Marillion
Market Square Heroes Picture Disc

EMI 12EMP5351

"Market Square Heroes" is the debut single of neo-progressive rock band Marillion, released in 1982 with "Three Boats Down From The Candy" as the B-side. The 12" single included an additional track, the 17:15 minute long "Grendel", making it an EP in terms of overall length.

The A-side is an anthemic rock song whose lyric vaguely describes the rise of civil unrest under some charismatic leader in the face of increasing unemployment; the original title was "UB 2,000,001". According to Marillion's singer and lyricist Fish, the "market square hero" is a:

"would-be revolutionary with all the necessary charisma and presence of a leader without direction or goals, just a sense of frustration and anger".

The track was the band's:

"first attempt at deliberately writing a hit record and a 'simple' rock song to juxtapose against our meandering but dynamic 'epics'."

Members of the band have attributed the inspiration behind the main character in the song lyrics to a person they knew in Aylesbury who went by the nickname of 'Brick'. In a 2009 interview, Mark Kelly stated:

"I don't know whether Brick was a leftie, a militant or a skinhead but he was the inspiration for the character singing, "I'm a Market Square Hero"

Fish made reference to this theme and name-checked Brick before he performed the song with his former Marillion bandmates in Aylesbury at the 'Hobble on the Cobbles' concert in 2007. Brick died on 2 May 2011.

Musically, "Three Boats..." (the first song co-written by keyboardist Mark Kelly) and "Grendel" are more typical of the progressive rock style. "Grendel" is a long and complex composition that drew frequent (mostly unfavourable) comparisons with "Supper's Ready" by Genesis. As Fish himself admitted later,

"We were concerned about the similarity to the lengthy composition by Genesis called "Supper's Ready" which also meandered and burst into sections, the end one in particular, which would add conviction to the many critics opinions that Marillion were more than influenced by Genesis."

Inspired by John Gardner's novel Grendel, the lyric looks at the Beowulf myth from the perspective of the monster. Marillion have never played the track live after 1983. In spite (or possibly because) of this, it developed into a cult favourite among die-hard fans; it is not uncommon to hear someone in the audience yell "Grendel!" at Marillion's or Fish's concerts even in the late 2000s. Mick Pointer's Marillion did, however, play Grendel at the Greyhound pub in Wargrave, Berks, during a private gig for his wife Nathalie Pointer's birthday on the 5th March 2011. The small village pub was chosen as the venue as it is run by Pointer's friend Phil Linstead (known as Smeagal the Merchant to some prog fans).

Production

The record was produced by David Hitchcock, who had incidentally also produced the Genesis album Foxtrot with "Supper's Ready" on it. Hitchcock was also contracted to produce Marillion's upcoming debut album, but was heavily injured in a car accident when he drove home in a state of physical exhaustion after finishing work on the single. EMI used this occasion to convince the band to replace him with Nick Tauber, a more "modern" producer best known for his work with Toyah.

The cover art was designed by Mark Wilkinson, who went on to create all Marillion artwork until 1988 and most of Fish's solo artwork after that. The cover introduced two distinctive visual elements that would identify the band in the years to come: the figure of the "Jester" and the logo, designed by Jo Mirowski.

The radio edit replaces the line "I am your antichrist" with "I am your battle priest". A limited edition (2,500 copies) picture disk of the 12" for "Market Square Heroes" was available through an offer made by The Web, Marillion's fan club.

The single did not enter the upper reaches of the UK singles charts, peaking at no. 60; however, sales remained stable for some time due to people backtracking on the strength of later, more successful releases. The song came fourth in Kerrang! magazine's Singles of the Year 1982.

The record was bought upon release and has only been played a couple of times.