Duggie Fields - LIVING WITH SYD BARRETT " I watched Syd's struggle with his creativity & his sanity"

[@JOHNEDGINTONDOCUMENTARIES]

Thanks for viewing this video ! Please subscribe for more of my amazing original Pink Floyd / Syd Barrett interviews! Rock On !! John

[@joshjuanfifarek7382]

Is there more at the end where he talks about the fan Duggie let play in Syds old room? I thought he talked about this further???

[@thomasjoseph4718]

I used to work with Gala Pinion at the Chelsea Drugstore in the late 60s and often visited this flat. I remember Syd Barrett . He was rather quiet and withdrawn with rather staring eyes. Given that he was a celebrity on the London music scene, he was, I suppose, rather intimidating, but I don't remember him being at all unpleasant or rude. I spent quite a lot of time speaking to Duggie Fields. He was a hard working and meticulous artist. His work was very much of the moment - very fashionable - but very well crafted. He was a very nice guy, down to earth, unpretentious and easy to get along with. I think Syd Barrett was very fortunate to be sharing a flat with someone so sensible and "grounded". I am sure he was a great help to Syd.

[@JOHNEDGINTONDOCUMENTARIES]

Thanks for your thoughtful insights

[@professormacdeezy]

thanks for sharing

[@elle26426]

Yes, thanks for sharing your story.

[@BushyHairedStranger]

15:38,..hits the nail on the head!…I absolutely agree with this Philosophy, it’s no wonder he looks so young! Seriously, a very astute and knowledgeable Artist. My aunt Jenny is a Professional Artist, has a PhD & Masters in Art. At age 73 she looks and still produces Art lime she’s still 30 years young. I believe that if you truly manifest doing what you love, you slow or even interrupt cellular decrepitude…why not?

[@pamelasmith4594]

I visited Duggie between 1968 and 1970. He was one of the kindest and creative people I’ve ever met. Now I see he was very thoughtful and intelligent. He gave me some lovely fabric designs which I wish I still had. I am glad I met Syd Barrett and David Gilmore if only once, the experience remains very memorable. I was sorry to hear Duggie had passed on. What a creative scene that flat was in Wetherby Mansions.

[@Craigdhouston]

Duggie appears to be a very gentle soul, and also speaks with a warmth about Syd. Also, he doesn’t speak ill of him, just honestly based on his recollections. Very sad that he passed away. A great talent.

[@pamelasmith4594]

Yes Duggie was always kind and honest and totally authentic when I visited him - there was always tea and biscuits and his wonderful art. I’ve enjoyed this interview no end and I am very sorry to hear dear Duggie has passed away.

[@sgg6927]

Gilmour seemed like a good friend to Syd even after he replaced him.

[@EHoser1]

David made sure Syd got his royalties and even insisted on including some of his songs in live concerts that were released on CD just to get him some more. I saw a quote somewhere that the year that Syd died his income was over a million pounds from royalties. I also think that without Gilmour's help Syd's solo albums would never have been completed.

[@joshjuanfifarek7382]

If people want to know what happened, if anything did or lack of, Duggie is THE one who makes it crystal clear. Don't bother looking for answers in any of these repetitive documentaries. Duggie is the one who sets it straight. Perhaps Jenny Spires and Gayla also. But this interview answers all the questions. Duggie never sugar coated anything. I miss him for that. Our talks to wee hours about modern art. Technologies and film. Duggie was a very sweet person with a very deep mind. Miss you Duggie.

[@EpicFroggz]

Wow, when he was describing how Syd became more withdrawn and just worse... I almost cried. And his quote about laying in bed, endless possibilities but no motivation to do them, feeling limited by time and by yourself... I feel that a lot, thank you for sharing. Enjoyed listening to Duggie too, I like how he paused to think and say what he genuinely wanted to say

[@neilus]

I always think there is something incredibly profound in the story that Syd painted himself into a corner and couldnt get out, like it symbolised his situation somehow.

[@GA-gd3wi]

If you watch the movie The Wall you get that same impression. I think it was inspired by Syd.

[@clubemec]

Thank you for posting such a wonderful and informative interview ❤

[@JOHNEDGINTONDOCUMENTARIES]

My total pleasure!

[@John-zn4lp]

At 15:35 is the most insightful and understanding of Syd's condition I've ever heard of his condition and its progression over time. Syd definitely had a mental condition that prevented him from getting back to his former self, for lack of a better way to say it. Thank you so much for this interview.

[@stephenthestoryteller3139]

It’s refreshing to see a different perspective on Syd from a credible source.

[@nononame113]

This interviewee is good and credible in that he doesn't try to sensationalise or mythologise Barrett at all. There are many opportunities for him to speculate or embellish, but he doesn't.

[@ReneAlexisPenalozaMunoz]

This man was there! He sounds believable and grounded. Great video of a person that apparently somehow survived that crazy period. Thanks for the upload.

[@JOHNEDGINTONDOCUMENTARIES]

Thanks for your appreciation!

[@christophercruz8359]

I was just thinking about this a few days ago, and thought, "I'd like to see more of that interview with Duggie Fields". I like the way he handled the fans who assumed Syd still lived there.

[@sratus]

'I knew he was lying in bed sort of thinking, my interpretation was that he was thinking, that while he lay there he had the possibility of doing anything in the world that he chose but the minute he made a choice he was limiting his possibilities so he lay there as long as he could so he had this unlimited future but of course that's a very limited present when you do that and a very depressing one ultimately so i think he actually got quite depressed.' Christ, he's just described my entire twenties.

[@MerseYattle]

lucid dreaming: exists. I L L U S I O N

[@dreamwell2020]

I love that bit about how when Syd refinised the floorboards, he painted himself into a corner.

[@jimmorrissy2276]

Yeah that was funny.

[@elle26426]

Yes, I loved that querky bit.

[@Eckyredtheunready]

kinda sounds like a metaphor for his behaviour as well, he painted himself into a corner and ultimately couldn't get out.

[@shapes2000]

I have been enjoying all the rushes from your interviews. What a great way of preserving important cultural history and thank you for taking the time to release all this material. What a great artist Duggie was, I bet he had a thousand amazing stories from all the people who had met over the years.

