The Stooges (1969-1973) – 2 Fan Albums

For those not in the know, fan albums are the attempts of me and many others to take songs and put them on an album, typically they’re made to improve upon something, such as an existing album or to take non-album tracks and put them on an album.

The Stooges are one of the all time great rock bands. Personally, that’s mainly off the strength of their middle effort, Fun House. Still, it was clear there was more to love. There are a lot of live recordings and stray tracks, so it’d be fun to see what can be done, especially because many have given a shot at what could be called the “fourth” Stooges album. My love is mainly with the classic lineup of singer Iggy Pop, bassist Dave Alexander, guitarist Ron Asheton, and drummer Scott Asheton, so I wanted to see what we could cook from them mainly.

On top of their two studio albums, I found eight stray tracks. Two live 1970 tracks are “Going to Ungano’s” and “Have Some Fun”/“My Dream Is Dead”. They suffer from poor sound quality and the first not being a song. However they’re still fun listens, so I’ve linked to them in their natural environment, Live at Ungano’s, August 17, 1970. Two tracks I hear are from 1968 are actually from 1971, “Ron’s Jam” and “What’s You Gonna Do”. Apparently two members of the Stooges, including famous singer Iggy Pop, were absent from these, so they’re getting tossed. The remaining four make for a surprisingly lengthy album of thirty-four minutes. It will be listed below with the surrounding albums. While noticeably less cohesive, it’s still a fine listen.

The Stooges (1969) – YouTube, Spotify

Freaks (1970) (Recorded 1969-1970) – YouTube, Spotify

TRACKLISTING

SIDE A

1. “Asthma Attack” (2019 Remaster)
2. “Lost in the Future” (Take 1)
3. “Slide (Slidin’ the Blues)” (Take 1)

SIDE B

1. “Freak” (Take 1)

PERSONNEL

• Iggy Pop – vocals
• Ron Asheton – guitar
• Dave Alexander – bass
• Scott Asheton – drums
• Steve Mackay – saxophone

Fun House (1970) – YouTube, Spotify

Alexander was later replaced. Nothing came of this period between him leaving and the first breakup other than some live recordings that weren’t released for a long time. I am not very fond of these due to low quality. There might be unreleased material with or without Alexander I don’t know about. I’m highlighting the following releases as they contain songs not featured elsewhere.

Have Some Fun: Live at Ungano’s (2010) (Recorded 1970) – YouTube, Spotify

You Don’t Want My Name… You Want My Action (2009) (Recorded 1971) – YouTube, Spotify

The band then famously reunited with James Williamson on guitar, Ron moved to bass, and the gang retitled “Iggy and the Stooges”. I was able to get one album’s worth of high quality strays for the follow-up to Raw Power that would’ve made a slightly lesser, but still solid installment. In parentheses are the compilations these are sourced from or some other identifier.

Raw Power (1973) (Highlighting the superior Iggy mix) – YouTube, Spotify

Jesus Loves The Stooges (1974) (Recorded 1972-1973) – YouTube, Spotify

TRACKLISTING

SIDE A

1. “I Got a Right” (Born in a Trailer)
2. “I’m Sick of You” (Born in a Trailer)
3. “Louie Louie” (More Power)
4. “Scene of the Crime” (More Power)
5. “Gimme Some Skin” (More Power)
6. “Open Up And Bleed” (More Power)

SIDE B

1. “Money” (More Power)
2. “Cock In My Pocket” (2022 Mix)
3. “Jesus Loves The Stooges” (Jesus Loves The Stooges)
4. “Heavy Liquid” (Live at Richards, Atlanta, Georgia, October 1973)
5. “Born in a Trailer” (Jesus Loves The Stooges)

PERSONNEL

• Iggy Pop – vocals
• James Williamson – guitar
• Ron Asheton – bass
• Scott Asheton – drums

Now what of other tracks recorded around this time, sometimes of high fidelity? Well, I either found those other ones really poor songs or more often poor quality. I also didn’t want to bother sifting through the countless releases compiling various live tracks and other oddities, but just know they’re there if you like fuzzy guitar riffs and yelling. My current game is collecting stray tracks, so I thought of an idea.

Let’s say Iggy and the gang breakup, as happened in real life, then the record company asked for another album. Having no desire or ability to make a sixth studio album, and to embrace the punk rock spirit, Iggy took those low quality strays and made a giant and unlistenable compilation. Worried this would damage his career, he credited it as “Twiggy and the Tooges”. He also did himself a favor and got to work on the Kill City album. This album is two and three-quarters hours long. If it was released, it probably would have taken up about four LPs. Note that there’s no rhyme or reason to what versions of songs are picked. (I also don’t count this as a “fan album”. No way I’m relistening to these to make sure they’re sequenced well.)

The Shit Box (1975) (Recorded 1972-1974) – YouTube, Spotify

TRACKLISTING

SIDE A

1. “Instrumental” (Heavy Liquid)
2. “I’m Hungry” (Raw Power (50th Anniversary Legacy Edition))
3. “Hey, Peter” (Raw Power (50th Anniversary Legacy Edition))
4. “Doojiman” (Raw Power (50th Anniversary Legacy Edition))
5. “Johanna” (Heavy Liquid)

SIDE B

1. “Rubber Legs” (Heavy Liquid)
2. “Pinpoint Eyes/Cry For Me” (Heavy Liquid)
3. “Tight Pants” (Heavy Liquid)
4. “Head On” (Rehearsal) (Raw Power (50th Anniversary Legacy Edition))

SIDE C

1. “I Need Somebody/Sweet Child/I Like The Way You Walk” (Morgan Sound Studios, Ypsilanti Michigan March 1973)
2. “Can’t Turn You Loose” (Morgan Sound Studios, Ypsilanti Michigan March 1973)

SIDE D

1. “Hey Baby” (Detroit Rehearsals Spring 1973)
2. “Wild Love” (Heavy Liquid)
3. “Till The End Of The Night” (Heavy Liquid)
4. “Head On Curve” (Heavy Liquid)

SIDE E

1. “I Come From Nowhere” (New York & Detroit Rehearsals, 1973)
2. “Old King Live Forever” (New York & Detroit Rehearsals, 1973)
3. “Look So Sweet” (New York & Detroit Rehearsals, 1973)
4. “Mellow Down Easy” (New York & Detroit Rehearsals, 1973)
5. “Move Ass Baby” (New York & Detroit Rehearsals, 1973)

SIDE F

1. “My Girl Hates My Heroin” (New York & Detroit Rehearsals, 1973)
2. “She Creatures of the Hollywood Hills” (Jesus Loves The Stooges)
3. “I’m a Man” (Jesus Loves The Stooges)
4. “Ballad of Hollis Brown” (Jesus Loves The Stooges)

