My Attempt To Be As Accurate As Possible For A Stars Fan Album Series (& Alt History Story)

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.

Various people, including myself, that have tried to resurrect Syd Barrett’s lost band for at least an album have had to make severe liberties. While I cannot avoid those, this project attempts to be as accurate as possible. My currently unfinished other project more so embraces how absurd this “band” could become due to the nature of the recordings we have.

I was attracted to a certain story on alternatehistory.com by someone named Massacote. Seeing as Barrett had a proper output that is also distinct from Pink Floyd from 1968-1972, this project moves the band back from forming in 1972 to 1969 and ultimately dissolving in 1972. My idea was, what would the output look like if the group still formed in 1972? Thus, any material released by these members before 1972 will not be included, as it would’ve been already released mainly as solo albums. At the same time, I wanted these albums to coexist with Massacote’s project, so this could basically represent a reunion. Note: Massacote’s project does use material from the early solo albums. You can essentially pick which timeline you want this to follow from.

Most of the tracks I’m covering are essentially one person’s solo work. Still, I think there’s enough cohesion to make them interesting listens. Also, these tracks at least at the time were unloved, so you could imagine that if the band was working together at this time, they might have been pleased to have some place to gather all these little oddities. This creates the issue that it would’ve taken until 1977 to get a studio album out by them considering how little there is to work with. It is nice that a few of the cuts here do feature collaboration between Stars members, so it’s not as solo-y as it could be.

The real band’s bassist, Jack Monck, had such little presence in available recordings that Massacote replaced him with Steve Took. The purist in me feels weird about this, especially because the actual Took seemed to basically never play bass. My resolve is to retcon the story. Monck may have left before the group’s first album, but he soon rejoined as just a helper. We can also say there are various bassists on the albums. Took would stay on to service other roles. While Took was never a Star in real life, he was friends with and worked with the members, so it’s not hard to believe he would’ve been involved, especially as we’re really scraping together a presence for Syd Barrett. Maybe he’d be used in lieu of more prominent Syd? The fourth and final album in the Massacote series actually features Monck a healthy amount, so we can say before that fourth album he once again was an official member. With the three albums I did, he is still official. There are some other minor retcons.

Lastly, while the first three Massacote albums all use recordings that were on solo albums or are otherwise unusable, the fourth, Live Extracts: Six Hour Technicolor Dream, doesn’t overlap and its material was recorded and given an imagined release in 1972. Thus, we can say that it is the first album in the universe where the band started in 1972.

Here is a link to Massacote’s telling: https://www.alternatehistory.com/forum/threads/rock-albums-from-alternate-timelines.369850/page-14

Without further ado:

After the Live Extracts project, everyone was excited to keep going other than Syd Barrett, who seemed tired and demoralized, especially after hearing bad reviews. Despite how uncommon they were, they caused him to be more reclusive. Long-term members Steve Took, Twink, and Jack Monck were unwilling to continue without him. Newer singer Bruce Paine was more excited to do more, especially another live album. He was voted out. Barrett was extremely awkward in the studio, but more comfortable in either informal jam sessions or live. Thus, Paine got his way. The material was not as fruitful as anyone hoped, as Barrett was unreliable. With the help of outtakes, the album was completed.

“I’m starting to understand why [Pink] Floyd fired him.” – Bruce Paine, 1972

STARS – L.A TO LONDON BOOGIE

TRACKLISTING

SIDE A

1. “Sea Cruise” (Six Hour Technicolour Dream Cambridge 1972)
2. “Baby Lemonade” (Sounds of the Seventies)
3. “L.A To London Boogie” (Six Hour Technicolour Dream Cambridge 1972)
4. “Ice” (Six Hour Technicolour Dream Cambridge 1972)
5. “Dominoes” (Sounds of the Seventies)
6. “Nadine” (Six Hour Technicolour Dream Cambridge 1972)

SIDE B

1. “The Snake” (Pink Fairies John Peel Session)
2. “Drinkin’ That Wine” (Six Hour Technicolour Dream Cambridge 1972)
3. “Sweet Little Angel” (Six Hour Technicolour Dream Cambridge 1972)
4. “Love Song” (Sounds of the Seventies)

L.A to London Boogie was released to mixed reviews. This caused Barrett to become somewhat nervous and upset that he quit the band and wouldn’t come back. Seeing as the three remaining original members were unwilling to continue without Barrett, Paine left for other groups. Twink and Took continued to work on ideas and record tracks, either for a hopeful Barrett reunion or their own duo album; they weren’t satisfied and got caught up in other bands. Every now and then, they would give another shot at things, sometimes with Monck.

