Wishbone Ash

It was May 20, 1972 when Wishbone Ash's "Argus" entered the British chart at number three, without a single to launch it or any particularly radio-friendly tracks on it. The result was probably a combination of the anticipation built by their growing reputation as a live act, the slow but steady sales of the previous "Pilgrimage", and last but not least, the epic Hipgnosis cover artwork, one of the most iconic in rock history.

It's hard to find a precise place for Wishbone Ash, and even harder for this particular album, which sits in a no man's land at the crossroads of several genres and contexts.

Initially they were a hard rock quartet with blues influences, but even with that basic recipe alone they managed to impress Ritchie Blackmore of Deep Purple, who got them a record deal with Mca. It soon became clear, though, that their ambitions reached well beyond that.

The band's distinctive trait was the twin lead guitar pairing of Andy Powell and Ted Turner, inspired according to some by the brief but stunning period in which the Yardbirds featured both Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page. The Allman Brothers theory doesn't hold up, though, since their debut came out in November '69, by which time Wishbone Ash were already an established act.

Many refer to "twin guitars" when describing the line-up, but the definition only holds up to a point, since the two only occasionally overlapped, aiming instead to build complex harmonies. Rounding out the quartet were Martin Turner, bassist and lyricist, and Steve Upton on drums.

Compared to their earlier records, "Argus" shows a striking evolution in vocal style. From the bluesy roughness of the debut, in just a couple of years they moved to crystalline two- and three-part vocal interplay (Upton being the only one who doesn't sing), with clear tones that convey calm and restraint on the slower passages, grandeur on the more martial ones, and a sense of freedom during the galloping stretches. If the instrumental backdrop weren't so far removed, one could almost mistake them for Yes.

The opening is entrusted to "Time Was", a suite that begins with three minutes of intimate acoustic balladry before kicking into a gallop built on one of rock's standard riffs (the one many trace back to "Sweet Jane" by the Velvet Underground, but which had actually been around forever, just think of "Crimson And Clover" by Tommy James & The Shondells). The sung passages, laments over a lost love, alternate with Powell's long, dynamic solos.

The sound is dazzling, incredibly well recorded, thanks to the behind-the-scenes work of producer Derek Lawrence and, above all, legendary sound engineer Martin Birch, who would soon go on to work with half of Britain's hard-rock bands. Flawless direction was, after all, essential to do justice to such lush arrangements.

Celtic folk and westcoast breezes, boogie rock and hard rock, baroque flourishes and measured virtuosity intertwine to generate mutant structures that point straight toward progressive rock. Indeed, prog is the label most often applied to the album, despite the fact that there are no keyboards (the sole exception being the organ on "Throw Down The Sword", played by John Stout of Renaissance) and despite the guitars' fondness for scales and blues licks, albeit in an "expanded" version free of any compositional constraints.

"Sometime World" starts out as a muscular electric ballad before turning into a choral sprint, driven by cutting rhythm guitars and bass harmonies. It finally lets loose in a blistering, thrilling solo. As many have pointed out, it sounds like the British answer to "Free Bird" by Lynyrd Skynyrd, except that "Free Bird" was recorded more than a year later.

Closing out side one of the vinyl, "Blowin' Free" is another spirited boogie rock number, built entirely on the contrast between the galloping, slightly tipsy rhythm section and the clear, graceful vocals.

The second half is arguably even finer than the first. Three of the four tracks tackle specific themes, unlike the earlier ones, which reflect on the human condition from a more abstract standpoint.

"The King Will Come" contains the most celebrated moment in the band's career, that martial intro of snare drum and wah wah-soaked guitars. It's the perfect way to sink into the atmosphere of the lyrics that follow, a free-form retelling of the biblical Apocalypse, complete with the sky falling to earth and a prophet separating the righteous from the wicked. A rock-solid midtempo underpins the vocal harmonies, while the bass spins out lush, inventive lines reminiscent of John Entwistle of the Who.

Upton is the main author of "Leaf And Stream", despite the fact that his contribution to the recording amounts to a rattle. Sung by Martin Turner, this time without the others' support, it's a gorgeous, ethereal vignette that once again ponders the meaning of existence ("Far beyond the hills, where earth and sky meet again, there are shadows like an open hand. They guard the secrets I have yet to discover, and marvel at the light that illuminates them").

The album closes with a kind of two-song mini-concept, "Warrior" and "Throw Down The Sword". The first tells of a warrior's pride as he readies for battle, his ideals of glory and freedom, his gaze fixed on the future; the second shows the shift in perspective once the clash is over, when all that's left to contemplate is the misery it has wrought, to the point that "The battle is over, neither lost nor won". The record closes with the lines "There've been times I've stood at Death's own door, with only hope for an answer". The music mirrors the two different outlooks: though both are power ballads, one is driving and aggressive, the other more relaxed and reflective. Both, however, end with glorious multi-part solos. These are, in fact, the tracks that plunge the whole album into a medieval atmosphere and best explain its cover art.

Perhaps lacking the monstrous technique of other prog and hard rock outfits, Wishbone Ash nonetheless had exquisite taste in their arsenal, a knack for giving songs elaborate structures and narratives, and an enviable skill for assembling sounds, which made them the true one-off mentioned at the start.

Their influence, never particularly emphasized, is actually more far-reaching than one might think: many two-guitarist bands, especially on rock's harder edge, have since named them as a touchstone. Even heavyweight names like Thin Lizzy, Judas Priest and Iron Maiden.

Of course, the follow-up "Wishbone Four" would see the formula regress, the evocations of centuries past fade away, the songs grow simpler, and the American market open its doors, if only briefly. "Argus", though, remains monumental and perfect, with no creative decline able to dent the magical aura and sense of completeness surrounding its tapestries.

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21/05/2017