Brian Wilson: ‘The voices started after LSD’

[Paul J B]

It's not that it doesn't add up so much as that people "that were there" have their own bias and also didn't and don't know everything just because they spent some time with Brian. No one that tripped with Brian is going to want to admit that maybe it was a really stupid thing to do.

The real problem is that Brian for most of his life, has said things in interviews that contradict other things he said or eventually will say. I just watched the 76 or 77 interview with Brian talking about the Love You album and how he did a lot of cocaine and it messed up his mind and caused him to spend all that time lying around his room. This interview, at a time when MANY people have attested to the fact that he was constantly asking people for cocaine. There is one person that posts here frequently, that knew Brian on a personal level and gives the impression that Brian never really did a lot of drugs. Well he did. That does not mean by any stretch that his mental problems were a result of street drugs. I don't think they were. I also believe the drugs that really caused additional permanent problems for Brian outside his mental issues were the ones Landy fed him.

Trying to determine when Brian first started having auditory hallucinations is actually a very interesting topic. One of those things that sort of really does matter for anyone interested in historical accuracy.

[bachelorofbullets]

   
I think the red herring is the sequence. I think Brian Wilson probably experienced it as causative because of the sequence. But I think if you step back and look, he was already on the trajectory. Take LSD out of the picture -

he's considered quirky then
he has panic attacks then
he has manic episodes  then <--- insert LSD here
he has hallucinations then
he has depressive episodes
and on and on

I guess it's a perfectly linear and familiar development without the LSD or with the LSD. There's no final answer. Based on our different experiences and reading we are inclined to see it one way or the other.

But for Brian Wilson, if he experienced it that way, he's going to have a harder time adjusting his thinking to new information than an observer.

Lets not forget there is no consensus on the "panic attack at 30,000 feet".

Lorren Daro said Brian told him he faked it (to get out of having to tour)
Mike has no knowledge of it.
Al is not going to say anything.
Carl cannot say anything.
This may never be resolved.

[Emily]

"AL: But eventually Brian became worn down and tired from all the work, the producing, from what I've been able to gather. And it was on our way to Houston, Texas, I was sitting next to him on the plane, and he just broke down and cried, he just crashed right there. This was at the end of 64, right after "When I Grow Up (To Be a Man).""

- http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/the-healing-of-brother-brian-the-rolling-stone-interview-with-the-beach-boys-19761104?page=15
In an interview with Carl, Dennis and Mike present.


"We were really scared for him," says Jardine. "[We were] concerned for him because he was so upset. He obviously had a breakdown. None of us had ever witnessed something like that." (Curiously, Love doesn't recall the incident. "I don't know if it was because I wasn't there or some other reason," he says. " might have been in another part of the plane. I think his brothers were closer to that than I was at the time.")"

-http://www.houstonpress.com/music/shored-up-6564082

[HeyJude]

There's also, in some cases, and I stress *some*, a clear subtext to the assertion that Brian didn't start having auditory hallucinations (or other ailments/maladies/symptoms) until he took LSD, and the subtext in those cases is simple: Brian's condition/state/prognosis/problems (and therefore any number of potential other problems that befell the band) are his fault, wholly or at least more so than any pre-existing mental illness outside of his control.

There are some spectators/fans/commentators, etc. who, generally speaking, are much less empathetic or sympathetic to Brian and his ailments over the years, and it's no coincidence that some of these same people (and let me stress I'm truly not singling out any particular person) likely subscribe to the theory that Brian's choice to take LSD caused more of his problems than other external factors.

For myself, my bigger pet peeve is those that see Brian now (or in the last 20-25 years) who think a lot of his latter-day ticks and problems are due to "doing drugs in the 60s", when a *lot* of his latter-day problems came from the over-prescription of drugs by Landy. He got *exponentially* weirder and started with the slurred speech and all of that in the late 80s/early 90s after being with Landy for some time.

Check out some raw film interview footage of Brian from 1976 (a tiny bit of which was used in the "An American Band" film), or even the "bed" interview from the Lorne Michaels special. His tone of voice and demeanor is something he never demonstrated in the late 80s or early 90s.