[@mikem1980]

this is such a cool interview. Duggie offered a valuable and exceedingly rare perspective as someone who spent, assumedly, the most time any person could have spent with Syd during this period. his framing of Syd's state is particularly grounded and it makes him come off with a very credible aura compared to some other sources

[@chadpittman3025]

Very charismatic man his self. A great artist Dougie fields

[@papalaz4444244]

This guy knows the truth. Drug consumption is most often a symptom of a problem, not the cause.

[@ReneAlexisPenalozaMunoz]

I have the impression the general public and the midia wants to keep relevant the whole folkloric thing of the “massive amounts of drug that drove Syd into madness” It sells books and records, it keeps a business rolling. Duggie (R.I.P.) had a very clear view of what happened around him, very believable and down to earth testimony. Beautiful interview. Thanks for posting.

[@professormacdeezy]

"unlimited future but limited presence" that sentence says a lot

[@professormacdeezy]

one of the most sympathetic and insightful opinions on barrett in my opinion

[@silverdragon710]

reminds me of the main protagonist of everything everywhere all at once

[@108grog]

It's been said of spiritual students, if they open their inner eye too quickly - unprepared - without a skilled mentor (guru) to instruct and provide care, it may create serious and permanent(?) damage. Syd became psychically crippled.

[@bigboxbobby2]

Lovely interview

[@JOHNEDGINTONDOCUMENTARIES]

Thanks!

[@chadpittman3025]

Duggie Fields phenomenal artist, check out what he did with that room

[@user-wo7dl6tb2q]

I met Duggie when I worked for Comme des Garçons in early 2000’s. He collaborated his art w/some clothing & modeled on the runway! He was very sweet & funny!

[@johni9073]

Thanks so very much John, for making your fascinating and deeply thought provoking interviews about Syd Barrett so easily accessible on KZbin. This one, along with the later interview with Richard Wright even more so. In part because of the apparent contradictions in interpretations of Syd's creative genius. Duggie seems to emphasise the need for Syd to be creative, at least as a song writer and musician, if perhaps not as a visual artist, as a part of a group project with all interacting - something that Richard emphasises too in discussing what he considered to be Pink Floyd's best creative moments. Is there a particular reason why you didn't develop this line with Richard in the later interview: that Syd's creative inspiration declined, according to Duggie, mainly because - as he supposes - of Syd's later isolation and withdrawal - that is, for social reasons in terms of creativity. Whereas Richard seems to suggest it was largely due to the psychological reasons attributable either to drug taking, or as Roger Waters emphasises more, to developing schizophrenia?

[@JOHNEDGINTONDOCUMENTARIES]

Thanks for your very perceptive comments. It may be that both Duggie and Richard's insights were valid. Syd's creativity was not a constant . At a certain point with the band, the tap was turned off - probably due to his acid intake. At a later stage, when living with Duggie, his social isolation was manifest and his creative output was a slow dripping from the tap. (Forgive the metaphor !)

[@johni9073]

@@JOHNEDGINTONDOCUMENTARIES Thanks for your reply John. I sometimes wonder if the discussion about Barrett and LSD in particular, is too focussed on rather 'scientific' aspects, still very often suppositions really, given the huge variety of reactions to taking LSD. Could another interpretation be one that seems to me to be unspoken by your interviewees, but there nonetheless: that Syd simply decided, perhaps rather firmly given the reactions to his withdrawal, NOT to communicate "rationally" - simply because he didn't want to at this stage. After all, his success meant that he could sustain his life without any real need to 'work' in a conventional sense. He was not without funds, food or a place to live (or was he ever?) Duggie makes the interesting point about "being famous" and Syd's brutally honest comments on that. He wasn't sure whether he wanted this fame, though had been seduced at times by its attractions, as the other group members suggest. Could his experiences up to and around 1967 more simply be seen as coming to a decision, perhaps aided by LSD taking, that the public attention of "fame", especially controversial (which seems to appeal more to say, Roger Waters) wasn't what he wanted. (Was this why Ronnie Laing couldn't 'deal' with him?) With the big motivator, even if "child-like" of not wanting to be told what to do, and the blank staring response looking right through you that so many have reported, being the strategy for cutting off communication in this way. I find that understandable, if a bit extreme at times (but he was obviously the focus of huge and very intrusive attention), bizarre perhaps, but not "mad" - as Syd's doctor brother is said to have declared on this topic. (Indeed, did you try to approach any of Syd's family for interviews in this context?) In particular, as a student of French literature, Mick Rock's comments about 19th century French literary influences in the social circles that Syd frequented, resonate with me. Syd Barrett seems to me to be very inspired by another poet with a very small, literary output, almost completely produced as a teenager with accompanying "fame" and controversy - indeed notoriety, accompanied with drug taking (especially abuse of absinthe) - rejected and who then switched off for another life in Ethiopia: Arthur Rimbaud. I think of Rimbaud's desire to disorder all his sense impressions as a means for inspiration and for being poetically creative to see something true, and say something new. His brilliant poem "Seven-year old poets" (with a powerful musical version by Leo Ferre) says it all for me, even if Syd comes over as a far gentler personality than Rimbaud.

[@ReneAlexisPenalozaMunoz]

R.I.P. Duggie. It must’ve been so annoying to be constantly asked stuff about somebody else instead of about his art.

[@joshjuanfifarek7382]

Duggie was the most relaxed guy I ever met. He pretty much loved talking about anything especially old friends. I'm glad I got to know you Duggie. ❤

[@PinkFloydCollectors]

Thank you for sharing…

[@Zen_Not_Zen]

Duggie was a great artist and such a gentle and elegant human being .

