A Critical Review Syd Barrett: A Very Irregular Head

This Literature Review contextualises the work I undertook for „Syd Barrett: A
Very Irregular Head,‟ (1) a 140,000 word biography based on the life of the
musician Syd Barrett, lead guitarist, vocalist, and principal songwriter in the
original line up of Pink Floyd. The book is based on two and a half years of
focussed research, carried out between January 1997 and August 2009.
During this time I interviewed family, friends, schoolmates, fellow college
students, musicians, artists, and admirers from every stage of Barrett‟s life,
from his earliest days growing up in Cambridge, through his period as an
active musician and pop star, to his final years as a reclusive and enigmatic
figure in his home town. However, these 65 interviews comprise only one
element of my research. In addition I utilised an extensive range of primary
and secondary source material, and the bibliography for the book runs to
some 49 texts. (See appendix.) I also drew upon significant audio and video
material including rare and hard to find television transmissions, and archive
and bootleg recordings, many of which are not in the public domain.