Alpha is the second studio album by British rock band Asia, released in 1983. It was the final studio album featuring the original lineup until 2008's Phoenix.
Alpha is dominated by the songwriting tandem of John Wetton and Geoff Downes. All the tracks on the album are written by Wetton/Downes, except for "The Smile Has Left Your Eyes", by Wetton only. Steve Howe, guitarist and a key songwriting contributor on the debut album, was left out due to reasons not entirely clear. His only songwriting credit was for "Lyin' to Yourself" (Wetton/Howe), the B-side of the single "The Smile Has Left Your Eyes".
Alpha was recorded during the spring of 1983 at Le Studio in Morin Heights, Quebec and Manta Sound in Toronto.Alpha is the second studio album by British rock band Asia, released in 1983. It was the final studio album featuring the original lineup until 2008's Phoenix.
Alpha is dominated by the songwriting tandem of John Wetton and Geoff Downes. All the tracks on the album are written by Wetton/Downes, except for "The Smile Has Left Your Eyes", by Wetton only. Steve Howe, guitarist and a key songwriting contributor on the debut album, was left out due to reasons not entirely clear. His only songwriting credit was for "Lyin' to Yourself" (Wetton/Howe), the B-side of the single "The Smile Has Left Your Eyes".
Alpha was recorded during the spring of 1983 at Le Studio in Morin Heights, Quebec and Manta Sound in Toronto.false2023-12-30 21:52:52Alpha7.319831983-07-261983-07-2642AorPop RockRockSymphonic ProgSymphonic Rock1140012128176d321b560-7f6e-4318-94d8-00a00d829a278f695099-c714-4ad0-8888-36eca37fee84786ebb0d-ba09-456c-b134-6d3232cff401/media/data/media5/Music/Asia/Alpha (1983)/folder.jpgAsiaAlbumArtistAsiaArtistAsiaAsiaAsia are an English rock supergroup formed in London in 1981. The most commercially successful lineup was its original, which consisted of four members of different progressive rock bands who had enjoyed great success in the 1970s: lead vocalist and bassist John Wetton (King Crimson, Uriah Heep and U.K.), guitarist Steve Howe (Yes), keyboardist Geoff Downes (Yes and the Buggles) and drummer Carl Palmer (Emerson, Lake & Palmer). Their debut album, Asia, released in 1982, remains their best-selling album and went to number one in several countries. Billboard listed it as the top album in the U.S. in 1982. The lead single from the album, "Heat of the Moment", remains their top charting and best-known song, reaching the top 40 in over a dozen markets. It peaked at #4 in the U.S. on the Billboard Hot 100 and hit #1 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart.
The band underwent multiple lineup changes before the original four members reunited in 2006. As a result, a band called Asia Featuring John Payne exists as a continuation of John Payne's career as Asia's frontman from 1991 until Wetton's return in 2006. In 2013, the original lineup was broken once again when Howe retired from the band and was replaced by guitarist Sam Coulson. After a few years of inactivity, Billy Sherwood (of Yes, World Trade and Circa:) replaced an ailing Wetton (who died shortly thereafter) in Asia for a summer 2017 tour with Journey. Following the end of the tour, the band went on hiatus again, re-emerging in 2019 with Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal replacing both Sherwood on vocals and Coulson on guitar. In 2022, Marc Bonilla joined the group as guitarist and vocalist in place of Thal. In 2024, Downes announced a new touring line-up of himself, Virgil Donati, John Mitchell and Harry Whitley.