Pink Floyd founder Syd Barrett dies

Pink Floyd founding member Syd Barrett has died, a spokeswoman for the band said today.

The reclusive singer/songwriter has stayed largely out of the public eye since his departure from the band in 1968.

Barrett wrote their first big single "See Emily Play" and wrote or co-wrote all but one of the songs on Floyd’s influential debut "Piper at the Gates of Dawn".

It is reported his fragile mental state, a result of extensive consumption of LSD, led to his departure from the group.

In the early years he released two solo albums, but after that slunk back into the seclusion of his Cambridgeshire home.

The 60-year-old passed away at his home in Cambridge following complications related to his diabetes.