Tuesday, April 25, 2006

Syd Barrett:The Forgotten Hero Of Pink Floyd


Syd Barrett

(From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)


Roger Keith ("Syd") Barrett (born January 6, 1946 in Cambridge, England) is a British singer, songwriter and guitarist.

Probably best remembered as one of the founding members of the group Pink Floyd, Barrett was active as a rock musician for only a few years, but he has been quite influential.

History

Pink Floyd years (1965–1968)

Pink Floyd (originally called both "Tea Set" and "The Pink Floyd Sound", then later "The Pink Floyd") was formed in 1965; Barrett (who acquired the nickname "Syd" at the age of 15) named the band after two obscure bluesmen, Pink Anderson and Floyd Council.

While the band began by playing cover versions of American R&B songs (much in the same vein as contemporaries The Rolling Stones, The Yardbirds, and The Kinks), they carved out their own style of improvised rock and roll by 1966, which drew as much from improvised jazz as it did from British pop-rock, such as that championed by the Beatles. In that year, a new rock concert venue, the UFO, opened in London and quickly became a haven for British psychedelic music. Pink Floyd became their most popular attraction, and, after making appearances at the rival Roundhouse, became the first most popular musical group of the so-called "London Underground" psychedelic music scene.

By the end of 1966, Pink Floyd had gained a reliable management team in Andrew King and Peter Jenner. The duo soon befriended American expatriate Joe Boyd, who was actively making a name for himself as one of the most important entrepreneurs on the British music scene. Boyd arranged a recording session for the group, which resulted in the single "Arnold Layne". King and Jenner took the single to the recording behemoth EMI, who offered the band a contract, under which they would be allowed to record an album. The band accepted. By the time the album was released, "Arnold Layne" had reached #21 on the British singles charts. A follow-up single, "See Emily Play", sold even better, peaking at #6.

These first two singles, as well as a third ("Apples and Oranges"), were written by Syd Barrett. In fact, Barrett wrote most of the Floyd's early material, and was the principal visionary/author of their critically acclaimed 1967 debut album, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn. Of the 11 songs on Piper, Barrett wrote eight and co-wrote another two.[1] He was also an innovative guitarist, exploring the musical and sonic possibilities of dissonance, distortion, feedback, and the echo machine; his experimentation was partly inspired by free improvisation guitarist Keith Rowe [2]. One of Barrett's trademarks was playing his Fender Esquire guitar by sliding a Zippo lighter up and down the fret-board to create the mysterious, otherworldly sounds that became associated with the group.

The Piper at the Gates of Dawn was recorded intermittently between January and July 1967, much of that time in the studio right next door to recording sessions for the Beatles' landmark album, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. When Piper was released in August of that year, it became a smash hit in the UK, hitting #6 on the British album charts (the album was not nearly so successful in the USA). However, as the band began to attract a large fanbase, the pressures placed on the already-sensitive Barrett proved to be too much.

There are many stories about Barrett's bizarre and intermittently psychotic behaviour - many of which are undoubtedly apocryphal, although some are known to be true. One such incident occurred at a practice session. Barrett came into the studio with a new song he had dubbed "Have You Got It, Yet?" The song seemed simple enough when he presented it to Roger and his bandmates, but it seemed very difficult to grasp. As they were practicing it, Barrett kept changing the rhythm guitar line, or the bass line, drumline, and keyboards, but in subtle ways. He would then play it again, with his arbitrary changes, and sing along "Have you got it yet?" while his bandmates would chime back "No, No we haven't!"

Barrett began to experiment with psychedelic drugs such as LSD. Barrett became increasingly unpredictable on stage. Examples of his stage antics included playing one chord continuously, or not playing at all. At a show in San Francisco, during Interstellar Overdrive, Barrett sat there and slowly untuned his guitar until the strings broke. The band just kept playing the intro. For some reason, people in the audience loved it, though. Another odd incident included a time where Barrett put a mask of makeup on, and when on stage, the lights on stage slowly "melted" his face (His makeup was just running.) He also plopped on an entire jar of hair gel and walked into the spotlight and let it melt.

