Kaboom! The latest issue of Classic Rock Presents Prog gets inside 1971, the year that prog rock broke. Interviews with Jon Anderson, Roy Harper, Gentle Giant, Caravan, ELP and more profile the birth of prog, as Fish, Steve Hogarth, Peter Nicholls, Nick Barrett, Brian Devoil, John Mitchell and Steven Wilson describe how their young lives were shaped by the sights and sounds that came out of this year, and how it changed music forever as they carried the torch on. To cap it all, we’ve collated your votes in our 1971 Readers’ Top Ten. Is your favourite in there? Grab a copy now and find out… 

Also in the issue:

Jon Anderson on ABWH – the band that said no to Yes! 

John Wetton returns – healthier, happier and ready to spread his wings. 

Jakszyk, Fripp & Collins – what the Schizoid men did next. 

Kate Bush stars as our maverick – through the eyes of brother John Carder Bush. 

Devin Townsend – the mad professor of prog metal gets experimental. 

Plus: Symphony X, Mogwai, Caravan, …Trail Of Dead, King’s X, Blackfield, Marillion, Yes, Arbouretum, UK, Nektar, Moon Duo, Michael Giles, Blood Ceremony, Touchstone, Roger Waters, Comus, Amorphis, Neal Morse, Wobbler – and, of course, Rick Wakeman’s regular Caped Crusades column. 

There’s always the free CD too featuring 11 artists from Solstice to Graveyard with an EXCLUSIVE Jon Anderson track on as well. 

If you can’t get to a newsagent, find Prog here. 

It really is the dawning of a new era.

He starts on Friday, May 27 and aims to walk 90 miles in six days. Says Fish of why he’s doing this:

“It’s in aid of Elspeth Laidlaw, my super personal secretary and dear friend’s two-year-old granddaughter Eilidh.You can find  out more about Eilidh and the charity here. Any donations, no matter how small, you can give will be greatly and sincerely appreciated. Many thanks in advance to anyone who can help out.”

This should prove to be great training for the giant frontman, because he’s lined up a tour of Scotland for the late summer. The dates are:

August

Thu. 4: Dalkeith No. 10 Masonic Lodge

Fri. 5: Glasgow Box

Fri. 12: Stirling Tollbooth

Sat. 13: North Berwick St. Andrews Blackadder Church

Wed, 17: Arran Whiting Bay Hall

Thu. 18: Oban Esplanade

Fri. 19: Dunoon Queens Hall

Sat. 20: Tobermory AnTobar@Aros Hall

Wed. 24: Perth Theatre

Fri. 26: Keith Royal Hotel

Sat. 27: Aberdeen Lemon Tree

Sun. 28: Inverness Ironworks

Tue. 30: Isle Of Lewis: AnLanntair

September

Thu. 1: Thurso Skinadis

Fri. 2: Kirkwall Picky Cinema

Sat. 3: Lerwick Legion

This happens at Utoxeter Race Course from May 20-22. Steve Harley will headline on Saturday, May 21, when Fish and Martin Turner’s Wishbone Ash will also be on the bill.

Hayseed Dixie will play on Friday, May 20, while Fairport Convention are to headline the last night, with The Strawbs also appearing.

Find out more at http://www.acousticfestival.co.uk/

Here they are:

Dec. 4: Tavistock Wharf

Dec. 5: Gloucester Guildhall

Dec. 6: Chester Telford’s Warehouse

Dec. 8: Cardiff Globe

Dec. 9: Sheffield Boardwalk

Dec. 10: Leicester Donkey

Dec. 11: Worcester Marrsbar

Dec. 13: Derby University

Dec. 14: Kingston Peel

Dec. 15: Kingston Peel

Dec. 17: Newcastle Cluny

Dec. 18: Dumfries Venue

Dec. 19: Maryport Wave

Dec. 20: Manchester Band On The Wall

Dec. 21: Stratford Cox’s Yard

Find out more here.

Former Marillion court jester Fish made a triumphant return to the London stage  at Kingston’s progtastic venue The House Of Progression, in The Peel. Inevitably, it was packed, even the overspill  bar had to be opened to accommodate the throng of Fish/Marillion diehards.

