1968-1970 Wouldnt You Miss Me [Best of]

First of all, I have to say that Syd is an acquired taste. Being mentally ill, he doesn't always stay in conventional time or in tune. He writes surreal lyrics, unexpected metaphors and descriptions. Sometimes this all works in his favour, sometimes it all falls to pieces and you can do is pity the poor guy. Yet despite all the weirdness and inconsistency, he always sounds genuine. Even if it doesn't make sense to you, he means all he says and feels, and does his best, perservering through his illness. He has no pretention, just his heart on his sleeve and a guitar in his hand. It's refreshing. That's why I like him, anyway.

The selection of tracks is pretty much all you could hope to be on a best of Syd Barrett, really, though it only covers his solo career. All of his many personas are covered. His happy, poppy side is heard on "Gigolo Aunt", "Octopus" and "Baby Lemonade". "No Good Trying" and "Terrapin" are groovy tastes of Syd's solo psychedelia. "Love Song" and "Late Night" reveal Syd's frank, emotional sincerity when singing relationship based songs, something he never tried in Pink Floyd. "Effervescing Elephant" and "Swan Lee" show Syd could still tell whimsical stories the way he did on the Floyd's "Piper at the Gates of Dawn", while "Here I Go" and "Wined and Dined" gives us a glimpse of Syd dealing with life without his band and without fame. "Long Gone" and "Opel" are two of my favourites on this compilation. They're haunting, the imagery in their lyrics and the urgency in Syd's voice always send shivers up my spine.

There are a few curious selections. I don't think the Golden Hair instrumental, an outtake, really counts as part of Syd's best work, or the very shaky, overproduced "Waving my Arms in the Air/I Never Lied To You" medley. I also think the Madcap Laughs version of "Dark Globe" is better than the sedated Opel version included here. Some might disagree, it's just my opinion. One man's Syd masterpiece is another man's Syd mess, after all. Oh, and where's the silly "Love You"? That's a classic.

I can't believe that the bonus track "Bob Dylan Blues" hasn't been released sooner, either on Opel or on the studio albums. It ranks as one of Syd's sharpest, wittiest (and most coherent) songs. In Dylan's folky style, Syd satirizes Bob's self righteousness, his lyrical content, and the costly nature of being a Dylan fan ("now a guy who digs me/should try hard to see/that he buys all my discs and a hat/and when I'm in town go see that"), among other things. I'm sure this would have charted well as a single back in the day. Maybe the record company was afraid Bob Dylan might sue or something...

"Two of a Kind" from the BBC Radio Sessions EP features here. It's a pretty average song, but it's nice to have on an easier to get album.

Unless you're a hardcore fan who needs "Bob Dylan Blues" on disc in their collection, I wouldn't recommend this to newcomers. If you want an introduction to post-Floyd Barrett, get the Madcap Laughs, Syd's first album. Many of the tracks from this compilation come from there, and it's quality all the way through. If you want a wider overview, get the Crazy Diamond Box Set. As it is, the release of this compilation is as odd as Syd. He only did two solo albums and an outtakes disc, where's the need for a compliation?

Hopefully, there'll come a time when a Syd Barrett compilation is released that also contains the best of his Pink Floyd work (Aongs from Piper at the Gates of Dawn, Saucerful of Secrets, the 1967 singles) along with his solo stuff, maybe even adding unreleased rarities like the catchy "Vegetable Man" as bonus tracks. As it is, "Wouldn't You Miss Me?" is a good overview of Syd, but it won't be the definitive "best of" in the long run.

And we do miss you Syd!