This was David Gilmour's way of trying to ensure that Syd had an income after the Floyd. He understood that this would be of some historically important. How he knew this, I don't know, Gilmour is a very smart guy. I think he understood that Syd's story would become myth and than legend. This would guarantee that Syd would get some money, on a regular basis, for quite some time. Later, when even that money disappeared, David used the fame of the band to ensure that some of Syd's songs always ended up on a Floyd compilation. There were many of those, over the years. Syd never went broke, he had enough to help his family look out for him for decades. In fact, I have read that Syd had over a million pounds in the bank when he died. So, I have always admired David Gilmour for that alone he is a star.
Oh yeah. Syd was always gonna be financially stable. The short term of making money in music is touring. But enduring wealth is in having an album thats still generating publishing royalties decades later, and the continued succcess of floyd (You *still* see teenagers in town in pink floyd shirts, I think the millenials and zoomers somewhat enjoy the whimsy and youthfulness of syds era) meant that as long as those first to albums continued to sell , Syds writers credits guaranteed him a slice of the big fat pie that is pink floyd. Gilmore including Syds song in the continuing touring (Yes, he got royalties for those too, thats why publishing rights are so important. Technically even if a local bar band plays your song, your owed royalties, though I doubt those are policed that strictly. Most places have a thing where the bar is supposed to keep a log of songs and hand a fee to the local music rights agency, but I doubt many keep that vigilent a log of songs. After all hows a bar supposed to tell whats original and whats a cover, it'd be hard to argue in court that the bar was negligent and such a lawsuit would be more expensive than any fees recovered.) and compilations, certainly helped
Absolutely right you are. David is a saint for what he has done and i think in his heart he knows his life may have turned out a lot more ordinary if not for what Syd helped create. So i think some of it is caring for an old friend and part his paying homage and reverence to a guy who likely is largely responsible with launching a band that he was a bit of a johnny come lately to join. He recognises Syd as genius as Syd really seems to be the one in command when they first gained traction.
@@shayneoneill1506 I'm sixteen, and I absolutely love Pink Floyd. I've listened to every bit of music they've put out. The Floyd are still alive and well!
I'm only seventeen and I listen to Led Zeppelin. All people at school listen to Drake and Nikki Minaj but I listen to Led Zeppelin and i'm only seventeen.
I always find my self thinking of Syd, and just searching for more info about him. Can’t find any so I read comments. The fact that it’s Aug,2020 and there are comments from two -3 weeks ago makes me feel so happy.
My info of the day went from looking up space documentaries to a video on Pink Floyd playing for BBC the day of the walk on the moon (didn't know that till now wish it was in the textbook seeing that as a teen would have blown my mind. Anyhow got to reunion they did and then a documentary on Syd then more Syd videos and yeah nothing new I've learned of Syd unfortunately, maybe some day his friends will get together and put out a book or video on his life and how he was. Don't know why I've always felt so drawn to him, even had him as my phone lock screen at some point, but yeah he was an enigma
I can't stand it when folk slate Syd for going off the rails and commenting on his mental health, Syd managed to write and produce two top selling albums that still sell today all whilst tripping his nuts off, jeeze, ! i can't even stand up and make a cuppa tea when i trip. Syd did exactly what he wanted to do , bravo for him.
I didn't even realize people said such things. Obviously, those people know nothing about him. You are absolutely right - there WAS way too much going on, and at breakneck speed! These people also have not tried acid before. As I just mentioned to someone else, Jim Morrison was the exact same way and both were the creative driving forces behind their bands. Unfortunately, acid is toll taking substance and not a short cut to creativity. Many will challenge this when they see it because of the "new" treatment called 'microdosing'. I suppose anything is ok in small doses.. but, that's "rationalization", not a license to "do what thou wilt" as Crowley would say. Of course, these are just my own personal views but (not that I'm proud of it) I'm speaking from my own experiences with the drug, along with biographies from people that had firsthand accounts of each of these unusual characters. Both were larger than life - but, look at the cost.
Many successful people do psychedelics, the problem is less with the long-term affect of the drug than it is the phenomena of social isolation. People get outcast because of their drug use and collapse psychologically almost immediately. Those who are loners prior to using drugs have even more trouble as they give up trying to relate to others more readily.
@@johncaccioppo1142 Maybe so, although I can't help thinking it also has to do with the basic personality structure of the individual (plus the extent to which whatever is going on in the world gets under their skin). For example, although I used to find Terence McKenna quite annoying, I listened to several of his talks a few years ago and realised he just had a somewhat off -putting manner, whilst he had some very interesting things to say. He often spoke about which chemical compounds (natural versus synthetic) were largely beneficial, and which should be approached with caution, etc. He also often emphasised that he used hallucinogens mainly to 'get in touch with' aspects of his own psyche, and observe them like some hybrid poet/scientist. (To be a 'psychonaut', as some people put this in the 60s/70s). And he kept saying that people should be wary of hallucinogens if they were very emotionally troubled, and people more generally (not too 'troubled') should steer clear of synthetic compounds - because 'that's a drug, and drugs are for sick people'... I.e. if you're slightly 'out of your head' to begin with, then a natural mind-altering substance might make you worse, and if you're fairly well-balanced to begin with, then an unnatural compound might upset that balance. In Syd's case, there's a suggestion of something a little bit 'off' in the anecdotes about him telling his own mother to 'f- off' when she was just trying to make him and his friends comfortable. Of course, I can accept that he was mostly joking around, and I have no idea whether his mum could be a little 'benignly over-bearing' - which might well cause that kind of running-joke to develop, but it suggests a certain self-absorption (introversion?) along with the turbo-charged creativity. The LSD seems to have made him 'spiral inwards', which suggests the same. It seems pretty clear that, whilst it might well have done him little harm if taken in smaller doses and balanced out with things that 'ground' you again - even the dreaded ciggies and string liquor - it pushed him over an edge he might not have seen till he was almost over it (?)
@@Microtherion You should do a dive into the work of John Caccioppo, who researched the phenomena surrounding perceived social isolation. This is how I came to realize that even just the fear of loneliness has a far more profound affect on a person than any singular chemical interaction can. When we get to the fringes and begin to use drugs or other neurotic behaviors it can have bridge-burning consequences. Once a person fixes and stratifies their beliefs around being different or unwanted, they are going to have a nearly impossible trip back to sanity. It happens in the blink of an eye. I cant say "normalcy" because it's clear to me that the epidemic of loneliness is ubiquitous in the modern world, no class, race or society is immune or untouched. Only in cults do most people find any sense of social purpose amounting to collective intimacy/trust, it seems to me, and often the threat of losing that promise is more substantial than the experience itself. I believe that this is by design, as is the absence of this research and its discussion in popular culture.
Syd Barrett was the ghost in the machine of Pink Floyd as long as they were great. His inspiration is all over the place, from "Wish You Were Here" to "Shine on You Crazy Diamond" to the entire "The Wall" album. Syd Barrett was the unwitting author of almost all of the great Pink Floyd albums. I think the members of Pink Floyd always had him in the back of their minds when writing their songs. I think they still do. SO I would say Syd Barrett is STILL the leader of that band.
i get what you're saying, but personally i think if syd had written more songs for pink floyd, they'd have been better, than what we know as pink floyd today, but yes he was certainly a huge inspiration his bandmates after hid departure. But i think syd was leader of their early incarnation, because the others knew just how good he was. I know a lot of people prefer the later stuff, but to me syd's genius eclipsed the rest of the members output..
@@crabbtrixexp Absolutely. Syd was a mad genius, and tapped into spiritual realms the others in the band have no clue about. Like Jim Morrison he collided worlds and his very presence inspired Divine Creativity. I think Pink Floyd lived off that inspiration for many years. Certainly most of their best work is inspired by Syd even after he - well - left earth altogether, leaving only the shell of the physical body intelligence behind.
Syd Barrett formed the chrysalis of Pink Floyd. But its metamorphosis blossomed with Gilmore and Waters. They took Pink Floyd outside Barrett's inner vision. Yet honored him in doing so.
Folk often wonder would Pink Floyd be worse or better had Syd stayed in the band. I believe, by some miracle, had Syd stayed in the band, we would not have the legendary records that Pink Floyd went on to release. Animals, Dark Side of the Moon, and The Wall-drenched in cynicism and critiques of society-in many ways are the antithesis of Syd's sort of... jovial and innocent nature. But in some ways Syd's spirit continued to contribute to the band long after his descent into madness. Fragments of him lived on in songs and albums. Physically and mentally he was gone, but Syd Barrett remained a vital part of Pink Floyd for years after.
@@TadRaunch I agree, but in my opinion on one hand Dark side of the Moon was the best album of Pink Floyd, but on the other hand for me it was the end of the original Pink Floyd. The Wall was a solo project of Waters and the end of Pink Floyd. Since then we've a schisma between the Waters fans and the Gilmour fans. I don't like to chose. I would like the Waters less aggressive and I would like Roger to take attention of the external world. He is egocentric. He thinks, really, his good intentions were understood by everybody else. In fact this is not the case. The fanbase in on the hand of Roger and they of course understand the intentions of Roger. They don't understand that for the rest of the world that's totally unclear and those aggressive fans are probably far left dangerous untrustworthy people. I just can't understand them. It's so unnecessary.
The last time Syd was Syd (laughing, smiling, witty, charming and bright eyed) was the interview him and Roger did with that German interviewer in May of 1967. A week later it's been said that Sid did acid for an entire week and was never the same. His eyes looked like he had a lobotomy and his tone when singing and speaking became flat and emotionless.
I agree with Syd's old friend about how beautiful and haunting 'Dominoes' is. I've only recently taken notice of his work now at age 51. Been haunted ever since. He recorded 'Barrett' while I was an oblivious 1 year old, living about 7 miles away. Gosh!
2:31 nailed it. I haven't even listened to a Pink Floyd album in full yet, and here I am watching a documentary about Syd. I remember seeing a picture of him by accident on a classic rock page, and immediately thinking "woah, who's he?". The guy just naturally radiated a magnetic charm.
The Pete D'Arby guy is fascinating......rarely do you get such candid, insightful info' & descriptions in these rockumentaries, he tells it so you can almost see it.....hats off as well to the editorial team for leaving so much of it in.
Too bad that producer that wanted to work with Purple Gang.... lost that tape of SYD doing so many of his songs on his own!!!! That would be GREAT to hear..
@@thinginground5179 "The sky" has often been used as a euphemism for space and clearly fits much better in the rhyming scheme they're going for than "you eyes look like blackholes in space" - either way, it's ridiculous to take the lyric so literally, as if PF thought black holes existed in our atmosphere. Also, if you're going to get so pedantic: far more than the atmosphere would "be sucked" into a blackhole - the entire Earth and entire solar system would be too, unless it was a _very_ small one.
@@thinginground5179 I'm not uncalm or upset - I'm just saying to suggest they got the lyrics "wrong" is ridiculous because it's artistic expression, and it was funny to me you were wrong on the science you were attempting to correct in the first place. Also, come to think of it: the definition of the sky isn't exclusive to Earth's atmosphere, but what you see above its surface, which at night clearly includes outer space.
I Saw syd in Cambridge once, he lived a couple of minutes Down the Road from where i lived. Someone Said look theres syd barrett, couldnt believe it was him. He was probably then in the last Year of his life. A true artisan of his Trade, its a shame he ended up the Way he did, a reclouse who many people would not even recognise who he was but thats the Way he wanted it. God bless
When I think of Syd I get very sad. I mean, his potential was enormous and I would have loved to see where he would have gone if not for his over use of drugs.
