Syd Barrett...

"I'm most obliged to you for making it clear that I'm not here - and I'm wondering who could be writing this song.'"
-Syd Barrett, "Jugband Blues"

 
This may be a strange artist to cover to start off a blog, but no matter. I've been recently listening to a landmark album not a lot of people have heard of, "The Piper at the Gates of Dawn" by Pink Floyd. Many people are unaware of Pink Floyd's music before their stable, (well, relatively stable)lineup of Roger Waters, David Gilmour, Nick Mason, and Richard Wright. This was the lineup that created The Wall, Dark Side of the Moon, etc... Before this though, there was a brilliant young musician leading the group named Syd Barrett. He was primarily the man responsible for this terrifically colorful album. It is a masterpiece in every sense. The lyrics are among the finest ever written by any songwriter and the music seems to jump out at you in 3-D with images like those found in "Alice in Wonderland". He speaks of unicorns and gnomes, Jupiter and Neptune, demon cats, scarecrows and bikes he'd let you ride if he could. The lyrics are like the most fantastically colorful childrens book you've ever read. I always have to listen to this album from start to finish, and I think it grows stronger on me with each passing listen. It may not be for everybody, but then any true, great art never is. This is a terrifically underrated record that needs to get more of it's due as the years go on.
On to the man himself, Syd sadly succumbed to the pressure of being a creative individual, and like most genius artists or musicians, at some point could no longer function as said creative person. He quite simply went mad. At one point, it got so bad when he was to perform on television with Pink Floyd, David Gilmour had to lip synch the song for him. Syd just stared right through the camera while occasionly banging on his guitar. One of the most uncomfortable pieces of video I've ever watched. Very sad. His behavior would become increasingly erratic over time to the point where he would withdraw to Cambridge, England and become a recluse. He's still alive and living there to this day where he's said to paint and write. Occassionly he'll venture out in public, a couple people have snapped pictures of him while doing so. The one thing I notice in the pictures are his eyes. He has these dark sad eyes that seem to be a reminder of his past life. I've read many different books and articles about this man and how he influenced Pink Floyd not only while he was a member, but always as a touchstone for the songwriting that would come later on when he was no longer a member of the group. Songs such as "Shine On You Crazy Diamond", and the album "Dark Side of the Moon" would later be credited by Roger Waters as having Syd be the main inspiration for the themes of isolation and madness. He's on all their albums in spirit, even "The Wall" was written with him in mind. David Gilmour (the man who's spot he took in the Floyd) has been in contact with him and his family very sporadically over the years, even going as far as trying to get him into the studio to record a couple times. The results were sporadic at best. Although the albums that were released from those sessions, "The Madcap Laughs" and "Barrett" do have some memorable songs and flashes of what made him such a great artist, such as "Terrapin" and "Baby Lemonade". Even though he only made one classic album, he does deserve to be more than a footnote in rock history as "that guy from Pink Floyd who went crazy". He needs to be remembered as a greatly innovative guitar player and immensely creative songwriter.