SIDE G

1. “Purple Haze” (Jesus Loves The Stooges)
2. “I’m So Glad” (New York & Detroit Rehearsals, 1973)
3. “New Orleans” (Live, The Whisky A Go Go, Los Angeles, 16 September 1973)
4. “Rich Bitch” (Live, The Academy Of Music, New York City, 31 December 1973)

SIDE H

1. “Wet My Bed” (Bimbos 365 Club S.F Jan 1974)
2. “Delta Blues Shuffle” (Jesus Loves The Stooges)
3. “Fire Engine” (Jesus Loves The Stooges)
4. “I Got Nothin’” (Bimbos 365 Club S.F Jan 1974)

Of course there would later be a well regarded live album:

Metallic K.O. (1976) (Recorded 1973-1974) – YouTube, Spotify

Kill City (1977) (Recorded 1975) – YouTube, Spotify

Kill City is not a Stooges album. It’s a collaboration between the two main minds of the latter day Stooges. It’s also a forgotten oddity, so for my money worthy of being featured. It, like all the other material, showcases Iggy and his gang as not perfect Gods of rock, but those that experimented and at times failed. Still, just because some of this is not perfect doesn’t mean it’s not sharp and helps to define five great musicians from Motor City. You could call them the Motor City Five. Attached below is my friend, Ken’s, concept for a follow-up to Raw Power. I had no part in this.

Head On (1974) – Spotify

This is a passion of mine and if one person likes what I do, I’ll feel honored. I like suggestions on what artist to cover next, so if you know of one you’d like me to look at, feel free to suggest ‘em!

The Monks – Three Fan Albums

For those not in the know, fan albums are the attempts of me and many others to take songs and put them on an album, typically they’re made to improve upon something, such as an existing album or to take non-album tracks and put them on an album.

The Monks are generally known and defined by their one and only LP, as if nothing else was ever made. While that’s not far from the truth, there is a little more they did. That material is consistently less hard hitting than the famous album. The group are still surprisingly strong at infusing psychedelia and pop, with the drumming a particular highlight. That being said, these aren’t must-listen recordings by any means. While The Sonics managed to get almost a second full length worth of hard edged tracks, and all the way to a third of very quality work, these stray Monks would almost best be described as a different band. If you like the famous Black Monk Time and want more of it, you should go to other bands with a proto-punk style, as Black is all you’ll get from the Monk pot. If you want decent rock tunes and interesting alternate versions of songs, then here you go, what is essentially another group.

These two album names were apparently considered to be the names of potential follow-up albums. I don’t think they’re great titles, especially because of the change in sound for one and the same songs of the other, but I thought it was cute to do. If albums of new material had come out under those names, it probably wouldn’t have been like what’s below, with album-only tracks that were never recorded.

The three “fan albums” are Silver Monk Time, which details demos and live cuts of what’s on Black and also… Gold Monk Time, which features no overlapping songs with Black. The third are stray “modern” recordings by members of the band. Just for fun, also included is the live reunion album and more solo projects, as well as a list of what exists, but I couldn’t find.

THE MONKS – SILVER MONK TIME

TRACKLISTING

SIDE A

1. “Boys Are Boys (1964)”
2. “Monk Time”
3. “Love Came Tumblin’ Down”
4. “Space Age”
5. “We Do Wie Du”
6. “Boys Are Boys (1965)”
7. “Pretty Suzanne”
8. “Higgle-Dy Piggle-Dy”

SIDE B

1. “Oh, How To Do Now (1965)”
2. “I Hate You”
3. “Boys Are Boys (1966)”
4. “Oh, How To Do Now (1966)”
5. “Complication”
6. “I Can’t Get Over You”
7. “Cuckoo”

THE MONKS – GOLD MONK TIME

TRACKLISTING

SIDE A

1. “Monk Chant”
2. “I Can’t Get Over You”
3. “Cuckoo”
4. “Love Can Tame the Wild”
5. “He Went Down to the Sea”
6. “Pretty Suzanne”

SIDE B

1. “Hushie Pushie”
2. “There She Walks”
3. “Julia”
4. “P.O. Box 3291”
5. “I Need U Shatzi”
6. “Yellow Grass”
7. “I’m Watching You”

GARY BURGER & DAVE DAY – IT IS CHARLES TIME

TRACKLISTING

SIDE A

1. The Spectors – “Oh, How To Do Now” (1993)
2. Alec Empire & Gary Burger – “Monk Time” (2006)
3. The Fall & Gary Burger – “Higgle-Dy Piggle-Dy” (2006)
4. The Havletones & Dave Day – “That’s My Girl” (2006)

SIDE B

1. Charles Paul Wilp & The Monks – “It Is Charles Time” (2006)
2. Faust & Gary Burger – “Beware (The Transatlantic Feedback)” (2006)
3. Gary Burger – “I Feel Fine” (2013)

LINKS

1. The Monks – Black Monk Time (1966) – Spotify, YouTube
2. The Monks – Silver Monk Time (1966) – YouTube, Spotify (Incomplete)
3. The Monks – Gold Monk Time (1967) – Spotify, YouTube
4. Minnesoda, Featuring Eddie Shaw – Minnesoda (1972) – YouTube
5. Lightning, Featuring Eddie Shaw – “William Tell Overture (The Lone Ranger Theme)” (1975) – Spotify, YouTube
6. The Monks – Let’s Start a Beat – Live from Cavestomp (2000) – Spotify, YouTube
7. Gary Burger & Dave Day – It Is Charles Time (2013) – Spotify, YouTube
8. Eddie Shaw & The Hydraulic Pigeons – Jass In Six Pieces (2013) – Spotify, YouTube
9. Gary Burger – BurgerMONK 2010 (2016) – Spotify, YouTube

MISSING RECORDINGS

1. Dave Day – “I Want The Right To Be Free” (1979)
2. Dave Day – “G.I. Blues” (1979)
3. Dave Day – “Application For Your Love” (1985)
4. Dave Day – “Stars Shining In The Night” (1985)
5. Gary Burger – What’s Your Limit (1992)
6. Dave Day – Having A Party With Dave Havlicek (1994)
7. Dave Day – “I Want The Right To Be Free” (1997)
8. Dave Day – “Don’t Ha Ha” (1997)

THE MONKS ARE

• Gary Burger – lead guitar, lead vocals, tambourine
• Larry Clark – organ, backing vocals, piano, tambourine
• Dave Day – banjo, rhythm guitar, banjo guitar, tambourine, backing vocals
• Roger Johnston – drums, backing vocals
• Eddie Shaw – bass guitar, backing vocals, trumpet, brass instruments

This is a passion of mine and if one person likes what I do, I’ll feel honored. I like suggestions on what artist to cover next, so if you know of one you’d like me to look at, feel free to suggest ‘em!