Fish was on fine form and could quite easily make a second career as a stand
up comic/stroryteller. He’s very reminiscent of fellow Scot Billy Connolly, with his sarcastic wit, and deadpan delivery. There were many highly amusing anecdotes, the pick of the bunch being his remarks about  Facebook Sluts, Internet Dating and The Twin Towers (no, not Wembley Stadium!).

And let’s not forget the music. Fish has a vast back catalogue of hidden treasures. So out of the hat came a mixture of solo material and a sprinkling of Marillion Faves. Highpoints were rousing versions of State Of Mind, Zoe 25, Fugazi, Kayleigh, the hypnotic Lavender and the very Who-esque Sugar Mice.

Fish certainly gives value for money these days, with a set that ran for close on two-and-a-half hours. He was also then happy to sign endless autographs, CDs T-shirts, etc. Fish later told me this current tour has been his most enjoyable for many a year. You only had to look at his beaming face as he went in search of another bevy. I’d love to see him now do a tour as a raconteur.

Find out more at www.the-company.com

THEN
Band: Marillion
Venue: The Marquee, London
Date: October 20, 1981
Marillion (now there’s an original name) hail from Aylesbury and have been playing SRO (sold right out) showcase gigs at the legendary Friars boozer, which believe it or not is in Aylesbury.

Marillion recently took London by storm, and gave Aerosmith rip-off merchants Girl a bit of a scare. It’s not often a support act gets an encore at The Marquee, although to be fair to Girl, Marilllion had bought down a rather large contingent of ageing hippy ‘eadbangers. No denim and leather here mate, more like kaftans and loonpants.

A trip back to the mid-70s maybe, but at least Marillion aren’t jumping on the NWOBHM bandwagon. Instead they’re more at home borrowing licks from the old school of Genesis, Styx , Yes and Cannuck rockers Zon and, wait for it, Trillion. These are just a few names that spring to mind.

Onstage Marillion come across very bizarre, not dissimilar to Agony Bag; whatever happened to them? Lead singer Fish, a rather tall and mysterious Scot, stalks around the stage in jerky movements and at times reminded me of Gene Simmons, although Fish’s make up coulda been more outrageous.

The rest of the band look like some weird religious sect, wearing what looked like old potato sacks, each one with a bright eye coloured eye painted on the back, giving that mythical look. Perhaps the band have been reading to many Stephen King novels.

Marillion have a very tight sound. Songs like He Knows You Know, Garden Party and Charting The Single are all long workouts, well crafted, not too much guitar, and synthesizer drifting in and out. Fronting this rather complicated sound is Fish, who does have a good voice, and sings pretty off the wall lyrics. So what a surprise when they encored with an old Scottish jig classic, Loch Lomond, a real show stopper.

The sooner Marillion get signed the better. Now, if someone could tell me what the big eye on the back of those potato sacks means, I’ll join the sect.

NOW
Band: Marillion
Venue: The Prog Stage, High Voltage, London
Date: July 25, 2010
When I saw that Marillion were due to headline the Prog Stage at the first ever High Voltage Festival, I was naturally curious to see how the band had changed over the years. The last time I saw Marillion live was back in 1983, at the Civic Hall in Guildford. And the only Steve Hogarth era Marillion album I own is 2004’s Marbles, which I grew rather fond of, and even used in an episode of the TV series Silent Witness (Xavier’s day job is as a film and TV editor – Ed.).

It’ s a song from Marbles that opens their set. The Invisible Man creeps almost apologetically out of the PA, as Mark Kelly’s swirling keys fill the air, with Pete Trewavas’s thumping bass adding another layer to their complex sound. And then there’s Hogarth, dressed like he’d just come from a funeral, in black, and delivering those almost haunting lyrics in his unique style. Steve Rothery meanwhile looked like he was trying to make his guitar sound louder due to the annoying invasion of Down from the nearby Metal Hammer stage.

I decide to move to the left hand side to try and get a way from Down, although to be honest what I hear of them does actually sound quite good!  As I find a spot where the sound was a lot clearer  I bump into Fish! Well, stone the crows, etc, how weird.

