LIVE IN GLASGOW

This is a CD release in 1993 from Racket Records of a gig in Glasgow Barrowlands December 1989, the first tour with Steve Hogarth as lead singer, and, literally, walking into the lions den of Scotland as Fishs' replacement. This is a very good record of the concert, and whilst the production is not up to the standards of later Racket releases, it is, for me, a very important disc in the context of the band's history.

The gig opens with an excellent rendition of King of Sunset Town, the opener from Season's End, which was for me and many others proof positive that the band could not just survive the loss of Fish, but actually prosper. It is a great track delivered with huge gusto, clearly and patently winning over the crowd.

As was common with the early Hogarth tours, there is a smattering of Fish tracks. Slante Mhath is the first, and Hogarth does a great job. The other two are Warm Wet Circles and That Time of the Night, and, again, H does a credible job of these.

However, to these ears, it is the material from Seasons End which makes this album, and much of this is very rarely played these days, with the possible exception of Easter. This particular track is blinding on this concert. Even at such an early stage, you can feel the palpable gelling of the band into a force to be reckoned with, and it has to be said this is a huge achievement given what they had to follow with the loss of such a talismanic figure.

Uninvited Guest is barnstorming, and Holloway Girl, Season's End, Berlin, and The Space all provide musically perfect and interesting live interpretations of tracks which gave so much promise on the studio LP.

I believe that this disc can still be ordered from Racket Records, and if I am correct I really would recommend it to all fans of the band, especially those who perhaps missed out on this particular tour, where I saw them in Wolverhampton Civic Hall. It is a true record of a historic concert and tour.

Not perfect, but certainly an excellent addition to any collection.

An OK live album from the band's very first tour with Steve Hogarth on vocals. H sounds extremely nervous in some of his between-song patter - which he keeps to an absolute minimum - and he doesn't quite begin firing on all cylinders until Easter. In addition to that, the sound quality at points in the recording is rather shaky - apparently the last two tracks are actually from a show a few days later in Bradford, due to the Glasgow tapes of said songs being of a completely unacceptable standard, but even then the Bradford songs aren't brilliantly well-recorded. The band have in fact reissued this one as part of the Front Row Club, their range of archival live releases which often carry with them a mild health warning concerning their variable sound quality.

It should be noted that the expansive Official Bootleg Box Set Vol. 2 contains a complete 1990 show from the same tour. Not only is the show presented unedited and in markedly superior sound quality to this one, but because it's from a little later in the tour H sounds much happier and more confident as the band's frontman. With such a great show from the Seasons End tour readily available, Live In Glasgow feels particularly inessential. This is one for the fanatics only, so on that level the relegation to the Front Row Club seems to me to be the right call on the band's part.

'Live in Glasgow' is a live album from Marillion's first tour with Steve Hogarth. Tracks 1-8, "The King of Sunset Town," "Slàinte Mhath," "Uninvited Guest," "Easter," "Warm Wet Circles," "That Time of the Night," "Holloway Girl," and "Seasons End," were recorded live in Glasgow at the Barrowland Ballroom on April 12 1989. Tracks 9 and 10, "Berlin" and "The Space," were recorded in Bradford at St. Georges Hall on October 12 1989.

Most of the 'Seasons End' album was performed live, with the exception of the tracks "After Me" and "Hooks in You." The remaining three tracks on this live album include "Slàinte Mhath," "Warm Wet Circles," and "That Time of the Night," all of which were originally recorded on the album that preceded 'Seasons End,' 'Clutching at Straws.' For the first few Marillion tours with Steve Hogarth in the band, their setlists would contain some songs from the first four Marillion albums interspersed throughout. In other words, songs when Hogarth wasn't in the band and Fish was their frontman. It wasn't until the 'Radiation' tour when the band stopped playing Fish-era songs. Since then, Marillion have learned that there are still fans of that small epoch of the band who like to hear that material, and will occasionally play those old-time favorites. Also, for the first few tours, Marillion probably needed extra material from throughout the band's history to fill up an entire set.

Steve Hogarth does sound a bit nervous at times, whether that's when he's singing or during his short audience interactions. He had basically just joined the band mere months before this tour. It wouldn't take very long for Hogarth to gain confidence as Marillion's frontman. It's interesting to hear Hogarth sing the Fish-era songs. The songs from 'Seasons End' are performed well. Hogarth begins the song "Seasons End" by singing the Christmas carol "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel." The last two tracks were recorded later in the tour. In my opinion, Hogarth sounds better and more confident on these last two tracks.

In conclusion, 'Live in Glasgow' is a decent live album from Marillion. Steve Hogarth's lack of confidence falters this live album slightly. Nevertheless, the tracklist is great, as 'Seasons End' and 'Clutching at Straws' are two of my favorite Marillion albums.