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Author Topic: Pink Floyd and solo Spin offs for Eric  (Read 4709 times)

jdc

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Pink Floyd and solo Spin offs for Eric
« on: September 21, 2022, 02:46:25 AM »
Will try to highlight one or two tracks from each album for Eric to listen, trying to focus on something more obscure when possible.  Though most won’t be if followed PF for a while.  This may jump around from PF to solo projects as I will try to keep them in release order.  So expect the music to change quite a bit over time.
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jdc

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Re: Pink Floyd and solo Spin offs for Eric
« Reply #1 on: September 21, 2022, 02:53:52 AM »
First Album, Pipes At the Gates of Dawn released 1967.

No real reason for choosing Lucifer Sam other than its about a Cat… exactly what? I can’t explain.

https://youtu.be/8uW7nx8foP8

Bike is probably the best known song from the first album.  Most of the album is written by Syd Barrett who is the original guitar player and singer. Due to too much LSD and possibly other mental issues, he didn’t make it beyond the first album with the band other than a single track on the second album. 

https://youtu.be/xwK11srDmyw
"Beer. Now there's a temporary solution."  Homer S.
“The direct use of physical force is so poor a solution to the problem of limited resources that it is commonly employed only by small children and great nations” - David Friedman

jdc

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Re: Pink Floyd and solo Spin offs for Eric
« Reply #2 on: September 21, 2022, 03:34:39 AM »
A Saucerful of Secrets came out in 1968, 3 Songs credited to Roger Waters, 2 to Richard Wright, 1 to Syd Barrett, and 1 song to Waters, Wright, David Gilmour and Nick Mason. 

I was wrong in the previous post, while Syd only has 1 song on the album, at least parts of the song Remember A Day has him performing.  But I don’t think he is playing on the others

But I choose Richard Wright’s See-Saw:

https://youtu.be/wjM90vvMB6g


As well as Syd’s final song with Pink Floyd; around the time he started to have schizophrenic episodes.. He was becoming very un-reliable as a live performer, either not showing up or just strumming a de-tuned guitar. The band brought David Gilmour on to help back him up.  For a number of gigs they performed as a 5 piece band…. Then on the way to a gig one day they just decided not to pick Syd up


https://youtu.be/jMOynjuAPvM 


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syd_Barrett


Around Christmas, Pink Floyd asked Barrett's schoolfriend David Gilmour to join as a second guitarist to cover for Barrett. For a handful of shows, Gilmour played and sang while Barrett wandered around on stage, occasionally joining the performance. The other band members grew tired of Barrett's antics and, on 26 January 1968, when Waters was driving on the way to a show at Southampton University, they elected not to pick Barrett up. One person in the car said, "Shall we pick Syd up?" and another said, "Let's not bother."[84][85][86][87] As Barrett had written the bulk of the band's material, the plan was to retain him as a non-touring member, as the Beach Boys had done with Brian Wilson, but this proved impractical.[86][88][89]
"Beer. Now there's a temporary solution."  Homer S.
“The direct use of physical force is so poor a solution to the problem of limited resources that it is commonly employed only by small children and great nations” - David Friedman

jdc

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Re: Pink Floyd and solo Spin offs for Eric
« Reply #3 on: September 21, 2022, 08:15:02 AM »
The next album, More is a soundtrack for a Barbet Schroeder film of the same name. While started listening to them in the 80’s and explored all the early and solo stuff, I never watch either of the movies that they recorded soundtracks to, even though I was somewhat a movie buff exploring what ever I could at the time. I probably should correct that eventually.  Schroeder has done quite a few known films in his day, though not sure anybody reviewed More around here.

More only took a couple of weeks to record and probably starts to show Waters taking leadership of the song writing.  While most of the band has credits on the instrumentals, Waters share sole credit on most of the songs that lyrics.  As a soundtrack, it is probably more straight forward and less experimental that what came before with 13 tracks mostly in the 3 min range.  But a few good standouts and the first time they maybe play some straight up hard rock songs

Ibiza Bar

https://youtu.be/yHHFidio0Io

Green is the Colour -

https://youtu.be/60H7fsoIX8A
"Beer. Now there's a temporary solution."  Homer S.
“The direct use of physical force is so poor a solution to the problem of limited resources that it is commonly employed only by small children and great nations” - David Friedman

jdc

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Re: Pink Floyd and solo Spin offs for Eric
« Reply #4 on: September 21, 2022, 08:55:02 AM »
Final post of now..
 
