Genre: Prog Related
Country: United Kingdom
Format: Mp3 VBR/320 Kbps
Size : 83365 KBNo Password
Covers included
Released : 1971
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On their second album, Wishbone Ash still haven’t figured out whether they’re a blues-based boogie-rock band (as witnessed on two of the album’s lengthier songs, “Jail Bait” and the live recorded “Where Were You Tomorrow”) or something else (the other songs), but it’s a fact that these guys were WAY too talented to be just another blooze & booze-band, and I’m not trying to be condescending towards bands like Grand Funk Railroad or Status Quo, who for the most part (no, not always) of their careers kept churning out songs based on the good old, familiar pattern, it’s just that these four musicians are so talented that I don’t get why they’re no longer (or rarely) praised anymore. Both Andy Powell and Ted Turner were guitar players with an awesome technique and capable of delivering some impossibly fluid soloing as well as bottom-heavy chords bashing, while bass player Martin Turner and drummer Steve Upton deserve to be placed among the great rhythm sections of classic rock (yes, that implies very near Moon/Entwistle, Baker/Bruce, etc), as they effortlessly incorporated elements from jazz and folk into their rock mould. The greatest example of their unique fusion is “The Pilgrim.” Even though it starts out as another folk-inflected tune, with a slow build-up and ‘mysterious’ atmosphere, it turns into an entirely different matter after three minutes, when angular guitar accents introduce the twisted rhythm that the bass and drums soon pick up. It’s stuff that hovers somewhere in between prog (awkward time signatures), hard rock, jazz and even folk, with the harmonizing of the musicians betraying their British roots. It’s during songs as this one, songs that are unfortunately the hardest to describe, that the band shows its uniqueness to full effect.
There’s nothing as unusual as this track on Pilgrimage, even though there’s plenty to enjoy. Album opener “Vas Dis,” which also boasts a jazzy rhythm and contrary accents is less spectacular than “The Pilgrim,” but the remarkable thing about it are the scat vocals that mimick the guitar parts. It’s something I’ve heard only a few bands do, but it usually cracks me up, and there’s some great soloing. “Alone” and “Lullaby” are short instrumentals (2:20 and 2:59, punk lengths!!) and while both are really pretty, especially “Lullaby”, because it lives up to its title, it’s hard not to consider them as a sort of ‘elevated filler’. Much better, and an essential album track, is “Valediction,” which shows how great their harmonies could be (and usually were). None of these guys was a particularly great vocalist, but they could create an imposing sense of melancholy by blending their voices. The song’s structure is quite predictable and it never offers any surprises, but it’s a winner by the sheer smoothness of the playing and the unreal atmosphere that’s kept up for more than six minutes. Then there’s the more conventional stuff: “Jail Bait” is a pretty straightforward boogie, featuring mainly a lot of soloing, and essentially the same is true for the 10-minute “Where Were You Tomorrow” which has a fierceness the studio track lacks. It’s performed with style, energy and skill to spare – you know how it goes: fierce rhythms, passionate solo, quiet moment, rise to climax, return to starting point, etc – but it’s just no match for the band’s best stuff, when they transcend the confines of conformity with genre-bending opuses that combine the best from several worlds. That’s also why the album isn’t a masterpiece: there’s some good stuff, but one third of it is standard (but excellently performed!) stuff, while another part is ranked in the vicinity of ‘enjoyable filler’. They’d go on to fully explore their capabilities though, and with great results. In the meantime, about half of Pilgrimage is recommended to anyone with a soft spot for jam-oriented ‘70’s rock. Yeah, I’m looking at you, pothead stoner boy.
There’s nothing as unusual as this track on Pilgrimage, even though there’s plenty to enjoy. Album opener “Vas Dis,” which also boasts a jazzy rhythm and contrary accents is less spectacular than “The Pilgrim,” but the remarkable thing about it are the scat vocals that mimick the guitar parts. It’s something I’ve heard only a few bands do, but it usually cracks me up, and there’s some great soloing. “Alone” and “Lullaby” are short instrumentals (2:20 and 2:59, punk lengths!!) and while both are really pretty, especially “Lullaby”, because it lives up to its title, it’s hard not to consider them as a sort of ‘elevated filler’. Much better, and an essential album track, is “Valediction,” which shows how great their harmonies could be (and usually were). None of these guys was a particularly great vocalist, but they could create an imposing sense of melancholy by blending their voices. The song’s structure is quite predictable and it never offers any surprises, but it’s a winner by the sheer smoothness of the playing and the unreal atmosphere that’s kept up for more than six minutes. Then there’s the more conventional stuff: “Jail Bait” is a pretty straightforward boogie, featuring mainly a lot of soloing, and essentially the same is true for the 10-minute “Where Were You Tomorrow” which has a fierceness the studio track lacks. It’s performed with style, energy and skill to spare – you know how it goes: fierce rhythms, passionate solo, quiet moment, rise to climax, return to starting point, etc – but it’s just no match for the band’s best stuff, when they transcend the confines of conformity with genre-bending opuses that combine the best from several worlds. That’s also why the album isn’t a masterpiece: there’s some good stuff, but one third of it is standard (but excellently performed!) stuff, while another part is ranked in the vicinity of ‘enjoyable filler’. They’d go on to fully explore their capabilities though, and with great results. In the meantime, about half of Pilgrimage is recommended to anyone with a soft spot for jam-oriented ‘70’s rock. Yeah, I’m looking at you, pothead stoner boy.
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Line-up/Musicians
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- Martin Turner / vocals, bass
- Andy Powell / guitar, vocals
- Ted Turner / guitar, vocals
- Steve Upton / drums
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Track List
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1. Vas Dis (4:41)
2. The Pilgrim (8:30)
3. Jail Bait (4:41)
4. Alone (2:20)
5. Lullaby (2:59)
6. Valediction (6:17)
7.Where Were You Tomorrow (10:23)+Bonus [CD Release 1991]
8. Jail Bait [Live] (4:54)
Total Time: (45:13)
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Enjoy!
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