[♩♬🐸 Billy C ♯♫♩🐇]

   
I think the red herring is the sequence. I think Brian Wilson probably experienced it as causative because of the sequence. But I think if you step back and look, he was already on the trajectory. Take LSD out of the picture -

he's considered quirky then
he has panic attacks then
he has manic episodes  then <--- insert LSD here
he has hallucinations then
he has depressive episodes
and on and on

I guess it's a perfectly linear and familiar development without the LSD or with the LSD. There's no final answer. Based on our different experiences and reading we are inclined to see it one way or the other.

But for Brian Wilson, if he experienced it that way, he's going to have a harder time adjusting his thinking to new information than an observer.

Lets not forget there is no consensus on the "panic attack at 30,000 feet".

Lorren Daro said Brian told him he faked it (to get out of having to tour)
Mike has no knowledge of it.
Al is not going to say anything.
Carl cannot say anything.
This may never be resolved.

Lorren Daro is full of sh*t and everything he said had to be taken with a grain of salt.

At least Brian thinks so, anyway.

[Cam Mott]

There are some spectators/fans/commentators, etc. who, generally speaking, are much less empathetic or sympathetic to Brian and his ailments over the years, and it's no coincidence that some of these same people (and let me stress I'm truly not singling out any particular person) likely subscribe to the theory that Brian's choice to take LSD caused more of his problems than other external factors.
 

I don't know about much less empathetic or sympathetic or coincidences but I believe Brian is the chief proponent of this view that "Brian's choice to take LSD caused more of his problems than other external factors"; not really a fan invention.

[♩♬🐸 Billy C ♯♫♩🐇]

There are some spectators/fans/commentators, etc. who, generally speaking, are much less empathetic or sympathetic to Brian and his ailments over the years, and it's no coincidence that some of these same people (and let me stress I'm truly not singling out any particular person) likely subscribe to the theory that Brian's choice to take LSD caused more of his problems than other external factors.
 

I don't know about much less empathetic or sympathetic or coincidences but I believe Brian is the chief proponent of this view that "Brian's choice to take LSD caused more of his problems than other external factors"; not really a fan invention.

12 years ago he felt differently, or at least said as much, and seemed to pass it off more as a red herring.

Personally,  I think he was already predisposed to having issues and the LSD just expedited things.

[CenturyDeprived]

There are some spectators/fans/commentators, etc. who, generally speaking, are much less empathetic or sympathetic to Brian and his ailments over the years, and it's no coincidence that some of these same people (and let me stress I'm truly not singling out any particular person) likely subscribe to the theory that Brian's choice to take LSD caused more of his problems than other external factors.
 

I don't know about much less empathetic or sympathetic or coincidences but I believe Brian is the chief proponent of this view that "Brian's choice to take LSD caused more of his problems than other external factors"; not really a fan invention.

12 years ago he felt differently, or at least said as much, and seemed to pass it off more as a red herring.

Personally,  I think he was already predisposed to having issues and the LSD just expedited things.

Plus... Brian doesn't want to have to repeatedly go into describing the nuances and grey areas of external factors, people who repeatedly bullied and emotionally scarred him and helped further psychological trauma, etc. Just the quick "LSD is bad, don't do it" thing is an easy way to just lump it all into one answer (one that won't get lots of pushback or followup questions that Brian doesn't want to have to answer).

Similarly, I also don't see Brian talking about the undeniable, irrefutable fact of Landy's over-prescription of legal drugs causing him damage. Which is perhaps understandable... it's probably more of a touchy subject. Comparatively, just taking the self-blame and saying that his own choice to do LSD was a poor one is the easy way out of the line of questions. Brian certainly isn't wrong to give his LSD non-recommendation. I just don't think it's the full picture, nor should anyone think it is.

[HeyJude]

There are some spectators/fans/commentators, etc. who, generally speaking, are much less empathetic or sympathetic to Brian and his ailments over the years, and it's no coincidence that some of these same people (and let me stress I'm truly not singling out any particular person) likely subscribe to the theory that Brian's choice to take LSD caused more of his problems than other external factors.
 

I don't know about much less empathetic or sympathetic or coincidences but I believe Brian is the chief proponent of this view that "Brian's choice to take LSD caused more of his problems than other external factors"; not really a fan invention.

12 years ago he felt differently, or at least said as much, and seemed to pass it off more as a red herring.

Personally,  I think he was already predisposed to having issues and the LSD just expedited things.

Plus, it's a complex issue and Brian doesn't always give complex answers to questions.

My impression is that Brian realizes it's generally the right thing to do to tell people drugs are bad. He'll occasionally reference the creative spark LSD may have provided, but otherwise notes that drugs are bad.

