Steve Howe - Solo show, 2008 in Canada

Steve Howe

2008-10-02
Glenn Gould Studio, Toronto, Canada

Setlist:
Set 1:
01 - Masquerade
02 - Australia
03 - The Ancient
04 - Corkscrew
05 - J's Theme
06 - Pyramidology
07 - Classical Gas
08 - Concerto In D, second movement
09 - Little Galliard
10 - Mood For A Day
Set 2:
Sadly could not be recorded.

Encore:
11 - Soon (with steel guitar)

In 2008, besides touring with Yes and Asia, Steve Howe played gigs both with his Steve Howe Trio and alone, playing wonderful tunes mostly on acoustic guitar, doing a real one-man show, with tunes from Yes (including the sometimes forgotten Masquerade, from Union) and various solo albums (Beginnings, Natural Timbre, Turbulence).
Little Galliard is a lute piece from 17th century that he recorded on Natural Timbre.
Enjoy!

Links on comments!

Reuploaded: 1978 - Wembley Arena

10/28/1978 Wembley, UK
Wembley Arena (evening show)

This is probably the most bootlegged show in Yes history. There were multiple radio broadcasts, and portions of this show were released on various compilations. So check out before downloading, you're very likely to already have this bootleg.

It was really one of the best shows the band ever did. All of the band members has his moments in this great concert, and they sound incredibly tight, a group completely united together. This can be heard in Heart of the Sunrise and especially in the big medley they created for this tour, perhaps to commemorate their 10th anniversary, which begun on their second album, Time and a Word (with a great arrangement of the title song, featuring Steve and Rick making us glad that they replaced Tony and Peter), went for Fragile, came back to Yes, passed quickly by Tales, came to The Yes Album and finished with Relayer. I really love this arrangement, The Fish sounds terrific with the whole band playing, and they change it to Perpetual Change and then to Soon in exciting ways. This was the band's fifth concert in three days, but they're not even slightly tired!

After two songs from Tormato that I prefer live than on the original, and a powerful rendition of Starship Trooper, comes my favourite part of the concert.

These versions of Awaken and I've Seen All Good People are the best live ones I've ever listened. Awaken features a stunning work by Mr. Squire, his bass is very loud and much more present than on the original version. His backing vocals are also very good, his voice sounds more natural than on Going For The One. But I really lose myself listening to his slide bass lines accompanying Anderson. The rest of the band sounds very good too, Howe with burning guitar solos, and Wakeman with his grandious middle section

I've Seen All Good People is another killer. Alan White plays with a great energy, the whole band sound so together... and what makes me love this version better than any other is the last part, where Jon presents the band and each member plays a short 4-bars solo, all of them sounding amazing and very representative of the musicians' styles.
There's still Roundabout to give a perfect end to a perfect concert.

Close Encounters Of The Third Kind
Siberian Khatru
Heart Of The Sunrise
Future Times/Rejoice (Yes played it but no tape with this survived)
Circus Of Heaven
Time And A Word/Long Distance Runaround/The Fish (Schindleria Praematurus)/Survival/The Ancient/Perpetual Change/Soon
Don't Kill The Whale
Clap
Starship Trooper
Madrigal - On The Silent Wings Of Freedom
Rick Wakeman solo (Six Wives & Journey)
Awaken
I've Seen All Good People
Roundabout

If you'll download just one Yes bootleg, this is the one to pick!

Links on comments!

2008 - Rick Wakeman and Orchestra - Merlin the magician

Rick Wakeman did a couple of concerts in Chile, playing only piano with orchestra and choir. Several videos can be found at Youtube. This one is from December 6.

2008 - In the Present - Bloomington, 11-30-08

November 30, 2008
Bloomington, Illinois, USA

Chris Squire - bass, vocals, harmonica
Steve Howe - guitar, vocals
Alan White - drums, vocals
Benoit David - vocals, percussion, guitar
Oliver Wakeman - keyboards

After two weeks playing together, this new Yes seems better rehearsaled as they get to know each other well. Tempus Fugit is again fresh as it was in 1980, while Aliens remains a good moment to go to the bathroom.
Notice that Steve Howe plays different solo numbers at each concert.

Setlist was a bit shortened, maybe due to the weather, and features:
01. Firebird Suite
02. Siberian Khatru
03. I've Seen All Good People
04. Tempus Fugit
05. Onward
06. Astral Traveller
07. Close to the Edge
08. All's a Chord
09. Laughing With Larry
10. And You And I
11. Long Distance Runaround >
12. The Fish >
13. Aliens (Are Only Us From The Future)
14. Machine Messiah
15. Starship Trooper
16. Roundabout

Links at comments!

In The Present Tour - Hampton, New Hampshire, USA Friday, November 07, 2008

Here is a bootleg from one of the first shows of the new tour. Surprisingly good audio for an audience record, this one captures a band having some problems to play their song (have the rehearsals been enough?).
I can't stand people who say this band is not Yes. If Banks, Kaye, Bruford, Wakeman, Howe, Rabin can be substituted by other musicians, why can't Jon Anderson? Is he a deity or what?
So this is Yes. Good Yes? Perhaps.
Oliver Wakeman seems uncomfortable here, but I'm sure this will be solved with time, as he'll get used to the band. A friend of mine was mad at him for spoiling Heart of the Sunrise (listen to the 9th minute and you'll get what he means). Benoit may not be Jon, but he hasn't disappointed most people who watched their shows.
Good surprises: Astral Traveller (I already commented it on another post) , Machine Messiah (wonderful to hear it again) and Close to the Edge (Oliver delivers his father's solo perfectly, and Benoit's voice really fits this song)
Bad surprise: Tempus Fugit (The band seems unfamiliar with this song, after 28 years without playing it. It lacks energy and feeling), Aliens (new song, doesn't deserve the names of Chris Squire and Steve Hackett)

