Relics (1971) 


 

  1. Interstellar Overdrive
  2. See Emily Play
  3. Remember a Day
  4. Paint Box
  5. Julia Dream
  6. Careful With That Axe, Eugene
  7. Cirrus Minor
  8. The Nile Song
  9. Biding My Time
  10.Bike

 

This one’s a bit of a curiosity. Not quite a proper compilation, not really a “best of,” and not a full-length album either. Relics arrived at a transitional moment in Pink Floyd’s career—right before they exploded into the mainstream—and it serves more as a historical artifact than a cohesive collection. But for those interested in the band’s earlier, more psychedelic years, it’s not a bad place to get your bearings.

The most notable aspect of the release is its inclusion of non-album singles and B-sides—five in total—which, at the time, had never been collected on any LP. For fans, this alone made the album worthwhile. Among these is the excellent Careful with That Axe, Eugene, presented here in its original studio version. There’s also Arnold Layne, the band’s very first single, and a perfect encapsulation of Syd Barrett’s peculiar charm. These tracks, long unavailable elsewhere, give the compilation real value.

Two selections come from the band’s 1967 debut The Piper at the Gates of Dawn—Interstellar Overdrive and Bike. Both are solid picks, if a little obvious, but they offer a good snapshot of the band’s acid-drenched origins. The surprise is that the only other album represented here is the More soundtrack. Tracks like Cirrus Minor and The Nile Song are chosen, which isn’t necessarily bad, but it's a puzzling omission of so much from A Saucerful of Secrets, Ummagumma, or even Atom Heart Mother. Whether that was an artistic choice or a licensing quirk, it leaves the collection feeling slightly uneven.

The only “new” piece on offer is Biding My Time, a previously unreleased Roger Waters song. It’s pleasant enough, with some jazzy touches and an unexpectedly bluesy detour, but it’s more of a novelty than a lost classic.

So what is Relics, really? It’s a holding pattern. A space-filler. A compilation assembled before the band had enough major work to fill a “greatest hits,” but after they’d done just enough interesting things to warrant something on the shelf. As a starting point, it’s not bad. Just don’t expect anything definitive.


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