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Joined: September 01 2013
Location: Uzbekistan
Status: Offline
Points: 7
Posted: January 28 2017 at 15:08
Very strange theme, IMO. I think, even "People vs Animals" would be more topical than this one, really. The Beatles are the founders of rock music actually. Besides, such their albums as "Sergeant Pepper", "Abbey Road" and the 'white' one are in many ways progressive, the latter especially rich in genuinely progressive compositions. And who are Asia? They're money-makers first of all! A prog rock band? No! A pop prog one? Okay, but I need pop-prog (especially such as theirs) as much as a fish needs an umbrella. How could Steve Howe sling mud at "90125"? What a hypocrite! What's really a 'shameful creation', complete musical potboiler, is his (Asia's) "Alpha", released the very same year as the said Yes album! Well, enough said. Sorry, folks, for being so emotional.
Joined: December 23 2009
Location: Emerald City
Status: Offline
Points: 17869
Posted: January 28 2017 at 16:48
Boy how we so push for the Beatles to be prog, OP said it......They are not thank God. From a musical performance view Asia all day long, neither of the Fab Four can hold a candle to the musicianship of the members of Asia.
Had other bands performed the Beatles songs I might have gave those songs some attention..
Joined: April 27 2004
Location: Peru
Status: Offline
Points: 19557
Posted: January 28 2017 at 17:08
Catcher10 wrote:
Boy how we so push for the Beatles to be prog, OP said it......They are not thank God. From a musical performance view Asia all day long, neither of the Fab Four can hold a candle to the musicianship of the members of Asia.
Had other bands performed the Beatles songs I might have gave those songs some attention..
Joined: May 12 2009
Location: Coolwood
Status: Offline
Points: 6467
Posted: January 28 2017 at 19:02
The Beatles by a mile, even if they are not truly Prog. They did what they did better than anybody else, and they helped set the stage for Prog. Asia may have had the Prog superstars and did some fine music, but there is really no contest.
The world of sound is certainly capable of infinite variety and, were our sense developed, of infinite extensions. -- George Santayana, "The Sense of Beauty"
Joined: June 18 2009
Location: Mexico
Status: Offline
Points: 12768
Posted: January 28 2017 at 21:31
It's not even a contest. Who cares if Asia had much better musicians on a technical level than The Beatles, if the songs aren't nearly as memorable. If only Asia had existed in the 70's with the 70's mindset, it would have been a whole different beast.
Joined: February 09 2010
Location: Australia
Status: Offline
Points: 3247
Posted: January 28 2017 at 23:35
The Beatles were ground breaking in every way you can think ushering a new age of pop culture and sending most of the existing pop icons in the early 60's to early graves. If it wasn't for The Beatles, the Stones would still be doing covers in Blues bars. You're lucky if a band has one great song writer. The Beatles had three genius songwriters, plus they had George Martin working with them in the studio integrating other musical styles and instrumentation into the music. And even on a technical level they had artists playing in the studio with them, including Eric Clapton on "While My Guitar Gently Weeps". They just didn't advertise which artists played on their records. Which brings up their one major weakness as a band. They were at their peak as a live band around 1962 and went downhill after around 1964 when the music was too complicated to play live to an audience (just as their records were getting better and better). Their live performance on the top of the rooftop of Abbey studios during the "Let It Be" sessions are pretty ordinary to me.
Let's see, the most important and influential rock band of all time, versus a band in which the members were more influential and important when they played in previous bands.
No. Nothing to do with Led Zeppelin.
But a country and western band who attained acceptance because they sounded so white and non- threatening to the middle classes (contemporary cultural mores dictated this) and their competition was minimal. Pat Boone?
Versus a bunch of guys who could play rings around most and did so in a format that had been universally approved. And their competition was ... well, their prog loving audience deserted for whatever reason and times meant laying epics in 5 mins. Time to may attention.
Apparently if one band plays songs with whatever guitar sound (Revolution? - ye gods!) then it's kisses all around, but when another band does the same (plays songs and with way more sophistication) then its hate and despise time. We are ever so inconsistent.
Joined: August 28 2010
Location: Melbourne, Oz
Status: Offline
Points: 1781
Posted: January 29 2017 at 02:53
I hate these polls but I hate Asia even more than these polls.
