Syd Barrett (album)

During the summer of 1965, Barrett had his first acid trip in the garden of his friend Dave Gale,^[4][5] with Ian Moore and Storm Thorgerson.^[4] While under the influence of the substance, Barrett had placed an orange, plum and a matchbox into a corner, while staring at the fruit, which he claimed symbolized "Venus and Jupiter".^[4][5] Thorgerson used this imagery when he added these items to the cover of Syd Barrett.^[4]

After the unexpectedly massive success of Pink Floyd's The Dark Side of the Moon, EMI re-issued the Barrett-era albums The Piper at the Gates of Dawn and A Saucerful of Secrets as A Nice Pair in the hope that fans would be interested in the band's earlier work with Barrett. Once that was a success, primarily in the US, Syd Barrett was compiled to meet demand.^[1]

As a result, The Madcap Laughs/Barrett (as it was titled in the US) made number 163,^[1] giving Barrett his only US chart album. Village Voice critic Robert Christgau wrote of the album: "Admittedly, a lot of what results is worthy of the wimp-turned-acid-casualty Barrett is. But a lot of it is funny, charming, catchy--whimsy at its best... I know damn well it gives me more pleasure than The Dark Side of the Moon."^[2]

All songs by Syd Barrett, except where noted.

Album - Billboard