Wish You Were Here: The Day Syd Barrett Showed Up at the Studio
Pink Floyd was recording an album about the absence of its friend and founder. One afternoon, he walked through the door. Almost no one recognized him.
Syd Barrett was one of the founders of Pink Floyd and its first leader. In the late ’60s his mental health declined and he had to leave the band. His bandmates carried on, but they never stopped feeling his absence.
In 1975 they were in London recording an album about exactly that: absence, and also how cold the music business can be. Its centerpiece, “Shine On You Crazy Diamond,” was a tribute to Syd.
He had put on a lot of weight. His head and eyebrows were shaved, and he was carrying a plastic bag. Several people in the room had a hard time figuring out who he was. When it sank in, it hit them hard: Roger Waters reportedly ended up in tears.
That same day, Barrett stopped by David Gilmour’s wedding reception and left without saying goodbye. It was the last time the band members saw him. He died in 2006.
The album came out that September and went to No. 1 in the UK and the US. Its title track became one of those songs everybody has dedicated to someone at some point.
Rarely has a title been so literal.
Subscribe
Song stories, rock legends and upcoming concerts, straight to your inbox. Free.