David Erlstoke yeah I know. I am a shitting typist and my fingers have a mind separate from my brain. I realized the mistake after I sent the comment. my apologies
I've always loved his voice. He was a fragile person, not really cut out for dealing with rigors of show biz. He had more a jazz attitude - he didn't want to do to ANYTHING the same way twice. He wanted each performance to be unique. The acid didn't help. but I think the prospect of doing what the Floyd wound up doing (totally blocked out huge productions) was antithetic to his preferred approach.
i have always said , if it wasnt for acid and drugs , what would music be like today . when you think about it so many great artists where on some sort of gear lol later beatles floyd the doors hawkwind sabbath led zepplin probably still dancing round the maypole
@@phil-zz5hk There's a difference between taking acid and taking it so much and in such a way that it hurts you. Psychedelics must be treated with respect. Then they can open vast new vistas.
@@EclecticSceptic yes sir youve got to respect pyschedelics i personally love them but dont ever feel the need to abuse it they dont like to admit that if it were not for lsd the founder of AA NA would have neveir got sober they really dont like telling anyone that when your in rehab i felt i had to live the way my heros did and its destroyed me and took everything i loved in life but thank god for the healing powers of psychedelics
I only had my father for a short time, but I don't think I have any memories of that time without music. Frank Zappa, Floyd, Zeppelin, Depeche mode, Grand Funk, ... I mean the list is super long. Even early Prince. I was in dance, all types, and even at 4,5,6... I remember dancing to Pink Floyd, moving and keeping the beat. It flows through you like Life. I'm 50 now,bum leg, but I can't not move to Pink Floyd . You must move. The lyrics are always relevant to my emotional moods and feelings throughout my years. 💕 Love Love Love them
This is not the first documentary I saw about Syd. But not one I have seen where anybody mentions medical help for Syd. I don't know what the British health service could have done at the time, and I haven't heard an actual diagnosis either, but to me this is awkward to hear everybody say "Hey, Syd's gone mad, how sad, let's just carry on." I don't want to be judgemental, and I am sure that I don't kow the whole story, but really nobody mentioning mental health care, is astonishing.
There is a well documented account that Roger, David, Nick and Rick all verified of Syd being supported by them to visit a psychiatrist well known at the time (RD Laing, I think the name was) but upon arrival refusing to keep the appointment. Remember, too, that the other band members were only in their early 20’s at the time and not sure what to do.
Mental health wasn't talked about them mate, were talking about a really different time, they've gone mad, lock them up or leave them. they're a looney, that was the attitude sadly
@@robphilpott43 Thanks for that detail I had never heard. The first time I read about RD Laing more than 25 years ago it was a quote of his: “madness is a sane strategy for dealing with an insane social environment.” Laing had some great ideas but somehow I don’t think he was the right doctor to treat Barrett.
From what I've read, he most certainly developed schizophrenia (not helped by the drugs, and the time when he sat in his apartment with the TV and stereo at "full blast" is indicative from someone having auditory hallucinations).
I was thinking the same - however the times were very different back then, mental illness was poorly understood and even more of a stigma than today. In a way it is quite lucky that he did not get put in an asylum and left for years and years as was so often the case - he lived an independent life. I have heard he spent time at Greenwoods in Essex a very forward thinking therapeutic community - which is great to hear.
Hmm. I don't about that. I'd agree except that Jim Morrison comes to mind. Jim seems to be the American version of Sid. Both have an almost identical rise and fall. Jim made much further though. Don't get me wrong. Floyd has ALWAYS been my personal favorite band and I've seen them 4 times. I have always liked the early years because of their experimentation. Nothing was off limits. I've read biographies on both and they mirror each other in many ways - especially acid! It was the d.o.c. of both and both lost sight of reality because of THAT particular drug. If you get some time, I recommend picking up a copy of Danny Sugarman's "No one Here Gets Out Alive". It's only about $5 in paperback and if you're interested in Sid Barrett, you'll find Jim Morrison to be equally as intriguing. And, Jim too, is still considered a sex symbol in the exact same manner. Check it out. I read through it in a few days. I started it and, right away got sucked into his strange world. I couldn't put it down. Oliver Stone's "The Doors" is pretty close to the mark but you can only fit so much into 2 hours. The book is, as always, much better.
@@duanemcclure8324 Agreed. I will say the movie doesn't hit the mark exactly as it is DEFINITELY romanticized but it is a fun watch and explains an artists mind a bit.
Each Saturday morning for going on 10 years now, I tune into a syndicated radio show "Floydian Slip" Craig Bailey,the host is a veritable Floyd historian, awesome host and I learn the back story of the Floyd each week, something new. Syd Barrett was the nucleus of Pink Floyd and whenever his name is mentioned or I hear the song SOYCD, I am digging through the internet to learn more about Syd Barrett, the musical genius, his solo work, interviews and anything thing he ever worked on ... Hats off to a great Human Being and thank you for your musical vision and inspiration.
Yes Syd took lots of acid but he was still excellent musician when high. Floyd's first album is all Syd's style and is completely different from their other albums. After Floyd reluctantly kicked Syd out because of his more and more void behavior Syd released two solo lp's. They are sparse and eccentric. Not exactly melodic or psych but I like them a lot. I personally don't think that acid changed Syd, I strongly feel he was a victim of hellish schizophrenia. RIP Syd Barrett
Someone in Syd's family must of had schizophrenia then man cause I'm sure that's the only way genetically, I dunno if you can develop it over time lmao, and bro I love my psychedelics but after having high dose trips I do believe acid played a part in his demise man, remember this was the 60s when lsd was everywhere 🤣, lsd or not his story is so sad man
That part where he's telling the story about Syd saying, "don't want you here now mum, fuck off" made me laugh. Such an unexpected thing to hear, but I had friends that had relationships with their moms like that, so I know the type
Same, lol. My good friend was like that. Those exact words in that exact scenario, "ok fuck off now mom," (bites into sandwich mom just brought into the room)
@@1968spikey Exactly. I expected him to take his 'rich kid' advantage to be a bank manager, sell real estate, and a politician. How ungrateful he was doing what he did instead.
One of the saddest stories of an immense talent falling so short of his potential just as they began to take off. Yet it's obvious he was a huge factor in the formative years of Pink Floyd.
I've seen the Syd Barrett story play out in my own life. Just without the fame of a band. Where people who are already having trouble straddling the line between sane and insane start a heavy rotation of psychedelics. And out of our little circle of two dozen people who were doing this, two were never right again, though still functional, while two dudes ended up in and out of institutions the next 3 decades, their original personality nowhere to be found. That's why after decades of drug use, I always maintained that acid was the most dangerous, even though when I was a teenager, it was presented as like the next step after weed. For some guys I knew. they'd have been better off trying crack or heroin.
Samuel Luria I supposed it because the person is watching a video about Syd Barrett and is therefore probably a fan and knows a thing or 2 about him. And if the person didn't know then that person knows now.
Anyone claiming that LSD had no part in Syds decline is kidding themselves. I've known several people personally whose mental illness was kicked off by acid. Whether or not they still would have become ill is another matter acid definitely accelerated the problem. It's mental stuff and was so strong back then.
I use to take acid with my two good friends. I think I ended up fine but acid completely fuck them up. My one friend even died on acid, nasty fall. If you take acid and defend it then just stop because you don’t know if someone will react to it same as you.
@@davidcraig3609 IKR? I dont why everyone is being so rude and aggressive. Like kids today know what acid is - the tabs they have are barely LSD at all. Back in Syds time and even our time David it was very very strong. Plus when youve lived a little youve seen more and you know a thing or too.
I have a friend who was affected by drugs the same way he went from creative genius to lunatic as he became an adult,I think psychedelics are beneficial for most but extremely dangerous to some.its sad but it’s just the way it goes nothing ventured nothing gained
“ Nothing ventured nothing gained.” What a crass remark. In Syd and Peter Greens case everything lost! Drugs never did anything lasting creatively for anyone. Odd to reply to a year old comment I know but it pissed me off!
@henry mcvey Long term they are destructive. Short term or in careful moderation there is no question they are beneficial and i will say that about pretty much every drug out there. Best of luck keeping it in moderation though.
"For some." That's the important thing to highlight, as there are 8 billion souls inhabiting this place, and there has been far, far more than that, god willing there will be yet...it's a practically endless spectrum of individual tolerances, and what may seem an incomprehensibly large quantity of a substance to one person, there is in all likelihood another to which that same amount would seem just not quite enough to get the job done. When studies are being undertaken for the development of a new Rx to combat some psychological disorder or what have you, it is almost universally true that a majority will respond in a way consistent with each other, while a separate, smaller group will find uneven and disparate results both from the majority and each other. My guess is that indeed it is so for users imbibing in drugs like LSD. Perhaps 75% of users could abuse the drug for years and years and experience no significant, long term negative effects. However, a fraction of the total use-cases appear to report an experience approximating the polar opposite, with these subjects fairly rapidly spiraling into some sort of terminal or semi-terminal drug psychosis, or some type of "induced schizophrenic state," from which there is either no return to the subject previous state, or a significantly protracted affliction period.
Not a one-off. It was an explosive time in art schools, youth culture, counterculture throughout the U.S. and, presumably, the UK and Europe. Sounds like the coming together that grew into Pink Floyd was created by the quality of their relationships the made their collaboration so fruitfull.
This is an interesting documentary but It seems very surface level when it comes to actually understanding Syd Barrett. The perspective of people who knew him is one thing but to actually try to understand what he was really doing is another. He used psychedelic drugs to break down barriers in his mind and attempted rewrite the rules of music as we know them seemingly in an alternate dimension where anything was possible. That's why he seemed childlike. It's because he was onto something and it was in its infantile stage when he accidentally went too far. The rest of the group picked up what was left of his legacy and continued on without him. Astronomy Domine was an example of what the seemingly nonsensical or childish music was about to develope into if Syd could have kept it together.
My best friend and band mate bought me 'piper at the gates of dawn' for Xmas or my birthday one year when I was 20 or so... I think the story of sid resonated with our relationship because I was a burgeoning schizophrenic at the time and we were both in a band together. Our band was called 21st Century Ox (2000s). We have some albums available for streaming on spotify etc... I ended up quitting the band and going solo and released 'pre-psychotic demos 1 & 2 ' this year and 'Psychotic' also under my own name. Luckily when I had my 'freak out', I used magic mushrooms every day for 2 weeks rather than acid... The case for 'drug induced psychosis' is a strong one... I remember friends coming to the door and greeting them then having no conversation once they entered... Psychosis is an interesting phenomena... I got over mine in the end
Syd was child-like, not childish. There's nothing wrong with that. He fell in with some bad people. It scarred him. I can identify with that. To label Syd as an acid casualty or mad is cruel. We all need a bump at times.
I was ignorant of Pink Floyd until "Dark Side of the Moon" and then I had to have everything they did. (My "Pulse" L.E.D. flashed until 2006!) I didn't know much about Syd Barrett except that he was an original king pin. I came away believing that although he left the group (fired) the rest of the band loved him deeply. I would like to be loved like that by my coworkers if my supervisor fired me! :)
There are very few music pieces with lyrics which I enjoyed more than Syd Barrett's songs while under the influence of psychedelics. His lyrics were fresh, somewhat mischievous, witty and clever on many levels, and I suspect that the more one was well read, well travelled and well educated, - the more he would appreciate Syd Barrett's songs and the way his personality came out through them. These songs seem to have a synaesthetic appeal to them, - appearing to join many different things that didn't seem to fit together, but his songs made them fit, and I think that was the beauty of Floyd as a band which was almost completely lost when he left. I can't be sure whether he had schizophrenia or simply a pronounced schizotypal disorder which made him prone to instances of eccentric behaviour, but it would be disingenuous to attribute his genius to a mental disorder or mental illness. I worked in mental health settings, and most in-patients in general psychiatric care facilities are nowhere near the level of Syd. Maybe some people just aren't "welcome to machine", and maybe this is one of the reasons why brevity has to be one of the key components of beauty.