But really, how often does he talk about hard drug use in the late 70s or early 80s, and how often does he say *that* use has caused him problems? How often has he noted that Landy's drug prescriptions took a huge toll?

Brian wasn't near death in late 1982 because he taken LSD in 1967 or whenever. That was, apparently, hard drugs, alcohol, and perhaps also a bad diet.

Brian didn't get exponentially weirder by 1991 because of LSD. That was Landy meds.

I can't imagine someone who has been through what Brian has would even be able to tell how much all of these factors contributed to his problems.

[bachelorofbullets]

Lorren Daro is full of sh*t and everything he said had to be taken with a grain of salt.

At least Brian thinks so, anyway.

I guess you have to use your own judgement.  VDP backed him up.  What is his reason for lying exactly?

[Paul J B]

Lorren Daro is full of sh*t and everything he said had to be taken with a grain of salt.

At least Brian thinks so, anyway.

I guess you have to use your own judgement.  VDP backed him up.  What is his reason for lying exactly?

This idea has been beat to death already. Only a handful of people believe Darro's claim. Furthermore, if Brian himself who has always BS'd people indeed told Darro's he faked it that still means nothing. Parks or Darro or anyone else isn't gospel because they hanged with Brian for a short spell and did LSD with him. Like I said in my longer post further up....you're talking about people with their own bias. They don't even have to be "lying" per say, more like spinning their possible roll in Brian losing it.

[CenturyDeprived]

Lorren Daro is full of sh*t and everything he said had to be taken with a grain of salt.

At least Brian thinks so, anyway.

I guess you have to use your own judgement.  VDP backed him up.  What is his reason for lying exactly?

This idea has been beat to death already. Only a handful of people believe Darro's claim. Furthermore, if Brian himself who has always BS'd people indeed told Darro's he faked it that still means nothing. Parks or Darro or anyone else isn't gospel because they hanged with Brian for a short spell and did LSD with him. Like I said in my longer post further up....you're talking about people with their own bias. They don't even have to be "lying" per say, more like spinning their possible roll in Brian losing it.

Here's a question: has anyone in the entire BB sphere of family, friends, collaborators, and other unscrupulous characters, *ever* at any point hinted at any tiny level of personal responsibility in being a contributing factor to either Brian's or Dennis' personal problems, or substance abuse? I wonder if Murry ever privately apologized to any of his sons (doubt it). I'm not sure I've ever heard a twinge of regret from anyone, except Al commenting on how they should have appreciated Dennis more, or Mike giving a vague comment about how everyone wasn't always as nice as they could have been (paraphrasing).

Of course, what Brian and Denny did to themselves from a destructive standpoint was ultimately their personal choice (I don't need anyone reminding me of this)... yet I still think people can be negative contributing factors to others' mental illnesses and substance abuse in some way, however inadvertently. I think that nobody publicly wants to concede to anything. I guess I understand it, people in general can be defensive. Nobody wants to be the fall guy, even a little tiny bit.

But you'll never get the full story because of this.

I would love to know what a great many people in the BB story would say about the subject under the influence of truth serum, or dare I say, under the influence of LSD, where they might just have emotional epiphanies.

[Cam Mott]

There are some spectators/fans/commentators, etc. who, generally speaking, are much less empathetic or sympathetic to Brian and his ailments over the years, and it's no coincidence that some of these same people (and let me stress I'm truly not singling out any particular person) likely subscribe to the theory that Brian's choice to take LSD caused more of his problems than other external factors.
 

I don't know about much less empathetic or sympathetic or coincidences but I believe Brian is the chief proponent of this view that "Brian's choice to take LSD caused more of his problems than other external factors"; not really a fan invention.

12 years ago he felt differently, or at least said as much, and seemed to pass it off more as a red herring.

Personally,  I think he was already predisposed to having issues and the LSD just expedited things.

Do you remember where he said that? It seems like it must be sort of the outlier in his responses. He seems to be pretty consistent in his insistence that he started hearing voices after taking LSD and, if I remember right, pointing to drugs as the source or beginning of his problems etc.

[Emily]

There are some spectators/fans/commentators, etc. who, generally speaking, are much less empathetic or sympathetic to Brian and his ailments over the years, and it's no coincidence that some of these same people (and let me stress I'm truly not singling out any particular person) likely subscribe to the theory that Brian's choice to take LSD caused more of his problems than other external factors.
 

