Interview with The Original Guitar Hero Andy Powell of Whishbone Ash


By Mick Michaels





Cosmick View: Hello, Andy! Welcome to The Cosmick View. Thanks for taking some time out of your day to speak with us. It's greatly appreciated.
Andy Powell: You are welcome! My pleasure.

CV: What do you see being Wishbone Ash's most enduring characteristic as a band? What has kept the group's music still finding new fans over 50 years since its formation?
AP: We had a signature sound right from the beginning - the harmony twin lead guitar concept. We still feature it. That, along with the very melodic approach to our music certainly helped people recognize our music. Also, we were trusted for always delivering, both musically speaking and in terms of a show, in the live context.  We are still trusted! We’re known as an album band, more than say, a singles band. Singles tend to fix you in a certain time frame or era, though of course, the 70s is where our roots lie. No bad thing.

CV: Dueling guitar melodies are now the staple in most Hard Rock and Heavy Metal bands. Were you aware at the time, that Wishbone Ash's playing style would have had such an influence on the next generation of bands?
AP: Well, I certainly knew that we’d hit on a very powerful and recognizable rock sound at the time. I also realized that we were mining a seam that not many other bands could get into. They simply weren’t proficient enough. Our stuff can be quite technical. The Flying V guitar is now also a staple of heavy metal bands. I was one of the first to use that instrument when it was considered too far-out! So, all these things influenced the next generation of bands and we are regularly cited by bands like Judas Priest, Saxon, Iron Maiden or Thin Lizzy as having influenced them. It makes sense, since those guys would have been 5 years or so behind us and certainly would have seen us in concert. They just took it into a heavier, more easily accessible direction for the generation of fans 5 years younger than them. Also, for us, it was hard to envisage the resurgence of heavy rock after things started to implode for guitar based bands like us during 1980s.

Later, in the U.K., the New Wave of Heavy Metal bands came to the fore and harnessed the genre and most importantly, the business injected a lot of money into big shows again. I don’t think I ever fully realized just how big all of that would become and still remain.

CV: Was such an approach of having two lead guitarists prominent something that was formulated at the band’s inception or was it more of an organic permeation to the band's songwriting?
AP: Originally, the idea was for one guitar player and a Hammond player. However, once Ted Turner and I started jamming out with Martin Turner and Steve Upton, (we hadn’t formed the band at that point) it became evident that a new sound could be possible. I’d already dabbled a bit with twin lead guitars in a local band and more importantly, I’d played in large soul bands where I’d been involved in working out horn lines for the sax and trumpet players. I’d developed a very good musical ear which was crucial for composing lines. Don’t forget that the mid 60s was a period where there were these great, mostly British guitar players, treading the boards (Clapton, Beck and Page) and it seemed that by the 70s, everything possible had been explored with the guitar. Little did we know! In addition, it was understood at that time that if you were going to cut through and rise above  the hundreds of new bands springing up, in the London area alone, then you needed your own signature sound. Each key band in the 70s had this, if you think about it - Yes was as different from Deep Purple as Jethro Tull was different from Wishbone Ash, for example.

You mention songwriting. In addition to the organic permeation, these songs were written specifically for twin lead guitars. They were peppered with lots of twin guitar lines and hooks together with space for individual soloing. So the short answer is that it was a little of both or…we simply used everything musical that was available to us in order to help with our recognition as a band.

CV: "Live Dates" is regularly listed as one of the finest live rock albums of all time by critics. With many live albums from that era having received the standard "performance enhancements" prior to being released, what do you feel separates "Live Dates" from these somewhat less than authentic concert albums of that period?
AP: Importantly, we were at the peak of our success in the U.K. so the audience excitement at each show was crucial in terms of driving the band to great heights and while the recordings are fairly honest, we were indulgent in that we did not simply use one whole concert recording. We culled the best recording each of the songs from specific nights on that tour, so there was a lot of listening to different performances in the mixing studio before settling on a specific version of a song.

CV: How do you feel the rerecording of “Live Dates,” captured this past summer at Daryl Hall’s venue, Daryl’s House Club in New York, stacks up again the original version? Were there things you did differently this time around given the hindsight perspective on the original live performance recording?
AP: I don’t believe that we are specifically interested in ‘stacking up’ or comparing performances, so much as using the album format as a vehicle to make another more ad hoc live recording of those songs. Indeed, judging by the mixes that I’ve already heard, we sound like this current incarnation of WA paying tribute to the earlier recording. This new album will offer a different perspective while showing how this music still stands up even by today’s standards. Some of the arrangements differ slightly and the technical side of making the recording was so much easier, obviously.

As a side note, we recently came across the original Rolling Stones mobile truck located in a national music museum in Calgary, Canada. It was incredible to see one of only a few mobile recording trucks from the time, almost in pristine condition, with the original MCI tape machines and console preserved, like that. So many great rock recordings were made with that set-up. The truck itself had done millions of miles and I believe the museum curators eventually located it in Moscow. Can you believe it?

CV: In your opinion, can a band be both musically mainstream friendly but yet be sonically different? Is it possible or is it one or the other in terms of having the biggest impact on a listening audience?
AP: Yes, I do absolutely believe that. Not so much these days, admittedly, since everything has become more generic, more homogenous and many bands are interchangeable in terms of their signature sound. I just think that it’s due to a lack of imagination and that possibly, YouTube and so on has killed this somewhat, since so much is available at the click of a button and that can be intimidating.

CV: Many critics seem to believe that music is simply just not evolving; that it's only repeating itself in a less than flattering way and that the current music trends only work to maintain a level that appeases the lowest common denominator of listeners? Is such a sentiment even remotely true from your experience?
AP: Ouch! Yes, unfortunately I have to concur to some degree. There is no shortage of talent out there but we are often swamped by so much information and the same goes for the wider culture itself. Everything is available and accessible. This tends to crush one or kill individuality or imagination. Things also seem to then need to fit into  specialized boxes or genres. The freedom that we had in the early 70s was quite extraordinary in that regard.

CV: What more can fans expect to see coming from Wishbone Ash as the 2023 begins to get closer?
AP: A lot more touring for sure, since we are celebrating over 50 years as a band and also celebrating the 50th anniversary release of certain albums like the iconic Argus album and also this album Live Dates. None of this takes away from the fact that we have a recent album Coat of Arms with which to celebrate and obviously at some point we’ll be thinking about recording more new music - something that we have always done throughout the band’s 50+ year career.

CV: Thanks again Andy taking the time to share with our readers. We wish you all the best and continued success.
AP: My pleasure! Some thoughtful questions from you there. Thank you!

Check out Andy at:

Official: www.wishboneash.com
Facebook: @Wishbone.Ash.Official

Instagram: @wishboneashofficial
Twitter: @wishboneash_com
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/wishboneblog?app=desktop

 

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My name is Mick Michaels...I'm an artist, music fan, songwriter, producer, show host, dreamer and guitarist for the traditional Heavy Metal band Corners of Sanctuary. Writing has always been a creative outlet for me; what I couldn't say in speech, I was able to do with the written word.  Writing has given me a voice and a way for me to create on a multitude of platforms including music and song, articles, independent screenplays, books and now, artist interviews. The Cosmick View is an opportunity to raise the bar and showcase artists in a positive and inspirational light. For me, it's another out-of-this-world adventure.




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