A buddy of mine gave me a copy of some very insane, very amazing early Pink Floyd BBC bootlegs – all recorded from 1968 to 1970. Half of the songs feature Syd Barrett and his jam cannon before his exit in late 1968, and the second half still reels from Syd’s visionary influence. Piper at the Gates of Dawn and Saucerful of Secrets are, undoubtedly, the best of the Floyd. Sorry, Dark Side, The Wall… meh. Psych records were never meant to prominently feature sax solos and smooth R&B grooves.
After some heavy research, I figured out that this bootleg is called “The Scarecrow’s Dream” and features a number of songs that were not widely released or recognized, and all recorded during that vital, creative time between Piper and Secrets. Behold “Nightmare,” which later became “Cymbaline,” on Soundtrack From the Film More (the first song ever performed live with the Azimuth Coordinator). This sonic cathedral of a jam is very different than anything heard on their debut or post-Syd sophomore album. The quality isn’t the best, but considering that these songs were passed from person to person by analog tape only, and made it here in 2008 is still quite a feat.
This monumental spookfest is heeeaavvvyyyyy…
MP3 :::
Pink Floyd – Nightmare/Cymbaline
