marillion

#1109: “Marillion Sucks”

RECORD STORE TALES #1109: “Marillion Sucks”

Friends, what would you do if you ordered a used CD from a small chain, only to find somebody defaced the artwork with black magic marker before sending to you?  What if that defacement was specifically aimed at you?

My love of Marillion was known far and wide at the Record Store.  Nobody else liked Marillion.  I’d play them when I could, but everybody I worked with hated Marillion.

Everybody.

But I never found out who hated Marillion so much that they would ruin a CD just to tell me that “Marillion sucks”.

I wish I had taken a picture, but here’s the story.  After I quit the Record Store and became a regular customer, I still received preferential treatment for a few months.  They would often set stuff aside for me and call me asking if I wanted it.  That was very cool of them.  They didn’t have to do that.  Other times, I received treatment that was simply unacceptable.

One day in 2006, a few months after quitting, I placed an online order for some used CDs.  Free shipping, no fuss no muss.  I found three discs I wanted.  One of them, which I was buying just “for the collection” was Gene Simmons’ spoken word CD, Speaking in Tongues.  I didn’t plan on playing it every day, but I did plan on cherishing it as part of my Kiss collection.  Everyone at that store knew my favourite band in the world was Kiss.   They all hated Kiss about as much as Marillion.  That said, I ordered Speaking in Tongues and awaited the arrival of my mail.

Discs from my old store often arrived in broken cases; that was par for the course.  They also often arrived more scratched than I liked, but I wasn’t going to be as picky about what I bought as I was when I worked there.  What was unacceptable and tantamount to sabotage was what I saw when I got my Simmons disc.

Everything appeared fine.  The case was cracked, the disc was a little scuffy, but it should play fine, right?

I never got that far.

After removing the disc from the case, I saw that someone wrote on the inside back cover “MARILLION SUCKS” in big, black indelible magic marker.

Hah, hah.  Funny.

Who does that to someone they know is a collector?  Who does that to someone they obviously knew personally, since they knew I loved Marillion?

I never found out.  I complained and nobody ever told me.  I returned the disc immediately, unplayed.  I was really pissed off.

The fact that this happened at a Record Store that preached “professionalism” was absolutely shocking.  I remember getting in shit for telling a customer I hated Radiohead when asked!  Did this person get in shit for writing “MARILLION SUCKS” on my CD?

I wonder if anyone will ever own up and tell me who wrecked my Simmons CD.  I doubt it.

#1107.5: Fairway Road Fail

Regardless of some decent rare scores this weekend, I was very disappointed with the old Record Store I used to manage.  I have an advantage here, since I know the rules and everything the staff should and should not have been doing.  We ended up having to go twice.  Here’s where they failed:

  1.  Nobody greeted us at the door (twice) – this was compulsory.
  2.  Nobody asked us if we wanted help (twice) – also compulsory.
  3.  Two guys just chatted behind the counter, never once came onto floor on either visit.
  4.  Sold me two discs without CDs in cases, forcing me to return and pick up the CDs.
  5.  Did not issue me $3 credit / apology letter for forgetting.
  6.  Put price tags directly on cardboard sleeves of rare Marillion 3″ singles.  This tore the cover art upon removal attempt.  Damaged packaging thanks to shoddy pricing work.

Added kick in the nuts:  Chris from Encore contacted me to tell me that my Iron Maiden – Number of the Beast vinyl is almost $10 cheaper at his store.  Why do I still go back to my old haunt?  Standards sure have fallen in 20 years.

A failing grade for my old store.

#1107: Dark Clouds & Silver Linings: CD & Vinyl Haul, and Grab A Stack Of Rock spotted on WWE Wrestling

RECORD STORE TALES #1107: Dark Clouds &; Silver Linings:
CD & Vinyl Haul, and Grab A Stack Of Rock spotted on WWE Wrestling

Jen has experienced a few health setbacks.  Last week, she took another hard fall.  It wasn’t a seizure this time, but a pothole in the sidewalk.  She took a tumble, busted her expensive therapy glasses, and ended up with a bruise on her forehead that became its dominant feature.  During a moment of levity, I dubbed her Mikhail Gorbachev, which she took to heart with a comedic post on Facebook about her resemblance to the former Russian president.  You have to laugh sometimes.  Despite this, all the setbacks have taken a toll on my own health, and I really have not been doing well either.

