ARTISTThe Waterboys

The Waterboys were formed in London in the early 1980s by singer-songwriter Mike Scott. Over the years, the group has followed a range of musical paths, moving between rock and folk and frequently changing its lineup. Early releases include the self-titled 1983 debut, A Pagan Place in 1984, and 1985’s This Is the Sea, which featured the single “The Whole of the Moon.” After Scott moved to Dublin, he, Antony Thistlethwaite, and Steve Wickham brought Irish traditions, country, and soul into the band’s sound. This direction led to Fisherman's Blues in 1988 and Room to Roam in 1990. Wickham remained with the group for a significant part of its history.

The Waterboys continued to explore different sounds and projects. Universal Hall appeared in 2003, followed in 2011 by An Appointment with Mr. Yeats, a collection of new songs using lyrics from William Butler Yeats’s poems. Later releases include Modern Blues, Out of All This Blue, Where the Action Is, Good Luck, Seeker, and All Souls Hill, which also featured electronic rhythms and production influenced by hip-hop and funk. In 2025, the band released Life, Death and Dennis Hopper, a 25-song album about Dennis Hopper’s life and art, with guest appearances by Bruce Springsteen, Fiona Apple, and Steve Earle. In 2026, Atlantic Rain: The Lost Fisherman's Blues Recordings brought together unreleased material recorded between 1986 and 1988.