Fish: A Retrospective, 1981-2022

Fish A Retrospective: 1981-2022

Overview: Born: Derek William Dick Date: April 25, 1958 Where: Edinburgh, Scotland Known As: neo-progressive rock singer/songwriter Significant Bands: Marillion (1981-1988) On the Web: FishMusic.scot (official site) Facebook Wikipedia The Top 100 Fish/Marillion songs The Top 20 Fish/Marillion albums

Awards:

The Studio Albums: Hover over an album for the name and year of release. Click to see its DMDB page. Compilations/Specialty Albums BE Brief Encounter (Marillion: EP, released 1986) B1 Best of Both Worlds, Disc 1 (Marillion: 1982-88, released 1997) KF Kettle of Fish (1989-98) BB Bouillabaisse (1985-2004) Live Albums RR Real to Reel (Marillion, 1984) TM The Thieving Magpie (Marillion, 1988) RC Return to Childhood (Fish, 2005) Archives BS B-Sides Themselves (Marillion: archives, 1982-87, released 1988) Under each album snapshot, songs featured on the above collections are noted. If the song charted, the date of the song’s release or first chart appearance and its chart peaks are noted in parentheses. Click for codes to charts.

The Marillion Years (1981-1988): Derek Dick, aka “Fish,” was best known for his work in the ‘80s with British neo-prog rock group Marillion. His nickname dated back to his pre-Marillion days when he was a forestry worker. He “stayed in the bathtub for hours” PF and his landlady became upset, “allowing him to take only one bath per week; threatening him with charging twenty pence for every extra bath. Fish thus stayed roughly two hours in the bathtub every time and brought beer, sweets, a book, and other leisurely objects with him!” PF Marillion initially formed in 1979 as an instrumental band consisting of guitarist Steve Rothery, bassist Doug Irvine, keyboardist Brian Jelliman, and drummer Mick Pointer. Irvine started singing on the some of the group’s first demos in 1980, but then the band invited Fish to join as vocalist in 1981. JB They released their debut album, Script for a Jester’s Tear, in 1983. Fish’s vocals and stage persona invited comparisons to Peter Gabriel and early Genesis. The band, however, carved out their own neo-progressive sound and grew their following over the next couple of albums, 1984’s Fugazi and 1985’s Misplaced Childhood. The latter gave Marillion a #1 album in the UK, fueled by the top-5 singles Kayleigh and Lavender.