One night last week, I was so stressed out that I slept for 10 hours and still woke up feeling like a zombie.  My head banged and every limb ached.  I really struggled to come down after some of the recent events and scares.

However, as always, there are good things amongst the rest.

I took Jen to the eye doctor after her fall, and killed some time at the local Record Store.  They had a bunch of cool Marillion and Fish in stock, so I snagged all of it.

  • Marillion – “Incommunicado” 5″ CD single – damaged packaging, but this is a duplicate CD and will be donated to a worthy friend
  • Marillion – “Freaks” (Live) 5″ CD single
  • Marillion – “Hooks In You” 3″ CD single
  • Marillion – “Uninvited Guest” 3″ CD single
  • Fish – “Big Wedge” 5″ CD single
  • Fish – “A Gentleman’s Excuse Me” 5″ CD single
  • Boston – Greatest Hits CD
  • Iron Maiden – The Number of the Beast 40th anniversary LP

I’ve been wanting a complete collection of classic 80s Derek Riggs Iron Maiden on vinyl, so why not.  I remember when Sam the Record Man had Powerslave, brand new, for $5.99.  Beast was $39.99.  Holy moly.  The total haul was $92.

New music is good for the soul, so this haul, expecially the 3″ discs, was especially satisfying.  I did notice a few things about the Record Store.

Back in my day, there was a “not hats” rule.  That was hard and fast.  I had bad hair a lot of days and couldn’t hide it under a hat.  On this visit, one guy had a touque, the other a baseball hat.

Neither guy asked me if I wanted any help.  That also used to be a hard and fast rule.  You had to ask every single person who walked in the door.  Give ’em a minute, and ask.  Neither guy bothered.   Things sure have changed in the last 20 years.

I had to laugh at a couple things though.  An older man came in and asked about a movie on DVD.  The guy at the counter told him the movie was still new in theaters.  I remember having that very conversation in my days at the Record Store.

I also observed people coming in with boxes and tubs full of CDs, movies and videos games, reminding me of my busier Saturdays in the days of yore.  I really didn’t enjoy buying used CDs by the tub, but in came the discs regardless!  By the tub, bag or box, the CDs came in a never-ending stream of media.  I spotting a woman bringing in a Tragically Hip Phantom Power CD from 30 feet.  I still got the skills.

I think I did well at the store today.  I did even better after.  Cooler than a CD haul at a Record Store though, was the surprise that Johnny Clauser had for me.

John Clauser, from My Music Corner on Youtube, is one of my favourite music people.  He was off to a televised WWE event, Road to Wrestlemania Smackdown, in Birmingham Alabama.  Johnny had ringside seats.  Rumour had it that Dwayne “The Rock Johnson” was going to be there that night.  He was.

On national television, John Clauser can clearly be seen, wearing his Grab A Stack of Rock shirt.  It’s there for the world to see.

When the Rock enters, it appears he sees the shirt, and stares at it for a few seconds.  John says he was staring directly at the shirt…the Grab A Stack of Rock shirt!   You can see it happen on video.

Regardless of the rumours, John planned two weeks in advance on wearing my Grab A Stack of Rock shirt to the event.  I didn’t know of his plan until he started sending me pictures from ringside.  By the next day, people were sending me screenshots and video clips of John at ringside, on national television.

John, I cannot tell you how much this means to me.  To see my shirt on your chest on national television.  To have this image of the Rock and my shirt together…it is beyond words.  I cannot express my gratitude to you.  It’s beyond measure, sir.  I’m sure John has plenty of shirts.  Thank you sir, for making my day a little sunnier.

As it turns out, the sun came out Saturday for the first time in many days.  It was glorious to behold.

Spring is closer and closer.  Better days ahead.  I smell the what the future is cooking!

 

 

 

Check out the Rock spotting my shirt at 14:50

Too Much Music? Grab A Stack of Mike’s CD Collection

How much music constitutes too much music?  This was a question I asked rhetorically during the recording of this 50 minute episode of Grab A Stack of Rock.  It is clear, whatever the number is, I have hit it and then some.