In 1974, primarily after the recent hits by Pink Floyd and T. Rex, interest renewed in those bands and its members. Various artists cited Stars as an influence. Thus, Polydor sought to get the band back together to make more records. Twink and Took agreed if they could get Barrett and Monck agreed on that condition and that he could get some of his songs included, as he failed to get them out as a solo artist. After checking in on Barrett, the members agreed they should wait a little longer. When approached in late 1965, Barrett seemed reluctant, but was a little more interested after a jam session with the other members. Still, Barrett was unwilling to commit to the degree everyone hoped for. This included not writing new songs, claiming he hadn’t done so in many years.

Barrett recorded guitar for the others, often separately from them, but he did provide unfinished recordings of him with Pink Floyd, which were finished by the other Stars often without him. For this album and the next, Barrett more enthusiastically contributed his paintings to be album covers. Despite how many recordings were started years prior, Flophouse Blues was praised for how cohesive it is. Still, it was considered behind the times, despite about half the album having been written shortly before production. The then current members of Pink Floyd demanded to not be credited, as they weren’t satisfied with their original contributions. Stars agreed. It is often a point of debate which elements were by Floyd and which were redone by Stars.

STARS – FLOPHOUSE BLUES

TRACKLISTING

SIDE A

1. “Flophouse Blues (In The Mountain Grill)” (Steve Took – Crazy Diamond)
2. “I Wanna Be Free” (The Rings)
3. “Four Letter Words” (Jack Monck – Inside The Whale)
4. “Automobile” (The Rings)
5. “Butterfly” (Pink Floyd)
6. “Leaden Day” (Jack Monck – Inside The Whale)

SIDE B

1. “Teenage Rebel” (The Rings Rehearsal Tapes)
2. “Syd’s Wine” (Steve Took – Crazy Diamond)
3. “Double O Bo” (Pink Floyd)
4. “I Wanna Get High” (The Rings Rehearsal Tapes)
5. “Lanky (Part One)” (Syd Barrett – Opel)
6. “Flophouse Blues (Reprise)” (Steve Took – Crazy Diamond)

For their next record, the band attempted to be more current, embracing more punk, while not abandoning their roots. Ironically, the lead track was “Do It ‘77”, though the album ultimately wasn’t released until 1978. While the band wanted to keep going, Barrett was so disinterested that it seemed wiser to quit while they were ahead, while still first finishing the album. Some stray guitar tracks performed by Barrett were found or recorded anew. While those demos were criticized by many, with one person calling it “Junk”, they were liked by Stars. They overdubbed it and thought it made for the perfect final chapter of the group.

STARS – VEGETABLE MEN

TRACKLISTING

SIDE A

1. “Do It ‘77” (Twink And The Fairies)
2. “Lucky Charm” (Steve Took – Crazy Diamond)
3. “Back On The Train” (1st Version) (Jack Monck – Inside The Whale)
4. “Enter The Diamonds” (Twink And The Fairies)
5. “Vegetable Man” (2010 Mix) (Pink Floyd)
6. “Blues For Ray” (1st Version) (Jack Monck – Inside The Whale)
7. “Psychedelic Punkeroo” (Twink And The Fairies)

SIDE B

1. “Molecular Lucky Charm” (Steve Took – Crazy Diamond)
2. “Junk” (Syd Barrett 1974 recordings by Richard Hall)

Though Vegetable Men received mixed reviews and less than stellar commercial success, it and the band’s other albums gained massive cult followings and were considered underappreciated classics. The group spoke highly of their time, especially being pleased with it being a wakeup call they should work to get Barrett some help.

