Steve Howe (musician) release, Howe left the group in 1983 citing irreconcilable differences with Wetton. Following his departure, Howe performed an acoustic guitar solo on "Welcome to the Pleasuredome" on the 1984 same titled album by the pop group Frankie Goes to Hollywood that Horn produced. He also played on "Industry Standard" (1982) by The Dregs. In 1985, Howe formed another supergroup, GTR, named after an abbreviation of the word "guitar", with guitarist Steve Hackett. The idea came from Howe's manager and former Yes and Asia manager Brian Lane, who brought the two together as both wished to perform in a band after
Steve Howe (musician) the group was back together less than a year later, Howe was not included in the new line-up. In 1981, Howe teamed with Downes, singer and bassist John Wetton, and drummer Carl Palmer to form the supergroup Asia. Their debut album, "Asia" (1982), became highest selling album of 1982 in the US with 4 million copies sold there; Howe is credited on five of its nine tracks. When it came to writing their second album "Alpha" (1982), Howe noticed a sense of staleness and the songs too direct and concise which disrupted the group's creativity and musical direction. After its