The Enigmatic Story of Syd Barret's Rise and Imminent Decline
Pink Floyd's elusive and often overlooked founding member
Roger Keith Barret was born on January 6, 1946. The young British boy from Cambridge would eventually have his name etched in the annals of music history. Early on his life, Roger was encouraged by his parents to pursue different arts, especially music and poetry, winning multiple contests for these artistic endeavors. Unfortunately, his father died when he was only 15. That day’s entry in Roger’s diary simply stated “Dear Dad died today.” . He was affected by the loss, often stating his dad’s influence and merits. But this was only the first misfortune in the series of personal struggles his life would be marred by. Despite his tragically brief career, his stint with his band left an indelible mark on the world of music. Barret’s artistic vision and genius continue to captivate and inspire.
Roger attended the Cambridgeshire High School for Boys, where he amused his colleagues by impersonating famous people, including comedy actor Sid James. That’s how he got the nickname “Sid”, given by fellow Brian Boydell. Four years later, when he was 16, Barret would go to one of Riverside Seven’s concert - a traditional jazz band - and discover the bassist’s name was Sid Barret. So he had to slightly change his alias to “Syd”. Born Roger, nicknamed Sid when he was 12 and becoming Syd from 16 on to what would be the most important part of his life, Barret would prefer the original Roger from the 1970s towards the end of his life. But we’ll get there too, soon enough…
Syd displayed a prodigious talent for playing the guitar and writing songs from a young age. In primary school, he met Roger Waters. Later as a teenager, he also met David Gilmour. Those were the three main pioneers of the different eras that what would become Pink Floyd would go through. The Barret family home hosted multiple collaborations with local bands, in which Syd took part. After a while, he began playing with The Hollerin’ Blues. At the same time, Waters formed Sigma 6 with some of his college friends, among which were also Richard Wright and Nick Mason. Two of the band’s members left, so Syd and Rado Klose joined. This form of Pink Floyd released six songs. In 1965, it was renamed to The Pink Floyd Sound, some members left. So the initial-final lineup consisted of Waters, Mason, Wright and Barret. Shortly after, the band changed its name to the one we all reckon.
Barret’s innate musical ability would eventually take the band to its first highs, firstly gaining a reputation in the underground London music scene through their gigs and then reaching to some success with their first album The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, proving to have an innovative and experimental sound they will soon become renowned for, accompanied by Syd’s whimsical British poetry.
During Pink Floyd’s early days (when it was also known as The Tea Set), the band only represented a part-time occupation. At the same time, Barret and Gilmour’s friendship was growing, the two being detained by police for busking while being on vacation Pablo Picasso’s house in France, invited by the painter’s son who studied at Cambridge. The band was still trying to find its place, switching genres from blues and R’n’B to the British psychedelic current. By that time, they were already known for the most part for their gigs and performance skills. But the psychedelic genre created space for Syd to shine brightly. The underground group were about to emerge to notoriety.
Syd Barret had already established himself as the composing innovator and creative driving force of Pink Floyd when they signed a deal with EMI in 1967. Shortly after, they released two singles - Arnold Layne and See Emily Play - and started working on their debut album. At the same time, at the same studio they were working in - Abbey Road Studios - The Beatles were also recording Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. See Emily Play charted during those times, so the band received even more recognition and got to gig on television, but Syd also started behaving a little strange. Waters stated in many interviews that “he got very weird very quickly” and Pink Floyd had to cancel performances for being “flake out” as the headlines told it. Unfortunately, this happened right around the release date of their debut album. What could’ve been a period suited for a tour to promote their work became an unfruitful opportunity. Despite all this, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn went on to be considered a great success and one of the greatest psychedelic albums.
The LP was mostly composed by Barret and his influence on Pink Floyd’s early music cannot be overstated. Syd’s unique songwriting, guitar style and lyricism were integral to the band’s debut. Characterized by its whimsical and psychedelic themes, their first album remains a cult classic, showcasing Syd’s unparalleled creativity and his ability to meld whimsy and surrealism. Astronomy Domine, Interstellar Overdrive and Bike are the works that encapsulate the most of what Pink Floyd was trying to achieve with their early music.
Even though those times were the peak of Syd Barret’s creative brilliance, he started signaling the emerge of mental and emotional turmoil and started to develop a troubled personality. The band recorded two singles - Scream Thy Last Scream (Old Woman With A Casket) and Vegetable Man - but their non-commercial nature brought them to the shelves. A third one named Apples and Oranges was published, but it wasn’t as successful as their previous works. Pink Floyd’s performances mostly relied on the instrumental part rather than the vocals, due to the inadequate quality of the sound equipment during those days. Hendrix was also popular at the moment and he really set the bar for concerts to come. With that in mind and Syd’s more and more erratic behavior, Pink Floyd was inspired by the Beach Boys - band whose material was mostly composed by Brian Wilson, but performed by the other band members, his role being solely that of a composer - to approach David Gilmour, one of Barret’s closest friends. He would play guitar during performances and Syd would be the one with the compositional abilities needed for studio work.
But his weird doings, fueled in part by excessive drug use and the pressures of fame, strained his relationships within the band. Barrett's descent into mental instability eventually led to his departure from Pink Floyd in 1968. His departure would mark the end of an initial formative era for the band but the beginning of a mystique surrounding Barrett that would only grow over the years.