Very thoughtful. I was in mad love to girl ("to" because it was one sided) of the same type (Capricorn, as Syd was), and sooo talented. Yet mood swings, anti-depressants and demanding attitude took tall on her by 21-22. Disconnection with tedious reality, complete disregard to repetitive hard work. She got disability and for decades watched Universe through tiny hole in house wall...
I still think that Syd is so underappreciated and not given the credit he deserves for his brilliance and influence on the London Psychadelic rock scene and what followed in the late 60's. I mean, is it coincidence that while Floyd was in Studio recording Piper, that the Beatles were right next door while making Sgt Peppers??? I think not and I believe that Syd had a major influence on how the Beatles went about making that Album. To me, that is brilliance...
You should really listen to what Roger has to say about that. They only met once, they were allowed to see one recording and they influenced Floyd more than the other way around.
This turned out to be way better than I was expecting. I thought it might be some trashy exploitation piece that I’d seen before, but it wasn’t -the interviewees were very well-chosen-Pete, Joe, Norman, Duggie-All had really interesting things to say, things I haven’t heard before, (and I’ve been listening to Syd Barrett for 40 years). Joe Boyd’s stories were superb-One has to wonder what Piper at the Gates of Dawn would have sounded like with Joe Boyd producing. Norman Smith, what a character (reminds me of “Mad John” on Small Faces Nut Gone Flake!😃) Smith was brilliant at what he did, but I think Joe might have understood where Syd was coming from, musically, a bit better. It’s really too bad that EMI pushed Joe out of that deal. Truly, Arnold Lane is my favorite PF song, single and I believe the best recording of Syd Barrett-Before the mental break of May, ‘67 and well before PatGoD and the 2 solo albums. It’s truly amazing that those solo albums even got made! And I love them both dearly. The only thing I didn’t care for in this documentary was the uncredited cover recordings of early Barrett/Pink Floyd songs - undoubtedly it was a performing rights issue, it probably cost a lot of money for the producers to license the original recordings, but I would have chosen to not have that music, it just sounds second-rate to not have the originals. Otherwise, top-quality interviews with well spoken individuals. 💔R.I.P. Duggie Fields, a talented & unique artist.
gringopig it wasn't the last time Glimour stood up for Syd. Basically for the rest of Syd's life, Glimour made sure that he got a percent of Pink Floyd royalties even though he had long since left the band.
Yeah I like the idea that even though everyone was uncomfortable, Syd wasnt. That's all that mattered that day. Syd was ok inside his own universe somewhere playing an amazing tune to some intergalactic crowd...
I always loved Syd's guitar playing, and the excellent runs he could do on a song like "Lucifer Sam" for example, turning it into some strange hybrid between James Bond in the music and Edgar Allen Poe in the lyrics, and a healthy dose of playfulness in between. But that first album, Piper at the Gates of Dawn, it was so insane, i don't know how that you can follow it up. I love that album, but it was something that cannot be repeated. And it breaks my heart that Syd was the casualty, the sacrifice if you will, to make it happen.
I really enjoyed Pete and Duggie, John and Joe of UFO and their perspectives of Syd. It is about as close as you can get to knowing him I imagine. Whether consciously or not, I love how Syd just disregarded Norman Smith/EMI. The more I learn about EMI, the more I have disdain for them. I disagree that Syd wasn’t a genius. Creatively he opened many doors for countless musicians who were unquestionably deeply influenced by him.
Isn't it strange that when i was a teenager a social and musical revolution was taking place and now, 50 years later a certain portion of that music from the rock hero's of my generation is now the "elevator music" of the 21st century. Particularly The Beatles. Even some of the most upsetting music they ever put out such as Sgt. Peppers.
When the man was talking about Syd taking acid for 7 days straight he mentioned how he looked like "no one was home". with drugs like that, psychedelic type drugs, they open pieces of yer mind & certain parts of you die. Mentally/spiritually/physically/emotionally etc. When pieces of people die, unless the whole being dies a physical death, those pieces have to be replaced by something. No one knows what those pieces consist of, usually not even the person experiencing it. The body doesn't know how to handle certain things & people love to take things to extremes &push limits. Artists fall into those patterns what seems the most. It's sad because we lose a lot of them because of it, not just the drugs but the mental instabilities that those drugs can bring out& people who may be around also bringing out those instabilities, knowingly & unknowingly, people have a big part of why others fall into the patterns they do. Dealing with the world as it is & how it "evolves" doesn't always make a good combination. As we see by losses like these.
"'ok mom fuck off..' no disrespect" that's how me & my kids are/were, when they were with me. Their lying father doesn't understand that about us because he's neglectful & doesn't/didn't really know us. Or at least the us that used to be, idk how my boys are now.
Syd didn't have to put his mind to something else to be a guru, he still very much was one. Thank you for sharing this video, it was very good & nice hearing about him. Painful hearing how some people saw him but that's how people are.
RIP Syd Barrett Gone but not forgotten. So many people have lived a life of mental torment and mental illness and his wonderful mind will cease to stop as his music and lyrics are still listened and sung everyday and he will never be forgotten. ❤️. Xxxx
Syd is mind-candy that will never grow old. I love that he hated commercialism. His art was meant to be truly original and never repeated the same any other time.
Mind candy? If your under the influence perhaps. And as for art, we'll I guess he could be best described as the Picasso of the music industry, because his music was a shambles of randomness. No wonder he didn't like commercialism, as that would suggest that he would have to conform to some sort of formula. But a formula is what sells records. (People who drink Coca Cola probably wouldn't, if the recipe kept changing on a weekly or monthly basis). When you find a groove that you like, you expect the band to stick to a similar recognisable formula, otherwise you quickly lose interest I think. And in Syd's case, it was only his band mates that kept his memory alive, and maybe their hard core fans from the earliest days of the band.
@@hermanmunster3358 Reductive comment. The kid was a talented player before he blew out his candle. Then, yeah, it was a mess. Hand an unmedicated schizophrenic a guitar and let's hear what happens. Now imagine that that's basically Syd by late '67.
@@VanishedPNW That is probably true. But when he "blew out his candle" then he did that to his own detriment imo. I don't buy music based on the sentiment of others, or for the Nostalgia value that others may feel. I buy music that is pleasing to MY ears, and that I can make sense of.
David Gilmore must be a very good man. He tried to help him after the overdose. An example is when he took him to the recording studio and had his back when the engineer began lampooning him. After hearing that, I have a lot of respect for David Gilmore.
that ending… Syd will forever live on through his music and all of us who choose to keep his name alive. forever grateful for all the amazing melodies and songs he’s given us, here’s to you Syd!! 🙏
On the WALL album. I heard this, at the center right, after the last song. A voice said. ''God, please save Syd.'' This was played on an old stereo system. Where the arm would have more play in it. So it would have more room to go to the very end of records. Not all record players would do that.
@@corywiedenbeck1562 nah cmon . Course it's not her. She looks about 22. Don't think she was listening to original floyd records, that said save sid.?. I could be wrong but I would say its not her. It's probably an older women or man. 🤷🏽♂️ ✌️✌️✌️
The first two Pink Floyd albums and the singles are so under rated, I can see why the stuff between that and meddle are not loved but man those two albums from the 60s are as good as anything
I think it's hardly a controversial point, despite what he or anyone else in the band may believe. They have cited at various points Waters' apparently shallow inspiration wellspring, narrowing his main fixations lyrically to be about war & going nuts. As comment section critics, I think we can surmise his preoccupation with "the war" is reflexive and singularly to do with his own father's perceived abandonment as a result of "the war," and not instead some vaguely militaristic doom & violence fantasy, nor is it born of some weird adulation of military history (lol). So, he uses the war as a kind of expressive vehicle creatively while in real life he tries coming to terms with the loss of his dad. Likewise, perhaps his seemingly left-field preoccupation with "going crazy" may again be indicative of some kind of experienced grievous trauma resulting from "madness" which, like war, again left Waters to navigate life in it's damaging aftermath. Since we know Waters did not personally go batty (at the time of those albums lol) it must be a creative preoccupation born of a trauma he felt was done unto him caused by the effects of madness. Perhaps it was the milk man, or maybe twas his errand boy.
my mums friend went to uni with nick mason small world sometime,s but with out syd there would be no pink floyd & most of their songs were about syd as well.for me syd was a creative genius his guitar playing was amazingly raw & original rip syd & nick gone but never forgotten peace...
My brother has had schizophrenia for about 40 years, and from what I’ve heard it seems that Syd also had this. Love his Pink Floyd music; and his 3 solo albums are very enjoyable as well. Yes, there are parts of this music that many might see as being a bit under produced, or amateurish, but there is also so much brilliance in a lot of the 3 solo albums; and I prefer it over so much other music!! God bless Syd Barrett.
@sfender2182 Thank you for your comment, so many people don't realize that Syd began breaking down mentally it due to the onset of Schizophrenia. Everyone thought his personality changes and odd behavior were from drugs, until it became noticeable that he was CONSISTENTLY going down, and had stopped drugs. He literally walked out one day and was found sleeping in the streets, and had no idea who he was. 😢 It's so very sad. 😢
@@MamaofaWrestler None of the other band members knew what was going on with Syd. He became increasingly difficult to work with and unreliable to the point where they eventually stopped picking him up when off to play some gigs. I've heard Dave Gilmour say that with hindsight they should have handled it better and got Syd professional help. It was all extremely sad.
@@RDnAC No he didn't and even his own family denied Syd was mentally ill. Back in the 60s/70s being mentally ill had a stigma to it. Its worth reading Syds Wiki page as there is a section detailing his health problems on there.
Joe Boyd has been involved in promoting, recording and nourishing most of the quality music to come out of the UK since the sixties to today. You don't know Abba from Zappa and the bits in between. Piss off.
@@johnmcfadden1416 Joe Boyd's chair farts I'm not the only one to notice it, what's that got to do with whether or not i remember swedish avante garde combo Zabba? Will you be casting doubt on everyone's musical knowledge or did I just get lucky?
Mrs Richards: " I paid for a room with a view!" Basil: (pointing to the lovely view) "That is Torquay, Madam." Mrs Richards: "It's not good enough!" Basil: "May I ask what you were expecting to see out of a Torquay hotel bedroom window? Sydney Opera House, perhaps? the Hanging Gardens of Babylon? Herds of wildebeest sweeping majestically past?..." Mrs Richards: "Don't be silly! I expect to be able to see the sea!" Basil: "You can see the sea, it's over there between the land and the sky." Mrs Richards: "I'm not satisfied. But I shall stay. But I expect a reduction." Basil: "Why?! Because Krakatoa's not erupting at the moment?
low budget documentary, so what can you expect? just enjoy the interviews with Hoppy, Joe Boyd and Norman Smith. its one of the few occasions they actually spoke out about Floyd.
I was banned from a Facebook PF fan group for stating that, if things had been different and Syd hadn't left the band, they would have only lasted for another album, or two, then faded into obscurity. I still love the early Floyd, but they would never have achieved the great success with Syd.
Rick Carlstrom we could never know for sure ... at some point waters would have started coming with his grandiose ideas and boom, the possibilities there are infinite
@@manuelpuente7336 Hi, I thought about that scenario too. Somehow I don't think Syd, after being 'the guy', could ever have played 2nd fiddle, so to speak, to Roger Waters. But, as you said, we could never know for sure.
