Entertainment For Lively Minds
This Is Wishbone Ash: A Rockumentary
Posted by Colin H on 17 November 2011 - 10:04pm.
Forgive me if I've missed a dozen threads about this (I suspect not, though)... This is what happens when a year elapses between having the thought, 'Hmmm, I wonder what Wishbone Ash are up to?' and having it again: they make a 'rockumentary'.
Not sure I need to see it in full, but I must say it looks like a classy bit of film-making from the trailer:
- More from Colin H.
- Login or register to post comments
-
Top,top band back then
And still a great night out. Andy Powell, as the Keeper Of The Flame,has done a great job keeping the band alive. The new material in the last few years has been excellent and he hasn't just rested on his laurels (unlike his former bassist who hawks a poor man's version of the band around,relying on the legacy of Argus and his dubious voice).
You can't leave an old school Ash fan hanging like that.
I demand to know the best three latter day Wishbone Ash albums from the last few years.
Recommendations right now please, I have less than five hours to guarantee Amazon Prime delivery in time for a monster Ash session tomorrow night. Tell me how to spend my Ash cash, now!
Illuminations...
...is a goodie. The monster track 'Mountainside' is an Ash classic and there's a few other goodies too.
For the price of a pint...
Thank you, your order has been placed.
Ta, Colin!
Sorry Vulpes
hope I'm not too late.
Illuminations (see Colin H below)
Bona Fide (Enigma has the greatest twin-lead break they've ever done)
Clan Destiny (which has the mighty Healing Ground on it)
Cheers, Niall!
Illuminations should be here today *jigs with delight*, and I've picked up the other two you mention for a song via Amazon's second-hand market. It's been ages since I've been quite so intrigued to hear what a band's been up to since I last listened to them. My most recent Wishbone Ash purchase before this week was probably Live Dates!!!
"They had 10 guitarists before me
so I had to step into 10 different shoes".
One legged guitar players, the Ash version of spontaneously combusting Tap drummers?
40+ years and still going
Having just put up a defence for Cliff Richard I now find Im writing about the mighty Ash. Now , like Clff, I don't listen to the band these days (in fact not since Theres The Rub) but I will defend to the hilt that they were one of our great bands with a pretty unique sound. Anyone who doesn't believe that Argus is a classic had better meet me (or preferably someone else bigger and braver) outside ! Yet they are often on the end of many a put down quip by the likes of Messrs Hepworth and Ellen when they want to make a joke about hippy bands from the early 70s (and often at the same time as extolling the virtues of Dr Strangely Strange !!?)
Ello
Mark Ellen loves the Ash. Saw them in Farnam, etc. He's just blocked by those ghastly Smash Hits acts (obviously they weren't bands).
I couldn't agree more John!
...I've seen the Ash in concert several times in the past few years - in Dublin, Oxford and Belfast. In fact, their last show in Belfast was probably the best I've seen - a great sound mix in a small club venue, with everyone on great form. I admire Andy Powell's belief and energy enormously, keeping the show on the road for so long and creating new music in that twin guitar style - even though he, like everyone else, must know that they'll never surpass that handful of LPs, especially Argus, in the 70s. And there, indeed, is the rub.
Still, one always assumes that the minute you mention Wishbone Ash, someone's going to start taking the p***. I guess Andy knows it too - hence the delightful chutzpah in calling the doc 'This Is Wishbone Ash'!
First proper rock band I ever saw (1979)
up until then it was only cover bands in the local hall. First time I experienced a proper lighting rig, big PA stack etc. so I've always had a soft spot for them, and I'm glad to see they're still going.
Let's celebrate this (unexpected) Wishbone love-in with...
...'Phoenix', filmed by the fabulous Vincent Lyons (the best one-man amateur film-maker on youtube IMHO) earlier this year in Holland:
Extremely well played and
recorded.
Will have to try and catch the Andy Powell version (and overcome my wife's prejudices, because of his alleged treatment of Mr Turner.)
And with this...
...back in the day!
Mind you, someone should really have had a word with Martin Turner about the bathrobe...
Are there not
2 wishbone ashes ? Or did I dream that ?
No, not a dream...
...possibly a nightmare, though. Here's Martin Turner's Wishbone Ash earlier this year. Watch out for the bonkers facial mannerisms about a minute in...
