Remarkable to think that Mark Wilkinson and Fish both faced financial crises at a point in their career when most fans would have considered them successful, bank rolled entrepeneurs. Fish's near bankruptcy is well documented, but Wilkinson came under the financial cosh in the late Eighties when illustrators were fast losing out to the electronic evolution of Photoshop. Desperate to compete, he sold his huge record collection and invested in an Apple Mac and set about becoming computer literate. I mention this story to illustrate (sorry) how even a leading artist like Wilkinson can become a victim of his own circumstances. As Roger Dean became an inexorable part of Yes so Wilkinson became notorious for the evocative Marillion sleeves that charted their commercial rise and fall. In 'Masque...' Wilkinson and Fish, in long involved conversations, rehash the era and the stories and situations that gave rise to the artwork that would become synonomous with the band and Fish himself. The book has more than its share of surprises, Wilkinson was almost fired by the band after 'Fugazi' and then again as the band were preparing 'Clutching At Straws'. Marillion hated the 'Real To Reel' sleeve while putting Tammi (Mrs Fish) on the cover of a 'Gentleman's Excuse Me' caused uproar in the family home. The book ends with original cover ideas for Fish's next album,'Fellini Days', and a Q &A between the artist and fans. It, like the rest of this book, is a fascinating insight into the world of a band and artist at work. - Philip Wilding