Cover My Eyes is blaring out, and look up at Fish to see if he was Covering His Ears – he’s not. In fact, he has a large telephoto lens pointed at the stage  as if the giant Scotsman is on some sort of spying mission. The Fish face betrays no hint of what he’s thinking anything. I know for a fact  that Fish gets on with most members of the band, so there’s no animosity in the air.

I have to confess it’s weird watching Fish watching Marillion, But I can’t really see him wrapping his lungs around the likes of Slainte Mhath or King, which Hogarth dedicates to astronaut Neil Armstrong, ”80 today, and still going strong”.

The core of Marillion is very much the same, although the rhythm section (also featuring drummer Ian Mosley) has slowed down to an almost, dare I say it, lounge level of progginess! Hogarth, meanwhile is an aquired taste,but as the set proggressed (Double groan – Ed.) I’m sucked in by the frontman’s odd style especially so on This Strange Engine. By the time he’s sung  Afraid Of Sunlight I coulda sworn I was looking at a Vampire!

I have to confess I still prefer the old Marillion with Fish, mainly because the songs are far wackier and more energectic, but having said that I would like to sse the Hogarth’s Marillion in a venue where Down will hopefully not be interfering in the mix, otherwise it will end up sounding like the Hogarth Roundabout. And Marillion don’t deserve that. Meanwhile, if you want so see Fish live he’s playing the Peel in Kingston on August 16.

Some believe they suffered from the Scouse curse, the myth that the success of the Beatles came at a cost, with no other Liverpool band making a huge impact ever again (patent nonsense, of course, yet when the legend becomes fact…blah, blah, blah). But whatever the reality, the fact is that Nutz are fondly remembered by a diehard crowd, while having been almost forgotten by the rest of the world. Well, time to wake up because the band are back in the studio, working on new songs.

“Me, Dave (Lloyd, vocals) and Mick (Devenport, guitar) have gotten together again,” says bassist Keith Mulholland. “There’s no pressure on us at all. No label insisting we meet a deadline. We’re doing everything at our own pace.”

The thorny question remains who will play drums. John Mylett, who was with the band all the way through their career, died in a road accident in Ibiza during 1984.

“We actually got onstage and did a few numbers when the 20^th anniversary of his death came around,” recalls Mulholland. “It was at a local pub called Fogerty’s. The place was heaving, and that got us thinking of doing more. There are a load of drummers who want to play on our stuff. We might use a few in the studio. But I’m not sure what we’ll do live – we haven’t even talked about that side of things.”

Although Nutz as a name wasn’t born until 1974, the band had been in existence for a few years prior to that. In fact, as Jiminy Cricket (dreadful name!), they were even involved with a single called Love Is A Seasaw!

“It was very poppy, and had a connection with Barry Mason, who co-wrote Delilah for Tom Jones. We got the chance to do this after answering an ad in the paper. But what we did get out of it was a small tour in Denmark. Because of that single, everyone thought we were this pop band (in fact, they started out as a covers act). So they got a right shock when we turned up and played a rock set! But that’s where our hearts were – being influenced by Jimi Hendrix, Cream and the like.”

As Harpoon (the name they used immediately prior to becoming Nutz), the band also gained valuable experience by doing a month’s residency at The Star Club in Hamburg – yes, the same one where another Liverpool band had learnt their chops a decade previously.

“We got really tight from doing that. It certainly stepped us up a notch.”

Managed by Mike Clifford and Chris Trendgrove, who were associated with Peter Grant, Harpoon got a deal with A&M – perhaps no surprise, because Clifford and Trendgrove were both former employees there. Presumably doing more than making the tea! It was at this stage that the band became Nutz.

“A&M decided we should change our name. Nutz had a very American ring to it. Nobody knows where it came from, but there is a story that during the Battle Of The Bulge in the Second World War, the Germans asked the Americans to surrender. They send back the message ‘nutz’.”

Their self-titled, debut album was released in 1974. It was a classy and varied album, with the band dealing with several different styles of rock in a cohesive manner. It deserved to do a lot better than was to be the case. Still, the album cover was a talking point at the time and still is. It has a woman bending over, showing off her rather nice legs, adorned in stockings and high heels.

