Asia

Asia (band)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Asia
Origin England
Genres Progressive rock, hard rock[1]
Years active 1981-1986
1989present
Labels Geffen, Great Pyramid, Musidisc, WEA Japan, Mayhem Recordings, Resurgence, Snapper, InsideOut, Frontiers, EMI America, King, Victor
Associated acts Yes, The Buggles, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, King Crimson, GTR, Qango
Website www.originalasia.com
Members
Geoff Downes
John Wetton
Steve Howe
Carl Palmer
Former members
See: Asia band members
Asia Featuring John Payne
Origin Los Angeles
Genres Progressive rock, hard rock
Years active 2007present
Labels Devgel, Sony Music Japan
Associated acts GPS
Website www.theasiaband.com
Members
John Payne
Jay Schellen
Erik Norlander
Mitch Perry
Former members
Guthrie Govan

Asia are an English rock group formed in 1981. The band was labelled a supergroup and included former members of veteran progressive rock bands Yes, King Crimson, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Uriah Heep, U.K., Roxy Music, Wishbone Ash and The Buggles. Since 2007, there have been two distinct groups using the Asia name: a reunion of the band's original line-up performing as Asia, and Asia Featuring John Payne as a continuation of the pre-2006 Asia line-up, initially featuring three of its members.

History

Formation

Asia began with the apparent demise of Yes and Emerson, Lake & Palmer, two of the flagship bands of British progressive rock. After the break-up of King Crimson in 1974, various plans for a super group involving bassist John Wetton had been mooted, including the abortive British Bulldog project with Bill Bruford and Rick Wakeman in 1976. Wakeman left this project at the urging of management, according to Bill Bruford. In 1977, Bruford and Wetton were reunited in UK, augmented by guitarist Allan Holdsworth and keyboardist/violinist Eddie Jobson. Their eponymous debut was released in 1978. By January 1980, UK had folded after one lineup change and three recordings. A new supergroup project was then suggested involving Wetton, Wakeman, drummer Carl Palmer and (then little known) guitarist Trevor Rabin, but Wakeman left this project too shortly before they were due to sign to Geffen and before they had played together.[2] Wetton's Caught in the Crossfire solo album (1980) did not fare very well in England.

In early 1981, Wetton and former Yes guitarist Steve Howe were brought together by A&R man John Kalodner and Geffen Records to start writing material for a new album. By this point, progressive rock bands such as Yes and Emerson, Lake and Palmer had folded, so many qualified musicians were available for this proposed group. They were eventually joined by drummer Carl Palmer, and finally by Howe's recent Yes cohort, keyboardist Geoff Downes. Two other players auditioned and considered during the band's formation were former The Move and ELO founder Roy Wood and South African guitarist/singer Trevor Rabin, who would go on to be part of a reformed Yes in 1983. Rabin, in a filmed 1984 interview included in the recently released and updated DVD 9012Live, said that his involvement with Asia never went anywhere because "there was no chemistry" among the participants.

The band's first recordings, under the auspices of Geffen record label head David Geffen and Kalodner, were considered disappointing by music critics[3] and fans of traditional progressive rock, who found the music closer to radio-friendly Album-oriented rock. However, Asia clicked with fans of popular arena acts such as Journey, Boston and Styx. Indeed, Kalodner had once introduced Wetton to Journey's short-lived frontman Robert Fleischman, who had penned such Journey classics "Anytime" and "Wheel in the Sky," with a view to Fleischman becoming Asia's lead-singer. Fleischman was already known to bandmember Carl Palmer. However, as they worked on material together, Fleischman was impressed by Wetton's singing and felt the voice best suited to the new material was Wetton's own. Leaving Asia amicably, Fleischman returned to America eventually to work on several projects with ex-KISS guitarist Vinnie Vincent.[1].

Rolling Stone gave Asia an indifferent review,[4] while still acknowledging the band's musicianship was a cut above the usual AOR expectations.

