John Wetton

John Kenneth Wetton (12 June 1949 – 31 January 2017) was an English musician, singer, and songwriter.^[1] He was known for his bass playing as well as his baritone voice.^[2] In 1971, he was a member of the rock band Family for a short time, before joining King Crimson in 1972.^[3] After the breakup of King Crimson at the end of 1974, he played in a number of other bands, including Roxy Music (1974–1975), Uriah Heep (1975–1976), U.K. (1977–1980), and Wishbone Ash (1980–1981).^[1]

In 1981, Wetton co-founded the supergroup Asia as lead vocalist and principal songwriter.^[1] Their self-titled debut album was released in 1982, selling ten million copies worldwide and becoming Billboard magazine's number one album of 1982.^[4] He later formed the duo Icon with his Asia bandmate and songwriting partner Geoff Downes and also had a successful solo career.

Life and career

Early life and musical beginnings

Wetton was born in Willington, Derbyshire, and grew up in Bournemouth, Dorset, where he attended Bournemouth School.^[5] His elder brother Robert was a classical organist and choirmaster.^[6] While practising organ, Robert would have John play the bass parts on a piano, since their home organ did not have a pedalboard. John recalled that during the practices, "I got to like bass lines, because Bach bass lines are incredibly interesting. So I thought, this is good, I like bass lines, that's me."^[2] Though an enthusiast of classical music since childhood, he decided to explore rock music instead in order to avoid being compared to his brother.^[2] He played bass and sang in a number of bands with Richard Palmer-James, including the Corvettes, the Palmer-James Group, Tetrad, and Ginger Man.^[7] A key early band he was in was the jazzy Mogul Thrash. After live work with Renaissance, he joined Family and also featured in various recording sessions.^[1] He has credited J.S. Bach, Brian Wilson, Paul McCartney, James Jamerson, Jack Bruce, Ace Kefford, Chris Squire, John Entwistle, Harvey Brooks, Ron Carter, and Miroslav Vitouš as musical influences.^[8][9]

King Crimson

In late 1972, Wetton's fellow Dorset native Robert Fripp invited him to join King Crimson. The band's lineup also included violinist David Cross, former Yes drummer Bill Bruford, and percussionist Jamie Muir. Wetton also gained experience as the lead singer and songwriter. His friend Palmer-James also worked with the band as their primary lyricist. Wetton remained with King Crimson until Fripp unexpectedly disbanded the group in 1974.^[10][11]

After the dissolution of King Crimson, Wetton continued to work on various projects, including a tour with Roxy Music^[12] and two albums with Uriah Heep, for whom he occasionally provided vocals as well as bass parts—examples of his vocal style can be heard on the 1976 album High and Mighty.^[13] While still with King Crimson, Wetton had been asked by Roxy Music to sit in on their auditions for a replacement bass player and give his recommendations. Dissatisfied with all the applicants, he offered to do the 1975 tour with the group himself so as to give them time to find a good bassist.^[2] In 1977, after failed attempts to reunite King Crimson and to create a new band with Rick Wakeman,^[14] Wetton formed U.K. with Bill Bruford. Wetton recruited Curved Air and Roxy Music keyboardist/violinist Eddie Jobson;^[1] Bruford brought in guitarist Allan Holdsworth from his solo group.

First solo music; Asia

After U.K.'s breakup in 1980, Wetton released his first solo album, Caught in the Crossfire, also in 1980.^[15] Later that year, he had a brief stint with Wishbone Ash, appearing on their 1981 album, Number the Brave.^[16] In late 1981, he had a meeting with Geffen Records' president John Kalodner, who took him to task for playing bass in Bryan Ferry's backing band, feeling he should be fronting a group himself. At Kalodner's insistence, Wetton started writing with former Yes guitarist Steve Howe, with a view to forming their own band. Joined by keyboardist Geoff Downes and drummer Carl Palmer (of Emerson, Lake & Palmer), the band became Asia.^[1] Their self-titled debut album sold over ten million copies worldwide, making them a household name. Wetton worked with Asia until 1983, when he was fired (at the insistence of Geffen Records) for then-unknown reasons, but at least in part due to lower-than-expected sales of 1983's Alpha. He returned to Asia in 1985 (with Mandy Meyer replacing Steve Howe on guitar), completing the band's third album, Astra.^[17]

In 1986, a collaboration between Wetton and Roxy Music guitarist Phil Manzanera was released as Wetton/Manzanera. Around that time, Wetton began working with Downes and Palmer to restart Asia. Some of the material they recorded was featured on 1990's Then & Now, including the radio hit "Days Like These".^[18]