Syd Barrett 1971-1974 Stray Tracks Review

Syd Barrett with Stars in 1972

February 16th, 1971 Show for Sounds of the Seventies

The spacious guitar and vocals are beautiful. The “pleases” sound pleading. An announcer says Syd was writing lots of new songs. That appears to be false, so it’s curious where he got that information from. “Love Song” doesn’t get a chance to really take off as this version is shortened for some reason.

“Last Minute Put Together Boogie Band (‘Cambridge’ – January 27th, 1972)”

It’s hard not to love an audience clapping for Syd as he goes on stage. Musically, all you get is a little noodling, probably not even by Syd. Still, this doesn’t hurt to have.

Last Minute Put Together Boogie Band ‎- Six Hour Technicolour Dream Cambridge Show (Only the tracks with Syd) (January 27th. 1972)

Starting “Drinkin’ That Wine” with the singer saying it’s the sort of track you listen to while going to church and getting drunk is a pretty amusing way to start this, perfectly capturing its tone of a bluesy hippie band. “Number Nine” has a great instrumental section. The singer is very soulful, most notably on “Gotta Be A Reason”. Near the end of Reason, the guitar sounds similar to the playing on “Interstellar Overdrive”.

Steve Peregrin Took Tracks, “Molecular Lucky Charm” and “Syd’s Wine”

Syd’s presence is not confirmed. The sound quality is not great, especially for the vocals. The guitar playing and noises create a really solid atmosphere and seem like something Syd would come up with. The entrancing guitar is reminiscent of “Terrapin”. Syd used a lot of tap percussion, like bongos, which Wine has. I think it’s pretty likely Syd is on these. Regardless of the vaSydity, these are interesting psychedelic folk tracks that also feel like T. Rex for obvious reasons.

The 1974 guitar recordings

The 1974 recordings do feature Syd’s proficiency and unique style. While they are obviously incomplete, they do satisfy an itch for those willing to scratch the bottom of the Syd barrel. These prove that Syd still had guitar talent in 1974. These aren’t nearly as directionless as people say. You can detect some care in the playing. These would work as guitar lines of a full song. I wonder who the bassist is. “Boogie #2” has some cool psychedelic guitar playing in the beginning. “If You Go, Don’t Be Slow #1” has particularly warm sounds, though overall there’s sadly too little going on. Most of the tracks could benefit from more to make them last the time they do, but they’re still nice to listen to and not a bad way to spend twenty minutes.

“Boogie #2 (Fragment – Bernard White ‘94 Mix)”

This is too fragmented to get much out of. It’s certainly far less listenable than the original version of this song. The mix doesn’t even sound very different.

“Was That Okay”

This is just Syd saying he thinks something was okay. No music! Of course this is the best track of the lot!

The 1974 recordings with bass and drums added by Richard Hall

A fan version by a Richard Hall adds bass, drums, and minor effects, which brings this to another level, medleying many songs and amplifying the impact they need. Here you get the softer side of Syd’s playing, the jam side, the meaner side. If this album was finished and released at the time, with Syd then retiring, it might be considered a solid and appropriate send off, with him touching on his various eras, while still being extremely solid all the way through.

OVERVIEW

One of the more elusive Syd projects is Stars, a band with bassist Jack Monck and drummer John “Twink” Alder that was only around briefly in 1972. While some of their shows were recorded, none have surfaced. While I wouldn’t turn down any Syd content, these don’t interest me compared to most of his canon because they were playing songs Syd already recorded in studio with Pink Floyd or for his solo work. That is unless there were really some new songs or new sections for old songs. However, we kind of get some Stars material in the above recordings. While the 1971 stuff’s bassist is usually credited to David Gilmour, Monck has also sometimes been. It’s not impossible it really was Monck. The Took recordings probably have Twink on drums (It’s not for certain as Duncan Sanderson is also credited on drums on the compilation album which features them). The closest we get to Stars is the Boogie Band, which has a concert recording where Monck and Twink are on every track, and Syd is on some.

While these later recordings aren’t as approachable as earlier ones, they still are solid, especially in their guitar playing and offer a fascinating final musical chapter for this otherworldly person. For those interested in more artistic expression from Barrett can go to his painting and sculpting. Every bit of Syd is well worth at least a single listen/experience.

Pink Floyd 1971-1977 Stray Tracks Review

Pink Floyd 1973

Pink Floyd released the equivalent of one album a year in the years 1967, 1968, and 1970. They did the equivalent of three in 1969. They were managing similar amounts of material in the first three mentioned years as 1969, but just not releasing a lot of it, or at least not on their main albums. This changed in 1971. For starters, they started putting more time in developing what got on their albums and the albums became more acclaimed and culturally significant. Thus, you’d think that the strays would be at least very solid, especially considering how few there were. Note that a few times I had so little to say that I wrote on more than one track at once.

“Pink Blues” aka “Blues”

This is one of the more concentrated pieces, having very good interplaying. The power and energy causes “Blues” to continuously build momentum.

“Corrosion in the Pink Room”

Has some pleasant atmosphere, but is very unfocused. It features some of the band’s trademarks, creepy keyboard, stuttering cymbals designed to create a large backing, and Roger’s vocalizing. These tropes are a little too stale for the track’s good. The keys aren’t too bad, though.

“Mortality Sequence” & ““La Vallee” – Instrumental”

These are amusing enough experiments, but do feel like a joke. There’s a lot of nonsense sounds, like AI generated Pink Floyd. The section without the vocalizing on Mortality isn’t too bad.

“The Hard Way”

A pleasant and extremely incomplete experiment. “The Hard Way” has a nice groove and diversity in sound, but doesn’t go anywhere. Wouldn’t be bad on a noise album, but not so much on a Floyd one, except for one problem. Despite being so short, it’s pretty repetitive.

“On The Run (outtake)” & “The Travel Sequence”

These are fun, but once again directionless and feeling like no one knows what’s going on. They have an infectious sense of fun and rhythm, so they’re worth listening to, but were rightfully not put on an album.

“pink floyd unreleased track 1973” (4:14) aka “Flanger”

This sounds like a test. “Hey Nick, play a little so we can see if the recorder is working.” Still, a little drumming isn’t the worst thing in the world. This is like the Pink Floyd version of the Beach Boys track, “Denny’s Drums”.

“Mexico 70”

Can’t believe how many of these tracks have random noises in them. There’s some nice guitar noodling, but it goes on forever doing the same thing. It’s easy to imagine this could’ve been worked on more and included on an album. Maybe on Wish You Were Here to demonstrate Syd going mad? Faneditors, get on that.

“Wine Glasses”

This is pretty, but inessential on its own. Of course, it would be used to great effect on “Shine On You Crazy Diamond” in a better form.

“You’ve Got To Be Crazy”

Roger’s vocal is really flat, sounding like a demo. Of course that can be forgiven due to this obviously being a work-in-progress not intended for release. The playing isn’t too bad, though falters in some ways. That’s something that could be fixed with more rehearsing. Lyrics like “Sometimes it seems as if I’m just being used” are way too heavy handed. The released version on Animals is very solid.

