"Vegetable Man" is a song by the English rock band

Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experiments ...

, written by the frontman,

Syd Barrett Roger Keith "Syd" Barrett (6 January 1946 – 7 July 2006) was an English singer, guitarist and songwriter who co-founded the rock band Pink Floyd in 1965. Until his departure in 1968, he was Pink Floyd's frontman and primary songwriter, ...

, and recorded in 1967. It was considered for a release as a single or for inclusion on their second album, ''

A Saucerful of Secrets ''A Saucerful of Secrets'' is the second studio album by the English rock band Pink Floyd, released on 28 June 1968 by Columbia Graphophone Company, EMI Columbia in the UK and in the US by Tower Records (record label), Tower Records. The menta ...

'', but went unreleased. Bootlegged for decades, the song did not have an official release until 2016, when it was included on the box set ''

The Early Years 1965–1972 ''The Early Years 1965–1972'' is a box set that compiles the early work of the English rock band Pink Floyd, released on 11 November 2016. It was released by Pink Floyd Records with distribution held by Warner Music for the UK and Europe and ...

''.

Recording and consideration

The song was recorded from 9 to 11 October 1967. The first take ends with 15 seconds of laughter from the band, while a different take is a faster-paced jam of the song. The song was an attempt to record a follow-up single to "

See Emily Play "See Emily Play" is a song by the English rock band Pink Floyd, released as their second single on 16 June 1967 on the Columbia label. Written by original frontman Syd Barrett, it was released as a non-album single but appeared as the opening ...

", as well as the beginning of sessions for the album that would eventually become ''

''. Among the songs considered were " Paint Box", " Scream Thy Last Scream", " Jugband Blues" and "

Apples and Oranges A comparison of apples and oranges occurs when two items or groups of items are compared that cannot be practically compared, typically because of inherent or fundamental differences between the objects. The idiom, ''comparing apples and oran ...

". "Vegetable Man" was scheduled for release, as the B-side to "Scream Thy Last Scream", but cancelled, and both tracks remained unreleased until 2016.Chapman 2010. p. 187. Eventually, "Apples and Oranges" was chosen for the single release instead, with "Paint Box" as the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...

and "Jugband Blues" appearing on their next album ''A Saucerful of Secrets''. The band played "Vegetable Man" live for a

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

radio broadcast on 20 December 1967.Palacios 2010. p. 306.

Peter Jenner Peter Julian Jenner (born 3 March 1943) is a British music manager and a record producer. Jenner, Andrew King and the original four members of Pink Floyd were partners in Blackhill Enterprises. Early career Peter Jenner is the son of Will ...

wanted the song released: "I always thought they should be put out, so I let my copies be heard. I knew that

Roger Roger is a masculine given name, and a surname. The given name is derived from the Old French personal names ' and '. These names are of Germanic languages">Germanic origin, derived from the elements ', ''χrōþi'' ("fame", "renown", "honour") ...

would never let them out, or Dave. They somehow felt they were a bit indecent, like putting out nude pictures of a famous actress: it just wasn't cricket. But I thought they were good songs and great pieces of art. They're disturbing, and not a lot of fun, but they're some of Syd's finest work – though God knows, I wouldn't wish anyone to go through what he's gone through to get to those songs. They're like

Van Gogh Vincent Willem van Gogh (; 30 March 185329 July 1890) was a Dutch Post-Impressionist painter who is among the most famous and influential figures in the history of Western art. In just over a decade, he created approximately 2,100 artwork ...

." Producer Malcolm Jones (who produced Barrett's ''

The Madcap Laughs ''The Madcap Laughs'' is the debut solo album by the English singer-songwriter Syd Barrett. It was recorded after Barrett had left Pink Floyd in April 1968. The album had a lengthy recording history, with work beginning in May 1968, but the bul ...