Return to solo work

In the 1990s, Wetton focused on his solo career and collaborations.^[19] He featured on the Phil Manzanera solo album Southern Cross, released in 1990.^[20] In 1995, he released his second solo album, Battlelines, which had previously been issued as Voicemail (1994) in Japan only.^[21]

In 1999, an aborted attempt to reform Asia resulted in Wetton and Palmer forming a short-lived progressive group dubbed Qango, with John Young and Dave Kilminster. Qango performed several shows in the UK and recorded a live album, Live in the Hood, before disbanding.^[22]

In the early 2000s, Wetton reunited with Downes, and the duo released several albums. In 2006, a reunion of the original Asia lineup (Wetton, Downes, Howe, Palmer) finally occurred. A studio album titled Phoenix, the original band's first since 1983's Alpha, was released in April 2008 and peaked at No. 73 on the Billboard 200 albums chart in the United States.^[23] They issued two more studio albums, Omega (2010) and XXX (2012), before Howe departed in January 2013 to focus on Yes. With new guitarist Sam Coulson, Asia released Gravitas in March 2014.

In 2013, Wetton guested on the album Grandine il vento by Renaissance, with whom he had played live 42 years before. In the same year, he toured with American Idol finalist Leslie Hunt's group District 97, based in Chicago, to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the King Crimson album Larks' Tongues in Aspic.

Wetton also worked extensively as a session musician with artists including Brian Eno (appearing on Here Come the Warm Jets), Bryan Ferry, and Ayreon.

Death

Wetton died in his sleep from complications of colorectal cancer at the Macmillan Unit of Christchurch Hospital in Christchurch, Dorset, on 31 January 2017, at the age of 67.^[2] He was surrounded by his wife, son, brother, and mother.^[24][25][26]

Geoff Downes said: "It is with great sadness and a heavy heart that I have to report we have lost my dearest friend, brother, bandmate and long term musical collaborator [...] He will be remembered as one of the world's finest musical talents, and I for one of many was wholly blessed by his influence [...] Life will not be the same without him. And words are not really enough to describe the loss I feel right now.^[27]

Billy Sherwood, who was Wetton's producer, co-songwriter, and co-performer on his 2011 solo album, Raised in Captivity, replaced him in Asia. On 17 June 2017, Asia performed a special concert in Wetton's memory, titled An Extraordinary Life (full title: An Extraordinary Life – An Interactive Celebration of the Life & Music of John Wetton), in reference to the eponymous song from the 2008 Asia album, Phoenix; fan-submitted performances were shown on a large video screen above the stage. Some King Crimson songs were also performed at the event.^[28]

Asteroid 72802 Wetton, discovered by Marc Buie at Kitt Peak National Observatory in Arizona in 2001, was named in his memory.^[29] The official was published by the Minor Planet Center on 18 May 2019 (M.P.C. 114955).^[30]

Influence

Artists who have cited Wetton as an influence or have expressed their admiration for him include Billy Sheehan,^[31] Juan Alderete of the Mars Volta and Racer X,^[32] Michael Sweet of Stryper,^[33] Ron Anderson,^[34] Kevin Feazey of the Fierce and the Dead,^[35] and Joseph D. Rowland of Pallbearer.^[36] After Wetton's death, Eric Clapton published a short instrumental tribute entitled "For John W."^[37]

Band timeline

• Mogul Thrash (1971)
• Gordon Haskell (1971)
• Family (1971–1972)
• Larry Norman (1972)
• King Crimson (1972–1974)
• Roxy Music (1974–1975)
• Uriah Heep (1975–1976)
• Bryan Ferry (1976–1977)
• U.K. (1977–1980; 2011–2015)
• Jack-Knife (1979)
• Wishbone Ash (1980)
• Solo (1980–2017, his death)
• Asia (1981–1983; 1984–1986; 1989–1991; 2006–2017, his death)
• Qango (1999–2000)
• Wetton Downes (2002; 2005–2009)

Discography

Solo

Studio albums

Live albums

Compilations

Collaborations

As band member

Session work

with Edwards Hand

• Stranded (1970) produced by George Martin, Wetton played bass on all tracks

with Gordon Haskell

• It Is and It Isn't (1971) Wetton plays organ, bass, keyboards, vocals, classical guitar, and vocal harmony.