“Raving and Drooling”

This one starts with what sounds like the Doctor Who theme. This track is especially fun due to the punk-esque nature of its riffs and intensity.

“Message From The Sheep (Field Recording)”

Just some sheep baaing.

“Drift Away Blues”

This takes a little from “Pink Blues”. David gets to show off a little with his guitar playing, with a little bit of fun moments for Rick and Nick, but as previously stated it’s something that should’ve been incorporated in a more rehearsed and fleshed out album if at all. The aforementioned “Pink Blues” is better due to being short and sweet.

OVERVIEW

Despite being known for their innovation, Pink Floyd often got stuck in formulas. Fortunately, that stuff generally got unreleased around the start of the early 70s, with much better material properly getting on the albums. A super fan should listen to these tracks just for the sake of it, but a casual fan can live without what amounts to mostly live fiddling. Still, there are a few gems.

Syd Barrett 1968-1969 Stray Tracks Review

Syd in 1969

“Silas Lang (Take 1 – May 6th, 1968)”

As is practically always the case, the guitar work is fantastic, with some particularly favorite guitar work at the beginning. The guitar playing sounds like it’s being sent from space. Later, it’s surprising for some drums and sax to break out of nowhere. The track meanders in some ways, like when Syd is basically playing the same note, but it’s overall pretty funny.

“Lanky (Part One) (Take 1 – May 14th, 1968)”

The psychedelic percussion is entrancing. This is a playful cut that doesn’t feel its length, a glorious runaround.

“Lanky (Part Two) (Take 1 – May 14th, 1968)”

Apparently this is just an excerpt of the percussion on “Rhamadam” and it feels like it. It’s a hundred seconds of nice percussion jamming, but it’s so bare bones that it seems designed to fit in a longer piece, which it probably was.

“Golden Hair (Take 1) (Three Different Ones) (“Instrumental version” from Opel comp – May 14th, 1968, Dry Mix – May 14th, 1968, and Gareth Cousins ’88 Mix – May 28th, 1968)

Not bad if you’re interested in hearing the individual elements of a song, but they fail at being their own thing, sounding like a work in progress. Listening to these different versions got progressively more and more irritating, due to the repetitiveness.

“Late Night (Instrumental) (Take 2 – May 28th, 1968)”

While this is similarly dry and incomplete, you can at least now more easily appreciate the quality guitar playing and drumming. The “Inside me I feel” part is especially good, due to how much the instruments pop.

“Golden Hair (Take 5 – June 8th, 1968)”

The more childlike and exposed vocal performance is so interesting.

“Swan Lee (Take 5 – Malcolm Jones Alt Mix – June 8th, 1968)”

The guitar playing is a lot poorer here than on the proper track.

“Swan Lee (Take 5 – Backing Track – June 20th, 1968)”

This track being more fully realized makes it quite entrancing in its own right.

“Clowns and Jugglers (Octopus) (Take 1 w/chatter – July 20th, 1968)”

Sounds very rough around the edges, with the guitars stabbing out. For that, it’s inferior to other versions.

“Clowns and Jugglers (Octopus) (Take 1 – July 20th, 1968)”

The guitar and vocals don’t blend well. Syd’s voice awkwardly transitions to and fro the “Isn’t it good to be lost in the woods?” part. 

“Clowns and Jugglers (Octopus) (Take 2 – July 20th, 1968)”

It’s great hearing this by a proficient band like Soft Machine, especially with keyboards now present. That keyboard does add a little more to the unsettling nature, banging along. The vocal seems too unrehearsed, while it is basically perfect on the proper album version. The keys added to the album version would perhaps make for the ultimate “Octopus”.

“Swan Lee (Take 5 Excerpt – April 10th, 1969)”

There’s something brilliantly creepy about this, but the guitar playing could be better.

“Opel (Take 9 Chatter – April 11th, 1969)”

A bit of nothing from a recording session.

“Opel (Take 9 – Jenner ’74 Mix and Opel version – April 11th, 1969)”

This is one of Syd’s many masterpieces. The vocals perfectly portray passion and Syd’s divorced nature from other people. The lyrics blend his poetic wordiness with the more direct representations of his emotional state beautifully. The guitar is light and ethereal, while hauntingly marching on in the back of the piece. The Jenner mix just seems like a lower sound quality version of the Opel release.

“Opel (Orchestral Backing)”

This is a fan mix that I found amusing enough to cover. This makes me wish this was in high quality, preferably with Rick Wright on piano. What we get is some beautifully sonic piano and orchestra, with the violins especially good.

“It’s No Good Trying (Take 5 – April 11th, 1969)”

An effective folk version of this magnetic cut.

“Love You (Take 1 – Jones Mix – April 11th, 1969)”

More than most other folk tracks, this feels like Syd is in the same room as you, running through a track passionately. This is by far the most electrifying and well-constructed alternate version of this classic.

“Love You (Take 1 – Opel version – April 11th, 1969)”

This doesn’t sound anything like the bootleg “Jones mix”. This one feels much more rushed. Thus, I suspect one or both aren’t actually take 1.

“Love You (Take 2 – Jones Mix – April 11th, 1969)”

This one is still enjoyable, but seems less rehearsed.

“Love You (Take 3 – April 11th, 1969)”

Syd sounds tired and depressed. The track really doesn’t seem to work when he sounds as out of it as he does here.

“Rhamadam” (2010 Mix – Possibly Recorded April 23rd, 1969)”

The jazzy bass and drums are very solid. The instruments groove extremely well together. The piece is so warm and approachable that it doesn’t feel its twenty minute length. Especially with the hi-hat, this feels jazz inspired, which recalls some of Pink Floyd’s early recordings. A motor sound showcases the experimental Syd. With the keys, it feels a little like the Residents.

“Swan Lee (Silas Lang) (Take 9 – April 11th, 1969 (Further Overdubs Added April 25th, 1969))”

A great unnerving track with more striking guitar playing and vocals.

“Clowns and Jugglers (Octopus) (Take 2 – May 3rd, 1969)”

This amusingly adds a little funk to this song.

“Octopus (Takes 1 and 2 – June 12th, 1969)”

While take one is flubbed, take two is a moody and striking folk version of the track. There’s a slightly comical vocal on the “Isn’t it good?” part, but it adds an aura of weirdness to it that is likable. We even get some new lyrics.

“Octopus (Take 11 Excerpt – Rough Mix – June 12th, 1969)”

This just sounds like the official version of the track.

“Just Before You Disappear”

Chipmunk Syd. I have a soft spot for this sped up version of Octopus. Not sure why it exists, but it’s novel.

“Golden Hair (Take 6 – June 12th, 1969)”

An initially striking version of the track that loses appeal due to the points that feel like Syd trying to learn the song.

