A SAUCERFUL OF SECRETS

After listening to the live version of the A Sauceful of Secrets song in the Ummagumma album, for years I had the idea that this second album from Pink Floyd was as noisy as the live version included in Ummagumma. Fortunately, I was wrong, and this 1968 album is much better than I expected.

I still have not yet listened as a whole to their The Piper at the Gates of Dawn album because I don`t have it. But I read in several books and in the web that after their first album with Syd Barrett it really was going to be very hard for them to survive without him. But he still appears in some tracks in this second album (Remember a Day, Jugband Blues and one more which name I don`t remember now).

After Barrett`s departure, Waters and Wright became the main composers in the band, and in this album is clear for me that Wright was a good composer despite he underrated his own early songs in later years. He really was a creative force in the Pink Floyd Sound despite Waters underrated him in later years until Wright was forced to leave the band in 1979. So, I think that Wright`s songs are the best in this album: Remember a Day (with Barrett on slide guitar) and See Saw. Both songs have Pink Floyd`s psychedelic atmospheres more than Waters`songs in this album: Let There be More Light is also psychedelic with a very good bass riff; Corporal Clegg reflects Waters`obsession with military themes, but at least with a bit of humour in this song; and Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun is very interesting, dark and with very good atmospheres created by Waters, Mason, Wright and Gilmour.

The title track, A Saucerful of Secrets, is still very experimental, and it was the first song composed by Waters-Wright-Mason-Gilmour. This studio version is better than the live version included in Ummagumma.

Finally, the album includes Barrett`s last song recorded with Pink Floyd, called Jugband Blues, an experimental and psychedelic song with sad lyrics which for many reviewers are like Barret`s farewell because they think that with this song Barrett was aware of the changes in his mental health.

In conclusion, this album showed that Pink Floyd could really survive without Barrett and without composing and recording hit singles like they did in 1967 with Barrett. David Gilmour was still finding his place in the band, but his guitar playing was good. He really helped the band a lot to suvive without Barrett, and this album shows a bit the new sound for the band for their next albums.