Norman Smith doesnt realise how annoying he is/was as a producer..you do not tell a songwriter to reaarange/change his songs...I feel so sorry for Syd that he had to deal with the likes of Norman. Drive anyone demented and enrage them. Syd was not at fault. He had intergity. It must have been unbearble. Such a huge shame they lost Joe Boyd when they opted for EMI.. : /
And without him they might have just been another psychedelic band that came and went. Thats the dilemma faced by any producer. Anyway..my daughters name is Emily. I can't possibly think why we chose that name. If you listen to what Joe Boyd says later on at 40 Mins that makes a lot of sense.
Smith was, perhaps, the wrong producer for Pink Floyd at that time - but producing Syd Barrett was arguably one of the most impossible and thankless tasks a producer could take on. Who would have done a better job?
The whole band were so well spoken and gracious in interviews. And to think the older generation at the time see them as being shocking for playing loud. What the hell would they make of some of the stuff today.
Now a days they are suggesting something on the autism spectrum or Aspergers of some form.... I read some articles about that just after I decided he was schizophrenic moderately.....so now I’m just gonna say he had “Roger Barrett” ! Seriously. I’ve read he was very stubborn, thus giving up music completely. I’ve read he had a nasty bad temper, thus some girlfriends and places such as his home in Cambridge for which they gave him anti psychotics for a while or not long anyway but repeated. He had synesthesia seems very clear...like the only clear thing! I’ve read how lovable he was retired in Cambridge and at the same time I’ve read how blunt and unpleasant he could be. I’ve read he was lonely and sometimes suicidal then I’ve read he was content and enjoyed his own company and didn’t want visitors but maybe that only meant fans and interviewers. I learned he was in hospital and given the death sentence after 4 weeks and sent home to die in his own bed. I’ve read he was in a home for disturbed people a couple years but no meds.....man I mean it seems just all over the place. All that walking and other things bouncing stride on balls of feet childhood thru adult which is sort aspergers autism stuff....I read he intentionally acted weird after too much touring and playing same songs and he did so because he wanted his band to just be jam musicians so they didn’t have to do that part and they didn’t agree. And what was the story finding him in a corner of a room in catatonic state and from then on not the same? It’s been suggested he took chemicals different from acid and actually could result in brain damage. When he saw they weren’t gonna change nor put up with his antics he got freaked out knowing they wanted him gone and took to extra drug abuse. Hell I even read he used amphetamines in retirement resulting in ulcers and stomach surgery and I read he shot heroine in London and probably got hep C which leads to some of his symptoms.... I read he was actually quite remote from girlfriends except first one and then I read he wrote love letters...I read daily acid intake results in no high quickly like days. It still remains sad and confusing for the most part. He was different that’s for sure!
I don't think Syd's brain was gone like Laing said. He had probably just realized it just wasn't worth the bother, and had himself a quiet life instead.
For the typical look of that era, Syd most definitely had a very sophisticated handsome face. Even in a two dimensional picture the sparkles in his eyes are so captivating.
I will say, i guess its good that Syd wasn't an archi student like the others, because I'm sure that would've caused a much faster and more intense mental breakdown and possibly suicidal ideation. Speaking from personal experience here, my mental health has gone down the shitter since starting, its like a years-long bootcamp. Good thing the other boys managed to get out and succeed without it. I can only imagine them on their 4th all-nighter of the week on nothing but coffee and cigs looking at each other going, "we'd better make something of this band because I can't take any more of this shit"
I'm especially impressed with Norman Smith's anecdote around 19:40 . I find that it shows the approach producers had in those days. You can tell he hated Pink Floyd's music, but from a business' standpoint he saw how engaged the audience was and how originally they presented themselves on stage and decided they had potential. That open mindedness was nowhere to be found in producers in more recent times, even before the internet.
@@barbarastepien-foad4519 Mhm, most definitely he was. Frankly, I prefer a money maker who will give everyone a chance to make him money to someone who thinks he is the ultimate arbiter of musical taste and will only promote musicians that suit him.
@@scariella1314 Of course. He ran a business, not a charity. And if any of the big stars you idolize ever says that it's all about the art, don't let your admiration for them blind you: they are full of s__t. No one would know they ever existed, without the music *business*. All I meant with my comment is that at least back in those days producers had a progressive, risk-taking approach to the business. The last thirty years have been endless repetition of formats that were successful in the past.
A unique and beautiful mind and man . His personality was constantly evolving in and out of madness. This is more common than you think. This case is just so well documented and speculated on. This is how fact and fiction become intertwined,leading to myth and ledgend. I first heard at a young age 11 or 12 ,this was a band with a"real crazy man". This of course peaks interest.
...the irony of Joe Boyd's perfect, involved, human production of AL (the abysmal film and footage of nick and roger wasting everyone's time aside...) contrasted with the emi company producer who had nothing but contempt for the band couldn't be more stark or heartbreaking or maddening...fuck emi...and again , david gilmour is a man...outstanding, from the heart...
I agree with a lot of you guys on here saying Syd was the subject of ALOT of Pink Floyd's concepts and ideas feelings depictions, but after hearing Peter or whoever said they saw Syd in May 67' and his girlfriend looked anxious and said Syd had dropped acid for 7 days straight......it all comes back to set and setting, intention, let alone dosage and moderation of substance, metabolism and mood/mental state at the time of taking LSD. Syd might've had a gene for schizophrenia, but LSD didn't activate those genes.....the fact that THE WAY HE TOOK ACID is what broke him.....set, setting, dosage and intentions are EXTREMELY important for gaining healing from psychedelics.
Magical,mystical, and unnerving and totally unique.What would Floyd have been had he stayed,they are always at the top of my list of all time but how much greater could they have been with Syd? We will never know.As they stand they are my favorite band of all time period,I have everything they ever did.Their talent is on a totally otherworldly level.
best thing for pink floyd as a band was sid leaving. he was their mate, but if he had stayed he would have destroyed the band. then he bacame an inspiration for some of their best music, that would not have happened with him in the band.
One gets the distinct impression none of the band were terribly fond of Norman Smith. Such a tragedy. The latent schizophrenic tendencies that gave Syd his unique genius were ripped open by LSD...too much too often, and probably a dose or two of bad acid causing permanent neural damage...and from then on he was always struggling to swim back up to the light.
Their statements must be taken in the light that Smith, for contractual reasons, received production credit (and payment from the band) for Ummagumma - an album he did ZERO work on.
this is pseudo science there is absolutely no evidence that LSD causes "neural damage" Please do not spread misinformation. The negative effects of acid are purely psychological. It is possible to destroy yourself, indeed.
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This was David Gilmour's way of trying to ensure that Syd had an income after the Floyd. He understood that this would be of some historically important. How he knew this, I don't know, Gilmour is a very smart guy. I think he understood that Syd's story would become myth and than legend. This would guarantee that Syd would get some money, on a regular basis, for quite some time. Later, when even that money disappeared, David used the fame of the band to ensure that some of Syd's songs always ended up on a Floyd compilation. There were many of those, over the years. Syd never went broke, he had enough to help his family look out for him for decades. In fact, I have read that Syd had over a million pounds in the bank when he died. So, I have always admired David Gilmour for that alone he is a star.
Oh yeah. Syd was always gonna be financially stable. The short term of making money in music is touring. But enduring wealth is in having an album thats still generating publishing royalties decades later, and the continued succcess of floyd (You *still* see teenagers in town in pink floyd shirts, I think the millenials and zoomers somewhat enjoy the whimsy and youthfulness of syds era) meant that as long as those first to albums continued to sell , Syds writers credits guaranteed him a slice of the big fat pie that is pink floyd. Gilmore including Syds song in the continuing touring (Yes, he got royalties for those too, thats why publishing rights are so important. Technically even if a local bar band plays your song, your owed royalties, though I doubt those are policed that strictly. Most places have a thing where the bar is supposed to keep a log of songs and hand a fee to the local music rights agency, but I doubt many keep that vigilent a log of songs. After all hows a bar supposed to tell whats original and whats a cover, it'd be hard to argue in court that the bar was negligent and such a lawsuit would be more expensive than any fees recovered.) and compilations, certainly helped
Absolutely right you are. David is a saint for what he has done and i think in his heart he knows his life may have turned out a lot more ordinary if not for what Syd helped create. So i think some of it is caring for an old friend and part his paying homage and reverence to a guy who likely is largely responsible with launching a band that he was a bit of a johnny come lately to join. He recognises Syd as genius as Syd really seems to be the one in command when they first gained traction.
@@shayneoneill1506 I'm sixteen, and I absolutely love Pink Floyd. I've listened to every bit of music they've put out. The Floyd are still alive and well!
I'm only seventeen and I listen to Led Zeppelin. All people at school listen to Drake and Nikki Minaj but I listen to Led Zeppelin and i'm only seventeen.
@@Gunn27 same thing! but I'm 55 now😊wish you a great life
Syd Barrett passed away today, July 7th, 14 years ago. I am watching this in his memory. RIP, You Crazy Diamond. Shine On.
Wish you were here
Cringe
@@Gravy_Master It isn't?
@@zeukri-5464 It is.
@@Gravy_Master Leave then
I always find my self thinking of Syd, and just searching for more info about him. Can’t find any so I read comments. The fact that it’s Aug,2020 and there are comments from two -3 weeks ago makes me feel so happy.
My info of the day went from looking up space documentaries to a video on Pink Floyd playing for BBC the day of the walk on the moon (didn't know that till now wish it was in the textbook seeing that as a teen would have blown my mind. Anyhow got to reunion they did and then a documentary on Syd then more Syd videos and yeah nothing new I've learned of Syd unfortunately, maybe some day his friends will get together and put out a book or video on his life and how he was. Don't know why I've always felt so drawn to him, even had him as my phone lock screen at some point, but yeah he was an enigma
Moi aussci ...
I can't stand it when folk slate Syd for going off the rails and commenting on his mental health, Syd managed to write and produce two top selling albums that still sell today all whilst tripping his nuts off, jeeze, ! i can't even stand up and make a cuppa tea when i trip. Syd did exactly what he wanted to do , bravo for him.
@@fightermma yes.
His sister spoke about him. He was a beautiful man and he died 7th July 2006.
I hate how people say nothing is going on in his head. When infact someone like that it's too much going on
So true!
I didn't even realize people said such things. Obviously, those people know nothing about him. You are absolutely right - there WAS way too much going on, and at breakneck speed! These people also have not tried acid before. As I just mentioned to someone else, Jim Morrison was the exact same way and both were the creative driving forces behind their bands. Unfortunately, acid is toll taking substance and not a short cut to creativity. Many will challenge this when they see it because of the "new" treatment called 'microdosing'. I suppose anything is ok in small doses.. but, that's "rationalization", not a license to "do what thou wilt" as Crowley would say. Of course, these are just my own personal views but (not that I'm proud of it) I'm speaking from my own experiences with the drug, along with biographies from people that had firsthand accounts of each of these unusual characters. Both were larger than life - but, look at the cost.
Many successful people do psychedelics, the problem is less with the long-term affect of the drug than it is the phenomena of social isolation. People get outcast because of their drug use and collapse psychologically almost immediately. Those who are loners prior to using drugs have even more trouble as they give up trying to relate to others more readily.
@@johncaccioppo1142 Maybe so, although I can't help thinking it also has to do with the basic personality structure of the individual (plus the extent to which whatever is going on in the world gets under their skin). For example, although I used to find Terence McKenna quite annoying, I listened to several of his talks a few years ago and realised he just had a somewhat off -putting manner, whilst he had some very interesting things to say. He often spoke about which chemical compounds (natural versus synthetic) were largely beneficial, and which should be approached with caution, etc.