“We loved Syd. He was the soul of the band and we didn’t want to lose that. Floyd’s song about him hit us like a ton of bricks and we just knew we had to be there for him.” – Twink, 2005

LINKS

1. Lean Out Your Window (1970) – YouTube
2. Beautiful Deceiver (1971) – YouTube
3. Uncle Harry’s Last Freak Out (1972) – YouTube

Below Is All That Is Canon To The Started In 1972 Timeline

1. Live Extracts: Six Hour Technicolor Dream (1972) – YouTube
2. L.A to London Boogie (1973) – YouTube
3. Flophouse Blues (1977) – YouTube
4. Vegetable Men (1978) – YouTube

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.

Syd Barrett 1970 Stray Tracks Review

Green Onions

February 24th, 1970 Show for Top Gear

It’s fascinating hearing the acoustic and tap percussion versions of these band or folk tracks. The “Baby Lemonade” vocal is very psychedelic and warm. “Effervescing Elephant” comes off lighter without other instruments. “Gigolo Aunt” is especially interesting because of the different instrumental ending. The guitar sound and percussion perfectly match the tone of “Terrapin”, better than the album version. The instrumental portion manages to feel more intimate. “Two Of A Kind” has all these benefits, plus it’s got no other known version. It makes you wish a whole album was done like this. This warm sound makes this the greatest set of Syd Barrett live recordings available.

“Baby Lemonade (Take 1 – February 26th, 1970)”

An effective version of the track, though not as good as the album version. The singing could be better.

“Baby Lemonade (Take 1 – Alt Mix – February 26th, 1970)”

This is better than last one, as the double-tracked vocals are replaced with single-tracked and a little ambiance. It does go on a little long.

“Maisie (Take 1 – February 26th, 1970)”

Essentially just a few seconds of guitar playing.

“Maisie (Take 2 – Alt Mix – February 26th, 1970)”

Just seems like a more rough around the edges version of the album version, almost like it’s a rehearsal. It’s only really worthwhile for those really interested in hearing these stages of development.

“Waving My Arms in the Air” and “I Never Lied to You (Both Take 1 – February 27th, 1970)”

Very haunting guitar and vocal, especially the “No one in the land, no one” part.

“Gigolo Aunt (Take 9 – February 27th, 1970)”

Clearly different guitar and vocals from on the Barrett album, here more washed out. It’s pretty fun.

“Bob Dylan Blues (February 1970)”

This shows off the playful and worldly folk artist inside Syd, with upbeat singing and plenty of enthusiasm. This was written in 1965, which explains the “youthfulness” compared to his more melancholic lyrics. His singing is beautiful.

“Birdie Hop (Take 1 – Jenner ’74 Mix – June 5th, 1970)”

Really unintentionally creepy vocal and guitar. The sound quality makes it hard to appreciate.

“Birdie Hop (Demo – June 5th, 1970)”

This sounds about the same, though in better quality.

“Rats (Take 1 – Chatter – June 5th, 1970)” and “Wined and Dined (Takes 1 and 2 – Chatter – June 5th, 1970)”

As always, these chatter recordings are not as interesting as they could be, due to being relatively monotonous. Syd calls rats his “fetish”.

“Rats (Demo – June 5th, 1970)”, “Wined and Dined (Demo – June 5th, 1970)”, and “Effervescing Elephant” (Take 2 – July 14th, 1970)”

The folk versions of band tracks are consistently enjoyable.

June 6th, 1970 Show at the Olympia Exhibition Hall, London, England

The guitar on “Terrapin” has a lot of passion, it’s a shame the vocals are hard to hear. As an instrumental, the track goes on a little too long. The guitar is also often more intense, like when it rocks out on “Gigolo Aunt”. It’s easy to imagine Floyd versions of solo Syd, with more powerful playing and improvisation. “Effervescing Elephant” is a strange choice for this show, especially as something other than the first or last song. It’s a step away from being a quick acoustic guitar number, here married to some rocking band tunes. It’s fun hearing this version of “Octopus” that can rock out, though sound quality is as always a limitation. Fortunately, it does have more audible vocals. This show is interesting for it being Floyd-ish, but it’s too difficult to hear to get much out of it.