[@Notmehimorthem]

Just to fill in a bit about early Round House days, how it was. The Roundhouse was built as a stgeam engine turning building, where an engine could be made to face the other way. It fell into disuse and was for the heart of the sixties and early seventies one of the heartbeats of the music scene. It was darkish inside, it had a "Organic Vegetarian" cafe, which many used. There were seats auditorium style, you could walk around freely at any time. This makes a big difference to a venue, it build a community. Many bands giggede there it was a badge of honour, I remember (at least) Fleetwood Mac with Peter Green, who sadly went Syd's way. Mick Fleetwood (as I recall) Left a big Tam Tam (AKA Rank) on the stage and Pink FLoyd used it. They were famous for their light shows. These consisted on showing a background light similar to a lava lamp on stage "freaky" and superimposing black and white early Mickey mouse cartoons on this, all whilst they played with moving spots of different colors. No one was doing this. The music was a jam and we loved it. Oz was on sale. A muscular guy walked past me once wearing pink ballet tights, a plastic Roman centurian breast plate and helmet and nothing else. These were the days that you could do this and be accepted. Roy Harper played there and once was so stoned all he did was talk about a spider that was running up his microphone stand - for an hour. Tyranasourus Rex played there Boland on guitar and his mate on bongos. Huge names abound in the Roundhouse History. My last memory of it, shortly before it closed was being on the roof where they were dangling a huge inflatable penis off the roof at the public - possibly in a friendly way. Anything, was happening. That was the point.

[@joshjuanfifarek7382]

We miss you Duggie. From Around the corner ❤

[@seriousros7280]

I don't see his life as a tragedy unless he was unhappy all the time. He produced a lot more than most people. Nothing wrong with isolating yourself and spending your days painting, gardening and thinking. Not everyone wants to be a superstar or everyone's friend.

[@KETEBOWERS]

I came across this video by accident watched it found it very interesting, however I really love the artwork in the background ! 😎🎶

[@MADCAP.R.I.P]

FUN FACT...only last year the famous painted floorboards were carefully removed to be sold at auction..they sold for £28.500

[@mjh5437]

I thought they would go for a lot more than that.

[@patricktoole3687]

Are you saying they sold for twenty eight pounds and fifty pence? Because that’s the way you have written it. And it that is the case, that’s hardly exciting at all.

[@MADCAP.R.I.P]

@@patricktoole3687since when did 50 pence have two zeros then?bank transfer the figures i wrote to me ..and i will give you ten grand..thats £10.000..deal ? or no deal ?

[@paulnolan4971]

R.I.P. Duggie

[@northernfireworks402]

One blinding debut album, a song or two on the follow up and then two solo albums. Not many pop musicians manage this sort of mythology from such a relatively small period of time and amount of music. Then Television Personalities rote a song about him. Bless you Syd.

[@nickdebenedetto2267]

i've never seen thins and i thought I'd consumed ALL Syd related interviews out there. i really appreciate how Duggie makes it a point that Syd's conditon was gradual to the point where he wasn't even aware of it happening until later reflection. i also like that he comments on all the rumors and bogus stories that stem from many of the books written about Syd. I've heard many non-celebrities that were close to Syd say that he lacked ambition/motivation despite having immense talent. i think this is a big factor that doesn't get enough weight in the Syd narrative. where did that ambition go? clearly, he had ambition to learn guitar, write poetry/lyrics, travel to London, rehearse a lot, get up on stage to perform, etc etc. Even if he did take loads of acid as many insist, why would it destroy his motivation? was he depressed more than "mad"? laying around in bed all day is not unheard of for guys in their early 20s, especially during those long winters in London. despite it all... the part that makes me feel as though Syd was truly mentally ill and the wall was just "so high" that he couldn't overcome it was Duggie's comments about Syd degressing to a point where he had to be told what to do and behaved like an "obedient child". that is truly sad and is a sign that he was indeed mentally ill. and Acid probably wouldn't have caused that. a catalyst, maybe. a direct cause, no

[@TheRocknrollmaniac]

Yeah, very insightful interview; depression is never mentioned in the context of Syd's change, probably because it's not as "interesting" as schizophrenia, in the same way that we don't really take care of depression as a society. The behaviors mentioned by Duggie are really indicative of depression; Syd didn't do much, lay around in bed all day; he simply couldn't motivate himself to do things, and then there's also the bizarre part. After living like this for a few years, you change and it's hard to come back.

[@lastman7409]

from wikipedia: Chronic catatonia-like breakdown or autistic catatonia refers to a functional decline seen in some patients with pre-existing autism spectrum disorder and/or intellectual disability which usually runs a chronic-progressive course and encompasses attenuated catatonic symptoms as well as mood and anxiety symptoms that increasingly interfere with adaptive functioning. Onset is typically insidious and often mistaken for background autistic symptoms. Slowing of voluntary movement, reduced speech, aboulia, increased prompt dependency and obsessive-compulsive symptoms are frequently seen; negativism, (auto-)aggressive behaviors and ill-defined hallucinations have also been reported. Both the causes of this disorder as well as its prognosis appear to be heterogenous, with most patients showing partial recovery upon treatment. It seems to be related to chronic stress as a result of life transitions, loss of external time structuring, sensory sensitivities and/or traumatic experiences, co-morbid mental disorders, or other unknown causes. Since clinical catatonia can not always be diagnosed, this condition has also been renamed to the more general term "late regression".[14][15

[@stephensams9784]

I visited Wetherby Mansions last year, it's a lovely area.

[@outtathyme5679]

Fascinating

[@Swat-ed5bt]

Doug is a nice guy 🤩

[@koenraad4618]

Syd's dad died when Syd was just 16 years of age, perhaps that caused his depression and odd behavior later on. He was a brilliant musical artist but not so brilliant graphic artist, so when he left his band he slowly became aware how much he had burned, and he was very much in denial of this at first. Professional psychological treatment and a new band life would have been Syd's best option. I like Duggie's iconic artwork very much, the painting of Michael Jackson for instance, it is very good. Duggie Field had a unique eye for composition and he looked like a character from his art work.

[@billbarrett6285]

I wish Duggie had written a book about his life and friendships.

[@Josouto1]

What Syd could do was just amazing.

[@joshjuanfifarek7382]

Thamks for this post We all miss Duggie. Miss the late night talks wirh him. A guy who ate art for breakfast .Everyone loved those randi mannies. Bring back the love drugs. Out with the dark ones.

