German Machinations

Germany works like a well-oiled machine. It’s evident to anyone the moment one arrives at a German airport from overseas. The luggage carts (things of beauty themselves) glide across perfectly level granite or marble floors and there’s stainless steel everywhere. Things are built to last in these places, from the efficient lifts and escalators to the lowliest litter bin or even to the sugar shaker at the coffee kiosk, where a WMF pressure brewer dispenses a perfect cappuccino, into a perfect white porcelain (not paper) cup. Starbucks eat your heart out.

It’s January, it’s Wishbone Ash in Germany, I’m zu Hause. I’ve been coming here for over 40 years and know this country very well - the infrastructure, where the roads, cars and buildings all fit together as an integrated whole, as if designed by some higher intelligence. Autobahns where, as long as you stick to the rules, you can drive safely at 200 kms an hour in the fast lane because trucks will stay in the slower lane and not take to the roads at all on sundays.

My father was an engineer and taught me to appreciate when things worked well. He helped me make my first guitars, showing me how to work on the brass parts and not to over tighten screws and so on. I liked working with wood but his thing was metal and the greater precision of it. Knurling, chrome plating, threading, micrometers - I learned all these strange new words and skills from him. When I made my first bit of serious money, traveling the world and recording with Wishbone Ash, I bought a BMW car. He looked down his nose at that. Why not a British car - a Jaguar or something?

I’d leave it with him when I’d go on tour, because I knew he’d keep it running and would not be able to resist getting his hands on the thing. Sure enough, I’d come to collect it at the end of one of those endlessly long American tours and he’d be in his little workshop in the garage, glasses on the end of his nose, marveling over a wheel nut or the oil filler cap from the Beemer, as though they were gems or something. For him, it was a glimpse into an alien culture of metal forgers. He could really appreciate the attention to detail, which at that time, was fast slipping from the British car industry, one in which he’d worked for 25 years of his life, holding down the night shift, building and inspecting rear axles for Bedford trucks a division of General Motors.

So it was last night in Ludwigsburg, the city named after the family of the mad king himself, that we played at Scala, a converted cinema. A fantastic gig and very appreciative audience. The band was on fire. I knew it would be good, when the promoter and his staff greeted us at the door with a hand shake and curt nods of the head. We were escorted to a beautifully laid out, clean, dressing room, hot food, towels, leather couches, internet. This was going to be a good night, I thought - and so it was. Everyone was very pleased with the outcome, so much so that post-show, we were treated to a little tour of the old projection room from the former cinema in which we’d just played. Two giant German projection machines were still in situ. They’d been bought to this location, their final resting place by horse and cart, all the way from Berlin in 1954. This fact was unbelievable to us - a journey of 600 kilometres. Part of the building itself dated back some 300 years, starting life as a brewery (no surprise) and the newer part was built as an early cinema in 1910. Premieres were held in this place, featuring stars of the day like Marlene Dietrich. Our guides were very proud of it all and it was fascinating to see. They explained how the highly inflammable celluloid film had to be stored in bunkers outside the building and how the old projectionists would sound a little mechanical gong, still there and functioning, to let the patrons know that the film was about to start. Apparently in winter there would be no heating in the projection room and they’d have to wait for these huge machines to start their work, producing heat. After half an hour or so they could begin taking off their coats and getting comfortable up there in that little room.

I explained to them how we’d also once been taken round Bletchley Park in the UK where we saw one of the original Enigma code machines from the second world war, which the Brits captured and subsequently used to break all the German codes used for orders in the field and for the submarines etc. Times change. Now we are bringing British rock music with all its coded signals to grateful audiences here.

Of course all the early recordings made by Wishbone Ash were produced on serious German machines (well, Swiss actually - but you get the idea); Studer 8 track units - behemoths that each took 4 large men to move. We’d use Neumann or Sennheiser microphones, just the same as we use today in the studio. All these things were built to last and any of this kit would still work perfectly in today’s digital age - in many cases providing, to some folks’ ears, better results than today’s gear.

What is apparent to me, as I travel around Germany is that the culture here still invests in making machines with pride. Other countries do so as well but when the general culture at large, starts to devalue the basic need for these things and loses respect for the men and women who make them, things start to crumble. German technical colleges still turn out engineers and wood workers and the rest of die Volk here, appreciate it, that’s for sure. It’s not considered a ‘tradesman’ thing as if in a derogatory sense. Everyone is grateful and proud of these machines, produced by the country’s engineers because they enhance lives and hence are treated with respect. Cars are parked carefully. No German would thoughtlessly open a car door in a parking lot and smash it into his neighbors car - something I’ve seen and been a victim of, countless times in the States or the UK. There’s a reverence for these machines and the work of the artisan.

