Customer Reviews

Very Best Of: Heat of the Moment 1982-90

5 star:		(31)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Don't be fooled by the boatload of Asia collections. This is the greatest hits package to purchase. There are 3-4 Asia greatest hits CDS that focus on Asia from 1992 onward. The new band doesn't include John Wetton, Carl Palmer and Steve Howe. This CD includes all the hits that made Asia a huge smash in the eighties. They were all remastered and sound wonderful. As others have stated, it's a shame that the CD contains two edited tracks(Here Comes The Feeling and Sole Survivor). These two tracks are classics and should be heard in their entirety. The CD does include three b-side tracks. These three tracks make the CD a must have, even if you own all of the original albums. To hear Steve Howe's guitar playing along with John Wetton's voice on three tracks that I haven't heard before is great! This CD rocks!

I'm giving this CD four stars on the strength of the elegant packaging art and robust track listing. But once again Geffen Records shows no respect to this great supergroup by totally messing up the most important part: sound quality. When I saw first saw the track listing and cool sleeve graphics, I thought this would be the perfect compilation. However, these tracks are NOT digitally remastered, and in most cases, sound like fifth-generation 8 track copies simply wrote to disc. There is no excuse for this kind of effort, regardless of how minute an audience Geffen believes Asia to attract. The sound engineer should be fired. Trimming the 5.5 minute track Here Comes the Feeling down by 2 minutes is a horrible decision. Same with Sole Survivor. Basically, this is the only band in my 250+ CD collection where the LPs sound much brighter and crisper than the CDs do. Compare this package to ELP: The Atlantic Collection, a remastered set that highlights mostly early 70s material. The sound quality on that package absolutely shimmers. On the bright side, the long-awaited B-sides are nice to have finally. This one could have been a knockout!

"The Very Best Of Asia" truly is what it says. This 18-track compilation encompasses over 77 minutes of music from one of the greatest progressive rock bands of the '80s, Asia. Most of the tracks feature the band's original line-up of bassist/lead vocalist John Wetton, guitarist Steve Howe, keyboardist Geoff Downes and drummer Carl Palmer. All of the music is taken from Asia's classic trilogy of original albums, "Asia", "Alpha" and "Astra" along with one track from the "Then and Now" compilation and three rare B-sides.
Classic tracks such as "Only Time Will Tell", "Heat Of The Moment", "Wildest Dreams", "Don't Cry", "The Smile Has Left Your Eyes" and "Go" are all included here alongside powerful album tracks such as "Sole Survivor", "The Heat Goes On", "Open Your Eyes", "Here Comes The Feeling" and "Days Like These".
The band's strong musical hooks and unprecidented craft shine through in every track on this CD and offers an excellent sampling of Asia during its classic era during the 80s. John Wetton's commanding vocals, Steve Howe's soaring guitar work, Geoff Downes' melodic pop sensibilies rounded out by Carl Palmer's forceful powerhouse percussion gel into an effortless musical blend.
Beginning in the '90s, Asia went through a slew of personnel changes with Geoff Downes being the only original member left in the band. John Wetton left the band in 1991 and was replaced by John Payne who has remained with Asia ever since. Various guitarists and drummers have come and gone with the band over years - its current drummer being the legendary sessionman Chris Slade while the guitar slot is presently being filled by a relative newcomer named Guthrie Govan.
The original Asia band was a special treasure as clearly proven by the music in this compilation. While the current Asia continues to make great music, nothing can take the place of the classic band line-up that took the world by storm over 20 years ago. "The Very Best of Asia" captures the very essence of what Asia was all about and is a fantastic journey down memory lane.
Definitely a must-have collection!!

Amid the flurry of the Second British Invasion, the intensification of heavy metal, and the synthesis of synthesizers and hard rock, came a group that incorporated power guitars, synths, and powerful harmony choruses derived from church choirs. Add to that, all its members hailed from groups of the 70s. Lead singer John Wetton had been with King Crimson and UK, whereas guitarist Steve Howe and keyboardist Geoff Downes were former Yes-men, the latter also with the Buggles, and drummer Carl Palmer was a third of Emerson, Lake, and Palmer. Together, they became the supergroup Asia, sporting some of the indulgence of 70s art-rock, but at times sporting the pop rhythms of the new decade.

