The Piper at the Gates of Dawn

Even though Pink Floyd’s debut album followed Sgt. Pepper’s by a couple of months, nothing could have prepared the world for the magical blend of genius and LSD-induced madness that drove Floyd frontman Syd Barrett’s dazzling psychedelic vision. Barrett’s cubist guitar riffs collide magnificently with Rick Wright’s hypnotic, snake-charmer organ lines amid a dizzying merry-go-round of sound effects. All the while, Syd’s equally abstract lyrical approach freely mixes fairy-tale imagery with cosmic explorations—the ideal soundtrack for journeys through both outer and inner space.