I don't know about much less empathetic or sympathetic or coincidences but I believe Brian is the chief proponent of this view that "Brian's choice to take LSD caused more of his problems than other external factors"; not really a fan invention.

12 years ago he felt differently, or at least said as much, and seemed to pass it off more as a red herring.

Personally,  I think he was already predisposed to having issues and the LSD just expedited things.

Do you remember where he said that? It seems like it must be sort of the outlier in his responses. He seems to be pretty consistent in his insistence that he started hearing voices after taking LSD and, if I remember right, pointing to drugs as the source or beginning of his problems etc.

Hmm. He's never been shy of talking about his 'nervous breakdown' which preceded the drug use, as far as I know. And he's also said he had one or two more during the following year. I don't think he ever said drugs were the beginning of his problems.

[♩♬🐸 Billy C ♯♫♩🐇]

There are some spectators/fans/commentators, etc. who, generally speaking, are much less empathetic or sympathetic to Brian and his ailments over the years, and it's no coincidence that some of these same people (and let me stress I'm truly not singling out any particular person) likely subscribe to the theory that Brian's choice to take LSD caused more of his problems than other external factors.
 

I don't know about much less empathetic or sympathetic or coincidences but I believe Brian is the chief proponent of this view that "Brian's choice to take LSD caused more of his problems than other external factors"; not really a fan invention.

12 years ago he felt differently, or at least said as much, and seemed to pass it off more as a red herring.

Personally,  I think he was already predisposed to having issues and the LSD just expedited things.

Do you remember where he said that? It seems like it must be sort of the outlier in his responses. He seems to be pretty consistent in his insistence that he started hearing voices after taking LSD and, if I remember right, pointing to drugs as the source or beginning of his problems etc.

Interviews for promotion for BWPS and subsequent tour,  and the Beautiful Dreamer doc was slanted that way.  In fact, I recall discussion here commenting on the doc downplaying it too much.

[Cam Mott]

There are some spectators/fans/commentators, etc. who, generally speaking, are much less empathetic or sympathetic to Brian and his ailments over the years, and it's no coincidence that some of these same people (and let me stress I'm truly not singling out any particular person) likely subscribe to the theory that Brian's choice to take LSD caused more of his problems than other external factors.
 

I don't know about much less empathetic or sympathetic or coincidences but I believe Brian is the chief proponent of this view that "Brian's choice to take LSD caused more of his problems than other external factors"; not really a fan invention.

12 years ago he felt differently, or at least said as much, and seemed to pass it off more as a red herring.

Personally,  I think he was already predisposed to having issues and the LSD just expedited things.

Do you remember where he said that? It seems like it must be sort of the outlier in his responses. He seems to be pretty consistent in his insistence that he started hearing voices after taking LSD and, if I remember right, pointing to drugs as the source or beginning of his problems etc.

Hmm. He's never been shy of talking about his 'nervous breakdown' which preceded the drug use, as far as I know. And he's also said he had one or two more during the following year. I don't think he ever said drugs were the beginning of his problems.

I don't think he's every claimed his "nervous breakdown" was even a problem that I remember.  It seems to me he definitely sees hearing angry voices as a problem and he usually says it began on taking LSD, although even there he has said every few days the voices say nice/loving things.

[Emily]

There are some spectators/fans/commentators, etc. who, generally speaking, are much less empathetic or sympathetic to Brian and his ailments over the years, and it's no coincidence that some of these same people (and let me stress I'm truly not singling out any particular person) likely subscribe to the theory that Brian's choice to take LSD caused more of his problems than other external factors.
 

I don't know about much less empathetic or sympathetic or coincidences but I believe Brian is the chief proponent of this view that "Brian's choice to take LSD caused more of his problems than other external factors"; not really a fan invention.

12 years ago he felt differently, or at least said as much, and seemed to pass it off more as a red herring.

Personally,  I think he was already predisposed to having issues and the LSD just expedited things.

Do you remember where he said that? It seems like it must be sort of the outlier in his responses. He seems to be pretty consistent in his insistence that he started hearing voices after taking LSD and, if I remember right, pointing to drugs as the source or beginning of his problems etc.

Hmm. He's never been shy of talking about his 'nervous breakdown' which preceded the drug use, as far as I know. And he's also said he had one or two more during the following year. I don't think he ever said drugs were the beginning of his problems.

