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.
Hold On
Wishbone Ash Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Picked up the phone and I called the operator -
She said a lady left a name and a number.
Hey, operator, don't you think you could connect me?
I've been waiting for so long for her to call me.
Hold on, I'll try to put you through,
Just hold on, I'll try it again for you,
I turned down the lights,
I sat back and waited for an answer.
Hope everything's all right,
I wonder why she called and what she had to tell me.
Hey, lady, are you sure this number's right?
I tried all day and I tried all night. Oh, no.
Hold on, I'm trying to put you through,
Hold on, I'll try it again for you,
Hold on, I'm just putting you through.
Hold on, just hold on,
Hold on, she's putting me through.
Five thousand miles is a long way from home
And I feel so cold being here on my own.
All I need is the sound of your voice
To warm my soul and help me through the night.
Hey, what can I do?
I've tried to reach you, but I can't get through.
I'll just try it one more time,
Won't you please clear the line?
Hey, operator, listen to me please,
I'm begging you on my bended knees.
Hold on, I'm trying to put you through,
Hold on, I'll try it again for you,
Hold on, I'm putting you through. [Repeat: x2]
She said,"Hold on. I'm getting through to you".
Hold on, I'm getting though to you.
Hold on, long way from home.
Hold on, I'm here on my own.
Hold on, getting through to you.
The song "Hold On" by Wishbone Ash describes a long-distance call from a man who is trying to reach a woman. The song suggests that the woman has called him earlier but has not been able to connect properly. In the song, the man reaches the operator who tries to connect him to the woman. The man eagerly waits for the call and hopes that everything is all right with the woman. He feels alone being five thousand miles away from home and hopes to hear the sound of the woman's voice to comfort him. However, the call doesn't seem to connect, and the man keeps trying. The song ends with the operator's message that she's finally getting through to the woman, leaving the listeners with a sense of anticipation and mystery.
The song reflects the emotions of people who are away from their loved ones and are trying to connect with them. The lyrics are simple and effective, conveying the man's eagerness and anxiety to connect with the woman. The song's pace is swift and energetic, which enhances its theme of longing and desperation. The song's title, "Hold On," is a word of advice and encouragement to people who are trying to overcome distance and connect with their loved ones.
Line by Line Meaning
Checked in tonight, when I noticed the red light.
I arrived tonight and saw the red light indicating a message.
Picked up the phone and I called the operator -
I called the operator to listen to my message.
She said a lady left a name and a number.
The operator informed me that a woman left a name and number for me to call back.
Hey, operator, don't you think you could connect me?
I asked the operator to help me connect with the woman who left me the message.
I've been waiting for so long for her to call me.
I was waiting for a long time for this woman to contact me.
Hold on, I'll try to put you through,
I told the woman to hold on while I try to connect her to the call.
Just hold on, I'll try it again for you,
I assured the woman that I will keep trying until we are connected.
Hold on, I'm just putting you through.
I informed the woman that I am currently trying to connect her, please wait.
I turned down the lights,
I turned off the light in the room.
I sat back and waited for an answer.
I leaned back and waited eagerly for the woman to answer the call.
Hope everything's all right,
I hoped that nothing was wrong with the woman who called me.
I wonder why she called and what she had to tell me.
I was eager to know why the woman called me and was curious about her message.
Hey, lady, are you sure this number's right?
I asked the woman if the number she left for me was correct.
I tried all day and I tried all night. Oh, no.
I tried calling the woman throughout the day and night but couldn't get through.
Hold on, I'm trying to put you through,
I was still trying to connect the woman to the call.
Hold on, I'll try it again for you,
I promised to continue trying until the woman was connected.
Hold on, I'm just putting you through.
I was still connecting the woman and told her to hold on.
Hold on, just hold on,
I repeated my plea to the woman to hold on while I try to connect her.
Hold on, she's putting me through.
The woman was finally connected to the call.
Five thousand miles is a long way from home
I am currently far away from home, about five thousand miles.
And I feel so cold being here on my own.
I feel lonely and cold being away from home on my own.
All I need is the sound of your voice
All I crave right now is to hear the woman's voice on the phone.
To warm my soul and help me through the night.
Her voice will bring me comfort and help me deal with my loneliness at night.
Hey, what can I do?
I was helpless and didn't know what to do to connect the call.
I've tried to reach you, but I can't get through.
Despite multiple attempts, I couldn't successfully connect to the woman.
I'll just try it one more time,
I decided to give it one last try.
Won't you please clear the line?
I requested the operator to fix the line and clear any bandwidth issue.
Hey, operator, listen to me, please,
I called out to the operator and pleaded her to listen and fix the call.
I'm begging you on my bended knees.
I was desperately begging the operator to fix the call as I am on my knees for the same.
Hold on, I'm trying to put you through,
I was still putting in efforts to connect the call.
Hold on, I'll try it again for you,
I told the woman that I will keep trying to connect the call for her.
Hold on, I'm putting you through. [Repeat: x2]
Again I assured the woman that I am trying to connect her and requested her to hold on.
She said,"Hold on. I'm getting through to you".
Finally, the woman answered the call and assured me that she was able to connect through.
Hold on, I'm getting though to you.
The woman confirmed that she has been connected and to hold on to the phone.
Hold on, long way from home.
I was still far away from home.
Hold on, I'm here on my own.
I was still lonely and on my own.
Hold on, getting through to you.
Finally, I was able to connect with the woman and asked her to hold on the phone.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Chris de Burgh
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
aitech nasus
Hold On Is A Great Straight Up Killer Rock Song By WISHBONE ASH And Totally Rocks It Needs To Be Fully Cranked Up All The Way To Full Maximum Volume.
Chip Peters
Awesome Tune Trevor, You Rest Well, Killa on Bass... !!!!!!! Lay It on Down..P.S You Left To Early.
꿈꾸는소수인님
Wow!!!👍👍