| "The Fish (Schindleria Praematurus)" | ||||
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| Song by Yes from the album Fragile | ||||
| Released | 26 November 1971 (UK) 4 January 1972 (U.S.) |
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| Recorded | September 1971 | |||
| Genre | Progressive rock | |||
| Length | 2:39 | |||
| Label | Atlantic Records | |||
| Composer | Chris Squire | |||
| Producer | Yes and Eddie Offord | |||
| Fragile track listing | ||||
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"The Fish (Schindleria Praematurus)" is a mostly instrumental rock song by progressive rock band Yes from their 1971 album Fragile. It was written by Chris Squire.
The bass guitar performs most of the parts of the song. The song starts out with a guitar solo before transitioning into the main 7/4 section. Its only lyrics, the subtitle of the song, appear towards the end of the piece, are repeated several times and fade out with it.
In concert, the song is used as an extended bass jam for Chris Squire, and the piece is drastically rearranged. There are only two points in the song that are in 7/4 and are similar to the studio version; the rest is a series of different common time improvisations by Squire with varying beats and backing melodies, often including bass parts from other Yes songs such as "Tempus Fugit", "Sound Chaser" and "On the Silent Wings of Freedom". This solo can last up into the ten-minute range, as can be heard on Yessongs. Live performances of The Fish have sometimes been titled "Whitefish", referring to Alan White & Squire performing the piece as a duet. "Whitefish" can be found on 9012Live: The Solos.
Because the song "Long Distance Runaround" directly transitions into "The Fish", the songs are frequently played together on classic rock radio stations. The origin of the song's title has been attributed variously over the years. One story says that Squire was given the nickname by Bill Bruford, who gave it to Squire after he flooded his hotel room in Oslo, Norway while taking a shower. Bruford has also stated that when he and Squire shared a house in Fulham, Squire would spend long periods of time in the bathroom. Furthermore, his astrological sign is Pisces (Fish). It may also be a reference to the bass (fish), whose name is homonymous with the bass guitar. Subsequently, Squire made reference to his nickname by titling a solo album Fish Out of Water.
Schindleria praematura is the Latin scientific name for a marine fish known as the infantfish or Schindleria.
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