Pink Floyd co-founder Syd Barrett dies

[mfgbypooter]

Jul 11, 10:26 AM (ET)

By JILL LAWLESS

LONDON (AP) - Syd Barrett, the troubled genius who co-founded Pink Floyd but spent his last years in reclusive anonymity, has died, a spokeswoman for the band said Tuesday. He was 60.

The spokeswoman - who declined to give her name until the band made an official announcement - confirmed media reports that he had died. She said Barrett died several days ago, but she did not disclose the cause of death. Barrett had suffered from diabetes for many years.


More Syd Barrett Story

RIP

*

[Auggie2k]

Ah that's a terrible shame. Great band.

[Sparky9]

Shine on you crazy diamond.

[uselesscrap]

A great loss, but not the end.

[Potato]

RIP, may the afterlife be better.

[DwarfBaby]

Shine on you crazy diamond.

You said it man.

What most people don't realize is Pink Floyds unavoidable success came upon Syd’s tortured soul and his inevitable mental demise.

“The Dark side of the Moon” holds many lyrics devoted directly to Syd along with the title itself. “Wish You Were Here” the “You” in that title is “Syd”. “The Wall” is absolutely and entirely based upon a rock star character named “Pink” which is more or less Roger Waters tribute to Syd’s tormented rock star character.

Above of all it seems to me the bands inspiration came from the utter guilt of leaving a friend behind. Syd’s legacy is not in the song’s he wrote but on the inspiration he put upon others by his presence.

So I ask in conclusion is it better to tell of great hero’s fall or to be the fallen soul?

[Jared Moya]

NOTE**** Eras come to an end sooner or later, but I think its safe to say that the era of that perfect album, one of the few albums that can claim that distinction, "Dark SIde of the Moon" will never end.


Syd Barrett, the troubled Pink Floyd co-founder who spent his last years in reclusive anonymity, has died, the band said Tuesday. He was 60.

A spokeswoman for the band said Barrett died several days ago, but she did not disclose the cause of death. Barrett had suffered from diabetes for years.

The surviving members of Pink Floyd — David Gilmour, Nick Mason, Roger Waters and Richard Wright — said they were “very upset and sad to learn of Syd Barrett’s death.”

“Syd was the guiding light of the early band lineup and leaves a legacy which continues to inspire,” they said in a statement.

Barrett co-founded Pink Floyd in 1965 with Waters, Mason and Wright, and wrote many of the band’s early songs. The group’s jazz-infused rock and drug-laced, multimedia “happenings” made them darlings of the London psychedelic scene. The 1967 album “The Piper at the Gates of Dawn” — largely written by Barrett, who also played guitar — was a commercial and critical hit.

But Barrett suffered from mental instability, exacerbated by his use of LSD. His behavior grew increasingly erratic, and he left the group in 1968 — five years before the release of Pink Floyd’s most popular album, “Dark Side of the Moon” — to be replaced by Gilmour.

Barrett released two solo albums — “The Madcap Laughs” and “Barrett” — but soon withdrew from the music business altogether. An album of previously unreleased material, “Opel,” was issued in 1988.




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"We're all just another brick in the Wall".................

[cjules13]

But Barrett suffered from mental instability, exacerbated by his use of LSD

Exacerbated by or caused by?

RIP Barrett - you created the best band of all time.