[@dailyflash]

Very interesting. Keep in mind that a lot of this is his impressions, what he thought was going on. If he's wrong about anything, it's not because he lied. He just interpreted things differently. And he's pretty willing to say, "I don't know the answer to that."

[@johni9073]

Thanks for posting this, John. I'm not a Barrett specialist, but what Fields has to say makes me think about how influential, late 19th century, French literary influences were on some people in this time and place. Fields mentions Baudelaire, Verlaine, Rimbaud, Mallarmé, and when I think also of the connections from the Cambridge University intellectual types, the UFO club musicians onwards, with people like those in and around Soft Machine (the French literary influences are explicit in the album Soft Machine Volume 2) then things make a lot of sense to me. This is like Rimbaud in particular, with his attempts to take all "rules" out of experience: the "dérèglement de tous les ses" and his "Season in Hell", as a means for triggering amazingly original creativity. This would strongly suggest that the "acid casualty" stuff is connected to quite an explicable background in cultural thinking. (Very ironic that a guy so into "the scene" and this existential way of thinking as Ronnie Laing, couldn't handle Syd Barrett!) Given Barrett's later life, the idea of madness, brain damage and the like, sounds all too superficial to me, as an attempt to explain in overly rationalised, "scientific" terms. The whole point in Rimbaud's creative period (also very short) was to be deliberately against thinking as a "rational" being, to escape the conventions of rules and the limitations they impose on the senses. The associates that Dave Gilmour writes off as evil (and Dave also specialised somewhat in French!), and perhaps so in destructive effect they could well have been, would be interesting to hear from. Have any of them ever been interviewed on their side of this fascinating story?

[@danielstoddart]

"He painted himself in." Somehow that doesn't surprise me given Syd's mental state at the time.

[@craigl5729]

ironic though as he was a talented artist, i think art was his true love, the music business destroyed him sadly RIP Roger....

[@markwilliams7054]

There's something so haunting about how Syd moved through life after Pink Floyd

[@billbarrett6285]

Duggie would have been a very interesting person to get to know. He seems quite intelligent and I would liked to have known him.

[@MrHmm300]

This is a VERY interresting inteview to watch..! Really, one of the most, maybe THE most interesting piece talking about Syd that I've encountered. Brings way more depth and nuance to the story, really. And I'm someone who actually has been quite a fan, and dug quite a bit in the story of Syd, how and why things went the way they did. I also have a hard time seeing that he just would have... "Dropped" it because of 'dropping it', so to say? Haha. But it for sure can take you places inside yourself, and the whole aspect of him loosing motivation and direction is very interesting. He expressed earlier during he pink floyd-years, that what they were doing at that point just is a tip of the iceberg, kind of. He had huge visions and ideas (one could be exemplified with, the setup with saxophone and quire that the band implemented like five years later, when first basically calling him loony for the idea, haha). And. as Duggie expresses it, that he kind of felt that he limited himself by even making a choice, haha. That's an amazing observation. He always changed the forms of his songs quite erratically later years, and in general, was playing and experimenting with life. It's also true. Once you set your mind on something specific, you DO limit yourself. You prioritize one thing over others, and yes, for sure, you will most likely miss some possibilities and opportunities when doing so. Here the possibility of drug-related issues may enter. Blowing your mind open so to the extend that the regular way of prioritizing information and possibilities gets lost. That, I'd say, is probably not the most unusual sideeffect of playing with mind-altering drugs. Loosing oneself in the world of possibilities is a tricky buizz.. Relateable question for many searching creative types, I believe. Seeing/understanding/feeling enough, and to have experienced some quite marvellous stuff. But here some old wise saying comes into place. "Beware of unearned wisdom". If you can't understand what to do with the experience you have, or have had, and can't integrate it properly and ground yourself with this new "knowledge", then you just may end up in a space of "everything is possible and happens at the same time", kind of. And it's for sure true, that entering thes worlds, comes with a bit of darkness as well. There are very dark possible aspects of experience as well, shadows to the oppurtunities and love one can reach. Well. That's a light psychological reasoning analysis, I guess. Haha. Adding, the aspect that he didn't like the fame or business around the whole package, for sure, haha, it kind of makes sens to loose the drive.. Oh, if someone with experience of Carl Jungs work had gotten to him, or by all means, if he just would had found his way to something like yoga maybe, who knows what could have been. We live, we learn. We love Syd, and we can cherish what he managed to do, and get in contact with. Now, it's up to us to take it on, and try to do the integration that's needed. Deeper understanding, more grounding in the process, and further on, more love. Peace, felllow Sydiots and searching souls

[@alexvernon7456]

Thank you so much for this! Amazing, duggie was such a cool guy (RIP). Interesting how all the bad members and duggie had different ideas on Syd and what went wrong with him. Incredible that you did so many great interviews in such a small space of time. I hope that you upload the uncut one with mick rock. Did you interview Storm?

[@JOHNEDGINTONDOCUMENTARIES]

Thanks. I’ll be putting mick rock’s interview up when I get the time. I did a Storm interview for my ‘wish you were here ‘ doc.

[@alexvernon7456]

@@JOHNEDGINTONDOCUMENTARIES thank you John

[@VegetableMan1400]

Interesting that the painted boards are not shown, perhaps they were covered over by carpet. The reason I ask is they have apparently just been purchased and will be displayed in some way in a Sussex pub.

[@jlouis4407]

The floorboards?

[@PutItAway101]

I'd be surprised if much is left of a slapdash paint job after 50 years of people walking on it.

[@EagleSean]

Shine On Syd, Legend 🦅💖💫

[@John-zn4lp]

I believe Syd enjoyed the free form style of early Floyd music, but when it became constrained, and it became more like a job than art or freedom of expression, it was just not what he felt comfortable with. Surely, when Dave took the reigns of lead guitar player, and Dave certainly was and is a more tight and styled player than Syd, he probably felt where the band was going, and starting slowly drifting away. I know I'll want to rephrase this, but this is my gut feelings at the moment.

[@haroldfinch8481]

Thank you for all these Syd interviews. Very enlightening. Someone really should have talked to Duggie about that haircut though, and the eyebrows.