One genuine, one bogus
The band led by Andy Powell are the genuine Wishbone Ash. Andy's been there since day one and as the only original member left surely has the moral right to continue to use the name. Martin Turner hasn't been a member of the band since the early 90s but recently put together another outfit with three other guys with no previous connection to the band but decided to use the Wishbone Ash name. There's a gentlemen's agreement between Andy and Martin that this band should go out as Martin Turner's Wishbone Ash to avoid confusion with the genuine article but invariably on a lot of occasions that doesn't happen. Andy's band are still putting out albums of new material and still have some creative spark left, Martin's just play the old stuff - essentially they're a WA tribute band fronted by an ex-member. No problem if he wants to go out and play those old songs but trying to appropriate the name of a band he's walked out of on two previous occasions is out of order.
And
Martin Turner cannot sing to save his life. He was an entire tone flat when I saw them a couple of years back. It was excruciating; I nearly left in the opening song. The musicianship was good and saved the show, but he could do himself a favour by getting someone else on board on pipes.
Whistle test revival
The current radio series looking back on the Whistle Test played out with Martin Turner's WA doing "The King Will Come" - I think the first or second - I thought they sounded OK actually.
I think that we should be left
to make up our own mind about the validity (or otherwise) of the 2 Wishbone Ash versions. To characterise one as 'bogus' is subjective, to say the least, and, given the bad blood between the two main protagonists, it is rather precipitate.
Both bands continue to play the early/'classic' Wishbone Ash repertoire. Both contain one member of the 'classic' (original?) line-up. Both feature dual/harmony lead guitars.
Unless you were present at the time, the truth about, and motivation behind Mr Turner's exit(s) from the band can only be a matter of conjecture. He is, by all accounts, less than easy to work with, but that does not necessarily serve to marginalise or rubbish him or his band.
He has apparently been on the receiving end of a number of subterfuges, particularly regarding the alteration of Wikipedia entries to try and discredit him. There are clearly egos and good old-fashioned show-business rivalries at work here.
Whether Andy Powell/Co's 'new' material is of any merit or whether this toois a matter of 'trading on past glories' is also a matter of opinion.
Turner's band are entertaining, Ray Hatfield and Danny Wilson are both guitarists of a professional standard (Wilson also has a very good singing voice). He (Turner) has every right to play the material, if he wants. If not he would have been subject to a 'Passing Off' legal action before now.
This is only Rock 'n Roll. To describe a guitarist as 'keeper of the flame' is a bit too messianic (cue Life of Brian gag).
I'm sure that you don't intend to add more fuel to this sorry mess of a feud. There is room for both bands. You pays your money..............
Jailbait
One of the greatest blues-rock songs ever. The interplay of those twin lead guitars was truly immense. Also Argus was definitely one of the best albums of its (or any) era.
Argus
A total masterpiece. The remaster of 5 ish years ago with the Jailbait US EP added is wonderful.
Blurgh!
The Tony Palmer-style Whirling Dervish camera work on that clip in the OP left me feeling feel sick, so I had to turn it off.
But... the first three Wishbone Ash albums are undisputed nailed-on classics of the era and still sound great today.
After that I'm not so sure. Wishbone Four was a major disappointment after Argus and the move towards a Humble Pie-style arena sound with Laurie Wisefield on board (from There's The Rub onwards) left me cold.
Well, I do like Argus.
But I bloody love Pilgrimage. Their finest ever IMHO.
yep, agree, give me Andy's version of the band
I once saw Andy Powell's band at the Astoria. A great night. One of my buddies was an ex soldier who wasn't a big hard rock fan and hadn't really heard of them. But he really got into "Warrior" for some reason.
I've also seen Turner's version of the band doing the "Argus" album. It was okay but nothing startling.
However, moving back through the decades, I first saw the original band in 1985 when I was a student in Belfast. They were totally unfashionable of course but I had a habit of going to see bands that wouldn't be seen dead on TOTP in those days. They were absolutely brilliant live.
Basically, the Ash are the unsung heroes of English guitar rock.
Indeed
Here's a fine example. Little factette - the twin solos at the end are not Andy and Ted as commonly thought. they are both Andy, who apparently did two takes and they couldn't decide which was better, so in frustration the engineer pushed up both faders and said "have 'em both". And a storming end was created.
The Wikipedia page for Wishbone Ash
makes for entertaining reading, especially the associated Discussion Page. To say that there's Ill-feeling between the two bands would be a major understatement. I'm not sure I've ever seen such an argumentative discussion on Wikipedia.
Also, I liked the "Here's our new direction" moment described as:
Special band
and Andy Powell is a wonderful player. My fave track from Argus is this one. I can sing the guitar solos (I love a lyrical, melodic solo) and can still remember standing below him at Guildford Civic Hall on the original Argus tour while he played this. 'appy days.
From 1977
Front Page News. I need to dig out this LP to remind me how good it is. A favourite - after the early ones obviously.