Chuck Leavell wrote a post for his website detailing his connection with Gilmour:
I was pleased and surprised to be contacted by David (Gilmour) a couple of months ago asking me if I would be available to tour with him in June and July. My first contact with David was back in 1984 when I was the Musical Director of a show broadcast on MTV called “Guitar Greats”. David was a part of that, and he was amazing. Then a few years later when I was with Eric Clapton, David invited me and some of the other members of the band to his home where we had a memorable night talking about music and life in general. To have him reach out to me now is truly an honor, and I can’t wait to start work with him and the band. My good friend, Greg Phillinganes, who I was honored to work with during some of my Clapton days will also be playing keyboards on the tour and I look forward to “tag teaming” with him again. The timing for this is perfect, as the Stones will gear up again for our “Desert Trip” shows and some other activity in September and October. So this is proving to be an extraordinary year for me! – Chuck Leavell