[@Stechamppn]

I kinda dig the guys hair n his style...he's unique....and different..love his art work .just checked out loads of his stuff..he's defo one to check ...you Don't get to many people like him.... in a class of his own with art and his out look on life...and his unique style of dressing.... I find the guy very interesting...best to be different than be the same as every one else.. tho I do agree with the eye brows ..but he is a walking piece of art ...his whole house has been touched by his artistic ways....what a very unique guy . Any how take care all the best 👍

[@haroldfinch8481]

@@Stechamppn awesome reply. Appreciate your take on it. Just takin a crack at being funny.

[@Stechamppn]

@@haroldfinch8481 all is cool..they are defo 100% uniquely original eye brows. You wasn't lieing..Syd had some interesting friends... the world needs more Duggie fields in my eyes (brows )

[@sarahhague4911]

...love Duggie's art, style, and signature kiss curl!😎x

[@bonnacon1610]

5:35 onwards, a very accurate description of ADHD, together with the collapse in motivation that can result from losing access to a structured environment.

[@martyguy8185]

Such an intelligent man

[@flamingcow83]

Grazie 1000

[@dusanpogacar1399]

Duggy remindes me on Bowie, his woice and the way he talked.

[@mikearchibald-u6g]

He doesn't actually say where this notion of 'unlimited possibilities' comes from, did Syd SAY it, or is that his interpretation of Syds behavour? In the Anthony Phillips interview the guy talks about how having 'deadlines' is helpful because the way he spoke was that artists, whether painters or musicians, have a hard time 'finishing'. I remember taking an aesthetics course a long time ago, and while the commercial world likes 'pieces of art' to be sold, the focus seemed very much on 'art' being a 'process'. Syd couldn't decide which 'process' to engage in, since it limits from others. Of course such a person may say the 'imagination' is the ultimate 'processor'. I remembe a Star Trek where they had a planet where people could just 'imagine' a work of art or music and it was created by technology. Was that art or technology or something else? As far as I know, such questions about the nature of 'art' have never been resolved, I'm not sure CAN be. Matthew Arnold said that 'the artist is never heard, only overheard'. Is it art if nobody sees it? From OUR perspective its not, but is the artists perception the most pure, or the other? Syd in particular symbolizes this important distinction, because as Dave says of his music, you DON"T actually hear the genius of the song in the engineering of it. In hearing it we are seeing only the echoes of the original song in Syds head, which may only be an echo of what the song was 'originally'. Not sure that makes sense or is fairly elementary pop philosophy it just came into my head when he said that about Syd. I remember Roger Waters saying that Peter Gabrliel was Genesis 'Syd Barrett', but lately I'm wondering if Anthony Phillips is a closer analogy (not that it really matters, its just interesting).

[@nuvotion-live]

I think he was projecting in that sense. If you read other interviews it’s something Duggie articulates about his own process and work.

[@seamonkey000001]

Didn’t even prepare the floor or sweep it 😂. 🎨

[@benedictearlson9044]

What a lovely and genuine guy Duggie was. One obvious question you didn't seem to ask John was 'are the floor boards still painted'? Any info on the flat now, it could become a popular tourist site you'd imagine.

[@nickdebenedetto2267]

its been asked and the answer is, the floor has been covered with another type of flooring. you can see it in the video of course. the actual floor boards themselves would be UNDER this floor and in all likelihood would still contain at least some (if not most) of the paint Syd applied. unless of course the entire floor was ripped up which is highly unlikely in an apartment building. Or, if Duggie or a hired hand stripped the paint off the floor at some point, which is possible since Syd was not careful when he painted it and left hairs and other debree to get stuck in the paint (plus it was not even finished, part of the floor remained plain). kinda haunting to think that the Madcap colored floor boards might be sitting under that new floor though! Duggie died in 2021, so I wonder who bought that apartment??? If they were a wise businessmind, they would make a shrine to Syd there and make a fortune. restore all Syd's stuff and make it a museum type attraction!!!

[@childrenofminervaofficial4316]

As it is an apartment in a complex, I doubt the other residents would appreciate nor approve of a "Syd shrine" in their building and all the additional public traffic that would entail.

[@benedictearlson9044]

@@childrenofminervaofficial4316 Obviously but the impact on neighbours in such a block would be minimal and it's likely not up to them (lease dependant) - the hundreds of visitors would certainly appreciate it. Look up Forthlin Road, neighbours don't necessarily decide what happens next door or on public land outside their front windows.

[@tomtaba5564]

About the Cromwell Road reference: He admits to hearing of others being spiked with acid, though.. And he says "he didn't perceive" that thing, happening to Syd. Not perceiving something, during 1967, does not mean it didn't happen.

[@108grog]

"He painted himself in."

[@bongofury333]

That's what I thought. Poor sweetheart

[@BushyHairedStranger]

In my perception as a Barrett Head, Syd was NOT an “Acid Casualty”, he was a dam talented Musician~Artist who had differing ideas from what Waters wanted and the LSD use aspect was used as a scapegoat for a band shifting gears. LSD was the Blame tool.

[@nuvotion-live]

Metaphorical

[@nuvotion-live]

@@BushyHairedStranger this interview is one man's perspective on the issue. And it's clear in some cases he is projecting is own beliefs on the situation, as everyone does. Each interview and fact should be viewed as small parts of a complex misunderstood story. You're the only one here that said "acid causality" and anyone who says that would probably concede there is more to it than that.

[@BushyHairedStranger]

@@nuvotion-live Seems that was round about way of saying im right, or not wrong, and that theres more history to the story. Yup Ill concede that.

[@molntuss7113]

Amazing room!

[@gilibertopaparauchas5959]

The interviewer kinda sounds like gilmour

[@MADCAP.R.I.P]

has anyone else seen the clip where Syd is wearing a striped T-shirt indentical in colour as the floorboards ?