Early years

Asia's eponymous debut album, released in March 1982, received considerable commercial success, spending nine weeks at number one in the U.S. album chart and selling over 4 million copies in the US alone. The album sold over 10 million worldwide. The singles "Only Time Will Tell" (#17) and "Heat of the Moment" (#4) became huge Top 40 hits, with the latter cracking the Top Five, and the former remaining a stadium favourite at U.S. sporting events. "Sole Survivor" also received heavy air play on rock stations across the US, as did "Wildest Dreams". The band's best performing single, and perhaps their most recognised and popular hit song, "Heat of the Moment", climbed to #4 on the American Top 40 charts, having debuted on the AT40 on May 1, 1982, and spent a total of 12 weeks in there.

In the US, the band did extremely well, selling out every date on their debut tour, which began in theatres but quickly expanded into arenas because of high ticket demand. Asia would go on to receive a Grammy nomination as Best New Artist of the Year. MTV also played Asia videos on heavy rotationas many as 5 times a day. Billboard named the Asia debut as album of the year. Asia's logo and cover art were handled by illustrator Roger Dean of Yes and Uriah Heep fame.

However, neither the second album (Alpha, released in August 1983) nor any following Asia album repeated the chart success of the first. "Don't Cry" was a Top Ten single in the summer of 1983 and the video received considerable play on MTV, while "The Smile Has Left Your Eyes", a fan favourite for John Wetton's vocal performance, charted inside of Billboard's Top 40. The video for "Smile" also scored heavy MTV play. But Rolling Stone panned Alpha as an over-produced commercial album,[5] while others lamented that Howe and Palmer were effectively reduced to session musicians. The tracks "Eye to Eye" and "My Own Time" became huge fan favourites. "Open Your Eyes", "Midnight Sun" (featuring a strong vocal performance by Wetton), and "The Heat Goes On" became concert staples. Alpha received indifferent reviews from various critics, while still attaining platinum status. Alpha reached #6 on the USA Billboard album chart.

In October 1983, Wetton was forced out of the group on the heels of the comparatively disappointing sales of Alpha. The band stated that Wetton quit and there is no universally agreed upon version of what happened. Wetton later revealed one factor may have been his alcohol dependency. In any event, the next leg of their 1983 US tour (which had begun in the summer but shut down suddenly on September 10 after a performance at Pine Knob in Detroit), scheduled for the fall, was abruptly cancelled, reportedly because of low ticket sales. Ex-King Crimson and ELP front man Greg Lake replaced Wetton for the highly publicised "Asia in Asia" concert at the Nippon Budokan Hall in Tokyo, Japan on Dec. 6, 1983, which was the first concert broadcast over satellite to MTV in the US and later made into a home video. Some of the songs had to be played in a lower key to suit Lake's voice and he read most of the lyrics from a teleprompter. The Japanese dates were successful financially but not musically. Lake left in early 1984 and Asia reunited with Wetton that same year to start work on their next album. But Howe soon left to be replaced by Krokus guitarist Mandy Meyer. Howe then enjoyed brief success with GTR, another supergroup, formed with Steve Hackett of Genesis and produced by Downes.

Astra to the USSR

The third Asia album, Astra, released in November 1985, was not as commercially successful as the first two. The record label canceled the projected tour because of lack of interest. Howe's replacement, Mandy Meyer of Krokus, provided more of a hard-rock approach. The band enjoyed a modest charting single, "Go," (#46) with Meyer's guitar heroics center stage. The music video was another hit with MTV. In 1986 this Asia line-up folded, bringing the group to an end for the time being. Singer/bassist/songwriter Wetton is quoted as saying "It [Astra] did really well in Sweden ... but Swedish sales aren't that large."

Wetton resurfaced with a 1987 album with guitarist Phil Manzanera, Wetton-Manzanera, based on material that had been originally intended for Asia. Also in 1987, Wetton played with Phenomena on their Dream Runner album and landed a number one hit in South America with the Phenomena single "Did it All for Love", also appearing in the related music video. Asia were also credited with contributing the Giorgio Moroder produced track "Gypsy Soul" to the Sylvester Stallone film soundtrack to Over the Top, although Wetton was the only original band member involved. Wetton and Downes' attempt to restart the group in 1987 with guitarist Scott Gorham (formerly of Thin Lizzy) and drummer Michael Sturgis (ex-a-ha) fizzled when they were unable to land a worldwide recording deal. Wetton and Palmer were more successful in reuniting the band for a few tours of Europe in 1989. Downes (who was working on a project with Greg Lake) was not available at this time, so keys were played by John Young. Guitars on this tour were handled by Alan Darby (who was replaced shortly after by German guitarist Holger Larish) and Zoe Nicholas and Susie Webb were brought aboard to provide back-up vocals. Unlike Wetton's later anger at Asia continuing without him in the 1990s, this lineup was viewed favorably by other Asia band members.

