For anyone who knows me, it's no secret that The Waterboys are one of my favourite bands. Over the past few years EMI have been slowly resissuing the Waterboys back catalogue with longer versions and unreleased tracks hand picked by band leader Mike Scott. The first two albums were resissued as single discs, in 2004 This Is The Sea was given a whole extra disc of bonus material. This year, Fisherman's Blues gets reissued as a two disc set.
Fisherman's Blues was originally released in 1988, and at first listen marked a stark change in the Waterboys sound. This Is the Sea was released three years earlier, and at the time it was suggested that The Waterboys could be as big as U2. Mike Scott was not interested in this career path. Seeking a new musical direction, Scott looked for influence from different sources such as country, folk, or even traditional gospel music. He was also trying to avoid the "repeat-formula-for-success" plan that appeared to be his destiny. In 1986 Scott, along with sax/mandolin player Anto Thistlethwaite, and fiddler Steve Wickham, retreated to Ireland and immersed themselves in the local culture, and American roots music from the early 20th century. Unable to put together an album from their early sessions, the band kept recording, and recording. By July of 1988 they had recorded over 100 tracks over 17 different recording sessions. In October of '88 Fisherman's Blues was released as a single album with 13 songs (less, if you bought it on vinyl). Three years proved to be a very long time between albums, as the band's sound had evolved drastically from a large anthemic sound, "The Big Music", to something a more subtle and folky. It was really hard to draw a line from This Is The Sea to Fisherman's Blues, my reaction was "when did The Waterboys become a folk band??" As the album grew in popularity and legend, fans were asking to hear more music from that era. Another ten songs from the FB sessions were released in 2001 on the album Too Close To Heaven. Many of those songs had a bluesier sound, and the album became the missing link between This Is The Sea (I think I'll avoid the acronym on that one) and FB. This new reissue sees the release of another 14 songs, a few of which have already seen release on b-sides or compilations, and probably closes the book on this era of The Waterboys. A collection I'd like to see is a box set of their recordings, both studio sessions and live performances, from 1986, their most prolific year. Maybe I'll make my own.
To coincide with the re-release of Fisherman's Blues, the band have put together a special section on their website dedicated to the album with detailed notes on the recordings from Mike Scott, Steve Wickham, and percussionist Padraig Stevens along with a detailed list of the sessions that made up the album. You can check it out here.
Here are a few tracks from the second disc for download. If you're a fan of this album, I strongly urge you to pick up this reissue. You can get it for a good price at your local HMV or at Amazon.
The Waterboys - Fisherman's Blues (alternate version)
The Waterboys - You In The Sky
The Waterboys - If I Can't Have You
The Waterboys - Rattle My Bones And Shiver My Soul
The Waterboys - Meet Me At The Station