Wetton would have been better off staying with Wishbone Ash......but Andy Powell and Laurie Wisefiled apparently didn't make him welcome. Pity really, as he really would have been a force with WA
Joined: November 03 2006
Location: Rockpommelland
Status: Offline
Points: 1578
Posted: January 29 2017 at 04:04
Wetton is to blame. Cokehead, and not even a good singer/bassplayer.
He went from band to band only seeking popchart-succes. He couldn't find it with UK, King Crimson, Uriah Heep, Wishbone Ash, etc.
Finally settling for Asia, wich became more and more a solo-project. Just listen to Alpha, that's a Wetton-solo album, not a group album.
Asia was the worst of the worst of the worst possible group I can imagine. All the bad parts of cliched pastiche and bombast that prog had, combine with the worst possible form of pop-rock.
Journey and Toto and Boston etc. beat Asia on every level.
It wasn't until Downes paired up with Payne, that Asia finally became a great group with stellar songwriting and a balanced sound.
Still I wonder, why on earth do Progrock-fanatics hate popmusic so much? Rock is popmusic. All music that isn't jazz/blues/classical etc. is popmusic (popular music).
And the bands that are idolized on the forum (Genesis, Yes, Pink Floyd) are amongst the best selling artists in the world. Paired with Led Zeppelin, Queen, Beatles, Michael Jackson, Madonna and Elvis PResley.
Pink Floyd, Beatles and Led Zeppelin are in the top 10 of the world best selling artists ever!!!!
So if, progsnobs so desperately want to dismiss popular music, they'd better start to listen to Payne-era Asia instead of Beatles or Led Zeppelin. Because Payne-era Asia only sold maybe 100 albums in total.
A no-brainer. Despite the distinguished reputation of some Asia members in prog circles, this is something like a skating match between Sven Kramer and me.
Joined: February 01 2011
Location: Michigan
Status: Offline
Points: 13097
Posted: January 29 2017 at 08:33
The Dark Elf wrote:
Let's see, the most important and influential rock band of all time, versus a band in which the members were more influential and important when they played in previous bands.
uduwudu wrote:
But a country and western band who attained acceptance because they sounded so white and non- threatening to the middle classes (contemporary cultural mores dictated this) and their competition was minimal. Pat Boone?
Evidently, you weren't around in the 60s. Reply back when you've actually done some research. Your comment is misguided to the point of embarrassment.
uduwudu wrote:
Versus a bunch of guys who could play rings around most and did so in a format that had been universally approved. And their competition was ... well, their prog loving audience deserted for whatever reason and times meant laying epics in 5 mins. Time to may attention.
Their prog-loving audience deserted Asia because they became nothing more than an AOR arena band intent on moving product. Commercial pablum from high-end musicians out to make a buck.
uduwudu wrote:
Apparently if one band plays songs with whatever guitar sound (Revolution? - ye gods!) then it's kisses all around, but when another band does the same (plays songs and with way more sophistication) then its hate and despise time. We are ever so inconsistent.
There is no inconsistency. As I stated earlier, every member of Asia played in bands (Yes, ELP, etc.) and composed music that was far more important and influential previously than the sell out they became. How you can even keep a straight face while listening to "The Heat of the Moment" is beyond me. As far as the Beatles, there legacy is in tact and their amount of innovations and compositional ability is well noted, so I won't waste my time here going over them.
P.S. That The Beatles influenced Yes is well documented in many interviews. There's a brief intro by Jon Anderson before Yes plays this Beatles' cover...
Edited by The Dark Elf - January 29 2017 at 08:51
...a vigorous circular motion hitherto unknown to the people of this area, but destined to take the place of the mud shark in your mythology...
Joined: September 01 2013
Location: Uzbekistan
Status: Offline
Points: 7
Posted: January 29 2017 at 12:37
Musicianship? Technical abilities? I just don't care... Otherwise I would have never listened to Pink Floyd, Camel, Marillion (1983 to '95) and the likes, whose musical performance doesn't shine with technical filigree, but the music is brilliant, often throughout an album. The topic itself, "Asia vs The Beatles", sounds surrealistic, if not senseless. Anyway, whether I'm right in this respect or not, I have no desire to dispute with you about something that lies beyond your knowledge box. Sorry. Have a pleasing pastime with Asia.
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Asia versus The Beatles
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Catcher10 wrote:
