Martin, Ted and Steve share a flat, Andy around the corner. Best working conditions for a rock band in which two talented lead guitarists cross swords. The four play around the clock and finally manage to transform the initial eclecticism into an organic form on their third album, “Argus”, in 1972. Here they merge their various influences – blues, folk, prog and hard rock – into an unmistakable sound signature for the first time.
Here, for the first time, they merge their various influences into an unmistakable sound signature
The fact that they got this complex album on tape within a week proves how well they harmonize. Martin Birch, the later metal producing legend, had no small part in it. He’s still just a sound engineer, but already a self-confessed expert on advanced English guitar rock, having worked for Fleetwood Mac, Jeff Beck, Deep Purple and Skid Row. De Lane Lea Studios is his living room, it’s also where he mixed the first two Wishbone Ash albums.
But the band has evolved. Andy Powell and Ted Turner are once again throwing licks at each other, but now they’re also increasingly merging into melodic twin leads. The concept of transposing polyphony from vocals to guitars is up in the air, but Wishbone Ash make a distinctive mark of it — that’s what the canonical songs “Blowin’ Free,” “The King Will Come,” “Warrior,” and “Throw Down The” stand for Sword”.
In addition to the original album, the box set contains a nice remix by Martin Turner, which actually sounds a bit more open and fresh, a few rather superfluous demo recordings, a DVD with live material and two audio live sets that are quite fun to play, but they are also testify to the efforts to bring the transparency and precision of the studio to the stage. A richly illustrated book documenting the band’s history with memories of the musicians concludes this appreciation of the classics.
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Amazingly good vocals and lots of great guitarists
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