The Pink Floyd & Syd Barrett Story Comments about this recording from http://www.pink-floyd.org The main DVD is the Omnibus programme. This fascinating documentary traces the creative and personal tumult of Barrett's days with Pink Floyd, and the fallout from his psychedelics induced breakdown. The extras are of unseen footage and the sound quality of the DVD is outstanding in Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS surround sound. Extras Roger Waters on Syd Barrett Extended interview of Roger Waters talking about Syd Barrett, which includes Syd’s musical influences, his illness and the last time he saw Syd. (10 minutes) Dave Gilmour on Wish You Were Here Extended interview of Dave Gilmour talking about how Wish You Were Here was written. (4 minutes) Robyn Hitchcock performing Dominoes Singer/ songwriter of 60’s influenced guitar pop group Soft Boys Dominoes is from Syd Barretts solo album Barrett released in November 1970. (3 minutes) Robyn Hitchcock performing It Is Obvious It Is Obvious is from Syd Barretts solo album Barrett released in November 1970. (3 minutes) Graham Coxon performing Love You Love You is from Syd Barretts solo album The Madcap Laughs released in January 1970. (3 minutes) Biography Detailed biography of Syd Barrett ===================================================================== Comments about this recording from Amazon.com: The sudden departure of Pink Floyd's founding member Syd Barrett in 1968 marked the closure of the first prolific chapter in the Pink Floyd story. A maverick artist and true individual, Syd Barrett helped forge the British psychedelic scene when he formed Pink Floyd with Roger Waters, Rick Wright and Nick Mason in 1965. This special charts the band's rise to fame under the guidance of Barrett's influence to his premature departure under a cloud of drug abuse and psychological problems. Richly illustrated with rare early footage of the band performing, alongside new interviews with the members of the band - David Gilmour, Rick Wright, Roger Waters and Nick Mason - and their associates, fans and friends including Jerry Shirley (Humble Pie), Graham Coxon (Blur) and original band member Bob Klose. Featuring classic early Pink Floyd songs Shine On You Crazy Diamond, Interstellar Overdrive, Arnold Layne, See Emily Play & Bike. DVD Extras: Approx. 20 minutes of Interviews with Roger Waters, David Gilmour on "Wish You Were Here", Robyn Hitchcock performances - "Dominoes" & "It Is Obvious", Graham Coxon (Blur) performance of "Love You". ===================================================================== Comments about this recording from T. Michael Testi (07-Nov-6) The Pink Floyd & Syd Barrett Story is a documentary by John Edgington that explores the tumultuous story of Syd Barrett and Pink Floyd. It is about the tragedy that befell Barrett, and the everlasting effect it had on the band, its members, and its music. Roger Keith 'Syd' Barrett was a founding member of the psychedelic rock band Pink Floyd. Barrett came up with the name "The Pink Floyd Sound" in 1965, later shortening it to the version we know. They began, like many bands of the time, doing cover songs of American R&B music, but soon created their own style of rock and roll, drawing from improvised jazz sounds. By 1967 they had a contract with EMI and produced two singles: "Arnold Layne," which hit number 20 on the British charts, and "See Emily Play," which hit number 6. From there they recorded their first album, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, in which Barrett had a part in writing ten of the eleven songs (eight of which he wrote alone). While not a big hit in the States, it was a huge hit in Great Britain. Then Barrett's behavior became increasingly unpredictable. Some of this was attributed to his experimentation with LSD and other mind-altering drugs, but now it appears that an existing mental illness, exacerbated by drug use, may have been largely responsible. After an aborted U.S. tour that found Barrett going downhill fast, David Gilmour was brought in as second guitarist to cover for Barrett's bizarre behavior. Barrett did not contribute any new material to the band after A Saucerful Of Secrets was released in 1968. In March of that year, it was officially announced that he was no longer a member of Pink Floyd. Barrett did have a brief solo career in which he released two albums, The Madcap Laughs and Barrett. Most of the material was from 1966 and 1967. In 1972, Barrett formed a band called Stars, but it was disastrous and short-lived. Barrett made only one other appearance, in 1975, at a recording session for Wish You Were Here. Pink Floyd was recording "Shine On You Crazy Diamond", a song about Barrett. He had a shaved head and was overweight, and none of the band members recognized him. In The Pink Floyd & Syd Barrett Story, that whole ordeal is explained, including how utterly weird it made everyone there feel. (The scene was also referenced in the Pink Floyd movie, The Wall, when Pink shaves off his body hair). Except for that incident, Barrett remained in seclusion until his death from pancreatic cancer on July 7, 2006 at the age of 60. A tribute concert was held for him in London on May 10, 2007. I found the main disc of The Pink Floyd & Syd Barrett Story to be remarkably good. It has contributions from Jerry Shirley (Humble Pie drummer, and drummer for Barrett's two solo albums), and Pink Floyd members David Gilmour, Roger Waters, Nick Mason, and Rick Wright, as well as Bob Klose, known as the fifth member before he left in 1965. The disk also contains an interview with Roger Waters about Syd, and one with David Gilmour about the song Wish You Were Here, and includes Robyn Hitchcock playing the Barrett songs "It Is Obvious" and "Dominoes," and Graham Coxon playing "Love You". The second disk contains more drawn-out interviews, some of which seem almost forced. These are listed as "The Complete Interviews" and include talks with Waters, Gilmour, Wright, Mason, Hitchcock, and Coxon. While I would buy the set for Disc 1, one should read the word "Complete" as meaning "unedited" - the Disc 2 interviews tend to drag on. There are some interesting characters interviewed, as well. The standout is the artist Duggie Fields, who lives where Barrett lived and who painted the floor boards. It is also the site of the Madcap Laughs cover shot. If you are a fan of Pink Floyd, this is a must-have. The Pink Floyd & Syd Barrett Story goes into detail, some of which is not generally known. (One tidbit is that Barrett's change seemed to happen over a weekend.) But even if you just want to know more about rock music history, The Pink Floyd & Syd Barrett Story should be on your shelf.