with Larry Norman

• Only Visiting This Planet (1972) Bass on whole album

with Rare Bird

• Somebody's Watching (1973) The final track "Dollars" includes extracts from "A Few Dollars More" and features Wetton (credited as John Whetton) on bass

with Malcolm and Alwyn

• Fool's Wisdom (1973)

with Peter Banks

• Two Sides of Peter Banks (1973): Wetton plays bass on track 5 ("Knights") with album covers crediting "John Whetton"

with Brian Eno

• Here Come the Warm Jets (1973): Wetton plays bass on track 3 ("Baby's on Fire") and track 5 ("Driving Me Backwards")

with Peter Sinfield

• Still (1973) Also with Greg Lake, Gordon Haskell, Mel Collins, etc.

with Bryan Ferry

• Another Time, Another Place (1974)
• Let's Stick Together (1976)
• In Your Mind (1977)
• The Bride Stripped Bare (1978)
• Live at the Royal Albert Hall 1974 (2020)

with Phil Manzanera

• Diamond Head (1975)
• K-Scope (1978)
• "Round in Circles" / "Talk to Me" (singles) (Limited Edition vinyl) (2020)

with Duncan Mackay

• Score (1977)

with Atoll

• Rock Puzzle (1979)

with Roger Chapman

• Mail Order Magic (1980)
• Hyenas Only Laugh for Fun (1981)

with Phenomena

• "Did It All for Love" (single) (1987)

with David Cross

• Exiles (1997)

with Steve Hackett

• Genesis Revisited (1997): Wetton sings on tracks 1 ("Watcher of the Skies") and 5 ("Firth of Fifth") and also plays bass on track 5.
• The Tokyo Tapes (1998)
• Genesis Revisited II (2012): Wetton sings and plays guitar and bass on the track "Afterglow".
• Genesis Revisited: Live at Hammersmith (2013): Wetton sings on the track "Afterglow".
• Genesis Revisited: Live at the Royal Albert Hall (2014): Wetton sings on the track "Firth of Fifth".

with Martin Orford

• Classical Music and Popular Songs (2000): Wetton sings lead vocals on track 2 ("A Part of Me").
• The Old Road (2008): Wetton sings lead vocals on tracks 4 ("Take It to the Sun") and 8 ("The Time and the Season") and plays bass on tracks 4 and 6 ("The Old Road").

with Galahad

• Year Zero (2002): joint lead vocals on "Belt Up" and "Take a Deep Breath and Hold on Tight"

with Daniele Liverani

• Genius A Rock Opera – Episode 1 (2002)

with Billy Sherwood

• Back Against the Wall (2005): Wetton sings lead vocals on "Mother" and "Hey You".
• Return to the Dark Side of the Moon (2006): Wetton sings lead vocals on "Us and Them".

with Martin Turner's Wishbone Ash

• Argus Through the Looking Glass (2008)

with Alan Simon

• Excalibur II: The Celtic Ring
• Excalibur III

with Eddie Jobson

• Ultimate Zero – The Best of the U-Z Project Live (2010)
• Four Decades (2015)

with Ayreon

• The Theory of Everything (2013) : Rick Wakeman, Keith Emerson, and Steve Hackett also play on this album.

with Renaissance

• Grandine il vento (2013)

Writing

with David Cassidy

• David Cassidy (1990)

Notes

1. ^ Not to be confused with Wetton's 1980 debut solo album. 17 tracks from various Wetton projects, including Wetton/Manzanera (1987) and Battle Lines (1994).
2. ^ Jack-Knife was a project in which John Wetton and his Tetrad bandmate W.J. Hutcheson visited Richard Palmer-James at his home in Munich, Germany. As Jack-Knife, they recorded an album with German drummer Curt Cress, titled I Wish You Would.

