By 1976, Roger Keith “Syd” Barrett – founder of Pink Floyd, founding father of psychedelic rock, and troubled, enigmatic artist – had exited the pop stage and retired to his mother’s home in Cambridge, exhausted by illness and excess. But as his career was fading, his legend was burning brightly.
The influence of Barrett’s gorgeously warped songwriting style and absurdist lyrical bent would be clearly observable on the generation of punk, post-punk and new wave acts who were just finding their feet when this portrait (featuring...
Read More
By 1976, Roger Keith “Syd” Barrett – founder of Pink Floyd, founding father of psychedelic rock, and troubled, enigmatic artist – had exited the pop stage and retired to his mother’s home in Cambridge, exhausted by illness and excess. But as his career was fading, his legend was burning brightly.
The influence of Barrett’s gorgeously warped songwriting style and absurdist lyrical bent would be clearly observable on the generation of punk, post-punk and new wave acts who were just finding their feet when this portrait (featuring lyrics from “If It’s in You,” “Terrapin” and “Octopus”) was rendered – not to mention the generation that followed. Just listen to Robyn Hitchcock, early R.E.M., The Flaming Lips or Supergrass, to pick only a few obvious examples, and you’ll hear Syd’s musical legacy.
Hide