A song Joe Boyd asked Barrett to write for a band he was managing at the time called The Purple Gang. The song was to be the successor to their minor hit Granny take a Trip. The manager lost the demo produced by the Floyd leader and, for one reason or another, the song was never offered to the band. Barrett worked on it a little later as the basis for Here I go.
Chris Joe Beard (The Purple Gang):
«Syd Barrett knew we were in Sound Techniques doing “Granny Takes A Trip” with Joe Boyd producing and being our front man in general. Floyd had hired Joe to produce their first single “Arnold Layne,” as they were all in this new «Underground» scene together. We were the new kids in town (…) I sat on the floor of the control room in Sound Techniques and heard “Arnold Layne” blasting out of the speakers. I also fell in love with Pink Floyd there and then.
What occurred later was that Syd had asked to hear US through the control room speakers! He liked the jugband sound, the song and lyrics and said (according to Joe) «Well they can have Number 2 to our Number 1!» He then gave Joe this small demo tape of his 3 or 4 songs and asked if we could give «Boon Tune» consideration as a possible follow up to «Granny takes a Trip». Joe handed it to me and I put it in my guitar case. It had just Syd playing electric guitar with loads of echo and I cannot remember the other songs –only “Boon Tune” (maybe one was Golden Hair?) Later, I sat amongst Mike Heron and Robin Williamson`s fragile instruments back at Joe`s apartments in Westbourne Terrace (that we all shared in Bayswater) and struggled to learn it (it had a LOT of chords)»
«Chris Joe Beard – The Purple Gang», The Strange Brew Website, March 2020
Joe Boyd:
« (...) I still mourned the long-lost reel-to-reel demo of five songs Syd gave me in January 1967, songs that didn't work for the group and that he thought I might hase some use for. I vividly recall one in particular called Boon Tune; it resurfaced five years on Madcap Laughs as Here I go, with Syd's voice a shadow of what it had once been »
« Lift Off: Syd Barrett, Pink Floyd and the London Underground »,Pink Floyd - Their Mortal Remains, 2017.
Purple Gang en 1967 devant la célèbre boutique londonienne.
« Syd Barrett's Demos » (Barrett/1967)
When the band entered the studio on January 29, Barrett presented an acoustic demo of 6 songs, including Arnold Layne, Let's Roll Another One and Boon Tune.
Roger Waters:
« Syd wrote a lot of songs. Joe Boyd listened to them and we went into the studio to record a few. John Wood did a great job and came up with our first single: Arnold Layne »
« Dark Globe », Julian Palacios.
Nick Mason:
« We didn't want Arnold Layne to be our first single. We were asked to record 6 tracks and choose the best two, then find a company that would accept them. And that was it »
Improvisation based on Mason's hypnotic mallet rhythm, featured on the album « Tonight, let's all make love in London »
Joe Boyd:
« While we were negotiating the contract with EMI, they called me to talk about the film Peter Whitehead wanted to shoot at Sound Techniques Studios. We recorded Interstellar Overdrive - not the same version that's in the EMI archives - and the session was filmed. I have little recollection of Nick's Boogie, but it sounded vaguely familiar »
Colin Miles:
« I’m not sure Peter remembers those sessions any better. I have the original document from Sound Techniques Studios which describes these recordings. It's dated 10.02.1967 and has Job number 67-359. The tape box gives the title of these recordings »
Peter Whitehead:
« They did Interstellar Overdrive in one take and didn't want to do a second. As I'd booked and paid for the studio for two hours, they agreed to do an improvisation for fun, and this resulted in the song Nick's Boogie, so named because it was Mason who had started the song and set the mood. It was pure improvisation, just for me, to fill the time. I said I liked it and that I might use it. So it was included in the contract. Of course, we didn't use it until I released the « Pink Floyd London 1966-67 » video ».
This extended version was recorded on January 11, 1967 at Sound Techniques Studios for use in the film « Tonight, let's all make love in London »
Joe Boyd:
« They recorded it live I think. I don't remember the number of takes but I think there were several at least for Interstellar Overdrive »
Interviewer : « Vous souvenez-vous de cette version très longue (…) pour votre premier film ? »
David Gilmour: «Je n’ai jamais vu ce film. C’était avant que j’arrive, en 67. Demandez à Nick, il doit savoir»
Nick Mason: «Je ne sais pas, je n’arrive pas à m’en souvenir».
David Gilmour: « N’était-ce pas une version live (…) ?»