Vigil (1988-90): Fish’s first solo album, Vigil in a Wilderness of Mirrors, was released in January 1990 by EMI Records. It generated three top-40 singles in the UK. It “continued the theatrical flair of Marillion’s quasi-concept albums.” JB A contractual dispute with EMI took Fish out of the spotlight. He couldn’t record music or tour. It prompted him to build his own studio, which as he said, “proved an invaluable asset and is now my residence as well as my place of work.” CO Vigil in a Wilderness of Mirrors (1990): State of Mind (10/16/89, 32 UK) KF Big Wedge (12/27/89, 25 UK) KF, BB A Gentleman’s Excuse Me (3/5/90, 30 UK) KF, BB Cliché BB The Company BB Polydor Records and a Covers Album (1991-93): The studio was completed in 1991 and Fish signed to Polydor Records in time to record his second album with producer Chris Kimsey, who’d worked on Fish’s last two albums with Marillion. “Equipment was still being wired in as the tapes started to roll.” CO The resulting album, Internal Exile, was released in May 1991, but didn’t have the hoped impact. “The myriad of styles on Exile led to some confusion as to which direction he should follow.” CO In his personal life, Fish and his wife Tamara had a baby girl, Tara Rowena, on January 1, 1991. Internal Exile (1991): Internal Exile (9/9/91, 37 UK) KF Credo (12/2/91, 38 UK) KF, BB Something in the Air (6/22/92, 51 UK) Just Good Friends (Close) (8/15/95, 63 UK) KF, BB Lucky KF As a result, Fish’s next project was a covers’ album. As he said, “I needed to rediscover the magic that had pulled me into music in the first place. I needed to get rid of the cynicism and bitterness that had taken over my music during the last couple of years and opted to purge myself by recording an album of songs that were favourites of mine when ‘Fish’ was a dream and Derek William Dick was a teenager, songs I’d performed with a broom handle doubling for a mike stand in front of a large wardrobe mirror in the upstairs of my old family home in Dalkeith. Songs that had previously inspired me in some way or another.’” CO Songs from the Mirror (1993): Hold Your Head Up (12/12/92, --) Solo BB Dick Brothers Record Company (1993-97): Neither fans nor the record label were enamored with a covers’ album from Fish. He was, once again, without a record label. However, thanks to a successful tour, Fish opted to start his own label, the Dick Brothers Record Company. He released Sushi, a double live album of the tour as the first of a series of “official” bootlegs. Fish “was one of the first artists to promote the idea of ‘official bootlegs.’” CO They “enabled him to finance Suits, his first independent solo release.” CO “Suits proved the big man…could still write and repaired some of the damage done by the covers project.” CO It also gave him a #1 independent single with Lady Let it Lie. CO Suits (1994): Lady Let It Lie (4/5/94, 46 UK) KF, BB Fortunes of War (9/19/94, 67 UK) KF, BB Raw Meat BB After the Suits album, Fish released Yin and Yang, a two-album “compilation of re-recordings and previously released material from both his solo and Marillion eras.” CO This allowed the touring to continue as far as South East Asia and South America but at the same time created an awareness of the limitations of being an artist and a record company.” CO The subsequent “tour would leave an impression that would light the fuse on what many fans would regard as the resurgence of Fish’s solo career.” CO He released another studio album, Sunsets on Empire, on the Dick Brothers label in 1997. Steven Wilson of Porcupine Tree served as producer and co-writer on the album. He “pulled him in a creative direction he had ignored for a long time and, with engineer Elliot Ness, they produced an album that defied his critics and signalled to the fans that he was back…Fish’s reputation as one of the great rock lyricists…was greatly enhanced as he welded his worldly experience with his strong sense of social justice and political awareness.” CO The supporting tour took Fish to the United States and Canada for the first time in a decade, but it took a toll on his private life. As he said, “I returned home from tour in Christmas ‘97…I had practically lost my house, had distanced myself from my family but I had changed out there on the road. I would have made the same decision again given the chance as that experience on the Sunsets tour woke me up to life. The big problem was that I was now back in the eyes of the fans, but broke and in need of a major re-evaluation.” CO Sunsets on Empire (1997): Brother 52 (4/28/97, --) KF, BB Change of Heart (8/11/97, --) Goldfish and Clowns (8/11/97, --) KF, BB The Perception of Johnny Punter BB Tara BB

Kettle of Fish Fish

Released: October 28, 1998 Recorded: 1989-1996 Peak: -- Sales (in millions): -- Genre: neo-progressive rock

Tracks: (1) Big Wedge (2) Just Good Friends (3) Brother 52 (4) Chasing Miss Pretty (5) Credo (6) A Gentlemen’s Excuse Me (7) Goldfish and Clowns (8) Lady Let It Lie (9) Lucky (10) State of Mind (11) Mr. Buttons (12) Fortunes of War (13) Internal Exile

Rating: 3.506 out of 5.00 (average of 7 ratings) Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About Kettle of Fish: After 1997’s Sunsets on Empire, Fish signed a contract with Roadrunner Records which included his back catalog. In 1998, they released the compilation Kettle of Fish which highlighted his solo career up to that point and included two new tracks. Tracks Not on Previously Noted Albums: Chasing Miss Pretty KF Mr. Buttons KF

