Wishbone Ash
Nouveau Calls

THE REVIEW

In 1987, Wishbone Ash, who had disbanded a couple of years earlier after the poor and poorly-selling album "Raw to the Bone", were resurrected by a producer who financed the creation of an entire album under two conditions: the lineup had to be the original one (which held strong until 1974 and produced the first four albums of their career) and the music had to be instrumental only.

This was because the work was included in a series of other instrumental works called "No Speak", which included among others ex-Police Stewart Copeland, ex-Doors Robby Krieger, and ex-Lou Reed guitarist Steve Hunter. Wishbone Ash were the only full band enlisted for this series, the other names being all soloists.

It seemed like a perfect situation for Wishbone, a group more renowned for their guitar work than their vocals. But no! The record is a dud, filled with everything wrong and stale from the eighties (which soon after went completely out of fashion, thankfully). That is to say: rigid and impersonal drums where only the snare is heard due to heavy electronic enhancement; Roland, Korg and/or Yamaha keyboards winking left, right, above and below, which in a band as purely guitar-driven as Wishbone is heresy; slapped bass as much as possible; and finally, an amorphous and inoffensive production, without a drop of blood or rock, or blues, or folk (nor funk, nor soul, etc., etc.).

Eleven instrumentals are here to bore us for over forty minutes, with the Wishbone Ash style almost indistinguishable, even for the most devoted fans. The guitars are there, sure, but they create genuine House music for elevators or dental offices: harmless, calmly crystalline, lifeless.

The only merit of the record is having reunited the old lineup. They would last for another two albums, this time normal ones (albeit with the ugly sounds then à la page) with vocal parts, and lyrics, and real rock and blues solos, nothing special but true and authentic music.

Then they would argue again and the history of this group would veer towards other situations, which we will see later. For now, thumbs down to this beautiful music (?...well...) without a soul.