Comfortably Numb

"Comfortably Numb" is a song by the English rock band Pink Floyd, released on their eleventh studio album, The Wall (1979). It was released as a single in 1980, with "Hey You" as the B-side.

The lyrics were written by the bassist, Roger Waters, who recalled his experience of being injected with tranquilisers before a performance in 1977; the music was composed by the band's guitarist, David Gilmour. Waters and Gilmour argued during the recording, with Waters seeking an orchestral arrangement and Gilmour preferring a more stripped-down arrangement. They compromised by combining both versions, and Gilmour said the song was the last time he and Waters were able to work together constructively.

"Comfortably Numb" is one of Pink Floyd's most popular songs and is notable for its two guitar solos. In 2021, it was ranked number 179 on Rolling Stone's list of "the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time". In 2005, it became the last song ever performed by Waters, Gilmour, keyboardist Richard Wright and drummer Nick Mason together. A cover by Scissor Sisters in a radically different arrangement was a UK top ten hit in 2004. Gilmour contributed guitar to a cover by Body Count released in 2024.

The Wall is a concept album about an embittered and alienated rock star named Pink. In "Comfortably Numb", Pink is medicated by a doctor so he can perform for a show. The verses are in B minor, while the chorus has been described as using a modal interchange of that key's relative major, D major, and D Mixolydian.

"Comfortably Numb" originated in a wordless demo recorded by David Gilmour while he was working on his debut solo album in 1978. He did not use the composition for that album, but kept it for future use. Gilmour originally wrote the verses in the key of E minor, which Waters changed to B minor. Gilmour also added bars for the “I have become comfortably numb" line. Waters' lyrics were inspired by his experience of being injected with tranquilizers for stomach cramps before a performance in 1977 during Pink Floyd's In the Flesh Tour. He said, "That was the longest two hours of my life, trying to do a show when you can hardly lift your arm." The song's working title was "The Doctor". Producer Bob Ezrin looked at the completed lyrics and said they "just gave me goosebumps".

For the chorus, Gilmour and the session player Lee Ritenour used a pair of acoustic guitars strung in a similar manner to Nashville tuning, but with the low E string replaced with a high E string, two octaves higher than standard tuning. The same tuning was used for the arpeggios in another song from The Wall, "Hey You". To compose the two guitar solos, Gilmour pieced together elements from several other solos he had been working on, marking his preferred segments for the final take. He used a Big Muff distortion and delay effects on the solos.

The strings were recorded in New York by Ezrin and the American composer Michael Kamen. According to Waters, although he and Ezrin were satisfied with the recording, Gilmour found it "sloppy" and spent a week rerecording it. Waters described Gilmour's version as "just awful ... stilted and stiff, and it lost all the passion and life the original had". The disagreement became acrimonious.

Eventually, the group compromised by using the orchestral elements for the main portion and using Gilmour's stripped-down mix for the final guitar solo. Waters said: "That's all we could do without somebody 'winning' and somebody 'losing.' And of course, who lost, if you like, was the band, because it was clear at that point that we didn't [all] feel the same way about music." Ezrin later said he was happy with the final mix as it provided a good contrast. Gilmour said "Comfortably Numb" represented "the last embers" of his ability to work collaboratively with Waters.