10 Rock Bands That Had A Really Shaky Start

The work of Pink Floyd has helped expand the mind of many rock fans for years now. Despite being one of the go-to bands for the more stoner set of rock fans, albums like Dark Side of the Moon and Animals have some of the greatest commentaries on consumerism that the rock world has ever seen. If Floyd had stayed the course though, there's a good chance that none of that would have actually happened.

Around the time of psychedelia in the '60s, the original lineup of Floyd originally had Syd Barrett at the helm, with songs that were zany and more than a little bit off the wall. As the years went on though, Barrett found himself more and more out of step with the band, leading to an eventual breakdown due to drug abuse. Bringing in David Gilmour shortly afterwards, Floyd's work going forward seemed to be informed by their past trauma.

That kind of trauma was eventually what sparked most of their classic output, with Wish You Were Here being a sendoff and tribute to Barrett. Using it as some sort of fuel, Floyd ended up reaching even bigger heights when Roger Waters poured his solo into creating the Wall as a reflection on what fame can do to a person. While the loss of Barrett's sanity wasn't something anyone wanted, sometimes the best art can come from this kind of tragedy.