He also often emphasised that he used hallucinogens mainly to 'get in touch with' aspects of his own psyche, and observe them like some hybrid poet/scientist. (To be a 'psychonaut', as some people put this in the 60s/70s). And he kept saying that people should be wary of hallucinogens if they were very emotionally troubled, and people more generally (not too 'troubled') should steer clear of synthetic compounds - because 'that's a drug, and drugs are for sick people'... I.e. if you're slightly 'out of your head' to begin with, then a natural mind-altering substance might make you worse, and if you're fairly well-balanced to begin with, then an unnatural compound might upset that balance.
In Syd's case, there's a suggestion of something a little bit 'off' in the anecdotes about him telling his own mother to 'f- off' when she was just trying to make him and his friends comfortable. Of course, I can accept that he was mostly joking around, and I have no idea whether his mum could be a little 'benignly over-bearing' - which might well cause that kind of running-joke to develop, but it suggests a certain self-absorption (introversion?) along with the turbo-charged creativity. The LSD seems to have made him 'spiral inwards', which suggests the same. It seems pretty clear that, whilst it might well have done him little harm if taken in smaller doses and balanced out with things that 'ground' you again - even the dreaded ciggies and string liquor - it pushed him over an edge he might not have seen till he was almost over it (?)
@@Microtherion You should do a dive into the work of John Caccioppo, who researched the phenomena surrounding perceived social isolation. This is how I came to realize that even just the fear of loneliness has a far more profound affect on a person than any singular chemical interaction can. When we get to the fringes and begin to use drugs or other neurotic behaviors it can have bridge-burning consequences.
Once a person fixes and stratifies their beliefs around being different or unwanted, they are going to have a nearly impossible trip back to sanity. It happens in the blink of an eye.
I cant say "normalcy" because it's clear to me that the epidemic of loneliness is ubiquitous in the modern world, no class, race or society is immune or untouched.
Only in cults do most people find any sense of social purpose amounting to collective intimacy/trust, it seems to me, and often the threat of losing that promise is more substantial than the experience itself. I believe that this is by design, as is the absence of this research and its discussion in popular culture.
I was a preschool teacher for 4 years. I had 3 year olds. I would bring Syd's solo albums in and play the music for the kids and they LOVED it!!
It does have that child's sensibility to it. Kinda happy psychedelic sesame street tunes.
I'm sure that they loved Effervessing Elephant, since it pretty much is a kid's song.
Bike?
@@thornil2231solo albums
Syd had a cildlike way about music. :-)
Syd Barrett was the ghost in the machine of Pink Floyd as long as they were great. His inspiration is all over the place, from "Wish You Were Here" to "Shine on You Crazy Diamond" to the entire "The Wall" album. Syd Barrett was the unwitting author of almost all of the great Pink Floyd albums. I think the members of Pink Floyd always had him in the back of their minds when writing their songs. I think they still do. SO I would say Syd Barrett is STILL the leader of that band.
I think Roger Waters was more integral to the band. Not downplaying Sid's role by any means, but Roger is definitely Pink.
i get what you're saying, but personally i think if syd had written more songs for pink floyd, they'd have been better, than what we know as pink floyd today, but yes he was certainly a huge inspiration his bandmates after hid departure. But i think syd was leader of their early incarnation, because the others knew just how good he was. I know a lot of people prefer the later stuff, but to me syd's genius eclipsed the rest of the members output..
@@crabbtrixexp : Well Syd was like Brian Wilson in that he was a Genius madman.
@@crabbtrixexp Absolutely. Syd was a mad genius, and tapped into spiritual realms the others in the band have no clue about. Like Jim Morrison he collided worlds and his very presence inspired Divine Creativity. I think Pink Floyd lived off that inspiration for many years. Certainly most of their best work is inspired by Syd even after he - well - left earth altogether, leaving only the shell of the physical body intelligence behind.
Amen!
Syd Barrett formed the chrysalis of Pink Floyd. But its metamorphosis blossomed with Gilmore and Waters. They took Pink Floyd outside Barrett's inner vision. Yet honored him in doing so.
Folk often wonder would Pink Floyd be worse or better had Syd stayed in the band. I believe, by some miracle, had Syd stayed in the band, we would not have the legendary records that Pink Floyd went on to release. Animals, Dark Side of the Moon, and The Wall-drenched in cynicism and critiques of society-in many ways are the antithesis of Syd's sort of... jovial and innocent nature. But in some ways Syd's spirit continued to contribute to the band long after his descent into madness. Fragments of him lived on in songs and albums. Physically and mentally he was gone, but Syd Barrett remained a vital part of Pink Floyd for years after.
Tom Quinn
That was a great thing for them to do.
@@TadRaunch I agree, but in my opinion on one hand Dark side of the Moon was the best album of Pink Floyd, but on the other hand for me it was the end of the original Pink Floyd. The Wall was a solo project of Waters and the end of Pink Floyd. Since then we've a schisma between the Waters fans and the Gilmour fans. I don't like to chose. I would like the Waters less aggressive and I would like Roger to take attention of the external world. He is egocentric. He thinks, really, his good intentions were understood by everybody else. In fact this is not the case. The fanbase in on the hand of Roger and they of course understand the intentions of Roger. They don't understand that for the rest of the world that's totally unclear and those aggressive fans are probably far left dangerous untrustworthy people. I just can't understand them. It's so unnecessary.
The last time Syd was Syd (laughing, smiling, witty, charming and bright eyed) was the interview him and Roger did with that German interviewer in May of 1967. A week later it's been said that Sid did acid for an entire week and was never the same. His eyes looked like he had a lobotomy and his tone when singing and speaking became flat and emotionless.
🥺💔
It’s sad to know that because he was so young and he could have been a lot of creative music without his mental problems because drugs specially LSD
I agree with Syd's old friend about how beautiful and haunting 'Dominoes' is. I've only recently taken notice of his work now at age 51. Been haunted ever since. He recorded 'Barrett' while I was an oblivious 1 year old, living about 7 miles away. Gosh!
@David Erlstoke Funnily enough, 'Pizza@Home' on the Brompton road( a stone's throw from Syd"s old flat) serves an excellent pizza. Best in London.
@@RealinDealer makes sense 🍕
I'm 14 and I love to listen to piper of the gates of dawn. My favourite song is Gnome. So cool 😎
2:31 nailed it. I haven't even listened to a Pink Floyd album in full yet, and here I am watching a documentary about Syd. I remember seeing a picture of him by accident on a classic rock page, and immediately thinking "woah, who's he?". The guy just naturally radiated a magnetic charm.
It's called being good looking lol
Got the album spun already🎶👍?
why wouldn't u listen to a while album. wtf
utter shite
The Pete D'Arby guy is fascinating......rarely do you get such candid, insightful info' & descriptions in these rockumentaries, he tells it so you can almost see it.....hats off as well to the editorial team for leaving so much of it in.
Totally agree with you. The guy's soft spoken but precise, unassuming, sober, down to the point.
agreed, absolutely great guy on this. very painterly
David Gilmour standing up for Syd is a sweet story. Gilmour looked after him quite well...well as he could.
Too bad that producer that wanted to work with Purple Gang.... lost that tape of SYD doing so many of his songs on his own!!!! That would be GREAT to hear..
''Now there's a look in your Eyes like blackholes in the sky'
dont think blackholes can be in the sky... the atmosphere would be sucked thus there'd be no sky left. The 'big band' got those lyrics wrong.
@@thinginground5179 ok virgin
@@thinginground5179 "The sky" has often been used as a euphemism for space and clearly fits much better in the rhyming scheme they're going for than "you eyes look like blackholes in space" - either way, it's ridiculous to take the lyric so literally, as if PF thought black holes existed in our atmosphere. Also, if you're going to get so pedantic: far more than the atmosphere would "be sucked" into a blackhole - the entire Earth and entire solar system would be too, unless it was a _very_ small one.
@@JET7C0 calm down
@@thinginground5179 I'm not uncalm or upset - I'm just saying to suggest they got the lyrics "wrong" is ridiculous because it's artistic expression, and it was funny to me you were wrong on the science you were attempting to correct in the first place. Also, come to think of it: the definition of the sky isn't exclusive to Earth's atmosphere, but what you see above its surface, which at night clearly includes outer space.
I Saw syd in Cambridge once, he lived a couple of minutes Down the Road from where i lived. Someone Said look theres syd barrett, couldnt believe it was him. He was probably then in the last Year of his life. A true artisan of his Trade, its a shame he ended up the Way he did, a reclouse who many people would not even recognise who he was but thats the Way he wanted it. God bless
When I think of Syd I get very sad. I mean, his potential was enormous and I would have loved to see where he would have gone if not for his over use of drugs.
Sid was one good looking guy
David Erlstoke yeah I know. I am a shitting typist and my fingers have a mind separate from my brain. I realized the mistake after I sent the comment. my apologies
agreed.
Especially with that shaved head and shaved eye brows!!!
was!?
gay
Syd for sure tripped so much and figured out that nothing matters unless you want it to
lmfaooooo that thought is a slippery slippery slope.
i often ponder that thought when I get into that state of mind, it's equal part unnerving and liberating.
Meaning is derived from attachment to the survival process. It's possible to break out of it, and not many will be able handle it.
TJBEATS97 nobody gets out alive anyway
jet boy mix it with possible schizophrenia and it’s a bad recipe.
I've always loved his voice. He was a fragile person, not really cut out for dealing with rigors of show biz. He had more a jazz attitude - he didn't want to do to ANYTHING the same way twice. He wanted each performance to be unique. The acid didn't help. but I think the prospect of doing what the Floyd wound up doing (totally blocked out huge productions) was antithetic to his preferred approach.
i have always said , if it wasnt for acid and drugs , what would music be like today . when you think about it so many great artists where on some sort of gear lol
later beatles
floyd
the doors
hawkwind
sabbath
led zepplin
probably still dancing round the maypole
I was the same way when I played. It was just so boring for me to play the same thing more than a few times without improvisation or change in tempo.
@@phil-zz5hk There's a difference between taking acid and taking it so much and in such a way that it hurts you. Psychedelics must be treated with respect. Then they can open vast new vistas.
@Bob Nyswonger You are spot on.
@@EclecticSceptic yes sir youve got to respect pyschedelics i personally love them but dont ever feel the need to abuse it they dont like to admit that if it were not for lsd the founder of AA NA would have neveir got sober they really dont like telling anyone that when your in rehab i felt i had to live the way my heros did and its destroyed me and took everything i loved in life but thank god for the healing powers of psychedelics
I suppose Syd was lucky to find a band to release his genius. Its unfortunate it ended all too soon
I've got a bike - you can ride it if you like. I love Syd. Definitely a genius.
shine on syd
I only had my father for a short time, but I don't think I have any memories of that time without music. Frank Zappa, Floyd, Zeppelin, Depeche mode, Grand Funk, ... I mean the list is super long. Even early Prince. I was in dance, all types, and even at 4,5,6... I remember dancing to Pink Floyd, moving and keeping the beat. It flows through you like Life. I'm 50 now,bum leg, but I can't not move to Pink Floyd . You must move. The lyrics are always relevant to my emotional moods and feelings throughout my years. 💕 Love Love Love them
This is not the first documentary I saw about Syd. But not one I have seen where anybody mentions medical help for Syd. I don't know what the British health service could have done at the time, and I haven't heard an actual diagnosis either, but to me this is awkward to hear everybody say "Hey, Syd's gone mad, how sad, let's just carry on." I don't want to be judgemental, and I am sure that I don't kow the whole story, but really nobody mentioning mental health care, is astonishing.
