(3 / 5)
Mixed feelings from loyal Wisbone Ash fans about this 1985 album and the previous 80s Ash release, “Twin Barrels Burning”. Many love them both. Some have a Marmite moment and think they both stink. It is all subjective, of course, and one man’s meat is another man’s poison, as they say. Good job we do not all have the same tastes or Justin Bieber and One Direction would have seen me end up in a secure wing for the mentally bewildered.
I was a huge fan of Wishbone Ash from their original line-up, and up until bassist and singer, (and back then the main songwriter), Martin Tuner left the group in 1981, a group he and drummer Upton had originally formed in Devon. Martin Turner now describes his departure as “constructive dismissal”. As a music photographer, I shot pix of them many times from 1978, and absolutely loved to hear them play live.
Big fan of Laurie Wisefield on guitar in the later line-up too, and this album was his farewell to the band, the 13th Wishbone Ash album, and the only one to feature Mervyn Spence on bass and vocals. Wisefield ended his eleven-year stint after the release of this album.
This is the first official re-release of “Raw To The Bone” in decades and it is a definitive edition with all new 2017 remasters. This mammoth 23 track 2 CD re-issue is fully approved by Steve Upton, Laurie Wisefield, Andy Powell and Merv Spence.
The set also includes the Friday Rock Show BBC sessions – often described as better than the album versions! The bonus tracks also include a holy grail for Wishbone Ash fans – all four unreleased songs from the post-album 1986 sessions. This re-issue also includes liner notes by rock journalist Dave Ling.
The line up was: Laurie Wisefield / guitar, vocals
– Andy Powell / guitar, vocals
– Mervyn Spence / bass, vocals (Welshman from Trapeze who replaced Trevor Bolder)
– Steve Upton / drums
With:
– Andrew Bown / keyboards
– Simon Butt / keyboards
– Brad Lang / bass.
The “interesting” artwork was by Nigel Winfield with Cream. It as first released in 1984 in Germany, and released in the UK a year later, re-released in the 1990s.
The band which was formed in 1969, got to 1980 with one band member change – guitarist Ted Turner leaving in 1974, replaced by Laurie Wisefield – and then got through three new bassists in three albums. They eventually went back to their original lineup in the late 1980s for one album.
They opted for shorter tracks than previous albums on “Raw To The Bone”, and less solos. Perhaps a deliberate attempt at radio airplay and a more commercial outlook. The opener, “Cell Of Fame” speaks about the dangers of fame, and wind forward three decades or so, and the legal battles between Andy Powell and Martin Turner’s respective versions of Wishbone Ash, this song comes across as a tad prophetic perhaps!
The record is OK. Not offensive. Not their best. But it is worth a listen if you have not heard it, and to add to your Ash collection if you need to replace a well-worn original copy.
DISC ONE
1. CELL OF FAME
2. PEOPLE IN MOTION
3. DON’T CRY
4. LOVE IN BLUE
5. LONG LIVE THE NIGHT
6. ROCKET IN MY POCKET
7. IT’S ONLY LOVE
8. DON’T YOU MESS
9. DREAMS (SEARCHING FOR AN ANSWER)
10. PERFECT TIMING
BONUS TRACKS
11.SHE’S STILL ALIVE
THE 1986 SESSIONS
12. APOCALYPSO
13.VALLEY OF TEARS
14. NKOMO
15.TALK TO ME
DISC TWO
THE FRIDAY ROCK SHOW
1. LONG LIVE THE NIGHT
2. CELL OF FAME
3. LOVE IN BLUE
4. PEOPLE IN MOTION
LIVE AT HAMMERSMITH ON BBC LOCAL RADIO
5. LIVING PROOF
6. CELL OF FAME
7. KING WILL COME
8. BLOWIN’ FREE
By Simon Redley
(1 / 5) ‘Dull Zone’
(2 / 5) ‘OK Zone’ (3 / 5) ‘Decent Zone’
(4 / 5) ‘Super Zone’
(5 / 5) ‘Awesome Zone’
Recent Comments