Roadrunner Records (1998-99): After releasing Kettle of Fish, Roadrunner Records released Fish’s next studio album, Raingods with Zippos. Fish said, “I started to work on Raingods after returning from a writing sabbatical…Sessions gave me a lot of confidence as a singer/songwriter and working with other respected writers in focused situations showed me a different approach to creating music. It was a great experience overall.’” CO The album included the 20-minute epic Plague of Ghosts, “yet another return to form.” CO Unfortunately, Fish’s relationship with Roadrunner Records soured when the greatest-hits package didn’t meet expectations and Zippos sold “as many as Sunsets with greatly reduced income.” CO Raingods with Zippos (1999): Incomplete (3/22/99, --) BB Plague of Ghosts BB Another Label, Another Album (2000-03): In 2000, Fish got his back catalog returned and launched a new label, Chocolate Frog Record Company, named after a lyric from “Plague of Ghosts.” CO He explained, that a “head full of chocolate frogs is a Scottish term used for someone who isn’t quite with it, who’s drunk, out of it or acting weird. It seemed appropriate for someone who’s considered a ‘bit strange’ in the current manifestation of the music industry.” CO “Inspired by the neosurrealism of Italian movie director Federico Fellini,” CO Fish named the next album Fellini Days. Fish “took the works of the director and laid them alongside his own experiences to create ‘a movie for people's ears.’ It threaded Fish’s now intense personal life with the surrealism of road experiences in a feast of images.” CO Fellini Days (2001): Our Smile BB Long Cold Day BB Clock Moves Sideways BB The album was made available through mail order several months before it was available, which gave Fish the finances to “record with the production values his followers had come to expect.” CO This allowed Fish “to make albums on his own terms, to the standard and quality he wanted, with material he was in control of, under no serious commercial pressure.” CO As Fish says, “It doesn’t really bother me, the fact that I don’t sell millions of albums these days.” CO “I don’t need the fame fix that is the current ‘junk’ of the modern music industry. I had that in the 80’s with Marillion.” CO Now “I have a private life and the ability to choose what I want to do and when, while at the same time I can earn a living doing things that I love.” CO “Fish’s personal life was thrown into chaos when his wife Tamara decided to return to Berlin with their daughter Tara shortly before the tour began in early 2001. Huge debts forced the sale of the farmhouse and Fish ‘regrouped’ in the studio which was now separated from the main property.” CO “2002 was spent working on converting the studio into a home while still maintaining the integrity of the sound rooms so that he could continue to write and record albums.” CO Personal Turmoil and Field of Crows (2003-04): Fish and Tamara divorced in 2003. That same year, Fish started work on his new studio album, Field of Crows. The inspiration for the album came from “visiting the monument to ‘The Field of Blackbirds,’ a 15th century battle between the Ottoman Empire and the Christians who were mainly Serbian, and where so many men were killed on the field that both armies had to withdraw, that Fish got his principal image to work with.” CO Fish explained that the album was “a life cycle. The main character ‘crow’ leaves behind what he knows, driven by dreams, desires and a legacy and heads to the open fields and the ‘big city.’ He joins the hunt and ends up being hunted and eventually caged where he’s left to dream of what he lost. Eventually he returns and so another circle begins. The field represents conflict, be it as a battle or a sports game or a shoot.” CO Field of Crows (2004): Shot the Craw BB Scattering Crows BB Moving Targets BB

Bouillabaisse Fish

Released: September 25, 2005 Recorded: 1985-2004 Peak: -- Sales (in millions): -- Genre: neo-progressive rock

Tracks, Disc 1 (Balladeer): (1) Just Good Friends (2) Shot the Craw (3) A Gentlemen’s Excuse Me (4) Kayleigh (5) Solo (6) Incomplete (7) The Company (8) Fortunes of War (9) Our Smile (10) Lavender (11) Lady Let It Lie (12) Cliché (13) Scattering Crows (14) Tara (15) Caledonia (16) Raw Meat Tracks, Disc 2 (Rocketeer): (1) Big Wedge (2) Credo (3) Incommunicado (4) Goldfish and Clowns (5) Long Cold Day (6) Brother 52 (7) Clock Moves Sideways (8) The Perception of Johnny Punter (9) Moving Targets (10) Plague of Ghosts

Rating: 3.288 out of 5.00 (average of 6 ratings)

About Bouillabaisse: The two-disc compilation covered Fish’s solo years from 1989 to 2004, but also included three cuts from his Marillion days. There was also the song Caledonia, which had previously appeared on the 2002 A Tribute to Frankie Miller. Tracks Not on Previously Noted Albums: Caledonia (2002) BB

