The History of Pink Floyd

In the Beginning

After decades of unrivalled ingenuity, over 140 million records sold world wide, and numerous Pink Floyd posters, the band will forever remain as an indelible part of rock history.

It all began in 1966, when The Pink Floyd began to attract attention in London while playing small clubs, such as the UFO and the Marquee Club's Spontaneous Underground. The band initially began as a quartet with Syd Barrett, Roger Waters, Rick Wright and Nick Mason. At this time, almost all of The Floyd's compositions were exclusively Syd Barrett's.

As Floyd biographer Miles has said about this period, "The Floyd were the loudest band anyone had ever heard at that time. They were also the weirdest. They were the underground band." For many at this time, The Pink Floyd was the meaning of psychedelia.

Drugs and Rock 'n Roll

The immense success that followed their first album, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn proved, proved to be overwhelming for Barrett, and his behavior became increasingly unpredictable both on stage and in the studio. Some blamed his change of behavior on drugs -- Barrett's LSD intake at that time was excessive by any standard -- others pointed to the general pressures of success. Whatever the cause of Barretts's disintegration, by the end of 1967, the future of Pink Floyd was uncertain. It was at this time that the other members brought in David Gilmour, an additional guitarist who was to cover for their erratic leader.

Rock legend has it, that the band finally decided to rid of Barrett by the simple expedient of not picking him up one night on the way to a show. Barrett went on to record two solo albums, but never attained the same level of success that he did while he was with Pink Floyd.

Along with Syd, Floyd dropped "The" from their name, and continued as a foursome until Animals. During The Wall sessions, Rick Wright was forced out of the band -- some say Waters demanded that he leave, others say he wasn't contributing as much as the other members because of a serious cocaine habit -- and Floyd continued as a threesome.

Reunion

It then became Waters's turn to leave the band -- he stepped down voluntarily -- and Gilmour and Mason recorded another album under the Pink Floyd name. Waters however, who thought the name should rest, sued them over its use.

Pink Floyd didn't die however. Their first post-Waters release, A Momentary Lapse of Reason, went on to become a major success. After several years apart from the band, Waters decided to return and helped record the Division Bell.