I see that Obama is trying to once again engender the idea in the States, that technical colleges and the pursuit of such a career might once again be worthy. Not a bad idea - I mean after all, do we really need so many lawyers, health professionals and politicians in our society? A liberal arts degree is fine and dandy but what about using education to innovate and make some good stuff - you know - cool bridges, correctly cambered roads with low energy lighting systems so that you can see while driving at night. Doors that work, locks that lock, windows built to last, drains that drain, efficient 21st century energy systems that don’t rely on outmoded fossil fuel technology, oh yes, and a decent pressure brewing unit for that perfect cup of latte macchiato.

Getting back to my father; after he retired he actually bought himself a German car, which floored me. That thing was his pride and joy. When he died, it came to me, and we used it for a further 10 years with the band, driving the band around Europe, where it saw out it’s final days back in the Fatherland. It was a BMW 5 series with a pretty small engine for the size of the car - a two litre, but we’d hammer along the autobahns in the early 1990s until the seats were worn out, as Bob Skeat can attest to. It got us out of many a scrape, as in the former East, spinning off roads in snow storms and suchlike. They never gritted the roads out there in those days. Now we charge around at impossible speeds in Mercedes Sprinter vans, converted with passenger seats and all the luxuries.

Occasionally, as a treat, we’ve rented Mercedes S class or E class cars and the great game is to see how fast you can actually drive one of these things. Once, while the band were all asleep, cocooned in the warmth of an S Class’s luxurious cabin, I took one of these beasts to 165mph - briefly. The car’s engine just loved it. Not even red lining the rev counter. Later - after a test drive in a Bentley Continental, at the factory in Crewe (courtesy of British super-fan Ben Reinhart - note the German name), the driver confided to me that the test guys at the company bought an S Class just to see what it was made of. This was while they were designing one of the new VW - owned ‘baby Bentleys’. The car was taken to the Scandinavian north, way up in Norway, and relentlessly flogged on the quiet roads up there, at top speeds for 2 weeks by the test crew. They were trying to break it. No joy. At the end of this exercise they bought the car back and booked it into a regular Mercedes service station in the UK. All the mechanic said was, “you boys look like you put this car through some pretty rough conditions”. It received a standard factory service and was returned as good as ever. The man at Bentley, was quietly appreciative of this fact.

Today, we have a day off. There’s a museum nearby dedicated to the work of Ferdinand Porshe. I might troll along there after I’ve taken care of scrubbing some shirt collars and partaken of one of those perfect cups of Cappuccino. Auf, auf, auf der Autobahn.

Bis Dann ~ A.P.

Music Street Journal interview with Andy Powell

Music Street Journal interviewed Andy recently... Here's how it starts... (Photo courtesy of Peter Schmidt)

MSJ: Between Derek Lawrence and Tom Dowd, looking back, which sound do you prefer and why?

Derek did it for me. He was English, the same as us. He produced the first three records admirably, while being aided in no small part by Martin Birch's engineering. Martin had already engineered Fleetwood Mac and Deep Purple and would go on to handle Maiden and other hard rockers. Derek was very good at keeping the band egos in check, as well as getting the best out of our performances. He knew right off the bat, that it was all about the guitars but at the same time he worked for the harmonized vocal approach. Only the other day he called me and told me the same thing again, about the guitars, actually. It was great to hear from him after all these years. As far as the sound goes, British, at that time meant reverb, delay and anything that would give the feel of bigness / rock. American production then, was tight sounding, funky and dry. Their studios were like that and it was a continual battle to get ambience on the drums for example. That’s all changed now.

Tom produced some of the best records in popular music from the 20th century, but the times were changing. Tom worked well with UK artists who had a huge, almost sycophantic respect for American music. But with production, it was his way or the highway. He actually sent us for singing lessons. I didn't feel so bad about this though, because he'd done the same to Bette Midler. Lynyrd Skynyrd actually shelved a recording he'd done for them. Later they redid it without him.

In retrospect, we should have done the same with the ill-fated Locked In. On the other hand you can't knock Cream's Disraeli Gears (which Tom actually only engineered) or Rod Stewart’s Atlantic Crossing - although I preferred the latter’s work with the Faces, of course.

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Good review

We did a fun photo session yesterday in Düsseldorf, Germany with ace photographer Stefan Gladow (pictured here). It was in a period setting and we dressed the part.