Looking Back (2005-06): 2005 proved an important time for retrospection as Fish released a double album compilation (Bouillabaisse) that looked back over his entire career. Even more significantly, however, was the 20th anniversary of his most significant work, Marillion’s Misplaced Childhood. In celebration, Fish performed the entire album live, as well as a set of solo material. Recorded in November 2005, the concert was documented on CD and DVD – a must for fans who had followed Fish’s career since the beginning. It was released the following year. 13th Star and A Feast of Consequences (2007-13): Fish released his ninth studio album, 13th Star, in 2007. It was first made available via mail order in September 2007 and then to retail in February 2008. The album title was a reference to Mostly Autumn, a singer who Fish referred to as the 13th female significant other in his life. However, when she left him, it became a metaphor for an unknown future relationship. It was also the thirteenth studio album of his career if you include his four albums with Marillion. 13th Star (2007): Arc of the Curve (3/3/08, --) Zoe 25 (10/6/08, --) A long hiatus followed 13th Star. Fish finally returned in 2013 with A Feast of Consequences. It was yet another independent release through Chocolate Frog. Like its predecessor, this was co-written with bassist Steve Vantsis. In his personal life, Fish married his second wife, Katie Webb, in April 2009. Sadly, they divorced after less than a year. Feast of Consequences (2013): Blind to the Beautiful (4/28/14, --) The End? (2015-20): After Feast, Fish took an even longer hiatus. In 2015, he announced that the album he was working on would be his last. Three years later, he finally released an EP, A Parley with Angels, which featured live songs and some of the material which would wind up on the 2020 double album Weltshmerz. Because of failed romances and family bereavements, it looked at times like the album wouldn’t happen at all. His father died from bladder cancer and Fish underwent surgeries for his spine and shoulder and dealt with two potentially deadly bouts of sepsis. On a positive note, he married his third wife, Simone Rosler, in 2017. Weltschmerz (2020): Weltschmerz (3/12/20, --) Garden of Remembrance (7/24/20, --) This Party’s Over (9/11/20, --) Resources/References: Dave’s Music Database: Acts’ Profile Pages and Best-of Lists Fishmusic.scot (official Fish site) Marillion.com (official Marillion site) JB John Bush, All Music Guide CO The-Company.com PF Progfreaks.com Related DMDB Pages: First posted 4/26/2010; last updated 8/5/2025.

Fish released Field of Crows

Field of Crows Fish

Released: May 25, 2004 Peak: -- US, -- UK, -- CN, -- AU Sales (in millions): -- Genre: neo-progressive rock

Tracks: Song Title (Writers) [time] (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts. The Field (Dick, Watson) [8:42] Moving Targets [5:46] The Rookie (Dick, Watson) [5:35] Zoo Class [5:23] The Lost Plot (Dick, Turrell) [5:10] Old Crow [5:20] Numbers (Dick, Watson, Usher) [5:36] Exit Wound (Dick, Watson) [5:55] Innocent Party [7:37] Shot the Craw [6:00] Scattering Crows (Still Time) (Dick, Watson, Turrell, Duguid) [5:05] Songs by Dick, Watson, and Dugild unless noted otherwise. Total Running Time: 66:58 The Players: Derek W. Dick, aka “Fish” (vocals) Bruce Watson (guitar, e-bow) Frank Usher (guitars) Steve Vantsis (bass) Tony Turrell (keyboards) Mark Brzezicki (drums, percussion) Dave Haswell (percussion) Danny Gillan (backing vocals) Richard Sidwell (trumpet, flugel horn) Steve Hamilton (saxophone) Yatta, Lars K. Lande (crowd vocal on “The Field”) Irvin Duguid (clavinet on “Old Crow”)

Rating: 3.407 out of 5.00 (average of 14 ratings) Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Album: “Anyone who thought Fellini Days was a notch under Fish’s previous two studio releases (Sunsets on Empire and Raingods with Zippos) should feel relieved after listening to Field of Crows, a very fine entry in the gentle giant’s discography.” AMG “Fish is making the best out of his lowering voice on this album, which could be seen as a sign of maturity. This album rocks out, but it mostly relies on mellower tracks and simpler songwriting – something reminiscent of Ian Anderson’s own dealings with an aging voice and more introspective interests. Fish’s focus is not on extended suites and shifting moods anymore, but elegant, intelligent songs, and in that regard he deserves an A for Field of Crows.” AMG “His backing band has undergone yet another reshuffle. Guitarists Bruce Watson and Frank Usher are back. Bassist Steve Vantsis, drummer Mark Brzezicki, and keyboardist Tony Turrell round up the main lineup. Fish co-wrote most of the songs with Watson, a partnership that ranks among his best of late.” AMG “The album is evenly split between rockers and mellower songs with folk-blues roots. From the first category, the very Marillion-esque (don’t you just love those piano arpeggios?) The Lost Plot, the premium ballad Shot the Craw (possibly his most moving since ‘A Gentleman’s Excuse Me’), and the bluesy Exit Wound stand out.” AMG “Among the beat-driven numbers, kudos go to another bluesy number, Zoo Class, the catchy Moving Targets, and Innocent Party, in which the singer shows that he can still push a powerful mood-switching song.” AMG “As usual, arrangements are finely crafted and varied from song to song, resulting in a very satisfying set high on memorable songs and surprisingly low on disposable content.” AMG

Resources and Related Links: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Fish DMDB encyclopedia entry for Marillion AMG All Music Guide review by François Couture WK Wikipedia Other Related DMDB Pages: Last updated 8/9/2021.

