Songs From The Mirror

Songs from the Mirror was the third studio album that Fish released and it was the second of his two albums to fulfill his contract for Polydor. Fish needed more time to write a new album and he decided that to complete his current contract he would release an album of cover versions, an idea first conceived when he was with Marillion. The band was the same as the previous album except that Foster "Foss" Paterson replaced Mickey Simmonds as he had done on the tour. The songs chosen were personal favorites of Fish and are not all prog rock tracks as may have been thought from listening to his music. Of the tracks on the album, a number are fairly faithful to the originals; "Question" (Moody Blues), "Boston Tea Party" (Sensational Alex Harvey Band), and "Jeepster" (T. Rex). Fish did tend to adapt the slower songs on the album (e.g. Pink Floyd's "Fearless" and Sandy Denny's "Solo") to his own vocal style and his added depth to the music. Given that Marillion, in particular, were likened to Genesis, a very interesting choice of track on the album was "I Know What I Like" that had appeared on the album Selling England by the Pound. Fish's version was more upbeat although the chorus was fairly faithful to the original, especially with respect to him mirroring Peter Gabriel's vocal style. The album was first released in 1993 and was remastered on CD in 1998 when the tracks "Time and a Word" (Yes) and "The Seeker" (The Who) replaced "Jeepster." ~ Sharon Mawer|