Following a disastrous, abridged tour of the United States, his old school friend, David Gilmour, was asked to join the band as a second guitarist in order to cover for Barrett when his erratic behavior got the better of him. There was a short period of time where David would play Barrett's guitar parts, while Barrett would wander about stage or do nothing in particular. However, the other band members soon tired of Barrett's presence altogether and decided that they would continue playing shows without him, while also hoping that he would continue to write songs for the band. They kicked him out of the band by deciding not to pick Barrett up one day. Barrett then walked 40 miles home to Cambridge.

After this, Barrett would not contribute anything more that would be included to the second album, A Saucerful of Secrets (1968). Of the songs he wrote after Piper, only one (Jugband Blues) made it to the album, one was released as a single ("Apples and Oranges") and two others were never offically released ("Scream Thy Last Scream" and "Vegetable Man.") Barrett reputedly spent each day outside the recording studio, waiting to be invited in, and it's possible that his session contributions (limited to playing guitar on some of the tracks) were done as a concession to him.

Barrett became increasingly reclusive and was subsequently admitted to a psychiatric hospital in Cambridge for a short while. It was soon officially announced that Barrett was no longer a member of Pink Floyd.

Solo years (1968–1972)

Barrett (1970)
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Barrett (1970)

After leaving Pink Floyd, Barrett distanced himself from the public eye. However, at the behest of EMI and Harvest Records, he did have a brief solo career, releasing two mercurial solo albums, The Madcap Laughs and Barrett. Much controversy has risen around the production work; which left Barrett's more vulnerable moments on tape to give the records a more "authentic" feel, but many feel it does Barrett few favours and instead takes advantage of his fragile condition. Much of the material on both albums dates from Barrett's most productive period of song-writing and it is believed that he wrote few new songs after he left Pink Floyd.

The first album, The Madcap Laughs, was recorded in two tries: a few tentative sessions took place between May and June 1968 (produced first by Peter Jenner and then by Malcolm Jones,) while the bulk of the album was recorded between April and July 1969 (produced by David Gilmour and Roger Waters.) This album is an insight into Barrett's state of mind at the time, with tracks like the unnerving "Dark Globe," a first-person narrative of schizophrenia, clearly showing that, while he still had some fine material to draw on, he was evidently barely able to perform on some sessions. A few tracks on the album feature overdubs by members of the band Soft Machine.

The second album, Barrett, was recorded more sporadically than the first, with sessions taking place between February and July 1970. This second effort sounds more polished than the first, but Barrett is arguably in a worse state, which, ironically, makes the songs sound even more incongruous. This one was produced by David Gilmour, and featured Gilmour on bass guitar, Rick Wright on keyboard and Humble Pie drummer Jerry Shirley.

Despite the numerous recording dates for his two solo albums, Barrett undertook very little musical activity between 1968 and 1972 outside the studio. On 24 February 1970, he appeared on the BBC radio programme Top Gear, playing five songs--only one of which had been previously released. Three would be re-recorded for the Barrett album, while one song (Two of a Kind) was a one-off performance. (The song appears on the 2001 greatest hits album The Best of Syd Barrett: Wouldn't You Miss Me?.) Barrett was accompanied on this session by David Gilmour and Jerry Shirley, who played bass and percussion, respectively.

Gilmour and Shirley backed Barrett for a public performance during these album sessions, at his one and only live concert during this period. The gig took place on 6 June 1970 at the Olympia Exhibition Hall, London, and was part of a "Music and Fashion Festival". The trio performed four songs on this date, playing for less than half an hour, and due to poor mixing, the vocals were inaudible until part-way through the last number. At the end of the fourth song, Barrett politely, but unexpectedly, put his guitar down and walked off stage.

Syd Barrett made one last appearance on BBC Radio, recording three songs at their studios on 16 February 1971. All three came from the Barrett album, presumably to encourage people to buy the record. At this stage, though, Barrett seemed to have little interest in recording music, and even less interest in performing live. After this session, he abandoned his music career for more than a year.

