Wishbone Ash can trace its origins back to Torquay, Devon, England, a seaside resort in the southwest of the country. It was there that Martin Turner and Steve Upton first performed together; Turner on bass, Upton on drums, before moving to London in 1969 to seek fame and fortune. In the capital the decision was made to place an advertisement for a keyboard player and a lead guitarist. The resulting audition threw up two guitar leads, but nobody could decide who to choose and the trademark twin-lead sound of Wishbone Ash was born.
Ted (David) Turner and Andy Powell soon went through the poverty and growing pains of a new band, but were fortunate that Miles Copeland was championing their cause and a fairly rapid progression was achieved. The first Album, Wishbone Ash, was released in December 1970 and their second, Pilgrimage, surfaced just six months later to reach #6 in the NME charts. Great things were just 11 months away with the release of Argus (1972) -- possibly the band's best album; certainly their most commercially successful -- which reached #2 in the UK charts and went gold. Argus is considered to be one of the great rock classics of all time. The next album, Wishbone Four, only 12 months later, went silver.
After these early highs, Ted Turner decided that he had had enough, and left the band to be replaced by Laurie Wisefield. Although Laurie’s style was not to everyone’s taste, he was generally well liked by the fans and brought a slightly harder edge to the folk-tinged progressive rock that was the Wishbone Ash formula. Wisefield was a dynamic player and became an excellent partner to Andy -- they were to play together for a very successful 11 years and the MKII version of the band is very well thought of for most of its output. About this time the band became more influenced by America and would eventually move there.
The next album, There's The Rub (1974), was recorded in Florida and produced by Eagles producer Bill Szymczyk. Once again it was to do well, achieving silver disc status. There's the Rub included the instrumental piece F.U.B.B. Steve Upton was arrested in New Zealand for announcing at a concert it's full title. In New Zealand, swearing in public is a criminal offense, and when Upton announced the title at an outdoor concert, a woman sunbathing in her garden nearby complained to the mayor. Upton spent the night in jail, and the album reached #3 in New Zealand due to the publicity.
It was inevitable that a turkey was due and to fans Locked In (1976) fit this bill. This record was not released -- it escaped! Fortunately things were much better with the quality of the following albums and although the high chart positions were gone, the fans were enjoying some competent, well-crafted output.
After 11 years in the band, Martin Turner decided to leave. This move began a period of frequent changes of bass player with the likes of John Wetton and Trevor Bolder being two of the better known; however, Wishbone Ash always has attracted musicians of the highest order. A much more controversial move was the introduction of Clair Hamill to fill in some of the vocal talent Martin had taken away with him. Clair was not popular with the fans which was perhaps a little unfair. She had contributed backing vocals on Just Testing (Turner's last album (1980), which he had also produced) and had co-written the excellent Living Proof, which is still a crowd favourite today. Her stay was short-lived with Andy Powell taking on more vocal duties. Wisefield left in late 1985 and the band continued to tour with various replacements, but were very much in limbo until 1987 when a miracle occurred. Miles Copland persuaded the original lineup to reform for a project for a music charity that he was helping, and a Hammersmith Odeon concert which the BBC recorded resulted. The project produced an instrumental album Nouveau Calls (1987), which was very well received. Even better received was the fact that three years of the original lineup were to follow.
Just when things were going so well, Steve Upton decided to quit the business entirely in 1990, to be replaced by Ray Weston. Martin Turner carried on for another year before leaving to pursue a solo career, and Ted left two years later. The next five years saw lots of personnel changes, but eventually resulted in a good period of stability with Ray Weston returning and Bob Skeet joining on bass in 1998.
The new millennium has also seen stability in respect of Andy's guitar partner, with the last 6 years being filled by Ben Granfelt and subsequently Muddy Manninen, both of whom come from Finland. 2005 saw Wishbone Ash celebrate their 35th year. 2006 heralded the new album Clan Destiny (the first featuring Muddy as guitarist). 2007 saw the exit of long-term drummer Ray Weston, due to the increasingly hectic pace of band life. Joe Crabtree (formerly of The David Cross band) stepped up to fill his place. With regard to new releases, 2007 saw First Light, which features original recordings of the songs featured on their debut album, as well as some outtakes. Also released that year was the new album The Power of Eternity (partly featuring Joe Crabtree on drums), which coincided with the Autumn tour.
Wishbone Ash are still performing 150 gigs a year in the U.S. and Europe. They get very supportive crowds with good numbers turning out all over Europe -- the U.S. tends to attract smaller audiences, but very committed fans. If you want to hear classic Wishbone Ash, get ahold of Argus. Visit their web site www.wishboneash.com, where tour dates and albums, etc. can be obtained.
01. The King Will Come
Wishbone Ash Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Thunder rolls, piper and drum.
Evil sons, overrun,
Count their sins - judgment comes.
The checkerboard of nights and days -
Man will die, man be saved.
The sky will fall, the earth will pray,
See the word of the prophet
On a stone in his hand.
Poison pen revelation,
Or just a sign in the sand?