“Milky Way (Take 5 – June 7th, 1970)”

Not one of the best unreleased tracks, though it does still have the elements that make Syd great, just not as in full effect or utilized as well as they sometimes are.

“Milky Way (Take 5 – Jenner ’74 Mix – June 7th, 1970)”

This sounds very similar production-wise, though it’s a little lower quality.

“Love Song (Take 1 – July 14th, 1970)”

There’s more quietness and shyness, making this track haunting. This is a more depressing number, especially with how the guitar bangs out notes.

“Dominoes (Take 1 – July 14th, 1970)”

Doesn’t go anywhere, essentially a flubbed take.

“Dominoes (Take 2 – July 14th, 1970)”

There is still the added “insecure vocal”, which is not best on the album, but it’s great to have it here in the bonus tracks. The “time goes by” line is a favorite part, emphasizing how sad Syd sounds. He also does the Annette Hanshaw “That’s all.”

“Dolly Rocker (Take 1 – July 14th, 1970)”

It’d be interesting to hear a band version of this, as it seems made for the insecure folk style. The lyrics are fun. Syd wakes up a little with the “ocean” line, showing the innocence in his voice.

“Let’s Split (Take 1 – July 14th, 1970)”

This is one of the weakest available Syd songs, feeling very incomplete. It has plenty of potential to be great, as it does have good elements; it’s just noticeably less polished than album tracks or tracks like “Dolly Rocker”. Fortunately there are fan versions that remove the flubs.

“It Is Obvious (Takes 2, 3, and 5 – July 17th, 1970)”

Take 3 seems designed for a band version, with a deepened voice that seems designed to shout over a drummer! Take 2 is more of a typical folk rendition. Take 5 is the most interesting, with Syd trying to have a warm vocal, as if to evoke how you’d sing to a small child. Based on his state, it’s slightly unsettling, but in a good way.

“Word Song (Take 1 – July 17th, 1970)”

Syd also seems to be going for that “for a child” voice, but not as much. Possibly unintentionally, he is mostly emotionless. The guitar fills in for parts where you’d expect singing, which makes for a cool effect.

“Word Song (Take 1 – Jenner ’74 Mix – July 21st, 1970)”

Very similar to the other version, though the guitar sounds a little different, as if made louder, possibly to try to make it a “guitar song”, instead of a “singing song”.

“In The Beechwoods – Milky Way (Mash-up)” by Doctor Robert

These two tracks fit together surprisingly well. “Milky Way” was probably the intended lyrics for Beechwoods. The more I listen, the less they seem awkward together. That being said, Syd’s 1970 folk vocal doesn’t match up perfectly, though well enough for repeat listens and for this to be my favorite version of “Milky Way”.

“Let’s Split” Edit to Remove Errors

While some of the awkward elements are still present, like the “work in progress” guitar playing, and thus this still feels like a very rough version of the song, the edits for cohesion make it a little easier to appreciate it, especially with the whistling finishing off the tune nicely.

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.

Syd Barrett – The Madcap Laughs (1970) Review

The Madcap Laughs is the first Syd Barrett solo album, though as far as I’m concerned it’s the second. Madcap is a far more sensible follow-up to The Piper at the Gates of Dawn than A Saucerful of Secrets was. Despite this, Madcap is in many ways a subversion from what you might’ve expected. Instead of getting the type of production on tracks like “Jugband Blues”, you get a much more simplistic style at times, including many pure folk tracks. At the same time, you get some band tracks. Those band tracks, while often keeping at least a toe in folk, have psychedelic elements that make them feel like Pink Floyd, with a big omission being the keyboard. “No Man’s Land”, “Here I Go”, “Late Night”, and especially “Octopus” all seem like a keyboard away from being on a hypothetical Floyd album that follows Piper. Even “Golden Hair”’s light touches make it seem like a reasonable fit. “No Good Trying” and “Love You” of course do have keys, but the different style of keyboardist Mike Ratledge is apparent.

