The Pink Floyd song Roger Waters says ‘calls back to the days of Syd Barrett’

A much-loved song from the legendary rock band Pink Floyd “calls back” to its earliest years, when Syd Barrett was a member.

Barrett left the band he had formed in 1965 just three years later, with Pink Floyd confirming the departure on April 6, 1968. Their sound would leave behind the psychedelic influence and instead remodel British rock into progressive masterpieces which would feature on The Dark Side of the Moon, Atom Heart Mother, and The Wall. Their 1979 effort has a song which refers to the days when Barrett was in the band, according to bass player and lyricist Roger Waters. The song in question featured on The Wall and was on the suggested pile for the group’s best-of compilation album, Echoes.

It, along with Young Lust and Mother from The Wall, were rejected in favour of The Happiest Days of Our Lives, Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2) and Hey You. Waters went on to explain the meaning behind the song, Nobody Home, and how he feels it links back to their earliest, Barrett-featuring works.

Barrett would have barely any contact with the band after his departure and would make no appearances on the albums to follow Saucerful of Secrets. He would make his final appearance as a musician with the group when they played new song, Have You Got It Yet?. David Gilmour confirmed the song was impossible to learn, as Barrett continued to change the arrangements as they performed.

He recalled: “Some parts of his brain were perfectly intact—his sense of humour being one of them.” Waters added it was a “real act of madness.” The group would have an encounter with Barrett in the recording process for Wish You Were Here, with their ex-bandmate dropping by the studio in an unrecognisable appearance.

The band referenced Barrett occasionally in their music, with Shine On You Crazy Diamond written with the Pink Floyd founder in mind. Another song to do so was, according to Waters, Nobody Home.

He said at the time: “There are some lines in here that harp back to the halcyon days of Syd Barrett, it’s partly about all kinds of people I’ve known. But Sid was the only person I used to know who used elastic bands to keep his boots together, which is where that line comes from.

“In fact the ‘obligatory Hendrix perm’ you have to go back ten years before you understand what all that’s about.” He further confirmed the meaning behind the “fading roots” line heard later in the song, which Waters said was about “contact” more than anything.

He added: “Well, he’s getting ready to establish contact if you like, with where he started, and to start making some sense of what it was all about. If you like he’s getting ready here to start getting back to side one.”