Richard Wright’s cocaine addiction and how it compared to Syd Barrett’s breakdown

Richard Wright is the other Pink Floyd member who struggled with significant substance abuse. While Syd Barrett’s LSD use was famously catastrophic, Wright’s cocaine addiction in the mid-to-late 1970s was less visible but just as destructive personally and professionally. By the time of The Wall sessions, Wright’s habit had made him unreliable, leading to tension with Roger Waters and his eventual forced departure from the band during the album’s recording. He later admitted cocaine “nearly killed me” and said it destroyed his first marriage.

Nick Mason, on the other