SCRIPT FOR A JESTER'S TEAR

3.5 stars, really. It took me a long time to get into Neo-Prog and this album in particular, which definitely has it charms, but isn't quite all it's cracked up to be IMO. Marillion are often compared to Genesis in their sound, and it's that comparison that keeps this rating from being higher: they lift LIBERALLY from Genesis here, in a way they wouldn't on later albums. Genesis is of course a great band to lift from, but when your 17 minute Epic Grendel (bonus track only) contains an almost identical pounding climactic section to the iconic Supper's Ready... it's hard to ignore. Other lifts include the chiming acoustic guitars from Stagnation/Dancing with the Moonlight Knight/Cinema Show/Entangled, the pounding beat from The Knife, and Gabriel's lyrical/performance style.

Lifting aside, this is a very confident and self-assured debut album that shows serious talent and musicianship. The songs are all well composed and paced, with no one band member outshining any others. Pete Trewavas does a good job of emulating classic prog bassists withOUT overt copying. Mark Kelly's keyboards are tasteful and well played. Lots of good guitar work from Steve Rothery. My personal favorite from the album is the Garden Party. Better things would be to come...