Syd was sane.

All discussion related to Roger Keith (Syd) Barrett.
The Pink Floyd Sound
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Syd was sane.

Post by The Pink Floyd Sound »

There's no way Syd was the victim of some conspiracy. He wasn't well known very long that much where the government would be likely to notice his music as, some kind of "threat". Plus his music was psychedelic pop rock, not anti-establishment hippie music. Wouldn't it have made more sense for them to get the Beatles who were far more popular at this time if they saw a threat from this type of music.

Also syd did take a experimental drug, but by his own choice, LSD. And yes it probably changed his outlook on the world, as from my experience psychedelics will. Also as far as his "crazy" antics in Pink Floyd, were talking about a guy who was regularly tripping. Has anyone who calls Syd insane actually done psychedelics. Take a high dose and walk around without telling people and then you will look crazy too.

As far as them rendering him useless. I don't think it worked, if that was the intent. Both of his solo albums are good. Yes, they weren't like Piper At The Gates Of Dawn, but isn't being a real artist all about trying different things. And he stopped doing the music scene, I think to both follow his other passion painting, and to get out of a scene where he had a undeserved reputation for being insane.

Saying someone is crazy makes for a much better story than that they were a artist who just didn't last in the music industry.
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danielcaux
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Re: Syd was sane.

Post by danielcaux »

Syd may have very well been, but are you?

I like to think that he wasn't as insane as some people believe, but what do I know? Absolutely nothing! I think we should leave those diagnosis (sane vs. insane) to the people who actually knew him personally, don't you think?

And what's sane (or insane) anyway? Most people have some sort of mental disorder of condition, I think Syd was no exception.
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Re: Syd was sane.

Post by my breakfast. »

It is difficult to try and stay pragmatic on this topic. In my opinion too much has been said about psychedelic drugs by people who either have never taken them or have a pre-conceived grudge against them.

What needs to be remembered is that the 'swinging '60s' happened within a handful of postcodes in London. The rest of Britain was still poor and beaten after WW2.

Psychedelics can be very harsh on one's sense of ego and identity. If the '60s manufactured pop industry looks contrived and sleazy to people now it would have been a million times worse for Syd when he was giving his sense of core identity massive shunts from LSD.
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Re: Syd was sane.

Post by rememberaday »

SYD WAS ALWAYS SANE.

He might have had a "mental disorder" or condition but that doesn't mean he went insane. Sanity is just a perception, he was different from society, so he was labelled as crazy and "acid casualty". Me presumes that he just put his guitar down, walked off the stage, and went back home - that guy actually had a noble simplicity 99.999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 % of the world lacks today.

Like the Stars musician Twink said, " Syd was no acid burnout".
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Re: Syd was sane.

Post by rememberaday »

danielcaux wrote:Syd may have very well been, but are you?
This line, sums it up very well. That paper bag of yours had made you a genius [-D-]
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Re: Syd was sane.

Post by The Pink Floyd Sound »

rememberaday wrote:
danielcaux wrote:Syd may have very well been, but are you?
This line, sums it up very well. That paper bag of yours had made you a genius [-D-]
Of coarse not, I'm a crazy diamond too.
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Re: Syd was sane.

Post by The Pink Floyd Sound »

And if you take a good look at your self your crazy too. <.8.>
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Re: Syd was sane.

Post by rememberaday »

Hey man, cool down - everyone in this forum is crazy as shit, just look at moom, he's off his rocker at times! <ii>

And you're right about me being crazy. You'll soon learn that members of this forum are quite not......right. 8-[
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Re: Syd was sane.

Post by snifferdog »

Ok guys. As they say in football parlance, Play the ball, not the man. It's an interesting question - just how mad/sane Syd was - and this thread will be all the better if people respect each other's opinions :)
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Re: Syd was sane.

Post by rememberaday »

But I just can't make out what this thread is trying to convey!

Sanity is not a fact, it's a perception - if you think Syd was indeed insane, please tell us "why". :o
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Re: Syd was sane.

Post by my breakfast. »

The Pink Floyd Sound wrote:Of coarse not, I'm a crazy diamond too.

Not sure a Syd fan would be so quick to use the 'crazy diamond' term....
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Re: Syd was sane.

Post by danielcaux »

Some insights about Syd from Nick Mason:
When you read about Syd, it's mostly things written about his problems. What are some of the misconceptions about him?

Nick Mason: I'm not sure because I find it difficult, myself, to make out what he really was as a person, because there was Syd before and Syd after. The reality was that Syd was an artist. And I think Syd suffered quite badly at the end of the day from being with a group of people who might be artists but were motivated by a wish to actually be successful. I think that Syd really would have packed it in somewhere in mid '67, early '67. Almost after [the] Games for May [concert] and our first appearance on 'Top of the Pops,' Syd would have retired gracefully and maybe continued in a happier way. He might still just as easily have gone right off the rails but unfortunately we didn't know any better, and nor did he.
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Re: Syd was sane.

Post by RonToon »

Have you heard "Birdie Hop"? :lol:
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Re: Syd was sane.

Post by MariahZ »

the only time I'm sane is when I'm talkin' crazy
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Re: Syd was sane.

Post by danielcaux »

What's exactly "sane/insane" means? Someone with manic depression would be considered sane or insane? Bipolar disorder? Autism? Down syndrome? It's "insane" just reserved for psychotic/delusional mental conditions?