Published on Jan 12, 2001
Some people might have found themselves saying at the release of
Marillion’s
The Thieving Magpie (La Gazza Ladra), “Not
another live release.” Although this was the first
full-length live effort from Fish and crew, it was the third such
commercial release since the band’s debut.
Little did some people know that this would end up being the
last appearance of Fish with Marillion – and at least he goes out
with a nice effort which occasionally feels a bit overblown.
I can understand why a live album would be the point of order
for the band at this time. On one side, they were about to undergo
a major lineup change, and a live album could help bridge the gap.
On the other side, Marillion had scored two successful albums in
America with
Misplaced Childhood and
Clutching At Straws, and the time to strike was now, while
the iron was hot.
The track selection for
The Thieving Magpie is actually well thought out, covering
all bases from their four albums to that point. There’s enough to
keep the newer fans happy (“Sugar Mice,” “White Russian”), and
plenty of material from the two pre-hit era for those who had
followed the band from the beginning (“Punch & Judy,” “He Knows
You Know,” “Fugazi”).
If anything is interesting about this arrangement, it’s that all
the material sounds good when it’s thrown together like this. It’s
nearly seamless, and played to note-perfect precision by the group.
Yet occasionally it feels like Marillion is grasping to keep things
interesting – as much as I can appreciate their inclusion, it might
not have been the best of ideas to put two long songs (“Fugazi,”
“Script For A Jester’s Tear”) back to back. That said, the live
version of “Script” does inject some new life into the track.
Another interesting choice is their decision to perform the
entire
Misplaced Childhood album on the second disc. Admittedly,
they do an admirable job on it, proving that this marvel of the
studio could be translated onto the concert stage. The only
question is: was it absolutely necessary? In this case, it feels
like it’s included to prove the band could indeed do it – and I
know I wasn’t questioning their musical ability in concert.
The Thieving Magpie is presently out of print in America
(though there is an import version available on CDNOW), and it
wasn’t included in the recent re-masters of Marillion’s discs. Why
this is, I don’t know – but
The Thieving Magpie is the best choice of all the live work
featuring Fish.