We had an interesting show and tell tonight, including the below:

  • Stir of Echoes, a 2008 band of Ray D’Auria’s (Mystique)
  • A Harem Scarem box set
  • A Max Webster box set
  • A defective Black Sabbath CD
  • An Iron Maiden bootleg with Blaze Bayley
  • Some gifts from Rob Daniels
  • White Snake
  • A Def Leppard bootleg
  • Some Rush and some jazz
  • Japanese import Deep Purple
  • Promo DLR
  • Deluxe Foo Fighters
  • Alice Cooper
  • Greta Van Fleet
  • A gift from Kevin Simister
  • A lot, lot, lot, of sealed Marillion
  • An avalanche!

This pre-recorded episode was an experiment and I think it went very well.  I was able to interact via the comments on YouTube and we had a lively discussion on the side.

While I will always prefer going live, these shorter solo shows will offer an alternative way of making it through the cold snowy winter together.  Thanks for watching and dropping the comments.  This was fun!

Next week will be a re-run, but Mike and the Mad Metal Man will be back on January 26 with John Snow and Tim Durling to show off music DVDs.  Then, on February 2, Marco D’Auria will be back to talk about the new 95 minute version of the Mystique movie that has been getting glowing accolades at festivals.  These will both be live shows and I hope you can join us!

Too Much Music? Grab A Stack of Mike’s CD Collection Tonight!

GRAB A STACK OF ROCK With Mike and the Mad Metal Man

Episode 47:  Too Much Music?

A must-watch for fans of Harem Scarem, Marillion, Deep Purple/Whitesnake, and the CD format!

Trying something different tonight.  Regular viewers know the original concept of the show (courtesy of Uncle Meat) was to just “grab a stack of rock” and talk about it.  Strangely enough, we never really just grabbed a random stack of discs from my collection to go through them.   So that’s what I did this time!  Instead of going live, I recorded this episode ahead of time.  It took 45 minutes to go through a stack and a half of neglected CDs from my collection.  It’s my first solo show in a couple years.

What may shock and appall you is how many discs from these stacks are unplayed and unopened.  Too much music?  I believe this episode makes a case for that.

I also unboxed a surprise care package from Marco D’Auria (The Contrarians) and what a cool surprise it was.

Tune in tonight at 7:00 PM at the regular places!

Friday January 12 at 7:00 P.M. E.S.T. / 8:00 P.M. Atlantic.   Enjoy on YouTube or on Facebook!

#1061: Musical Flashbacks and Flame Throwers (VIDEO)

RECORD STORE TALES #1061: Musical Flashbacks and Flame Throwers

I know how to pick the tunes.

Trip up:  Of course, it had to be High Noon by the Arkells.  Had to be.  That album has become too important to me.  And so we played and I sang along, and really struggled and failed to hit the one “ooo ooo ooo” in “Never Thought That This Could Happen”.  One of many signs of my aging body this weekend.

Three day weekends are really special.  Sure, we didn’t get to finish everything we wanted to.  But we did have fun.  For the first time, we checked out a local shop called the Beef Way.  We picked up a delicious tomahawk steak and some apple pie jam.  Highly recommended.  We are all done with Robert’s Boxed Meats in Kitchener.  For the second time, he sold us steak that had gone bad.  Never again, Robert!  Beef Way has our money now.  Guy was super helpful.

When we arrived on the front porch, it was all about the music once again.  I captured some on video for you to enjoy, and I hope it gives you that “being there” feeling.  The idea this weekend was, once again, to travel back in time.  Listening to albums in the place I first heard them:  the cottage.  Priest…Live!  Misplaced Childhood by Marillion.  White Lion’s Big Game (who Jen understandably confused with Bon Jovi).  This time it just made me glow.

The biggest deal about this weekend was the unprecedented spotting of wildlife!  I managed to capture all of it either on photo or video.  There was a beefy raccoon.  We had a turkey.  There was a beautiful skunk.  Best of all, our fearless little chipmunk friend returned to visit us on both front and back porches.  On Saturday we had a Lego session, and he came right out to help.

A word about Lego:  It sure has changed a lot since we were kids.  Now there are angles for every degree and orientation, slopes we never had before, lots of pieces that have both right and left-handed counterparts, and building techniques that involve going sideways just as often as upwards.  It was challenging for both of us.  But we’re both making progress!  And I thought we’d be done in a weekend….

If YouTube allows the music, then check out my picks.

2023 is off to a banging start!

