Kate Bush’s Running Up That Hill recently gained some more popularity. One version of the track that particularly stands out to electric guitar fans, though, is the one that was captured in 1987 at the London Palladium. It saw the fretless bass guitar prowess of The Firm’s Tony Franklin and swapped the synths for a six-string courtesy of David Gilmour.
Tony Franklin opens up on the experience with David Gilmour
Franklin – aka The Fretless Monster – has posted a video on YouTube(opens in new tab) that recounts his experiences of playing with Bush and Gilmour for the on-off show.
“There’s been quite a resurgence of interest in Kate and that song,” Franklin said. “I’ve had many people reaching out to me about it because people are searching for info about the song. As far as I know that’s the only live performance of that song, certainly from that time anyway.
“I got a call out of the blue from David Gilmour. Believe me, that doesn’t happen everyday,” he continued. “I got a call from David, [who was] very charming, exactly as you’d picture him to be: very calm, very kind, very proper, very English. That’s exactly how he was on the phone. He told me about this gig with Kate Bush and him at the London Palladium.
“The London Palladium… well, that was enough. Then there was playing with Kate Bush. Now, Kate Bush, I was already a huge fan of hers. You’ve got to remember that David Gilmour discovered Kate when she was 16, I believe. He was instrumental in getting her a deal with EMI, which led to everything that followed. The two of them had this very close connection.”
