THE ENGLISH TAPE, SIDE 1 TRACK 3
PINK FLOYD – “See Emily Play” (1967 single, found on the album Relics)
England’s psychedelic elite liked to dabble in their country’s folksy, ritual past, and so trendy, trippy festivals could be fashionably decked out as neo-pagan rites. One such was the “Games for May” Pink Floyd are singing about here, and the Emily of the title of course turned out to be some artiso socialite’s teeny daughter, who clearly made a big impression on Syd Barrett to have inspired him into writing his band’s best-ever pop song. With hooks as mighty and swirly as this, no wonder Pink Floyd were seen as unforgiveably commercial by the English underground tastemakers. Such a shame that unforgiveably commercial – i.e. inescapably huge – is what they ended up becoming.