Customer Reviews

Just Testing

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Wishbone Ash has been one of my all-time favorite bands for something like 30 years. I have all of their studio albums and a good portion of their live efforts. They're not for everyone and their musical output over the years has been a bit uneven to say the least. Maybe that's a natural result when you have the personnel turnover this band has had. Whatever the reason I still almost always found myself drawn to and drawn in by their music. Two reasons that I liked them so much, I think, is that much of their best music features Martin Turner on vocals and bass.
This album, in fact, features some of his typically stellar work. He has a vocal style that is perfect for their particular style of music. It simply works. As for his bass playing, let's just say that I never heard anyone else play like that. (And I mean that in a good way.) His recorded performance always seemed so in touch with the material. Which is not surprising since he either wrote or co-wrote five out of the eight songs on the original record and was co-producer of same. This is why I am completely mystified by the borderline ineptitude demonstrated in the "remastering" of this otherwise fine musical effort. Many of the cuts sound as if too many studio gizmos and "effects" such as reverb and phasing were introduced to the mix and in some cases made the music difficult to listen to. The first time I listened to this disc I couldn't believe my ears. I gave the documentation a good read and only then discovered the original recordings had been remastered by Martin Turner. If you want to hear this album in a much more palatable form (and one I'm pretty sure the majority of the band would prefer you to hear) get hold of it in the non-remastered form.

If you love Wishbone Ash you'll love "Just testing". Worth the price of admission just for their rendition of Master of Disguise. This would have rated 5 stars were it not for "Pay the Price". It just doesn't seem to fit.

WHEN I FIRST BOUGHT THIS ALBUM IT WAS PURELY ON THE REPUTATION WISHBONE ASH HAD BUILT FOR ITSELF. AND LET ME TELL YOU THE ALBUM TO THIS DAY REMAINS THE BEST I'VE HEARD FROM THEM. I LOVE IT. THOSE SONGS ARE GREAT. "LIVING PROOF" IS THE FIRST SONG. IT'S MY FAVORITE. THE SONGS JUST HAS GREAT MELODIES AND HARMONIES. "INSOMNIA" IS ALSO GOOD. IT'S A VERY DIFFERENT TWIST FOR THEM. BUT I THINK YOU'LL LIKE IT. ONE OF THE SLOW SONGS IS "NEW RISING STAR". A SLOW ROCKING SONG. VERY ENJOYABLE. THEN THERE'S "MASTER OF DISGUISE". THIS SONG HAS GREAT VOCALS. THE REST OF THE SONGS ARE ALSO VERY GOOD. THE ONLY THING I CAN SAY IS THAT THIS ALBUM IS DEFINETLY DIFFERENT. THE GUITAR ATTACKS COMPLIMENT EACH OTHER GREAT. THE BASS LINES ARE AWESOME. THE VOCALS ON 7 OUT OF THE 8 TRACKS ARE AWESOME. I FIND THIS ALBUM VERY COMFORTING AND ENJOYABLE TO LISTEN TO. WISHBONE ASH OUTDID THEMSELVES ON THIS ONE.

At first it seems strange--the 80's sound being different, obviously from earlier wishbone ash works; but after a few listens it dawned on me how great this album is. Especially Helpless and Living Proof--awesome stuff!

Wishbone Ash's heyday was the early 70s, where they mixed twin guitars jamming and harmony guitars with occasional prog, metal, and folk rock leanings. The mid-late 70s saw them focusing on more of a lead-vocal-based soft-rock sound to their detriment - it wasn't terrible, but it wasn't particularly special, and much of the lead vocals were a little weak. 1978's "No Smoke Without Fire" showed a step up in quality, with some fine rocking and haunting guitar parts. This album, the last to feature bassist/vocalist Martin Turner for a while, is even stronger. Although lacking the harmony vocals that graced their early works, Martin Turner takes lead vocal duties for the whole album (I believe), and is in good voice. Also, the guitars are featured more than in their weaker mid/late 70s albums, which is really Wishbone Ash's main selling point - there's plenty of good soloing, riffs, and even some of their trademark harmony guitars. Add to this their best songwriting in years (even better than the previous album, which was a good one), and you have a good album.

This is one of those bands that I loved from the first time I heard them. In my opinion, they never made a bad record. If you already like them, you will like this one as well. If you've never heard them, any of their releases is a good place to start. Very guitar oriented, non repetitive rock. A band for the intelligent listener!

Another classic recording by one of the best hard rock bands of all-time. Are these guys in the Hall yet? They should be.

Just Testing (1980) was the last album of the Mark 2 lineup. Production quality is superb, thanks to Martin Turner (bass, vocals, production). Contains the classic Wishbone Ash signature sound, with a bit of an electronic New Wave twist. Very "tight" musicianship. [After this album, Martin Turner left Ash to do his own production studio work.] Serious Ash fans should have this album, but let's face it, does it really deserve 4 stars compared to all albums ever made by all groups ?

Had it on cassette , had the album now i,m finally getting the cd . This is a great recording . If you never heard just testing youre missing a great cd in your collection. Just for the record my other favorite wishbone ash recordings are theres the rub & front page news thanks for reading this review. Eric

Some music simply gets better each time you listen to it. This cd fits the bill. Just Testing went gold in the UK. Give a listen to learn why.