1992 sees MARLLION celebrate their 10th anniversary with the release of A Singles Collection, 1982/92 on audio and visual formats. Mark Crampton digs deep into the vaults and unearths their past, present and possible future....
Originally formed out in the wilds of Aylesbury in 1979 under the working title of SILMARRILION (after a novel by J.R. Tolkien), guitarist Steve Rothery, and original drummer, Mick Pointer, soon nailed down a more steady line-up when, in 1981, Derek William Dick joined the band along with keyboard player Mark Kelly, and Pete Trewavas came in on bass. The name was abbreviated to Marillion, and vocalist frontman Dick changed his name to Fish, a nickname, rumour has it, he acquired because of his habit of spending much of his time in the bath.
However, from the very outset of their career, Marillion were dogged by comparisons with GENESIS. From the time Fish joined the band, they were seen primarily as the forerunner of a new generation of Prog Rock bands who plagiarised the likes of Genesis, YES and ELP, and indeed to all intents and purposes it was these particular comparisons combined with their seemingly youthful vigour that drew a new breed of rock fan to their cause - the likes of the 20-minute keyboard-dominated "Grendel" hadn't been heard since the heyday of Gabriel-era Genesis circa "Supper's Ready" (1972).
SIX OF ONE AND HALF A DOZEN OF THE OTHER
Originally formed out in the wilds of Aylesbury in 1979 under the working title of SILMARRILION (after a novel by J.R. Tolkien), guitarist Steve Rothery, and original drummer, Mick Pointer, soon nailed down a more steady line-up when, in 1981, Derek William Dick joined the band along with keyboard player Mark Kelly, and Pete Trewavas came in on bass. The name was abbreviated to Marillion, and vocalist frontman Dick changed his name to Fish, a nickname, rumour has it, he acquired because of his habit of spending much of his time in the bath.
However, from the very outset of their career, Marillion were dogged by comparisons with GENESIS. From the time Fish joined the band, they were seen primarily as the forerunner of a new generation of Prog Rock bands who plagiarised the likes of Genesis, YES and ELP, and indeed to all intents and purposes it was these particular comparisons combined with their seemingly youthful vigour that drew a new breed of rock fan to their cause - the likes of the 20-minute keyboard-dominated "Grendel" hadn't been heard since the heyday of Gabriel-era Genesis circa "Supper's Ready" (1972).
Throughout 81/82, Marillion added to their ever-growing fanbase at every show they playe, yet they were turned down by every major record company in Britain, despite this growing groundswell of support, fed by a hectic schedule of over 185 live shows in little more than a year and a half. Thankfully, on the strength of a string of sold-out shows, including over 14 appearances at the Marquee, their compelling live performances managed to secure them a session on the Friday Rock Show, which immediately brought them to the attention of the press and EMI Records in particular. They were consequently signed to EMI in September 1982...
Yet, to the surprise of many, Marillion managed to make that break with Prog Rock tradition, due in large part to two major factors - their frontman Fish, who wore makeup and dressed in bright colours, and their first single, the "Market Square Heroes EP" (the original picture disc is worth around £50), which found its way into the British Heavy Metal charts.
Furthermore, Marillion were voted most promising new band in many a readers poll and became the first ever band to sell out the Hammersmith Odeon before even releasing an album.
SCRIPT FOR A JESTER'S TEAR (1983)
Their debut album, Script for a Justice Tear, established them firmly on their feet, with tours selling out on announcement. The combination of Fish's poetic intellectual verbosity and the band's musical experimentation gave Marillion an edge over their competitors. "Garden Party," a remixed version of which you'll find on A Singles Collection 1982/92, reached 16 in the charts and also saw them make their debut on Top of the Pops in January 83.
Mark Kelly recalls:
"We spent most of the time during rehearsals laughing hysterically at the comic attempts of the dancers. We also had to change one word in the lyrics for our appearance on the show [the word "fuck"]. It appears in all its glory here!"
The video is also worth a mention because it features the only recorded appearance of drummer Andy Ward.
FUGAZI (1984)
On the verge of recording their second album, they then went through a somewhat SPINAL TAP period as drummers came and went. In May 83, drummer and co-founder Mick Pointer was replaced by ex-CAMEL skinsman Andy Ward, who in turn was replaced by John Marter, then Jonathan Mover, before they finally recruited their present drummer, ex-STEVE HACKETT man, Ian Mosley.
Fugazi saw them with a more updated, more aggressive sounding album and was a definite 'progression,' dare I say it. On A Singles Collection 1982/92 you'll find a somewhat strange mix of "Assassing," which hit 22 in May 84, complete with a syncopated electrofunk backbiting midsection.
Mark Kelly recalls:
"The very first time we performed it live was at the Redding Festival in 1982.""Assassing" also kicks off the live album Real to Real, which provided Marillion with a sort of stopgap as they went through the transition from being promising newcomers into established stars.
MISPLACED CHILDHOOD (1985)
With their third album, they were to make their international breakthrough. Misplaced... produced a string of hits, two of which you'll find on singles. "Kayleigh," which to date is Marillion's biggest selling UK hit, sold in excess of 400,000 and reached number two in May 85, quickly followed by "Lavender," their second biggest hit, which reached number five in September of that year.
