Marshall's House (February 2004)

Details:
6.5 / 10

John Squire received an Edward Hopper calendar as a Christmas gift in 2002 and pinned it up in the room he used to write in. He found Hopper's 'People In The Sun' so striking that he set myself a challenge to see if he could write a song around the image. This led to him writing 12 songs altogether, based on the respective painting for each month (11 are found on the album, with Nighthawks being released as a b-side). This is John Squire speaking to The Sunday Mail in 2004:

"There's something disturbing about his characters. The expressions on their faces seem quite haunted... as if they've lived a bit." (John Squire speaking to The Sunday Mail in 2004).

Recorded in a spurt of 12 days at Bryn Derwen in Wales, this LP was originally going to be entitled 'Swimming through the holes in dead American painters' (a lyric from Lighthouse & Buildings, Portland Head, Cape Elizabeth, Maine and the title of the cover artwork), but it was decided that this was too much of a mouthful.

Squire draws influence from contemporary artists such as Gary Hume (1962 - ), Fiona Rae (1963 - ) and Julian Opie. 'Swimming Through the Holes in Dead American Painters', 'Marshall's House' and 'Marshall's House (Study)' (all 2003), 'SU4', 'SU5', and 'SU6c' (all 2004), like the works of Hume and Opie, are vast outlined, figurative canvases. Compare Squire's 'SU5' and Hume's 'Water Painting' (1999) below:

SU5 (2004) by Squire Water Painting (1999) by Hume

Below are Squire's 'Mother' (2005) and Rae's 'Friction Dance' (1997):

Mother (2005) by Squire An example of Rae's work, Friction Dance (1997)

1. Summertime
2. Hotel Room
3. Marshall's House
4. Lighthouse & Buildings, Portland Head, Cape Elizabeth, Maine
5. Cape Cod Morning
6. People In The Sun
7. Tables For Ladies
8. Automat
9. Yawl Riding A Swell
10. Room In Brooklyn
11. Gas

Format:
Released December 2003:
Marshall's House (North Country Records, Promo CD)
Summertime / Room In Brooklyn / Automat / Lighthouse And Buildings (North Country Records, 4 Track Sampler CD)

Released 28th January 2004:
Marshall's House (North Country Records, TFCK-87345, Japanese CD)

Released 9th February 2004:
Marshall's House (North Country Records, NCCD003, CD)
Marshall's House (North Country Records, NCLP003, LP)

UK chart details: Did not chart in Top 40.

Artwork details:
The Marshall's House artwork is from 'Swimming Through The Holes In Dead American Painters' (2003), oil on canvas, 30" x 72"

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