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.
| Syd Barrett | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Compilation album by | ||||
| Released | 14 November 1974 | |||
| Recorded | Abbey Road, May 1968 – July 1970 | |||
| Genre | Rock | |||
| Length | 76:30 | |||
| Label | Harvest/EMI | |||
| Producer | Syd Barrett, Peter Jenner, Malcolm Jones, Roger Waters, David Gilmour and Richard Wright. | |||
| Syd Barrett chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| Christgau's Record Guide | B[2] |
| Tom Hull | C[3] |
Cover
editDuring 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
editAfter 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
editAll songs by Syd Barrett, except where noted.
Disc 1 – The Madcap Laughs
edit- Side one
- "Terrapin" – 5:04
- "No Good Trying" – 3:26
- "Love You" – 2:30
- "No Man's Land" – 3:03
- "Dark Globe" – 2:02
- "Here I Go" – 3:11
- Side two
- "Octopus" – 3:47
- "Golden Hair" (Syd Barrett/James Joyce) – 1:59
- "Long Gone" – 2:50
- "She Took a Long Cold Look" – 1:55
- "Feel" – 2:17
- "If it's in You" – 2:26
- "Late Night" – 3:11
Disc 2 – Barrett
edit- Side one
- "Baby Lemonade" – 4:11
- "Love Song" – 3:05
- "Dominoes" – 4:09
- "It is Obvious" – 3:00
- "Rats" – 3:02
- "Maisie" – 2:51
- Side two
- "Gigolo Aunt" – 5:47
- "Waving My Arms in the Air" – 2:07
- "I Never Lied to You" – 1:52
- "Wined and Dined" – 2:59
- "Wolfpack" – 3:41
- "Effervescing Elephant" – 1:54
Charts
editAlbum - Billboard
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1974 | Pop Albums | 163[1] |
References
edit- ^ a b c d Thompson, Dave. "The Madcap Laughs/Barrett - Syd Barrett : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 31 July 2012.
- ^ 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.
- ^ Hull, Tom (April 1975). "The Rekord Report: Second Card". Overdose. Retrieved 26 June 2020 – via tomhull.com.
- ^ 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.
- ^ a b Chapman, Rob (2010). Syd Barrett: A Very Irregular Head (Paperback ed.). London: Faber. pp. 76–77. ISBN 978-0-571-23855-2.