“Long Gone (Take 2 – July 26th, 1969)”

Very good guitar playing, but rough singing.

“Dark Globe (Take 1 Choral – Jenner ’74 Echo Mix & Jones ’87 Dry Mix – July 26th, 1969)

The very fun backing vocals give a new flavor to the track. The vocals on the Jones mix are not layered together as well.

“She Took a Long Cold Look at Me (Take 4 – July 26th, 1969)”

This more youthful vocal makes for an interesting experiment, but it’s not nearly as impactful as the studio album version.

“She Took A Long Cold Look (Take 5 – Jones ’87 Dry Mix – July 26th, 1969)

Obviously a beautiful track, but it basically just is the studio album version.

“Wouldn’t You Miss Me (Dark Globe) (Take 1 – July 26th, 1969)”

This track with Syd’s cold vocal gives such a different and strong vibe that this is one of the crown jewels of alternate versions of Syd songs. The album version feels like a breakdown, while this is trying to avoid that breakdown. Still, it’s not as good as the album version.

“Religious Experience (Take 10 – OOPS Mix – December 18th, 1969)”

While Syd Barrett recorded with the Soft Machine, it was the post-Kevin Ayers line-up. Now, he’s recording with Ayers himself! Note that this is more of an Ayers track with Syd being a guest. This “take 10” version is best left to bootlegs, as it’s very difficult to hear the singing.

“Singing a Song in the Morning aka Religious Experience (Take 103 – December 18th, 1969)”

Despite how repetitive it is, this cut doesn’t get old. There’s such a warm feeling to the “loving jam session at a campfire” vibe, with more and more people joining in.

Pink Floyd December 1969-1970 Stray Tracks Review

“Who’s For Soccer?”

1970 yielded some fantastic songs for Pink Floyd (and especially for Syd Barrett, but that’s for another day). They have quite a lot of leftovers, possibly due to working on the Zabriskie Point movie and expecting a vinyl release that never came. Hopefully these weren’t too close to how they were supposed to sound, as much of what’s here is forgettable and ill-thought out. That would be more acceptable if these were barely getting off the ground. There’s a track like “Come in Number 51, Your Time Is Up”, which actually got released and seems like just a less cohesive or well-worked version of “Careful with That Axe, Eugene”. There was already a released studio and live version. They couldn’t have put in another? 51 seems like a highlight reel of bits of Eugene. “On the Highway” is a particular favorite outtake, which wasn’t released at the time.

There are many inconsequential jams, which seem to have missed being fully realized. If recorders were more common in the early 60s-1967 version of the band, maybe we’d get stuff like this, pleasant noodling? “Alan’s Blues” is one, showcasing a more traditional rock guitar solo. As much can be said for “Just Another Twelve Bar”. “Love Scene (Version 5)” is when the noodling got more tiresome (don’t listen to these all in one sitting), with it going on with “Love Scene (Version 6)”. “Libest Spacement Monitor” and “More Blues” have some good interplay, like between the guitar and keyboard, but are inconsequential.

“Oenone” just seems like someone, probably Richard Wright, playing around with sounds for possible use of backing a song. “Love Scene (Version 4)” is a pleasant keyboard number. It might not be so bad to have on in the background. “The Violent Sequence”, aka “Us and Them (Richard Wright Demo)” is another track of that sort. While this is definitely on the right track, it feels incomplete and poorly performed, like Rick was just testing out ideas. Of course, this would later become a very nice and finished song.

“Country Song” is more finished-sounding, but like one of the throwaways from an album like More. The vocal is very weak, as if everyone’s sick of it. “Richard Are You Ready Yet?” is too low quality to make out much. It’s not even really a song, strange it’s considered one by fans. “Instrumental Improvisations 1, 2, 3” is incoherent playing and vocalizing. It might’ve been fun to be playing there, but not so much to listen to.

Some of the better tracks include “Rain in the Country”. It has a great light guitar sound, though it goes on forever, not being very interesting beyond the beginning. As much can be said for “Heart Beat, Pig Meat”. The repetitive percussion is at first very captivating, being quite unique. The rhythm and beat are reasonably sharp, though the novelty soon wears off. “Embryo (From Picnic – A Breath of Fresh Air)” feels low effort, like a computer generated Pink Floyd song. It has that whisper voice, the drum tapping in the background, and things of that sort. In terms of how good it is, it’s dead average.

“Long Blues” has a good groove and doesn’t quite feel its length, but it lacks a certain spark, like a drive to keep you invested. “Fingal’s Cave” is one of the finest tracks here. It has a good otherworldly quality to it. That being said, what’s with the moaning and sex noises? They’re really uncomfortable. There’s a four minute version that’s just some atmospheric sounds and a much punchier two minute version, which is by far the best, getting to the point of this little jam. The reason this article starts in December 1969 is because I forgot to include “The Merry Xmas Song” last time. It’s very funny, like the sort of novelty track that sometimes is on 60s rock records. Nick has some joy in his voice and in general everyone seems to be having a good time. It’s hard not to love. We got a Pink Floyd Christmas song!

OVERVIEW

What is or isn’t worthwhile here is up to the individual. Personally, the Syd band did no wrong, even with their live instrumentals. He had a certain spark. If you feel that way about this lineup, you might love everything here. If not, a lot of this is tedious, but ‘tis the nature of these rare recordings.

Ron Geesin and Roger Waters – Music from The Body (1970) Review

Who knew Roger Waters ASMR folk music would be so captivating?

Music from The Body, almost certainly accidentally, demonstrates Roger yet again doing something Syd Barrett did first, folk music. This is essentially his first solo album. Apparently he was involved with every track, but I can’t say for sure. What is known is he has relatively few writing credits or vocals. What he does get he uses well. Despite how rough his voice often is, he can be so soft and gentle here that it’s near angelic. The guitar playing is also so pretty and pleasant. This folk styling suits him well. His lyrics about childhood and later environmental issues make for powerful contrast. The latter material is especially strong in light of modern problems. “Breathe” is perhaps my favorite track here.

The instrumentals by Ron Geesin, which dominate the album, are mixed-to-poor. The first track is disgusting, containing farts and burps and sounds of that sort. The first song on each side of the album are the weakest, sounding like a random assortment of noises. The b-side opener is annoying in such a way that suggests the two were trying to irritate. Many of the instrumentals feel directionless on their own, though they would probably make a lot more sense as soundtrack music, which they were made for. As is, they sometimes seem to never end.

While the tracks are often very hectic, being a cacophony of noise, some tracks are very melodic, like “Old Folks Ascension” and “Piddle in Perspex”. Tracks like those are sometimes boring and insignificant, while something like “More Than Seven Dwarfs in Penis-Land” is either filler or intentionally crude. A good balance between experimental and structured is sometimes captured, like on “The Womb Bit”, “Embryo Thought”, “Dance of the Red Corpuscles”, “Bed-Time-Dream-Clime”, and “Sea Shell and Soft Stone”. The first and last feature a Waters co-write. Those tracks feel fluid and mark what could’ve been a solid direction for Pink Floyd to go in (and did in a way). The first three would’ve worked as one big piece. “Bed-Time-Dream-Clime” is a favorite, due to some lovely guitar playing.