Asia returned to the studio in 1990 with Toto guitarist Steve Lukather and other musicians (see discography below), and released Then & Now, a best-of with four new tracks. "Days Like These" from the disc received substantial airplay during the summer of 1990 on AOR radio stations, and re-sparked some interest in the band. Pat Thrall joined Downes, Palmer, and Wetton on tour and they performed classic material, including King Crimson and UK songs. The band toured the Soviet Union in November 1990 to play in front of 20,000 fans on two sold out nights. "Days Like These" charted at #64 in 1990 and climbed all the way to #2 on the Album Rock Tracks chart. A video was planned but was scrapped because various problems hampered the single's chance at the Top 40. Asia received the RIAA Gold album award for Then and Now many years later, but the initial response was modest as the album failed to dent the Top 100. The decision not to tour the US for this album did not help any. A DVD and CD can be bought of the Asia concert in the USSR. Wetton left in 1991 after a South American tour, discouraged by Asia's lack of success in the States.

Payne Era

In 1991 vocalist/bassist John Payne joined the band and, together with Downes, enlisted new musicians and led Asia through to 2006. The first album with this line-up was Aqua, released in 1992. In addition to Downes and Payne, the album featured Howe, Palmer, and Al Pitrelli (of Danger Danger, Megadeth, and Alice Cooper). Howe returned during the sessions having just left Yes again, but Palmer would leave soon, committing to an ELP reunion, and was able to play on just three songs. Session men then completed the drumming. Downes' environmentalist single "Who Will Stop The Rain?" (originally written for Max Bacon and the aborted Rain project, later appearing on Bacon's album From the Banks of the River Irwell) attracted some radio attention. The Aqua club tour featured Howe (whose presence was heavily promoted), who took the stage after the fifth song. The tour was successful enough to warrant the band's continuation. The 1992-93 tour featured Downes, Howe, Payne, guitarist Vinny Burns and drummer Trevor Thornton. Before a European festival tour in late 1993, Howe and Burns left and were replaced by guitarist Keith More. Payne acquitted himself on the tour, but many fans refused to support an Asia lineup without Wetton.

The group released Aria in May 1994, which featured lead guitarist Al Pitrelli once again, who would leave Asia during the short Aria tour. This illustrates how the keyboard-driven band often faced trouble keeping a regular guitarist. Aria did not fare well commercially and the ensuing tour was limited to four concerts. Ex-Simply Red guitarist Aziz Ibrahim took over during the tour. Aria also introduced new drummer Michael Sturgis, who had been involved during the band's aborted 1987 reunion and had appeared on some of the sessions for Aqua. Aria was not released in the United States until 1995.

Over New Year's Eve 1996, a broken pipe inundated the control room in Downes and Payne's recording studio, Electric Palace, in London. Amid the lost equipment, a vault containing unreleased material was found intact. The band decided to release the double-disc Archiva, a collection of unreleased tracks recorded during the first three Downes/Payne albums. Next, Arena, released in February 1996, featured Downes, Payne, Sturgis, Ibrahim and guest guitarist Elliott Randall (ex-Steely Dan, Randy Crawford). The album featured Asia's longest track ever in "The Day Before the War". The album was released on Resurgence Records but there was no tour because of lack of interest. The group's lone promotional performance in conjunction with the album occurred on April 19, 1996, when Downes and Payne appeared with guitarist Elliott Randall on the Virgin FM radio programme Alive in London to play the song "Never".

An all acoustic album, Live at the Town & Country Club, was recorded by the group in September 1997 (and released in 1999) that featured a lineup of Downes, Payne, Ibrahim, and Bob Richards on drums.

