 Publisher: The Short Book Co ISBN 1-904095-24-0. Published 17 October 2002
Of
all the lost personalities within rock music, Syd Barrett has one of
the most enduring legends, not least due to the numerous stories and
myths that have been built up around him. He is, therefore, a popular
target for biography writers - certainly, within the last decade there
have been a number of books concentrating on the man commonly referred
to as the Piper, the Madcap, or the Crazy Diamond.
Tim Willis, respected journalist,
has thrown his hat into the ring, and submitted his version of events
for our deliberation. He has impeccable credentials - a long-term
friend of the Gilmours, and he enjoyed close contact with all the other
significant characters which contributed to the kaleidoscopic life that
Roger Keith Barrett would experience, in the creation of this book.
Many of the Syd myths have been
rehashed and presented time and again, all with rock steady confidence
that all of it was true. Tim questions this, and approaches his work as
an opportunity to wipe the slate clean, and find out the truth behind
the legend.
Certainly, initial impressions on
having read the book, are that many Syd diehards will not like the
book, due to the number of stories that are debunked and shown to be
false. Part of the myth of Syd was that this character was capable of
all sorts of "wackiness" or responsible for "amusing" tales, normally
involving madness or irrational behaviour. The stories are told with
relish, whilst shaking the head and saying how terrible it all was. One
could argue that, if indeed such people respect Roger, that they
wouldn't keep regurgitating these stories, or present them in such a
salacious way. The fact that Syd was, in part, a character created as a
sort of alter-ego for Roger, and that Roger was, and still is,
suffering illness, should mean that people treat him with dignity and
respect.
Unfortunately, not many printed accounts of the band's history, seem to do this. Has Tim managed to redress the balance?
With a huge sigh of relief,
thankfully - yes, he has. The overriding view whilst reading this tome,
is that Syd/Roger was/is a lot more "normal" than most seem to give him
credit for. Naturally, it touches on his illness in many places, but
turns some of the common tales on their head - rather than some
episodes being Syd out of his head and unaware of what he was doing,
Willis seems to have got enough evidence, from family and close friends
and lovers, to show that some of the events were played out by Syd
fully aware of what he was doing, quietly absorbing the reaction of
others and getting enjoyment from this.
It is Willis's extensive use of
top quality, relevent sources that give this work a lot more credence
than some of the other, more excitable references out there. If
anything, some people may find parts of the book quite disappointing
from this very aspect - rather than raise a whole load of new myths and
legends, Tim takes time to look at the existing tales that appear
pretty much everywhere, and through some good investigative journalism,
gets to the bottom of many.
He also puts the incredible
pressure and workload the band were under in strong relief, showing
where the seeds for Syd's problems (and to an extent, the problems that
remained within the band for many years) lay. Few books make much of
the punishing schedule they put themselves through in the early days,
often playing more than one concert a night (sometimes in different
countries!) allied with recording and promotional commitments.
Bookended by a meeting that Tim
had with Roger Barrett at his house, which doesn't seem to fit well
with the rest of the book, the book proper starts with previously
unheard detail about Syd's childhood which even then displayed some of
his mischievious sense of humour, his love of painting (which persists
to this day) and of music, which took a distinct second place. There's
a fascinating passage showing the way that Syd's life was unavoidably
intertwined with the others in Cambridge - including Roger, David,
Storm Thorgerson, Bob Klose, and their families - links which have not
(to my knowledge) been identified so well, and put so coherently.
It was in these younger days that
Syd began a relationship with Libby Gausden, and the love letters (that
Libby still held) related some fascinating insights into Syd's
character, and also revealed "that by '64, Barrett had already written
'Let's Roll Another One', as well as two songs called 'Butterfly' and
'Remember Me'...[and] Waters had penned a number called 'Walk With Me,
Sydney'..." which was Roger's first ever song. Willis even presents the
lyrics of this song which was written for Barrett and Juliet Gale.
She also recalls some of the
early gigs - even then, girls would scream "Syd, Syd!" which made
Waters "very grumpy. He'd say: 'We're not the bloody Beatles". This
leads on to incredibly thorough detail of the genesis of the band, with
all the information you could need on the very early days. Building to
the height of the young Pink Floyd's professional success, it was clear
how his lifestyle was tiring Barrett out. And the eventual replacement
of Syd with David Gilmour is made more interesting with the revelation
that some years previously, whilst Bob Klose and Chris Dennis were
still in the embryonic line-up, Syd had wanted Gilmour in the line-up
but because David was already a key part of a very successful band in
the Cambridge area, he wasn't able to get him.
There is thorough detail of the
years of solo albums and the occasional live appearance (Olympia,
Stars) that covers the period well. Willis then skips forward a bit,
covering what is known of the interim years and brings the tale pretty
much up to date, talking of the medical problems that have befallen
Roger Barrett over the years, but with balance and subtlety, rather
than the normal salivating exposition. The help Willis received from
Barrett's family was clearly invaluable for much of this material.
Coupled with a very nice
selection of rare pictures (many of which have not been seen before),
this easy to read book is heartily recommended. For once, a balanced
book about the life of Roger Barrett has been written, and will
hopefully answer many of the questions people still have about the
eventful life of one Syd Barrett...
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