“When Syd Barrett retreated from public life, his creative life didn’t stop,” notes Neil Jones, co-organiser of a celebration of Barrett’s 80th birthday taking place across his Cambridge hometown in October. Alongside rare original Barrett artworks, an exhibition will bring together prints of photos of his later paintings – the only way to see them as Barrett routinely destroyed his work. These include brightly coloured abstracts, still lifes and impressionistic scenes, fragile relics of a determinedly private post-Floyd existence. The exhibition will also include photographs by Barrett’s friend and one-time flatmate, Mick Rock.
“Destroyed artworks? It’s all part of the myth,” believes Robyn Hitchcock, who contributes a cover of “Gigolo Aunt” to the accompanying tribute album //Clowns And Jugglers: The Songs Of Syd Barrett//, alongside the likes of Mystery Jets and Barrett’s former Floyd bandmates Nick Mason and David Gilmour. “Whether intentionally or not, Syd created a more intense mystique than any other rock performer.”
A benefit concert headlined by Kula Shaker and Soft Machine takes place at Cambridge Corn Exchange, where Barrett played his last gig – as part of the band Stars with former Pink Fairies Twink and Jack Monck – on February 26, 1972. Monck is expected to attend, along with “surprise guests”.
Barrett’s sister Rosemary Breen has given the family’s “wholehearted support” to the celebrations. “Syd would have been so happy and honoured to know his music was still being enjoyed in Cambridge,” she says. Talks are ongoing for a more permanent exhibition and creative space in the city to leave, in Jones’ words, “a lasting legacy”. This builds on existing work by Cambridge’s Barrett-themed café and venue, The Artyst.
“I’m glad the Barrett family are proud of him and are doing something about it,” Hitchcock concludes. “To me the incontrovertible fact is that Syd was a fucking brilliant songwriter, if only for a flash. I’m sure he was an OK visual artist, but I would hope that songs like ‘Astronomy Domine’ and ‘Octopus’ make their way down the generations, if anything does.”
The Syd Barrett exhibition is at Cambridge Guildhall from October 9-10, with the tribute concert taking place at Cambridge Corn Exchange on Oct 10
Clowns And Jugglers: The Songs Of Syd Barrett is released by Gonzo Multimedia on October 9