In 1999, there was talk of a reunion of the original lineup (minus Howe). The original proposition included Dave Kilminster on guitar, who had previously toured and recorded with Wetton. While Howe was interested in participating, he was unable because of his busy schedule with Yes. This reunion did not take place and John Payne continued to carry on Asia with Downes uninterrupted. Wetton and Palmer did, however, get together to form Qango, which included Kilminster and John Young, although the band was short-lived. Kilminster went on to work with Keith Emerson, The Nice and Roger Waters. In 2000, Geffen/Universal released a best-of entitled The Very Best of Asia: Heat of the Moment (1982-1990) which also included three rare B-sides from the early days.

2001's Aura featured three different session guitarists, including Ian Crichton (of Canadian progressive rock band Saga) who'd briefly joined Asia in 1998-1999. Aura took a more progressive rock form, but still did not recapture the commercial success of the first album. Former members Howe, Thrall, Sturgis and Elliott Randall also made guest appearances. The single "Ready To Go Home" was barely distributed. Asia then signed with Recognition. 2001 did see the band with a stable lineup, achieved during the Aura sessions featuring Downes, Payne, guitarist Guthrie Govan and ex-Manfred Mann's Earth Band/The Firm/Uriah Heep/Gary Numan/AC/DC drummer Chris Slade (who had first joined Asia in 1999, briefly). Asia would tour for the first time since 1994, including the first US dates since 1993. A live album and DVD "Asia: Live in the USA" was released in 2003, recorded at the Classic Rock Festival in Trenton, NJ in October 2002 which they co-headlined with Uriah Heep.

In the summer of 2003, Downes and Payne did the "Asia Across America Tour" which got some national media attention. Performing "unplugged", the duo would reportedly play anywhere in the US that fans requested, provided there was a venue and the fans put up $3,000 to cover costs. From New Jersey to Alaska gigs took place and the fans were treated to "meet and greet" sessions after each show.

Marking a departure from convention, for the first time, a studio release was not titled as a single word starting and ending with the letter A (excepting the partial compilation / partial new album Then And Now). Released on Asia's newly signed label SPV/Inside Out Records, 2004's Silent Nation (name influenced by the Howard Stern vs. FCC incident) picked up some unexpected exposure on the Internet.

In 2004, an acoustic Asia toured featuring only Downes and Payne. In 2005, the full band toured in Europe and the Americas playing settings ranging from small clubs to medium-sized theatres. Again, in the US, attendance was poor at best. Meanwhile, Wetton and Downes released some archival Asia material under the name Wetton/Downes and they then reunited to record a full-length album (Icon, released in 2005), and an accompanying EP and DVD. Two additional Icon projects have since followed: Icon II - Rubicon(2006) and Icon 3(2009).

In August 2005, Slade left the group to be replaced by Jay Schellen. The new band started work on an album, tentatively entitled Architect of Time, which was originally planned for release in 2006, though later developments would cause this project to be shelved for the time being.

Two bands

In early 2006, the partnership between Downes and Payne was dissolved when Downes left for a reunion of the original band line-up under the Asia name, a breakup that Payne described as "painful".[6] The existing line-up (minus Downes) continued for a short while before morphing into GPS.

When Downes split in 2006, Payne owned a significant portion of the rights to the band name "ASIA". On the 9th of May 2006, John Payne, Geoff Downes, John Wetton, Carl Palmer and Steve Howe contractually agreed that John Payne could continue his 14 year legacy with ASIA as "ASIA Featuring John Payne". ASIA Featuring John Payne debuted in 2007 with Payne on vocals/bass, Guthrie Govan on guitar, Erik Norlander on keyboards and Jay Schellen on drums. This lineup toured the US through 2008.

The official websites of each band reflect a split between the shared history of Payne's tenure with the band, as the reunited Asia acknowledge only pre- and post-Payne albums, whereas "Asia featuring John Payne" claim Payne-era albums Aqua through Silent Nation as part of their own discography. Although Asia's live set lists reflect this, Asia featuring John Payne perform songs from the entire history of Asia.[6]

Four original members of Asia

Downes and the other three original members (Wetton, Palmer, and Howe) convened a group meeting in England in early 2006 in anticipation of formally reforming for work that year. And after a slew of rumours, they announced that this original line-up of Asia were planning a CD, DVD and world tour to celebrate the band's 25th anniversary. The band appeared in October 2006 on U.S. cable channel VH-1 Classic and began a world tour largely focused on the U.S. The band secured ownership of the Asia name and toured under the description of the Four Original Members of Asia. The setlist featured most of the first album as well as a couple of songs from the second, along with one selection each from Yes, ELP, King Crimson and the Buggles to acknowledge the history of each member of the band. In a 2006 interview, guitarist Steve Howe states, "This is the real Asia. There have been other incarnations of the band, but this is the one that the public truly embraced".

