have come a long way since 1984’s live album provided them with a life raft to cling to after the disappointing commercial performance of its studio predecessor, . Forty years on, the format has become one of the foundations on which their cottage industry-turned-mini-empire is built. At the last count, there have been 17 official live albums from the -fronted line-up, plus more than 40 released via their own Racket label.
A valuable income stream, for sure, but something that’s become so deeply knitted into their ongoing mythology that it would feel weird if they didn’t exist. brings the tally close to 60. Released on CD as well as DVD and Blu-ray, the hook is self-explanatory.
In March 2023, the band held their traditional Marillion Weekender at Center Parcs, Port Zelande, on the coast of Holland. The second of its three nights was dedicated to – still one of the most powerful and moving documents of the Covid era. Those emotions are cued up from the start via an audio snippet of Carl Sagan’s 1994 book , in which the late scientist benignly but firmly puts humanity in its ultimately insignificant place in the universe.
“Saturday night is album night,” says a gleeful Hogarth, as bassist Pete Trewavas plays a few bars of ; but the jollity can’t undercut the impact of the music. A rendition of Go! easily trumps its studio version , and especially the hymnal with its salute to the NHS heroes who helped the nation through lethal times – are magnificent, flashin.