It is small wonder that one 80s book ranked their debut single, "Heat of the Moment," as #4 of the Top 80 quintessential 80s songs. The crashing drums, power guitars, and fast-paced rhythm incorporated both something majestic, catchy rhythms, and the harmonies on the chorus, provided the blueprint for their awesome sound, exuding the power of Survivor but with a backwash of synths and choruses. This reached #4 on the pop charts and topped the album rock charts. After hearing Howe's guitar here, it makes me think his work on GTR was somewhat watered down.

I remember "Only Time Will Tell" from the video featuring the slow-motion routine of the gymnast. With a majestic synth fanfare that Europe's "The Final Countdown" shared four years later, this song (#17 pop, #8 AR) then sports gentler synths before going uptempo. The chorus, preceded by a crash of guitars and synths, then relaxes, though accompanied by the strident drums. Who would have thought that this song was about a girl who uses someone and dumps them?

The other four songs from Asia's #1 debut album made it on the album rock charts. "Time Again" featured a hard-edged running bass accompanied synth bursts, while "Wildest Dreams" has an outstanding drum intro by Palmer.

"Don't Cry" was the first single from their second album Alpha. This song (#10 pop, #1 AR) burst with the same energy as their debut, with undertones of a 60's love song slathered with Asia's usual drum and majestic synth coating. Its B-side, "Daylight," opens with a baroque-like organ before going into full gear. The second single, "The Smile Has Left Your Eyes," (Pop #34, AR #25) is a sad Chicago-type ballad layered with the usual synths, a triumph for the man when the girl who's left him comes back, but there's no room for sympathy for her. "The Heat Goes On" which hit #5 on the AR charts, is another powerful track.

"Go," from their third album Astra, was the first video of theirs I saw, by which time they were starting to lose their audience. Add to this Steve Howe had left to form GTR with former Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett. It still has the charm of hard guitars, particularly onn the bridge (WOW!) powerful synths and harmonies especially on the chorus, and is one of my favourite tracks. A #7 hit on the AR charts, it only got to #46 on the pop charts. The slower "Voice of America" was a power ballad and them some, given the excessive synths and harmonies.

"Days Like These," the new track added to their Then And Now compilation, showed they hadn't changed and had their stuff together, and that the album rock charts still tipped their hats to them, as it made it to #2 (as compared to #64 pop).

There are times when the majestic and bombastic music content, be it through synths, operatic harmonies, of my blood gets low, at which time I get a fix of Asia, and songs like "The Heat of the Moment" or "Go" do just the trick.

Between 1982 and 1985, a rock band known as Asia, had emerged from the shadows of the 1970's and released three of the most dynamic rock albums of 1980's. The self-titled debut was an instant and surprising success, sitting at the top for nine weeks in the summer of 1982. Their 1983 follow up, Alpha, reached #6. A success, but was clearly overshadowed by monster albums by Michael Jackson and David Bowie. 1985's underrated Astra followed, but was lost amongst the ever-changing popular music scene, and Asia decided to go their seperate ways for the next several years.

Asia was a very unique band at that time. It's line-up.. vocalist/bassist John Wetton, drummer Carl Palmer, guitarist Steve Howe, & keyboardist Geoff Downes, each coming from then defunct Progressive Rock bands.. King Crimson, ELP & Yes respectively. Despite their musical backgrounds, these four musicians set off in a new direction. Instead of just picking up where they left off in the 70's, they focused on consise and melodic songs but with a dynamic power that seperated them from other popular acts of the early 1980's. Their sound was quite commercial yet richly textured, melodic and edgy. This overdue retrospective shows off the diverse and powerful songs that defined this 1980's rock supergroup.

From the debut...Heat Of The Moment & Only Time Will Tell were instant radio hits, Soul Survivor, Time Again, Wildest Dreams, Here Comes The Feeling and Ride Easy..a b-side song that is every bit a classic as the two radio hits. From Alpha comes Don't Cry, the dramatic ballad The Smile Has Left Your Eyes, The Heat Goes On, Never In A Million Years, Open Your Eyes and the two-b sides Daylight and Lying To Yourself. Go, Voice Of America & Too Late are featured from Astra. 1990's Days Like These is the best cut from the transitional Then & Now release.

