“When we did that album, there was a thing that Andy Jackson, our engineer, had put together called ‘The Big Spliff’ – a collection of all these bits and pieces of jams [from the sessions for 1994’s ‘The Division Bell’] that was out there on bootlegs. A lot of fans wanted this stuff that we’d done in that time, and we thought we’d give it to them,” Gilmour recalled.
“My mistake, I suppose, was in being bullied by the record company to have it out as a properly paid-for Pink Floyd record,” the rocker admitted and continued, “It should have been clear what it was — it was never intended to be the follow-up to ‘The Division Bell.’ But, you know, it’s never too late to get caught in one of these traps again.”
Gilmour is focusing on his solo works and career now and the rocker had shared his excitement over the recent sale of Pink Floyd’s catalog.
“It’s history — it’s all past. This stuff is for future generations,” Gilmour noted. “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.”
The agreement was reached after multiple unsuccessful attempts to find common ground between bandmates David Gilmour and Roger Waters, who often had disagreements. One contentious point was the tax structure of the deal.
Companies such as Warner Music, Hipgnosis, and BMG submitted bids during the negotiation process. Eventually, both the Financial Times and Digital Music News confirmed that Pink Floyd sold the rights to their music, name, and image to Sony for $400 million.
