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.
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 Knights and Knaves
Man will die, man be saved
The sky will fall, the earth will pray
See the word of the prophet
On a stone of his hand
Poison pen revelation
Or just a sign in the sand?
The checkerboard of Knights and Knaves
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 of his hand
Poison pen revelation
Or just a sign in the sand?
The lyrics of Wishbone Ash's song "The King Will Come" are full of enigmatic symbolism and apocalyptic prophecy. The first verse sets a tone of impending doom, as the arrival of the king is announced amidst the sounds of thunder, piping and drumming. The evil sons who have overrun are facing judgment for their sins, and no one is sure whether they will be saved or condemned. The second verse evokes the image of a checkerboard with its alternating black and white squares, representing the dichotomy between Knights and Knaves. In this game of life and death, some will perish while others will be spared. The sky will fall and the earth will pray, but judgment will inevitably come to claim its day.
The final stanza repeats the mysterious message of the prophet, whose words are inscribed on a stone in his hand. Is this a poison pen revelation or merely a sign in the sand? The ambiguity of this interpretation points to the complexity of the song's themes, which are open to multiple readings. The King Will Come can be heard as a cautionary tale about the consequences of sin and corruption or as a hopeful message about the arrival of a new era of justice and truth. The use of religious imagery and metaphorical language adds to the intensity and power of the song, inviting the listener to reflect on the deeper meanings of life and death.
Line by Line Meaning
In the fire, the king will come
Amidst chaos and destruction, a powerful leader will arise.
Thunder rolls, piper and drum
The sounds of war and conflict are heard as armies clash.
Evil sons, overrun
The wicked are defeated and their reign of terror comes to an end.
Count their sins judgment comes
Those who have done wrong will be held accountable for their actions and face the consequences.
The checkerboard of Knights and Knaves
The battle between good and evil is ongoing and constantly shifting.
Man will die, man be saved
Some will perish while others will be spared in the struggle between darkness and light.
The sky will fall, the earth will pray
Even nature itself will be affected by the impending judgment day.
When judgment comes to claim its day
The time of reckoning has arrived and all will be held accountable for their actions.
See the word of the prophet
Listen to the message of the seer who foresaw these events.
On a stone of his hand
His words are written down and preserved for future generations to learn from.
Poison pen revelation
The prophetic message may be difficult to hear or accept.
Or just a sign in the sand?
It is up to the individual to interpret the prophecy and decide whether to heed its warning or not.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Andrew Powell, David Turner, Martin Turner, Steve Upton
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Douglas
[Lyrics]
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?
Mario Osenk
One of the most underrated bands under the sun.
SonofaColt
WISHBONE ASH …. SIMPLY ONE OF THE BEST ROCK BANDS ….EVER !!!
Harvey Still
HUGE STADIUM BAND IN THE US !
some polish girl
No, sweet, just a band for few.. Like many other deep alternative that majority won't understand (which us super fine)
some polish girl
@Harvey Still yup.
James Sharp
Agreed. I grew up in the 1970s. None of my friends had any Wishbone Ash and they sure didn't receive any airplay. I was damn near 60 years-old before I got turned on to them. Their debut LP is superb.
MrSserb
I'm from Serbia. Wishbone ash are very popular here. I used to go to their concerts in the 80s in Belgrade. Halls with a capacity of 10-15,000 people were always packed and the guys rewarded us with a phenomenal concert. I have almost all their albums and I still listen to them with joy today.
allan macleod
64 years old and I finally heard the Argus album after all these years, someone slap me silly for missing out on this masterpiece of an album 😄
Timothy Grayson
A band galvanised upon pure inspiration. Absolutely superb. The second coming.
hello world
I swear, I just heard this band on Spotify yesterday and was blown away! I can't believe I haven't heard of them. This band's one of the greats! A very underrated band.