Syd

It is sad when many people gather together in a place to honour someone, but they forget why they went in the first place. And this is exactly what happened last Thursday at the Barbican: it was all about Syd, but Syd wasn't there. His music filled the large (and clearly inappropriate) venue, but his spirit was replaced by the cheap attraction of the marketplace. His band came onstage (not all four of them at the same time) not to pay tribute, but to demonstrate their arrogance. I will only take into account something Roger Waters said: ‘if it wasn’t for Syd I don’t know what I’d be doing today.’ That says it all.

You would hold your head up high
you even try
you would hold another hand:
oh understand!
They even see me under call
we under all,
we all follow foot crawl
to hear my hour
come see me cry...

Just searching you even try
I can make you smile
if it's there will you go there too?
When I live I die!
They even see me under call
we under all, we all follow foot crawl
because of you, to see me be.

(Syd Barrett, No Man's Land)