Syd Barrett achieved mythical legend status before his 25th birthday. And now he’s become a sort of mythological figure in music history. “Barrett, arguably of course, was the impetus, the spark, behind the entire psychedelic rock movement in London.”1 He founded a truly legendary band, Pink Floyd, and then left the band in a swirl of drug use and possible mental illness. But he has become a massive cult figure including within the musician world.2 Lots of artists have covered his songs and there are bands who name themselves after his songs (The Gigolo Aunts, Baby Lemonade). “For a brief, glittering moment, Barrett (real name: Roger) was one of psychedelia's most productive, kaleidoscopic minds.”3
I wasn’t sure what to expect with this album. I love Pink Floyd but I find their earliest stuff to be a bit of a challenge. And I’ve heard lots of stories about the eccentricities of Barrett. So, I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoy this record. There are moments that produced genuine emotional reactions. Most especially “Dark Globe”. My interpretation is that of somebody who knows they are in trouble, possibly dying. They plead with their friends or maybe a lover to help them, to save them while asking “Won't you miss me? / Wouldn't you miss me at all?” I find it poignant and heartbreaking. A person pleading with another to care enough to help them survive whatever trauma plagues them. Barrett’s songwriting throughout the album is thought-provoking and engaging. My rating:
Prog Archives reviewed the album:
Madcap Laughs is no state of the art (it would be wrong to think of it like that), but it is surely a great album to sink in, figuratively or (rather) concretely. Worthy for its possessive pop-psychedelic, songwriting skills, acoustic rock challenges and mono-lyrical emotions, the album reflects Barrett in a supreme moment of feeling comfortable, strong ecstatic, sensibly expressive or weirdly complex. From 13 pieces, Madcap's beautiful, rupturing and succumbed qualities are part of Barrett's joy, precision and psyched waft, summing up a deeming creativity, a fearful cold manner, a bit of jovial rock pluck and a kind juicy fever of interpretation and improvisation. Barrett is the magician, wholeheartedly dedicated to his project…4
AllMusic gave the album 4.5 out of 5 stars concluding that, “The Madcap Laughs is a surprisingly effective record that holds up better than its "ooh, lookit the scary crazy person" reputation suggests.”5
In 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, Gareth Thomson wrote:
Recorded over a few days, Madcap sounds hastily prepared…Barrett’s guitar playing is patchy, and his voice often a tuneless wail…Yet the album’s Eastern-tinged melodies, and eccentric English pop, inspired a host of rock mystics, including Julian Cope.
Depression, schizophrenia, and other forms of mental trauma are forever misunderstood and misdiagnosed. Syd Barrett only gave us a few hours of intensely recorded creativity, but history affords him the contentment of a man who left his mark.6
Enjoy and listen without prejudice. Cheers!
Prime Playlist: 199. The Madcap Laughs by Syd Barrett
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For details about this project, read this: Project 1001 Albums
Charts
• Peak on Billboard 200 album chart: #1637
• Singles on Billboard Hot 100 chart: n/a
• RIAA certification: n/a
Released on January 2, 1970. Here’s what else was happening:
Pop Culture
• Number one song: “Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head” by B.J. Thomas8
• Number one album: Abbey Road by The Beatles9
• Number one movie: On Her Majesty's Secret Service by Peter R. Hunt10
• Most watched TV programs: Rowan and Martin’s Laugh-In, Gunsmoke, Bonanza, Mayberry R.F.D., Family Affair, Here’s Lucy, The Red Skelton Hour, Marcus Welby, M.D., The Wonderful World of Disney, The Doris Day Show11
• NYT bestseller, fiction: The Godfather by Mario Puzo12
• NYT bestseller, non-fiction: The Selling of the President by Joe McGinniss13
Some other albums released that month
• Here's Loretta Singing "Wings Upon Your Horns" by Loretta Lynn
• Tony Sings the Great Hits of Today! by Tony Bennett
• That's the Way Love Is by Marvin Gaye
• This Girl's in Love with You by Aretha Franklin
• Hello, I'm Johnny Cash by Johnny Cash
• Bridge over Troubled Water by Simon & Garfunkel
• Chicago by Chicago
• Moondance by Van Morrison
• Ain't It Funky by James Brown
• American Woman by The Guess Who
• Kool and the Gang by Kool and the Gang
• One Day at a Time by Joan Baez
• Try a Little Kindness by Glen Campbell
• Redbone by Redbone
• Waylon by Waylon Jennings14
Sport
• Jan 1 56th Rose Bowl: #5 Southern California beats #7 Michigan, 10-3.
• Jan 11 Super Bowl IV, Tulane Stadium, New Orleans, LA: KC Chiefs beat Minnesota Vikings, 23-7; MVP: Len Dawson, Kansas City, QB.
• Jan 16 Curt Flood files a civil lawsuit challenging baseball's reserve clause.15
Notable Births
• Jan 2 Eric Whitacre, American Grammy Award-winning choral conductor and composer (Lux Aurumque; Deep Field), born in Reno, Nevada.
• Jan 3 Matt Ross, American actor.
• Jan 6 Gabrielle Reece, American volleyball player and actress (Extremists), born in La Jolla, California.16
Historical Events
• Jan 4 More than 15,000 people are killed in Tonghai County, China after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake.
• Jan 15 Muammar Gaddafi is proclaimed Chairman of Libyan Revolutionary Command Council - de facto head of state.
• Jan 22 1st commercial Boeing 747 flight, Pan American World Airways flies from New York City to London in 6½ hours.17
Notable Deaths
• Jan 3 Gladys Aylward, British missionary in China; portrayed by Ingrid Bergman in The Inn of the Sixth Happiness (b. 1902).
• Jan 5 Max Born, German physicist (quantum mechanics, Nobel 1954), dies at 87.
• Jan 10 Charles Olson, American poet (The Maximus Poems), dies of liver cancer at 59.18
Thompson, Gareth, 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, Fifth printing, ed. by Robert Dimmery p. 220.
Ibid.