Marillion is a prog-rock band from the U.K. that emerged in the post-punk era of the 80′s.  Their one minor U.S. “hit” is a song called “Kayleigh,” which was sung by the band’s first front man, simply known as Fish.  In the late 80′s Fish left the band for a solo career and he was replaced by Steve Hogarth.  I am a big Marillion fan and I prefer Hogarth (here comes the hate mail!).  This is not as controversial as if I had admitted to liking Hagar better than Roth, but within the rabid Marillion fan base, my words may be interpreted as heresy!  I like Hogarth’s voice better than Fish’s, but, admittedly, I also like Hogarth because he is the only professional rock musician that I have ever interviewed.  When I was a graduate student studying philosophy at Loyola University Chicago in the late 90′s I picked up a side gig writing rock album reviews for a free weekly called the University Reporter.  I reviewed Marillion’s album “This Strange Engine” for the paper and their management company contacted me about interviewing Steve Hogarth.  Needless to say, I accepted immediately!  Hogarth could not have been nicer.  He was funny and engaging and, despite a couple of technical phone glitches, the interview was an amazing experience for me.

Lately I’ve been listening to a lot of Marillion because I have an opportunity to see them live in Chicago at the Park West next week.  Marillion doesn’t tour North America very often, so this is a treat!  The band recently played in New York City and “Time Out: New York” interviewed Hogarth about the tour and what it is like to be in a cult band that has struggled with mainstream acceptance.  I think this excerpt will explain a lot about Steve Hogarth’s character and integrity:

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