The lyrics are often magically nonsensical, though still make their point just as strong or stronger than more straightforward ones. “Yes you’re spinning around and around in a car with electric lights flashing very fast…” This quality is especially noticeable on the love songs. “Terrapin” is sung slowly with a psychedelic entrancing guitar. “Well, oh baby, my hairs on end about you.” captures the track’s vibe well. That all being said, the song would’ve been a better side-a closer. It’s quite long. “No Good Trying” shows Syd’s still great at doing jam tracks, feeling like it could’ve been a new direction for him that combines the free and lucid Pink Floyd with a more jazz-esque group like Soft Machine. “Love You” captures the spirit of slightly manic and very hard to explain falling-into-love. It’s a lovely lighthearted romper. This ‘love for life’ style is so joyful that it’s sad Syd didn’t do it more. “No Man’s Land” is the half-way point between the last two songs, it’s got great rocking out and feels like an extension of Floyd.

“Dark Globe” overtly discusses Syd’s depression and disillusionment. Arguably we were led into this by the garble at the end of the previous track. That could be seen as the entrance into the darker Syd. Globe seems to be about Syd falling to his death and asking if he’d be missed, with a heart wrenching and angsty vocal. While the next track, “Here I Go”, is on the surface another fluffier cut, Syd’s voice is cold, like he’s trying to relive a teenage experience after feeling emotionally broken. In fact, the song was written in 1965, when he first started writing music. It ends with a great mini-jam. That’s not the most exciting way to end side-a. Side-b’s opener would’ve been a better choice.

“Octopus” is rightfully the most well known track here. Its lyrics describe a mythical fairytale land. The line, “close our eyes to the octopus ride” suggests a darker subject, that you should ignore something approaching in favor of something unbelievable. Syd’s voice then gets colder as he sings about being “lost in the woods”. The lyrics continue to take baby steps into darkness, as does the vocal, which becomes more and more strained, like it needs air. This striking metaphor for Syd creeps under the surface, with the double-tracked vocals and other effects amplifying the otherworldliness. This track is the one you should hear from this album if you only do one and is my favorite.

“Golden Hair” is another highlight, imitating the style of “spacious instrumentals” with Syd’s slow strumming and singing. The lyrics are fantastic, like a bedtime story being read to you. That being said, Syd didn’t write them. This is yet more of a look into his interest in fairy tales and poetry. There’s a sudden transition to the more simplistic “Long Gone”. As if to be an antithesis to the earlier love songs, this one is about a romance crumbling. That cold style of “just singing and guitar” goes on for four tracks. They are understandably very personal and intimidating. The nonsense lyrics now feel like they’re being sung by a man who’s really lost it. To apply a “concept” to the album, it could be about a man who has a relationship he loves, it ends, can’t accept it and lets it consume his mind, with him thinking about the good and bad times and in the case of Hair, a poem from his youth. This is represented in lines like, “You feel me away far too empty, oh so alone. I want to go home. Oh, find me inside of a nocturne – the blonde.” As he loses it more, the lyrics become more strange.

While these four songs are great, they don’t mesh so well with the others due to stylistic differences. It would’ve been nice to get a full album of mostly or all band tracks and another of mostly or all folk tracks. The studio chatter also does remove from the experience, pulling you out of the spell you’re put under. The final track, “Late Night”, is unsettling, with passionate lyrics and a sound atmosphere. The lyrics are very innocent, being about missing a girl and her kisses. The stress in his voice, lines like, “when the rooftops shone dark”, and considering what we’ve just heard make this seem like it’s about a suicide. Still, maybe you can get away with sending this to someone you’re into without the context of what’s come before, as the lyrics are very romantic.

