Track Listing

1. Baby Lemonade
2. Love Song
3. Dominoes
4. It Is Obvious
5. Rats
6. Maisie
7. Gigolo Aunt
8. Waving My Arms In The Air
9. I Never Lied To You
10. Wined And Dined
11. Wolfpack
12. Effervescing Elephant

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #35359 in Music
• Released on: 1994-05-03
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .21 pounds

Amazon.co.uk Review
Syd Barrett's second solo album seems more "together" than its predecessor but in fact its author was increasingly losing the plot. "Baby Lemonade" and "Dominoes" have some of the old winsome English psychedelic sparkle about them but mostly these tracks proceed at a busking plod. In retrospect, Barrett seems remote from what's going on, whereas on The Madcap Laughed he was still fighting for vitality. Producer David Gilmour once again had to work hard to elicit material from him. The CD version of this album contains out takes which will prove morbidly fascinating for Barrett aficionadoes, as he fluffs and misses his lines. This was his last ever recorded album before he retreated into the cocoon of Cambridge suburbia where he lives today, his shell and madcap spell broken. He remained, however, an icon to every fey and tousled left-field popster from Marc Bolan to Blur's Damon Albarn. --David Stubbs

CD Description
If THE MADCAP LAUGHS showed Syd Barrett's paring down his songs into their basic components to reveal their inner workings, then BARRETT is the fruition of that process. While BARRETT is not a tremendous departure from what Barrett had been working on earlier, it seems to have benefited from Rick Wright taking Roger Waters's place alongside David Gilmour inthe producer's chair. (If Waters had trouble "getting" Barrett in the context of Floyd, then there was little chance ofa sympathetic ear during the solo sessions.)
Wright and Gilmour also accompany Barrett on much of the material. Their tasteful blend of murmured bass, harmonium, and piano nicely complements Barrett's acoustic strumming and the album's slower pace and slightly darker mood, providing a counterpoint to Barrett's dislike of conventional song structure. Fromthe seemingly paranoid free-association of "Rats" to the dirge "Maisie", Barrett seems to be channeling his wounded psyche directly to the vinyl. But just when you think you've heard it all, Barrett surprises with the beautiful (and almostconventional) "Gigolo Aunt". The importance of the contributions that Syd Barrett--a man simultaneously years ahead andyears behind the times--made to music are undeniable.

Customer Reviews

If only there was a 3rd album...
Overall, more together than "Madcap" production-wise, but the songs pretty much the same quality. "Dominoes" perhaps the saddest song Barrett has ever written, alongside gems such as "Baby Lemonade", "Gigolo Aunt", "Wined and Dined" and "Effervescing Elephant". It is such a pity that Syd never continued, but it simply didn't interest him anymore. Therefore you have to respect the man for it. Shine on Roger - we will always miss you.

THIS ALBUM
This album is pleasant to listen to, but I would not buy it as your only barrett album. Barret does not attack the songs and they are generally less good than in The Madcap Laughs. I would only buy this album after getting Barrett's other solo and pink floyd stuff.

Good record
I think it's a strong album. I havent heard Opel which are outtakes that was released in 1988 but Barrett is great music. After the quiet (madcap laughed) barrett is a strong, fun album to listen to. From "efervescent elephant" to "love song", it's 5 stars for me.

Thank you.