FRONT PAGE NEWS

Having always been a Wishbone Ash fan especially their first four albums, Front page News came as a bit of a surprise as it was more commercial than it's predecessors. Laurie Wisefield was part of the band now and if you had come to accept that bands in the latter part of the 70's were beginning to evolve ( some more so than others to survive) then you will like this album a lot. It is more in the easy listening category but the opener has the trademark Wishbone Ash 'slurry' like vocals. If you like Ballad Of The Beacon from Wishbone Four you will know what I am referring to.'Midnight Dancer 'has a great hook with some fine bass work and then Laurie Wisefield's influence and vocals kick in with the poppy ' Goodbye Baby Hello Friend' He is a great vocalist and an equally gifted guitarist. " Surface To Air' is a Martin Turner classic and side one closes with the docile '714'. In reference to the vinyl only side two is a patchy affair with a couple of decent tunes with the opener ' Come In From The Rain' and the upbeat closer ' Diamond Jack'. It is not as strong side two which unfortuantely reduces the overall rating but I still highly recommend Front Page News for anyone wanting to add this great band to their Progressive/rock collection