REVIEW: Marillion – Unplugged at the Walls (1999)

On the 25th of June 1998 a strange thing happened.

A group of like-minded people arrived at England’s sea and airports and made their way to a small town on the Welsh border.  The came from Brazil, Mexico, North America, Australia, Japan, Israel, Germany, Holland and Spain.

They came to have dinner.

…they also came to see a band.

 

MARILLION – Unplugged at the Walls (1999 Racket Records – Racket 10)

What’s your favourite acoustic album?

We all know the big “unplugged” performances, but between the cracks fell the web-only release Unplugged at the Walls by Marillion.  Only available via their website, this remarkable album was recorded while Marillion were working on their 10th record Radiation back in 1998.

While recording in Oswestry, Marillion struck a deal with the “best restaurant in town”, the Walls.  Now independent, every penny counted.  In exchange for free meals, Marillion agreed to play some acoustic sets at the Walls.  The idea grew and people came from all over the world to hear new songs and tunes that had never been played acoustically before.  They stripped down and re-arranged songs, added some surprises, and the result is one of the best Marillion live albums ever made.  Out of over 100!

Sampling tracks from the five Hogarth-era albums, no oldies were to be found.  Plenty of singles though:  “Easter”, “Alone Again in the Lap of Luxury”, “Hooks in You”, “Eighty Days”, and “Beautiful” which opens the set.

While Marillion have always been top-notch musicians, in an unplugged setting such as this, Steve Hogarth is the standout performer.  Whether whispering or letting it all out, Hogarth is never less than spellbinding.  He is always in complete command, with every ear on him.

The highlights are many, but Marillion’s version of Radiohead’s “Fake Plastic Trees” may surpass the original.  That’s all because of Hogarth.  Nobody can touch him.  He gets more intense as the song builds.  When he sings “I could blow through the ceiling,” you truly believe it.  The track is so good that they eventually used it as the B-side to “These Chains”.

“Abraham, Martin and John” (Marvin Gaye) is a track Marillion have since released on other live albums, but this gentle version is fantastic.  This one sports some beautifully warm electric guitar tones courtesy of Steve Rothery.  Marillion also cover “Blackbird” (The Beatles, but you knew that) and do a damn respectable job of it.  Instead of birds chirping, you get the sound of diners cheering!

The new songs premiered that night were the already-acoustic “Now She’ll Never Know”, and “The Answering Machine” which, over the years, has been popular both electrically and acoustically.  “Now She’ll Never Know” is the quietest song of the night.  “Answering Machine” meanwhile is one of the most upbeat.

They also tackled the surf-rocker “Cannibal Surf Babe” which did just fine unplugged and stripped to the basics.  “The Space” received a completely new, jazzy arrangement.  They played this version many times over the year, but it’s a bit of a slog compared to the rest.  The closer “Eighty Days” is jaunty and receives a massive response from the crowd, as does “Gazpacho”.  Appropriately enough, the Walls had gazpacho on their menu that night.

Speaking of which, the menu is included as part of the booklet.  It does indeed sound like the best restaurant in town!  “Salad of black pasta with marinated seafood and prawns.”  Wow!

This album was reissued in 2018, giving everybody a chance to get one.  You should.

5/5 stars

 

This Is Your Life, Jacob Moon on the LeBrain Train + musical performance of “Someday”

The LeBrain Train reunites old friends — it is what we do!  Whether it be Mike Fraser and Andy Curran, or members of the community at large, we enjoy bringing people together.  We also enjoy improvisation, both in our music and in the live show.  This time, flying by the seats of our pants, we reunited Jacob Moon with old friends from his past.  By the stories told, you can call this episode This Is Your Life, Jacob Moon.

Watch as Meat, Trevor and Jacob relive their favourite memories, musical and otherwise.  Observe as Meat forgets how to count up to eleven.  Enjoy as Jacob performs some of his favourite impressions.  Ed Grimley?  Check.  Tom Waits?  Check.  Nigel Tufnel?  Top ten!

In a LeBrain Train first, Jacob gave us the show’s first full musical performance.  Steve Earle’s “Someday”, live by Jacob Moon, is a LeBrain Train exclusive musical performance!  He also gave us a partial version of “Downtown Train” with some hilarious impressions.

