David Gilmour

Before becoming the guitarist, singer and the secondary songwriting force (behind Roger Waters) in Pink Floyd, David Gilmour was a friend of the band, playing with them as the increasingly crazy Syd Barrett became more and more of a liability. With Barrett's reluctant dismissal, Gilmour assumed a permanent position in the group. He was an immediate fit and eventually his bluesy-yet-psychedelic guitar playing became practically synonymous with the band. In 1978, he released a self-titled solo album, highlighted by the singable-yet-spacey "There's No Way Out Of Here." In 1984, Gilmour had a minor hit with the hard rocking "All Lovers Are Deranged," from his second solo effort About Face. After that, he concentrated on reforming Pink Floyd, touring and releasing records all the while maintaining a very public feud with Roger Waters (although that's all cleared up now). He recently released his third solo offering, On An Island, in 2006.