I don't think he's every claimed his "nervous breakdown" was even a problem that I remember.  It seems to me he definitely sees hearing angry voices as a problem and he usually says it began on taking LSD, although even there he has said every few days the voices say nice/loving things.

Sorry but I think this is just weird.

[Cam Mott]

There are some spectators/fans/commentators, etc. who, generally speaking, are much less empathetic or sympathetic to Brian and his ailments over the years, and it's no coincidence that some of these same people (and let me stress I'm truly not singling out any particular person) likely subscribe to the theory that Brian's choice to take LSD caused more of his problems than other external factors.
 

I don't know about much less empathetic or sympathetic or coincidences but I believe Brian is the chief proponent of this view that "Brian's choice to take LSD caused more of his problems than other external factors"; not really a fan invention.

12 years ago he felt differently, or at least said as much, and seemed to pass it off more as a red herring.

Personally,  I think he was already predisposed to having issues and the LSD just expedited things.

Do you remember where he said that? It seems like it must be sort of the outlier in his responses. He seems to be pretty consistent in his insistence that he started hearing voices after taking LSD and, if I remember right, pointing to drugs as the source or beginning of his problems etc.

Hmm. He's never been shy of talking about his 'nervous breakdown' which preceded the drug use, as far as I know. And he's also said he had one or two more during the following year. I don't think he ever said drugs were the beginning of his problems.

I don't think he's every claimed his "nervous breakdown" was even a problem that I remember.  It seems to me he definitely sees hearing angry voices as a problem and he usually says it began on taking LSD, although even there he has said every few days the voices say nice/loving things.

Sorry but I think this is just weird.

That's fine.  Which part(s)?

[Emily]

There are some spectators/fans/commentators, etc. who, generally speaking, are much less empathetic or sympathetic to Brian and his ailments over the years, and it's no coincidence that some of these same people (and let me stress I'm truly not singling out any particular person) likely subscribe to the theory that Brian's choice to take LSD caused more of his problems than other external factors.
 

I don't know about much less empathetic or sympathetic or coincidences but I believe Brian is the chief proponent of this view that "Brian's choice to take LSD caused more of his problems than other external factors"; not really a fan invention.

12 years ago he felt differently, or at least said as much, and seemed to pass it off more as a red herring.

Personally,  I think he was already predisposed to having issues and the LSD just expedited things.

Do you remember where he said that? It seems like it must be sort of the outlier in his responses. He seems to be pretty consistent in his insistence that he started hearing voices after taking LSD and, if I remember right, pointing to drugs as the source or beginning of his problems etc.

Hmm. He's never been shy of talking about his 'nervous breakdown' which preceded the drug use, as far as I know. And he's also said he had one or two more during the following year. I don't think he ever said drugs were the beginning of his problems.

I don't think he's every claimed his "nervous breakdown" was even a problem that I remember.  It seems to me he definitely sees hearing angry voices as a problem and he usually says it began on taking LSD, although even there he has said every few days the voices say nice/loving things.

Sorry but I think this is just weird.

That's fine.  Which part(s)?

The conceptualizing of a nervous breakdown as not a problem. I mean, perhaps he's not specifically called it "a problem," but I'd think that anyone would consider it one. I can see where you're going with saying that the idea that the voices were caused by the LSD was spread and perhaps initiated by Brian Wilson himself. But to extract from that that his problems were caused by LSD, or that he's spread that his problems were, when he's said he was abused by his dad and had breakdowns before that, entails, as you've indicated, considering that abuse and breakdowns aren't "problems." Which, again, might be what some think, but it seems like a weird thing to think. 'Weird' in this case meaning unusual.

[Cam Mott]

The conceptualizing of a nervous breakdown as not a problem. I mean, perhaps he's not specifically called it "a problem," but I'd think that anyone would consider it one. I can see where you're going with saying that the idea that the voices were caused by the LSD was spread and perhaps initiated by Brian Wilson himself. But to extract from that that his problems were caused by LSD, or that he's spread that his problems were, when he's said he was abused by his dad and had breakdowns before that, entails, as you've indicated, considering that abuse and breakdowns aren't "problems." Which, again, might be what some think, but it seems like a weird thing to think. 'Weird' in this case meaning unusual.

