Syd Barrett (album)

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Syd Barrett
Compilation album by
Syd Barrett
Released14 November 1974
RecordedAbbey Road, May 1968 – July 1970
GenreRock
Length76:30
LabelHarvest/EMI
ProducerSyd Barrett, Peter Jenner, Malcolm Jones, Roger Waters, David Gilmour and Richard Wright.
Syd Barrett chronology
Barrett
(1970) 		Syd Barrett
(1974) 		Syd Barrett:
The Peel Sessions
(1987)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Christgau's Record GuideB[2]
Tom HullC[3]

Syd Barrett is a 1974 double-album pairing of Syd Barrett's two solo albums, The Madcap Laughs and Barrett, both originally released in the UK in 1970.

Cover[edit]

During the summer of 1965, Barrett had his first acid trip in the garden of his friend Dave Gale,[4][5] with Ian Moore and Storm Thorgerson.[4] While on the influence of the substance, Barrett had placed an orange, plum and a matchbox into a corner, while staring at the fruit, which he claimed symbolized "Venus and Jupiter".[4][5] Thorgerson used this imagery when he added these items to the cover of Syd Barrett.[4]

Release[edit]

After the unexpectedly massive success of Pink Floyd's The Dark Side of the Moon, EMI re-issued the Barrett-era albums The Piper at the Gates of Dawn and A Saucerful of Secrets as A Nice Pair in the hope that fans would be interested in the band's earlier work with Barrett. Once that was a success, primarily in the US, Syd Barrett was compiled to meet demand.[1]

As a result, The Madcap Laughs/Barrett (as it was titled in the US) made number 163,[1] giving Barrett his only US chart album. Village Voice critic Robert Christgau wrote of the album: "Admittedly, a lot of what results is worthy of the wimp-turned-acid-casualty Barrett is. But a lot of it is funny, charming, catchy--whimsy at its best... I know damn well it gives me more pleasure than The Dark Side of the Moon."[2]

Track listing[edit]

All songs by Syd Barrett, except where noted.

Disc 1 – The Madcap Laughs[edit]

Side one
  1. "Terrapin" – 5:04
  2. "No Good Trying" – 3:26
  3. "Love You" – 2:30
  4. "No Man's Land" – 3:03
  5. "Dark Globe" – 2:02
  6. "Here I Go" – 3:11
Side two
  2. "Octopus" – 3:47
  3. "Golden Hair" (Syd Barrett/James Joyce) – 1:59
  4. "Long Gone" – 2:50
  5. "She Took a Long Cold Look" – 1:55
  6. "Feel" – 2:17
  7. "If it's in You" – 2:26
  8. "Late Night" – 3:11

Disc 2 – Barrett[edit]

Side one
  1. "Baby Lemonade" – 4:11
  2. "Love Song" – 3:05
  3. "Dominoes" – 4:09
  4. "It is Obvious" – 3:00
  5. "Rats" – 3:02
  6. "Maisie" – 2:51
Side two
  2. "Gigolo Aunt" – 5:47
  3. "Waving My Arms in the Air" – 2:07
  4. "I Never Lied to You" – 1:52
  5. "Wined and Dined" – 2:59
  6. "Wolfpack" – 3:41
  7. "Effervescing Elephant" – 1:54

Charts[edit]

Album - Billboard

Year Chart Position
1974 Pop Albums 163[1]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d Thompson, Dave. "The Madcap Laughs/Barrett - Syd Barrett : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 31 July 2012.
  2. ^ a b Christgau, Robert (1981). "Syd Barrett: The Madcap Laughs/Barrett". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 0-89919-025-1 – via robertchristgau.com.
  3. ^ Hull, Tom (April 1975). "The Rekord Report: Second Card". Overdose. Retrieved 26 June 2020 – via tomhull.com.
  4. ^ a b c d Manning, Toby (2006). The Rough Guide to Pink Floyd (1st ed.). London: Rough Guides. p. 17. ISBN 1-84353-575-0.
  5. ^ a b Chapman, Rob (2010). Syd Barrett: A Very Irregular Head (Paperback ed.). London: Faber. pp. 76–77. ISBN 978-0-571-23855-2.
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