About the artist: Steven Wilson (1967) is an English musician, singer, songwriter and record producer, most closely associated with the progressive rock genre. He became known as the founder, lead guitarist, lead vocalist and songwriter of the band Porcupine Tree, as well as being a member of several other bands, including Blackfield and No-Man. He released his first solo album in 2008, followed by four more over the years, mostly to great critical acclaim. Steven Wilson currently has five songs in my list of about 200 best pop/rock songs of all time.
About the song: as good as his first solo albums were, he outdid himself with the 2013 album The Raven That Refused to Sing (And Other Stories) - a beautiful but spooky homage to seventies' prog. The raven that refused to sing is one of three songs on that album to make my list, and probably my favourite song of this century. In his own words: the story of "an old man at the end of his life who is waiting to die. He thinks back to a time in his childhood when he was incredibly close to his older sister. She was everything to him, and he was everything to her. Unfortunately, she died when they were both very young." The man becomes convinced that a raven, who visits the man's garden, is something of "a symbol or a manifestation of his sister. The thing is, his sister would sing to him whenever he was afraid or insecure, and it was a calming influence on him. In his ignorance, he decides that if he can get the raven to sing to him, it will be the final proof that this is, in fact, his sister who has come back to take him with her to the next life." Incredibly moving, especially when you watch the video at the same time. Run time: 7:57.
