John Wetton

John Wetton has had one of the most varied careers in progressive rock. He has played in the majority of the big names in prog, in many cases in their classic lineups. His first major band experience came when he joined Family in 1971. He was featured on two of their albums: 1971's Fearless and Bandstand (released the following year). He performed various functions in the group, but his primary role was as bassist. Previous to this group he had recorded with Edward's Hand and Mogul Thrash. He left Family to join Robert Fripp and company in King Crimson, taking a place that had been previously filled by Greg Lake. This would not be the last time the two of them would replace one another. His tenure with that group was not exceptionally long, however, as Fripp disbanded Crimson in 1975. Wetton did, however, contribute to several classic Crimson discs (Larks' Tongues in Aspic [1973], Red [1974], Starless and Bible Black, and USA [1975]). Many Crimson fans consider this to be the ultimate era of the group. Wetton's next move was to Roxy Music, a venture that he actually began while still with King Crimson. In fact, during his KC time he managed to work on several side projects. These projects included two albums with former Yes guitarist Peter Banks; an album with Gordon Haskell; and one each with Eno, Phil Manzanera, Peter Sinfield, and Bryan Ferry. It was Ferry, the founder of Roxy Music, who invited him to join that group. Wetton toured with them in 1975 and that tour resulted in a live album that was released the following year. Seemingly not one to stay in one place for very long, Wetton hooked up with Uriah Heep in 1975, recording Return to Fantasy with them that year and High and Mighty the following year. When he left that group, he hooked up with Bill Bruford and...