The Lost Alternate Mix of 'Apples and Oranges'

The official single version of “Apples and Oranges” has Syd Barrett’s vocal fairly dry and up front, with a single track carrying the melody. The lesser-known alternate mix, which surfaced on the 2016 The Early Years box set, layers two separate vocal takes—one panned hard left, the other right—creating a wider, almost disorienting stereo effect. That doubled vocal makes Barrett’s already fragmented delivery feel more distant and detached, which must’ve seemed too radical for a 1967 single.

The B-side, “Paint Box,” is Richard Wright’s first solo composition for the band, but the alternate mix of the A-side steals the real curiosity. No one bothered to release this mix back then, so it sat in the vaults for nearly 50 years. The vocal difference alone shifts the mood from pop-friendly weirdness into something closer to experimental collage.