TODAY'S ALBUM: No.9 (3rd November 2011)

'Script For A Jester's Tear' 

by Marillion
(1983)

One of a clutch of new British groups to appear during the early 1980's, Marillion were perhaps the best known members of the short-lived neo-progressive movement that emerged during the aftermath of the punk-rock explosion. Signed to EMI Records, the group, whose name was an abbreviation of the J. R. R. Tolkien fantasy novel 'The Silmarallion', released a quartet of highly-successful, pop-tinged progressive rock albums between 1983 and 1988, in the process cultivating a large audience throughout both Britain and mainland Europe. Despite being accompanied on their quest to exhume the spirit of prog by a host of stylistically-similar groups, such as IQ, Pallas, Quasar, Pendragon and Twelfth Night, only Marillion would enjoy the status of bona-fide pop-stars. Pricking the mainstream conciousness thanks to appearances on 'Top Of The Pops' and a canny eye on the singles market, the 1980's would see this most curious Anglo-Scottish outfit enjoy a truly rare status amongst progressive-minded rock groups that is unlikely to be repeated.
Formed during 1979  in Aylesbury, a sleepy market town several  miles west of  London, Marillion's founding members were drummer Mick Pointer and guitarist Steve Rothery. 1981 would see several more additions, including bassist Diz Minnett and keyboard-player Brian Jelliman, yet the most important new member to arrive at this time was undoubtedly the six-foot-six Scottish vocalist Derek Dick, otherwise and more popularly known as 'Fish'. A dominating and enigmatic performer, Fish would add a dash of Peter Gabriel-style colour to Marillion's impressive live shows thanks to his penchant for eye-catching face-paint, his love of wearing kaftans and his wild-eyed stage presence. With Fish at the helm Marillion began to attract the attention of several record companies, and following a period of intense gigging and a series of line-up changes that saw both Minnett and Jelliman replaced respectively by Welsh bassist Pete Trewavas and keyboardist Mark Kelly, the group entered Park Gate Studios in East Sussex to record their debut single 'Market Square Heroes'. Paired with David Hitchcock, a producer with a fearsome prog pedigree thanks to spells working the likes of Genesis, Caravan, Curved Air and Renaissance during the 1970's, Marillion produced a 7" version of 'Market Square Heroes' backed with B-side 'Three Boats Down From The Candy', whilst also taking the rather unusual move of releasing an EP-length 12" version that featured the seventeen-minute long opus 'Grendel' on the disc's second side. Although only reaching no.60 on the British singles charts 'Market Square Heroes' sold steadily enough to convince EMI that an album was worth pursuing. With producer Nick Tauber replacing Hitchcock due to the latter having been involved in a near-fatal car crash, Marillion recorded 'Script For A Jester's Tear' at London's Marquee Studio's between December 1982 and February 1983, with the album being released just a month after completion. Two singles were issued, with 'He Knows, You Know' and 'Garden Party' both breaking the top 40, and the album eventually peaked at an eyebrow-raising no.7 on the UK album charts. Despite their brand of keyboard-heavy progressive rock being decidedly un-fashionable for the time, Marillion had arrived, and with major label support to boot. 
Inspired by the likes of Yes and, in particular, Peter Gabriel-era Genesis, Marillion's sound on 'A Script For A Jester's Tear' blends catchy pop hooks, emotive melodies and thick, glistening keyboards to create a thoroughly modern(for the time) spin on the progressive rock formula. Their music is both complex enough to appeal to the genre die-hards yet also highly-accessible, thus they also managed to attract a younger, pop-single purchasing audience who helped the band sell in excess of a million records throughout the 1980s. Songs such as the atmospheric epic 'The Web' lean heavily towards traditional progressive values, with a slow, carefully-crafted build-up eventually giving way to a blistering Steve Rothery guitar solo, whilst less complex pieces such as 'He Knows, You Know' rely more on melody, wrapping the trademark Marillion sound in a clever a pop glaze. With the bold cover art of Mark Wilkinson's memorable jester character lending the music an intriguing visual slant, the Marillion 'image' would prove to be most striking, the 'A Script For A Jester's Tear' sleeve craftily mixing elements of fantasy with more modern, contemporary touches as the aforementioned jester character stands, violin in hand, tears streaming down face, in full jester regalia and in the middle of a run-down squat littered with scrunched up pieces of paper.
Considering the fact that the early-eighties UK charts were dominated by post-punk outfits such as Joy Division, The Smiths, Echo & The Bunnymen and The Cure and new wave groups like Spandau Ballet and Duran Duran, the success of Marillion's debut album is remarkable. Progressive rock at the time was very much seen as a dead genre from the past, and whilst it's mortal enemy punk had also started to falter, the idea of a group featuring fantasy-tinged lyrics and laying down complex keyboard solos finding any kind of significant commercial success was pretty much unthinkable at this juncture. However, despite the odds being stacked against them Marillion succeeded, showing that their was still an appetite for all things 'progressive' in the shiny new world of the eighties. A highly-melodic and emotionally-charged album featuring a slick, crystal-clear production, 'Script For A Jester's Tear' found this decidedly oddball outfit bringing the genre of progressive rock into the modern musical arena, producing a sharp contemporary rock album that also serves as a carefully-crafted and skilfully-performed homage to the 1970's golden era. 


Key songs: The Web, He Knows You Know, Chelsea Monday