The end of the first era

The Floyd started to tour in England, receiving a very mixed reception from the audience. Most people went to see the group because of their chart singles and were annoyed that they didn't play them. Instead of this they were doing extended improvisations which were very different from the originals (the whole tradition of the group has been to go on the stage and improvise, sometimes even for half an hour).
Roger: "We're being frustrated at the moment by the fact that to stay alive we have to play lots and lots of places and venues that are not really suitable. The most of records we make today are impossible to reproduce on stage so there is no point in trying it and we don't think it's dishonest because we can't play live the hit singles".

In October the group went on tour in America which was an amazing disaster. Syd was becoming more and more unpredictable, probably because of LSD overdosing. On The Pat Boone Show the pop idol attempted to interview Syd but his reply was just a blank and mute stare. When he did go on stage he would sometimes just play the same chord all evening while the others would try and play round him and make up for his lack.

On 18th November Apples and Oranges/PaintBox single was released but wasn't successful and didn't make to the charts.

In January 1968 the group finally decided to replace Syd with someone else. The new member was David Gilmour, Roger's and Syd's former school friend. Roger:" David was brought in because we knew he could sing and play the guitar which was what we badly needed. We also thought he was someone we could get on with."
The first idea was to be the five man band with Syd writing the songs and Dave playing the guitar. Unfortunately this never happened for Syd became completely incapable of working. One day when the rest of the band were teaching Dave the numbers Syd came in with the new material. The song went "Have you got it yet" but he kept changing it on and on so that no one could learn it.

On 2nd March Syd Barrett left the group for good which meant the end of Pink Floyd's golden period. With his departure the band lost the heart and the soul. Nobody wanted to book them as everyone thought they can't survive and manage without the mad genius. These were really the hard times for the group but they decided not to give up and to start right from the beginning.

Roger:" What was so stunning about Syd's songs was, through the whimsy and the crazy juxtaposition of ideas and words, there was a very powerful grasp of humanity. He was a visionary, he was an extraordinary musician."

Rick:" Just listen to Syd's songs, the imagination that he had. If he hadn't had this complete breakdown, he could easily be one of the greatest songwriters today. I think it's one of the saddest stories in rock'n'roll, what happened to Syd. He was brilliant - and such a nice guy."

Shine on, Syd!