When AOR supergroup Asia came to Japan in March last year, all seven dates of their tour sold out. The excitement was, perhaps, forgivable: It had taken the band's original lineup more than 25 years to get here.
When they formed in 1981, Asia were a wet-dream combination of musical prowess and questionable taste. Between them, vocalist/bassist John Wetton, guitarist Steve Howe, keyboardist Geoff Downes and drummer Carl Palmer had served time in some of the biggest bands of the 1970s, including King Crimson, Yes, Emerson, Lake & Palmer and, er, The Buggles.
As Asia, they shucked their progressive-rock tendencies in favor of more radio-friendly fodder, leading Rolling Stone magazine to dub their music "pure commodity." The group's eponymous 1982 debut album was a massive hit, eventually going quadruple platinum in the U.S. and spawning such notable karaoke fodder as "Heat of the Moment" and "Sole Survivor."