Nick Mason: « Non, ca c’était «San Francisco»»
«Radio Libre à Pink Floyd», Europe 1, Mai 1982
Le Floyd aux Sound Techniques Studios le 10 Janvier 1967
(She was a) Millionaire (Barrett/1967)
It was recorded in three times during the « The Piper at the Gates of Dawn » sessions on April 18, 1967. Barrett also tried to record it for his second solo album on 07.06.1970, but it came to nothing. However, with the help of Gilmour and Wright, he did include certain elements in the title Opel. Jenner and King saw it as a potential B-side. This waltz-based song tells the story of an idle millionaire. She Was a Millionaire (also known as Rush in a Million, Brush your Window, Once in a Million or She was a Millionaire) is the Floyd's unreleased track from this period; in any case, it's probably the one fans of the band fantasize about the most, for two reasons: firstly, it seems to have been finalized; the Floyd used the entire April 18 session to work solely on this track. Secondly, Andrew King told Nick Kent (in 1975) that he considered this track to be one of Syd Barrett's best works. Barrett tried to cover this track during the "Barrett" recording sessions on June 7, 1970, but to no avail.
Peter Jenner:
« We did know that Syd had songs that had never been recorded - is juvenilia. He had a binder with lyrics in. And there were songs from the EMI period, like she's a millionaire. It had a hook, had potential »
« Syd », Uncut, June 2016.
IN THE BEECHWOOD (Barrett/1967)
Written just after See Emily play. The band developed it without Barrett during the Vegetable Man and Scream thy last Scream sessions (October 20th, 1967), then during a session on 5 May, 1968, where it was definitively recorded. This session was followed by a jam session lasting over 10 minutes. We don't know whether this is a separate work or an "extension" of this piece. This piece was broadcast by Mason on a radio program in March 1969. It is finally available in high quality on the « Pink Floyd Early Years … » box set.
Nick Mason:
« This s a backing track of something that we never actually did but it's quite our sound. It's something Syd wrote right after Emily ».
Roger Waters:
« Je préfère In the Beechwoods (à Scream thy last scream et Vegetable Man) qui est très proche d’être un excellent single. À l’époque, si nous étions parvenus à le terminer, il aurait pu l’être ».
«Tout est là, et même plus», Rock & Folk, November 2016
TAPE ENDING (Wright/1967)
No details about this tape done by Wright for the « Games for May » show. It could be the « ducks sound » re-used for the end of Bike on « The Piper » LP..
In the front of stage, two plastic ducks. Photographies by Nick HALE
TAPE BUBBLES (Barrett/1967)
No details about this tape done by Wright for the « Games for May » show
TAPE DAWN (Waters/1967)
This track is a cymbal sound collage that would later become the Something Else part of A Saucerful of Secrets.
Roger Waters:
« Je me souviens du concert «Games for May» que nous avons donné en mai 1967 au Queen Elisabeth Hall. Je travaillais dans ce sous-sol miteux, froid et humide proche de Harrow Road, avec un vieil enregistreur Ferrograph. Je me souviens avoir été assis là-bas, enregistrant des sons de cymbales pour le concert – plus tard, cela devint le début de A Saucerful of Secrets ».
« La face cachée de Roger Waters», Chris Salewicz, Septembre 1992.
GAMES FOR MAY (Barrett/1967)
Pre-version of the future See Emily Play, played for the first for the « Games for May » show
BICYCLE (Barrett/1967)
An attempt of musique concrète (like, later, Work), during which the band played with a bicycle. Not to be confused with The Bike Song, a pre-version of Bike. Barrett took up this idea during one of his solo recording sessions on April 23, 1969. Reworking Rhamadan, Barrett's 18-minute experimental piece released on May 14 1968, he brought out this recording made on a portable tape recorder (made while sitting on a friend's moped). Given the poor quality of this tape, he finally removed this part.
WONDERING AND DREAMING (Barrett/1967)
This short instrumental was added to Mathilda Mother during the session of the 21 and 22 February1967 at EMI Studios, London, England. The original text of the stanza « Ooh Aah Mother … »was entitled « Wondering and Dreaming » ...
SUNSHINE (Barrett, Mason, Waters, Wright/1967)
This short instrumental, recorded on June 29 1967, was finally added to the title Mathilda Mother during the February 21-22 1967 Abbey Road Studios session, London, England.
BIKE (Barrett/1967)
A version with different lyrics was produced on an acetate that Nick Mason is said to still own.
SCREAM THY LAST SCREAM (Barrett/1967)
Driven to write new material for the next LP, the band began rehearsing four new tracks, the first three of which were Barrett compositions: Jugband Blues, Scream thy last Scream (also entitled Old Woman with a Casket), Vegetable Man and Paintbox.