[@benw-king3380]

So much supposition about SB. 'Why couldn't people do this, why couldn't they do that?' I think that what gets missed in this is that everybody was very young. Was everybody caught up in their own 21 year old lives? I would have thought so. It was a fairly tumultuous time. Even with all the help available now for people with mental health issues, it's not always easy to know what to do - we shouldn't underestimate the role fear and confusion might have played in the minds of those around him. Duggie Fields mentioned that Syd's deterioration was subtle. But there came a point where SB was clearly in trouble - I've seen some very poignant accounts from good friends; Jenny Fabian painted a very vivid picture of the condition she found him in. People get caught up in the 'tragedy of the doomed poet,' and yes it was sad. But as more and more people from that particular scene pass on, it's worth remembering that he was loved by his folks. And his music? That is so full of joy, humour, invention and darkness, it will be around as long as there are people to hear it - kudos to Roger Waters and D. Gilmour!

[@elle26426]

Well said. I also get frustrated at comments that debate around the 'before/after Syd' as in a better or worse scenario. I don't think of floyd individually; they were all integral parts that brought along a special slice of the magic.

[@benw-king3380]

@@elle26426 Thank you Elle. I agree. My admiration for RW grows as he speaks out over matters of conscience and so on.

[@outtathyme5679]

Btw that the flat where Mick Rock shot those iconic photos

[@JOHNEDGINTONDOCUMENTARIES]

Yes indeed!

[@dusanpogacar1399]

Syd wasn't crazy, he was ill.

[@frodofraggins]

I kind of wish the interviewer pressed Duggie when he kept saying Syd was "difficult". Difficult in what ways?

[@jlouis4407]

I would imagine disorganized thoughts, withdrawal, etc.

[@sarahhague4911]

......flat mates can be difficult in all sorts of ways....😊. Intruding a lot on space, can be one example.....For an artist trying to work this would be a problem....

[@wallacelovecraft8942]

Great interview again. I felt that even though he lived with Syd, he didn't say much about what he did. Like the whole bringing these people is one of those occasions where Syd actually went out and made or had a couple friends over so he wasn't actually in bed all the time. And the thing about someones drink being spiked, just because Syd didn't tell him about it, doesn't mean that it didn't happen to him. Syd maybe accepted that his drink was spiked but we do not know. If Syd stated that his drink was spiked then I'd believe it. I think him talking about how Syd was maybe doing random odd things on purpose is an interesting thing to note because that could be true. Maybe with all that he lost, the only thing that he could entertain people with, was being abnormal. The Duggie guy certainly has some interesting stories to tell on things in just his own life. I'm very interested in hearing about it. I wonder if you did an interview on him as well? Sad that he's gone now too. I think that room that was his, was where the photo for his first solo album was taken.

[@TheRocknrollmaniac]

Yeah, I think Syd's friends sometimes avoid talking too much about the bizarre aspects of Syd's behavior, and that's because they are good persons. But yes even at this point Syd wasn't entirely absent, and one could even wonder like Duggie whether Syd was doing some things on purpose, just to mess with people. To understand this we have to dig deeper into the psychology and not simply use labels as schizophrenia. I think Syd, among other things due to LSD, was having more and more difficulties situating himself in the world and having warm relationships with people. The world started to seem more cold and distant, the band left him, whereas he was the center of the show. The reality dawned on him, and I think it was hard for him to reflect on his position and perhaps not take things too seriously, and he acted out, instead of communicating his issues. Being a bit quirky and strange to people is also a way to communicate, it's a way to "punish" them for not understanding. There is a whole line of psychologists who consider schizophrenia as, in a way, an illness caused by inappropriate expression of one's sadism. Little by little, and after flirting with the other side of sanity for a long time, there was no coming back. The people also give up (apart from family). It's really sad but it is what it is; I would believe Duggie in his reasoning about the drug use at the time, people had their drinks laced, Syd perhaps had his drink laced but he certainly willingly took acid and other drugs. While it's true that one drink laced with copious amounts of LSD can certainly get you to the other side without the possibility of getting back, we will never know whether this happened to Syd. Rick Wright has a story of Syd going missing for a few days in summer of 67, and when he eventually emerged he was a different man, with that blank stare (another way of expressing aggression). Perhaps in these few days he either willingly took too much LSD or unwillingly. We have to keep in mind that he was 21 years old at the time, so not completely formed as a person.

[@fredzep01]

hello John, did you shoot this for a floyd documentary, and are these outtakes ?.. it's just i am sure i have seen this somewhere but i cant place it.... anyway brilliant as usual, thanks for taking the time to show us your priceless interviews...

[@JOHNEDGINTONDOCUMENTARIES]

Outtakes. And yes you’ve seen some of the clips in my Syd/floyd doc

[@fredzep01]

@@JOHNEDGINTONDOCUMENTARIES Ok, that's where i have seen Duggie before. John all your outtakes are more informative than the documentaries they are taken from. All the people that are in them give their insights so freely you must have a calming influence on them. I am still impressed the way you got Chester Thompson to sit for you for so long, not only that he all so looked comfortable. You know only to well people tend to clam up when it's time to roll. Keep them coming mate...

[@Bluepilled-c5t]

I’ve long had doubts of the drug induced psychosis theory. Why? People love to believe this stuff. And promote it, which means it might not be so accurate. And I’ve personally witnessed a few exaggerated stories from uni students having breakdowns from pot consumption, I mean, give me a break, as if. I have personally experienced stages where I was terrified to go outside or see people, which is far more scary and real than some drug damage tale. But who knows. nice interview, enjoyed the real window in.

[@ManNoName-c9u]

Rick Wright seemed pretty convinced in a late interview, stating that Syd went to a party one weekend then came back and you could see he'd gone awry, so it's not unreasonable to use a contemporary witnesses account. Maybe Wright was wrong, but let's take the wise advice that some people should not do hallucinogenics. Difficult to tell beforehand, I know.......eek!

[@Bluepilled-c5t]

@ very true. In fact most people should stay away from hallucination inducing drugs. Had some good ones but had some bad ones. They don’t open the mind at all, though you’re convinced they do when they’re in action.

[@biegebythesea6775]

he looks like martin short.

[@clintoncooper9194]

the table at 30 seconds in is reminiscent of the floor from when the room's former illustrious guest lived there

[@bazbarrett8103]

Volume.....?