A nearly perfect collection of Asia's early hits with bassist/vocalist John Wetton. The remastering is superb, and the songs have a punch like never before. Plus, the three rare B-sides, including Howe's swansong within the band, "Lying To Yourself" (his sole songwriting contribution to the Alpha sessions.)

If I was to describe Asia's sound (from 1982-1991)...Think of a more commercial version of UK, with the commerciality and ballads of early Foreigner. Sort've in the pomp-rock genre, but with many more elaborate instrumental breaks, and truckfulls of Beach Boys-style block harmonies on the choruses.

Most of the lyrics deal with broken hearts and the fire of condemnation, but they occasionally drift into Sci-Fi and anti-war territory. In other words, if you're a young person (or young at heart like me), these songs might hit you *just* right at certain times in your life, making you highly immune to any criticisms by cranky math-major prog diehards.

My only beef with this collection is the absolutely criminal edits of "Sole Survivor" and "Here Comes The Feeling". For the former, most of the middle bridge (including the epic musical build-up) is now gone. For the latter, the second half of the bridge (Howe's shining moment on the song) is chopped completely. Inexcusable. Do youself a favor and burn a CD of this with the album versions, and drop "Never In A Million Years". Yeah, I love the song, but it wasn't a single release.

Aside from those gripes, there's excellent liner notes, with interview excerpts from each band member, as well as a few photos and detailed chart information. The cover and inside photography is a pretty sunset and all, but an original Roger Dean painting would have been the icing on the cake. (Ironically, I've seen other Geffen best-of cover art with skies and a darkened figure...guess they just pull 'em from a stock file.)

Anyway, if you're new or unfamiliar with Asia, this is really all you need. Seriously. If you feel hungry and are curious for more, sample the 90's lineups with Anthology. If you want full albums, try the 1982 self-titled debut first.

It's nice to finally have a more "definitive" greatest hits package from this band that includes 3 rare tracks such as the great b-side "Lying to Yourself" (which I never understood was never released as a single or put on one of their records)and more songs than the lackluster "Then and Now" cd. But why only 4 stars? A couple of their hits are in the radio-edit time length (Soul Survivor, Wildest Dreams) and from lack of real detail in the liner notes about their personnel shuffling.(You can tell this was to be released in conjunction with their (botched) reunion effort). A great job was done in the selection of songs, it's just totally ridiculous to include the edit versions of some of the longer ones! Go out and buy this!

Asia was unfairly criticized during their early 80's heydey for personifying the worst of corporate, arena rock. And while Asia's sound was far more commercial than any of its individual members' earlier work (e.g., Yes, The Buggles, King Crimson, E.L.P.), there was no denying the power and uniqueness of this band. Somehow they managed to project a full wall of sound, while still conveying the precision of each instrument (this held true particularly on their masterful first album). And what musicianship! This album contains much of their finest work, and is a great summation of a classic rock band. Now if only the original four members had stayed together for a few more albums...

The producers missed the mark on this CD. First mistake, editing down "Sole Survivor" and Shaving 2:10 off "Here Comes The Feeling to save some time. Obviously, they did not care about ASIA fans. The remastered sound quality is not up to par with other techinques such as Sony's 22 bit digital transfers. This could have been a great set if they would have made it a double CD package. First include the first ASIA album uncut and remastered to higher standards. Second, include the acoustic sets from the live albums and then the the B-sides and other tunes from the other albums. The bright side of the CD is songs like "Ride Easy" and "Daylight". Once again ASIA fans are left wanting more.

This is a good compilation and the sound quality is nice. BUT, I noticed the remastering chopped off a few bars in "Sole Survivor" (very noticeable after the bridge) and "Time Again". I know those songs well and it jolted me a bit. There may be other cuts that I just haven't noticed yet.

If you are a purist, skip this and get the debut album separately. If you're looking only to replace your vinyl, this is fine.