Fish released Fellini Days

Fellini Days Fish

Released: May 2, 2001 Peak: -- US, -- UK, -- CN, -- AU Sales (in millions): -- Genre: neo-progressive rock

Tracks: Song Title (Writers) [time] (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts. 3D [9:11] So Fellini (Dick, Wesley) [4:06] Tiki 4 [7:32] Our Smile [5:25] Long Cold Day [5:33] Dancing in Fog [5:30] Obligatory Ballad (Dick, Wesley) [5:15] The Pilgrim’s Address (Dick, Wesley) [7:18] Clock Moves Sideways (Dick, Wesley) [7:17] Songs by Dick, Wesley, and Young unless noted otherwise. Total Running Time: 57:07 The Players: Derek W. Dick, aka “Fish” (vocals) John Wesley (guitar) Steve Vantsis (bass) John Young (keyboards) Dave Stewart (drums) Dave Haswell (percussion) Susie Webb, Zoe Nicholson (backing vocals)

Rating: 2.985 out of 5.00 (average of 12 ratings) Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Album: Previous album Raingods with Zippos, while seen by some fans as uneven, seemed to be universally embrace when it came to its 25-minute epic “Plague of Ghosts.” Fans hoping for a follow-up that played on that, had to be concerned at the departure of Steve Wilson. As the frontman of neo-prog rock band Porcupine Tree, he’d guided them to a sound that owed a debt to Marillion, the group Fish fronted in the ‘80s. However, for Fellini Days, Fish pursued a more straightforward rock sound, bringing in some new players. “The roughness of guitarist John Wesley and the melodic skills of keyboard player John Young…seemed very interesting at first thought.” JJ In regards to the latter, Young had composed some stuff for John Wetton ES and “adds some nice touches (‘Dancing in Fog’, ‘Our Smile’),” MS but largely “passes by almost unnoticed.” ES “He seemingly wasn’t much involved in the writing process (almost all of the songs are credited to Fish & Wesley) and the keyboards mainly play a supportive role on the album.” ES “Because of the lack of piano, the album misses a certain emotion.” ES One wonders if “he’s only there to start the sound-effects or the drum-machine.” JJ While Young may not have been used enough, the opinion seems to be that Wesley was used too much. As one reviewer said in seeing Wesley perform with Fish prior to the album’s release, “all of the subtle and emotional guitar parts were destroyed and mangled into one unpleasant layer of noise.” ES That assessment seems to mark the biggest criticisms of the album as well. First off, “Wesley might make a fine rhythm guitarist but he hardly plays any decent lead guitar part on the album.” ES His “overall performance on Fellini Days is below par.” MS Second, “that same layer of noise [that hampered the live performance] returns on Fellini Days.” MS While Elliot Ness seems to be well-regarded for the job he did in producing the Raingods album, “the production and mix on Fellini Days is a mess. As mentioned, the music often just turns into a wall of noise, with some instruments becoming almost inaudible,” ES “mixed to an awful instrumental jumble, as at the end of ‘3D’ and during the chorus of ‘So Fellini’.” MS Also representative of the production is the fact that “the album opens with a projector starting, a sound that keeps up through out the entire album.” RS “It is especially irritating during the quieter parts, as in ‘Obligatory Ballad’ or the start of ‘The Pilgrim's Address’.” MS “The idea of using the famous film-director Fellini as a source of inspiration, seemed very interesting” JJ and it “has been woven into and between the songs.” JJ “Fish’s performance is fine as usual, though he misses the edge displayed on earlier albums.” MS “Most of the melodies and ideas on the album are not that bad, and some of them are even very enjoyable. However, most of these ideas are far from original” ES as “the lyrics consist of many expressions and themes you will probably recognise from other Fish (and early Marillion) albums.” HS In addition, all too often there is a “melody which in itself might be quite pleasing [but] is just stretched out and repeated far too often.” ES 3D is the album opener and “Fish’s vocals are quite okay here, dark and warm, but somehow the interplay with the background vocals is not perfect,” RS giving “the song a rather chaotic, out-of-tune sound.” HS “The composition definitely is strong” RS with some “very good verses, but the chorus doesn’t impress.” MS “The guitar work could have been smoother;” RS it is “played using an effect which makes it almost sound out of tune.” HS In addition, the keyboards have unappealing “easy listening-like vibes.” HS So Fellini is “a rich-sounding track with lots of howling Hammond and other keys.” RS “Nice, rocky guitars and a pounding drum rhythm set the scene.” HS “The simple chorus works very effectively” HS and an “addition at the end of the track of a whole venue full of Fish fans singing the chorus is a nice and original touch,” HS