Shine on you crazy diamond

Today I found out that Syd died a few days ago from diabetes. He was 60 years old. There aren't a lot of words that I think of to put together to express how I feel. I always knew that he would be the first of the five to pass away, but that hasn't made it any easier on me. In a lot of ways he was the least of them. He wasn't Roger or David or Nick or Rick. He had nothing to do with 'Dark Side of the Moon' or 'Animals' or 'The Wall'. If you had asked most people or even casual Pink Floyd fans they would not have been able to tell you who he was. But in a lot of ways, Syd was the best of them. He was Pink Floyd. After all he was the founding guitarist and lead singer and he was responsible for grabbing 3 kids out of architecture school to create a band that he named Pink Floyd.

I could tell you a million different things about Syd Barrett. I could tell you how he revolutionized the London rock-n-roll scene and created 'space rock'. I could tell you about the days at the UFO Club and how he was good friends with Jimi Hendrix and how he was there the day John and Oko met. I could tell you about the bluesmen who influenced him and the rock and rollers he in turn influenced. I could tell you about the acid and the mental problems. But I don't need to do that. I can just tell you that Syd Barrett was an amazing guitarist and songwriter. He had all the promise in the world and he was determined to beat the Beatles. If things had gone differently I'm pretty sure he could have done it.

But he fell apart and the band moved on without him. But they never forgot him. I still think one of the most touching stories in music concerns Pink's album 'Wish You Were Here'. The album centered around Syd and illnesses. One day out of no where, Syd showed up at Abbey Road and asked if he could help in any way. No one had heard from him in several years, and he had just showed up out of nowhere. Everyone there was moved to tears.

Today I am moved to tears to learn about his death. I never expected him to come out and give any interviews or make some new music, but just knowing he was still there in a small house in Cambridge made me happy. I'm glad to hear that his last years were peaceful; full of painting and gardening. But I will be forever saddened to know one of the world's great talents has left us forever. We'll miss you Syd.

Roger 'Syd' Barrett 1946-2006

"Come on you raver, you seer of visions,
Come on you painter, you piper, you prisoner, and shine!"