There is a well documented account that Roger, David, Nick and Rick all verified of Syd being supported by them to visit a psychiatrist well known at the time (RD Laing, I think the name was) but upon arrival refusing to keep the appointment. Remember, too, that the other band members were only in their early 20’s at the time and not sure what to do.
Mental health wasn't talked about them mate, were talking about a really different time, they've gone mad, lock them up or leave them. they're a looney, that was the attitude sadly
@@robphilpott43 Thanks for that detail I had never heard. The first time I read about RD Laing more than 25 years ago it was a quote of his: “madness is a sane strategy for dealing with an insane social environment.” Laing had some great ideas but somehow I don’t think he was the right doctor to treat Barrett.
From what I've read, he most certainly developed schizophrenia (not helped by the drugs, and the time when he sat in his apartment with the TV and stereo at "full blast" is indicative from someone having auditory hallucinations).
I was thinking the same - however the times were very different back then, mental illness was poorly understood and even more of a stigma than today. In a way it is quite lucky that he did not get put in an asylum and left for years and years as was so often the case - he lived an independent life. I have heard he spent time at Greenwoods in Essex a very forward thinking therapeutic community - which is great to hear.
So sad. Probably the most interesting person in the music industry ever. He has a cult following like no one ever.
Hmm. I don't about that. I'd agree except that Jim Morrison comes to mind. Jim seems to be the American version of Sid. Both have an almost identical rise and fall. Jim made much further though. Don't get me wrong. Floyd has ALWAYS been my personal favorite band and I've seen them 4 times. I have always liked the early years because of their experimentation. Nothing was off limits. I've read biographies on both and they mirror each other in many ways - especially acid! It was the d.o.c. of both and both lost sight of reality because of THAT particular drug. If you get some time, I recommend picking up a copy of Danny Sugarman's "No one Here Gets Out Alive". It's only about $5 in paperback and if you're interested in Sid Barrett, you'll find Jim Morrison to be equally as intriguing. And, Jim too, is still considered a sex symbol in the exact same manner. Check it out. I read through it in a few days. I started it and, right away got sucked into his strange world. I couldn't put it down. Oliver Stone's "The Doors" is pretty close to the mark but you can only fit so much into 2 hours. The book is, as always, much better.
@@duanemcclure8324 Agreed. I will say the movie doesn't hit the mark exactly as it is DEFINITELY romanticized but it is a fun watch and explains an artists mind a bit.
@@duanemcclure8324 Jim is a bit more tryhard than Syd. Syd was interesting and didn't care about anything, but Jim wanted to be that pretty boy
Mac Miller to Me
@@Iamdareal22 Mac Miller? Cmon man.
Each Saturday morning for going on 10 years now, I tune into a syndicated radio show "Floydian Slip" Craig Bailey,the host is a veritable Floyd historian, awesome host and I learn the back story of the Floyd each week, something new. Syd Barrett was the nucleus of Pink Floyd and whenever his name is mentioned or I hear the song SOYCD, I am digging through the internet to learn more about Syd Barrett, the musical genius, his solo work, interviews and anything thing he ever worked on ... Hats off to a great Human Being and thank you for your musical vision and inspiration.
Yes Syd took lots of acid but he was still excellent musician when high. Floyd's first album is all Syd's style and is completely different from their other albums. After Floyd reluctantly kicked Syd out because of his more and more void behavior Syd released two solo lp's. They are sparse and eccentric. Not exactly melodic or psych but I like them a lot. I personally don't think that acid changed Syd, I strongly feel he was a victim of hellish schizophrenia. RIP Syd Barrett
Someone in Syd's family must of had schizophrenia then man cause I'm sure that's the only way genetically, I dunno if you can develop it over time lmao, and bro I love my psychedelics but after having high dose trips I do believe acid played a part in his demise man, remember this was the 60s when lsd was everywhere 🤣, lsd or not his story is so sad man
Schizophrenic symptoms can be brought on by heavy drug use.
That part where he's telling the story about Syd saying, "don't want you here now mum, fuck off" made me laugh.
Such an unexpected thing to hear, but I had friends that had relationships with their moms like that, so I know the type
Seen them in Selby it was a marquee
Same, lol. My good friend was like that. Those exact words in that exact scenario, "ok fuck off now mom," (bites into sandwich mom just brought into the room)
So well spoken Syd was at the beginning.
Master Yoda?
“Me winning isn’t important, you do.”
@@ricksturgis6403 Mmmh,Master Yoda,he is.
they were all rich kids, what did you expect?
@@1968spikey Exactly. I expected him to take his 'rich kid' advantage to be a bank manager, sell real estate, and a politician. How ungrateful he was doing what he did instead.
One of the saddest stories of an immense talent falling so short of his potential just as they began to take off. Yet it's obvious he was a huge factor in the formative years of Pink Floyd.
I've seen the Syd Barrett story play out in my own life. Just without the fame of a band. Where people who are already having trouble straddling the line between sane and insane start a heavy rotation of psychedelics. And out of our little circle of two dozen people who were doing this, two were never right again, though still functional, while two dudes ended up in and out of institutions the next 3 decades, their original personality nowhere to be found. That's why after decades of drug use, I always maintained that acid was the most dangerous, even though when I was a teenager, it was presented as like the next step after weed. For some guys I knew. they'd have been better off trying crack or heroin.
Not sure why but I was expecting Syd , Not other people talking about Syd. Up close & Personal kinda stuff
97warlock ismyname well there wasn't a lot of footage made of Syd was there, so we have to do with people who knew him back then talking about him.
And how exactly do you expect this person to KNOW, one way or the other, if there WAS, or was NOT, a "lot of" footage of Syd?!?!?!?
Samuel Luria I supposed it because the person is watching a video about Syd Barrett and is therefore probably a fan and knows a thing or 2 about him. And if the person didn't know then that person knows now.
Good logic.
Mistitled / clickbait; may have been more aptly titled 'Pink Floyd: Origins' or something.
wasn't a lot of their early stuff absolutely awful
Yes
Syd Barrett... a TRUE artist. May God bless and keep you always.
Piper is THE PERFECT RECORD!!! Found Syd at 14 via Piper in the early 90s.... can still get excited when I pull it outta the sleeve now!
Same. Happy days, great memories
Joe Boyd produced two of the great eccentrics of the 60s and 70s with Syd and Nick Drake. Two special people.
It takes sensitivity to produce art however, sensitivity can destroy the soul,,
Record companies can be 2 blunt hat off to Joe Boyd🎶👍
Anyone claiming that LSD had no part in Syds decline is kidding themselves. I've known several people personally whose mental illness was kicked off by acid. Whether or not they still would have become ill is another matter acid definitely accelerated the problem. It's mental stuff and was so strong back then.
Mister Physics Ya but they’re just saying it coulda intensified a pre existing problem. Idk dawg
I use to take acid with my two good friends. I think I ended up fine but acid completely fuck them up. My one friend even died on acid, nasty fall.
If you take acid and defend it then just stop because you don’t know if someone will react to it same as you.
Bad drug!!!
@@davidcraig3609 IKR? I dont why everyone is being so rude and aggressive. Like kids today know what acid is - the tabs they have are barely LSD at all. Back in Syds time and even our time David it was very very strong. Plus when youve lived a little youve seen more and you know a thing or too.
@meme DanK You are a silly little boy with a microcock.
I have a friend who was affected by drugs the same way he went from creative genius to lunatic as he became an adult,I think psychedelics are beneficial for most but extremely dangerous to some.its sad but it’s just the way it goes nothing ventured nothing gained
Very true
“ Nothing ventured nothing gained.”
What a crass remark. In Syd and Peter Greens case everything lost!
Drugs never did anything lasting creatively for anyone.
Odd to reply to a year old comment I know but it pissed me off!
@henry mcvey Long term they are destructive. Short term or in careful moderation there is no question they are beneficial and i will say that about pretty much every drug out there. Best of luck keeping it in moderation though.
"For some." That's the important thing to highlight, as there are 8 billion souls inhabiting this place, and there has been far, far more than that, god willing there will be yet...it's a practically endless spectrum of individual tolerances, and what may seem an incomprehensibly large quantity of a substance to one person, there is in all likelihood another to which that same amount would seem just not quite enough to get the job done.
When studies are being undertaken for the development of a new Rx to combat some psychological disorder or what have you, it is almost universally true that a majority will respond in a way consistent with each other, while a separate, smaller group will find uneven and disparate results both from the majority and each other. My guess is that indeed it is so for users imbibing in drugs like LSD. Perhaps 75% of users could abuse the drug for years and years and experience no significant, long term negative effects. However, a fraction of the total use-cases appear to report an experience approximating the polar opposite, with these subjects fairly rapidly spiraling into some sort of terminal or semi-terminal drug psychosis, or some type of "induced schizophrenic state," from which there is either no return to the subject previous state, or a significantly protracted affliction period.
RIP you painter you raver.
Syd was a one off. His innate genius couldn't allow for an easy assimilation to the world around him.
Not a one-off. It was an explosive time in art schools, youth culture, counterculture throughout the U.S. and, presumably, the UK and Europe. Sounds like the coming together that grew into Pink Floyd was created by the quality of their relationships the made their collaboration so fruitfull.
With a record deal, yes😉👍
This is an interesting documentary but It seems very surface level when it comes to actually understanding Syd Barrett. The perspective of people who knew him is one thing but to actually try to understand what he was really doing is another. He used psychedelic drugs to break down barriers in his mind and attempted rewrite the rules of music as we know them seemingly in an alternate dimension where anything was possible. That's why he seemed childlike. It's because he was onto something and it was in its infantile stage when he accidentally went too far. The rest of the group picked up what was left of his legacy and continued on without him. Astronomy Domine was an example of what the seemingly nonsensical or childish music was about to develope into if Syd could have kept it together.
My best friend and band mate bought me 'piper at the gates of dawn' for Xmas or my birthday one year when I was 20 or so... I think the story of sid resonated with our relationship because I was a burgeoning schizophrenic at the time and we were both in a band together. Our band was called 21st Century Ox (2000s). We have some albums available for streaming on spotify etc... I ended up quitting the band and going solo and released 'pre-psychotic demos 1 & 2 ' this year and 'Psychotic' also under my own name. Luckily when I had my 'freak out', I used magic mushrooms every day for 2 weeks rather than acid... The case for 'drug induced psychosis' is a strong one... I remember friends coming to the door and greeting them then having no conversation once they entered... Psychosis is an interesting phenomena... I got over mine in the end
Syd was child-like, not childish. There's nothing wrong with that. He fell in with some bad people. It scarred him. I can identify with that. To label Syd as an acid casualty or mad is cruel. We all need a bump at times.
I was ignorant of Pink Floyd until "Dark Side of the Moon" and then I had to have everything they did. (My "Pulse" L.E.D. flashed until 2006!) I didn't know much about Syd Barrett except that he was an original king pin. I came away believing that although he left the group (fired) the rest of the band loved him deeply. I would like to be loved like that by my coworkers if my supervisor fired me! :)
There are very few music pieces with lyrics which I enjoyed more than Syd Barrett's songs while under the influence of psychedelics. His lyrics were fresh, somewhat mischievous, witty and clever on many levels, and I suspect that the more one was well read, well travelled and well educated, - the more he would appreciate Syd Barrett's songs and the way his personality came out through them. These songs seem to have a synaesthetic appeal to them, - appearing to join many different things that didn't seem to fit together, but his songs made them fit, and I think that was the beauty of Floyd as a band which was almost completely lost when he left. I can't be sure whether he had schizophrenia or simply a pronounced schizotypal disorder which made him prone to instances of eccentric behaviour, but it would be disingenuous to attribute his genius to a mental disorder or mental illness. I worked in mental health settings, and most in-patients in general psychiatric care facilities are nowhere near the level of Syd. Maybe some people just aren't "welcome to machine", and maybe this is one of the reasons why brevity has to be one of the key components of beauty.
