FACT AND FICTION

Very much Twelfth Night's masterpiece, 'Fact & Fiction' was released in 1982 after the group had garnered positive reactions from fans and record industry figures for their cassette- only 'Smiling At Grief' album', which was essentially a collection of demo's recorded to drum up interest in the fledgling group. Whilst 'Smiling At Grief' was a scratchy, low-budget affair 'Fact & Fiction', which featured several of the same songs in fuller versions, featured a quintessentially neo-prog sound dominated by the extraordinary vocals of the group's lead- singer Geoff Mann and a much more professional production. Mann was augmented by Clive Mitten(bass, keyboards), Andy Revell(guitars) and Brian Devoil(drums) for the studio recordings, but original keyboardist Rick Battersby, who had leftthe band six months earlier, would re-join for the subsequent tour. Those who know anything of Twelfth Night know that 'Fact & Fiction' was very much the group's high watermark moment. The album featured nine, carefully-composed songs, all of which are considered 'classic' by the group's small-buy- loyal following. The album's relative success finally won the group a recording contract, first with the Music For Nations label, who released their follow-up mini-album 'Art & Illusion' a year later, and then with the major label Virgin, who would release the group's poppier self-titled album in 1985. For 'Art & Illusion' Geoff Mann had been replaced by Andy Sears, and despite their group's loyal live fanbase, the disappointing sales figures for their Virgin album saw the group quietly dropped by the label. Subsequently, in 1987, Twelfth Night split, leaving behind them a sadly-truncated career which failed to fulfill their true musical ambitions. However, in 'Fact & Fiction', the band produced one of the gems of the 1980's prog scene, an album that stands shoulder-to-shoulder with the classics of the era such as IQ's 'Tales From The Lush Attic' and Marillion' s 'Childhood's End'. A genuine prog classic. STEFAN TURNER, LONDON, 2010