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.
Top Of The World
Wishbone Ash Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And wondering why.
Knowing that there but for fortune
Go you and i.
Temptation has turned you
And twisted the knife.
The world that we bought into
Is no longer mine.
Love lost, you pay the cost of a lonely way -
This time you chose to go too far.
How does it feel to be on top of the world?
Looking around, you see the ground below.
How does it feel to be on top of the world?
Living a life that only you can know.
Say goodbye to the old days,
They're over and gone.
Facing up to the realization
That we've got to move on.
This love and attraction
Has taken it's toll.
Your lies and illusions
Left me out in the cold.
Love lost, you pay the cost of a lonely way -
This time you chose to go too far.
How does it feel...
The lyrics to Wishbone Ash's song "Top of the World" reflect on feelings of loneliness and loss, while exploring themes of temptation, love, and attraction. The opening lines, "Living in the shadow of darkness and wondering why, knowing that there but for fortune go you and I," set the tone for the rest of the song. It speaks to the idea that life can be unpredictable and that everyone is susceptible to making mistakes. The lyrics further delve into the consequences of giving into temptation and the toll it can take on person's life, as well as the ones they love.
The chorus of the song asks the question "How does it feel to be on top of the world?" It's a notion of achieving success, but it also signifies the feeling of loneliness that accompanies it. As the song progresses, it becomes clear that the singer has lost love and paid the cost of a lonely way. The realization that they must move on from their past mistakes is a call to action for the singer. The lyrics offer a sense of hope for the future, even though the past is gone and forgotten.
Line by Line Meaning
Living in the shadow of darkness
Living a life of sadness and uncertainty.
And wondering why.
Curious about the causes of the aforementioned sadness and uncertainty.
Knowing that there but for fortune
Realizing that one's fate could easily be different if circumstances changed.
Go you and i.
One's own life is inextricably linked to the lives of others.
Temptation has turned you
Succumbing to temptation has caused one to change.
And twisted the knife.
The negative consequences of giving into temptation are painful.
The world that we bought into
The society or culture that we entered or grew up in.
Is no longer mine.
The society or culture has changed so much that it is no longer recognizable.
Love lost, you pay the cost of a lonely way -
Losing love has a high cost, often resulting in a lonely existence.
This time you chose to go too far.
This time, the choices one made led to dire consequences.
How does it feel to be on top of the world?
How does it feel to be in a position of power or success?
Looking around, you see the ground below.
Seeing others less fortunate than oneself.
Living a life that only you can know.
Living a unique and individual life.
Say goodbye to the old days,
Leave behind the past.
They're over and gone.
The past is no longer accessible.
Facing up to the realization
Coming to terms with the truth.
That we've got to move on.
The only way forward is to leave the past behind.
This love and attraction
The romantic attraction between two people.
Has taken it's toll.
The relationship has caused emotional harm.
Your lies and illusions
Deceitful behavior and false beliefs.
Left me out in the cold.
Abandoned and unsupported during a difficult time.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: ANDY POWELL, ROGER FILGATE, TONY KISHMAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Mat Sly
What a great album!
Epameinondas Triantafyllou
My favorite from this album
Leszek Krassowski
Andy jest wielki i niepowtarzalny
Leszek Krassowski
Bylem na koncercie w Zabrzu SUPER
hollies56789
I VE SEEN THEM 1995 AT SPIRIT OF 66 IN VERVIERS GREAT
Leszek Krassowski
To chyba nie vocal andiego tez super brzmi super album
Leszek Krassowski
Andy jest Boski