Script for a Jester's Tear



Script for a Jester's Tear is the debut studio album by the British neo-progressive rock band Marillion, released in 1983. Produced by Nick Tauber, it was recorded between December 1982 and February 1983 at The Marquee Studios in London.

Script for a Jester's Tear was intended to be part of a trilogy along with the next albums, Fugazi (1984) and Misplaced Childhood (1985). It was a commercial success in the UK, produced the Top 40 singles "He Knows You Know" and "Garden Party", and peaked at number 7 on the album chart. It reached the Platinum certification and is credited with giving a second life to progressive rock.

Singles
Script for a Jester's Tear was preceded by the single "Market Square Heroes", released in 1982, with "Three Boats Down from the Candy" and the 17-minute-long epic "Grendel" as B-sides. None of these songs appeared on the original album, though A-side can be briefly heard during a short radio segment prior to "Forgotten Sons". All tracks are featured in the bonus disc of the 1997 remastered edition.

Cover art
The artwork was created by Mark Wilkinson who would be commissioned to the role on all Marillion LPs and 12" singles of the Fish-era.

Critical reception
AllMusic critic John Franck has retrospectively given the album a 4.5 star rating. He called it "an essential work for any self-respecting first- or second-generation prog rock fan", but considered the "over-the-top" lyrics for "Chelsea Monday" to be a minor shortcoming.

Commercial performance
Script for a Jester's Tear reached number 7 in the UK charts and spent there 31 weeks, the second longest chart residency of a Marillion album. It was certified Platinum by the BPI on 5 December 1997 for sales in excess of 300.000 copies. The album did not achieve a commercial impact in the U.S., making only number 175 in the Billboard 200.

Formats and reissues
The album was initially released on LP, 12" picture disc and cassette. The first CD issue appeared in 1985.

As part of a series of Marillion's first eight studio albums, EMI Records re-released Script for a Jester's Tear on 29 September 1997 with 24-bit digital remastered sound and a second disc containing bonus tracks. The remastered version was also made available without the bonus disc in 2000 and again in 2005 as a Japanese mini-LP replica.

A new 180g heavy weight vinyl pressing identical to the original 1983 edition was released in 2012.

Track listing

 * The total length is listed for the first CD edition. The remastered version is 14 seconds longer.


 * All individual writing credits are from the 1997 remastered edition. In the original 1983 version the whole band is listed as writers, arrangers, and performers; all lyrics are credited to Fish.

Personnel

 * Marillion
 * Fish – vocals
 * Steve Rothery – guitars; photography (1997 remastered edition)
 * Mark Kelly – keyboards; 1997 digital remastering
 * Pete Trewavas – bass
 * Mick Pointer – drums


 * Additional musicians
 * Marquee Club's Parents Association Children's Choir – back vocals (on "Forgotten Sons")
 * Peter Cockburn – newscaster's voice (on "Forgotten Sons")


 * Technical personnel
 * Nick Tauber – production
 * Simon Hanhart – recording and mixing
 * Pete James – sound effects
 * Jo Mirowski – art direction and design
 * Mark Wilkinson – illustration
 * Peter Mew – 1997 digital remastering (April — July 1997 at Abbey Road Studios, London)
 * Bill Smith Studio – repacking design (1997 remastered edition)

Charts

 * Album


 * "He Knows You Know"


 * "Garden Party"