Side-b seems to have some of the lesser instrumentals. The second last of which is a particular lowlight. “Mrs. Throat Goes Walking”’s vocal sounds also seem designed to irritate. “Sea Shell and Soft Stone” features good orchestration. An alternate version of the music that puts it right after “Sea Shell and Stone”, from around the start of side-a uses it better. They tie together very strongly, Soft escalating the former song. Soft ends like it’d be the last track, then it isn’t. The beginning of the actual last is a nice surprise. “Give Birth to a Smile” feels like a traditional rock song. It features Pink Floyd backing, so that makes sense. It doesn’t match the avant-garde or folk material before, as it’s the only rock track. It is about as good as the folk material, though the lack of Roger’s intense vocal puts it slightly below.

The film versions of the Roger songs are generally better, but Smile‘s studio version is more cohesive and benefits from crisper quality. The female backing singers are really good. The film versions have more sound effects, which adds to the world Roger is creating. They’re wisely kept simple, with things like birds chirping. The soundtrack versions are still very solid, but less special and less impactful due to the lack of that added element. “Roger’s Proposition”, which was only in the film, is more hippie junk. It’s like you got him stoned and asked him to talk about whatever that could be passably related to the rest of the album.

OVERVIEW

As has been a theme, Pink Floyd material that wasn’t on their albums was better than their albums. That being said, the Roger tracks would almost definitely not work with a band. If they were put on a Floyd album as they are, that might seem too strange as it wouldn’t really be Floyd. It would’ve benefited the group to get in whatever mindset they needed to make songs of this quality. The Geesin cuts are definitely a niche. If this was to be constructed for the sake of a Floyd fan, it would’ve been nice to get a Roger-led EP with these tracks on it. This marks an oddity for him, due to his reasonably different voice that makes him hard to identify at points. Those are just about the ones that are strong enough for repeat listening.

Pink Floyd – More (1969) Album Review

The album’s wordless cover

1969 is often considered a low point for Pink Floyd. While the studio albums of this time have some defenders, they overall suffer from coming off as the band being forced to make the equivalent of three albums of material as soon as possible, instead of waiting for good ideas. The first album released this year was More. “Under-rehearsed” is the operative phrase. Take the guitar fiddling on “Crying Song” as an example, it lacks much punch or impact. The tracks with vocals often seem to have the most effort put into them, for better and for worse.

In “Cirrus Minor”, the echo vocals feel like a parody of the psychedelia genre. They are very silly. Rick’s keyboard is good as always. Tracks like “The Nile Song” don’t impress as there’s far too little muscle in David’s guitar playing or singing, a good exemplifier of the ideas outstretching the effort. “Crying Song” has some nice production quirks and vocals, though the meandering elements (which are very common in this record) are in full force. “Green Is The Colour” has a better guitar sound which makes this one more likable than others here. The whistle is very hard to take seriously. The keys serve to make it seem like a parody of these warm ballads, being very sappy. It’s got a lot of the trademarks. As much can be said for “Cymbaline”, except it has far worse vocals. “Ibiza Bar” is arguably the last singing track. It has some fun and energy. The instruments are fluid and striking. The effects are a little distracting, but overall it’s a solid tune.

About half of this is instrumental. “Up The Khyber” plays as a directionless pastiche of jazz, failing as it doesn’t strive to have the proficiency of jazz. The drums and keys in particular have a decent playfulness, though. The composition, feeling improvised, leaves much to be desired. “Party Sequence” and “Main Theme” are very nothing tracks. They also feel like jam sessions, minus the aforementioned positives. They could be a lot worse, but they are still as dull as can be. “More Blues” is definitely the best instrumental, benefitting from being short and having good guitar playing. “Quicksilver” is another general highlight, having some nice ambiance, but it’s way too long.

The vocals for “A Spanish Piece” are really hard to take seriously, ruining any good graces it might have by way of their absurdity. Who thought this comical Spanish voice was a good idea? Not to say the guitar is exceptional. “Dramatic Theme” is pleasant. It has the benefit of feeling like a finale to what’s come before, having ambiance and jammy qualities. It also doesn’t go anywhere, so it’s not much of a “highlight”.

OVERVIEW

The only two worthwhile cuts are “Ibiza Bar” and “More Blues”. They’re nothing masterful or better than the best of the other Floyd albums, but they manage a consistent pleasantness and competence. Tracks like “The Nile Song” and “A Spanish Piece” are just embarrassing, falling below the charmingly novice earliest Pink Floyd recordings from 1964 and 1965 in terms of how much the band’s experience can be read from them. If every track here was like the vocal cuts, this might seem like a full fledged failure, a work that asked to be treated like the previous albums, but couldn’t deliver. If it was all like the instrumentals, it might seem so juvenile that it’s insulting this was something you had to pay to hear. With what we got, it feels like a ripoff.

More is dreadfully absent in direction or meaning. The best you can say is that a few tracks shoot for a low bar and hit it. It could be less approachable, though, with a decent amount passing as background noise. Frankly, if you take the highlights of this album and Ummagumma, you’d end up with a very short record. The Man and The Journey uses this material much better. That is either a glowing compliment or glaring insult. They were able to write songs that were solid, but they couldn’t record them in a passable way. That’s strange as many of these ideas had been done better.

Pink Floyd August 1967-February 1968 Stray Tracks Review

“In the Beechwoods (August 1967 + Mix Nick Mason interview)”

The music interrupts Nick talking. Still, it’s a quality instrumental. There’s no reason to listen to this for the music, as it was released officially in better quality.

“Vegetable Man (August 1967 Mix with ASoS)”

This is basically the studio version, but once again in poor sound quality. The extended ending is quite nice.

“Vegetable Man Jam (August 1967 with ASoS)”

This jam is a lot of fun, feeling mostly distinct from the studio version.

“Scream Thy Last Scream (Jenner 1974 Mix – August 7th, 1967)”

The elements here feel really distant. It’s a very awkward mix, though it also has a nice extended ending.

“Scream Thy Last Scream (Jenner 1987 Mix – August 7th, 1967)”

The mixing is similarly poor. A prime example is the “She’ll be scrubbing bubbles on all fours” line, with everyone stepping on everyone else.

“Reaction In G – Studio Clip (German Beat Club video – August 15th, 1967)”

A really catchy tune. It’s a shame it’s not longer.

“No Title – Experiment – Sunshine (September 4th, 1967)”

This feels like a lead-in to an epic track with sharp guitar parts and powerful lyrics. It’s perhaps the most missed track only available in a fragmentary form. Still, what we have is a very nice instrumental. This is similar to the solo Syd Barrett song, “Opel”, which has fantastic lyrics.

