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.
Jail Bait
Wishbone Ash Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm wondering why your face no longer shines.
I'm wondering why You're always on my mind.
I'm still wondering
Give me a little more time.
I need to know why I can't see your tears,
I need to know why I can't see your tears.
I want to make you cast away your fears.
In the lyrics to Wishbone Ash's song Jail Bait, the singer is expressing his confusion and concern over the changes he has noticed in a person he cares about. He wonders why their face no longer shines and why they seem to constantly be on his mind. He acknowledges that he needs more time to figure out what is going on and why he cannot see this person's tears or understand how many lonely years they may have experienced. Ultimately, he wants to help this person cast away their fears and find peace.
This song can be interpreted in a number of ways, but it seems to be about someone who has experienced trauma or struggle and is struggling to find their way back to a happy and healthy state. The singer is concerned and empathetic, wanting to help this person reconnect with their emotions and find a way to move forward. Throughout the song, there is a sense of longing, as the singer wants to understand what has happened to this person and how he can help them.
One interesting fact about this song is that it was written and recorded in just one day. According to the band's bassist, Martin Turner, the song was inspired by the band's road crew, who expressed concern about a young girl they had met on tour who seemed to be in a bad situation. The band wrote the song quickly in response to this story. Additionally, the song features some intricate guitar work and harmonies, which helped establish Wishbone Ash as a prominent band in the 1970s.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm wondering why your face no longer shines,
I am questioning why you lost your vibrant glow and happiness.
I'm wondering why your face no longer shines.
I am perplexed why your radiant expression is gone.
I'm wondering why You're always on my mind.
I don't understand why I can't stop thinking of you.
I'm still wondering
I am still puzzled and uncertain.
Give me a little more time.
Please give me some extra time to figure things out.
I need to know why I can't see your tears,
I want to understand why you won't let me see you cry.
I need to know why I can't see your tears.
I am curious why you hide your sadness and vulnerability from me.
I need to know how many lonesome years
I want to discover how long you have been feeling lonely.
I want to make you cast away your fears.
I aspire to help you overcome your anxieties and worries.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: ANDREW POWELL, DAVID ALAN TURNER, MARTIN ROBERT TURNER, STEVE UPTON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Kamakiri Sassorichan
Too fucking bad they had to lip-sync this. But given the pathetic technical constraints at the time, there was no way they would ever have been able to recreate it in an airless BBC garage/studio. Just reading about Geoff Emerick's travails recording THE BEATLES, it's for sure the BBC spared NO EXPENSE—and you can read that literally, not a dime—on seeing this band displayed at the best of their recording ability.
What is revelatory here is seeing Ted Turner—all those years I just had some muddled concept that Martin Turner did ALL the lead vocals—much like I had with Genesis and Pink Floyd—only to find out ALL the members shared lead vocals. Too bad they didn't specify on the album notes! In addition, how much Ted did the lead guitar stuff—again, I was always under the impression (dating back to 1970!) that Powell was doing all the guitar work. I stand corrected on both counts!
This really brings home how much Wishbone was a fucking GROUP EFFORT from Square One—any one of the parts was NEVER EQUAL TO THE SUM.
Just like the Beatles would have progressed far, far differently if they had stuck with Pete Best, Wishbone would NEVER have gotten to where they did—superstardomless notwithstanding—without Ted Turner and Steve Upton.
Bravo, Ted—I never knew and Management weren't telling.Too fucking bad.
But you're a backdated hero in my book—you too, Steve. Without his ultra-great drumming, WAY before its time for a "rock" band—Wishbone Ash would have always remained on the polytech circuit.
jc Ripp
saw these guys in Boston during the 1st record. waited for them at the venues loading dock. they loved the fact that us young american kids even knew who they were, let alone show up in the afternoon. they invited us in to the soundcheck and then gave us passes to the show. absolutely incredible at the time, always loved them. the original lineup killed. this one. the best, although laurie was freakin great too, but this is Wishbone Ash to me
avidrocker
I was lucky enough to have seen them twice here in the midwest over the last few years or so, of course its not the same band, but its the same ol soul, and the current lineup of Andy Powell and co.
still brings it!
Nicolle Velasquez
Esta canción es sensacional, me pone los pelos de punta, las guitarras gemelas y el bajo y la voz es una belleza. La forma en que interpreta la canción.🤗🗯️😍
Thomas Humphrey
Underrated band more people should know about.
Roberta Brown Holmes
You got THAT right...HOW did I not know about this band??? KILLER
Werner Spitzenberger
heres everything perfect: twin guitars, rhythm, melodies, a perfect, unique drummer, vocals. for me one of the BEST BANDS AND MUSICIANS EVER ON THIS PLANET. and asuperb LIVE-BAND. many of their live-versions were even better than the studio-versions
Albert Schembri
killer band,,,still plays in 2020
konstantinov
And 2022. Just saw 'em twice in the Midwest....
Christian Lagreca
The best twin guitars in action!
Andy Powell and Martin Turner simply fantastic!
Paul Richards
You mean Ted Turner ,. Martin is the bass player.