Fisherman's Blues
| Fisherman's Blues | ||||
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| Studio album by The Waterboys | ||||
| Released | October 1988 | |||
| Recorded | 1986-88 | |||
| Studio | Windmill Lane Studio & Spiddal House | |||
| Genre | Folk rock | |||
| Length | 54:37 | |||
| Label | Ensign, Chrysalis | |||
| Producer | Mike Scott, Vinnie Kilduff, Bob Johnston, John Dunford | |||
| The Waterboys chronology | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Rolling Stone |   |
| Allmusic |  |
Fisherman's Blues is a 1988 album by The Waterboys. The album marked a change in the sound of The Waterboys', abandoning their earlier grandiose rock sound for a mixture of traditional Irish music, traditional Scottish music, country music and rock and roll. Critics were divided on its release with some disappointed at the change of direction and others ranking it among The Waterboys' best work. The album was the Waterboys' best selling album, reaching a number 13 placing on the U.K. charts on release, and 76 on the Billboard 200.
The history behind Fisherman's Blues begins with Steve Wickham's contribution to "The Pan Within" on the preceding Waterboys album This Is the Sea. Wickham joined the group officially in 1985 after This Is the Sea had been released. Mike Scott, The Waterboys' leader, spent time in Dublin with Wickham, and moved to Ireland in 1986. That year The Waterboys performed "Fisherman's Blues" on The Tube, which was the first time the new musical direction the band was taking was demonstrated.
The recording sessions for the album were lengthy and produced a great deal of music. The sessions began at Windmill Lane Studio in Dublin and lasted from January through March 1986. An additional session took place that December in San Francisco. From March to August 1987 The Waterboys were recording in Windmill Lane again. Scott moved to Galway and another year passed as the band recorded at Spiddal House, where Scott was living. The entire second side of the original record is made up of recordings from this 1988 session. The album was released that October (see 1988 in music). Scott describes the process; "We started recording our fourth album in early '86 and completed it 100 songs and 2 years later".
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