The Waterboys - Blues For A Fisherman (1988)

The Waterboys are a British/Irish folk rock band formed in Edinburgh in 1983 by Scottish musician Mike Scott, who has remained as the only constant member throughout the band's career. They have explored a number of different styles, but their music is mainly a mix of folk music and rock and roll. The early Waterboys sound became known as 'The Big Music' after a song on their second album 'A Pagan Place', being defined as an anthemic sound which was 'a metaphor for seeing God's signature in the world'. Before forming The Waterboys, Scott made a number of solo recordings in late 1981 and early 1982 while a member of Another Pretty Face, and during the same period he also formed the short-lived band The Red And The Black, with saxophone player Anthony Thistlethwaite. In 1983, Scott was expected to deliver a solo album to his record label Ensign Records, but he decided to start a new band, naming them The Waterboys after a line in the Lou Reed song 'The Kids', and their first released recording under that name was the single 'A Girl Called Johnny', which was a tribute to Patti Smith. The eponymous debut album followed shortly afterwards, and was compared by critics to Van Morrison and U2 in its cinematic sweep. A second album 'A Pagan Place' came out in June 1984, and 'This Is The Sea' followed in 1985, including the hit single, and their best-known song, 'The Whole Of The Moon'. 

In 1986, at the invitation of new member Steve Wickham, Scott moved to Dublin and quickly became influenced by the traditional Irish music there as well as by country and gospel, and the band's line-up changed to include Scott, Wickham and Thistlethwaite, plus Trevor Hutchinson on bass and Peter McKinney on drums. This new band spent 1986 and 1987 recording in Dublin and touring the UK, Ireland, Europe and Israel, and in 1988 Scott took the band to Spiddal in the west of Ireland where they set up a recording studio in Spiddal House to finish recording their new album. 'Fisherman's Blues' was released in October 1988, and showcased many guest musicians that had played with the band in Dublin and Spiddal. Critics and fans were split between those embracing the new influence of Irish and Scottish folk music, with others being disappointed that it wasn't a continuation of the style of 'This Is the Sea', although over the years it has been re-evaluated and become one of the band's best-loved albums. Owing to the large number of tracks that were recorded in the three years between 'This Is the Sea' and 'Fisherman's Blues', the band released a second album of songs from those sessions, with 'Too Close To Heaven' coming out in 2001, and yet even after releasing two records made up of songs from those extensive sessions, there are still enough unreleased tracks for a third album, and so here it is. I've loved the band through all their incarnations, so to me this is a perfect companion to 'Fisherman's Blues', carrying on their 'Raggle Taggle' sound for a little bit longer, but rest assured that there will be more to come from earlier periods of the band in the future. 

Track listing

01 Carolan's Welcome
02 Killing My Heart
03 You In The Sky
04 When Will I Be Married
05 Nobody 'Cept You
06 Girl Of The North Country
07 Lonesome And A Long Way From Home
08 If I Can't Have You
09 Rattle My Bones And Shiver My Soul
10 Let Me Feel Holy Again
11 Meet Me At The Station
12 The Good Ship Sirius
13 Soon As I Get Home