The Pink Floyd song about Syd Barrett and Roger Waters
There is no escaping the fact that Pink Floyd are one of the most influential and successful bands in history. They have sold over 250 million records worldwide, have one of the most iconic album covers ever made, and have sold out stadiums in nearly every country on the planet.
On reflection, there is no stand-out singular element as to what made Pink Floyd as successful as they are. The band has been led by numerous creative figures, such as Syd Barrett, Roger Waters, and David Gilmour, who were all able to contribute to the iconic sound that propelled the band to fame; however, all three would say they did the most heavy lifting. When that many creative minds come together over such an extended period, there are bound to be fallouts. Those issues would eventually lead to the band’s separation, but together, they contributed to a number of masterful songs before that.
Syd Barrett was the band’s founder but was also the first to depart the group. Having struggled with mental health issues, which were likely enhanced by his use of psychedelic drugs, Barrett became a lot more erratic and unreliable, so David Gilmour was brought in to lend a hand. However, even with the added assistance, his condition didn’t improve. The band wanted to make things work and entertained having Barrett on board as a non-performing songwriter, but things didn’t work out. As a result, he was kicked out, and Gilmour took over the lead vocals for the band.
Pink Floyd didn’t fall apart once Barrett left; instead, they flourished with Roger Waters at the forefront. Many of their best albums came from that time, and the writing credits were well distributed amongst the band. Their biggest and most successful record, Dark Side of the Moon, came from this time and is still one of the most triumphant albums ever made.
However, issues would arise once more. Waters left the band in 1985 due to creative differences, which led to brutal lawsuits and financial repercussions beyond imaginable. He immediately attempted to sue the band to stop them from operating under Pink Floyd’s name and using any of the band’s old material.
David Gilmour, however, fought the case, saying, “Roger is a dog in the manger and I’m going to fight him, no one else has claimed Pink Floyd was entirely them. Anybody who does is extremely arrogant.”
Things eventually cooled off, and Gilmour took control of Pink Floyd, making music of his own accord. It did well, though not as well as the band’s earlier material. Naturally, the relationship between the band and everything that had transpired between him, Syd Barrett and Roger Waters inspired a lot of the later music, specifically on the song ‘Poles Apart’.
Gilmour’s girlfriend commented on the song, revealing the meaning behind the lyrics. She said that the line “Did you know… it was all going to go so wrong for you” was about Barrett, and then the second line, “And did you see it was all going to be so right for me,” was directed towards Waters from Gilmour’s point of view.
It’s a shame that Pink Floyd came to the end that it did, but there was a lot of ego and creativity in the mix, which often don’t sit well together. However, it did birth some of the best music of recent decades, and the split only provided further inspiration for Gilmour when he took over the band.
