- Audio CD (1 Oct 1994)
- Number of Discs: 1
- Label: EMI
- ASIN: B000026LE7
- Other Editions: Audio CD | Audio Cassette | MP3 Download
- Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (33 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 43,487 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
Jubilee Offer: Patriot Classics for £2.50 |
Product details |
Track Listings
| 1. Astronomy Domine |
| 2. Lucifer Sam |
| 3. Matilda Mother |
| 4. Flaming |
| 5. Pow R Toc H |
| 6. Take Up Thy Stethoscope And Walk |
| 7. Interstellar Overdrive |
| 8. The Gnome |
| 9. Chapter 24 |
| 10. Scarecrow |
| 11. Bike |
Product Description
From Amazon.com
While they took their name from blues musicians Pink Anderson and Floyd Council when they started out as an R&B combo in the mid-60s, Pink Floyd's leader, guitarist Syd Barrett, soon began piloting the band through unprecedented sonic excursions typified by the title of their 1967 debut album's most celebrated track--the outsized instrumental "Interstellar Overdrive." Equally adept at composing catchy-sounding, Gothic-themed pop songs such as "See Emily Play," "The Scarecrow" and "The Gnome," Barrett seemed destined for greatness--that is, until psychedelic drugs got the best of him, and he abandoned the band to bassist Roger Waters and new guitarist David Gilmour. The rest, as they say, is history. --Billy Altman
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 13 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
Yes, 'The Piper at the Gates of Dawn' is undoubtedly imbued with the effects of LSD, and is one of the first true paradigms of psychedelic rock, however, for me, this album will always be Syd Barrett's immortalisation of childhood. The 'eccentric' Floyd frontman presents a wonderful array of withdrawn, introspective and seemingly naïve imagery, with lyrics that are dreamlike, unearthly and peculiarly ominous: appositely reflecting the process of childhood and growing up, in my opinion.
Due to this masterpiece, Barrett's first and last Floyd album, he will always remain a childlike genius in my eyes, not the drug-ravaged recluse the media gleefully portrayed him as. This album has made Syd eternal, and has simultaneously encapsulated memories of my own childhood. Songs such as: 'Bike', 'Scarecrow' and 'Lucifer Sam', illustrate the boundlessness of existence when young, yet also creepily depict the portentous nature of one's youth, and this is cleverly echoed in the cacophonous nature of tracks such as 'Astronomy Domine' and 'Interstellar Overdrive'.
Furthermore, this album also showcases Pink Floyd as brilliant musical innovators, in particular, Barrett's creative, dissonant guitar passages, such as those found on the expansive epic, 'Interstellar Overdrive'. Keyboardist, Rick Wright, also contributes significantly, most notably with eerie organ interludes, such as those which punctuate 'Matilda Mother' and 'Scarecrow', accentuating the psychedelic element of the music.
As long as people keep appreciating this album, Syd Barrett will live on forever. The music industry owes him a massive debt for his enterprising, beautifully ethereal work, and he must never be forgotten.
Due to this masterpiece, Barrett's first and last Floyd album, he will always remain a childlike genius in my eyes, not the drug-ravaged recluse the media gleefully portrayed him as. This album has made Syd eternal, and has simultaneously encapsulated memories of my own childhood. Songs such as: 'Bike', 'Scarecrow' and 'Lucifer Sam', illustrate the boundlessness of existence when young, yet also creepily depict the portentous nature of one's youth, and this is cleverly echoed in the cacophonous nature of tracks such as 'Astronomy Domine' and 'Interstellar Overdrive'.
Furthermore, this album also showcases Pink Floyd as brilliant musical innovators, in particular, Barrett's creative, dissonant guitar passages, such as those found on the expansive epic, 'Interstellar Overdrive'. Keyboardist, Rick Wright, also contributes significantly, most notably with eerie organ interludes, such as those which punctuate 'Matilda Mother' and 'Scarecrow', accentuating the psychedelic element of the music.
As long as people keep appreciating this album, Syd Barrett will live on forever. The music industry owes him a massive debt for his enterprising, beautifully ethereal work, and he must never be forgotten.