America beckoned. "Kayleigh" reached 74 in the Billboard charts. They played sell-out concerts and were major crowd-pullers at various European festivals. In August '85, Marillion played Donington as special guests to ZZ TOP and in '86 headlined The Garden Party at Milton Keynes Ball.
CLUTCHING AT STRAWS (1987)
The cynicism-flavoured follow-up continued the success of the previous album, although the mantle of being international stars was beginning to take its toll on the band and on Fish in particular.
"Incommunicado" gets an airing on A Singles Collection 1982/92 along with "Warm Wet Circles." The former, written in a cab on the way to the studio according to Kelly, smashed straight into the charts at number six in May 87. The video to "Incommunicado" is probably the most amusing of Marillion's vids.
Clutching... launched them on a nine-month world tour, which bolstered their support in the UK and Europe, and also saw them making their first significant inroads into America. "Warm, Wet Circles," with its sexual innuendos, peaked at 22 in November 87.
But in June of 1988, as preparations began for the new album, it was becoming increasingly obvious that Fish and the band were in disagreement. A sojourn in Scotland between July and mid-August, engineered to heal the rift, served only to confirm that Fish was as unhappy with the direction of the music as the band were with his lyrics. Friction within the band grew and the creative gap between albums grew. Therefore, in an effort to shorten the period of productivity, '88 saw the release of B-Sides Themselves (as the title would suggest, a collection of single B-sides), while the band sorted out their problems.
The inevitable, of course, eventually happened. Fish departed the ranks in September of that year to go solo, and Messrs' Rothery Kelly Mosley Trewavas began the search for a new vocalist. Eyebrows were immediately raised over the question of the band's future. How could they survive without the towering personality of the creative genius that had written and immortalized the words to Marillion classics such as "Script For a Jester's Tear," "Warm Wet Circles," and "Kayleigh"? Once again, the cynics drew the knives of the old Genesis comparisons, equating Fish's departure to that of Peter Gabriel's from Genesis in 1974. The band insisted that they would continue. However, as was the case in Genesis with Phil Collins, Ian Mosley didn't vacate his drum stool to take on vocal duties (were the cynics really serious?) and the band found a replacement for Fish in former EUROPEANS vocalist Steve Hogarth in mid-January '89, although he officially joined the group on April 1st of that year.
In retrospect, Marillion released their second live album, The Thieving Magpie (La Casa Ladra), to keep the pundits happy, and it served as a suitable epilogue to Fish-period Marillion.
SEASON'S END (1989)
With Hogarth now in the hot seat, the band's lyrical style changed dramatically, the music becoming the hallmark of the new Marillion sound, with the band sounding fresher and commercially that more accessible. Thus, the critically acclaimed Season's End was received well by Marillion fans upon its release in September 1989, and spawned three singles, all of which you'll find on A Singles Collection 1982/92.
"Hooks in You" played very much on the loyal Marillion fan base and rooted itself at 30. Surprisingly, "The Uninvited Guest" didn't motivate their fans enough to even put it in the top 40 (it only got as far as 53) and "Easter," which Mark Kelly cites as his favourite Marillion song, could have been another "Kayleigh," but alas, only dented the charts, going as far as 34 in April 90. Reason being, perhaps, that Fish had split the Marillion fanbase completely down the middle with the release of his debut solo album Vigil in a Wilderness of Mirrors, which was having much better success single-wise.
HOLIDAYS IN EDEN (1991)
However, albums being albums, Marillion having won over the old cohorts with Seasons End, the time was ripe for them to make a slight shift in direction farther away from their lingering prog rock leanings and Holidays in Eden was the end result, an album that was musically more succinct, commercially sharper, and bravely broke away from the stereotypical images the band had been accustomed to with Fish.
A Singles Collection 1982/92 includes three tracks from Holidays, the anthemic AOR of "Cover My Eyes (Pain and Heaven)" (released May '91, reaching 34), the subtle trickery of "No One Can" (which peaked at number 33 in July '91), and "Dry Land," a new version of a song Hogarth wrote while in mid-80s duo HOW WE LIVE, released September 91, reaching 34.
A SINGLES COLLECTION 1982/1992 (1992)
Although showing a remarkable consistency chart-wise, the top 10 success they had with Fish in the band still eludes them and for all their UK and European success, and despite their continued popularity on the US college circuit, Marillion have yet to register a top 20 hit in the States.
Maybe the new studio cuts on singles, namely "Walk on Water" and a cover version of RARE BIRD's "Sympathy," which they recently released as a single to promote the album, with their much rawer live feel, will provide the key to unlock this door.
In the meantime, A Singles Collection, 1982-92, stands as testament to their 'progression' over that period and provides a neat mix of both old and newer tracks. According to the press release, Marillion are one of the few acts to have released as many as 18 singles without ever falling short of the chart. 14 of their hits came in the 80s, when the only EMI bands to have greater success were QUEEN, DURAN DURAN, and IRON MAIDEN.
Mark Crampton
Riff Raff
July 1992
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