The tour began on August 29, 2006 in Rochester, New York. "The Definitive Collection" was released by Geffen/Universal to tie into the tour in September and peaked at #183 on the US album charts--the first time Asia had made the charts since 1990. A limited edition release available only at Best Buy stores also included a DVD of all the band's music videos.

The reunion tour continued into 2007 with venue size based on the success of the 2006 shows where the band was mainly playing in clubs and theatres. Many of which sold out, including all seven dates in Japan. Also in 2007, the band released Fantasia: Live In Tokyo on CD and DVD through Eagle Records, commemorating the 25th Anniversary and documenting the success of the 2006-2007 tour.

In mid-2007, all four original members (Wetton, Downes, Howe and Palmer) went into the studio to record a new album, marking the first recorded material from all four original members since 1983's Alpha.[7] The band continued to tour until major heart surgery for Wetton in the second half of the year saw remaining tour dates rescheduled for 2008. The new studio album, entitled Phoenix, was released on Frontiers Records on 14 April 2008 (via EMI/Capitol on April 15 in North America[8]), along with a world tour to promote . The 12-track album includes "An Extraordinary Life", based on Wetton's experience of ill health; rockers such "Never Again" and "Nothing's Forever"; and power ballads such as "Heroine" and "I Will Remember You". The world tour features a couple of the new songs. The album cover features Dean's illustration and design.[7] The Phoenix album did well in both the American and European/Japanese markets. It debuted at #73 American Billboard 200; the band had not charted with a studio album since 1985.

As a special finale to the US Phoenix tour, the band performed, for the first time ever, the entire first Asia album from beginning to end at their San Francisco concert at The Regency Center on May 5. The album comprised the entire 2nd set of the evening's concert.

In summer 2009, Asia toured the USA with Yes. Asia opened with a 55-minute show, while Yes closed with a 1 hour and 50 minute set. Asia's set included only "An Extraordinary Life" from Phoenix, the rest of the songs coming from the first two albums plus one cover each from The Buggles ("Video Killed the Radio Star" with Wetton on lead vocals and Downes on vocoder), King Crimson ("The Court of the Crimson King", which was actually never performed live by King Crimson while Wetton was a member of the band) and Emerson, Lake & Palmer ("Fanfare for the Common Man"). Yes songs were omitted from this tour's setlist, though Asia also covered "Roundabout" on earlier legs of the "Four Original Members" tour. Contrary to some early expectations, Downes did not perform with Yes, although their setlist included two songs from the 1980 album Drama, which featured Downes on keys. A series of shows late in the tour featured a special appearance by Ian McDonald (flute and vocals on "The Court Of The Crimson King" which he co-wrote and backing vocals on "Heat Of The Moment").

In late 2009, the band began working on their follow-up CD to Phoenix. According to Wetton's website in late November 2009: "Good news is that the new album is starting to leap, rather than creep (or sleep) in terms of progress. This week I have two completed lead vocals, with complete harmony/chorus voxes on three. It's just me, Geoff [Downes], Steve R[ispin], and Mike Paxman in the studio--- Carl [Palmer] is pretty much all done, Steve H[owe] is half done, and returns to the fold after Yes tour. It sounds absolutely wonderful".

The follow-up, titled Omega, was released in the UK on April 26[9] and in the US on May 4.[10]

Asia featuring John Payne

Payne, Govan and Schellen continued working together after Downes' departure for the aforementioned reunion. This included continuing work on what had been planned as the next Asia album, Architect of Time. They began to work under the name GPS with Ryo Okumoto of Spock's Beard on keys. Their debut release, Window to the Soul (2006), included material developed for Architect of Time.[11]

In May 2007, Payne, Govan and Schellen announced the new band name, "Asia featuring John Payne", adding Erik Norlander on keys. The name had been contractually agreed between Payne, Downes, Wetton, Howe and Palmer on the 9th of May 2006.[12] The first release under this name at the end of 2007 was a live recording of the late 2005 Asia line-up of Downes, Payne, Govan and Schellen, entitled Extended Versions in the US and Scandinavia in the UK.

