AN EXTRAORDINARY LIFE

John Wetton

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John Wetton An Extraordinary Life album cover

3.00 | 3 ratings | 1 reviews | 0% 5 stars

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Boxset/Compilation, released in 2023

Songs / Tracks Listing

CD1: Caught in the Crossfire (with Bonus Tracks)
1. Turn on the Radio
2. Baby Come Back
3. When Will you Realise?
4. Cold is the Night
5. Paper Talk
6. Get Away
7. Caught in the Crossfire
8. Get What you Want
9. I'll Be There
10. Woman
11. Every Inch of the Way
12. Out of the Blue

CD2: Battle Lines (with Bonus Tracks)
1. Right Where I Wanted to Be
2. Battle Lines
3. Jane
4. Crime of Passion
5. Sand in My Hand
6. Sea of Mercy
7. Hold Me Now
8. Space and Time
9. Walking on Air
10. You're Not the Only One
11. Battle Lines (Acoustic Version)

CD3: Arkangel (with Bonus Tracks)
1. The Circle of St Giles
2. The Last Thing on My Mind
3. Desperate Times
4. I Can't Lie Anymore
5. Archangel
6. You Against the World
7. Be Careful What You Wish For
8. Emma
9. Nothing Happens for Nothing
10. All Grown Up
11. After All
12. The Celtic Cross
13. Take these Tears
14. Magazines
15. Woman

CD4: Sinister
1. Heart of Darkness
2. Say it Ain't So
3. No Ordinary Miracle
4. Where Do We Go from Here?
5. E SCAPE
6. Another Twist of the Knife
7. Silently
8. Before your Eyes
9. Second Best
10. Real World

CD5: Rock of Faith (with Bonus Tracks)
1. Mondrago
2. Rock of Faith (Demo)
3. A New Day
4. I've Come to Take You Home
5. Who Will Light A Candle?
6. Nothing's Gonna Stand in Our Way
7. Altro Mongo
8. I Believe in You
9. Take Me to the Waterline
10. I Lay Down
11. When you Were Young
12. Cold Comfort
13. God Only Knows

CD6: Raised in Captivity (with Bonus Tracks)
1. Lost for Words
2. Raised in Captivity
3. Goodbye Elsinore
4. The Last Night of My Life
5. We Stay Together
6. The Human Condition
7. Steffis Ring
8. The Devil and the Opera House
9. New Star Rising
10. Don't Misunderstand Me
11. Mighty Rivers
12. Face to Face

CD7: Bonus Tracks Part 1
1. AD 2023
2. Raven
3. Walking on Air
4. Straight from the Heart
5. If I Was A Country
6. All Along the Watchtower
7. Deya 1986
8. Tears of Rage
9. Marianne
10. Healer of Shattered Hearts
11. I'd Give It All for You
12. Ultimate Emotion (Unfinished Idea)
13. Wings of Angels
14. Wings of an Angel
15. All for One
16. From A Distant Heart
17. Real World - John and Ringo
18. The Greatest Show On Earth (JW Edit)
19. Adagietto
20. The Water is Wide

CD8: Bonus Tracks Part 2
1. Raised in Captivity
2. The Other Guy (Second Best)
3. I Will
4. Bad Thing
5. Boys of the Diamond City
6. Flesh and Blood
7. Burn Your Name in My Heart
8. Sex/ Power/ Money
9. Back in Your Lovin' Arms
10. Every Inch of the Way (Duet with Lori Cuomo)
11. I Can't Tell you Why
12. Winner Takes it All (Demo)
13. Mind over Matter (Demo)
14. Gypsy Soul (Demo)
15. Wasted Time
16. You Still Got Me
17. Halfway to Heaven
18. I'll Never Stop Loving You
19. Forever

Line-up / Musicians

- John Wetton / vocals, bass, acoustic guitar, keyboards

Other musicians:
- see respective albums info

Releases information

Label: Spirit of Unicorn Music (SOUMBOX003)
Format: CD
November 24, 2023

Thanks to mbzr48 for the addition
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JOHN WETTON An Extraordinary Life ratings distribution

3.00
(3 ratings)

Essential: a masterpiece of rock music(0%)
Excellent addition to any rock music collection(0%)
Good, but non-essential (100%)
Collectors/fans only (0%)
Poor. Only for completionists (0%)

JOHN WETTON An Extraordinary Life reviews

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Collaborators/Experts Reviews

Review by kev rowland
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Prog Reviewer / Special Collaborator

So here we go on what is probably quite a pointless review, as if you don't know who Wetton is then you will not be forking out the amount of money this costs, while if you are a diehard fan, you will simply have to get it as you will feel totally obliged. What we have here are 115 songs, more than 8 hours of music, containing all six of his studio albums ('Caught In The Crossfire', 'Battle Lines', 'Arkangel', 'Sinister', 'Rock of Faith', and 'Raised In Captivity') along with two CDs of previously unreleased material. Housed in a 12" by 12" box, this set includes a 64-page book with an introduction by Roger Dean and contains comprehensive sleeve notes by Nick Shilton, author of Wetton's biography, "An Extraordinary Life", published earlier this year. The book also features a raft of photographs taken from the Wetton archive and has been designed by John's long-time friend, Michael Inns.

That Wetton has been an incredibly important figure in the history of British progressive rock will never be in doubt, as his contribution to multiple bands and iconic albums can never be overlooked. But as with any artist there are highlights and lowlights, and while there is little here which is truly awful, there are also not many which make the listener stand back in awe (but there are definitely some). I first purchased a Wetton solo album back in the Eighties when I was on my quest to get everything which featured members of Jethro Tull. That album was his debut 'Caught in the Crossfire' (Martin Barre plays on it), released in 1980, and while the performances are great (Wetton's vocals are pure velvet) there is nothing here which compares with the 'Asia' album which was to come only two years later.

It was not until 1994 that he released another solo album, and while neither 'Battle Lines' nor 'Arkangel' are indispensable there are some wonderful songs on both of them, but if I was to point to an album of his from that period then it would be to the excellent 'Sub Rosa' live acoustic album which is sheer brilliance. Thanks to Martin Orford being in his band he was then introduced to the underground and his next two releases, 'Sinister and 'Rock of Faith' are a step up in so many ways. I lost track of what he was doing after that what with Icon and Asia so had not even realised he released another solo album in 2011, and this was the first time I had heard 'Raised In Captivity', which to my ears is not in the same league. As for the two CDs of unreleased (and in some places incomplete) material, then this will be of interest to the hardened fan only as while they are fine, there is nothing here which really stands out.

My personal view is that the two CDs should have been made available separately so fans could decide whether or not to invest in music they already have, and given I already own five of the six studio albums it is not something I would have done. I enjoyed listening to all of them again, but 8 hours is a lot of music from one singer and there were too many times when I lost track of where I was and couldn't tell if I had already played something or not as much of this just segued into each other. That it is a wonderful set and a great way of remembering one of our most important musicians is never in doubt, but I think I will just keep playing 'Sub Rosa' thanks.

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