Published on Feb 28, 2000
The first time I started listening to Marillion’s past work –
namely, albums recorded with original vocalist Fish, I couldn’t
help but think that I was listening to Peter Gabriel-era Genesis.
(The album I was trying to get through was
Misplaced Childhood – and I kept giving up because I kept
losing track of what I thought the storyline was about. We’ll soon
get to that album on these pages.)
If you listen to the recently re-released and remastered 1983
debut of Marillion,
Script For A Jester’s Tear, you’ll undoubtedly think the
same thing. What you’ll also hear is a band who wasn’t quite sure
which direction they wanted to take musically, a fact which
occasionally distracts from the music.
Make no mistake, Marillion had their feet planted soundly in the
world of progressive rock. But there are times when the surface
starts to show cracks, especially when a more rock-oriented theme
comes into play as on “He Knows You Know” and their debut single
“Market Square Heroes”. Not that such an introduction is bad; in
fact, these two tracks are some of the most enjoyable material on
this two-disc repackaging.
Oh great, I can hear the skeptics say, he’s going to show how
anti prog-rock he is by slamming the band for writing longer songs.
Guess again; Fish and crew prove they were a cut above many bands
of the same ilk. Namely, the songwriting is so interesting and the
performances are solid enough to keep the listener’s interest
throughout – and before you know it, eight minutes have passed, and
the song is over. (Then again, this is something that Marillion has
done well throughout their career.)
There is an exception to this, however – the 19-minute epic
“Grendel”. Granted, it does seem to pass quicker than the timer
suggests, but it’s also hardly equal to some of the excellent
songwriting that Marillion was doing at that point. (The initial
premise – telling the story of Beowulf from the monster’s point of
view – is quite intriguing.) After about 15 minutes, I almost found
myself wishing the monster had been snuffed.
The album proper of
Script For A Jester’s Tear plays well, though there are some
inherent problems. One thing is that the volume of the disc seems
to jump at inopportune times – for example, Fish’s vocals to
introduce the title track are almost whispered before the band
kicks in at a higher volume. By the time the whole band comes in,
it almost seems too loud – especially if you cranked up the
speakers to hear what Fish was singing.
Problem number two is that some of the tracks almost seem to be
piecemealed together, almost as if they really were two separate
songs woven into one track. “Forgotten Sons,” an otherwise
enjoyable track, is a prime example.
Finally, you do have to invest some time with
Script For A Jester’s Tear to really appreciate it – another
thing I’ve noticed with almost every Marillion disc I’ve ever
listened to.
I don’t know whether or not adding the second disc of goodies is
necessarily good or bad with this particular title. On the good
side, you get to hear some of Marillion’s early singles like
“Market Square Heroes” and “Charting The Single”; on the bad side,
you have the “Grendel” monstrosity and demos of a few songs that
don’t seem to tell too much about how the tracks developed. (One
exception: I liked the use of harmony vocals on the demo of “Market
Square Heroes”.)
This disc is still very much worth the time and effort to get to
know it, and it provides a nice insight into how Marillion took
their first steps in a world that still doesn’t quite know what to
do with them. If this is your first experience with Marillion, five
words: have patience… lots of it.