In June 2008, the band has announced the release of an EP entitled "Military Man" with royalties being donated to the USO.[13] The band are also planning to release a completed Architect of Time,[14] with all songs written by Payne and Norlander. The band are touring in 2009 under the Asia Featuring John Payne name, and currently playing festivals and small venues, performing songs from the entire history of Asia, including "Heat of the Moment".[6] Govan was replaced by Mitch Perry and North American touring has continued through 2010 (Govan remains a part of side-project GPS). Perry is a seasoned session musician with over two decades experience touring with major acts including Cher and Michael Schenker.[12] Meanwhile, Payne, Govan, and Schellen are also continuing work as GPS, while Schellen is also recording with Circa.[15]

In late 2008 they signed a three album deal with Sony Music Japan in said country and a deal in the States and elsewhere will be announced soon.[16] A studio album, originally called Architect of Time (the name ultimately used for a Payne side project instead) and now Americana [17] is underway and expected for release later in 2011. A live album, Extended Versions or Scandinavia by Asia Featuring John Payne, was released in fall 2007, drawn from a December 2005 show in Finland with Downes, Schellen, Payne and Govan.

Personnel

Through the years, Geoff Downes and John Payne were the two most consistent members of the band, which experienced a revolving roster of noted musicians, particularly in the 1990s. The lineup has been as follows:

Current members of Asia are the following founding members:

Current members of "Asia Featuring John Payne" are:

  • John Payne - lead vocals, bass, guitar (also in GPS)
  • Mitch Perry - guitar
  • Jay Schellen - drums and percussion (also in GPS)
  • Erik Norlander - keyboards

Non-active band members of Asia are:

  • Vinny Burns - guitar, backing vocals
  • Ian Crichton - guitar (member of Saga)
  • Alan Darby - guitar
  • Guthrie Govan - guitar , backing vocals (now in GPS and formerly of "Asia Featuring John Payne")
  • Holger Larish - guitar
  • Aziz Ibrahim - guitar, backing vocals
  • Greg Lake - lead vocals, bass (former member of King Crimson and Emerson, Lake & Palmer). Heard on Asia in Asia and "Heat of the Moment" (live) is on Lake's From the Underground... the Official Bootleg album (1998).
  • Mandy Meyer - guitar, backing vocals (former member of Krokus)
  • Keith More - guitar, backing vocals (former member of Arena)
  • Zoe Nicholas - backing vocals
  • John Payne - lead vocals, bass, guitar (now in GPS and "Asia Featuring John Payne")
  • Al Pitrelli - guitar (former member of Danger Danger, Hotshot, Savatage and Megadeth and current member of Trans-Siberian Orchestra)
  • Elliott Randall - guitar
  • Bob Richards - drums (more recently member of Man)
  • Jay Schellen - drums, percussion (former member of Hurricane, World Trade and Conspiracy, now in GPS and "Asia Featuring John Payne")
  • Chris Slade - drums, percussion (former member of AC/DC, Uriah Heep, and The Firm)
  • Mike Sturgis - drums, percussion (former member of 21 Guns, later a member of Wishbone Ash, The Untouchables and Psycho Motel)
  • Pat Thrall - guitar, backing vocals
  • Trevor Thornton - drums
  • Susie Webb - backing vocals
  • John Young - keyboards, backing vocals

Certain musicians have joined and left after a short time without recording any studio material with the group. The most notable collaboration of this kind was the participation of Greg Lake in the "Asia in Asia" concert on bass guitar and lead vocals. Yet more musicians have played as session musicians or have guested with the band without formally joining. Some of these artists include: Robert Fleischman, Vinnie Colaiuta, Francis Dunnery, Ant Glynne, Scott Gorham, Tomoyasu Hotei, Luis Jardim, Ron Komie, Tony Levin, Steve Lukather, Kim Nielsen-Parsons, Simon Phillips, and Alex Thomas.

Timeline

This is an approximate timeline of the members of Asia.

