Then & Now (Asia album)

Then & Now
Studio album / Greatest hits album by Asia
Released 14 August 1990
Recorded 1981-1985 (tracks 1-5 and 10)
1989 (tracks 6-9)
Genre Progressive rock
Length 42:28
Label Geffen
Producer Various producers
Asia chronology
Astra
(1985)		 Then & Now
(1990)		 Aqua
(1992)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]
Entertainment WeeklyC[2]

Then & Now is a half studio/half greatest hits album by British rock band Asia. The six tracks 1–5 and 10 are from earlier albums ("Then"), while the four tracks 6–9 inclusive are new recordings ("Now"). It was released on 14 August 1990 in the United States by Geffen Records.[3]

The record debuted at No. 114 on the Billboard 200 chart[4] and was certified Gold by the RIAA on 23 July 1998.[3] "Days Like These", written by the former band leader for The Unforgiven, Steve Jones, received airplay on FM radio and made it to No. 2 on the American Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.[4]

Critical reception

Then & Now received mixed reactions by music critics.

Tom Demalon of Allmusic, in his one-and-a-half-star review, accused Asia of inability to duplicate the success of their debut album and called the new songs "flaccid musically and insipid lyrically". But at the same time, the critic made special mention of the anthemic "Days Like These", describing it as matching the band's strong early material.[1] Entertainment Weekly's Greg Sandow, rating Then & Now a "C", stated that the old songs such as "Heat of the Moment" and "Don't Cry" "are empty symphonic rock, full of strings and predictable melodic hooks", while the new songs "aren't as lush", "hit the beat a little harder, but in essence [they're] just as bland".[2]

Track listing

Side one
No. TitleWriter(s) Length
1. "Only Time Will Tell" (from Asia, 1982)Wetton / Downes 4:46
2. "Heat of the Moment" (from Asia, 1982)Wetton / Downes 3:52
3. "Wildest Dreams" (from Asia, 1982)Wetton / Downes 5:10
4. "Don't Cry" (from Alpha, 1983)Wetton / Downes 3:40
5. "The Smile Has Left Your Eyes" (from Alpha, 1983)Wetton 3:14
Side two
No. TitleWriter(s) Length
6. "Days Like These"  Steve Jones 4:05
7. "Prayin' 4 a Miracle"  Wetton / Sue Shifrin / David Cassidy 4:22
8. "Am I in Love?"  Wetton / Downes 4:24
9. "Summer (Can't Last Too Long)"  Wetton / Downes 4:16
10. "Voice of America" (from Astra, 1985)Wetton / Downes 4:18
Total length:
 42:28

Credits

Asia

Additional musicians

Guitars:

Thanks to:

Recording

Production, engineering and mixing

  • Produced and engineered by Mike Stone (tracks 1–3, 8)
  • Produced by Mike Stone; engineered by Mike Stone and Paul Northfield (tracks 4, 5)
  • Produced and engineered by Frank Wolf (track 6)
  • Produced by John Wetton, Sue Shifrin, David Cassidy and Guy Roche; mixed by Frank Wolf (track 7)
  • Produced by John Wetton and Geoff Downes; mixed by Mike Stone; additional engineering by Frank Wolf (track 9)
  • Produced by Mike Stone and Geoff Downes; mixed by Mike Stone, Greg Ladanyi, Alan Douglas and Asia (track 10)
  • John Kalodner • John Kalodner

Mastering

  • Mastered by Dan Hersch at DigiPrep, Los Angeles, CA
  • Mastering supervisor: David Donnelly

Cover artwork

  • Art direction: Gabrielle Raumberger
  • Design: Janet Wolsborn
  • Photography: Caroline Greyshock
  • Illustration: Jean-Francois Podevin
  • Images from previous albums: Roger Dean

Charts

Album

Year Chart Position
1990 Billboard 200 114[4]

Singles

Year Single Chart Position
1990 "Days Like These" Billboard Hot 100 64[4]
Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks 2[4]

Certifications

Country Organization Sales
US RIAA Gold[3]

References

  1. 1 2 Demalon, Tom. "Then & Now review". Allmusic.
  2. 1 2 Sandow, Greg (17 August 1990). "Then & Now review". Entertainment Weekly (27).
  3. 1 2 3 "RIAA's Gold & Platinum Program searchable database". RIAA.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 "Then & Now chart position in the US". Billboard.
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