OVERVIEW

The quiet sounds tying off the record might be considered lacking in comparison to the “bigger” “Bike” track of Piper, though it does thematically fit with what The Madcap Laughs is going for. It doesn’t want to blow you out. The biggest strength and weakness is how Syd it is. As a Syd fan, it can be a lot, though it’s still so flavorful and captivating. A non-Syd fan might not be able to appreciate it beyond a few out of context cuts, as it’s like listening to someone’s disturbed thoughts.

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 – Meddle (1971) Review

“The Ear Album”

Meddle is a monumental Pink Floyd album and their first that at least mostly lands on its feet after the departure of Syd Barrett. Still, it’s not completely consistent, but its low points aren’t particularly bad. After the first two albums took extreme cues from Barrett’s song-by-song styling, the third and fourth were more experimental, making a lot more sense as a whole. They also seemed like attempts to replicate Syd’s presence. In 1971, they let go of Syd, but went back to the song-by-song formula. What we get is a fluid and stand out album that shows the group not getting too caught up with themselves, while also showing technical proficiency.

Meddle’s a-side is casual and light, playing with blues, psychedelia, folk, and other genres, all masterfully handled by the vocals and guitar. The vocal and guitar textures really make this album, mostly handled by David Gilmour. The more space rock the group was post-Syd, the more desperate they seemed to justify keeping the band name after losing the person who was so adept at space rock and by extension their sound. David does his own thing finally. The others follow suit, backing this newer idea. In the past, the group had prominent bass, keyboard, and drums. A criticism you could levy here is that they take a backseat. Despite that, they’re extremely solid.

“One of These Days” is a great mix of building atmosphere, rocking out, and driving guitars. The track is constantly throwing appropriate new sounds into the mix. It could theoretically be criticized for going for that older, jam-based angle, especially as the opener, but it makes such a strong impression and is so enjoyable that it really works. It is a little jarring compared to the next four tracks, which are comparatively so light. Driving drums and the keyboard are nice nods to the older style and rock in general, making for a fusion style that doesn’t let you forget you’re listening to a rock record.

“Echoes” was apparently culled from a lot of different musical ideas over the years and it does sound like it. It comes off as incoherent at points, with awkward pacing and jumps to different sections of the piece. Some of the more ambient-inspired portions seem like they’re being played too slow or with pressure to suggest it’s supposed to be big and epic. The descending riff is an example of the latter. The volume is too low, with the instruments at times feeling muddled and indistinguishable. It’s easy to imagine it was forced to be as long as possible for the purpose of being a grand finale. It also doesn’t tonally fit with the lighter, earlier tracks, but that’s admittedly a minor complaint. The great Syd-era instrumentals generally said, “What can we do with this particular musical idea?” and explored it in different ways. This track feels like an attempt to replicate that, with the aforementioned multi-sourced elements failing that.

Despite the criticism of “tone”, it’s possible that the side-a style would not have been as consistently high quality for an entire album. It would’ve been better to try something different, like using some of the highlights from the next record, Obscured by Clouds.

OVERVIEW

While I praised this album for being more “original”, it is not entirely. Syd Barrett had been dabbling quite a bit in psychedelic folk, which paints “A Pillow of Winds” and many others. It’s hard to say for sure what makes this album work so much better than previous, but it seems it’s likely that the guitars are not Syd-like. They’re David Gilmour and Roger Waters-like. This 1971 effort will prove to be an oddity. The band will soon return to their original goal of “blowing you out”, which they tried from 1968-1970. The difference is that they’ll succeed. Whether or not Meddle played any part of that is up for debate. You can hardly shake it on its own merits, though.

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.

Syd Barrett Solo Era – Three Fan Albums (Take 2)

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.