The 4th album, Ummagumma was a double album.  The first album was a live recording that featured songs that were standards of their live set that they were hoping to record so they could retire from playing them.  Three of them were from the first 2 albums but the live versions were extended and more “psychedelic” then the album version. While the band probably actually quite straight and boring after Syd, the audience were probably more trippy…

While Astronomy Domine was originally a Syd Barrett song from Pipers at the Gates of Dawn, the live extended version on Ummagumma was so much better.  This not the official track from the album but a live recording of around the same time

https://youtu.be/5uj8IIzbrv8


The second album was an expierement in which each musician was given 1/2 a side to record and do what ever they wanted. Either on their own or with the assistance of the other musicians.  I don’t actually like anything on the second album in this set but will feature the shortest.

Several Species of Small Furry Animals Gathered Together in a Cave and Grooving with a Pict:

https://youtu.be/GpWJv7alqQE
"Beer. Now there's a temporary solution."  Homer S.
“The direct use of physical force is so poor a solution to the problem of limited resources that it is commonly employed only by small children and great nations” - David Friedman

MartinTeller

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Re: Pink Floyd and solo Spin offs for Eric
« Reply #5 on: September 21, 2022, 09:22:44 AM »
Yeah I have never found the second half of Ummagumma to be worthwhile.

I did watch More, and trust me, you're not missing anything.

jdc

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Re: Pink Floyd and solo Spin offs for Eric
« Reply #6 on: September 22, 2022, 12:05:56 AM »
Early 1970 brought Syd Barrett’s first sole album, The Madcap Laughs.  Recordings went all the way back to 1968 with different sessions and different producers.  Eventually Barrett asked Waters and Gilmour to come in as producers to finish the album.. they don’t play on it but there are some members of Soft Machine.  While there are some straight forward tracks and a couple that are based on poems, most of the rest seem personal and a bit disturbing, though not always very coherent. Granted, I am not the best interpreter of lyrics. The album is also pretty sloppily  put together with some studio conversation left in and song restarts or page turning mid song.  In the end, it likely adds to the mystic that become Syd.

It is hard not just want to recommend the entire album given it is probably such a personal look into the state of the performer, but none of the songs are very long so will give you 4:

Dark Globe:

https://youtu.be/4TZi_O9ZaCM

She Took a Long Cold Look:

https://youtu.be/EIl1aTSGekM

Feel:

https://youtu.be/dmhpVKw8z4E

Late Night:

https://youtu.be/Ew0Sn7CfIkM
"Beer. Now there's a temporary solution."  Homer S.
“The direct use of physical force is so poor a solution to the problem of limited resources that it is commonly employed only by small children and great nations” - David Friedman

jdc

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Re: Pink Floyd and solo Spin offs for Eric
« Reply #7 on: September 22, 2022, 12:08:37 AM »
Yeah I have never found the second half of Ummagumma to be worthwhile.

I did watch More, and trust me, you're not missing anything.

That is what I figured…
"Beer. Now there's a temporary solution."  Homer S.
“The direct use of physical force is so poor a solution to the problem of limited resources that it is commonly employed only by small children and great nations” - David Friedman

oldkid

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Re: Pink Floyd and solo Spin offs for Eric
« Reply #8 on: September 22, 2022, 11:10:42 PM »
There are a couple songs on Ummagumma I love.
Grandchester Meadows is too difficult to hear.  The Narrow Way is pretty dull.

But Sisyphus, the Richard Wright selection, is wonderful.  It is a slow build, watching in my head the struggle of the mythic figure, his success and failure.  Perhaps it is a little long, but I love the long play.
https://youtu.be/Jpo35OqasTk

The other I would post is Several Species, which jdc posted above.  I find it playful, like Bike from their first album.  The production and engineering is great, and it is Roger at his most humorous. 

I had a friend who hated this song.  He said that when he was young his brother tied him up to a chair in a basement, turned the stereo so high it was barely tolerable, and played this song a number of times.  All he could think about is rats running over his feet and strange men approaching him, speaking harshly.  That was not a playful context.
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jdc

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Re: Pink Floyd and solo Spin offs for Eric
« Reply #9 on: September 23, 2022, 12:05:06 AM »
That sounds like what our military does to Panama dictators
"Beer. Now there's a temporary solution."  Homer S.
“The direct use of physical force is so poor a solution to the problem of limited resources that it is commonly employed only by small children and great nations” - David Friedman