Waters, however, objected to these tracks being included on the new Pink Floyd album. The band returned to these tracks in early 1968, when they ran out of new material to record. That's why we have several mixes of this track. It's also one of the four tracks on which Mason appears on lead vocals.
Interviewer: « (…) On Scream Thy Last Scream, we hear two voices on the chorus. The story goes that it's you singing with Syd... Is that true? »
Nick Mason: « It was Syd and me, yes. I had to do the verses and Syd had to do the choruses, I think ».
Interviewer: « Why are you singing on this song? You don't usually sing, except on One Of These Days … »
Nick Mason: « It just happened, we were recording one afternoon in the studio. But it's interesting to talk about, because that song was never officially released »
Interviewer: « Maybe one day? »
Nick Mason: « … Maybe... It's not in the pipeline yet, but maybe one day… »
« Speak to me », Dumbangel & Arnold, July 12, 2006.
To answer Mason's question, it's worth noting that the band did consider it for the "Master of Rock" compilation in 1974. In fact, Peter Jenner produced stereo mixes of this track, as well as Vegetable Man, to provide fans with previously unreleased material. The inclusion of these two tracks was later considered by Malcolm Jones for the "Opel" compilation in 1988. In both cases, the band vetoed the idea. After Peter Jenner's compilation failed, he deliberately leaked the tracks to pirate radio stations. It seems that the first broadcast took place as early as 1975, on one of Mr. Sparrow's shows on Radio London.
It should be noted that renowned biographer Rob Chapman has revealed that a promotional film directed by Spike Hawkins was made but lost (cf. Pink Floyd: on videos and films (1964 - 1967)).
There is some confusion about the number of versions of this unreleased track. It seems (but this remains to be verified) that there are four different versions, according to the authors of "Embryo - A Pink Floyd Chronology": Scream thy Last Scream - Proposed final mix 4:28; Scream thy Last Scream - Stereo Outtake 4:35; Scream thy Last Scream - Finished mono mix mono master tape version 4:37; Scream thy Last Scream - Studio master recording 4:38; Scream thy Last Scream - A longest version 4:43.
Interviewer: «Wasn’t Scream thy last scream planned as a follow-up to Apples and Oranges ?»
Nick Mason: «Yes, it was. It could have been for A Saucerful of Secrets too»
Interviewer: « Why was it scrapped ? »
Nick Mason: « Have you heard it ? It was never finished, far too muddled and confused »
«Acid Tates», Record Collector, August 2013.
A July 1967 Dutch newspaper with mention to this track as a new single.
Scream thy last scream old woman with a casket
Blam blam your pointers point your pointers
Waddle with apples to crunchy Mrs. Stores
She'll be scrubbing bubbles on all fours
Scream thy last scream old woman with a casket
Fling your arms madly old lady with a daughter
Flat tops of houses, mouses, houses
Fiddle and Diddle sitting bat tat tat
Watching the telly till all hours - telly time!
Fling your arms madly old lady with a daughter
Scream thy last scream old woman with a casket
Blam blam your pointers point your pointers
Waddle with apples to crunchy Mrs. Stores
She'll be scrubbing bubbles on all fours
Scream thy last scream old woman with a casket
VEGETABLE MAN (Barrett/1967)
Piece written by Syd in Peter Jenner's apartment, apparently in response to a journalist's comment during an interview. (See below)
interviewer: « If you stopped thinking altogether, you might become a vegetable ? »
Syd Barrett: « Yeah. I'm starting to think a little less now. It's getting better »
"Interview with Pink Floyd", Go Magazine, August 1967.
There are three versions of this track: two are at different speeds. The last one is an instrumental with effects on it. Jenner wanted to release it on the « Opel » album, but the band decided against it. In 1974, Pink Floyd's management wanted to release this track and Scream thy last Scream as bonus tracks on the « Master of Rock » compilation. Jenner made stereo mixes of this track, but the idea was eventually abandoned. Nonetheless, the mixes he made have been released among collectors, notably the famous Bernard White.
Peter Jenner:
«Syd wrote it in my flat. He was there prior to going to the studio. It was like «Hey, we’ve got a sessions booked, so we’ve got to have a song », so he wrote that. It was a description of himself. Maybe you could see it as a call for help ».
«Scream thy last scream », Uncut, November 2016.
Mason:
«I should think we heard the song in the studio and played it almost immediately ».
«Scream thy last scream », Uncut, November 2016.
Andrew King:
«Syd had an incredible sense of humour even in his darkest moments. Everyone really wanted VEgetable Man to be a commercially feasible track – you can hear everybody under the sun singing in the chorus at the end. But nothing happened. It just disappeared into the archives ».
