Why Syd Barrett Left Pink Floyd

Before diving into the Album Review of A Saucerful of Secrets, let's discuss Syd Barrett's departure from Pink Floyd and briefly touch on his short solo career with The Madcap Laughs and Barrett. #pinkfloyd #Albumreviews #SydBarrett

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Pink Floyd is without a doubt one of the greatest classic rock bands of all time. They began in the 60s with Roger Waters on bass, Nick Mason on drums, Richard Wright on organ and Syd Barrett on lead guitar and vocals. Syd was the band's leader and chief songwriter in the early days, penning their first singles Arnold Layne and See Emily Play. This would lead to the release of their 1967 album Piper at the Gates of Dawn, featuring classics like Astronomy Domine, Flaming, Bike and Interstellar Overdrive. Their live shows were equally inventive incorporating unique light shows. At some point in 67, Syd's behavior began to take a turn for the worse, refusing to mime TV appearances and detuning his guitar onstage. Reasons for his breakdown vary, mostly centered around his intake of Acid / LSD. There are also allegations of schizophrenia and the pressures of rock stardom. The Barrett penned single Apples and Oranges flopped and other tracks like Scream Thy Last Scream and Vegetable Man were shelved. After a cancelled US Tour, David Gilmour was brought in, eventually covering Syd's vocals and guitar parts. By 1968, the band began performing without Syd. This would become Pink Floyd's classic lineup. While they hoped Syd would continue as a songwriter, he eventually parted ways with the band. Roger Waters and Rick Wright took up the songwriter roles for their 1968 album A Saucerful of Secrets. The album was the only to feature all five band members and Syd's final composition with Floyd, Jugband Blues. Syd would release two albums in 1970 The Madcap Laughs and Barrett, but completely withdrew from the music business by 1974 to lead a private life. Meanwhile, unable to write singles, Pink Floyd carried on with albums like More and Ummagumma. In 1970, Atom Heart Mother proved to be a success. 1971's Meddle would turn out to be an important staple for the band with the rocking opener One of these Days and the 23 minute epic, Echoes, featuring Dave and Rick on vocals. It is often regarded as Progressive Rock's finest moment, from the opening ping of Rick's leslie piano. They would also perform both these songs along with earlier classics Live at Pompeii. The Obscured by Clouds soundtrack appeared in 1972. However 1973's Dark Side of the Moon would become one of the most successful albums of all time, staying on the charts for nearly 13 years and still a best seller today. Roger's lyrics dealt with the evils of society driving one to madness, while the music was nearly one entire inter-connected piece. Money was a hit single. Their 1975 followup Wish You Were Here, featuring the opening and closing piece Shine On You Crazy Diamond (a tribute to Syd Barrett who even showed up at the sessions), is thought to be equally great, if not greater, as Dark Side. But tensions between the band were beginning to rear their head. 1977 saw the release of Animals, likening three animals: Dogs, Sheep and Pigs to various classes of society. Roger became the band's main frontman and sole songwriter with Dave occasionally sharing the mic and writing credits. Tensions grew during the tour when Roger ended up spitting on a fan in Montreal and coming up with the idea for The Wall to separate himself from the audience. 1979 would see the release of The Wall, the album and later the tour and film. Another Brick in the Wall Part 2 became their best selling single and Comfortably Numb remains one of their most popular tunes. But it nearly broke up the band as Roger fired Rick for lack of output, creating a greater rift between him and Dave. 1983's The Final Cut was Roger's final album with Pink Floyd before he officially left, leaving Dave and Nick to reunite with Rick for 1987's Momentary Lapse of Reason (Learning to Fly). Roger sued to break up the band, but failed to do so instead focusing on his solo career. The Gilmour led Floyd would produce 1994's The Division Bell (High Hopes) with Rick now sharing vocal and songwriting duties again. It wasn't until 2005's Live 8 concert when Dave, Nick and Rick reunited with Roger for a short set giving closure for many fans. Syd never performed with Pink Floyd again and died in 2006. Rick died in 2008. The album The Endless River was dedicated in his honor.