PRIMARY WAVE MUSIC PARTNERS WITH MARILLION’S DEREK DICK OTHERWISE KNOWN AS “FISH”
TERMS OF THE DEAL WILL SEE THE INDEPENDENT PUBLISHING GIANT ACQUIRE THE SINGER AND LYRICIST’S MASTER ROYALTIES AND WRITER’S SHARE
SONGS INCLUDE THE BAND’S TOP TEN HITS “KAYLEIGH,” “LAVENDER,” “INCOMMUNICADO” AND OTHERS
NEW YORK, NY (November 28, 2023) – Primary Wave Music, the leading independent publisher of iconic and legendary music in the world, announces today their partnership with Marillion’s Derek Dick otherwise known as “Fish”. Terms of the deal will see the dynamic publisher acquire Fish’s master royalties and writer’s share for Marillion. As singer and lyricist, Fish was one of the songwriters behind the British rock band’s biggest hits including “Kayleigh,” “Lavender,” and “Incommunicado” which are all included in the deal.
Released in 1985, “Kayleigh” immediately shot the top 10 and would stay there for 14 weeks. The song is considered the band’s most successful single not only in the U.K. but across the globe. “Lavender” was their follow up single and shot to number 7 upon release. The song stayed in the top ten for over two months. “Incommunicado” was released in 1987 and became the band’s third top ten single.
Terms of the deal will also give Fish access to Primary Wave’s marketing team and publishing infrastructure, which includes digital strategy, licensing, synch opportunities, and film & TV production.
Of the new partnership, Fish shared “Every songwriter has a spiritual and emotional connection with their creations and is very protective about their legacy. When Clive approached me about my shares in the Marillion catalogue, I soon realized that Primary Wave was a good home for them to go to and be cherished and to leave that part of my history as I move forward in my solo career. I’m pleased that these songs will be heard by further generations and introduce my continued songwriting to new audiences worldwide.”
Primary Wave’s Clive Black added, “I am thrilled to have been able to bring this wonderful catalogue to Larry and the great team at Primary Wave.”
Born in 1958 in Edinburgh, Derek William Dick acquired the nickname “Fish” years later after developing a reputation for staying in a bath for lengthy amounts of time. It was Fish who joined Marillion in January 1981 after passing on a cassette tape to the band. Fish’s audition in January 1981 was a formality, and the band not only had a lyricist and singer but also more importantly a charismatic front man. They had also taken on someone with drive, ambition, and a vision. Over the next 3 months Fish had contributed a number of lyrics and all the existing songs had been dismantled and rewritten in this new line up which consisted of Fish and Steve, Diz Minnitt on bass, Brian Jelliman on keyboards and founding member Mick Pointer on drums.
Marillion’s’ fan base was growing as they were offering something different from the new wave of British Heavy Metal bands who were darlings of the rock press and the synthesizer-based pop bands ruling the charts. The last rites of Progressive rock had been allegedly written by the music media when punk rock swept the headlines but there was a vast element of fans who still followed the progressive rock genre and Marillion were becoming their new heroes.
In March ‘82 Fish booked a tour of Scotland helping the band increase their fan base, with the help of fantastic live reviews. In 1982, they brought on manager John Arnison to get them over the line and find them a record deal that would provide new opportunities. At the Reading festival that summer, Fish announced on stage that they were signing to EMI Records. Their first release was an EP which was followed by their first full length album, Script for a Jester’s Tear. The album entered at number 7 and was in the album charts for 31 weeks. After extensive touring, including dates in the U.S., they started writing their second album – Fugazi – which went to the top 5 on the UK charts. Writing sessions were squeezed into touring schedules that were financially supporting the band and by the end of the year they had written most of the first side of their third album that Fish had named Misplaced Childhood. The first single “Kayleigh” shot to number 2 and marked the first time one of the band’s singles received heavy radio play and translated across to the wider public. The success of the single reverberated around Europe and Marillion were finally achieving the recognition and success they deserved. The album went into the UK charts at number 1, number 3 in Germany, 6 in Holland and was top 20 across the rest of Europe. Their live reputation grew, and the band ascended to yet another level of success resulting in excessive touring schedules that were starting to take a toll. 1986 was dominated by live performances and writing sessions for the next album were snatched and interspersed in a myriad of touring commitments. The band’s next album, Clutching at Straws came in 1987 and soared to the top 5in the UK, peaking at number 2. Marillion continued to tour, but live performances would come to a halt in the spring of 1988. Fish performed his final show with the band at the Fife Aid Festival in July of that year. In September, he would leave the band entirely.
Soon after leaving the band, Fish took on new management and moved back home to Scotland from South England where he’d been living since joining Marillion in 1981. He set himself up in a farmhouse where he continued working on new music and would go on to release several solo projects. His last album Weltschmerz was released in 2020 and is held by many to be his best album to date.
The Home of Legends.
Primary Wave Music is the leading independent publisher of iconic and legendary music in the world. The company is home to some of the most iconic songwriters, artists, and record labels across the history of recorded music including Bob Marley, Prince, Stevie Nicks, James Brown, The Doors, Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons, Smokey Robinson, Whitney Houston, Ray Charles, Burt Bacharach, Bing Crosby, Luther Vandross, Olivia Newton-John, Steven Van Zandt, Aerosmith, Def Leppard, America, War, Teddy Pendergrass, Count Basie, Traveling Wilburys (Bob Dylan), Donny Hathaway, Joey Ramone, Bob Burns (Lynyrd Skynyrd), George Brown (Kool & The Gang), Sly & The Family Stone, Boston, Alice Cooper, Paul Anka, Boy George and Culture Club, Allee Willis, Paul Rodgers, Toots & The Maytals, Free, The Cranberries, Steve Cropper, Sarah McLachlan, Alice In Chains, Air Supply, Julian Casablancas (The Strokes), Huey Lewis and the News, Glenn Gould, Gin Blossoms, Disturbed, George Merrill & Shannon Rubicam, Dennis DeYoung, Jeff Porcaro (TOTO), Chris Isaak, Sun Records, Times Music (subsidiary of the Times of India Group), and many more. The songs represented by Primary Wave include over 800 Top 10 singles, and over 400 #1 hits. Throughout the company’s 16-year existence, Primary Wave Music has embraced an entrepreneurial spirit, offering, and executing proactive one-of-a-kind ideas, unique services, and marketing campaigns for our artists. Primary Wave has earned a stellar reputation for being forward thinking and re-introducing classic artists and their music into the modern marketplace as well as nurturing young talent to become legends themselves. This success is based upon our team of seasoned and creative executives collaboratively working together closely with our artists as partners. As a company, we strive for excellence in the pursuit of iconic artists and catalogs that not only reflect great artistry, but impact and influence culture.