the of mirror eye

* Syd Barrett: Interstellar Overdrive (26.0 mb)
From Have You Got It Yet?

From 1965-1968, as Pink Floyd were still finding their musical legs, Syd Barrett (RIP) was the guiding light for the band. His innovative use of echo, distortion, effects and lyrical imagery were crucial in the eary years of the London Underground and have inspired countless number of musicians since then. Pink Floyd saw their popularity rise with the release of a number of singles as well as a series of high profile concerts at local clubs. With the release of their first album Pipers At The Gates Of Dawn, the Pink Floyd were on a super-stardom rocket. Unfortunately, the pressures of stardom and creativity were taking a toll on Mr. Barrett. Dabbling more and more in psychedelics and drugs, he started acting more erratically and signs of psychosis were more evident.

Barrett’s behavior became increasingly unpredictable, partly as a consequence of frequent experimentation with psychedelic drugs such as LSD. Many report seeing him on stage with the group, strumming on one chord through the entire concert, or not playing at all. At a show at The Fillmore West in San Francisco, during a performance of “Interstellar Overdrive,” Barrett slowly detuned his guitar, the audience seemed to enjoy such antics, unaware of the rest of the band’s consternation. Before a performance in late 1967, Barrett apparently crushed Mandrax and an entire tube of Brylcreem into his hair, which subsequently melted down his face under the heat of the stage lighting, making him look like “a guttered candle”. Nick Mason later disputed the Mandrax portion of this story, stating in the Barrett biography, Madcap, “Syd would never waste good mandies”. The image of Syd’s melting features would later be used in the Wall film. (from wikipedia)

Following this disastrous series of concerts Syd Barrett was, at first, confined to the studio. Pink Floyd attempted the “Beach Boys/Brian Wilson” move of keeping the erratic, but genius songwriter out of the limelight. Unfortunately, he still proved to be too difficult, so Syd was kicked out of the band.

He attempted a solo career, but after releasing a couple of albums, retreated from music completely. The ensuing years though, have not diminished his influence on the musical world. These tracks come from the massive 10cd set entitled Have You Got It Yet?, which is a fan curated set of demos, live material and enhanced stereo reproductions of Syd Barrett material. So, we’ve got a demo version of Interstellar Overdrive, the equivelent of Dark Star by the Grateful Dead. Have You Got It Yet? either shows just how influential Syd was, or it shows just how crazy his fans are.

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