Customer Reviews

The Best of Syd Barrett: Wouldn't You Miss Me?

5 star:		(26)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Compared to the ornate, almost Baroque quality of Pink Floyd's Piper at the Gates of Dawn, which Syd Barrett was largely responsible for, these songs are almost frightening in their sparseness and simplicity. Having said that, the lyrics completely overshadow the sometimes underdeveloped arrangements and the fragile vocals. Fractured and almost completely devoid of the playful innocence that was a highlight of his earlier work, songs such as Gigolo Aunt and Terrapin seem on the surface nothing more than the incoherant ramblings of a burned out Rock n Roll tragedy. Further inspection of the lyrics will reveal a poet of the first order. There is little doubt the laurels heaped upon Barrett are justified, and this is the rare case where the term Legend can be properly applied.

This album is great. Of course the material is not very new to hard-core Syd fans, who probably already own the Peel Sessions LP with 'Two of a kind' on it. But I would still recommend this CD to hard-core and wanna-be Syd fans alike. Those unfamiliar with Syd will be stunned by the lyrics if they pay attention. All titles have been remastered so they sound way DEEPER than the original recordings. Bob Dylan blues is a great and happy little song. Altough it's kinda hard to see if the lyrics of the song are based on admiration or irony; perhaps a mix of both. It shows a very different, more childish, Syd... since it was written in 1963 (the version on the cd was recorded in 1970). Sure it is a shame that Gilmour waited so long to make 'Bob Dylan Blues' available. But remember... royalties are now syd's sole mean of survival. That must be why new songs are brought in one by one... so that royalties keep coming as new CD's are issued. After all, Syd is a genius and he deserves it. Hopefully, somedays, we'll get to hear 'Living alone','Rhamadan', 'Rooftop in a thunderstorm', 'Lanky part 2' and songs probably recorded live with the 'sparks' or the 'twinks'. Also, sleeping in vaults somewhere, must lie more 196x to 1965 Floyd covers of rock'n'roll and r'n'b classics.

This a superior collection of Syd Barrett songs especially considering that Bob Dylan's Blues (a hilarious parody) is not available elsewhere. It has almost all of the official songs and leaves out weaker ones. However, it omits a few songs that are classics, "She Took a Long Cold Look at Me" and "Milky Way" still hold up. Of course, it eliminates unreleased work Barrett did with Floyd (obviously for copywrite reasons) such as the disturbing classics, Vegetable Man and Scream Thy Last Scream (both of them repeatedly covered by neo-psychedelic bands. Still song lyrics like "I'm only a person with Eskimo chains. I tattoed my brain all the way" they seem document someone's mental breakdown whether that was intentional or not. Many of the songs are painfully removed from reality. However, they are effective, however eerily disturbing pop songs far superior than the general "guy with a guitar" genre.

I am tempted to say that a burned out Syd Barrett wrote better lyrics than a stone cold sober Roger Waters or a not so sober David Gilmour, but that would be posturing. Besides, Syd Barrett's reputation hasn't suffered any from his absence from the studio these many years. In fact it is due in part to his absence from the recording studio that people have been able to build up his persona to it's now legendary status. Wouldn't You Miss Me doesn't bust that bubble or blow it up even more; it just confirms what his fans have been saying all these years: that Syd Barrett had a unique lyrical talent that even mental illness could not completely tarnish. There is a distinct Floyd (circa 1969) sound to these tracks: lots of jangly 12 strings, close-mic'd vocals and analog synth swirls in the backround. This may have to do with the production assist from Gilmour et al in the making of Barrett's post-floyd albums. But, if you listen to the singer as he struggles his way through each number, you can hear sparks of verbal interplay and imagination that far outstrip anything his former bandmates have done since. It just makes my heart ache to think of what he could have accomplished had he not succumbed to his drug-aggravated mental illness. These songs are a testament not only to Syd Barrett's genius but to the striving of a noble soul undone by the vagaries of life: there but for the grace of God go I...

Wouldn't You Miss Me?(2001) was a collection of Syd Barrett material that was released a few years back. The disc contains selected material from The Madcap Laughs, Barrett and Opel and it has two unreleased tracks. If you don't want to spend the money on Barret's three official discs or can't find them then this collection will do. The tracks are excellent and I can't find any complaints (except the CD booklet has lyrics for a couple of rare Barrett songs that have NEVER been released.

