Mick Pointer | |
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 Pointer in 2009 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Michael Pointer |
| Born | 22 July 1956 Brill, Buckinghamshire, England |
| Genres | Neo-progressive rock |
| Occupation(s) | Drummer |
| Years active | 1979–present |
Michael Pointer (born 22 July 1956) is an English drummer. He is known for his work in the neo-prog bands Marillion and Arena.
Pointer was the original drummer and a founding member of Marillion. [1] He appeared on the band's debut EP Market Square Heroes (1982) and debut LP Script for a Jester's Tear (1983). He was sacked from the band following the album's UK tour and ultimately replaced by Ian Mosley. [2] Lead singer Fish later told Classic Rock that Pointer had been dismissed because he had "never liked Mick's drumming", "his timing was awful" and "everybody was developing except him". [3]
After his acrimonious departure from Marillion, Pointer did not perform music for another ten years and instead became a kitchen designer, something he had served an apprenticeship in as a teenager. [4] Pointer eventually founded the British progressive band Arena, in which he continues to play with keyboardist Clive Nolan (from Pendragon). [5] He is Nolan's business partner in his record label.
Pointer later gathered a band for "Mick Pointer's Script for a Jester's Tear tour", comprising Brian Cummins (Carpet Crawlers) on vocals, Nick Barrett (Pendragon) on lead guitar, Mike Varty (Credo) on keyboards and Ian Salmon (Arena) on bass guitar, to perform Marillion's debut album for its 25th anniversary. [6] Pointer had originally intended to call it "Mick Pointer, ex-Marillion" but the remaining members of the band objected to him using the name and threatened him with legal action. [4]
Marillion are a British neo prog band, formed in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, in 1979. They emerged from the post-punk music scene in Britain and existed as a bridge between the styles of punk rock and classic progressive rock, becoming the most commercially successful neo-prog band of the 1980s.
Derek William Dick, better known by his stage name Fish, is a Scottish singer, songwriter and occasional actor. He was the lead singer and lyricist of the neo-prog band Marillion from 1981 until 1988. He released 11 UK Top 40 singles with the band, including the Top Ten singles "Kayleigh", "Lavender" and "Incommunicado", and five Top Ten albums, including a number one with Misplaced Childhood. In his solo career, Fish explored contemporary pop and traditional folk, and released a further five Top 40 singles and a Top 10 album.
Ian F. Mosley is an English drummer. He is best known for his long-time membership of the neo-prog band Marillion, which he joined for their second album, Fugazi, released in 1984. He had previously been an in-demand session drummer. Mosley's abilities have been widely praised, including by former Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett, Meshuggah drummer Tomas Haake and critic John Franck of AllMusic. Modern Drummer has characterised him as a "drumming great".
Fugazi is the second studio album by the British neo-prog band Marillion, released in 1984. Produced by Nick Tauber, it was recorded between November 1983 and February 1984 at various studios and was the first to feature drummer Ian Mosley, following the dismissal of the band's original drummer Mick Pointer.
Misplaced Childhood is the third studio album by the British neo-prog band Marillion, released in 1985. It is a concept album loosely based on the childhood of Marillion's lead singer, Fish, who was inspired by a brief incident that occurred while he was under the influence of LSD.
Pendragon are an English neo-prog band established in 1978 in Stroud, Gloucestershire as Zeus Pendragon by guitarist and vocalist Nick Barrett. The word Zeus was dropped before the band started recording, as the members decided it was too long to look good on a T-shirt. There were a few personnel changes in the early days, but since 1986 the lineup has remained relatively stable and the band are still active as of 2023.
Arena are an English neo-prog band founded in 1995. Their style ranges from symphonic to hard rock.
Neo-progressive rock is a subgenre of progressive rock which developed in the UK in the early 1980s. The genre's most popular band, Marillion, achieved mainstream success in the decade. Several bands from the genre have continued to record and tour.
Script for a Jester's Tear is the debut studio album by British neo-prog band Marillion, released in the United Kingdom on 14 March 1983 by EMI Records. The album reached number seven and spent 31 weeks in the UK Albums Chart, eventually achieving a platinum certificate, and produced the top 40 single "He Knows You Know" and the top 20 single "Garden Party".
"Market Square Heroes" is the debut single by the British neo-prog band Marillion, released in October 1982 with "Three Boats Down from the Candy" as the B-side. The 12-inch single included an additional track, the 17:15-minute-long "Grendel".
Andrew John Ward is an English progressive rock drummer.
Seasons End is the fifth studio album by British neo-prog band Marillion, released in 1989. The album was the first to feature current lead vocalist Steve Hogarth, following the departure of former vocalist Fish in late 1988. It reached number 7 on the UK Albums Chart.