“Tonarskvall 3 Radio Interview Roger Waters (September 4th, 1967)”

It was funny when Roger refused to explain the music.

September 10th, 1967 Show at Gyllene Cirkeln, Stockholm, Sweden

This recording is almost completely instrumental due to the vocals mostly being not recorded properly. It’s in high quality, so this is a fun way to hear some of the layers of these songs. “Reaction In G” and “See Emily Play” work really well as they are here. G is a fresh instrumental jam that the group was putting work into. Due to the good quality, this is about the closest we’ll get to a studio version. Play can be appreciated due to its soaring guitars. “Matilda Mother” is another favorite. It’d be fun to see the alternate vocal added to this one, it’d give a different vibe. The other four tracks are more take-or-leave. Other than the lack of vocals, they don’t seem as fresh or distinct from their studio counterparts. There are minor exceptions, like the opening riff on “Interstellar Overdrive” being reminiscent of 1950s guitar lines. The three highlights are the only ones I’m likely to revisit often, though every track here is fine.

Also, Pink Floyd isn’t nice.

September 13th, 1967 Show at Star Club, Copenhagen, Denmark

A common issue with live boots is that the vocals are an important part of the song and you can’t hear them. The instrumentals fare better. Listening to the tracks with studio versions, it makes you just want to put on that higher quality version. Such a thing is preferable to listening to these. It is nice hearing the more pronounced guitar on “Arnold Layne”, which in the beginning sounds like “Interstellar Overdrive”. Highlights are “Reaction In G”. It’s a solid number and not like the September 10th version. “One In A Million” has a great gothic sound. It’d be nice to have a studio version, especially in place of the similar “Corporal Clegg”. It comes off a little silly due to the quiet “shout”-esque vocals, but the track overall works due to the heavy playing. The last three tracks aren’t that special, though “Astronomy Domine” is a little better due to the vocals not being what makes that song so great. Note that the two highlights don’t have a studio recording version.

September 25th, 1967 Show at The Playhouse Theatre, London, UK

This recording is a cut above most of the others due to being recorded for the BBC. The audio quality is better than typically. It’s always a treat to hear more prominent keyboard, as is the case with “Flaming” and “Matilda Mother”. “The Scarecrow” and “The Gnome” feel more relaxed and lowkey here, to great effect. An announcer pronounced the “G” in “Gnome”. “Matilda Mother”’s vocals are sadly less than stellar, especially at the end. “Reaction In G” for whatever reason only survives in a brief fragment. It basically is little more than an announcer quipping. It’s interesting that this is the second version of the song that is extremely fragmented. “Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun” sounds off with such poor sound quality. It give-or-take requires a sonic landscape it can’t take advantage of here.

The weak sound quality of almost every track discussed here makes them a little hard to appreciate, but the increased legibility for this show makes a decent representation of the live sound of the band and thus this set is really worth hearing. “Flaming”, “The Scarecrow”, and “The Gnome” are very good and “Matilda Mother” is mixed due to being more similar to the studio version and the muddy vocals, but personally, I overall enjoy it. The other two don’t do much.

“Vegetable Man (Jenner 1974 Mix – October 11th, 1967)”

Feels novice, but that adds a haunting quality to it. Definitely worth a listen. It’s about tied with the proper studio version personally.

“Vegetable Man (Jenner 1987 Mix – October 11th, 1967)”

The laughter is fun to hear, but overall this doesn’t have the technical proficiency of the official version or the charm of the 1974 version.

“Early Morning Henry – William “Billy” Butler (Acetate excerpt – October 23rd, 1967)”

A lovely light ballad with silky vocals. It’s a shame it isn’t available in its entirety.

“Flaming (November 2nd, 1967 Tower Mono 45)”

Just seems like the original, but less polished.

“Dick Clark Interview (‘American Bandstand’, Los Angeles, USA – November 7th, 1967)”

One of the more vapid interviews.

November 13th, 1967 Show at Hippy Happy Fair, De Oude Ahoy Hallen, Ahoy Heliport, Rotterdam, The Netherlands

“Tuning up” might’ve been a fun way to open a live album. It’s a not too shabby way to build atmosphere. It is literally just the band getting tuned up. While the similar criticism of “not being distinct/interesting enough” can be levied at “Scream Thy Last Scream” and “Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun”, the other three recordings are more special. “Reaction In G” is another snazzy instrumental that doesn’t sound much like the other versions. The “buildup” part is a favorite moment. “Pow R. Toc H.” feels like a proto “Careful With That Axe, Eugene”, due to the Roger yells. It has almost nothing to do with other versions of this tune. “Interstellar Overdrive”’s guitar and drum solo is an immense highlight. There are moments of a nice “chaotic” guitar line. Both show immense proficiency in the band. It’s fun hearing the audience cheering and really into the song. Furthermore, this isn’t like other versions of the track. It’s nice we get so many new versions of songs this set.

“Interstellar Overdrive: ‘Science Fiction – Das Universum Des Ichs’, The Roundhouse, London, 1967”

The announcer sounds tired.

“Jugband Blues (Different Video Mix, Possibly Canceled Single Mix – December 1967)”

Sounds like the studio version, though the quality is so poor that it’s hard to say for sure.

“Green Onion – Tomorrow’s World (Mike Leonard’s House, Stanhope Gardens, London, England – December 12th, 1967)”

Of the rare instrumentals, these aren’t among the more essential ones, but they are very enjoyable, with grooving or hammering guitar and jazzy-instruments. It’s a novelty to hear a rare Pink Floyd cover.

December 20th, 1967 Show at Maida Vale Studios, London, United Kingdom

“Vegetable Man” and “Pow R. Toc H.” both are close to their studio counterparts, though the latter has harsher vocals and more bombastic playing. There’s more of that added “edge” on “Scream Thy Last Scream”. More emphasized guitar licks and especially Syd having lead vocals make this one of the most fascinating live tracks here. “Jugband Blues” is the most different. The spacious keyboard and vocals make a new kind of atmosphere from the studio version. There’s almost pain in the guitars and more of the band’s live flairs in the instrumentation, such as when it goes into a new section. The most notable change is replacing the brass with the almighty kazoo. It’s something that has to be heard to be believed. Is a kazoo better? Certainly not, but it’s still so much fun. Especially because Richard Wright’s keyboard is more in focus here to help compensate for the missing elements. These recordings are invaluable due to the unique things they have to offer, and on top of that relatively better sound quality.

“Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun (Belgian TV – February 18th, 1968)”

Sounds like the studio version except with louder vocals. Roger Waters isn’t the most adept singer, so the studio version is better.

