-produced by Bob Ezrin and David Gilmour. Two songs were co-written by Gilmour (music) and The Who's Pete Townshend (lyrics), the rest by Gilmour himself. In May of the same year, fellow Floyd counterpart Roger Waters released his first official solo album The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking.

History

The album was recorded in France with engineer Andrew Jackson at a time when Pink Floyd's future was uncertain. The album was mixed by James Guthrie at Mayfair Studios in London.

Some of the musicians helping Gilmour out were Jeff Porcaro, Pino Palladino, Deep Purple keyboardist Jon Lord, Roy Harper, Michael Kamen (who also worked on Waters' album The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking), Sam Brown and Steve Winwood.

Gilmour on the In the Studio with Redbeard episode spotlighting his 2006 solo effort On an Island commented on About Face saying, "Looking back on it, it has some great moments on there but the whole flavour of it is too '80s for my current tastes."

The album featured the disco-style single "Blue Light" (later remixed by François Kevorkian and which was often voted as worst Floyd solo song according to the Floyd fanzine The Amazing Pudding) and another single, "Love on the Air". "All Lovers Are Deranged" and "Murder" were released as singles for North American rock radio and hit numbers 10 and 11 respectively on Billboard's Mainstream Rock Charts.

The album reached #21 in the UK and #32 in the U.S. and was certified Gold by the RIAA.

About Face was re-released by EMI Records in Europe as a digitally remastered CD on August 14, 2006. Legacy Recordings/Columbia Records released the remastered CD in the US and Canada on September 12, 2006.

Track listing

All songs written by David Gilmour except where noted.

1. "Until We Sleep" – 5:15 (the 2006 remaster has a longer fadeout at 5:20)
2. "Murder" – 4:59
3. "Love on the Air" (Gilmour, Pete Townshend) – 4:19
4. "Blue Light" – 4:35
5. "Out of the Blue" – 3:35
6. "All Lovers Are Deranged" (Gilmour, Pete Townshend) – 3:14
7. "You Know I'm Right" – 5:06
8. "Cruise" – 4:40
9. "Let's Get Metaphysical" – 4:09
10. "Near the End" – 5:36 (the 2006 remaster has a longer fadeout at 5:50)

Versions of "Blue Light"

1. "Blue Light" (Single Edit) – 3:52
2. "Blue Light" (12" Mix from the "Blue Light" 12" Promo Single) – 6:10
3. "Blue Light" (Instrumental Version, B-side of "Blue Light" 12" Promo Single) – 6:13

Unused tune

Another piece of music written for the album was not used by Gilmour.

He asked Roy Harper and, separately, Pete Townshend, to supply lyrics, but felt that those provided were not messages that he could relate to. Harper subsequently used the tune, with his lyrics, as "Hope", on his 1985 album with Jimmy Page, Whatever Happened to Jugula?. Townshend used it with his as "White City Fighting", which has a markedly faster tempo, on his 1985 album White City: A Novel.

Personnel

Main musicians

• David Gilmour – guitar, lead vocals
• Jeff Porcaro – drums, percussion
• Pino Palladino – bass
• Ian Kewley – Hammond organ, piano

Additional musicians

• Steve Winwood – Hammond organ (on "Blue Light"), piano ("Love On The Air")
• Anne Dudley – synthesizer
• Bob Ezrin – keyboards, orchestration arrangement
• Louis Jardine – percussion
• Ray Cooper – percussion
• Jon Lord – synthesizer
• The Kick Horns – brass
• Vicki Brown – background vocals
• Sam Brown – background vocals
• Mickey Feat – background vocals
• Roy Harper – background vocals
• Steve Rance – Fairlight programming
• The National Philharmonic Orchestra
• Michael Kamen – orchestration arrangement

Production

• Bob Ezrin – producer
• David Gilmour – producer
• Andrew Jackson – engineer
• Kit Woolven – engineer
• James Guthrie – mix engineer
• Eric Tomlinson – orchestration recorder
• Doug Sax – mastering engineer
• Mike Reese – mastering engineer
• Storm Thorgerson (under the pseudonym "STd") – cover design

Cover

The inner sleeve of the LP is unusual: wider than it is tall, it does not fit into the outer sleeve if turned 90 degrees. In one corner are printed the words "Fleudian slip".

Charts

Album - Billboard (North America)

Year	Chart	Position
1984	The Billboard 200	32

Singles - Billboard (North America)

Year	Single	Chart	Position
1984	"Blue Light"	The Billboard Hot 100	62
1984	"Blue Light"	Mainstream Rock Tracks	35
1984	"All Lovers Are Deranged"	Mainstream Rock Tracks	10
1984	"Murder"	Mainstream Rock Tracks	13