<p> Pink Floyd's 1973 album, <em>The Dark Side of the Moon</em>, catapulted what had been a relatively obscure progressive rock band into the upper echelons of the charts. Few of the group's new fans had ever heard of their founding member, Syd Barrett, replaced in 1968 by David Gilmour for his increasingly erratic behavior. For <em>Dark Side's</em> follow-up, <em>Wish You Were Here</em>, the band was determined to slip Barrett into the consciousness of rock audiences. They succeeded, selling an impressive 19 million copies. </p> <p>The documentary <em>The Story of Wish You Were Here</em> (out on Blu-ray and DVD) includes some revealing footage of Pink Floyd's earliest incarnation, enveloped in psychedelic lights and with Barrett at their head, a mad piper at the gates of dawn. Largely composed of interviews with Gilmour, bandmates Nick Mason, Richard Wright and Roger Waters, and a host of other figures surrounding the session, including Roy Harper (who lent his sardonic voice to “Have a Cigar”), the engineer, album cover designer and even the Hollywood stuntman who posed (on fire!) for the front cover, <em>The Story</em> is a fascinating look into the creative process of artists who found themselves cast as reluctant stars. </p> <p>Notes of sadness and self-recrimination are heard. Psychedelic drugs may have destabilized Barrett, but everyone agrees that the pressure of popularity (they scored a couple of British hit singles early on) pushed their erstwhile leader over the edge. Mason adds that the pressure came as much from the band as the label. </p> <p>“Shine on You Crazy Diamond,” an explicit homage to Barrett, was already written when Pink Floyd nervously entered the studio in January 1975 to make the much-anticipated follow-up to <em>Dark Side</em>. They had little idea of what to do at first, but gradually a coherent theme and some wonderful music emerged from the inertia. The remaining songs, according to the band, were less particularly about Barrett than the universal feelings of absence and disconnection, especially in the face of the Moloch machinery of a society that grinds its members under the wheels. </p> <p>In a spooky moment, Barrett somehow wandered into the studio as the band wrapped the album, almost unrecognizablean uncommunicative ghost. Barrett died in 2006 and Wright followed him two years later. The story is over, but <em>The Story of Wish You Were Here </em>allows the participants to tell it well. </p>