Later years (1972—)

In 1972, Barrett formed a short-lived band called Stars with ex-Pink Fairies member Twink on drums and Jack Monck on bass. Though the band was initially well-received, one of their gigs at the Corn Exchange in Cambridge proved to be disastrous, and Barrett decided to leave shortly thereafter.

In 1974, Peter Jenner eventually convinced Barrett into returning to Abbey Road Studios in the hopes of recording another album. However, little became of the sessions, which lasted three days and consisted of blues rhythm tracks with tentative and disjointed guitar overdubs (the only titled track is the intriguing "If You Go, Don't Be Slow.") Once again, Barrett withdrew from the music industry. He sold the rights to his solo albums back to the record label, lived in a London hotel (while presumably over-eating and watching television,) and when the money ran out he walked back home to Cambridge to live in his mother's basement (Barrett apparently still receives royalties from his work with the Floyd - each compilation and some of the live albums and singles have featured his songs, while Gilmour has commented that he "makes sure the money gets to him alright.") Further attempts to bring him back (including one endeavour by the Sex Pistols, who wanted him to produce their debut album) have all been fruitless.

Syd Barrett had one infamous reunion with his former band, Pink Floyd. In 1975, during the recording sessions for Wish You Were Here, Barrett walked into Abbey Road Studios unannounced and observed his ex-band recording the track Shine On You Crazy Diamond—coincidentally, a song about him. Because he had gained weight and shaven off all of his hair, including his eyebrows, his ex-bandmates did not recognise him at first. Eventually, everyone in the studio realised who was sitting among them, and when queried about how he got that way, Syd reputedly replied "I have a large fridge at home and I've been eating a lot of pork chops." Roger Waters was so distressed by his former friend's condition that he was reduced to tears. Members of the band also reported on their featured VH1 episode of Behind The Music that Barrett was holding a toothbrush, and was attempting to brush his teeth by holding the brush still and jumping up and down. Before long, Barrett had slipped out of the studio. A reference to this reunion showed up in 1982's movie Pink Floyd The Wall, where the character "Pink" (played by Bob Geldof) shaved off his eyebrows after succumbing to the pressures of life and fame.

Opel (1988)
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Opel (1988)

In 1988, EMI Records released Opel, an album of Barrett's studio outtakes and previously unreleased material recorded from 1968 to 1970 and then in 1993 released Crazy Diamond, a box set of all three albums each one loaded with further out-takes from his solo sessions, illustrating vividly Barrett's inability or refusal to play a song the same way twice. [3]

EMI also released The Best of Syd Barrett: Wouldn't You Miss Me? in the UK on April 16, 2001, and in the United States on September 11, 2001. This was the first time Barrett's "Bob Dylan Blues" was ever officially released. The song was taken from a demo tape that Dave Gilmour had taken home with him after an early 70s recording session and kept for 30 years. Also worthy of mention is the bootleg collection Have You Got It Yet?, a 19-disc audio/visual compilation composed of several live performances of Barrett both solo and with Pink Floyd, with some versions considered superior than those that were officially released. One of the main attractions of the collection are tracks for his never-released third album. There are also interviews with other Pink Floyd members, video footage and covers from other artists.

Barrett today

According to a 2005 profile by his biographer Tim Willis, Barrett — who has reverted to using his original name of Roger — continues to live in his late mother's semi-detached home in Cambridge, and has returned to his original art-form of painting, creating large abstract canvases. He is also said to be an avid gardener. His main point of contact with the outside world is his sister, Rosemary, who lives nearby. While reclusive, it is his physical health that now prompts most concern, being afflicted with stomach ulcers and B-type diabetes.

Although Barrett has not appeared or spoken in public since the mid-1970s, time has done little to diminish interest in his life and work; reporters and fans still travel to Cambridge to seek him out, despite his attempts to live a quiet life, and many photos from the 1980s to the present of Barrett being annoyed by paparazzi when walking or biking to the store have been published in various places. A planned screen biography entitled "Crazy Diamond," which was to have been produced by Ridley Scott and directed by former Pink Floyd collaborator Peter Medak, ran into legal and rights issues and has been shelved indefinitely.