We took viewer questions and a celebrity guest question from Andy Curran.  Discussion subjects included:

  • The making of “Subdivisions”
  • Musical adventures with Trev and Eric
  • “Christmas Goalie”
  • Playing a Rush song in front of Rush
  • Playing the Marillion weekend
  • Looping and technical stuff
  • Streaming live

Thank you Meat, Trevor and especially Jacob Moon for an awesome Saturday show.  Jacob, I am honoured and flattered to have you play live on my little show!  I cannot thank you enough.

 

REVIEW: Marillion – Fugazi (2 CD remastered edition)

MARILLION – Fugazi (1998 EMI 2 CD edition, album originally released 1984)

Fugazi: Military slang meaning “fucked up situation”, coined during the Vietnam war.

Or: The making of Marillion’s second album.

After rolling through a couple drummers including Jonathan Mover, Marillion finally settled on Ian Mosely, the British veteran who is still in the band today. They settled in to record the “difficult” second album, which was dubbed Fugazi. It is a challenging listen, probably the most challenging of the original four. As such it tends to fall by the wayside today, despite the inclusion of the excellent single “Assassing”.

“I am the assassin, with tongue forged in eloquence. I am the assassin, providing your nemesis.”

It was a pointed statement at the ex-drummer Mick Pointer, from his former friend, lead vocalist Fish.

Lyrically, Fugazi represents the very best of Marillion of any era.  Both “Jigsaw” and the included B-side track “Cinderella Search” contain lyrics of great depth, beauty, emotion, and layers upon layers of interpretation. I like Fish’s use of homonyms, such as “Swam through the nicotine seize”.

Musically, this is a dense album that takes multiple listens to appreciate. Side one of the original album was catchier, with the two singles (“Punch & Judy” being the second) and the lullaby-like “Jigsaw”. Side two was more challenging, with longer heavier songs: “She Chameleon” and “Incubus” are good examples. Incidentally, Fish considered “Incubus” to be his greatest lyrical achievement, once again using homonyms. “I, the mote in your eye.”

The bonus disc contains the stellar B-side “Cinderella Search”, a song that goes through multiple sections before culminating with its powerful ending. “I always use the cue sheets but never the nets, never the nets, nevertheless.” Other B-sides include a remix of “Assassing” and the re-recorded version of “Three Boats Down From The Candy”. (I prefer the original.) This disc is rounded out by four demos of some of the more challenging songs.

The cover art is loaded with brilliance courtesy of Mark Wilkinson.  He put just as much thought into the art as Fish did into the lyrics.  Wilkinson and the band provide enlightening liner notes. You’ll want to make sure you read them. Did Mark Kelly really see a ghost? Find out inside.

5/5 stars

Fugazi is expected to be upgraded to a multidisc deluxe edition including 5.1 mix this summer- 2021.

REVIEW: Marillion – Christmas 2020 (single)

MARILLION – Christmas 2020 (2020Racket Records CD single)

For those who love the numbers (hands up, both of you), here are some Marillion 2020 statistics for you:

  • This is the third Marillion single in 2020, after the “Easter” and “Made Again” home recordings.
  • This is the sixteenth Marillion Christmas CD.  A full list of them can be found at bottom.

This year it’s a simple two-track CD single, instead of a live album, and it’s better that way.  Not that a double live CD isn’t a fine way to spend Christmas, but this just feels more…Christmas-y.

Both tracks are produced by Michael Hunter.  “All I Want for Christmas is You” features jingle bells, and the full band givin’ ‘er.  Nice to hear Marillion just rocking!  This is what I want to hear this Christmas — a party.  Ian Mosely doesn’t get to pound a simple one out like this much anymore.  This is good time Marillion Christmas dance party track — and there are not many of those!  They even managed to squeeze in a so-cool Steve Rothery guitar solo without losing the fun.

For the sentimental type, enjoy a lovely “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”.  Hard to believe Marillion haven’t covered this one yet, but they have now!  They do it with piano, keyboards and light accompaniment.  It’s done just the way you want to hear it, around the fire after the kids have been tucked in.  Listen for Steve Hogarth’s Christmas message at the end.

Two Christmas songs done so perfectly that even a Grinch-like curmudgeon can enjoy them.  What else do you want for a free Christmas CD?

5/5 stars

Marillion Christmas CD collection