The melancholic acoustic intro. The bruising guitar solo showdown. The sweeping orchestral grandeur. Over 40 years since its recording, "Comfortably Numb" by progressive rock legends Pink Floyd still retains a transcendent, emotionally visceral power almost unparalleled in rock history.
Initially conceived for the band‘s 1979 rock opera The Wall, this mini-epic masterpiece distills all of Pink Floyd‘s singular talents into a poignant 6-minute journey through fragility, despair, rage, and catharsis. Structurally and texturally, "Comfortably Numb" stands as a crowning studio achievement born from – and perhaps only possible due to – the unsteady fraternity binding its visionary creators in the late 1970s.
Genesis Amidst Gathering Storm Clouds
Even by the tumultuous standards of mega-successful creative collectives, making The Wall represented an acrimonious process that nearly tore Pink Floyd asunder. Coming off 1977‘s colossal Animals album and tour, bassist/lyricist Roger Waters conceived The Wall as an introspective reflection of alienation and mental breakdown.
“Comfortably Numb started out as a Roger Waters composition but David Gilmour and Roger argued. We had two separate writing sessions with huge rows. But in amongst that there was the germ of Comfortably Numb.”
- Producer Bob Ezrin As co-lead singer/guitarist David Gilmour later recalled, his already strained artistic partnership with Waters hit a nadir during The Wall‘s gestation:
"We were trying to commit musical suicide together, but the problem was that neither of us could really finish the job." Originally aiming to write material focused on their early days, Waters instead channeled his splintering relationship with Gilmour into lyrics on mental incapacitation and drug abuse for a song provisionally titled "The Doctor." He took lead vocals on initial working demos, with Gilmour adding instrumental overdubs thereafter.
In one such instance, Waters returned to the studio expecting to find embellishments supportive of his dirge-like chord patterns and singing. Instead, unbeknownst to all, Gilmour had crafted an entirely distinct melody and expansive progression. Enraged, Waters stormed out, refusing to return for days. He demanded it be removed, only relenting once producer Bob Ezrin forcefully lobbied that both halves had standalone brilliance worthy of inclusion.
And so – in a final ironically appropriate twist given the co-dependent alienation documented in the lyrics – two fractious creative souls conjured up "Comfortably Numb" in isolation rather than collaboration. Yet through trust in ambiguity and happenstance borne of solidarity and professional respect, they delivered one of the most emotionally rich songs in the rock pantheon.
An Unorthodox Tuning Unlocks Melancholic Majestic Grandeur
A key revelation that shaped "Comfortably Numb" dates back to Gilmour‘s teenaged years before he joined Pink Floyd as lead guitarist in 1968. Teaching himself acoustic guitar using a Pete Seegar songbook, he opted for an alternative string tuning more conducive to strumming chords. This involved tuning the lowest string up a whole step from standard E to F while also adjusting the G string higher.
Decades later while conceptualizing chord patterns for "The Doctor"-eventually "Comfortably Numb" – Gilmour returned to this familiar open tuning, albeit dropping the lowest string back down to E. Further tweaking entailed tuning a second G string to the higher octave along with adding a high D string. The resultant D-G-D-G-B-E tuning allowed easier formation of resonant open chords that Gilmour beautifully exploited for the intro and verse sequence.
"Guitar players will know that I use the top three strings on a lot of things tuned to D. That sighing chord that starts it is two Gs, and then I move it around ... it‘s a D tuning. When I was a kid and I used to play the guitar by myself, I‘d play chords mostly with the top three strings because you could get triads very easily ... something two of those open strings ringing into each other sounds really good." - David GilmourCombined with gauzy echoes and reverb, Gilmour picks out an elegiac repeating figure alternating between variants of B minor triads and the second-inversion E major serving as the dominant chord. This constant vacillation between tonic and dominant chords heightens yearning for resolution as the propulsive 4/4 groove enters powered by Waters‘ sinuous bass and session drummer Jeff Porcaro (of Toto fame).
Bm E/B
e|-12-------|-------------|
B|-14---14/-|-----14-12-14|
G|-16-------|-------------|
D|----------|-------------| Repeat
A|----------|-------------|
E|----------|-------------|Waters‘ subsequent loosely phrased vocals detail an emotionally numbed rock star‘s encounter backstage with a medic who offers him relief, as bluesy guitar melodies curl across G major and A minor chords. But relief only arrives in fleeting bursts before retreating into the haze reflected in the unstable tonality.
This elegantly sparse but harmonically unsettled musical environment proves the perfect backdrop for Gilmour to introduce one of his most famous simple but mellifluously memorable melody lines. Over Waters‘ ominous G5 power chord, Gilmour plays a lilting major-key refrain around two open B strings that serves to lift the mood temporarily. The sudden emergence of rich E major chords seemingly promises liberation ahead.
Towering Choruses Writhe Between Despair and Euphoria
As Waters alluded to years later, his stark early demo needed Gilmour‘s touch to transform the dynamics for "Comfortably Numb" to properly bloom:
"I had [the vocal melody], like, but it wouldn’t have been anything like it was without Dave really putting the moments into it."Perhaps inevitably, this euphoric metamorphosis sparkling with rays of light required traversing severe darkness first. And sure enough, two lies at the core of the chorus progression. Though deceptively resistant to unambiguous analysis thanks to numerous inversions, one crucial move is the pivoting between B major and F# minor chords – a classically expressive lead into the relative minor. The effect creates churning emotional recoil through a violent dynamic leap.