References

1. ^ Dancha, Kim (1997). My Own Time: The Authorized Biography of John Wetton. Northern Line Publishers. ISBN 9780965484718.
2. ^ Curtiss, Ron & Weiner, Aaron (3 June 2016). "John Wetton (King Crimson, U.K., Asia): The Complete Boffomundo Interview". YouTube. Retrieved 3 June 2022.
3. ^ Slotnik, Daniel E. (February 2017). "John Wetton, Rocker with King Crimson and Asia, Dies at 67". The New York Times
4. ^ "The Billboard 200 – Year-end albums – 1982". Billboard. Archived from the original on 5 February 2009.
5. ^ Smith, Sid (20 March 2017). "An extraordinary life: John Wetton, 1949–2017". louder. Retrieved 11 April 2025.
6. ^ Ryan, Sean (31 January 2017). "John Wetton's Family: 5 Facts You Need to Know". Heavy.com
7. ^ "Biography". Johnwetton.co.uk. Archived from the original on 25 December 2015. Retrieved 5 June 2014.
8. ^ Jisi, Chris (29 September 2024). ""I would call our approach organized chaos, but it drove Allan Holdsworth up the wall": John Wetton has been the bass force behind a peak-period King Crimson lineup and two prog rock supergroups". guitarworld. Retrieved 27 March 2025.
9. ^ "John Wetton: (Not) Lost for Words, Part 2". Musoscribe: Bill Kopp's Music Magazine. 17 August 2011. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
10. ^ Eder, Bruce. "King Crimson Biography". Allmusic. Retrieved 19 August 2007.
11. ^ Smith, Sid (20 March 2017). "An extraordinary life: John Wetton, 1949-2017". Prog. LouderSound.com. Archived 25 July 2019 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 24 July 2019.
12. ^ Stump, Paul – Unknown Pleasures: A Cultural biography of Roxy Music, Thunder's Mouth Press, New York, 1998, pps. 72, 154
13. ^ Kirk Blows. "Uriah Heep Story p.6". Uriah-heep.com. Retrieved 15 March 2011.
14. ^ "U.K. Humbled in the U.S.A.", Rolling Stone, 21 September 1978
15. ^ Connolly, Dave, "Caught in the Crossfire – John Wetton | Review", retrieved 11 April 2025
16. ^ Ling, Dave. Uriah Heep – Uncensored on the Record. Coda Books Ltd. ISBN 978-1-908538-58-1.
17. ^ "Asia: Continental Drift?", CREEM Magazine, April 1986
18. ^ Demalon, Tom, "Then & Now – Asia | Review", retrieved 11 April 2025
19. ^ Hill, Gary. "John Wetton Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved 11 April 2025.
20. ^ Badgley, Aaron, "Southern Cross – Phil Manzanera | Review", retrieved 11 April 2025
21. ^ Mason, Stewart, "Battle Lines – John Wetton | Review", retrieved 11 April 2025
22. ^ Paloucek, Karl (10 October 2024). "Whatever Happened to Asia, the Band Behind 'Heat of the Moment'?". Remind. Retrieved 1 July 2025.
23. ^ Billboard magazine, April 2008
24. ^ "Asia frontman, ex-King Crimson bassist John Wetton dies – NME". NME. 31 January 2017. Retrieved 31 January 2017.
25. ^ "John Wetton dies aged 67". Prog. 31 January 2017. Retrieved 31 January 2017.
26. ^ Robbins, Josh (31 January 2017). "John Wetton, frontman for Asia and key prog rock figure, dies aged 67". Ibtimes.co.uk
27. ^ "Geoffrey Downes Official". Facebook.com. Archived 26 February 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 4 June 2019.
28. ^ ""An Extraordinary Life" Celebration". Originalasia.com. 8 March 2017. Retrieved 4 June 2019.
29. ^ "72802 Wetton (2001 FT192)". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
30. ^ "MPC/MPO/MPS Archive". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
31. ^ Bosso, Joe (21 November 2015). "Billy Sheehan: 10 Live Albums That Changed My Life". TeamRock.com. Archived 6 April 2016 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 7 March 2017. [...] John Wetton is the singer here, and man, what a voice he has. And his bass tone! I love John Entwistle's tone – I got a lot from him, and from Jack Bruce, too – but John Wetton is what I was going for. I remember playing a couple of gigs with Marshalls, and I thought, 'Yeah, this is John Wetton's tone'.
32. ^ Murphy, Bill (2008). "Juan Alderete | Slouching Towards Bedlam". Bass Player [...] On the funk-flavored screamer "Ilyena", he dials in a distortion-kissed tone that lies somewhere between the Jesus Lizard's David Sims and Brit Legend John Wetton (he acknowledges both as influences) [...]
33. ^ "Michael Sweet's Facebook". Facebook. 19 May 2017. Archived 15 July 2017 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 15 July 2017.
34. ^ Anderson, Ron (31 January 2017). "Remembering John Wetton King Crimson's Greatest Bass Player" (video). YouTube. Retrieved 14 November 2017.
35. ^ "Bass Guitar Magazine, October 2015". Flickr. October 2015. Retrieved 15 June 2025.
36. ^ Lawrence, Dan (14 August 2014). "Interview: Joseph D. Rowland (Pallbearer)". Invisible Oranges. Archived 8 March 2017 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 7 March 2017. [...] John Wetton from King Crimson and Asia is another person that I really look up to as a player. [...]
37. ^ Lifton, Dave (3 February 2017). "Eric Clapton Releases Song for John Wetton". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved 6 February 2019.

External links

• John Wetton's credits at Discogs.com
• Bournmouth Beatboom article on Wetton's early years