Marillion -
The Official Bootleg, vol 2
(CD 2010, 8-CD Box Set EMI 50999 6 32521 2 5)
The tracks:
| CD 1: De Monfort Hall, Leicester (24th April 1990) Part 1 |
| CD 2: De Montfort Hall, Leicester (24th April 1990) Part 2 |
| CD 3: Cumbria Rock Festival, Workington (13th July 1991) |
| CD 4: Wembley Arena, London (5th September 1992) Part 1 |
| CD 5: Wembley Arena, London (5th September 1992) Part 2 |
| CD 6: Congresshaus, Warsaw, Poland (15th June 1994) Part 1 |
| CD 7: Congresshaus, Warsaw, Poland (15th June 1994) Part 2 |
| CD 8: BBC Sessions EP |
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| For track lists, see below |
Marillion Website
samples
EMI Records
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Marillion’s
former record label never released a CD-version of their first live-DVD with
Steve Hogarth. The live DVD’s recorded with
Fish,
Recital Of The Script and
Live From Loreley,
both got a CD-version in 2009. These albums contained
additional songs that you couldn’t find on the DVD. Therefore, they were a ‘must
have’ for all Marillion-fans, especially those who always thought that Fish is
a better vocalist than Hogarth. However, since the label decided to release
The Official Bootleg Box Set, vol 2
they put that straight. On this release Steve Hogarth is the lead singer.
It’s in fact the successor of
Early Stages: The Official Bootlegs 1982-1987
with Fish as lead singer.
This box consists of eight
CD’s; the first two contain the complete soundtrack of the live show filmed at
Montfort Hall, Leicester, England in1990 for the DVD
From Stroke Row To Ipanema.
The sound of this gig, one of Hogarth’s first performances as a
lead singer, is of a high quality. Well, actually you could say it’s excellent.
The same applies for the other six CD’s containing live recordings of albums as
Season’s End,
Holidays In Eden and Brave.
The third disc contains
recordings made for the BBC Friday Rock Show of a gig at the Cumbria Rock
Festival in July 1991. The Holidays In Eden-
album was just released and Hogarth had become a better frontman
on stage. Marillion starts with a number of songs taken from that album, but they
also perform songs from the Fish-era. I never felt any objection when Hogarth sings
the lyrics once written and sung by Fish. Songs as
Slàinte Mhath, Warm Wet Circles
and That Time Of The Night
still sound very well. The
audience has no objection either, because they regularly sing along with Steve.
The fourth and fifth
CD contain recordings of the gig at the Wembley Arena, London in 1992. During
this performance we can enjoy more songs from
Holidays In Eden, but also the additional songs they
recorded for the compilation album
A Single Collection 1982-1992. The live renditions of songs as
Walk On Water and the cover
Sympathy have
greater impact than the studio versions, because Hogarth knows how to handle
the audience and therefore the band get more motivated to perform the songs
better. Disc six and seven contain the integral performance of
Brave in 1994 at the Congresshaus, Warsaw,
Poland. If you were lucky enough to watch the band perform this masterpiece as
a whole you know that this is one of their best theatrical performances ever. However,
Brave
was not the only album on the menu of this tour. It also featured
a collection of songs taken from the Fish-era, because they knew a lot of
European fans still love to hear that stuff. You can hear it again on this
release, bringing back many pleasant memories!
The eighth and final CD
lasts hardly fourteen minutes. This disc shows that Marillion is one of the few
bands that are able to perform their music in an acoustic setting and still
sounding great. I think one of the reasons is the way Steve Hogarth sings. With
a strong voice he always manages to put emotions in a song; no exception on the
four tracks on this release. First we have two pieces recorded for a
Bob Harris-session in January 1992. Sympathy
and Kaleigh
are principally performed on the bass and the acoustic
guitars accompanied by the string synthesizers which gave the tracks a warmer
sound. Made Again and
Hollow Man were performed two years later
for the Johnnie Walker-sessions to promote the Brave-
album.
On the first track you hear Steve’s vocals only accompanied by an acoustic
guitar. The second track was probably played by Steve on an acoustic piano, but
it’s not mentioned in the credits.
This collection of never
released live recordings is a collector’s item for every fan of Marillion with
Steve Hogarth as a singer. When you listen to all the CD’s you just realize Marillion’s
of the best live bands on the globe. People who saw them live on stage certainly
will agree. For me, it doesn’t matter they didn’t perform the music from my
favourite albums with Steve Hogarth. They still manage to play excellently and
that’s just what they do best...
**** Henri Strik (edited by Peter Willemsen)
Where to buy?
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