Goodbye, Syd

Syd Barrett has died. His story is not that unusual, unfortunately - talented and unstable young man, ruined by drugs (or nature, plus drugs), leaving a moment or two of brilliance. And the base of a band that would drag on forever with rapidly diminishing returns. Piper at the Gates of Dawn is the only Pink Floyd record I really love, and Barrett's guitar playing is one of the reasons - he was inventive and imaginative and surprising - he could keep those long jams interesting, which the rest of the band could not. His songs can be a bit much, all those gnomes and such, but that's not a very strong objection - they are clever, funny, and inventive, and bear up well over time. He was a seminal figure, he lives up to the hype. His loss - which to the music world, occurred about 35 years ago - is very sad. One hopes his life in those 35 years had its contentments.