OVERVIEW

There’s a surprising amount of little gems and oddities present. Due to the number of quality live recordings, it’s a shame there wasn’t a live album or two from this era of Pink Floyd. If they can fight through the poor quality, imagine how they’d sound with good quality. You get a stealth new instrumental album if you were to collect all the material not replicated elsewhere, like the versions of “Reaction In G” that may as well not bear that name. This material is worthwhile for at least a listen if you really love this group. The September 25th and December 20th shows are good starting places.

Pink Floyd 1966-July 1967 Stray Tracks Review

Syd’s mustache

Syd Barrett sadly has yielded very few recordings. What he has done has been culled over for the benefit of his fans. The listed music below at worst is charming, but inessential and something a fan will still appreciate. At best it’s stylish and moving work that deserves more appreciation. As a Syd Floyd fan, these are worth at least one listen while some are worth and have gotten several. Tracks like “Arnold Layne (Acetate – January 28th, 1967)”, “See Emily Play (Acetate Record – Alternate Mix – May 23rd, 1967)”, and See Emily Play (Live on ‘Top Of The Pops’ – July 6th, 1967)” sound too like the studio track, except in lower quality.

Lowlights include: “Interstellar Overdrive (Live at UFO Club – January 27th, 1967)”, “Interstellar Overdrive (Take 2 – French EP mix – February 27th, 1967)”, and “Interstellar Overdrive (Take 6)”. Those are among the more bland entries here, perhaps due to how short they are? They’re not bad, but feel redundant when compared to better versions that do the same sorts of stuff. The UFO version has a version with and without an announcer talking over it. The French version doesn’t end with the bombastic finale this composition usually gets. With “K4 Discotheque Live Jam (Brighton – April 15th, 1967)”, I was hoping this would be a new piece of music, but I think a version of “Overdrive” had this incorporated, not certain though. “Interview with Nick Mason (SRP3 Stockholm FM Radio Broadcast – March 1967)” is among the more awkward interviews. The interviewer doesn’t seem to know what he or Nick are talking about. “Chapter 24 – CBC Radio Interview with Peter Jenner (May 1st, 1967)” appears to end right before Jenner might’ve discussed something more interesting. Who knows? We just get a little of him praising the music. These are essentially only really worthwhile in hearing how the band developed and how people of the time were taking this music.

Some highlights are the “It’s yoooouuuu” part of “Candy And A Currant Bun Multitracks Discussion (January 29th, 1967 – Broadcast October 7th, 2011)”, the October 1966 and January 1967 “Interstellar Overdrive”, “Nick’s Boogie”, “Untitled Instrumental (January 22nd, 1967)”, Pow R. Toc H. + Astronomy Domine (Live on ‘The Look Of The Week’ – May 14th, 1967)”, “See Emily Play (Piano Bit @16RPM – May 21st, 1967)”, and “See Emily Play (Acetate Record – Alternate Ending – May 23rd, 1967)”. Those versions of “Overdrive” are pretty unlike the Piper at the Gates of Dawn version or each other. Roger Waters is the most interesting interviewee. He doesn’t seem as uncomfortable as Syd is and the others don’t seem to have as much interesting information to talk about.

“Interstellar Overdrive (October 31st, 1966 version)”

The drum tones and beat seem surf inspired. At a little over the six minute mark, there appears to be a false ending, with that killer surf drumming intensifying. This seems like a logical extension and conclusion to the 1964-1965 garage-y Pink Floyd tracks. There’s a blend of that and psychedelia here. There’s great little “sections” to the piece, one favorite being the staccato bit. The return of the main riff at the end isn’t as grand or big as it could be, it feels a little tacked on.

“Interview + Interstellar Overdrive (December 1st, 1966 version)”

The bit of “Overdrive” clearly heard seems more R&B-inspired. I don’t think this version has been released uninterrupted, which is a shame. It’s nice hearing the whole band be interviewed.

“Interstellar Overdrive + Nick’s Boogie (January 11th-12th, 1967 version)”

These two tracks are great showcases of the band’s longform jam side. These are a little bluesier and jazzier than a lot of their other works, creating essentially “psychedelic jazz”. Such a sound is so interesting. “Boogie” showcases Nick’s playing, but both give all four members excellent space, love the brief instrumental freak outs. On the album with these two cuts, these tracks should be swapped, as “Overdrive” is the better finale. For the record, there might be an alternate version of “Boogie”.

“Let’s Roll Another One Rehearsal + Untitled Instrumental (January 22nd, 1967)”

“Roll” is very similar to “Candy And A Currant Bun”. The drum beat is a highlight. It feels unnecessary to listen to as “Currant” is essentially the same thing, but complete, better quality, and a better performance. The second track is unnerving and works with the poor sound quality.

“Matilda Mother (Live at UFO Club – January 27th, 1967)”

The poor quality has a good garage-sound to it. The talking over it makes for an amusing representation of the times. The intense vocals and guitars are punk-esque. It’d be nice to hear these alternate lyrics louder.

“Candy And A Currant Bun (Acetate – January 28th, 1967)”

The vocal performance is noticeably weaker here. The vocals and drums are a little “punk”. Once again, it is fascinating to hear alternate lyrics or versions to Syd’s songs. It seems this would’ve been a great era to get a live album from.

“Arnold Layne Multitracks Discussion (January 29th, 1967 – Broadcast October 7th, 2011)”

Amusingly, there basically is a review of the song in the talking bits. There’s a lot of fascinating stuff to learn about the track and the band through analysis of its elements. The bass and drums track is really badass.

“Instrumental Improvisation – Die Jungen Nachtwandler (with a bit of Interstellar Overdrive (February 24th, 1967)”

This is a great spacey instrumental. It’s a shame there’s talking in the middle of it. It captures the raw energy of the band’s improvisational nature, doing great otherworldly jams. The opening segment seems like some kind of “Interstellar Overdrive” rehearsal before an awkward cut to the main part.

“Pow R. Toc H. + Astronomy Domine + Interview with Roger Waters and Syd Barrett (Live on ‘The Look Of The Week’ – May 14th, 1967)”

The vocals are a little flat, but the instrumentation is great. The guitar sound is so grand, soaring out at you. The interview is one of the better ones, with the interviewer really not understanding them and the band trying to explain their shtick to comedic effect. It’s amusing hearing someone criticizing the band.

“Apples and Oranges (Stereo Mix)”

Syd sounds tired here. It’s nice to hear the little differences from the main version, but overall it’s pretty close. A favorite part is the guitar on the “See you” bit and the harmonized vocals.

“See Emily Play (Piano Bit @16RPM – May 21st, 1967)”

This eclectic nonsense is right up my alley. It’s not for everyone, but it captures a raw feeling of the band at work. It’s good for similar reasons as the multitrack discussions.

“See Emily Play (Acetate Record – Alternate Ending – May 23rd, 1967)”

The different ending is beautiful, but wouldn’t work with “See Emily Play”. It could’ve been removed and added to something else.