“The woman was Linda Halpin, who was the wife of the photographer on the session. She was a professional model, specializing in leg shots for stockings and tights adverts. But there was a trick used here. If you turn the cover upside down, you can see that she is actually lying on a desk with her legs in the air. That’s how they do this sort of shot – it’s so much easier. And that’s why her arms are so straight.

“Linda was also the model on the cover of our second album, Nutz Too.”

This record came out in 1975, and had a more focused approach, being very blues-rock, but with enough touches of Zeppelinesque acoustic moments to prove the band were clearly a cut or three above average.

By the time of 76’s Hard Nutz, keyboard player Kenny Newton had been brought in; on the first album one-time Free member John ‘Rabbit’ Bundrick had played organ. On the second album, Paul Carrack guested on keyboards. In many ways this was the best of the band’s three studio releases. It has a richness of sound and genuinely creative arrangements. The addition of Newton had really stretched the band and taken them into new directions.

But they were only to put out one more album, 77’s Live Cutz, for A&M. UK support slots with Black Sabbath and Budgie (they’d opened for Queen prior to signing the record deal, and caused a stir by walking across the stage during Queen’s encore – stark naked!), plus a slot on the 1976 Reading Festival bill failed to kickstart their career. They were also the victims of music business politics.

“People always ask why things never happened for us. One of the reasons was that we were all set to go and tour in America when our management at the time, Quarry (who also looked after Status Quo among others), decided to try and get us a new record deal out there. When A&M found out, they pulled the financial tour support, and so the whole idea collapsed. We didn’t find out what happened until much later.

“It’s such a shame, because I truly believe we’d have been right for the States at the time. In the UK, punk had come along and swept bands like us away, But that wasn’t the case in America.”

The arrival of punk also played its part in scuppering the Nutz dreams, says Mulholland.

By 1979, they’d signed to Carrere, becoming labelmates with Saxon and Rose Tattoo. And in February 1980, the band appeared on the track listing for the seminal NWOBHM compilation Metal For Muthas, with the song Bootliggers, alongside the likes of Iron Maiden, Angel Witch and Praying Mantis. The logic of Nutz with four albums already behind them becoming part of the new metal movement was odd, to say the least.

“It was Carrere’s idea. They thought it would help us pick up a younger audience. Of course, it failed, as these things tend to do. But a couple of the Iron Maiden guys were Nutz fans and used to come and us, and one of their early singers used to roadie for us – unpaid.”

Carrere eventually persuaded the band to change their name to Rage (yet again, label interference), despite misgivings from Mulholland and the other three remaining members (Newton had quit to join Nightwing). And Rage released three albums, before things fell apart, the death of Mylett almost being the final seal. Fish was to write the song Mylo from Marillion’s Misplaced Childhood about the drummer; Rage and Marillion had the same manager at the time, John Arnison.

“I’d like to get back those three Rage albums, remix them and then put them out again. We had some good music there.”

So, Nutz disappeared down a road where so many others have gone before – one that leads straight over the precipice and into obscurity. Dave Lloyd formed 2AM (very much soft rock), before joining Uli Jon Roth’s band; he’s also been a in demand session singer for three decades. Devenport played with Lion in America, while Mulholland has worked with Chris Norman of Smokie (now there’s a potential future Cult Hero!) and also with Garth Rockett & The Moonshiners (featuring Ian Gillan).

However, not only are the trio back together, but there’s even a new live album coming out on August 9. through Market Square. Well, its not a new recording…

“It comes from March 1977, when we did a gig in Nottingham to warm up for the Black Sabbath tour. It was recorded by Radio Trent, and to be honest I thought the tapes had long since disappeared. But then this company called Market Square in Birmingham contacted me via Facebook, said they had the tapes and were gonna release a live album.”

Called Tightened Up!, Mulholland is quite happy with what’s coming out.

“We turned up, did a quick soundcheck and then played the gig. There are no overdubs at all. What you hear is what it was like on the night. And it is better than Live Cutz.”

The band would now like to be able to get back the rights for the four Nutz albums. They’ve been reissued in Germany, but the three haven’t seen any money at all from these – the usual story.

“We’ve even gone to the PRS, who say they can’t do anything to help us. But we’d all like to see these put out properly.”

Listening to Nutz now, it’s clear the band had far more talent than luck, and it is quite astonishing to think that we’re having to talk about them in such a manner. They should have been a force, but ended up the victims of a farce.