The checkerboard of nights and days -
Man will die, man be saved.
The sky will fall, the earth will pray,
When judgment comes to claim its day.
See the word of the prophet
On a stone in his hand.
Poison pen revelation,
Or just a sign in the sand?
The lyrics to Wishbone Ash's "The King Will Come" are steeped in biblical and apocalyptic imagery. The opening line, "In the fire, the king will come," refers to the biblical prophesy of the return of Jesus Christ at the end of the world, often described as coming in flames of fire. The thunder rolls and the piper and drum create a sense of urgency and impending danger, setting the stage for the arrival of the king.
As the song progresses, the lyrics describe the arrival of judgment day, with the evil sons being overrun and forced to count their sins. The "checkerboard of nights and days" refers to the duality of good and evil, with man having the choice between salvation and damnation. The sky falling and the earth praying are also biblical references to the apocalypse.
The final stanza references a prophet holding a stone with a message, questioning whether it is a poison pen revelation or just a sign in the sand. This could be interpreted as a warning against false prophets and the need for discernment in times of turmoil.
Overall, "The King Will Come" presents a powerful vision of the end of the world, with the inevitability of judgment day and the importance of choosing the right path.
Line by Line Meaning
In the fire, the king will come.
The arrival of the king will be marked by flames and destruction.
Thunder rolls, piper and drum.
The sound of thunder accompanies the arrival of the king, along with music played on pipes and drums.
Evil sons, overrun,
The wicked have taken over and caused chaos.
Count their sins - judgment comes.
The evil doers will be held accountable for their wrongdoings and face punishment.
The checkerboard of nights and days -
The continuous cycle of dark and light, or good and evil.
Man will die, man be saved.
People will experience both death and salvation during their lives.
The sky will fall, the earth will pray,
Natural disasters and calamities will make people turn to prayer and seek divine intervention.
When judgment comes to claim its day.
The time will come when those who have sinned will face the consequences of their actions.
See the word of the prophet
Observe the message of the prophet, who predicts what is to come.
On a stone in his hand.
The prophet's words are inscribed on a stone, symbolizing their importance and permanence.
Poison pen revelation,
The prophet's message might be seen as harmful or dangerous by some.
Or just a sign in the sand?
Or is the prophet's message simply a passing fancy, with no lasting impact?
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: ANDREW POWELL, DAVID TURNER, MARTIN TURNER, STEVE UPTON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Witch Hammer
In the fire, the king will come
Thunder rolls, piper and drum
Evil sons, overrun
Count their sins, judgment comes
The checkerboard of nights and days
Man will die, man be saved
The sky will fall, the earth will pray
When judgment comes to claim its day
See the word of the prophet
On a stone in his hand
Poison pen revelation
Or just a sign in the sand?
The checkerboard of nights and days
Man will die, man be saved
The sky will fall, the earth will pray
When judgment comes to claim its day
See the word of the prophet
On a stone in his hand
Poison pen revelation
Or just a sign in the sand?
BO LU
In the fire, the king will come
Thunder rolls, piper and drum
Evil sons, overrun
Count their sins, judgment comes
The checkerboard of nights and days
Man will die, man be saved
The sky will fall, the earth will pray
When judgment comes to claim its day
See the word of the prophet
On a stone in his hand
Poison pen revelation
Or just a sign in the sand?
The checkerboard of nights and days
Man will die, man be saved
The sky will fall, the earth will pray
When judgment comes to claim its day
See the word of the prophet
On a stone in his hand
Poison pen revelation
Or just a sign in the sand?
WITCHTRAP Official
In the fire, the king will come
Thunder rolls, piper and drum
Evil sons, overrun
Count their sins, judgment comes
The checkerboard of nights and days
Man will die, man be saved
The sky will fall, the earth will pray
When judgment comes to claim its day
See the word of the prophet
On a stone in his hand
Poison pen, revelation
Or just a sign in the sand?
The checkerboard of nights and days
Man will die, man be saved
The sky will fall, the earth will pray
When judgment comes to claim its day
See the word of the prophet
On a stone in his hand
Poison pen, revelation
Or just a sign in the sand?
mleon1958
That's one of the best tones from a strat that I've ever heard! Laurie was on FIRE!!!😁
Scott Fairclough
Unbelievable sound!!!
triplejudy
Yep; I agree as well !
mleon1958
@Snipely I guess the '54 he was using either had a really good original bridge pickup, or it was replaced and had the tone control routed to it to take out some of the brightness 'cause that thing sounds fat!
Snipely
Especially that solo. Spectacular.
Luc Fregosi
What a brilliant live sound and so tight😀
Peter Ulrich
Saw these guys live in Austin circa 1972. Fabulous band way ahead of their time. Still great to listen to.
Mark Rodriguez
Lucky you
Anna Maria Delgado
Beautiful tones from both guitars...so glad that Spotify randomly put this song on my playlist. I’m looking forward to more.
alstc payment
2021 and I am still listening. Everybody needs a friend or some good testosterone Music.