although another reviewer said “the sing-along bit has by now been done to death.” MS “A good composition, although quite repetitive. The same can be said about the lyrics.” RS “Fish obviously hasn’t got the vocal skills he had ten years ago, but he manages to avoid…risks.” RS Tiki 4, an “ode to chilling out,” HS “leans back on the days of Internal Exile and Songs from the Mirror, combining Fish’s rock sound with more traditional folk composition.” RS “Fish’s vocals are sounding off key every now and then, whereas the backing vocals give the track an even cornier atmosphere than it already had.” HS While “it has some impressive instrumentation and a strong end sequence,” MS it “excels in repetitiveness…And it goes on for seven-and-a-half minutes!” RS “Our Smile is enjoyable,” MS but “is a typical Fish ballad.” RS The lyrics “are really good and heart-felt, but the music sounds a bit too ordinary.” HS “This could have been on any previous album as well. Redundant track and irritating guitar.” RS “A great, raw guitar intro sets the scene perfectly” HS for the “pleasantly nasty” MS Long Cold Day.” HS Fish “is quite good…and delivers the track with feeling and emotion.” RS He “is angry at someone (someone he loved) who has betrayed him and brilliantly makes that clear in the intensity of his vocals. At the end they are almost drowned out by the backing vocals, though.” HS “The beginning of Dancing In Fog seems to be the prelude to an exciting song, but after the intro the song changes into a rather average, somewhat boring track.” HS It “has a bit of a dance beat, like some of the ‘Plague of Ghosts’ sections,” RS but “can’t live up.” MS “The melody line is nothing special and very repetitive.” RS In addition, “the raw sounding guitar interlude brings a few sparks back into it, but the music calms down again soon after. For some reason, there are bongos on this track as well.” HS “Obligatory Ballad is a track that you either hate or love. The idea is good, but it could have taken another recording since the very first word Fish sings (Time), is not sharp but shakes…This one works excellent if his voice is in order…On the album it is marginal.” RS “The metallic guitar sound (the electric guitar is the only accompaniment of the vocals during most of the song) does not really help and only tends to underline the false notes.” HS “The personal nature of the lyrics almost beg for a gentle, fragile approach, but here the nasty guitar-sound doesn't create the right atmosphere.” JJ It “would have been much better if it would have been piano/vocals-only instead of piano/electric guitar-only.” ES “Pilgrim’s Address is another ballad, and starts almost acoustic. A Dylan-esque protest song, this one takes us a long time back! It is not a bad idea of Fish at all to wander around Dylan’s tracks once in a while. From a musical point of view this is not the most exciting part, but at least he knows how to put his feelings and thoughts on paper.” RS He “brings the fate of the many half-forgotten soldiers all over the world into the limelight, [but] the song is way too long for its rather unvaried structure.” HS “A drum machine, some more raw guitar and a haunting keyboard line create an eerie atmosphere on Clock Moves Sideways.” HS “With some really interesting bridges and climax-building, this is absolutely the highlight of the album.” RS “if you can live with the digitized percussion,” MS which “is way too high in the mix.” HS It “contains some interesting ideas that actually work.” ES “With a bit depressing New Age-like chord sequence, it reminds a bit of the final sections of ‘Plague’, and Wilson’s efforts.” RS This song “also gives us a good-old angry Fish” ES as he “finally finds the guts to scream his lungs out, for the first time on the album.” RS His “sneering vocals fit in perfectly. The chorus is a great outburst of thundercloud-like threatening sound.” HS In conclusion, “the album is too full of raw guitars (although it works in ‘Long Cold Day’), and Fish's voice is at some points too low in the mix.” JJ “Fish still is a skilled songsmith…but most of these songs have some shortcoming in them,” JJ making for “an album of very variable quality. Some tracks are good like the first two, some are mediocre, or even boring, and there is one killer (the last one).” RS It is really “Fish’s most disappointing studio album to date,” ES “his only bad album so far, in that it mostly contains songs of meagre quality.” MS Notes: A bonus disc included alternate versions of most of the songs, including five live cuts, three remixes, and one acoustic recording.

Resources and Related Links: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Fish DMDB encyclopedia entry for Marillion ES Ed Sander, DPRP.net MS Mark Sander, DPRP.net RS Remco Schoenmakers, DPRP.net HS Hester Stasse, DPRP.net WK Wikipedia Other Related DMDB Pages: Last updated 8/9/2021.