40 of 43 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
Space pixie Syd Barrett's crowning achievement was ultimately his first and last album recorded under the banner of Pink Floyd, when he was the driving force. Inspired by the harmonies and guitars of the Byrds' "Fifth Dimension" album of 1966, Syd penned the classic space rock opus Interstellar Overdrive and the album's opener Astronomy Domine. Building on the success of the early singles Arnold Layne and See Emily Play, Syd's songwriting talent came to the fore, and although typifying the whimsical edge of British psychedelia of the mid 1960's, his songs always had something extra that prevented them from degenerating into cheesy pop like many others did. Quite simply Piper was the best album of the era, with the driving, sinister Lucifer Sam and simply transcendant Mathilda Mother among the album's strongest cuts, also featuring the complete nonesense Bike song and the I-Ching inspired Chapter 24 among others. All areas of psychedelia were explored and to my mind never bettered by anyone. I used to love Sgt Pepper, but Piper blows it away making it sound overdone and pompous as if the Beatles were cashing in rather than innovating. Many people at the time of the album's release complained that Piper did not actively reflect the band's live music shows, which were apparently even more deranged. Little matter now. Over 30 years later Piper still sends shivers up my spine and makes me grin deliriously. Nothing will ever come close to this record, and I mean nothing. I've been an ardent fan of psychedelia in all it's forms for the past twenty years so I feel reasonably qualified to say this. As an afterthought, I would recommend this album to anyone, even if they are not fans of the era or style of music; this cd just might change your mind.
25 of 27 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
If you like British psychedelia, and you like the 60's, you'll love this.
If you don't it won't sway you, that simple.
This is an awesome album, and the beginning of a career for one hell of a band. This is the album they built on.
Some of the stuff is more poppy, some is slightly mad (see 'Bike'), some is more experimental.
Just ignore the bad reviews, they were probably written by Phil Collins fans.
This is the beginning of something big, and a pioneering album for its time.
Far better than Pink Floyd now anyway.
If you don't it won't sway you, that simple.
This is an awesome album, and the beginning of a career for one hell of a band. This is the album they built on.
Some of the stuff is more poppy, some is slightly mad (see 'Bike'), some is more experimental.
Just ignore the bad reviews, they were probably written by Phil Collins fans.
This is the beginning of something big, and a pioneering album for its time.
Far better than Pink Floyd now anyway.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Music from a different band
I was slightly at a loss when I first heard this, aged about 15. Weaned on the mid-70's Floyd, this sounded like a different band - and of course, it was. Read more
Published 15 months ago by Marchespie
British psychedelia par excellence
Pink Floyd's first two albums epitomised the British psychedelic scene of the late 1960s. Their debut, 'Piper At The Gates Of Dawn' (1967) merged the three strands of US... Read more
Published 21 months ago by Daniel Margrain
Genius? Not this time.
The seventies work of Pink Floyd was amazing, and the sixties Syd Barrett period is held in almost equal awe and reverence by other reviewers. Read more
Published 21 months ago by MR K J DOWNING
Glorious eccentricity
Named after one of the chapters in Kenneth Grahame's children's book Wind in the Willows: In this chapter the two main animal-human characters chase a missing young animal - I... Read more
Published on 8 Feb 2010 by Angantyr
Syd Barrett - an attentive articulate yet somewhat eccentric soul
It's the only Floyd album which fully features Syd Barrett - an attentive, articulate yet somewhat eccentric soul who fell prey to the demons that haunted his mind. Read more
Published on 15 Sep 2009 by Ms. J. Forrest
The Holy Grail of British Psychedelia
Pink Floyd were formed in London in 1965, the darlings of the UFO Club, they were at the forefront of the emerging Psychedelic movement coming out of England during the post Beat... Read more
Published on 26 May 2009 by The Mancunian Candidate
.A bit "Hey nonny-nonny"
I have a bit of a love/indifferent relationship with Pink Floyd so far. I love The Wall and Live at Pompei, Wish You Were Here has it's moments, but the bulk of the other records I... Read more
Published on 1 Aug 2007 by Neil
A defining moment in the history of British pop music
This is the album that made UK psychedelic what it is. Unfortunately, that fact makes it almost impossible to review. Read more
Published on 17 Feb 2007 by N. J. Taylor
Piper at the 'greats' of dawn
The old ones are always the best and with this Floyd album you'll not be disappointed. This fantastic piece of work delights with Syd's exquisite lyrics and capture the 60's... Read more
Published on 3 Sep 2006 by Eclipse
A psychedelic classic....
Obviously there will be renewed interest in the work of Syd Barrett following his recent death. For a debut LP, this was a fully realised album, and is of course the only full... Read more
Published on 17 Aug 2006 by P. Philips
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