To me it seems that to Brian it was more of a lovesick embarrassment and others characterize it as "nervous breakdown", maybe I missed something.  To me Brian is trying to get people to understand his problem was drug abuse (including Landy's abuse with "medication") and started with LSD. 

[Emily]

The conceptualizing of a nervous breakdown as not a problem. I mean, perhaps he's not specifically called it "a problem," but I'd think that anyone would consider it one. I can see where you're going with saying that the idea that the voices were caused by the LSD was spread and perhaps initiated by Brian Wilson himself. But to extract from that that his problems were caused by LSD, or that he's spread that his problems were, when he's said he was abused by his dad and had breakdowns before that, entails, as you've indicated, considering that abuse and breakdowns aren't "problems." Which, again, might be what some think, but it seems like a weird thing to think. 'Weird' in this case meaning unusual.

To me it seems that to Brian it was more of a lovesick embarrassment and others characterize it as "nervous breakdown", maybe I missed something.  To me Brian is trying to get people to understand his problem was drug abuse (including Landy's abuse with "medication") and started with LSD. 

Two different occasions get convoluted: the Houston "breakdown" was not the incident with Marilyn and Mike and the consequent airplane phone calls and marriage proposal. That was an earlier occasion on a trip to Australia.
The Houston thing sounds like a classic panic attack.

[Lonely Summer]

Brian talks about hearing voices soon after taking LSD in "beautiful dreamer" if I remember correctly.

One thing I can't get over, many people who appeared in beautiful dreamer said that drugs had very little to do with the Brian Wilson story (except Brian).  Michael Vosse was adamant about it and referred to it as a "big red herring".  Yet Brian specifically states he didn't hear voices until after taking LSD.  So, something does not add up.     

I think the red herring is the sequence. I think Brian Wilson probably experienced it as causative because of the sequence. But I think if you step back and look, he was already on the trajectory. Take LSD out of the picture -

he's considered quirky then
he has panic attacks then
he has manic episodes  then <--- insert LSD here
he has hallucinations then
he has depressive episodes
and on and on

I guess it's a perfectly linear and familiar development without the LSD or with the LSD. There's no final answer. Based on our different experiences and reading we are inclined to see it one way or the other.

But for Brian Wilson, if he experienced it that way, he's going to have a harder time adjusting his thinking to new information than an observer.

What were the manic episodes? Not coming to mind.

The hyped "up" he was on and off of as described in '65 and '66 - the heightened creativity and concentration, the perfectionism. Obviously in late '66 early '67 he had a more extreme manic episode, but you can hear it on the Party! and Pet Sounds sessions.

As someone who is bipolar myself, I agree that that time period had all the makings of an extended manic episode.

Looking at it that way really puts things in a different light. It's so easy for us as fans to look at that period like "look at Brian, overflowing with creativity, just bursting with ideas", and yes, being on a manic high can feel really great when you're there, but when you come down from it....well, I can understand why it was difficult for Brian to look back at that period. I can understand why he would say "it was inappropriate music for us to be making". But only someone who's lived with bi-polar (I'm borderline) can really understand what hell that is.

[GoogaMooga]

I have read that Brian took Stanley Owsley's "Blue Sunshine", the purest form of LSD ever to hit the streets. Had he taken more than 150-200 micrograms, he would definitely have lost it, temporarily, if not permanently. Read about Owsley here: http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/news/owsley-stanley-the-king-of-lsd-20110314

[Cam Mott]

I have read that Brian took Stanley Owsley's "Blue Sunshine", the purest form of LSD ever to hit the streets. Had he taken more than 150-200 micrograms, he would definitely have lost it, temporarily, if not permanently. Read about Owsley here: http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/news/owsley-stanley-the-king-of-lsd-20110314

For what it's worth, according to Loren Darro about 15 years ago the dose Brian took the first time was Owsley and was 125 mics but he suspected Brian was possibly taking higher doses obtained from others like Terry Sachen.

[SurfRiderHawaii]

I have just finished reading the Rolling Stone Collectors Edition on Pink Floyd. One article reprinted was about Syd Barrett's fall into madness. A lot of discussion from band members & inner circle about the effects of LSD on Syd.

Some say he was headed towards mental issues all along, song say LSD flipped that switch. Others say he went mad by the heavy, constant dosing of LSD. Not comparing Syd to Brian but it's interesting to think about. Two mad geniuses tripped up by LSD apparently.