Why were Asia rubbish?

A last explanation about why I think that some very criticized bands are good:

-Foreigner:the original line-up had two very good keyboard players: Al Greenwood and Ian McDonald (McDonald also played guitar, flute and sax, and also was the co-producer of their 3 first albums). Dennis Elliot, the original drummer, was very good. Mick Jones and Lou Gramm were good composers.Jones is also a very good guitarist. Gramm is a great singer. A recommendation:listen to their "Classic Hits Live" (AKA "Best of  Foreigner Live")  album. It has very good songs recorded live between 1977 and 1985. Particularly Gramm "shines" in this album.

-Journey:all were very good musicians (the line-up of Neal Schon, Steve Perry, Jonathan Cain, Steve Smith and Ross Valory). Their "Escape" album is very good. "Frontiers" is also very good. Schon is a very good lead guitarist. Perry was one of those singers with an unique voice. Yes, some of their songs were very commercial. But others were very good. By the way,  producer Mike Stone was one of the producers of their most successful albums ("Escape" and "Frontiers"). Stone was also Asia´s producer between 1982 and 1983. 

The original Asia:Wetton was a very good singer, one of the best. All were very good musicians. I think that Steve Howe recorded some of his best guitar work when he was in Asia. Listen to him particularly in: "Sole Survivor", "Cutting It Fine", "Eye to Eye", "Open Your Eyes", "Midnight Sun", "Heat of the Moment", "Time Again", "The Heat Goes On". Great guitars, IMO.

Moogtron III wrote: The 1st Asia album, I tell the truth: I still love that one. No progressive rock, not real pop, but somewhere in between. I really hate the 2nd one, and Asia without Wetton is maybe even worse. I read in an old interview with John Wetton that Asia was a project of 4 people who really wanted to make good music. The businessmen started to interfere, though. At least, that's how I remember it. Too much dollarsigns in some people's eyes.

Totally agree, The first album only is quite good, even if it's not really progressive music. I just can say that i saw them on stage in October 1982, and it was great !

And John Wetton, who for a quarter century has focused on writing hits, is probably at a soup kitchen in London as I write this. So your theory is wrong. Do what you love, and the money will follow.

I bet your way off base with this remark. Writing a hit single that was massive worldwide must have set Wetton up financially for life. Just about every rock compilation released either includes 'Heat Of The Moment' or 'Only Time Will Tell'. I also still hear these songs played on the radio on an almost daily basis. Also, didn't the Simpsons use 'Heat Of The Moment' in an episode. I also know it's been used in quite a few film soundtracks. I bet Wetton is living a life of luxury on royalties alone just on the back of 'Heat Of The Moment'.

Well, Wetton had had a mind to make a pop-oriented record for a while. That's pretty much why UK broke up; Jobson and Wetton wanted pop, Bruford and Holdsworth wanted fusion/prog.

But when you combine prog and pop... that's when disasters arise.

They I understand about Asia was a side project by all senior proggers and played togetjer with a music format different than their original band. It's like Hackett and Howe formed GTR. So, I did not expect them to play prog. That's why I enjoy their first 3 albums - for a change only. But I like their performance video ASIA in ASIA where Greg Lake fetured the vocal and bass replacing Wetton who could not make it for the show. I enjoy the laser disc of this show - I even recorded the sound into CDr for listening pleasure. I like the interlude part at Open Your Eyes.

Shenanigans!.....Asia.....shinanigans! 

Guillermo wrote:  It was simply that times changed, and Prog Rock lost popularity among the general public and among some Prog musicians who wanted to play new music for a change, or simply to adapt and survive in a new music business structure.

Guillermo, isn't it pretty ironic that bands that have stayed closer to their prog roots, like Yes, still earn a living at it and play larger venues, whereas the Faustian sell-outs like Asia can barely scrape together 30 to 40 people at Charlie's Chowder Shack in Baltimore.

Genesis sold out, and it killed their career - the last time they planned a US tour, they cancelled it due to lack of ticket sales and then broke up. And do you know what Genesis studio albums sell best today? The Gabriel/Hackett era, NOT the Collins-era. Go check out sales ranks on Amazon: Trick of the Tail, Selling England By the Pound, Lamb and Foxtrot, in that order.

And John Wetton, who for a quarter century has focused on writing hits, is probably at a soup kitchen in London as I write this.

So your theory is wrong. Do what you love, and the money will follow.

Come to think of it, I can't think of any of the main prog bands from the 70's that didn't go the more radio freindlier route in the 80's

The only exception I can think of is King Crimson but I don't think Fripp had it in him to write melodic tunes anyway!

Guillermo pretty much summed it up, but one of the aspects that played a role IMO was.

The first album was a huge success, The reason for that success was thought to be the pop song part, the easier structures, simpler melodies, so for their next album, to copy that succes they made it even more simpler and smoother. They never fully realised that it was the combination of simpler melodies and structure, combined with the progressive musicianship.

Genesis even in their most commercial attempts never lost their feel for good musicianship, and quality, while Asia, threw all quality out in favor of an even more accesible sound.

I think that albums like 90125, Genesis albums, Asia's debut, in a way the Rush albums where very succesful because it was pop (Rush case Rock) with an extra quality. Rush became even better, for Yes it was a passing phase, Genesis became very popular, but Asia wasted it on simplicity. later albums saw Asia returning to more progressive venue's but they never made anything remotly as interesting as their debut album.