A grey-bearded Warrior, a Poet of no mean acclaim. So says Fish on the last track of his last album, Weltschmerz.
From his beginnings with Marillion who I was introduced to as a young one, to the stellar solo career, he's been there since back in the 80s. My first gig - Glasgow Barrowlands on Hogmanay no less - a surprise ticket for Christmas from my sister, His works got under my skin and stayed there, becoming part of me. A connection that was never broken.
I would say more a storyteller than a singer. Sure, he's not had the greatest voice which definitely changed over all those years, but it's the stories, the delivery, the passion and the pain that is inherent in all he's done. There’s a weight to his work. A poetic honesty. It’s raw, thunderous, filled with emotion, and aged like oak cask whisky: deeper, wiser, rougher around the edges in the best way. When he sings, you believe him. You feel what he feels. Whether it’s heartbreak, rage, nostalgia, or defiance.
His lyrics are really what holds me to him—introspective, political, poetic, often brutally personal. Early in his career there was the albatross of being in the Progressive Rock band, never one of the cool genres. There were the comparisons to other bands, such as Genesis. Influencers of course, but who out there that’s any good doesn't have influencers. There is undeniable quality to his writing, drawing inspiration from classic poetry and theatre to the trenches of World War One, but it never feels pretentious. That Prog Rock tag though, is deserved to an extent, he has written some epic songs. Not your 4 minute, radio friendly pop song, think 15+ minute saga!
Never 'popular' in the sense of stardom, he’s one of those rare artists who could see the compromise coming but he stood against them, never wanted to play the industry game. He got burned, no doubt about it, he took on the big boys (EMI) and it didn't end well, but through that, he got his freedom, to do it his way, the only way, and somehow managed to build an even deeper connection with his fans because of it.
He reacted to COVID in a pretty unique way. During the lockdowns that we all endured, he started a podcast of sorts through Facebook. Fish on Friday. Every week he would broadcast from his own home and share stories, songs, anecdotes as well as the progress of what would be that planned final album. Demos, sharing lyrics, the challenges of bringing it all together. Not from a studio, but that same converted farm he called home and invited us all into each Friday evening. Through album launch, and then his remastered works and live recordings as he finalised his legacy with the last of the remastered box sets of his first two solo albums. Signing off as an artist with the works he began with. I could never thank him enough for all that he shared.
It's completely fair to suggest he is a cornerstone to the soundtrack to my life, over 40 years of listening (Hey, I started young, ok!). There is imagery I connect with, as well as all the little nuances of songs that are so familiar and can only come from them being embedded in my psyche. Clearly I’m too far gone and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
So - here you go, start with his first, move through to the last (there’s a lot more in between)
Listen - Vigil in a Wilderness of Mirrors
Listen - Weltschmerz