This is a very belated continuation of my re-do of fan albums for Syd Barrett that co-exist with officially released albums, as if Syd released the three official albums as they are, as well as some extra ones that collect all the stray tracks. I already did this once, but wanted to try again seeing as there were ways to improve. Before, the first two ‘fan’ solo-Syd albums collected proper Syd songs and ones where he played on someone else’s song. The other artist’s songs are excluded now. For those curious, the six of those songs are “Singing a Song in the Morning” aka “Religious Experience” by Kevin Ayers, “Drinkin’ That Wine”, “Number Nine”, and “Gotta Be A Reason” by Last Minute Put Together Boogie Band, and unconfirmed contributions on “Molecular Lucky Charm” and “Syd’s Wine” by Steve Took. What’s left for the first album are all of the strays from 1968-1970 except for one outlier. Next is a live album of all Syd’s solo live recordings except for one that never had a studio version, so it was moved up to the studio album previously mentioned. Finally, there’s his instrumental 1974 recordings, topped off with the 1969 instrumental “Rhamadam”. That third album is exactly the same as it was the first time I fan albumed Syd, with it being the only one I have no changes to make.

Listed below are links to the Syd and Pink Floyd fan albums, then the links for these. For Syd + Floyd live, I’ll just say to listen to each show as if it’s an album, with my tracklists being the same as the running order. Maybe I’ll play around with that properly later, but I’m not so interested now. I have a “creative mode” idea with Syd’s material, which I’ve been working on for a while. Stay tuned!

SYD BARRETT – TWO OF A KIND (1970)

TRACKLISTING

SIDE A

1. “Swan Lee (Silas Lang)”
2. “Birdie Hop”
3. “Dolly Rocker”
4. “Milky Way”
5. “Word Song”

SIDE B

1. “Let’s Split”
2. “Bob Dylan Blues”
3. “Lanky (Part One)”
4. “Opel”
5. “Two Of A Kind”

SYD BARRETT – DOMINOES (1971)

TRACKLISTING

SIDE A

1. “Dominoes”
2. “Baby Lemonade”
3. “Terrapin”
4. “Gigolo Aunt”
5. “Effervescing Elephant”
6. “Love Song”
7. “Baby Lemonade”

SIDE B

1. “Terrapin”
2. “Gigolo Aunt”
3. “Effervescing Elephant”
4. “Octopus”

SYD BARRETT – BOOGIE PARTY

TRACKLISTING

SIDE A

1. “Boogie #1”
2. “If You Go, Don’t Be Slow #1”
3. “Chooka-Chooka Chug Chug”
4. “Ballad Of The Unfinished”
5. “Boogie Down”
6. “Untitled”
7. “Boogie Up”
8. “John Lee Hooker”
9. “If You Go, Don’t Be Slow #2”
10. “Boogie #2 – More Echo”
11. “Boogie #3 – Resolution”

SIDE B

1. “Rhamadam”

LINKS

1. Syd Barrett & Pink Floyd – The Tea Set (1966) – The Filme Diary
2. Syd Barrett & Pink Floyd – Projection (1967) – The Filme Diary
3. Syd Barrett & Pink Floyd – The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn (1967) – YouTube, Spotify, Archive.org
4. Syd Barrett & Pink Floyd – Lights (1967) – The Filme Diary
5. Syd Barrett & Pink Floyd – Tomorrow’s Morning (1968) – The Filme Diary
6. Syd Barrett – The Madcap Laughs (1970) – Spotify, YouTube
7. Syd Barrett – Two Of A Kind (1970) – YouTube
8. Syd Barrett – Barrett (1970) – Spotify, YouTube
9. Syd Barrett – Dominoes LIVE! (1971) – YouTube
10. Syd Barrett – Boogie Party (1974) – YouTube

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!

Pink Floyd – 1970: Devi/ation (2016) Review – Long And Unfinished

Pink Floyd in 1970

Pink Floyd took to 1970 with a shift in style. The space rock and music based on filling atmosphere has been significantly minimized. In its place is a style that’s decidedly more “down to Earth.” They’re better for it, as they were unable to blow you out with amazement, so instead will suck you in with intimacy. The two best examples of this are tracks featured live here and in studio form on the band’s 1970 album, Atom Heart Mother. Those two tracks are “Fat Old Sun” and “If”. Both take advantage of a light guitar sound and connect with a feeling of reflection. They speak on how people might be without dwelling in poetic lyrics that suited Syd Barrett better than the rest of the group. “Green is the Colour” works for similar reasons. “Embryo” seems like it wants to impress you and rock out, but plays like a dragged out experiment. The version here of “Careful With That Axe, Eugene” feels a little out of place, due to fitting in more closely with their late 60s material than early 70s. It still is a nice recording/version of that song.