[@lastman7409]

15:38 interesting question to ask Duggie, who mentioned he had had a prescription for Mandrax. Gee wonder where Syd could've got them from?

[@jeffryphillipsburns]

Mandrex was once widely prescribed in Europe. It was also often manufactured illegally. Barrett could have got his supply from any number of places. (In the United States it was more commonly known as Quaalude.)

[@evangeline77x]

Something that has always kind of bothered me about all the floorboard myths are that Syd did *not* paint himself into a corner as so many witnesses have stated. In the madcap session photos there is a very clearly visible L shaped unpainted pathway, maybe 4 ft wide or so, leading from the doorway all the way around the length of the far wall with the bay window. Based on the photos it appears that he had first painted the bulk of the floorboards then later (also visible in the madcap photos) began to paint out from the bay windows to meet the rest of the finished portion.. Which shows the project was at least somewhat thought out and he did not just randomly paint himself into a corner. Even down to moving his bed to the window which would provide proper ventilation, and working in sections shows there was a methodology to what he was doing.

[@keithmccrary325]

"i wasn't there and even though multiple witnesses saw it, that isn't what happened" - interesting

[@evangeline77x]

@keithmccrary325 "multiple witnesses" where? Dougie is the one who said that and it's been incorrectly repeated for 2 decades. The actual photos of the room immediately after being painted show something completely different.

[@SpeakeasyRay]

@@keithmccrary325 interestingly, pics do support what @evangeline77x posits above, if you search through the Mick Rock photo sessions. Check the 2nd pic here: andnowitsallthis.blogspot.com/2023/04/syd-barrett-madcap-mystery-solved.html

[@brianwarner308]

I suppose I do have a hard Time believing somebody with painting experience like him would make a rookie mistake like that

[@LONEEAGLE_space_rock]

Great, what songs did he write in that room. Also, Iggy was not mentioned

[@mateuszkaminski4584]

Bed, the most important thing ....

[@t8br00k36]

Be wonderful to buy this flat and redo the front cover and have it as a museum.

[@joshjuanfifarek7382]

Im suprised no one asks Duggie about his work with Stanley Kubrick and his wife Christiane

[@rdeye-rb1pe]

Dougie feilds contributed substantial artwork to the yellow submarine movie

[@haroldfinch8481]

Thanks for that info. I wasn’t aware of that.

[@rdeye-rb1pe]

@@haroldfinch8481 oh you're welcome I love Sid I remember when I first got a guitar I think Sid to me I started making beats with that guitar sampling my licks and sampling my cords I would always throw some of his work in my beats too Sid was way ahead of his time with music and lyrics

[@nickdebenedetto2267]

i find ZERO evidence to support this unless you think the fact that he uses similar color patterns and psychedelic atmospheres means he contributed to Yellow Sub. FAKE NEWS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@prosperoeaton8201]

Will you share a source proving that this claim is accurate? I just did some searching and found absolutely nothing indicating a connection between Fields and Yellow Submarine.

[@rdeye-rb1pe]

@@prosperoeaton8201 I was thinking of Doug seigel my apologies, huge fan of Syd Barrett, but I got Dougie duggie confused with Dougie seigel that's on me brother my bad

[@xwsftassell]

Yeah. Much as he told me.

[@apotheoticoelacanth]

I watched this one again after a long time, and on this one I think I'm just a little torn. I guess I just don't know how correct the analysis is here, though I guess I'd like to think that certain things that Duggie said were true. I mean, he does seem like he frames much of this in terms of choice, and free-will. And while it is optimistic to think of the human condition in that way, depending on if you see that as an advantage, one also wonders if / or how / it would not be obvious that Syd had crossed certain psychological lines at that time, to where he just couldn't get to the point of making a choice Fields looks to me as though he had become something of a fully realized artist: I think I can tell that just by taking a glimpse through this interview. But I think that when you are an artist, of any kind, you are dealing with subjectivity, and you can never really escape it. So I don't know, maybe that's part of what's coming through for me here, is that Syd's state is being looked at through a lens where subjectivity ultimately predominates. But something was wrong, in more of an objective way. And maybe he was saying that in some way, but it's hard for me to tell

[@JOHNEDGINTONDOCUMENTARIES]

Really insightful interesting comment. Thanks.

[@jeffryphillipsburns]

He’s just giving his impressions from the limited time he knew Barrett. There isn’t much speculation here, and there isn’t much venturing far afield. He sounds to me candid and forthright. Of course it’s only one part of the picture, but it doesn’t pretend to be other than that.

[@CampingSecretsUK]

It reminds me a bit of Withnail and I, with Syd as Withnail and Duggie as 'I' who goes on to make it

[@pedrorocha9722]

man.... the sound is really low.

[@BrianSalazar-kn5ng]

Painted himself in… such a sad story about Sid. Drugs/Spirits/Mental Illnesses. 😢😢😢😢😢

[@robwilde6857]

@11:40 seems to expose the "Cromwell Road" saga as a myth.

[@jmdavison62]

Yes indeed. Fields' account of this time is probably the most authoritative. Is the couple with the dubious "spiked tea" account Jenny and Nigel Lesmoir-Gordon? At any rate, this is one of the most important of John Edginton interviews on Barrett, all of which are excellent and which provide a remarkable degree of insight that complements the available literature.

[@tomtaba5564]

He admits to hearing of others being spiked with acid, though.. And he says "he didn't perceive" that thing, happening to Syd. Not perceiving something, during 1967, does not mean it didn't exist.

[@frankschrodinger1424]

Who lives in that flat now? Anybody of note?

[@JOHNEDGINTONDOCUMENTARIES]

It was recently put up for sale

[@tomtaba5564]

@@JOHNEDGINTONDOCUMENTARIES how much?

[@bryanc1975]

I genuinely like this guy, but if I had a pair of scissors... I'm just saying...

[@BigfootRunning]

😂

[@neilus]

LOL yeah

[@chriscatton705]

haha. omg.

[@jlouis4407]

Does Duggie still live there?