Very thoughtful. I was in mad love to girl ("to" because it was one sided) of the same type (Capricorn, as Syd was), and sooo talented. Yet mood swings, anti-depressants and demanding attitude took tall on her by 21-22. Disconnection with tedious reality, complete disregard to repetitive hard work. She got disability and for decades watched Universe through tiny hole in house wall...
_" brevity has to be one of the key components of beauty"_ - True, and that's why early Floyd ain't _that_ beautiful. Tempo change would have helped.
absoloutely agree
What a pretentious load of crap.
What does one's date of birth (zodiac sign) have to do with his personality?
I still think that Syd is so underappreciated and not given the credit he deserves for his brilliance and influence on the London Psychadelic rock scene and what followed in the late 60's. I mean, is it coincidence that while Floyd was in Studio recording Piper, that the Beatles were right next door while making Sgt Peppers??? I think not and I believe that Syd had a major influence on how the Beatles went about making that Album. To me, that is brilliance...
You should really listen to what Roger has to say about that. They only met once, they were allowed to see one recording and they influenced Floyd more than the other way around.
Love ya, Syd! Listening to The Madcap Laughs right now courtesy of the WPB library. Isn't the library grand? Wish you were here.
@Mickey G My brother produced that album!
This turned out to be way better than I was expecting. I thought it might be some trashy exploitation piece that I’d seen before, but it wasn’t -the interviewees were very well-chosen-Pete, Joe, Norman, Duggie-All had really interesting things to say, things I haven’t heard before, (and I’ve been listening to Syd Barrett for 40 years). Joe Boyd’s stories were superb-One has to wonder what Piper at the Gates of Dawn would have sounded like with Joe Boyd producing. Norman Smith, what a character (reminds me of “Mad John” on Small Faces Nut Gone Flake!😃) Smith was brilliant at what he did, but I think Joe might have understood where Syd was coming from, musically, a bit better. It’s really too bad that EMI pushed Joe out of that deal. Truly, Arnold Lane is my favorite PF song, single and I believe the best recording of Syd Barrett-Before the mental break of May, ‘67 and well before PatGoD and the 2 solo albums. It’s truly amazing that those solo albums even got made! And I love them both dearly. The only thing I didn’t care for in this documentary was the uncredited cover recordings of early Barrett/Pink Floyd songs - undoubtedly it was a performing rights issue, it probably cost a lot of money for the producers to license the original recordings, but I would have chosen to not have that music, it just sounds second-rate to not have the originals. Otherwise, top-quality interviews with well spoken individuals. 💔R.I.P. Duggie Fields, a talented & unique artist.
Yeah the covers threw me a bit.
Well good on Gilmour for not stopping the session.
Timestamp?
@@devinreese7704 what do you mean? 🤔
@@gleblerston37 46:40 and then listen to the story about being in recording studio.
gringopig it wasn't the last time Glimour stood up for Syd. Basically for the rest of Syd's life, Glimour made sure that he got a percent of Pink Floyd royalties even though he had long since left the band.
Yeah I like the idea that even though everyone was uncomfortable, Syd wasnt. That's all that mattered that day. Syd was ok inside his own universe somewhere playing an amazing tune to some intergalactic crowd...
Syd is a timeless phenomenon/energy. The energy that goes against the grain.
I always loved Syd's guitar playing, and the excellent runs he could do on a song like "Lucifer Sam" for example, turning it into some strange hybrid between James Bond in the music and Edgar Allen Poe in the lyrics, and a healthy dose of playfulness in between. But that first album, Piper at the Gates of Dawn, it was so insane, i don't know how that you can follow it up. I love that album, but it was something that cannot be repeated. And it breaks my heart that Syd was the casualty, the sacrifice if you will, to make it happen.
Could the filmmaker have sat Joe Boyd in a noisier chair?! Sounds like he's farting his way thru his entire interview.State of the fart film making.
I agree,Knobbie! Benny Hill would be PROUD of that SCENE!!!!!
Hey Knobbie,Maybe Malcolm McLaren donated the couch from His "SEX PISTOLS" days!!!!!!
Yeah it was like he was farting non stop! Lol
He _could've_ used a noisier chair, had he mine. My chair has a woopie cushion connected to multiple flabber tubes reminiscent of a pipe organ.
I suppose he could squeeze one out and everybody would think it's the chair!
I really enjoyed Pete and Duggie, John and Joe of UFO and their perspectives of Syd. It is about as close as you can get to knowing him I imagine. Whether consciously or not, I love how Syd just disregarded Norman Smith/EMI. The more I learn about EMI, the more I have disdain for them. I disagree that Syd wasn’t a genius. Creatively he opened many doors for countless musicians who were unquestionably deeply influenced by him.
The band did good by Syd giving him his credit.
Whatever.
Hate to break it to you people, but Syd is totally overrated.
Isn't it strange that when i was a teenager a social and musical revolution was taking place and now, 50 years later a certain portion of that music from the rock hero's of my generation is now the "elevator music" of the 21st century. Particularly The Beatles. Even some of the most upsetting music they ever put out such as Sgt. Peppers.
Sometimes life is all about giving credit where credit is due. Syd Barrett seemed like a very special human being.
When the man was talking about Syd taking acid for 7 days straight he mentioned how he looked like "no one was home". with drugs like that, psychedelic type drugs, they open pieces of yer mind & certain parts of you die. Mentally/spiritually/physically/emotionally etc. When pieces of people die, unless the whole being dies a physical death, those pieces have to be replaced by something. No one knows what those pieces consist of, usually not even the person experiencing it. The body doesn't know how to handle certain things & people love to take things to extremes &push limits. Artists fall into those patterns what seems the most. It's sad because we lose a lot of them because of it, not just the drugs but the mental instabilities that those drugs can bring out& people who may be around also bringing out those instabilities, knowingly & unknowingly, people have a big part of why others fall into the patterns they do. Dealing with the world as it is & how it "evolves" doesn't always make a good combination. As we see by losses like these.
"'ok mom fuck off..' no disrespect" that's how me & my kids are/were, when they were with me. Their lying father doesn't understand that about us because he's neglectful & doesn't/didn't really know us. Or at least the us that used to be, idk how my boys are now.
Syd didn't have to put his mind to something else to be a guru, he still very much was one. Thank you for sharing this video, it was very good & nice hearing about him. Painful hearing how some people saw him but that's how people are.
" you are the most extraordinary person ..
I've ever seen"
kevin ayers
RIP Syd Barrett Gone but not forgotten. So many people have lived a life of mental torment and mental illness and his wonderful mind will cease to stop as his music and lyrics are still listened and sung everyday and he will never be forgotten. ❤️. Xxxx
Syd is mind-candy that will never grow old. I love that he hated commercialism. His art was meant to be truly original and never repeated the same any other time.
great comment!!!
Mind candy? If your under the influence perhaps.
And as for art, we'll I guess he could be best described as the Picasso of the music industry, because his music was a shambles of randomness.
No wonder he didn't like commercialism, as that would suggest that he would have to conform to some sort of formula. But a formula is what sells records.
(People who drink Coca Cola probably wouldn't, if the recipe kept changing on a weekly or monthly basis).
When you find a groove that you like, you expect the band to stick to a similar recognisable formula, otherwise you quickly lose interest I think.
And in Syd's case, it was only his band mates that kept his memory alive, and maybe their hard core fans from the earliest days of the band.
@@hermanmunster3358 Reductive comment. The kid was a talented player before he blew out his candle. Then, yeah, it was a mess. Hand an unmedicated schizophrenic a guitar and let's hear what happens. Now imagine that that's basically Syd by late '67.
@@VanishedPNW That is probably true. But when he "blew out his candle" then he did that to his own detriment imo. I don't buy music based on the sentiment of others, or for the Nostalgia value that others may feel. I buy music that is pleasing to MY ears, and that I can make sense of.
"In my Paisley shirt, I look a jerk- Vegetable Man were are you!
"my shirt is pink,ill squirt a wank"R.I.P.love you SID.
When I think of Syd Barrett it's like he died young around 1970 because there was really nothing more after that date.
He died in the spring/summer of 1967. After that, he was not the same person anymore.
Anyway 2006 pretty dazed and confused not alone almost lucky, mmmmkay🎶😏👍
David Gilmore must be a very good man. He tried to help him after the overdose. An example is when he took him to the recording studio and had his back when the engineer began lampooning him. After hearing that, I have a lot of respect for David Gilmore.
Gilmour :)
Go dawgs
that ending… Syd will forever live on through his music and all of us who choose to keep his name alive. forever grateful for all the amazing melodies and songs he’s given us, here’s to you Syd!! 🙏
nice to see, right at the top of this, the unedited version of that oft-shown "why does it all have to be so terribly loud?" exchange.
On the WALL album. I heard this, at the center right, after the last song. A voice said. ''God, please save Syd.'' This was played on an old stereo system. Where the arm would have more play in it. So it would have more room to go to the very end of records. Not all record players would do that.
Is this really you?
@@corywiedenbeck1562 nah cmon . Course it's not her. She looks about 22. Don't think she was listening to original floyd records, that said save sid.?. I could be wrong but I would say its not her. It's probably an older women or man. 🤷🏽♂️ ✌️✌️✌️
The first two Pink Floyd albums and the singles are so under rated, I can see why the stuff between that and meddle are not loved but man those two albums from the 60s are as good as anything
I think that a lot of the Dark side of the Moon album, Wish you were Here, AND The Wall...were all written about Syd...Just listen to the lyrics!
Ummm....duhhh, lol.
I think it's hardly a controversial point, despite what he or anyone else in the band may believe. They have cited at various points Waters' apparently shallow inspiration wellspring, narrowing his main fixations lyrically to be about war & going nuts.
As comment section critics, I think we can surmise his preoccupation with "the war" is reflexive and singularly to do with his own father's perceived abandonment as a result of "the war," and not instead some vaguely militaristic doom & violence fantasy, nor is it born of some weird adulation of military history (lol). So, he uses the war as a kind of expressive vehicle creatively while in real life he tries coming to terms with the loss of his dad. Likewise, perhaps his seemingly left-field preoccupation with "going crazy" may again be indicative of some kind of experienced grievous trauma resulting from "madness" which, like war, again left Waters to navigate life in it's damaging aftermath. Since we know Waters did not personally go batty (at the time of those albums lol) it must be a creative preoccupation born of a trauma he felt was done unto him caused by the effects of madness.
Perhaps it was the milk man, or maybe twas his errand boy.
Syd did too much cid
my mums friend went to uni with nick mason small world sometime,s but with out syd there would be no pink floyd & most of their songs were about syd as well.for me syd was a creative genius his guitar playing was amazingly raw & original rip syd & nick gone but never forgotten peace...
@DJ big leg Nick isn't gone!
My brother has had schizophrenia for about 40 years, and from what I’ve heard it seems that Syd also had this. Love his Pink Floyd music; and his 3 solo albums are very enjoyable as well. Yes, there are parts of this music that many might see as being a bit under produced, or amateurish, but there is also so much brilliance in a lot of the 3 solo albums; and I prefer it over so much other music!! God bless Syd Barrett.
