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+--- Forum: Syd Barrett (/forumdisplay.php?fid=9)
+--- Thread: Why did Syd leave? - he didnt have too. (/showthread.php?tid=942)
- FigureOut - 12-07-2005 06:22 PM
Syd didnt have to leave he could have stayed in the band, its not like he was dying or anything. Did the other band members force him out or something.
- Kimbers Sheep - 12-07-2005 07:00 PM
pretty much he was no longer capabale of contributing, do a search, there is tons of info all over the web, but as I said, due to various issues he was no longer an asset, and indeed a liability as far as being able to consistently generate music and contribute to the band.
- Seamus the Dog - 12-12-2005 06:14 AM
FigureOut Wrote:Syd didnt have to leave he could have stayed in the band, its not like he was dying or anything. Did the other band members force him out or something.The oft-repeated story is that while on the way to a gig, someone in the van said "should we pick up Syd?" and someone else said "F**k Syd," and that was that.
Truth or legend, I don't know ... the first time I ever saw the story was in an interview with Roger.
- AgoX - 12-12-2005 08:12 PM
basically, heroin destroyed him
- Kimbers Sheep - 12-12-2005 08:30 PM
heroin? say what
- HeyBurningGuy - 12-13-2005 06:17 PM
AgoX Wrote:basically, heroin destroyed himHeroin? ???
Acid, wasn't it?
- Broken Free - 12-13-2005 06:37 PM
Yeah, it was acid. Or modern society. They're both pretty destructive, if you ask me.
- grimp - 12-14-2005 10:22 AM
Um...Heroin? Sorry to be rude, but what have you been smoking? Acid was the stuff that got him a little screwy. On top of the fact that in the end, he did almost everything he could to piss everyone off. Such as trying to teach them the song "Have you got it yet?" Where he played a tune and asked them 'Have you got it yet?' every time and kept changing the tune until they figured out he was yanking their chain. So, in response, they wanted to get rid of him because it seemed like he wanted out anyway.
- HeyBurningGuy - 12-15-2005 07:41 PM
I posted this in another thread a while ago:
Well, I don't know much about him, but I know why they kicked him out of the band. His schizophrenia wasn't brought on by the LSD he took; it ran in his family and the LSD made him more... vulnerable, if you will, to the symptoms of his mental illness. Onstage, he would sometimes stop singing and playing for a period of time, which is why they brought in David Gilmour. When Syd would have one of these moments on stage, David would cover for him, since his style was said to resemble Syd's. David became so good at this and Syd was having more and more moments on stage, that Roger thought that they no longer needed Syd, and kicked him out of the band. I think the story went that they simply did not pick him up for a gig one night, which was extremely harsh.
In retrospective, the band members regret treating him so harshly, mainly because they had no idea what was wrong with him. One recollection involved someone in the band buying 12 sandwiches, and all of them egging him on to eat all of them, which he did, with a rather vacant look on his face, and no protest.
Or so I've gathered. I get most of my info from an older friend of mine, who's a Floyd information house.
Roger deeply regrets all of the harsh things he's done to Syd in the past, and he's never really forgiven himself for any of it, which is why Syd was the inspiration for many of the songs he's written. Everyone knows that "Wish You Were Here" was recorded with Syd as its inspiration.
Edited By HeyBurningGuy on 1134704588
- Seamus the Dog - 12-17-2005 04:29 AM
HeyBurningGuy Wrote:I think the story went that they simply did not pick him up for a gig one night, which was extremely harsh.Was it harsh? Syd had become a terrible liability. It appears they had the choice of either abandoning Syd or abandoning any hopes they held for the future success of the band.
... Syd was the inspiration for many of the songs he's written. Everyone knows that "Wish You Were Here" was recorded with Syd as its inspiration.
I wonder, at the time, if Syd even cared. I wonder how long it took Syd to even realize he had been abandoned? Minutes, hours ... days?
His former band mates continued to support him. Take a look at the credits for Syd's solo projects; three of the members contributed in various ways; David Gilmour in particular proved to be most supportive of Syd's post-Floyd efforts. And in various ways, they assured Syd's financial independence.
Quote:... Syd was the inspiration for many of the songs he's written. Everyone knows that "Wish You Were Here" was recorded with Syd as its inspiration.
Yes, partly. But this "everyone" understands Roger was also commenting on one or two of his (then) current bandmates who had ceased contributing to the band.
Edited By Seamus the Dog on 1134822720
- Wall_x - 12-27-2005 11:45 PM
ok this will sound crazy jst read it.
i live in a small town. i have 4 good friends. since kindergarten. my best 2 friends who are both neighbours. im an averadge wage live beside me. they both get everything they want when ever they want it. but its like ones an angle and ones the devil. no joke one brags about getting stuff and the other doesnt but could if he wanted to.
i think ive always felt that i should up to them because there rich guys who accept me.because of this you become a really nice peroson. in the world we are curently living in theres no respect and when he finally became a musician and still lost respect from the other band members.like when they made him eat 12 sandwiches and he didnt resist, its becuase he was just to nice a guy to acctually snap out on them.
he didnt understand ands thats utimatly how he started getting ill.
He was too nice of a guy. So the drugs may have been a catalyst but it ultimatley the illness started from being taught in some form or the other to be nice to other people no matter what. Its the best moral out there but it can really make you crazy.
he then said **** it im getting back at them by being mean like them and because it was the first time in his life he had ever been mean and they took it too harsh and they didnt understand that he is just trying to change.
syd was the most popular at the start and when he still didnt get respect after the CD's he untimatly did go crazy.
sorry for mumblin on
Edited By Wall_x on 1135755987
- A Saucerful of Secrets - 12-28-2005 02:34 AM
Kimbers Sheep Wrote:pretty much he was no longer capabale of contributing, do a search, there is tons of info all over the web, but as I said, due to various issues he was no longer an asset, and indeed a liability as far as being able to consistently generate music and contribute to the band.This pretty much sums it up.
Syd was a genius when he was with Floyd, but it was obvious he was coming completely undone, which is very sad. The other members realized that and knew they could not continue with him.
- A Saucerful of Secrets - 12-28-2005 10:21 PM
Seamus the Dog Wrote:I think labeling Syd Barrett a genius is an egregious overstatement.Syd's best material was with Pink Floyd. I don't like his solo material, and it just goes to show where he was going.
I enjoy Syd's work with Pink Floyd. His bandmates, producers, and record company ARs did a good job culling Syd's best work from the chaff ... none-the-less, the material they rejected ended up on Syd's solo recordings. To say the least, the quality of the material presented on those solo recordings is of significantly inferior quality.
Almost forty years have passed since Syd wrote most of his songs ... how many are considered "classics?" How many are considered "standards?" How frequently have Syd's songs been covered by his contemporaries? How frequently are his songs covered by the current generation of performers?
For an interesting comparison, repeat the same questions for some of Syd's contemporaries.
Syd who?
As far as "classics", I would say amongst Floyd freaks there is "Astronomy Domine", "Interstellar Overdrive" and "Bike". If you mean "classic" in terms of airplay, there would be none. :)
No matter how you feel about Syd, you have to give him credit for his contributions to Pink Floyd.
- Bored Person - 12-28-2005 10:34 PM
Quote:I wonder, at the time, if Syd even cared. I wonder how long it took Syd to even realize he had been abandoned? Minutes, hours ... days?
Forever.
That's my guess, anyway.
I probably wouldn't figure it out for a month, at least, and I'm mostly sane. A crazy person might not figure it out, would they?