Best of Both Worlds is a two-disc compilation album by British neo-prog band Marillion released in 1997 by EMI Records, who the band had been signed to from their debut in 1982 until being dropped in 1995. The title refers to Marillion's two distinct "eras" with lead singers Fish (1980—1988) and Steve Hogarth. By the time this compilation was released, both line-ups had recorded four studio albums each. The second best-of since the 14-track one-disc compilation A Singles Collection from 1992, this one additionally contains material from Brave (1994) and Afraid of Sunlight (1996). Two different covers were created for the compilation, one by Mark Wilkinson, who had worked for the band during the Fish years, and one by Bill Smith Studio, who took over after Fish's and Wilkinson's departure. The booklet was printed so that either of the covers could be displayed in the jewel case according to personal preference. The track list, comprising 29 songs, was put together by Lucy Jordache, then the manager responsible for the band in EMI, in close collaboration with the band's fans' mailing list, "Freaks". Jordache also motivated singers Fish and Hogarth to contribute liner notes—at a time when both camps were not yet on friendly terms again—by telling each of them the other had already agreed to do so.
"He Knows You Know" is a song by the British neo-prog band Marillion. It was their second single, with "Charting the Single" as the B-side. It was released from their first album, Script for a Jester's Tear, and peaked at number 35 on the UK Singles Chart. The song's theme is drug abuse, and alludes particularly to intravenous drug use. In concert, lead vocalist Fish would often introduce it as "The Drug Song" and state that it was inspired by drug use while he was working at the Job/Benefits centre in Aylesbury.
"Garden Party (The Great Cucumber Massacre)" is a song by the British neo-prog band Marillion. It was the second single released from their debut album Script for a Jester's Tear. It reached number 16 in the UK Singles Chart in 1983, the band's biggest singles chart success prior to 1985. The song is a parody of social elitism and snobbery. The B-side is a live version of "Margaret" (recorded at Edinburgh Playhouse, 7 April 1983). The 12" single includes a live version of "Charting The Single" (recorded at Hammersmith Odeon, 18 April 1983).
Brief Encounter is a compilation EP by the British neo-prog band Marillion. It contains two studio and three live tracks that EMI's American label Capitol Records released there in 1986, coinciding with the band's tour of the U.S. and Canada that year. The band was Rush's support act on the Power Windows tour and also played headline gigs at smaller theatres. The "mini album" contained five tracks: the band's European breakthrough single "Kayleigh" ; its b-side "Lady Nina"; "Freaks", released in Europe as the b-side of the follow-up single "Lavender"; and live recordings of the first two albums' title tracks, Fugazi (1984) and Script for a Jester's Tear (1984).
Live from Loreley is a live album by the British neo-prog band Marillion, recorded at a concert at the Freilichtbühne Loreley Loreley, St. Goarshausen, Germany on 18 July 1987. The recording, made during the first leg of the 1987 Clutching at Straws tour, documents the band at the peak of their commercial success in the 1980s when they had original frontman Fish on vocals. The show was attended by an audience of 20,000; support acts were Magnum, The Cult (cancelled), and It Bites. It comprises songs from the four studio albums they released up to that point, i.e. Script for a Jester's Tear (1983), Fugazi (1984), Misplaced Childhood (1985), and Clutching at Straws (1987). The non-album debut single "Market Square Heroes" is also included.
Recital of the Script is a live album by Marillion, recorded at a concert at the Hammersmith Odeon, London on 18 April 1983. The recording was made on the final date of the tour promoting their 1983 debut album Script for a Jester's Tear. Featuring former members Fish on vocals and Mick Pointer on drums, it comprises songs from that album as well as all tracks of the 1982 debut EP "Market Square Heroes" and the b-side of "He Knows You Know" (1983).
"Heart of Lothian" is a song by British neo-prog band Marillion. It is the fifth track on the 1985 concept album Misplaced Childhood. The song was released as the third single from Misplaced Childhood on 18 November 1985 in the UK, the Netherlands, West Germany, Canada, South Africa and Australia. "Heart of Lothian" became the third Top 30 UK single from Misplaced Childhood, peaking at number 29. The song also peaked at number 51 on the German singles chart.
"Welcome to the ‚Garden Party‘" is a 1986 single by British neo-prog band Marillion released exclusively in West Germany to accompany a series of concerts the band played at festivals in that country as second bill to Queen, following their commercial breakthrough with the album Misplaced Childhood and the hit singles "Kayleigh" and "Lavender" the year before. The single was released on 7" and 12" vinyl; neither version contained any new or previously unreleased material. The 7" and 12" versions contained completely different recordings from each other. The A-side, "Garden Party", originally the second single from the band's debut album, Script for a Jester's Tear, had reached #16 on the UK Singles Chart in 1983, but—like all Marillion singles before "Kayleigh"—had failed to chart in Germany. However, the single received little airplay and failed to enter the German top 100.
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