There are three versions of “Atom Heart Mother Suite”. This is perhaps the most textbook “love it or hate it” Pink Floyd song. The most damning thing you can say is that after the first false ending, you hope that’s the end and you can move on now. The choir and brass give the impression it’s supposed to be operatic, which comes off as very pretentious. They’re trying so hard to have this great experience, but are also going through the motions. Parts will be played like they’re supposed to be climactic or relief from a climax, but they sort of just happen and end without build-up or commitment from the whole group. The notes are telling one story and the playing usually another. The shortest version is about eighteen minutes. The tedium of it makes one not look forward to the next time it appears in this compilation. The main riff near the start and end are good, so this could’ve been salvaged as just a two or three minute ditty. The “Live in Montreux” version is the best for having minimal vocals and brass. Those elements missing ground the piece a little.

The seller for this album to some is the unreleased material from a soundtrack album called Zabriskie Point. Those that want to dig deep in the band’s catalog will appreciate this, though much of the material sounds very incomplete, like demos. Most aren’t too bad, because they’re mostly short. Practically all the material from these box sets sound like they could be a finished and released song, even if a little thin, but not many of these. There are good songs, though. The good ones include “On the Highway” and “Auto Scene, Version 2”. They’re pleasant guitar pieces. “Auto Scene, Version 3” is a warm rocker. “Aeroplane” ups the ante, but not too much. It’s a fun space rock song that isn’t stunning, but doesn’t outstay its welcome and goes at a good pace. Of the soundtrack songs, the earliest tracks tend to be better. It seems it might’ve been deliberate to end this album with the less complete-sounding tracks and then another version of “Atom Heart Mother Suite”. You can easily stop before then if you want. The other boxsets lead with studio material, then live tracks, but this set is the other way around.

“Explosion” has the same issues as the group’s long experiments. “The Riot Scene” and “Love Scene, Version 1” are just a little keyboard noodling. They’re very nothing. “Looking at Map” is the same, though it’s a band piece. Its lack of much ambition is immortalized by that title. Guess the band couldn’t afford an article. As much can be said about “Love Scene, Version 7”, which includes what sounds like mistakes from being an unpolished demo. Both versions of “Take Off” can’t decide if they want to be space rockers or not. “Love Scene, Version 2” and “Take 1” are the best of the ones that feel really incomplete. They have good ambience, but don’t feel essential. “Unknown Song (Take 1)” is another nice guitar number, though it’s too long. It might’ve been one of the better Zabriskie Point tracks if shortened. “Love Scene (Take 2)” is very pleasant, but far too long. It’s like something you’d meditate with. Finally, “Crumbling Land (Take 1)” is ruined by the vocals. They’re too processed and throw-off what the intended tone is supposed to be. Is it supposed to be otherworldly or a little guitar number?

OVERVIEW

1970: Devi/ation has its share of gems, like some good alternate versions of already good songs and the earlier Zabriskie Point tracks praised. The main positive is David Gilmour’s sweet vocal that really shines at being ethereal or chilling. “Fat Old Sun” is a good example of his talent there. His guitar playing is also very effective at the various styles or feelings it needs to be or have. The guitar-led instrumentals can either really set the tone of a composition at best and at worst, with some Zabriskie material, be nice as background music. The weakest material feels less necessary than the weak material on the 1968 and 1969 sets. At least those feel more like the band is trying to do something. That being said, it is no problem to have as much as possible, especially the elusive soundtrack recordings, as they fill an interesting piece of history. The weaker live tracks make the album less-accessible due to being so long, with even the announcer sounding amusingly unenthused. Those wanting good material should catch the tracks that I like and those initiated in the Pink Floyd cult should check out it all.