Asia

From the beginning, Asia was designed as a big-name supergroup. John Wetton had previously been in a bevy of progressive groups, with the last being U.K. Joining him were Steve Howe and Geoff Downes from Yes, and a post-PM Carl Palmer from Emerson, Lake & Palmer; though earlier possibilities included Trevor Rabin, Roy Wood and Rick Wakeman. Geffen A&R man John Kalodner compelled the band to start writing in late 1980, and in a direction that was strictly AOR: that is, album-orientated rock. The accoutrements included a "big" band name and a Roger Dean album cover; and the results were phenomenal. Asia quickly rose to the top of the US charts, where the album would stay for some nine weeks. In the UK, the album crested at No. 11, but remained on the charts for 38 weeks. The record earned gold status in the UK and quadruple-platinum in the US, while further earning the band a Grammy award nomination for Best New Artist in 1982. Side one of the album was packed with the singles: "Heat of the Moment," "Only Time Will Tell" and "Sole Survivor" lead off with a one-two-three punch, the former two with videos to air on the recently-minted MTV. There's nothing wrong, per se, with Asia's music. Wetton's voice is radio-friendly, as are his lyrics; and though the arrangements are a little congested, the hooks more than make up for it. The latter track even offers a little progressive edge. But one thing is clear: Asia was a business proposition for the new decade, something purpose-built to the core for commercial success, whether it be radio-airplay or sold-out tours. As the barcode on the back jacket signifies, this record marked the end of an era for the generation of progressive musicians, one that had spent the past decade following their muse through the varied and diverse music of the timeline. Asia released a second album, Alpha, in July 1983, spawning the US No. 1 hit "Don't Cry" b/w "Daylight." While successful, the genie was already out of the bottle, and those pesky supergroup problems quickly arose. Wetton left temporarily in 1983, with none other than Greg Lake subbing for him; Lake's performance is captured in the concert video Asia in Asia, recorded at Tokyo's Budokan Hall. But when Wetton returned, Howe then promptly left, replaced by Mandy Meyer from the Swiss metal band Krokus. A final album from this lineup, Astra, was released in late 1985; but with disappointing sales, tours were canceled and the band folded.