Pink Floyd pioneer sells guitar for $136
Band’s early singer missed out on fame
Having sold more than 250 million albums, Pink Floyd members are among Britain’s wealthiest musicians. Yet one former band member seems far removed from their rock ’n’ roll lifestyle, having recently sold his guitar for about $136 at auction.
Chris Dennis, 74, was lead singer in the early days of the band, performing alongside Roger Waters, Nick Mason and Richard Wright before they were actually called Pink Floyd.
In 1965, Dennis was posted to Bahrain with the Royal Air Force and replaced on vocals by Syd Barrett. By the time he returned, the band had acquired their famous name and he was not invited to rejoin.
Dennis — who lives in Wales — recently put three of his guitars up for sale at auction. A Sunburst Stratocaster guitar fetched $575, but his Squier Stagemaster went for just $136. A third guitar, a Gretsch Eddie Cochran, failed to meet its reserve price. Dennis lives with his wife Pam, 72, a retired secretary, and drives a Citroen hatchback. After his departure, the band went on to international stardom with the release of The Dark Side of the Moon, and amassed a fortune from album sales and tours.
David Gilmour, who replaced Barrett, is now worth an estimated $120 million.
Dennis, a grandfather of eight, said he refused to be bitter and felt “nothing but proud” of his former bandmates’ success. “I’ve no regrets. I helped start the biggest rock band in the world and it enabled me to hang out with the likes of Jimi Hendrix — that’s enough for me,” he said.
“I’m not bitter or jealous at all of the success of the other guys. That doesn’t even come into it. The band was a bit of fun back then and I was a bit of a joker.”
Recalling his final days with the band, when Barrett was a guitarist, Dennis said: “At that time we didn’t even have a name. We were rehearsing blues songs for our first gig at a private party in Surrey. On the night, Syd ran through and said, ‘I’ve got a name — it’s going to be called Pink Floyd.’ Well, I didn’t like it at the time because it didn’t make sense.”
Dennis remains on friendly terms with his old bandmates, but admitted: “I have to say they do move in different circles to me now.”