There are many stories that depict Syd’s unstable and unpredictable actions from his period of decline with the band. One time during a concert, he kept playing the same chord over and over again, other times he would purposely detune his guitar or refuse to play at all. Waters used to live with him in the same apartment, would go shopping for groceries only to come back and find him in the exact same position as he was when he left. During an interview on American television, Barret refused to answer the questions and fixed the interviewer with a dead eyed stare in total silence. Apparently a big change came when Syd disappeared for an entire weekend, only to come back irrevocably changed. He wasn’t able to recognize some of his friends, spoke in a strange way and experienced sudden mood swings and hallucinations. The band thought and came to the conclusion that it may be a result of an LSD overdose he had experienced, but it cannot be confirmed.
The straw that broke the camel’s back was a seemingly amusing but unsettling incident. Syd brought a new song to rehearsals and presented it to the band. Every time he played it, he kept changing it before bringing it back to the chorus. The other bandmates were confused and Waters eventually found the matter annoying. Intentionally or not, the chorus’ main line was “have you got it yet?” . That was Syd’s final rehearsal with Pink Floyd. On the 25th of January, the band decided not to pick him up on their way to a Southampton performance.
After leaving Pink Floyd, Syd Barrett embarked on a brief and sporadic solo career. In 1970, he released The Madcap Laughs, partially helped by former bandmates Gilmour and Waters with working on the more haunting and evocative second side of the LP. It sold well by the standards of those times so EMI gave him another shot. In November 1970, Barrett was released, Syd’s final musical effort. Gilmour produced it and Richard Wright played on keyboards. It showcased a different, more introspective side of his songwriting. These two albums received mixed reviews but garnered a devoted following among fans and critics who were drawn to the raw, unfiltered emotions in Barrett's music.
Between 1968 and 1972, Syd made brief live appearances, his final one being on BBC Radio. In January 1972, he tried forming a trio band called Stars. It was initially well received by audiences but Barrett quit after a rather dreadful performance at the Corn Exchange that brought the band’s reputation to the ground. Around that time, Dark Side of the Moon was released by Pink Floyd, one of the best concept albums/song suites, partially inspired by experiences garnered with Syd.
After a return to Abbey Road Studios in 1974, with the aim of recording another album, Syd Barret ultimately left the music industry and chose to live in Cambridge with his sister and express his art only through painting.
Pink Floyd would see him for the last time one year later, during the recording sessions for Wish You Were Here. On the 5th of June, he turned up unannounced at Abbey Road, strangely and precisely as the band was working on Shine On You Crazy Diamond - song meant to serve as a tribute and ode to Barrett’s artistic brilliance and tragic decline.
The person that entered the studio that day was only a bloated shadow of who Syd used to be. His hair and eyebrows were completely shaved and he had gained a considerable amount of weight. Mentally, he was barely there. The band didn’t even recognized him at first, or at least refused to admit it but David Gilmour broke the silence and stated the inevitable truth: “It’s Syd”. Waters started weeping after the hurting realization.
When asked what he thought about their work, he called it “a bit old” not even acknowledging its subject - him. Some time later, he left the studio - as suddenly as he appeared.
Despite the artists’ constant attempts over the years to reconnect with their old friend, the Barret family told them it would only cause a saddening state to Syd. Wright said “It’s terribly sad. We don’t see him, because apparently if he’s ever reminded of Pink Floyd and when he was in it, he goes into a depression for weeks on end. His mother asked us to stay away a few years ago. Apparently, most of the time he’s quite happy, or was, but our faces can trigger off a lapse.”
Roger Waters saw him once again a couple of years after his surprise visit at the studio. “I bumped into him in Harrods where he used to go to buy sweets, but we didn’t speak. He sort of scuttled away.” confessed Waters.
During the last years of his life, Barrett suffered from numerous illnesses, including diabetes and pancreatic cancer, the latter ultimately taking his life in 2006. Following his death, Pink Floyd held a tribute concert at London’s Barbican Theatre - which turned out to be their last performance ever - alongside Damon Albarn, Kevin Ayers, Robyn Hitchcock, John Paul Jones, Kate McGarrigle, Martha Wainwright, Mike Heron and Captain Sensible. He would always be cherished by his former band, every chance they’d get.
“He leaves behind a body of work that is both very touching and very deep and which will shine on forever.”
- Roger Waters
“Do find time to play some of Syd’s songs and to remember him as the madcap genius who made us all smile with his wonderfully eccentric songs about bikes, gnomes, and scarecrows. His career was painfully short, yet he touched more people than he could ever know.”
- David Gilmour
For a long time it has been believed Syd Barret suffered from a combination of LSD, Schizophrenia disorder and the chaotic artist lifestyle he started having. The first and the latter were completely true, a myth telling that even Hendrix told him to take a break from all the partying once in a while. If true, clearly his way of living was much more concerning than we’d think. Although the statement was never confirmed, it’s not a stretch to figure out Syd really was abusing his body too much for a good time.
Roger Waters - and many other fans who shared his opinion - considered LSD as being the trigger that worsened Barret’s schizophrenia. But synthetic drugs of any kind manifest symptoms that can be easily mistaken for this disorder, also taking account of Syd’s social distancing mechanism. More recent studies indicate that a low-functioning Asperger’s syndrome would be a closer to the truth diagnostic for him.
No matter the cause, his short-lived career resembles a great loss for the world. Who knows how much bigger his influence could have been? The story of Roger ‘Syd’ Barrett serves as a cautionary tale about the highs and lows of creative genius and the toll that fame and mental illness can take on one. His music was characterized by an otherworldly beauty and unpredictability, resembling his gentle and kind soul faced with personal turmoil.
The final song Syd wrote in its entirety, for Pink Floyd was Jugband Blues; it serves as an exposure to his true self during his period of decline and brings a truly devastating sense of awareness to the surface.