B F#m
Strangely enough, this progression shares similarities with the 1960s Four Seasons pop hit "Can‘t Take My Eyes Off You" which also rotates between anthemic major chords and poignant minor falls. Whether conscious or not, Gilmour tapping into this subconscious melodic memory illustrates his refined instincts for harnessing tonal instability to telegraph fragility. Rather than driving “Comfortably Numb’s” chorus via guitars, Gilmour largely hands the reins to Michael Kamen’s orchestra. Soaring violins uplift the refrain’s bittersweet exultations as crisp snare hits maintain momentum. All the while Waters anchors with one of his most subtly ingenious yet overlooked bass grooves – syncopated eighth notes followed by quarter notes, lending just enough forward motion without overpowering harmonic nuances.
This dynamic balance combined with thematic contrasts between vocals (comfortably numb resignation) and music (temporary euphoria) encapsulates the song’s central duality at its most compelling. Behind the curtain, Kamen and orchestrator David Sanborn took some guesses arranging around the incomplete demos without band guidance, adding and subtracting layers via trial and error until they reached transcendent synchronicity with the core band performances.
Gilmour and Ritenour’s Dazzling Duet – Fluid Desperation vs Brittle Resignation
Even when bereft of the context of Pink Floyd’s internecine late 1970s struggles, the extended guitar call-and-response exchange between David Gilmour and Lee Ritenour distinction as one of rock’s greatest recorded solo moments.
As chronicled in his 2006 memoir Inside Out, guitarist David Gilmour brought renowned LA session veteran Lee Ritenour to the studio himself to trade solos on “Comfortably Numb.” While mixing indulgent guitar showcases risk compromising emotional authenticity, such concerns prove wholly irrelevant upon exposure to their electrifying head-to-head.
After Nick Mason’s drums crescendo like levee-breaking floodwaters, Gilmour unleashes three minutes of fluid, human desperation channeled through his black Stratocaster. His initial refrain mimics the vocal melody before detuning his low E string to dive bomb towards his whammy bar. Screeching bends release anxiety that lingers even as he finds temporary stability circling the upper registers. When Waters and vocalists re-enter for one more chorus, Gilmour uses volume swells and pinch harmonics to project palliative cries over the orchestral forces.
Conversely, session great Lee Ritenour exudes icy resignation with his understated syncopated rhythm figures on archtop jazz guitar. Staccato 16th notes muted with his fret hand palm project brittle stoicism, though anguished notes still poke through his steely tone. As he toggles between F#m pentatonics and the A Dorian mode, his articulations sharpen and tighten as if surrendering to anesthesia’s numb embrace.
Gilmour returns for a final thirty seconds, this time leaning into Hiwatt amp distortion for violent tremolo picking as the orchestra swirls tempestuously. His final bends may reach for solace yet become lost in clouds of disorientation and reverb. Ultimately neither he nor Ritenour claim clear victory – rather their captivating dynamic contrast echoes the eternal struggle encapsulated in “Comfortably Numb.” Despair, rage, resignation and transcendence each have their moment as Roger Waters’ wounded howls signal the war rages on.
Legacy as an All-Encompassing Pink Floyd Masterwork
In many respects, the emotional currency of “Comfortably Numb” has compounded over the decades as Pink Floyd’s legacy solidified. Unexpected moments of fleeting chemistry between Roger Waters and David Gilmour during its recording captured lightning that perhaps neither could reproduce today on their own. Indeed, Ezrin confirms ideas from all 3 key architects intertwined perfectly through that alchemical late 1970 process.
Upon The Wall’s original release in 1979, critics instantly recognized “Comfortably Numb” as an obvious apex. Rolling Stone applauded its “almost unbearable poignancy” while Sounds dubbed it “a classic slice of Floyd.” Melody Maker admired the “majestic quality with dynamics in full use” and Gilmour’s solos as the zenith of his accomplished style. Listeners connected with its detailed expressions of alienation from within immense sonic textures.
Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the song enjoyed a pop culture afterlife both subtle and conspicuous. Gilmour and Waters incorporated it as the emotional climax of the live Wall performances they pursued separately post-acrimonious Pink Floyd dissolution. Indie shoegaze icons The Smashing Pumpkins infused its sorrowful DNA into their 1995 hit “Bullet With Butterfly Wings.” Classic rock radio cemented its airplay-staple status.
Most memorably, director Alan Parker tapped into its mythic aura for a signature scene in his drug addiction drama The Doors. As Jim Morrison uneasily portrays a rock star bombarded by hangers-on before hitting the stage, “Comfortably Numb” soundtracks his isolating mental snapshots. Augmented by disturbing imagery of death and loss, the song reinforces the Hellish costs of creativity and celebrity even without Morrison’s presence explicitly acknowledged.
Well into the 2020s, “Comfortably Numb” continues to enthrall fresh generations of listeners and musicians unaware or unconcerned by the soap operatic backstories. Notes and anecdotes from the fractious sessions that birthed this masterpiece will likely spill out for eons. Yet beyond who contributed which riff or melody flourish, the alchemic sum spirit remains far greater. Echoing human fragility while reaching for hope’s delicate strands, “Comfortably Numb” promises catharsis will emerge for those daring to feel.
"If you can identify emotionally with ‘Comfortably Numb‘ then you‘ve felt at some time incapacitated and trying to break through to the feeling part...’I have become comfortably numb‘ means that you have been able to survive keeping your pain on the inside." – Roger Waters, London 1992