David Gilmour was the lead guitarist and, along with Roger Waters, lead vocalist for the progressive rock group Pink Floyd. Gilmour joined Pink Floyd in 1968, when he was asked to replace former front man and guitarist Syd Barrett. Barrett was becoming increasingly difficult to work with (due to his deteriorating mental state), so Gilmour stepped in to fill the void. Gilmour's contributions helped to define what would become known as the "Pink Floyd" sound. With Roger Waters, Gilmour co-wrote many of Pink Floyd's classic songs, including "Shine On You Crazy Diamond"(Itself about Syd), "Wish You Were Here" (again, about Syd) , "Time", "Dogs", "Echoes", "Comfortably Numb", and "Run Like Hell". When Waters left the band in 1984 to pursue a solo career, Gilmour took over Pink Floyd as leader, and they released two more albums, A Momentary Lapse Of Reason (1987), and The Division Bell (1994). Both albums performed very well, proving that the Pink Floyd name was stronger than any individual member. On July 2, 2005, David Gilmour and Roger Waters briefly set aside their differences and performed as Pink Floyd for one final performance at Live 8. The reunion was the most talked about event of the day, and sales of Pink Floyd's back catalogue shot through the roof. Rumours of a full scale tour began to surface shortly after the show, with both Gilmour and Waters being offered millions of dollars, but it wasn't meant to be. Neither Waters nor Gilmour showed much enthusiasm to work together again, with Gilmour being quoted as saying that he would rather spend his time pursuing his solo career.

As a solo artist, David Gilmour has released 3 studio albums; David Gilmour (1978), About Face (1984), and On An Island (2006). In September 2008, he released his first live album Live In Gdansk , a recording of a concert he and his band performed in Gdansk Shipyard during his 2006 On An Island tour. In addition, he has two live DVDs - 2002's mostly acoustic "In Concert" and 2007's Remember That Night.