Wishbone Ash
Strange Affair

The unwavering Wishbone begin to lose pieces again with this work dated 1991, which formalizes the unhesitant departure of the historic drummer Steve Upton, who decided to set aside his drumsticks and accept a job as a manager of a castle/hotel. Upton had been very important until then in maintaining the internal balance of the group, taking on roles in organizational and financial management that the other three members, happily full-time engaged in composing, singing, and arranging, lacked the spirit and desire to handle.

In his absence, those remaining are forced to make more decisions and assume more practical responsibilities, and then all the issues come to a head, particularly the managerial and personal conflict between guitarist Andy Powell and bassist Martin Turner.

For now, however, the group is holding on, replacing Upton with a pair of drummers, both of whom, incidentally, are more musically gifted than he was! Two drummers, since the first, Robbie France, was shown the door after recording three tracks… Martin Turner accused him of being “too heavy-handed”! Quite the heavy hitter indeed was this France, and Turner as usual not getting a darn thing… After all, the new drummer came from strong metal experiences (Diamond Head, UFO) and with him instead of the jazzy, precise but monotonous Upton, Wishbone Ash experienced a noticeable boost, listen to believe.

No way, and the band, for peace's sake, falls back on another more than adequate musician, Scottish Ray Weston, who fills in the drum tracks on the other seven songs of this album and then stays with the band for several following years.

The album is fantastic! Ted Turner is in his element more than ever with his lap steel, his solemn and subtly melancholic voice, his ability to extract melody from every note of solo guitar played. His outstanding performance is particularly notable on the final track “Standing in the Rain,” an enveloping semi-ballad filled with the best of what melodic rock can offer: Police-like plucked arpeggios, highly reverberated choral hooks with captivating melodies, rich and sonorous guitar solos. One of the best tracks by Wishbone Ash, nothing less.

The lackluster Andy Powell from the previous work “Here to Hear” disappears, and the now almost bald guitarist is active again, composing and singing with his somewhat hoarse voice. The responsibilities are equally divided among the three historical roosters of the group: the two guitarists sing four songs each, the bassist only two but produces (well) the entire work.

Everything seems to be going well, and yet no: this is the final album in Wishbone for both Turners, the bassist and the guitarist. It will be followed by five years of relative discographic silence, and then many new developments…

“Strange Affair” is therefore an album to own if you like the genre: compositional solidity, variety of solo and choral voices, many well-groomed guitars, adequate drumming drive (finally…). Four full stars.