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Tuesday, July 11, 2006
Wouldn’t You Miss Me At All?
Syd Barrett, founder of Pink Floyd, dead at 60
When Syd Barrett disappeared the myths of being a genius/madman took over. There was a romance about the story of this man who started what would become one of the most popular rock bands in history, quit or pushed out because of erratic behavior fueled by LSD intake, recorded a few solo albums that brought everyone who listened to them intimately close to what a mental breakdown can feel like and was never heard from again. It was a myth that haunted Pink Floyd long after bassist Roger Waters had taken the reigns. The shadow looms largest with the song “Shine on You Crazy Diamond” and the album The Wall’s story of a rock star losing his mind. When the most successful line-up of Pink Floyd reunited and played the Live 8 festival last year Waters was sure to invoke Barrett when they started playing “Wish You Were Here.”
Rock music needs its legends. The lionization based around a man’s emotional difficulties might seem sick and indeed that’s a valid point to argue. But you can’t forget that when a group of music fans spin Piper at the Gates of Dawn and trade wild tales of what that crazy diamond must have been like that it’s behavior coming from a sincere affection for this great music. Barrett was leading Pink Floyd into the creation of psychedelic rock. It wasn’t entirely new territory for those who had heard The Thirteenth Floor Elevators, and indeed that band’s Roky Erickson shares a similar life story to Barrett, but Pink Floyd was where blues-based British rock music grew into something more introverted, more experimental and ultimately more creative. Barrett was there at the center of it playing that clear guitar that had the multi-colored stage lights passing through it like a prism (notice the album cover for Dark Side of the Moon) as he bore this crazed sound out of guitar and wah-wah pedal. When Barrett left that all behind the fans had to invent a persona to go along with the beautiful terror they’d hear on “Interstellar Overdrive” or the sweet sorrow of “Dark Globe” from Barrett’s first solo album The Madcap Laughs. Now the real person behind those songs and accomplishments is gone. Perhaps the Cult of Syd will only grow stronger now. As long as people can still hear this music I can’t see why it shouldn’t.
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