Joe Nolan's Insomnia » Syd Barrett

Syd’s Elephant

Joe Nolan — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 04:57:45 +0000

Syd Barrett, the visionary co-founder of Pink Floyd, was the groundbreaking band’s original singer, guitar player and main songwriter. Pink Floyd should be admired for their evolution and innovation over five decades, but for some the band was never the same after they lost Syd in 1968. Even after he left the band Barrett wasn’t done with music and he released two solo records in 1970: Madcap Laughs and Barrett which included the song “Effervescing Elephant.” Here’s Laughing Squid with the word on the tune and a video that was created to celebrate the song and the artist…

After departing from Pink Floyd in 1968, the troubled but talented Syd Barrett released “Barrett“, his eponymous 1970 album, which was also to be his last. The album included the wonderfully alliterative, but somewhat grim song entitled “Effervescing Elephant“, for which an amusing animated music video was made in that same year.

Here’s the video…

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Wish You Were Here

Joe Nolan — Wed, 21 Oct 2015 05:34:19 +0000

This month we’re celebrating Syd Barrett’s 70th birthday and remembering the 10th anniversary of his death. The family of Syd Barrett has backed a plan to provide a permanent memorial in Cambridge for the Pink Floyd legend. Here’s a word from the Cambridge News…

The family of Syd Barrett has backed a plan to provide a permanent memorial in Cambridge for the Pink Floyd legend.

A commemoration for the Cambridge musician, one of the most revered songwriters of all time, is set to be established inside the Corn Exchange, where he played his last gig. It will mark the 10th anniversary of the death of the original Pink Floyd frontman, as well as the 70th anniversary of his birth.

Developers’ contributions of £10,000 have been earmarked for the 2016 project and it is poised to be rubber-stamped by a Cambridge City Council committee tonight.

Speaking on behalf of the Barrett family, Syd’s sister Rosemary Breen said they “welcome this opportunity” to commemorate him.

In the meantime here’s the Pink Floyd documentary The Pink Floyd Story: Which One Was Pink…

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35 Years of The Wall

Joe Nolan — Tue, 23 Sep 2014 16:12:48 +0000

Pink Floyd has finally released the details of their oft-rumored upcoming new project — a mostly instrumental affair that will serve as a memorial of sorts for late keyboard player Rick Wright. The album will be called The Endless River.

I’m not super excited by the announcement, though I’d be more interested if the project marked a return of Roger Waters to the fold, but it seems that’s wishing too much — the band parted ways in 1980 while touring their final album together, The Wall.

While some fans lose interest in the band after the Syd Barrett era comes to an end, many might suggest that The Wall was the group’s last great hurrah. River‘s timing is interesting as The Wall — which was released in 1979 — is celebrating its 35th anniversary this year.

Here’s the band with Waters, performing The Wall in its entirety at the Earl’s Court Exhibition Center in 1980…

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Happy Birthday, Syd Barrett

Joe Nolan — Tue, 07 Jan 2014 00:14:07 +0000

The legend of Syd Barrett continues to haunt the music of Pink Floyd and all rock that sounds remotely psychedelic. Today would’ve been Barrett’s 67th birthday if not for his untimely death in July of 2006. In honor of the legend and the man, here’s a fascinating excerpt from a remembrance in The Independent recalling Barrett’s 1975 visit to Abbey Road studios where his old bandmates were recording “Shine on You Crazy Diamond.”:

In June 1975, while Pink Floyd were recording the album Wish You Were Here at London’s Abbey Road studios, a portly, shaven-haired man arrived and stood quietly at the back, watching.

He appeared as the Floyd performed the song “Shine On You Crazy Diamond”. It contains the words: “Remember when you were young, you shone like the sun. Shine on you crazy diamond. Now there’s a look in your eyes, like black holes in the sky.”

At first, they didn’t recognise the man, whose head and eyebrows were shaved and who was apparently trying to clean his teeth by holding the brush still and jumping up and down.

But this was the “crazy diamond” himself: Syd Barrett, the subject of the song. He was the most famous “acid casualty” of his generation, and the writer of much of the original material of the group, from which he had been ejected because of his drug-induced eccentricities.

When Roger Waters saw his old friend, he broke down.

Read the full article at The Independent.

Here’s an exhaustive documentary about the man and his music:

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