Here, though, I'm just sharing this review of Elegant Stealth http://www.69facesofrock.com/wishbone_ash_elegant_stealth_cd.html

~ A.P.

Just about every incarnation of Wishbone Ash was able to breathe some new life into the old beast. The last few albums had been spectacular, and this one just continues the path of great records. Apart from the hard core Wishbone Ash followers, very few people hear these albums, and it's a real shame when music this good slips away.

Wishbone Ash are of course one of the prime twin guitar bands, and the Powell-Manninen combination is just truly excellent. The songs are catchy, very technical, but there is a soul in what Wishbone Ash is doing! Andy Powell if of course the only original member at this point, but he is very true to his vision as to what Wishbone Ash should be. And the last few albums can compete with the most significant Wishbone Ash releases.

Much has to be said about the powerful rhythm section combined of Bob Skeat and Joe Crabtree, who provide a very solid base for the guitarist to shine. The beauty of this album is how every sound interplays with other sounds, making the whole a sonic harmony. Wishbone Ash delivers a great rock album.

"Elegant Stealth" is just exactly what the title indicates. The word elegant had been linked with the band for many years, it's no coincidence it finally represents one of its records. This set is meant to be heard as a whole, and as good as each track is, there is magic in hearing the entire album. And this comes from a band who used the albums to make musical statements over the last 40 years. Mark Kadzielawa

All My Doubloons

I hope everyone had a great Christmas and New Year break. Ours was more eventful than usual. We took to the road trip (surprise, surprise) and had a real Southern holiday, spending time in Chapel Hill, North Carolina with my son’s family. Then we said our farewells and took a few quiet days on the Cape Fear River in Wilmington N.C., an interesting town I’d never visited before. Having lived in a small New England state for most of my adult life, the South is relatively unknown to me but I always enjoy visiting and increasingly, we get to learn more about it. The great thing is the weather. Most days were in the 60s and 70s so, to sit out on the porch on Christmas Day, in the sun, was sheer bliss.

Had some interestingly whimsical moments over Christmas. I was very happy just acting the goofy grandfather to my darling granddaughter Sophie Rose. Her current obsession is pirates and for some reason I figure into this since she discovered I have some gold teeth. The discovery was made while she was supposed to be listening to a bedtime story I was reading. First she asked where all my hair went.

Me, “It blew off in the wind”. Sophie, while looking into my mouth, “Are those cavities Grandad?” Me,” No, they are my my pirate teeth, now listen to the story”.

Anyway, later, no doubt making some connection in her young mind, while listening to the Wishbone Ash song Almighty Blues (which her father had been playing to her) she insisted on a different slant for the lyrics. In fact, according to her, the title and words to the song were actually All My Doubloons. I simply fell about on hearing this. Thinking further, it summed up song writing for me in a way. Sometimes songs do take on new meanings depending on the meanings the listener attaches to the the words. All My Doubloons takes it a little far but how many times, when listening to our songs or those of others, have you put your own words of meanings to them? I’ve done it often enough. In fact, during the recording of our recent song Big Issues, the engineer and I kept ourselves amused by retitling it “Bigger Shoes”.

Sophie is gradually getting the idea that I have a somewhat unusual job. She asked me on the phone, “So, how DO you rock & roll, grandad?” She’s heard the ancient term on some kids TV show and really did not know what it meant - just that I ‘did it’. The words grandad and rock & roll are so strange to hear in the same sentence, I can tell you that.

There’s a hint of a Southern accent in Sophie’s language these days and I love it. People use words differently in the South and sometimes it’s difficult to understand folks because the rhythm of their sentences hits you differently. On this trip,I could see people I met there, concentrating on my accent as well. The usual question these days is,” Are you Australian?” I then go into the whole story of how we (the Brits) shipped all the British criminals out there back in the day and that’s why they speak a kind of cockney English (Don’t tell an Aussie that)

Talking of accents and fun with language, I saw a great billboard while driving through Wilmington. It proclaimed the low-cost benefits of exercise at a local gym. “Pay Diddly for Your Squats” - I loved that. On another poster I saw an ad for formal wear. I really wanted to buy some clothing from Cape Fear Formal Wear, just for the label alone. It wasn’t to be though since there just aren’t that many formal occasions in rock & roll.