Discography

Main article: Asia discography
  • Asia (1982)
  • Alpha (1983)
  • Astra (1985)
  • Then & Now (1990)
  • Aqua (1992)
  • Aria (1994)
  • Arena (1996)
  • Archiva Vol. 1 (1996)
  • Archiva Vol. 2 (1996)
  • Rare (1999)
  • Aura (2001)
  • Silent Nation (2004)
  • Phoenix (2008)
  • Omega (2010)

Remixes

  • In 2005, DJ Manian's dance remix of "Heat of the Moment" was released to nightclubs.

Soundtracks and other uses

  • In an episode of the animated TV series South Park, Eric Cartman and the United States Congress sing "Heat of the Moment" a cappella.
  • "Heat of the Moment" is featured in the film The Matador in the scene in which Pierce Brosnan's character must commit an assassination at a horse race.
  • A cover of the song "Heat of the Moment" is playable in the PlayStation 2 game Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s.
  • In the film The 40-Year-Old Virgin, main character Andy Stitzer is mocked for having a framed Asia poster in his apartment. Also, Heat of the Moment is played during the scene in which Andy chases Trish's car after she leaves his home.
  • In the Mexican Soap Opera Alcanzar una estrella (1991) starring singers Ricky Martin and Sasha the intros of all four new songs from the album Then and Now were used at the closing of each scene before a commercial break.
  • The song "Lay Down Your Arms" was used by the animated film Freddie the Frog (1992) starring Ben Kingsley, Jenny Agutter and Brian Blessed. On May 21, 2007, AOL.com claimed that this film is the lowest grossing animated movie of all time. ($1.19 million).
  • In the Season 3 episode Mystery Spot of the TV series Supernatural, Sam Winchester relives the same day over and over again; the time loop always begins with the song Heat of the Moment playing on the motel alarm clock.

See also

  • Progressive rock
  • Qangospin-off band
  • GPSspin-off band
  • Roger Deangraphic artist, responsible for most of the Asia and Yes album covers.
  • Rodney Matthewsfantasy artist responsible for some of the album covers during the 1990s.

References

  1. Asia at AllMusic (2011).
  2. Wakeman, R. "Say Yes"
  3. Asia Biography. The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll. Simon & Schuster (2001).
  4. CD Reviews Archive. Rolling Stone Magazine.
  5. J.D. Considine (September 15, 1983). Asia: Alpha - album review. Rolling Stone Magazine.
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 Asia featuring John Payne » Blog Archive » Scranton Pocono 500 Fanfest Interview with John
  7. 7.0 7.1 Release of a brand new studio album on Frontiers Records Press release (PDF). originalasia.com. Retrieved on 2009-06-22.
  8. Asias original supergroup line-up returns (PDF). originalasia.com (February 27, 2008). Retrieved on 2009-06-22.
  9. Amazon.co.uk page for Asia Omega album. Retrieved on 2010-06-29.
  10. Amazon.com page for Asia Omega album. Retrieved on 2010-06-29.
  11. Interview with John Payne John Payne & Guthrie Govan Interview. Dingwall Music Inc. (April 3, 2007).
  12. 12.0 12.1 ASIA Featuring John Payne Kicks Off Summer Tour At American Music Festival July 5th
  13. Asia featuring John Payne » Blog Archive » Military Man USO CD EP To Be Released
  14. New Keyboardist Joins Asia Featuring John Payne
  15. Jay Schellen to Perform on Circa CD
  16. http://www.facebook.com/ASIA.featuring.John.Payne/posts/101501069-28615211#!/notes/asia-featuring-john-payne/special-note-from-john-payne-about-the-new-album/175060462524156
  17. http://celebritiesindisgrace.wordpress.com/2010/09/08/twenty-questions-with-rock-star-john-payne-of-asia-featuring-john-payne-by-caitlin-mccarthy/

External links

  • Asia Reunion - Official site
  • Asia Featuring John Payne - Official site
  • Facebook - Official Asia Featuring John Payne Facebook Page
  • Asia Reunion at MySpace
  • Asia featuring John Payne at MySpace
This page was last modified 01.05.2011 21:00:44

This article uses material from the article Asia (band) from the free encyclopedia Wikipedia and it is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.