Mental illness

There has been much speculation concerning the psychological well-being of Syd Barrett. Many believe he suffers from schizophrenia. Additionally, some have suggested that Barrett has traits associated with Asperger's Syndrome, a condition on the autism spectrum.

Barrett's use of recreational drugs, especially LSD, during the 1960s is well-documented. Some believe that Barrett's drug use helped trigger his mental illness. In an article published in 2006, Gilmour was quoted as saying: "In my opinion, [his breakdown] would have happened anyway. It was a deep- rooted thing. But I'll say the psychedelic experience might well have acted as a catalyst. Still, I just don't think he could deal with the vision of success and all the things that went with it".

Influence

In music

The Peel Session
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The Peel Session

Many artists have acknowledged Barrett's influence on their work. Paul McCartney and Pete Townshend were early fans; Jimmy Page, David Bowie and Brian Eno all expressed interest in working with him at some point during the 1970s. In fact, Bowie recorded a cover of "See Emily Play" on his 1973 album Pin Ups.

Barrett's decline had a profound effect on Roger Waters' song-writing, and the theme of mental illness would permeate Pink Floyd's later albums, particularly 1973's Dark Side of the Moon and 1979's The Wall. One track from Dark Side of the Moon, entitled Brain Damage, contained a specific reference to Barrett's mental illness. A later line in the song references a band playing a different song, which is a situation Barrett often got into when suffering from the symptoms of his mental illness. Wish You Were Here (1975) was a conscious tribute to Barrett. Other artists that have written tributes to Barrett include his contemporary Kevin Ayers (of the Soft Machine), who wrote the song "Oh Wot a Dream" as a tribute (Barrett provided guitar to an early version of Ayers' "Singing a Song in the Morning"). Barrett fan Robyn Hitchcock is repeatedly compared to Barrett, has covered many of his songs live and on record and has paid homage to his forebearer with the songs "The Man Who Invented Himself" and "(Feels Like) 1974". The Television Personalities track "I Know Where Syd Barrett Lives" is another well-known tribute, apparently based on fact.

R.E.M. has covered the haunting "Dark Globe", as has Soundgarden, Placebo and Lost and Profound. The Smashing Pumpkins have covered "Terrapin." The Industrial collective Ritalin (spelled "Rx"), composed of Kevin Ogilvie (Nivek Ogre) and Martin Atkins have recorded a version of "Scarecrow". At the Drive-In's frontmen (now the main members of The Mars Volta) have claimed that they tried to emulate The Piper at the Gates of Dawn's sound in their music. Slowdive covered "Golden Hair", which was a Syd Barrett version of the poem by James Joyce, on their EP "Holding Our Breath". Phish has performed several Barrett solo songs in concert, including "Love You," "Baby Lemonade," "It's No Good Trying," and the Piper at the Gates of Dawn track "Bike".

Other artists/bands that have claimed influence and/or covered Barrett's work include Marc Bolan, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Robert Smith (of The Cure), Kevin Shields (of My Bloody Valentine), Julian Cope, East Bay Ray (of the Dead Kennedys), Captain Sensible (of The Damned), Gary Lucas, Camper Van Beethoven, Voivod, Pearl Jam, Love and Rockets, Elevator To Hell, The Melvins, Transatlantic, Phish, Dream Theater, Graham Coxon (formerly of Blur),John Frusciante (of the Red Hot Chili Peppers), and Skobot Bzzzz.

Most bands in the Elephant 6 collective, such as Of Montreal, have a very distinct Barrett influence in their music, and Italian group Jennifer Gentle (named after a line from The Piper at the Gates of Dawn's "Lucifer Sam") emulates the sound of Piper and Barrett's solo work.

Discography

Albums with Pink Floyd

Solo albums

Solo compilations

Solo singles




posted by The FReaK's PlacE at 4/25/2006 10:36:00 am

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