This disc and Pink Floyd's first two albums (and the rare singles collection) are musts for any serious fan of psychedelic music!

Highly recommended!

Longstanding fans of Pink Floyd's founder Syd Barrett will be frustrated by this compilation, which contains only one song not available anywhere else - `Bob Dylan Blues'. Otherwise, it consists of material from Barrett's three albums `The Madcap Laughs', `Barrett' and `Opel', plus one track (`Two of a Kind') from the slightly more obscure EP `The Peel Sessions'.

Still, the selection of songs can't be faulted. Also, these are the highest quality remasters of Barrett's songs released to date. And this is certainly a perfect introduction to Barrett's music for the newcomer. It's unfortunate that Barrett is celebrated more as an eccentric acid burnout than as someone who actually made some good music, and this compilation is an opportunity to celebrate his musical achievements rather than his personal misfortunes.

The songs are quirky, the performances endearingly shambolic, Syd's voice a fragile thing. Title track `Wouldn't You Miss Me? (Dark Globe)' is the most upsetting, its chorus heartbreakingly sad. Other mournful tracks include `Terrapin' and `Golden Hair' (which takes its lyrics from a poem by James Joyce). The oddest track on the album is `Dominoes', which is indescribably offbeat and also sad, seemingly reflecting a mind at cross-purposes with everyday life.

But there are also more upbeat, catchy numbers, like opener `Octopus', `Late Night', `No Good Trying', `Baby Lemonade', `Gigolo Aunt', and `Waving My Arms in the Air'. And there are whimsical songs based around silly stories, like `Swan Lee (Silas Lang)', `Here I Go', `Wined and Dined', `Effervescing Elephant', and `Two of a Kind'. Best of all, there are mini-epics which take unexpected turns, like `Long Gone' and the wonderful `Opel'.

The previously unreleased demo `Bob Dylan Blues', unearthed especially for this compilation by Pink Floyd's David Gilmour, is a charming song, poking affectionate fun at the famous Dylan. And the shimmering instrumental version of `Golden Hair' is a perfect closing track. Overall, a great collection of songs.

What a truely maximum feast, a flooded fullhouse of tearful ejaculatory weeping.
I love the garganic monologues and nature drowned mantra's
Very turbulant listening, a shell of beutific intent, almost paradoxically quixotic.
Embulliant in its minds eye shifting, a veritable fluistic pallete of scarred bright heat and incongrous frailty.....
A Must buy!

Syd Barrett will be greatly missed. His whimsical songwriting style was unique and greatly influenced many famous musicians like David Bowie. This cd is an essential purchase for those wishing a taste of genius. Ironic release date for this cd, as well.

Is Amazing this man , so amazing that was impossible he were normal, impossible he could maintain his mind sanity, all that creativity made him go mental but before his insanity took all over him , he had the time to record for us awesome albums and this album includes the best of him , "Octopuss" is a funny travel across Barret s mind all kind of crazy ideas were expressed in that song, "here I go" is like his love statement for a girl with a sense of humor , "Bob Dylan blues" is about the admiration of Barret for the master of folk Mr Dylan , were he put in Dylan s shoes and he speak and describes about "himself", great songs wrotten by a troubled mind founder of the Pink Floyd concept and legend that never lost his good humor and now rather to keep its life in privacy out of the public eye, he is happy this way now and I think he deserves to end his life with only the companion of his close friends, after the incredible music he already gave us
HM

The biggest obstacles encountered by many Syd Barrett fans in introducing His work to others is the inconsistency in material: the Madcap Laughs album is too passionate and unpolished for most new Syd listeners (the last three songs tend to alienate non-Syd fans), and Barrett is too pop-sounding to cover the emotional range of the Madcap Laughs. This colection, however, has most of Syd's accessable songs. This makes introducing Syd to others very easy; it isn't until Two of a Kind that Syd gets strange (though the Madcap version of Dark Globe should be on this, not the more melodic one).
For hardcore Syd fans, Bob Dylan Blues justifies the purchase of this album. It is a great song.