Syd Berrett’s 1968 Fender Telecaster Custom “Mad Cap”

Syd traded this guitar in mid-1968 for the Fender Esquire that he used with Pink Floyd, and following his departure from the band and the eventual withdrawal from the music scene, this turned out the be the last electric guitar he would ever use professionally.

This guitar is somewhat of a mystery, considering that Julian Palacios, who wrote the book “Syd Barrett & Pink Floyd: Dark Globe” listed the guitar as a 1962 Telecaster Custom. A problem arises from the fact that Fender didn’t produce maple neck Telecasters until the late sixties, so the guitar couldn’t have been made before 1968. Going from that, it’s also safe to think that Syd got this guitar almost brand new when he exchanged it for the white Esquire.

Syd used this guitar on both of his solo albums as it was the only electric guitar he had at the time. It is likely that he sold the guitar in the late 70s when he was living alone in London, slowly spending all of his remaining cash and eventually returning to Cambridge to live with his mother.