Let’s hope the reunion at least sparks a reassessment of their importance and value.

Now check out Cool Me Down from The Old Grey Whistle Test

Here’s Wallbanger from Hard Nutz

And Take It From Me from Nutz Too

Finally, here’s Dave Lloyd in his day job, doing the vocals in 1985 for the Cadbury’s Flake ad

Find out all about Nutz (and Rage), go to www.myspace.com/nutzrage

Here’s a list:

June 9: Edinburgh Usher Hall (charity show)

June 26: North Hykeham Terry O’Toole Theatre

June 27: Hull Lamp

July 13: York Duchess

July 14: Cambridge Junction 2

July 15: Manchester Band On The Wall

Aug. 6: Newcastle Cluny

Aug. 7: Carlisle Brickyard

Aug. 8: Glasgow Arches

Aug. 15: Stratford-On-Avon Cox’s Yard

Aug. 16: Kingston Peel House Of Progression

Aug. 17: Yeovil Orange Box

Aug. 18: Southampton Brook

Find out more at the-company.com

* Ritchie Blackmore comes back over here and – in full minstrel uniform – stands as a candidate for the Monster Raving Loony Party as a tribute to his old mucker Screaming Lord Sutch.

* Conservative leader David Cameron declares himself a black metal fan, dons corpse paint and makes Emperor’s I Am The Black Wizards the party’s theme tune.

* Gordon Brown decides to up his cool factor by getting in Anvil to write a special song for the election. Well, his brother-in-law did work on Anvil: The Story Of Anvil (seriously, he did!).

* The Lib-Dems, meanwhile, decide they need more regional clout in the North East of England, and so hire AC/DC’s Brian Johnson to teach them all how to speak Geordie (like).

* The Scottish Nationalists want to ban all post-Fish Marillion albums. How dare the band replace the great Caledonian with a mere Sassenach!

* The Tories decide that math metal should be introduced into schools – after all, bands like Meshuggah must be good for the educational system.

* Labour hire David Coverdale as their unofficial employment spokesman. After all, with the number of people he’s had in and out of Whitesnake, nobody knows more about the subject.

* Nick Clegg, leader of the Lib-Dems, wants the system of putting an ‘X’ on the ballot paper scrapped. He reckons a lot of drummers will think they’re being asked for their autograph!

* The Welsh Nationalists try to get away from the image clichés of sheep and leeks by going emo, inspired by Lostprophets et al. They aim to give out free hair-straighteners to all Welsh speaking folk.

* The Green Party reckon that all festivals should generate their own natural power. They therefore have a scheme to connect up all on site toilets to generators and use the, erm, organic waste for recycled energy!

OK, any more ideas? Let us know below…

Williamson’s work has adorned album sleeves by Marillion, Fish, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden and Europe, to name but a few.

…And Marillion themselves feature on the front cover of the wallet of the new issue too.

There’s an overall arty feel to the latest issue, with Marillion, Muse, Jethro Tull and Curved Air among the bands discussing the ways in which ‘prog art’ has changed over the years.

Of course, such an issue couldn’t be discussed without input from Roger Dean and Storm Thorgerson.

And we unveil the winner of our art competition, the winner of which finds their work adorning the cover of this issue’s free CD.

We also unveil the winners of the 2009 Readers’ Poll, there’s the Critics’ Choice Albums Of the Year – and there are exclusive interviews with Todd Rundgren, Transatlantic, The Pineapple Thief, Big Big Train, Magenta, Karnivool, Ex Libras and Yak, as well as the final ever interview with the late Eric Woolfson of the Alan Parsons Project.

The new issue also carries all the details you’ll need to know about subscribing to Classic Rock Presents Prog.

Issue six of Classic Rock Presents Prog is on sale from Wednesday, January 25.

You can join Editor Jerry Ewing and writer Philip Wilding on TotalRock (www.totalrock.com) tomorrow between 12 noon and 3pm GMT, discussing the magazine and playing three hours of quality progressive rock.

Marillion feature on the front cover of the wallet of the new issue of Prog.

Inside the wallet: feast your eyes on Mark Wilkinson’s exclusive cover.