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.
Growing Up
Wishbone Ash Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And the path going up the slope
Cigarette tips glowing in the dark
Dancing like fireflies
We could see the lights of the town
Far away below
And we were watching the world go by
Dreaming of the love we would know
And it all seems so, so (very) far away
And such a long, long time ago
And when I think about it
I sometimes feel that growing up means losing friends
Engraved initials
On the fence by the old churchyard
Have long since worn and faded
But all the faces still remain
And I remember that girl
and how she kissed me
And the look from my father
When I stumbled home,
much too late.
The lyrics of Wishbone Ash's song "Growing Up" take the listener on a nostalgic journey back to the singer's youth. The first verse paints a picture of a peaceful and serene scene - the trees by the road, the path going up the slope, and the cigarette tips glowing in the dark, all create a sense of calm and tranquility. However, this scene is interrupted by the dancing cigarette tips that resemble fireflies, indicating that this moment is fleeting and won't last forever. The second half of the verse introduces a point of tension, with the lights of the town far away below, implying an unspoken urge to leave and experience more.
The second verse of the song touches on themes of loss and heartbreak. The line "engraved initials on the fence by the old churchyard have long faded" indicates that time passes, and even the most permanent memorials will eventually disappear. The image of the girl kissing the singer and the memory of stumbling home late including the look from his father implies that growing up means facing the consequences of our actions and choices.
Line by Line Meaning
I remember the trees by the road
Recollections of the natural world near the roadside
And the path going up the slope
The image of a hillside trail leading upward
Cigarette tips glowing in the dark
The sight of smoldering cigarettes shining in the darkness
Dancing like fireflies
The movement of the cigarettes like luminescent bugs
We could see the lights of the town
The view of the urban landscape in the distance
Far away below
The town appearing distant and removed from the viewpoint
And we were watching the world go by
The feeling of observing the world around them without participating actively
Dreaming of the love we would know
Yearning for experiences of affection and connection
And it all seems so, so (very) far away
Realizing how distant the memories of that time have become
And such a long, long time ago
The recognition of the length of time that has passed
And when I think about it
Reflecting on those memories of the past
I sometimes feel that growing up means losing friends
The melancholy feeling that the process of maturing involves the loss of close relationships
Engraved initials
The letters carved into a surface to establish identity
On the fence by the old churchyard
The placement of the initials by a religious site
Have long since worn and faded
The effect of time on the inscriptions
But all the faces still remain
The memory of the people associated with those markings persists
And I remember that girl
Thinking of a particular female from the past
and how she kissed me
The recollection of a physical gesture of affection
And the look from my father
The expression of disapproval from a paternal figure
When I stumbled home,
After arriving back home in a state of disarray
much too late.
Later than expected, likely past curfew
Contributed by Colton G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.