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.
Valediction
Wishbone Ash Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Loneliness is the price to pay.
Sad for you, I go once more.
I'll dry my eyes on a distant shore.
No way of freezing your rising tide
No way of keeping you by my side.
Like a bird, I'll fly high,
A room of trust
A room of fears
A room of laughter with a few sweet tears.
There we lay that sunny dawn
Calm and helpless as it lingers on.
No way of keeping you by my side.
No way of keeping our love alive.
Like a bird, I'll fly high,
Guarding over this love of mine.
Many times we hurry by
Lose our problems in a knowing smile.
Many days were swept along
Left unnoticed as our love grew strong.
Believing each of us would always know
Believing one of us would never go.
Like a bird, I'll fly high
Watching over this love of mine.
The lyrics of Wishbone Ash’s song, “Valediction,” present the melancholic emotions of separation, loss, and loneliness. The opening lines, “Breathing is a sin, they say, loneliness is the price to pay,” highlights the singer’s desolation and despair over the impending end of their relationship. The second stanza, “No way of freezing your rising tide, no way of keeping you by my side,” reveals the singer’s helplessness in preventing the separation from happening, as if the separation is the natural order of things.
The verses repeat the same melody throughout the song and have a somber tone that evokes the singer’s sorrow. The bridge describes the memories of a happy moment, “A room of trust, a room of fears, a room of laughter with a few sweet tears. There we lay that sunny dawn, calm and helpless as it lingers on.” The memories serve to accentuate the loss even more through the comparison of the past happy moment with the present separation. The final verse reiterates the unpreventable nature of the breakup but ends on a note of hope, “Believing each of us would always know, believing one of us would never go. Like a bird, I'll fly high, watching over this love of mine,” as if the singer is ready to move on but still holds on to the love they once had.
Overall, the lyrics to “Valediction” masterfully captures the heart-wrenching emotions that come with the end of relationships. The metaphors of birds, tides, and lonely shores paint a vivid picture of the singer’s state of mind and the mood of the song is reflective and mournful.
Line by Line Meaning
Breathing is a sin, they say,
They say that merely existing is wrong or sinful.
Loneliness is the price to pay.
Feeling alone and isolated is the cost of being alive.
Sad for you, I go once more.
It is regrettable, but I must leave again.
I'll dry my eyes on a distant shore.
I will try to find comfort elsewhere, far away from here.
No way of freezing your rising tide
I cannot stop your emotions from intensifying and taking over.
No way of keeping you by my side.
I cannot make you stay with me or keep our relationship going.
Like a bird, I'll fly high,
I will try to rise above the situation and find a new perspective.
Guarding over this love of mine.
I will protect and cherish the love that we once had.
A room of trust
A place where we could be open and honest with each other.
A room of fears
A place of vulnerability, where we shared our anxieties and worries.
A room of laughter with a few sweet tears.
A space of joy and happiness, but also with some moments of sadness.
There we lay that sunny dawn
We spent a beautiful moment together at sunrise.
Calm and helpless as it lingers on.
We were peaceful but powerless, as time passed.
Many times we hurry by
We often rush through life without taking the time to appreciate our moments.
Lose our problems in a knowing smile.
We forget our issues and find comfort in our familiarity.
Many days were swept along
We let many precious moments slip away.
Left unnoticed as our love grew strong.
Although our love flourished, we failed to see it for what it was.
Believing each of us would always know
We trusted that we would always understand each other.
Believing one of us would never go.
We thought that neither of us would leave the other.
Like a bird, I'll fly high
I am still determined to rise above the situation and find peace.
Watching over this love of mine.
I will continue to look after and appreciate the love that we once shared.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: ANDREW POWELL, DAVID TURNER, MARTIN TURNER, STEVE UPTON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@WedgePee
I've gone on an oldies spree over the last 18 months. In no particular order:
Close to the Edge
Foxtrot
Selling England by the Pound
Wishbone Ash (1970)
Argus
Kiss (1974)
Destroyer
Tubular Bells
TNT
High Voltage (Australian album)
Let There Be Rock
Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap
Black Sabbath Vol. 4
Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
Pilgrimage
Wishbone Four
Every Thin Lizzy album (except Thunder and Lightning)
The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
Aladdin Sane
Budgie (1971)
Powerage
A Grand Don't Come for Free
Squawk
Dressed to Kill
There's the Rub
That's 34 albums! All great (except for Wishbone Four).
@stinkypete7917
Breathing is a sin, they say,
Loneliness is the price to pay.
Sad for you, I go once more.
I'll dry my eyes on a distant shore.
No way of freezing your rising tide
No way of keeping you by my side.
Like a bird, I'll fly high,
Guarding over this love of mine.
A room of trust
A room of fears
A room of laughter with a few sweet tears.
There we lay that sunny dawn
Calm and helpless as it lingers on.
No way of keeping you by my side.
No way of keeping our love alive.
Like a bird, I'll fly high,
Guarding over this love of mine.
Many times we hurry by
Lose our problems in a knowing smile.
Many days were swept along
Left unnoticed as our love grew strong.
Believing each of us would always know
Believing one of us would never go.
Like a bird, I'll fly high
Watching over this love of mine.
@neilmoffatt8592
I'll fly high guarding over this love of mine. Still gets to me after nearly 50 years listening to this song. As for the audacious reggae section - yet it works.
@chevyband5989
Delicate song for memories of youth
@Yannvintage
great.....i love it sinds the 70th....and now i am 62
@stevenaustin8274
Snap loved this early seventies work from Ash unfortunately they went totally downhill after Argus from a creative point of view i thought wishbone four wasn’t great sounded more like a American soft rock band after that although still great live act
@tonyanderton3521
@@stevenaustin8274 Yes, sadly, I would agree with you. Their first three albums were great (still among my favourites) but then they became more middle-of-the-road with 4. There were some good songs on it, as with There's The Rub, but it went downhill from then on. Sadly, the old magic seemed to have disappeared.
@tonyanderton3521
Everything about this is beautiful and magical.
@mikelee3067
Love Steve Upton on Drums !
@duurnamets9678
Memories, memories
@forsenboyz
Soooo good. Breathtaking
@allanwheatley2804
66yearsoldandstilllovethissong