Fish

Derek William Dick (born 25 April 1958), known by his stage name Fish, is a Scottish singer, songwriter and former actor. He was the lead singer and lyricist of the neo-progressive rock band Marillion from 1981 to 1988. With Marillion he achieved 11 UK Top 40 singles, including the Top 10 hits "Kayleigh", "Lavender" and "Incommunicado", as well as five Top 10 albums, including the number one album "Misplaced Childhood". In his solo career, Fish explored styles including pop, Celtic-influenced music and folk, and released several UK Top 40 singles and a Top 10 album. His final studio album was "Weltschmerz", released in 2020, after which he retired following a farewell tour completed in 2025. Fish's voice has been described as distinctive and compared to a combination of Roger Daltrey and Peter Gabriel, while his lyrics have been characterised as poetic prose. In 2004, Classic Rock magazine ranked him number 49 in its list of "The 100 Greatest Frontmen", noting his theatrical performance style and contribution to Marillion's lyrical direction. In 2009, he was voted number 37 in a poll of greatest voices in rock music by Planet Rock listeners. Derek William Dick was born in Edinburgh and grew up in Dalkeith. He was educated at King's Park Primary School and Dalkeith High School. He was influenced by rock and progressive artists of the late 1960s and early 1970s, including Genesis, Pink Floyd, The Moody Blues, The Kinks, T. Rex, David Bowie, Argent and the Sensational Alex Harvey Band. He also cited Joni Mitchell as a major influence on his lyrical approach. He saw Yes perform live in 1974 at Usher Hall in Edinburgh. His literary influences included Jack Kerouac, Truman Capote, Robert Burns and Dylan Thomas. Before his music career developed, he worked in a range of jobs including petrol station attendant, gardener and forestry worker at Bowhill Estate in Selkirk between 1977 and 1980. While living in Fochabers, he adopted the nickname Fish, reportedly originating from a remark by a landlady about the amount of time he spent in the bath. He has said that his birth name made a stage name necessary for professional use. He first performed as a singer in 1980 at the Golden Lion pub in Galashiels. He later moved to Nottinghamshire after auditioning for the Stone Dome Band and then to Aylesbury in 1981, where he joined Marillion. Marillion are a neo-progressive rock band who gained commercial success in the early to mid-1980s. Fish joined them in 1981, and the band released their debut album "Script for a Jester's Tear" in 1983, which entered the UK Top 10. They achieved further chart success with singles including "Kayleigh", "Lavender" and "Incommunicado". Fish left Marillion in 1988 following extensive touring, health-related concerns and personal and professional differences within the band, in order to pursue a solo career. Following his departure, Fish released his debut solo album "Vigil in a Wilderness of Mirrors" in 1990, which reached number 5 in the UK Albums Chart. The album featured contributions from several musicians, including Mickey Simmonds, Janick Gers, Hal Lindes, Mark Brzezicki, John Keeble, John Giblin and Luís Jardim, with backing vocals by Tessa Niles. Fish continued to collaborate with a range of artists in subsequent years, including Genesis founder Tony Banks, contributing vocals to the tracks "Shortcut to Somewhere", "Angel Face" and "Another Murder of a Day". His second solo album, "Internal Exile", was released in 1991 and incorporated influences from Celtic and folk music alongside rock. In 1993 he released the cover album "Songs from the Mirror". Around this period he established his own record label, Dick Bros., through which he released subsequent material including the live album "Sushi" and the studio album "Suits" (1994), which continued his exploration of rock and socially themed songwriting. He also released the compilation albums "Yin" and "Yang" in 1995, featuring re-recorded material from his Marillion and solo career. In 1997, Fish released "Sunsets on Empire", co-produced with Steven Wilson, followed by extensive touring. In 1999 he released "Raingods with Zippos" on Roadrunner Records, which included material developed from collaborative writing sessions and features contributions from multiple musicians, including Tony Turrell, Mark Daghorn and Steven Wilson. In the early 2000s, Fish released albums through his independent label Chocolate Frog Record Company, including "Fellini Days" (2001), co-written with John Wesley and John Young, and "Field of Crows" (2003/2004), co-written with Bruce Watson and Irvin Duguid. He continued to perform live and participate in media appearances, including a performance at World Bowl XI in 2003 and participation in a charity edition of "The Weakest Link" in 2005. Fish reunited on stage with his former Marillion bandmates in 2007 for a performance of "Market Square Heroes", although he stated that this did not indicate a full reunion. His album "13th Star" was released in 2007, followed by touring in 2008, including his first North American tour in over a decade. He also hosted radio and media programmes, including Fish on Friday on Planet Rock. In 2012, he hosted Fish Convention 2012 in Leamington Spa, performing acoustic and electric sets and previewing material from the forthcoming album "A Feast of Consequences", released in 2013. In 2018 he toured to mark the 30th anniversary of Marillion's "Clutching at Straws" and previewed material from "Weltschmerz". In 2020 he released "Weltschmerz", which received positive critical reception and achieved commercial success. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Fish revived Fish on Friday as a weekly online video programme. He continued touring and released the live album "Vigil's End Tour 2021", documenting his farewell tour activities. In 2023, he entered an agreement with Primary Wave Music regarding rights to his recorded and publishing catalogue. He completed his farewell tour in 2025, marking his retirement from live performance and recording. Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fish_(singer) Studio albums Vigil in a Wilderness of Mirrors (1990) Internal Exile (1991) Songs from the Mirror (1993) Suits (1994) Sunsets on Empire (1997) Raingods with Zippos (1999) Fellini Days (2001) Field of Crows (2004) 13th Star (2007) A Feast of Consequences (2013) Weltschmerz (2020) Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.