John Wetton and Asia

[Gluvhand]

John Wetton was a very good bass player for Asia. I always thought he was a great bassist and singer for Asia, however, a lot of the other members thought he was taking up too much attention in the group, which is why they replaced him with Greg Lake in 1983. John mostly played a Fender Precision Bass in Asia, even though a few videos show him miming with a Rickenbacker 4001 bass, which John apparently never used or owned in the first place.

They say he quit, he says he was fired. John was a heavy drinker back then and at times wasn't the easiest guy to get along with. We'll probably never know. Alpha wasn't doing the numbers that were expected and he may have just wanted out.

 

[Bob_Ross]

John mostly played a Fender Precision Bass in Asia, even though a few videos show him miming with a Rickenbacker 4001 bass, which John apparently never used or owned in the first place.

I feel like I've also seen him playing some Ibanez models, and perhaps even a Gibson Victory, in Asia...but I could be completely misremembering.

 

[Gluvhand]

I feel like I've also seen him playing some Ibanez models, and perhaps even a Gibson Victory, in Asia...but I could be completely misremembering.

You're not wrong. He used a Victory when I saw their tour from 10 years ago, IIRC, and I've seen clips with an Ibanez and a Zon.

 

[buldog5151bass]

I saw Asia on their first tour. I think it was even before their album officially was released. They played for two hours - every song from the album, along with others tunes from the members' catalogs. Although not a prog fan (my friend was a Yes fanatic), it wad an amazing show.