«Scream thy last scream », Uncut, November 2016.
Nick Mason:
« In London we recorded some more songs, like Vegetable Man and Scream Thy Last Scream. I suspect that Syd first played them to us in the studio. It's likely that he wrote ‘Vegetable Man at Peter Jenner's house on Edbrooke Road. I think Syd was living round there then - Peter and Andrew thought they could look alter him. Vegetable Man” was unfinished, really. The structure of the song is not right: it's still missing a middle eight. But it was In the running for a single - which we were desperately In need of. Was there pressure on Syd to wanted to play, and I look back on it and think: "Why the fuck did we do that ?" Because there wasn't anything else, other than going back to architecture school, and we lust thought ».
« Dark Globe », Uncut, May 2020
Nick Mason:
«.A beautiful song. It sounds relatively simple, but it's actually a bit more complicated and almost punk. It is a kind of four "snare beats to the bar", that is a kind of punk way of drumming. So many songs were written by Syd in such a short period of time. It was less than two years after our first public show in October 1967. At the time, we only had two or three original songs. And about a year later it was almost burned out. ».
«My top five Syd Barrett songs», Rolling Stone, 19 January 2019
Interviewer: «When did you first hear Vegetable Man / Scream Thy Last Scream and how ? »
Bernard White: « At Peter Jenner’s office in the early 70’s. He gave me the master tape on an open reel to listen to it and said, « You can make a copy,” and I rushed out as fast as I could to get a tape and rushed back. And when I heard the whole of the session and the twenty minutes that he had, and Vegetable Man and Scream Thy Last Scream, I was completely overwhelmed »
Interviewer: « How did you get Vegetable Man into the public domain ? »
Bernard White: « I gave someone the tape and then they were counterfeited. Most of the.. nearly all the live recordings I obtained myself and then I just gave them to people and originally they would make copies of tapes and then they were bootlegged on records and now CD’s. So I found nearly all the most of the recordings are what I got in my relentless search for Syd Barrett memorabilia and so forth »
«Interview w/. Bernard White by Grimble Gromble », VegetableFriends group, 2003.
In yellow shoes I get the blues
Though I walk the streets with my plastic feet
With my blue velvet trousers, make me feel pink
There's a kind of stink about blue velvet trousers
In my paisley shirt I look a jerk
And my turquoise waistcoat is quite out of sight
But oh oh my haircut looks so bad
Vegetable man, where are you?
So I've changed my gear, and I find my knees
And I covered them up with the latest cut
And my pants and socks all point in a box
They don't make long of my nylon socks
The watch, black watch
My watch with a black face
And a big pin, a little hole
And all the lot is what I got
It's what I wear, it's what you see
It must be me, it's what I am
Vegetable man
I've been looking all over the place for a place for me
But it ain't anywhere, it just ain't anywhere
Vegetable man, vegetable man
He's the kind of person, you just gonna see him if you can
Vegetable man
Reaction in G (Barrett, Mason, Waters, Wright/1967)
This instrumental is supposed to be a "reaction" (in G) to the audience who kept asking See Emily play. A version recorded on September 25, 1967 was broadcast by the BBC as one of its programs. On April 26 1969, the German program « Beat Club’ rebroadcasted it in excellent quality.
Une photo du concert du 13 Novembre 1967 au cours duquel fut joué ce titre.
JOHN LATHAM (Barrett, Mason, Waters, Wright/1967)
Artist John Latham had asked Floyd to write a soundtrack for his abstract film. The band recorded many version in De Lane Lea Studios of London on 20 Ocotber 1967. Released some 50 years later in the « Early Years » boxset. See this page for details.
Nick Mason:
«There’s a whole series of improvised pieces that were done with John Latham [in 1967]. I have no memory at all of when we did them or how we did them or who John Latham was. I just haven’t got a clue»
«Pink Floyd’s Nick Mason on ‘Early Years,’ Syd Barrett, Inter-Band Tension», Rolling Stone, 18 November 2016
Nick Mason:
«Quand j’ai écouté les pistes, que j’ai trouvés intrigantes, je me suis dit qu’on avait dû les faire pour un événement multimédia. Vous verrez quand vous les écouterez, c’est très free form, comme si elles avaient été tournées pour un film. Mais je ne sais pas où et comment on les a faites. Elles sont un peu bizarres, pas très bonnes à mon avis, c’est l’exemple type de choses sur lesquelles on s’est vraiment interrogés avant de les publier»
«Tout est là, et même plus», Rock & Folk, November 2016
