A SAUCERFUL OF SECRETS

This 1968 release by Pink Floyd, has, since around 1986 (of course, many reviewers have been familiar with 'Saucerful' since it appeared during the year of 1968...), been a fascination with me - I was 14 then, and I continue to listen to it on a regular basis, and it never fails to amaze me - cover art and all. True pioneers of a newfound style of musical expression, without question. From Roger Waters' opening Bass Guitar riff, through to dear Syd Barrett's acoustic strumming, the compositions on this record are truly wonderful. Striking Organ playing from Richard Wright (of course he's also utilised Piano and some effective Mellotron parts on some songs), Dave Gilmour's integration within the ranks (somewhat residual Barrett recordings are sparsely incorporated), and Mason's willingness to experiment percussively are in evidence throughout the tracks presented here. Maybe, the most annoying track could come in the form of 'Corporal Clegg', with its psychedelic Kazoo arrangements, and somewhat silly chord progression. Fun, but wears thin fairly quickly.

'Let There Be More Light', superb psych song with a great intro, catchy verses, and colourful outro serves as an excellent opener to the album. 'Remember a Day', a left-over from the debut album seems to fit perfectly on this album, and is quite a reflective, darkish tune with Barrett on guitar, and has a somewhat 'haunting' feel to it. 'Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun' is one of the HIGHLIGHT's of Floyd's career - live versions take this basic version to extreme heights, but remains a really inspired and mysterious, early sample of Space-Rock, might be the first. Said 'Corporal Clegg' is whimsical by name, whimsical by nature - flower- power tune which would be sacreligious to skip over.

Title track is an avant-garde tour-de-force, almost 12 minutes of experimental inspiration. Honestly, it needs to be heard to be 'mis'- understood. Very difficult to put this peice of prog history into words. 'See-Saw' is an underrated, soft, psychedelic tune, could remind one of the 'Beach Boys' from the same period (for some reason) but incorporates a lovely Mellotron-line in place of an authentic Strings-section. Closing song, 'Jugband Blues' is pure Syd Barrett. Amongst its dis-jointed structure, lies a sort of completeness, and the tune seems to represent Syd's state-of-mind during this period. The free-form section in the middle, complete with trippy (for want of a better word) organ playing and an improvisation from a local Salvation Army band couldn't befit the composition more precisely. 5 Stars.