Pink Floyd Quietly Release EP of Their Earliest Recordings
European Pink Floyd fans who entered their local record shop on Friday, Nov. 27, might have noticed a surprise. Without any publicity, the group released 1965 – Their First Recordings, an EP that was limited to 1,000 copies.
The tracks, pressed onto two 7" singles, are comprised of six previously unreleased songs that they cut with the original lineup that not only included Syd Barrett, but also Rado Klose on guitar and Juliette Gale, Richard Wright's wife, on background vocals. Four songs, "Lucy Leave," "Double O Bo," "Remember Me" and "Butterfly," were written by Barrett, while Roger Waters contributed "Walk With Me Sydney." The sixth was a cover of Slim Harpo's "I'm a King Bee."
For the artwork, Peter Curzon of StormStudios worked with a photgraph taken by Aubrey Powell of Hignosis of a light projection by Peter Wynne-Wilson.
Rolling Stone suggests that the group did this due to a fairly new "Use It or Lose It" provision in European copyright law. In 2012, the European Union said that all copyrighted recordings had to released within 50 years or else it would become public domain. The Beatles, Bob Dylan and the Beach Boys have all put out low-profile, limited-edition collections of outtakes in recent for the purpose of extending their copyrights for another 20 years.
The band told Rolling Stone that they "hope to make them available in some physical form towards the end of next year" for those who were unable to get them. Sealed copies are currently selling on eBay for as much as $375.
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