Poll: How do you rate Syd Barrett's "Barrett" album?

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Johnny Reb, Sep 20, 2017.

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  1. Vangro

    Vangro Forum Resident

    Location:
    London
    ... like the Floyd did on "Atom Heart Mother", title track - except the other way round - you mean? :winkgrin:
     
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  2. Runicen

    Runicen Forum Resident

    I had to go "solid" on this as I have a hard time regarding any of Barrett's solo material as "essential" to the average listener. Frankly, his solo career really has come into focus for me as watching a very fragile person unravel - and he never really recovered from that unraveling, whatever we can say about how quiet his existence from then on ended up being... That makes it hard to enjoy his stuff entirely without guilt.

    Now, all that taken into consideration, if you ignore the album's context and the state of its creator, it's a really nice listen with a lot of moods, some really good songs, and some nice (if often nonsensical) imagery. To offer a point of comparison, while I enjoy Robyn Hitchcock's work, I sometimes find him trying a little too hard to be clever and "trippy" and that can grate - just be yourself, dude! With Syd, what you saw was what you got and the album's lyrics never come off as disingenuous or engineered. They just are. That lack of guile is charming in its own way and, again, removed from historical context, make the album rather inviting.

    Also, "Baby Lemonade" and "Gigolo Aunt" belong on every playlist. :D
     
  3. Vangro

    Vangro Forum Resident

    Location:
    London
    Apparently Syd was heavily into Mandrax at the time (man) and you can tell - though the sort of distant and numb sounding vocals that ensue suit the more melancholy and wistful tracks on the album.
     
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  4. Chrome_Head

    Chrome_Head Planetary Resident

    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA.
    I agree--the tension in "Wolfpack" just builds and builds until that great madcap release near the end.

    Marvelous song, no one else but Barrett could've concocted it.

    Syd was almost-certainly mentally ill. Robyn is like a post-modern take on Syd, obviously more studied in his eccentricity. Doesn't make RH a lesser artist, as he's written some outstanding songs.
     
    Last edited: Sep 20, 2017
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  5. Bowland

    Bowland Forum Resident

    Location:
    England
    I'm a big fan of Syd's Pink Floyd, but I find all his solo stuff awful, sorry.
     
  6. elaterium

    elaterium Forum Resident

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  7. dsky

    dsky Little Blue Light

    Location:
    Fukuoka
    Dominoes may very well be my favourite track in life. Indescribably beautiful.

    It's impossible to rank Syd's three classics, Piper, Madcap, and Barrett, but they do make up my three favourite LPs of all time.

    One of art's great tragedies that we didn't get more completed albums from Syd :(
     
    Last edited: Sep 20, 2017
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  8. elaterium

    elaterium Forum Resident

    I remember buying Madcap Laughs when it was first released. I anxiously ran home and put it on the record player and when Terrapin started playing my heart sank. I thought WTF happened? A great disappointment. But I grew to love it.
     
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  9. JamesLord

    JamesLord Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    I first discovered Floyd through DSOTM and WYWH and heard about their legendary lost leader etc etc. When I first heard Piper I thought it was a joke. "I've got a bike, you can ride it if you like"????? Totally bemused.

    Over time (many many years) came to find it interesting, then fascinating and, finally, deeply moving.
     
  10. YardByrd

    YardByrd rock n roll citizen in a hip hop world

    Location:
    Europe
    I love Madcap... the sophomore not so much... musically it has too much input from Gilmour & Wright (and I understand why) so it sounds too much like that era Floyd for me...
     
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  11. mr.datsun

    mr.datsun Incompletist

    Location:
    London
    Much as I like Syd, I can't rate this the same way I do as 'Madcap'. Too many light-weight tunes and daft ditties like 'Effervescing Elephant', 'Baby Lemonade' and 'Gigolo Aunt'. Plus the sound is not as interesting as Madcap. Lacks gravity, force and mass.

    Inessential.
     
    Last edited: Sep 21, 2017
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  12. Holy Diver

    Holy Diver Senior Member

    Location:
    USA
    One of Syd's best. I love Dominoes and Rats.
     
  13. Chemically altered

    Chemically altered Forum Resident

    Location:
    Ukraine in Spirit
    I try to make excuses for Syd's acid use but that doesn't help the music.
     
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  14. Vangro

    Vangro Forum Resident

    Location:
    London
    It doesn't need any help.
     
  15. ranasakawa

    ranasakawa Forum Resident

    It's a sad album. A man unraveling his genius. I sometimes play this when the mood is right.
     
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  16. The Bishop

    The Bishop Forum Resident

    Location:
    Dorset, England.
    Oh, my aching sides.
     
  17. Wally Swift

    Wally Swift Yo-Yoing where I will...

    Location:
    Brooklyn New York
    Effervescing Elephant is ESPECIALLY better than everything after Meddle!
     
  18. Nick Dunning

    Nick Dunning Forum Resident

    Correct.
     
  19. I voted so-so. Gigolo Aunt, Baby Lemonade, Wined and Dined and Effervescing Elephant are my favorite tracks.
     
  20. Yeah, and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star smokes Mozart's 40th Symphony!!
     
    Last edited: Sep 21, 2017
  21. elaterium

    elaterium Forum Resident

    Mozart.
     
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  22. bzfgt

    bzfgt The Grand High Exalted Mystic Ruler

    No, he wrote quite a few things better than TTLS.
     
  23. mr.datsun

    mr.datsun Incompletist

    Location:
    London
    Quite possibly, but let's not go there.
     
  24. ToneLa

    ToneLa Forum Resident

    I think it's brilliant. Not in the Syd canon... It might be lower than Madcap (which I think is fine, and I enjoy the chaotic production as Syd never suited gloss) and Piper is a massive high watermark... But within my music collection, a unique piece of art.

    But I had a time in my life Pre Syd. When I was aware of the myth but hadn't taken the plunge yet.

    ... Things are better now. I have Piper, Madcap and Barrett on vinyl, and I am able to amaze and dazzle friends with tunes from his canon.

    Barrett is therefore essential to me. Just... Less essential. But that's still pretty damn essential.
     
  25. elaterium

    elaterium Forum Resident

    Just as an anecdote-in 1972 I flew to England with the express hopes of locating and interviewing Barrett. Came upon some people in Cambridge who were hostile to my seeking him out so didn't pursue it. Just as well for everyone concerned.
     
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