StillMarillion - The Voodoo Rooms, Edinburgh 26th November 2023

Apart from Misplaced Childhood, the first four Marillion albums are a bit niche. Most of the subsequent 16 records have been no less specialist. Tonight’s protagonists don’t, for the most part, trouble themselves with those later cuts. For those of us who were around in the days of greasepaint masks, rubber plants and lost poets, those first four albums touched our souls. It’s been a very long time since Marillion or Fish played a full two-and-a-half hours of those tracks for us and for so very long there was nothing to fill the void, other than a vain hope that the originals would play an old song at a gig.

Five guys from Glasgow decided to jump into that void 15 years ago and have a bash at recreating some of those tunes. Yup, that’s 15 years StillMarillion have been here, and so have we. If you’ve never seen them, it's important to know this isn’t some “have a go group” of gunslingers. StillMarillion are five really good musicians who clearly work hard at arranging these classic songs in a way that makes the song sound good, maximises the band’s talents and puts smiles on faces. It's a bit of an ask as there is comparatively little to go on - 34 album tracks, a few singles and some decent B sides are all there is - but they still manage, year on year, to produce a great show for the fans.

Tribute bands don’t generally get fans; people who come along are fans of the original band. They don’t want or expect to hear any ‘new stuff’ and generally don’t give a monkeys who is playing as long as they are giving a good account of the band they are covering. StillMarillion have bucked this a wee bit. After 15 years they very much have their own fans. A look around the room sees a good number of StillMarillion t-shirts. I went to buy one, but every size was sold out except the small – that tells you something about the fan base.

They do put in new arrangements of songs. Tonight, for example, there was a rendition of “Exile on Princes Street”. This was a demo track that I’d never heard live before. It was also the pick of the night for me, I think because this was not an expected number and perhaps was one that required a wee bit more attention and thought than the standards.

They also have such a touch of authenticity that they number Steve Rothery, the Marillion guitarist, amongst their fans. Rothery has played with this band and has recruited Martin, the singer, to front his own solo outfit, the Steve Rothery Band.

These nights are great for old fans and even older old friends. I was joined by three mates, two of whom I went to see the Misplaced tour with, and pretty much every gig thereafter. Tonight kicked off with “Slàinte Mhath” arranged just as it is on the live album “The Thieving Magpie”. We were all able to say that we were on that record. Yup, StillMarillion are all about memories.

Some tonight were evidently remembering their time at school. There was a good bit of space at the front but the back six rows were packed so tight it was almost impossible to leave. Clearly many of these were the fans who spent their school days at the back of the class drawing jesters on the desk.

So what about the gig itself? It very much had the feel of an end-of-term affair. This was the last gig of a busy 2023. The guys were joking with themselves and the crowd throughout the night and managed to produce a really relaxed, happy vibe. That was a bit of an achievement as all five managed to get parking tickets when they were unloading their gear. Man, Edinburgh needs to wise up and do all they can to support live music not cut it off at the legs through parking tickets!

Most of the gig revolved around the Clutching at Straws record, with seven of the 19 songs coming from that album. It's always great to hear “Warm Wet Circles”, home of my favourite Marillion line, “a mothers kiss on your first broken heart, a warm wet circle”. The rest covered all four Fish era albums and even a piano and vocal version of “A Gentleman’s Excuse Me” from Fish’s first solo album arranged by Stuart on keys. Keeping it pegged to original cuts must be hard; it was great to hear this different arrangement of a great song that fitted perfectly into the set.

There were the singles from “Misplaced Childhood” but, to the crowd’s chagrin, there was no more from this one. As Martin pointed out, only at a StillMarillion gig would the crowd complain about not hearing a full 40-minute concept album mid-set!

One thing you do always get with StillMarillion is enthusiasm. Mark Mitchell always throws himself into the guitar part with huge passion and skill. Tonight was no exception - most of those around me felt the guitar part could have been turned up in the mix as it was just that wee bit too quiet, particularly behind Big Mark on drums who gave the whole set everything he was worth. Standing quietly at the side is bass man Barrie. He travels up and down the fret board with confidence across the night, underpinning each song with a solid grounding.

With no kid-on departures, it was straight into the encore numbers - Fugazi, Garden Party and Market Square Heroes ended a fantastic night. These are the songs that take the room back to the days of their youth, a warm memory wrapped in a jester’s cloak.

As the lights came up, some left straight away, others mingled to chat with friends whilst many just hung to chat with the band, who were more than happy to join in. This sums up StillMarillion for me. They are all very accomplished musicians who recreate an era many of us love but, above all, they are just mates who like playing the music they are fans of. There is little demarcation between band and fans on night like this. We are all fans of the music - it just so happens that there are five of us playing it.

As we wandered back to the car, we chatted through our great nights watching Marillion and Fish together over the decades. We also chatted about how good the StillMarillion gigs have been for years. Then the debate started, Grendle or no Grendle, best album, best song… it went on throughout the journey home. I guess, like Raquel from Corrie, we just love hearing these songs again. For StillMarillion, till next year, we march.