Trollheart

I remember well mine, it was listening to Genesis's "Seconds out" live album. I swapped it plus a Rory Gallagher album and Supertramp's "Crime of the century" for what I can't recall, but I remember listening enraptured to the whole of SO, absolutely drowning in the deep majesty of it all. Up to then, my knowledge of Genesis had been limited to the single "Follow you follow me" and snippets from a schoolfriend's cassette of "Foxtrot", but listening to the likes of "Squonk", "The Carpet Crawlers", "The Musical box" and "Afterglow" I was entranced.

Then I flipped the record over (ask your parents, young 'uns!) and the stylus hit the grooves (again, ask ....) to pick out the opening strains of "Supper's ready". When it was over I felt almost like I had gone through a religious experience. SO started my love affair with Genesis, and then Supertramp, (via C0tC and on into Paris), dabbling in bands like Yes and ELP (who never really affected me the way Genesis had, and still don't) and thence to Rush and on from there.

When "Script for a jester's tear" hit the shops in 1983 I snapped it up, as Marillion seemed to be the closest thing to Genesis I had ever heard, and of course THAT began a lifelong love affair with Marillion, which has persisted to this day, even though they're not really what you could call prog any more. I do recall being so blown away by Script that I remained silent for about half an hour after "Forgotten sons" had faded for the first time into my ears and my brain, just lying there, soaking it up, and I felt like I had when I had first listened to Seconds Out, a mere three years prior. Of course, "Grendel" put me in mind of my beloved "Supper's ready", but then, I wasn't the only one to make that connection, right or wrong...

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018