Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Marillion
Label: EMI Records
Released: 1988
Rating: 4/5
“The Thieving Magpie – La Gazza Ladra” is a double live album that marks Marillion’s first real official live recording, if you don’t count the live tracks that came out on their “first” live release, “Real To Reel” (1984) and the EP “Brief Encounter” (1986). Those two were more a commercial move by the label, a way to rake in some extra cash off the band’s growing popularity, though both are still must-haves for any true fan of the band (they’re now collected together on a double edition that came out in 1997). “The Thieving Magpie” symbolically wraps up and marks their last live moments with the charismatic singer Fish, who left the band for personal reasons after the album came out. That dramatic move, and the arrival of his successor Steve Hogarth, a completely different type of singer, slowly spelled the end of the era when Marillion were the central torchbearers of the new wave of progressive rock, and the start of a search for a new sound in more adventurous art-rock waters.
After the release of the masterpiece “Clutching At Straws” (1987), Marillion set off on their last tour with Fish as singer, and even though it was incredibly grueling for Fish, especially psychologically, you can’t hear even a hint on any of the performances that his mind was already elsewhere. Quite the opposite, because every song on this recording is excellent at the very least, with every single member of the band playing at the absolute peak of their abilities. All the main ingredients that make most of the band’s fans so happy work together in superb harmony here: Rothery’s subtle guitar passages, Trewavas’ mighty, building bass lines, Mosley’s precise and dynamic drumming, the layered textures of Kelly’s keyboards, and, as always, the deeply emotional Fish, who once again carries the incredible poetic expression of most of the compositions, into which he managed to pour much of his personality. Together they add up to a phenomenal energy on these recordings, which in places even improve on some of the studio versions. On the first CD we get to enjoy superb renditions of some of their best classics, such as the epic-tinged masterpieces “Chelsea Monday”, “Jigsaw”, “Fugazi” and “Script For A Jester’s Tear”, where we witness the best of what made Marillion great in their neo-prog era. Among the beloved live staples, “Market Square Heroes” and “Garden Party” are missed, since those were usually the go-to numbers for warming up the crowd. A few minor downsides on most of the tracks lie in the variable sound quality and the limited contribution of the audience, but that’s almost negligible, since the pulse of the gig can be felt the whole way through. The main draw, though, is definitely the complete live performance of the unforgettable masterpiece “Misplaced Childhood” (1985), which on the original LP release contained only half the songs from that neo-prog classic.
The first CD opens with a recording of Rossini’s classical piece “La Gazza Ladra”, continuing the tradition of some other prog bands (Yes, for example) who still use pieces from the classical world to open their shows today. Then the band goes straight into “Slainthe Mhath” (Clutching At Straws, 1987), nicely demonstrating an incredible refinement and cohesion of energy. All the songs on the recording stay faithful to their studio versions, but are played with a bit more emotion, since Fish’s vocals take them up another level. This version of the unforgettable “He Knows You Know” (Script For A Jester’s Tear, 1983), for example, is a rendition that I like even more than the studio one. “Chelsea Monday” is one of the highlights of the whole recording thanks to Rothery’s incredible solo. The performance of “Freaks”, the B-side of an otherwise pretty average single, is interesting too, played with real feeling as a dedication to all the members of their fan club, who call themselves “freaks”. On the excellent performance of the power ballad “Sugar Mice” (Clutching At Straws), you can already sense the seeds of Fish’s farewell. The renditions of the pieces from “Fugazi” (1984), like the layered “Jigsaw”, the bouncy “Punch And Judy” and the epic “Fugazi”, are on an enviable level as well. The peak is without a doubt the performance of the unforgettable masterpiece “Script For A Jester’s Tear” from the album of the same name, their debut, which to me is still the main showcase of everything best about their neo-prog period. Two more cuts from “Clutching At Straws” close things out. “Incommunicado”, with its cocky vibe, is as always a real energy catalyst and the moment when the crowd gets up on its feet too, which you can nicely hear on this recording. After that cheerful moment, the closer is the deeply dramatic and melancholic epic “White Russian”, which sticks faithfully to its studio version.
On the second disc we get the complete live performance of the concept masterpiece “Misplaced Childhood”, which, in both atmosphere and execution, doesn’t fall short of its studio version in the slightest. That’s the main reason this live album is still the most popular one among the band’s fans. The performance sounds quite similar to the studio original, except that Fish’s vocals carry an extra surge of emotion and there are a few additional Rothery guitar improvisations, so there’s no point in listing the individual pieces. Of course, it’s got their two biggest hits, “Kayleigh” and “Lavender”, as well as the fan-favorite track from the album, “Heart Of Lothian”. No integral element of the original release is left out. My only gripe is the shortened version of the excellent epic “Childhoods End?”, which is one of their best pieces ever for me, since in my eyes it’s the most important moment of the album (at least as far as its concept goes). Anyone who isn’t won over by the first half of the recording will surely be won over by this superb performance of their most popular and best-known album.
With “The Thieving Magpie”, Marillion picked an extremely fitting headstone for the end of their first era and a farewell to the charismatic Scottish giant, who started his solo career the following year. For anyone who doesn’t know them yet, this is a pretty nice starting point, though in their case I’d recommend everyone start with the studio albums from the debut onward. All fans of the band, though, absolutely have to own this excellent live album, which is still one of their few official live releases from the Fish era, in their collection.
Lineup
Fish – vocals
Steve Rothery – guitar
Pete Trewavas – bass guitar
Mark Kelly – keyboards
Ian Mosley – drums
Production
Marillion and Privet Hedge
Track List
CD 1: 73:29
1. Intro-La Gazza Ladra (2:45)
2. Slàinte Mhath (4:48)
3. He knows you know (5:12)
4. Chelsea Monday (7:59)
5. Freaks (7:59)
6. Jigsaw (6:24)
7. Punch and Judy (3:22)
8. Sugar mice (6:02)
9. Fugazi (8:38)
10. Script for a Jester’s tears (8:44)
11. Incommunicado (5:23)
12. White Russian (6:13)
CD 2: 42:33
1. Pseudo silk kimono (2:19)
2. Kayleigh (3:52)
3. Lavender (2:27)
4. Bitter suite (7:37)
5. Heart of Lothian (5:12)
6. Waterhole (expresso bongo) (2:16)
7. Lords of the backstage (6:07)
8. Blind curve (5:34)
9. Childhood’s end? (2:47)
10. White feather (4:22)
Trajanje albuma: 112:32
