a tribute is perhaps long overdue to the best album of 1985 (Frankie released in 84 and 86), one of the best albums of the 80's and possibly one of the greatest, overlooked masterpieces of all time - Misplaced Childhood by Marillion.
for those of you unfamiliar with this work, Misplaced Childhood is what they call a "concept" album, although i am loathe to use the term as so much rubbish gets that label. a well themed story of an album it is; and in the genre can sit comfortably with any comparison you care to make to Tommy, the greatest "concept" album of all time, and an album that is something of a kindred spirit to, if not a musical relative to Childhood.
so what's the story, theme or "concept" behind it? broadly, it's standing still to look backwards with the occasional glance forward, really. an apparently quasi-schizophrenic narrator guides us through a past littered with regret, sorrow and the occasional moment of joy, all through a vocal which melts from bitter to a sort of acceptance throughout the album. this is interspersed with commentary from the "reality", if you will, of the present tense of the album, and ultimately leads to a form of redemption in conclusion; the location of a childhood that was misplaced and/or wrongly neglected, forgotten, overlooked.
my, that insight into the album feels a touch bloated! ho hum, let me try and go through some of the highlights. that said, however, there's really no need for me to comment on the two singles that became hits from this, Kayleigh and Lavender. except to say that yes, that slice of trivia is true - the name "Kayleigh" did not exist until such time as Fish combined the names of two ex's for the story he sings in this song.the intention was to release this as track free, just as "side one" and "side two". now that we are in the era of CD, the album works even better, as the whole thing flows as one piece of music; a 40 minute experience of lyrical genius with a talented, compelling soundtrack. this makes picking out one or two tracks complicated, as it feels unfair on the rest of the album. that said, there is one small section that i will celebrate as artistic genius until the last star falls from our skies. on the epic track Bitter Suite there's a section that is, at best, two minutes long called The Blue Angel :
The sky was Bible black in Lyon, when I met the Magdalene
She was paralyzed in a streetlight
She refused to give her name
And a ring of violet bruises
They were pinned upon her arm
Two hundred francs for sanctuary and she led me by the hand
To a room of dancing shadows where all the heartache disappears
And from glowing tongues of candles I heard her whisper in my ear
jentend ton coeur, jentend ton coeur
I can hear your heart, I can hear your heart, I can hear your heart
the subject matter of this hardly needs any clarification for me. i defy anyone to find me a more poetic, vivid or quite frankly beautiful use of the English language given to any shape or form of subject matter in the 23 years (and counting) since Misplaced Childhood was released. the depths of human nature, understanding and interpretation vocalist Fish (no idea where the name came from) reaches here are astonishing to say the least, and carry on throughout the whole album. i believe alcohol and (ahem) other substances were well in place right throughout the creation of this album, and there can be no surprise in this with the bare soul searching conducted. absinthe makes the heart grow fonder, one might say. granted, the symbolic references (magpies, rainbows, rain) are not for all, but you never know, give it a try!
the man they call Fish tends to get a lot of credit for this album, but that's rather unfair on the talented band that is Marillion. granted, Fish is your narrator here, and it does seem to be the story of Fish for the most part, but the whole thing would not have worked had it not been a whole band effort. on that note; Steve Rothery, Mark Kelly, Peter Trewavas and Ian Mosley, your work here was first class. and of course thanks to Robert Mead for posing for the iconic artwork, and nice one Mark Wilkinson for creating the artwork.with all due respect to the artistic achievements and fanatical support Marillion and Fish have enjoyed since the parted ways in the late 80's, Misplaced Childhood is the zenith of all involved; a towering work that neither came close to bettering, but then again not something they regretted creating, i would imagine. the worlds of Marillion and Fish other than this album are worth seeking out, but be warned, this is as good as it gets.
is there a flaw with Misplaced Childhood at all? well, sadly kind of, as it appears it was never captured live. i have only heard the official live version on the double live album La Gazza Ladra, and quite frankly it is a bit of a mess. it does not help that it's not a one off recording - the whole of Misplaced Childhood has been assembled from at least two, possibly three different shows. the recording does, however, reveal that they tried to perform the album "as is" on stage; that is they did not adapt it to a live medium, much like The Who rather successfully did when presenting Tommy at gigs. a small gripe, but there you go. ahem, if anyone knows of any good live recordings of Misplaced Childhood, official or otherwise, let me know!whereas i am certainly not in business with any other site, if you want to hear this album (and you should), you can get it at amazon - they have the standard version for a giveaway four pounds, or the deluxe 2 disc set for ten quid. the deluxe edition has some great extras, in particular the brilliant Freaks and Lady Nina, but it's the album itself which should reside in all music lovers collections, so fear not in purchasing the lower 1 disc version!
Misplaced Childhood has a place in the collection of all music lovers. i guess it has a specific resonance for all of us who grew up in the 80's for a variety of reasons which i would rather let all interested to discover, or perhaps rediscover, for themselves. it's also an album from a time when music mattered, music was important and albums were crafted and treated with the respect they deserved. unlike most of the trash that is slammed out on plastic discs, memory sticks or made available online these days.
a lamenting love song, Misplaced Childhood is a qualified classic record and the 40 minutes you spend listening to it, if you choose to do so, are 40 minutes very well spent indeed.
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