'' solo album) remixed this song and "Scream Thy Last Scream" for inclusion on the Barrett rarities album ''

Opel Opel Automobile GmbH (), usually shortened to Opel, is a German automobile manufacturer which has been a subsidiary of Stellantis since 16 January 2021. It was owned by the American automaker General Motors from 1929 until 2017 and the PSA Gr ...

'' (1988); however, the band blocked its inclusion.Schaffner 2005. p. 134.

Composition

Jenner claims Barrett wrote the song describing himself as he sat at Jenner's home, "He had to go and record and, because a song was needed, he just wrote a description of what he was wearing at the time..."Chapman 2010. p. 192. Jenner called the track "too dark". Many cite it as a document of Syd's apparent monumental breakdown as a recording artist and as a person.Chapman 2010. p. 190. The song was written around the same time as " Jugband Blues" which is directed towards anyone within Barrett's orbit, while "Vegetable Man" is aimed at the

music industry The music industry are individuals and organizations that earn money by Songwriter, writing songs and musical compositions, creating and selling Sound recording and reproduction, recorded music and sheet music, presenting live music, concerts, ...

and himself.Chapman 2010. p. 191. Both songs contain the same cynical humour.

Official release

Although popular as a bootleg in a low quality form for decades, the song was not officially released until 2016, when it appeared on ''

'' box set. The remastered version of the song was given its radio debut on

BBC Radio 6 Music BBC Radio 6 Music is a British digital radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It primarily plays a wide range of alternative music, from established and emerging artists and bands. In 2002 it was the first national music radio station t ...

on 4 November 2016. It was performed live for the first time by

Nick Mason's Saucerful of Secrets Nick Mason's Saucerful of Secrets are an English rock band formed in 2018 to perform the early music of Pink Floyd. The band comprises the Pink Floyd drummer and co-founder Nick Mason, the bassist Guy Pratt, the guitarists Gary Kemp and Lee Harri ...

on their 2018 European Tour.

Personnel

– guitar, lead vocals * Richard Wright – keyboards, backing vocals *

Roger Waters George Roger Waters (born 6 September 1943) is an English musician and singer-songwriter. In 1965, he co-founded the rock band Pink Floyd as the bassist. Following the departure of the group's main songwriter Syd Barrett in 1968, Waters became ...

– bass guitar, backing vocals *

Nick Mason Nicholas Berkeley Mason (born 27 January 1944) is an English drummer and a founder member of the progressive rock band Pink Floyd. He has been the only constant member since the band's formation in 1965, and the only member to appear on every ...

– drums,

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a percussion mallet, beater including attached or enclosed beaters or Rattle (percussion beater), rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or ...

, backing vocals

Cover versions

The Soft Boys The Soft Boys were an English rock band led by guitarist Robyn Hitchcock. The band formed in 1976 in Cambridge, England and released two albums before disbanding in 1981. Though the Soft Boys’ initial career was brief, their style of psyched ...

covered this song on the 1980 EP ''Near the Soft Boys'', and the track was included on some editions of their '' Underwater Moonlight'' album. A cover version by Scottish band

the Jesus and Mary Chain The Jesus and Mary Chain are a Scottish alternative rock band formed in East Kilbride in 1983. The band revolves around the songwriting partnership of brothers Jim and William Reid, who are the two founders and only consistent members of the ...

originally featured as the B-side of their debut single " Upside Down" and appears on their 2008 compilation '' The Power of Negative Thinking: B-Sides & Rarities'' and the 2011 2CD/DVD reissue of '' Psychocandy''. Canadian band Kosmos recorded the song for the 2008

tribute album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track or cassette), or digital. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century a ...

''Like Black Holes in the Sky: The Tribute to Syd Barrett''. The Vegetable Man Project was a series of six CDs (plus a one-sided 10" single with 60 10-second excerpts) of various acts performing cover versions of the song, released by the Italian labels Oggetti Volanti Non Identificati and Yellow Shoes between 2002 and 2009. British post-punk band the Mothmen recorded a version, released on the 2015 CD reissue of their 1981 album ''Pay Attention''.

References