@sfender2182 Thank you for your comment, so many people don't realize that Syd began breaking down mentally it due to the onset of Schizophrenia. Everyone thought his personality changes and odd behavior were from drugs, until it became noticeable that he was CONSISTENTLY going down, and had stopped drugs. He literally walked out one day and was found sleeping in the streets, and had no idea who he was. 😢 It's so very sad. 😢
@@MamaofaWrestler None of the other band members knew what was going on with Syd. He became increasingly difficult to work with and unreliable to the point where they eventually stopped picking him up when off to play some gigs. I've heard Dave Gilmour say that with hindsight they should have handled it better and got Syd professional help. It was all extremely sad.
@@Bulletguy07That was my question - did Syd ever get treated for schizophrenia? If not why?
@@RDnAC No he didn't and even his own family denied Syd was mentally ill. Back in the 60s/70s being mentally ill had a stigma to it. Its worth reading Syds Wiki page as there is a section detailing his health problems on there.
I bet that fella with the low key leather farting chair wishes he's have thought it through a bit more
effing lol
You really think an old dude cares about something like that lol
Joe Boyd has been involved in promoting, recording and nourishing most of the quality music to come out of the UK since the sixties to today. You don't know Abba from Zappa and the bits in between. Piss off.
@@johnmcfadden1416 Joe Boyd's chair farts I'm not the only one to notice it, what's that got to do with whether or not i remember swedish avante garde combo Zabba? Will you be casting doubt on everyone's musical knowledge or did I just get lucky?
I shall henceforth refer to my leather desk chair as my "farting chair." Thank you for sharing that brilliant phrase! (No relation, BTW).
Mrs Richards: " I paid for a room with a view!"
Basil: (pointing to the lovely view) "That is Torquay, Madam."
Mrs Richards: "It's not good enough!"
Basil: "May I ask what you were expecting to see out of a Torquay hotel bedroom window? Sydney Opera House, perhaps? the Hanging Gardens of Babylon? Herds of wildebeest sweeping majestically past?..."
Mrs Richards: "Don't be silly! I expect to be able to see the sea!"
Basil: "You can see the sea, it's over there between the land and the sky."
Mrs Richards: "I'm not satisfied. But I shall stay. But I expect a reduction."
Basil: "Why?! Because Krakatoa's not erupting at the moment?
This is cool till they make a few disparaging disagreable comments about him
all right, i'm 21 mins into this program, how many times are they going to play the same Interstellar Overdrive clip?
low budget documentary, so what can you expect? just enjoy the interviews with Hoppy, Joe Boyd and Norman Smith. its one of the few occasions they actually spoke out about Floyd.
I was banned from a Facebook PF fan group for stating that, if things had been different and Syd hadn't left the band, they would have only lasted for another album, or two, then faded into obscurity. I still love the early Floyd, but they would never have achieved the great success with Syd.
Rick Carlstrom we could never know for sure ... at some point waters would have started coming with his grandiose ideas and boom, the possibilities there are infinite
@@manuelpuente7336 Hi, I thought about that scenario too. Somehow I don't think Syd, after being 'the guy', could ever have played 2nd fiddle, so to speak, to Roger Waters. But, as you said, we could never know for sure.
please respect the memory of the great syd barrett
@@periscopio6401 I do respect the memory of Syd Barrett. Just stating my opinion. Last I knew, I'm still allowed to do that.
Syd wasnt looking for fame or money , he never wanted that..
Rest well Syd, you have inspired countless acolytes, myself humbly among them.
Norman Smith doesnt realise how annoying he is/was as a producer..you do not tell a songwriter to reaarange/change his songs...I feel so sorry for Syd that he had to deal with the likes of Norman. Drive anyone demented and enrage them. Syd was not at fault. He had intergity. It must have been unbearble. Such a huge shame they lost Joe Boyd when they opted for EMI.. : /
so glad to see you write this.. agree 100%.. nuff said : )
And without him they might have just been another psychedelic band that came and went. Thats the dilemma faced by any producer. Anyway..my daughters name is Emily. I can't possibly think why we chose that name. If you listen to what Joe Boyd says later on at 40 Mins that makes a lot of sense.
Piper is a masterpiece in part because of Smith though, what an album!
You do know that it's the same Norman "Hurricane" Smith who graced Britain's pop charts in the 1970s do you? 'Oh Babe, what would you say" and worse.
Smith was, perhaps, the wrong producer for Pink Floyd at that time - but producing Syd Barrett was arguably one of the most impossible and thankless tasks a producer could take on. Who would have done a better job?
SADLY MISSED SYD, SHINE ON YOU CRAZY DIAMOND
The whole band were so well spoken and gracious in interviews. And to think the older generation at the time see them as being shocking for playing loud. What the hell would they make of some of the stuff today.
Real insight here,it wasn't ' the drugs" alone,he didn't like the whole commercial scene,the repetition,a true artist
Now a days they are suggesting something on the autism spectrum or Aspergers of some form.... I read some articles about that just after I decided he was schizophrenic moderately.....so now I’m just gonna say he had “Roger Barrett” ! Seriously. I’ve read he was very stubborn, thus giving up music completely. I’ve read he had a nasty bad temper, thus some girlfriends and places such as his home in Cambridge for which they gave him anti psychotics for a while or not long anyway but repeated. He had synesthesia seems very clear...like the only clear thing! I’ve read how lovable he was retired in Cambridge and at the same time I’ve read how blunt and unpleasant he could be. I’ve read he was lonely and sometimes suicidal then I’ve read he was content and enjoyed his own company and didn’t want visitors but maybe that only meant fans and interviewers. I learned he was in hospital and given the death sentence after 4 weeks and sent home to die in his own bed. I’ve read he was in a home for disturbed people a couple years but no meds.....man I mean it seems just all over the place. All that walking and other things bouncing stride on balls of feet childhood thru adult which is sort aspergers autism stuff....I read he intentionally acted weird after too much touring and playing same songs and he did so because he wanted his band to just be jam musicians so they didn’t have to do that part and they didn’t agree. And what was the story finding him in a corner of a room in catatonic state and from then on not the same? It’s been suggested he took chemicals different from acid and actually could result in brain damage. When he saw they weren’t gonna change nor put up with his antics he got freaked out knowing they wanted him gone and took to extra drug abuse. Hell I even read he used amphetamines in retirement resulting in ulcers and stomach surgery and I read he shot heroine in London and probably got hep C which leads to some of his symptoms.... I read he was actually quite remote from girlfriends except first one and then I read he wrote love letters...I read daily acid intake results in no high quickly like days. It still remains sad and confusing for the most part. He was different that’s for sure!
I don't think Syd's brain was gone like Laing said. He had probably just realized it just wasn't worth the bother, and had himself a quiet life instead.
Really??? He signed the EMI contract.
Don't do acid kids!
I friggin love Syd and Pink Floyd__👍🏻💯🇬🇧🎸 David and the rest of the guys looking out for Syd for the rest of his days was /is an awesome thing to do.
Gilmour saved pink floyd. Just my opinion. 🤷♂️
For the typical look of that era, Syd most definitely had a very sophisticated handsome face. Even in a two dimensional picture the sparkles in his eyes are so captivating.
The sparkles in his eyes went away at the end of May 1967, never to return again.
@@Danimal77 that’s so sad. :(
I will say, i guess its good that Syd wasn't an archi student like the others, because I'm sure that would've caused a much faster and more intense mental breakdown and possibly suicidal ideation. Speaking from personal experience here, my mental health has gone down the shitter since starting, its like a years-long bootcamp. Good thing the other boys managed to get out and succeed without it. I can only imagine them on their 4th all-nighter of the week on nothing but coffee and cigs looking at each other going, "we'd better make something of this band because I can't take any more of this shit"
Good luck.
And good job, making this all about you. Psssh...
I'm especially impressed with Norman Smith's anecdote around 19:40 . I find that it shows the approach producers had in those days. You can tell he hated Pink Floyd's music, but from a business' standpoint he saw how engaged the audience was and how originally they presented themselves on stage and decided they had potential. That open mindedness was nowhere to be found in producers in more recent times, even before the internet.
So he was just a money maker yes?
@@barbarastepien-foad4519 Mhm, most definitely he was. Frankly, I prefer a money maker who will give everyone a chance to make him money to someone who thinks he is the ultimate arbiter of musical taste and will only promote musicians that suit him.
He’s out of touch and doesn’t know what anything is. Just a money making opportunity to him. A commodity.
@@scariella1314 Of course. He ran a business, not a charity. And if any of the big stars you idolize ever says that it's all about the art, don't let your admiration for them blind you: they are full of s__t. No one would know they ever existed, without the music *business*. All I meant with my comment is that at least back in those days producers had a progressive, risk-taking approach to the business. The last thirty years have been endless repetition of formats that were successful in the past.
A unique and beautiful mind and man . His personality was constantly evolving in and out of madness. This is more common than you think. This case is just so well documented and speculated on. This is how fact and fiction become intertwined,leading to myth and ledgend. I first heard at a young age 11 or 12 ,this was a band with a"real crazy man". This of course peaks interest.
...the irony of Joe Boyd's perfect, involved, human production of AL (the abysmal film and footage of nick and roger wasting everyone's time aside...) contrasted with the emi company producer who had nothing but contempt for the band couldn't be more stark or heartbreaking or maddening...fuck emi...and again , david gilmour is a man...outstanding, from the heart...
Yep💫
Shine on you Crazy Diamond 💜
Note to self: never record an interview with someone sitting on a leather couch.
Psychedelic Baroque or something?
Absolutely love Syd he will b dearly missed!!!! 😢✌️
Apples and oranges was terrible 😔
Syd is an icon for the rest of time.
I agree with a lot of you guys on here saying Syd was the subject of ALOT of Pink Floyd's concepts and ideas feelings depictions, but after hearing Peter or whoever said they saw Syd in May 67' and his girlfriend looked anxious and said Syd had dropped acid for 7 days straight......it all comes back to set and setting, intention, let alone dosage and moderation of substance, metabolism and mood/mental state at the time of taking LSD. Syd might've had a gene for schizophrenia, but LSD didn't activate those genes.....the fact that THE WAY HE TOOK ACID is what broke him.....set, setting, dosage and intentions are EXTREMELY important for gaining healing from psychedelics.
Rick Wright’s dreamy, trippy keyboard sound is incredible!
Wright has a solo album called 'Wet Dream' i believe, and i think it's pretty good
Love you forever Syd
Magical,mystical, and unnerving and totally unique.What would Floyd have been had he stayed,they are always at the top of my list of all time but how much greater could they have been with Syd? We will never know.As they stand they are my favorite band of all time period,I have everything they ever did.Their talent is on a totally otherworldly level.
Would have been much worse. Masterful art requires discipline and practice.
best thing for pink floyd as a band was sid leaving. he was their mate, but if he had stayed he would have destroyed the band. then he bacame an inspiration for some of their best music, that would not have happened with him in the band.
One gets the distinct impression none of the band were terribly fond of Norman Smith. Such a tragedy. The latent schizophrenic tendencies that gave Syd his unique genius were ripped open by LSD...too much too often, and probably a dose or two of bad acid causing permanent neural damage...and from then on he was always struggling to swim back up to the light.
Their statements must be taken in the light that Smith, for contractual reasons, received production credit (and payment from the band) for Ummagumma - an album he did ZERO work on.
do u draw or paint ? that would be a great Piece.....
this is pseudo science there is absolutely no evidence that LSD causes "neural damage" Please do not spread misinformation. The negative effects of acid are purely psychological. It is possible to destroy yourself, indeed.
Always a tendency to blame it on one single cause, when in fact, there were other drugs involved as well as an excess of them.
LSD had that effect on many of us kids in the 90s.