We wound up our stay in Wilmington and I’d recently been in touch with an old Wishbone tour manager and friend, Russell Sidelsky. He’d moved to Atlantic Beach Florida with his family, some years ago. He ran things for us when Wishbone first moved to America in the 70s. So on a whim, we decided to invite ourselves for New Years. I’m really glad we did because it was worth the 8 hour drive to go walking on the beach and eat oysters and sea food. New Years itself was celebrated twice. At 7.00 (Midnight GMT) we saw the New Year in with a Celtic meditation ceremony - a touch of the Druids in Florida - and then 5 hours later we were at the beach home of a wonderful female artist for yet more oysters (roasted this time). A tradition down there was the collection of all the neighborhood Christmas trees and a giant bonfire was set on the beach. Pine trees go up like rockets so it was pretty spectacular and I thought it was a nice touch that Susan Walters from TVs Vampire Diaries, made an appearance.

So now I’m back in chilly Connecticut, set to hit 8 deg. F. tonight, where I’m preparing for the upcoming European tour . We’ll kick off in Verviers, Belgium on January 11th. Guy Roberts just announced the resumption of AshCon in Chesterfield UK once more so hopefully there will be plenty of time to make plans for that PLUS we have the new Roadworks II CD ready for the road and for you to order online. Oh yes, and there are two Elegant Stealth T shirts currently in production for the upcoming tour. Finally; I just got word that there are some good things being said about us in this month’s Record Collector Magazine and also Total Guitar from the UK.

Myself and the band wish you all a happy, healthy and peaceful year for 2012 with great music and great times ahead.

~ A.P.

Woody’s New Year’s Resolutions 1942

This came from the American Songwriter Magazine via Aynsley Powell. I have to admit that it's hard to improve on Woody Guthrie's New Year's resolution list from 1942.

I particularly like Save Dough (yeah, right) and Make Up Your Mind. Stay Glad - now that's just perfect. Play and sing good. Says it all. Learn People Better. I mean...... Wake Up And Fight!!!! You have to be a warrior - right?

Hope you can read the words in the photo of Woody's book. Oh and check out the accompanying drawings. Folks took a little time over things back then. Gotta like that.

Happy New Year Everyone!

~ A.P.

Happy Holidays!

To all our friends, fans, loved ones and business partners around the globe, we wish you all the very best at this time of year.

With a full date sheet, a great new album Elegant Stealth, and new projects on the horizon, we all have a lot to be thankful for in 2011 and a lot to look forward to in 2012. Most especially, we want to thank you all, our fans, mentors and faithful followers without who, we couldn't do what we do.

I'd personally like to especially thank the band and crew, Daniel, Holger, Simon, Zlatka, Scott and Harry, for their hard work and dedication and they'll in turn join me also in sending out  our blessings to those who have suffered nature's wrath in this year of incredibly heavy weather.  His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama recently visited Ishinomaki where the Japanese tsunami left such devastation. He bought great comfort to our friends and fans there. This is so much more than a band - these events show that we are a community joined by an invisible thread.

As far as the UK is concerned, our tour schedule has taken a bit of an economic bashing this year and confusion in the market has meant that we’ll all have to forego our customary spring tour. BUT we’ll be back in the autumn with a great tour and full-on AshCon at Chesterfield.

The USA, Brazil and Europe will hopefully all see some great road work from us all in the spring, despite ever greater obstacles to touring, like mandatory withholding taxes, higher travel costs and recession, recession, recession. Speaking of road work; volume II of the Roadworks series of live recordings is ready for you all and will be on sale during the upcoming Euro tour. It’s also available at our online store. Thanks to Aynsley Powell for helping out on that recording and Daniel Vetter who mixed it, Tom Greenwood who mastered it, as well as Guy Roberts for organising the funding and manufacture and Jon Case for his design work.

To all the folks that support us on the technical side (it's an increasingly technological age, after all) - big love to you all from myself and the band: Music Man guitars, Case guitars, Fender instruments, Analogman, Zildjian cymbals, D'Addario Strings, Gibson Guitars, the Bass Centre, Captured Live, AMS Neve, and our special thanks and thoughts go out to Kev and the Chilcott family at the moment, at Royale Guitars.

Our agents: Andy Nye, Steve Ozark, Patrik Mertens, Rudolf Heiniss and Döm. Our new record label Zyx Music and our long time label, Talking Elephant with whom we’re still great friends. Our publicists: Kate, Billy, Lee and Andy. Awesome job! Lastly, thanks to our publishers, Kassner Music Publishing for going the extra mile.

We have a hard core group of amazing mentors like Leon, Guy, Steve, Simon, Christian, Bodo, Big Harry, Alan, Ian and many others of you who fix things for us wherever we are

Peace and Love to you all ~ A.P, Muddy, Joe and Bob.