[@captinweestain526]

Doughier died in 2001

[@jlouis4407]

@@captinweestain526 OK I mean at this time

[@Jack_The_Ladd]

@@jlouis4407yes he lived there until his death in 2021.

[@jlouis4407]

@@Jack_The_Ladd Thanks for the info

[@jagdeepkaul1261]

good god! whats a matter with you!! its 2024!!!! Duggie died back in 2021!

[@fatbelly27]

I didn't know Duggie had died. Sad. It was during the pandemic. Was it covid?

[@JOHNEDGINTONDOCUMENTARIES]

Cancer sadly

[@silvertrain57]

Get the book "Shine On You Crazy Diamond", it has lots of anecdotes from various roommates there at the time. This is the place where they'd spike Syd's tea first thing, with acid without him knowing. Friends would stop in and ask, "what's all that yelling and screaming?". They'd say, "that's just Syd, in the closet". This went on for months. I think it was his girlfriend that finally found him in the alley when he got booted out. Nobody comes back from that. Awful people, awful.

[@JOHNEDGINTONDOCUMENTARIES]

That book is very unreliable indeed. A lot of the “stories’ have been shown to be largely based on unproven gossip and hearsay. The best book on Syd is “ An Irregular Head “ by Rob Chapmsn. It was scrupulously researched and based on many first hand interviews.

[@LoganSpencer-w2s]

Can attest, Rob Chapman's book is top shelf

[@JohnDuca-dd2dm]

T"the madcap laughs".

[@timflippance3040]

I understood that it wasn't so much the acid per se that destroyed him, rather that on one occasion he went for a whole week without sleeping and took acid every day. It is well known that going without sleep for long periods damages your brain, so the combination of no sleep and constant tripping would have been lethal. Other members of Pink Floyd have said that after that event his eyes were permanently blank. How this fits in with Duggie's statement that the decline was slow I'm not sure.

[@JOHNEDGINTONDOCUMENTARIES]

PF members were talking about a time when Syd was still in the band. He lived with Duggie after he left.

[@timflippance3040]

@@JOHNEDGINTONDOCUMENTARIES OK

[@wolfgangdevries127]

Well, it was a great marketing story. After all. For both Floyd and Duggie.

[@jamesdavies5266]

Ledge X

[@fredfloyd68]

Volume too low..

[@JOHNEDGINTONDOCUMENTARIES]

@fredfloyd34 I can reupload this and enhance the volume but first can I ask you - what device are you playing it on ? Thanks

[@ministerofdarkness]

⁠the volume is fine

[@captinweestain526]

It wasn’t acid that made him crazy, it’s when he went away for the weekend and did STP

[@jlouis4407]

Woah that’s crazy where did you hear this? I was looking up the drug and it said that the black market versions in the 60s were very strong and there was an excessive dose given.

[@captinweestain526]

@@jlouis4407search on here ‘Syd Barrett acid casualties stp ‘. It’s rumoured Though.

[@dr.buzzvonjellar8862]

I’d sooner believe that than not. As I understand it, Owsley made a bunch of 20mg STP tablets in the summer of 1967. It’s a Phenethylamine, not a Tryptamine. So an amphetamine or Peyote class material. Even in the drug friendly 1960’s, it didn’t catch on. Why? It was not enjoyable. Apparently 20mg was a huge dose and it took a while to come on, so people would take more before it hit.

[@RobertLund-d7d]

I watched all he interviews with band members and various other friends , flatmates, etc of Syds and I have never heard one mention of a girlfried. Didnt Syd have girlfriends to help him ?

[@thomasgary1219]

Syd had sex with lots of women, but no real " girlfriends " . I also suspect that he was definitely bisexual.

[@jeffryphillipsburns]

Listen to this interview again. It mentions a girlfriend. Notice also that that Nick Mason’s, David Gilmour’s, Richard Wright’s, and Roger Water’s interviews don’t mention their own girlfriends either. Waters and maybe someone else briefly mention a wife, but they had to have had girlfriends first. They just don’t seem to have figured into the story.

[@jeffryphillipsburns]

@@thomasgary1219 Evidence of bisexuality would require something like a boyfriend. Absence of any significant sexual relation at all isn’t evidence of homosexuality or bisexuality. Quite the opposite.

[@craigl5729]

@@thomasgary1219 you dont know your subject,Syd had 4 serious girlfriends in his life ..

[@jlouis4407]

One of his former girlfriends gives an interview on here

[@Josouto1]

Interesting what he says about acid, that Syd was not such a big consumer as other acquaintences. There is a big of a myth, we do not know what happened to him, he could have been squizofrenic and that might not have had any relation to drugs. Studies nowadays have been confirming that acid or other allucinogenous drugs actually bring benefits to the brain

[@deanpd3402]

There was a reason why the CIA delivered LSD to the 60s generation, and that was to mess with their minds and create chaos, and they achieved their goal. The goal of our masonic overlords is 'Ordo Ab Chao'. Drugs create chaos. Another way of putting it, create the problem and come in with the solution...increased law and order. I call it jobs for the boys. LSD doesn't expand the mind just like Buddhist meditation doesn't. Anything that operates on feelings, not facts, does not expand the mind.

[@husq48]

There are conflicting studies about everything.

[@Stechamppn]

Acid can be beneficial in the right set and setting tho...taken in a bad environment...and if the person is slightly unhinged etc..can ruin the person for the rest of the life...like any drug.....and alot of the people they do these studies on have never taken drugs ..or Acid...so it's like anything....take things with precaution...be carful .but Acid and all drugs work differently on different people..I generally have nothing but good times with Acid and shrooms etc...but i know of people that barely did it and it had bad effects on them...that they never got out of...same with weed .especially these days...its apparently safe ..but it causes some people nothing but problems.one of the worse in my eyes tho is alcohol....it is a very destructive drug...yet it's legal... if alcohol came about now...and no one had ever saw someone drunk etc...it would be classed as evil...strange world..what can work for one ..doesn't all ways work for others

[@xo_ecstasy]

yes, while that is true, acid can trigger schizophrenia* that hasn’t developed if you have it. i’ve seen it happen with my own eyes