Setlist
Disc 1:
1. Firebird Suite (2:52)
2. Siberian Khatru (10:00)
3. I've Seen All Good People (7:29)
4. Heart Of The Sunrise (12:34)
5. Tempus Fugit (6:15)
6. Onward (5:29)
7. Astral Traveler (7:32)
8. Close To The Edge (20:45)
Disc 2:
9. Parallels (6:47)
10. And You And I (12:10)
11. Steve Howe Solo: Mood For A Day (aborted) / The Clap (5:38)
12. Long Distance Runaround/The Fish (Schindleria Praematurus) (7:25)
13. Aliens (Are Only Us From The Future) (6:02)
14. Machine Messiah (10:55)
15. Soon (7:25)
16. Starship Trooper (13:40)
17. Owner Of A Lonely Heart (6:12)
18. Roundabout (9:28)

Links on comments!

Astral Traveller - Now and Then

Steve Howe said, to a magazine from Argentina, in 1999:
A fan once gave me as a present a tape of us playing Astral Traveller, back in 1971... I ran to Jon and Chris and said: "Let's play this!" This song has nothing to do with me, but I started listening to Time and a Word (the album), and loved it, I admire Peter Banks a lot. He helped to design Yes' guitar style, in which I entered as it had been meant for me. It helped a lot that the guy before me wasn't a heavy metal guitarrist, but Peter, a clever man with different ideas.

After waiting 9 years, Howe finally had the chance of playing Astral Traveller again, in their new tour! He's clearly happy when he announces the song. And the new version also features a short and awesome drum solo! (good to hear Alan White playing faster again...)




Howe's approach to Astral Traveller from 1971 shouldn't be missed either. The Yes Album line-up played this song live not many times, and this is the only good record of Astral Traveller, including Bill's frantic drumming and Howe improvising very well. Link to the 71 Astral Traveller on comments!

Mood for a day - Montreux, 19 july 1979

Is there a complete video of this gig?

Two Yes guitars in Atlanta

Our feature today is part of a Yes concert in Atlanta, August 13, 2002.
First track is Steve Howe playing, on the acoustic guitar, Georgia's Theme, a song from Steve's album The Grand Scheme of Things (1993). This simple and beautiful piece was very rarely played live.
Second track is Chris Squire's solo spot, featuring all we like about his bass guitar style. He adds to The Fish small parts of Tempus Fugit, On The Silent Wings Of Freedom and Sound Chaser.

Links on comments!

Steve Howe Trio - Mood for a day & Travelin'

Finally I could put my hands on Steve Howe's latest album, his deep dive into the world of jazz.

After thinking it through, I decided I shouldn't put the whole album in the blog, as it would disencourage people from buying it (by the way, you can buy here) so I'll upload two songs that show how interesting this album is.

Mood for a day is played on electric guitar, and that's already a huge change! Besides, the hammond organ does really creative basslines (as on the whole album). If Jimi Hendrix used to play as if he were having sex with his guitar, Steve plays here as if his guitar were made of gold and he couldn't spoil it. His improvisations are careful in every note and timbre.

Travelin' is a song by Kenny Burrell, a guitarist that really inspired him to do this album. Her the Hammond is also at the forefront, as well as the drums. If you start hearing, you can't stop until it ends.

Link on comments and keep on jazzin', Steve!

Jon Anderson - London, 2005

Shepherds Bush Empire - 10th October 2005

While we have Jon in our thoughts, hoping he gets better soon, it's a good time to remember his solo shows, always much simpler than Yes ones but nonetheless sophisticated.
This one is noteworthy because Jon briefly quotes Sound Out The Galleon on the way into Soon, which makes it very special for admirers of Olias Of Sunhillow.
Quoting a review of another concert from the same tour:
Aside from a screen projecting visual sceneries and a mostly acoustic Anderson (who only plugged in for one quick keyboard set and occasionally had piped in loops or accompaniment) it was an intimate session packed with nearly two dozen songs. From the get go he set out to please, settling extremely early into the readily familiar "Long Distance Runaround" and dusting off the deeper cut "Yours Is No Disgrace."
The first half also saw him turn to other bodies of work such as his solo cannon for "You Lift Me Up." During this selection, Anderson relied heavily on a pre-recorded reggae beat, which despite sounding artificial, brought the chilled out chord strums to more vibrant life. Another key area of his career came from the albums he made with acclaimed instrumentalist Vangelis, which reached a mainstream peak the States via "State of Independence" (once covered by Donna Summer). Though lacking the disco dance grind in this setting, Anderson allowed room for some groove while still remaining in character. Additional attention came from that collaboration with "I'll Find My Way Home," a new aged styled track examining religious tolerance.
Anderson also dabbled with the keyboard for a handful of old timers that came across so personal he could've very well been in the audience's living rooms. Paring the solo delicacy of "Set Sail" with the Yes staple "Close To the Edge" was intriguing, while "The Revealing Science of God (Dance of the Dawn)" came across as downright chilling. Even though it was clearly the commercial apex of his career, "Owner of a Lonely Heart" was the one track that simply didn't work in this environment, trading it its slick synth-pop for an abridged and unplugged version. But come the encore "Your Move" all the lighters came out and the otherwise quiet and attentive crowd let loose like a packed karaoke bar. Paired with an acapella finale of "O'er," it made for an introspective and enlightening send-off die-hards will be desperate to see again.

Circa - rest of the show

Here is the rest of the show, consisting on their whole album played live and a surprising encore.
The bass is very loud, as if Billy Sherwood wanted to show us all that he learned with Squire. And indeed he learned it quite well.

1. Cut The Ties
2. Don't Let Go
3. Together We Are
4. Information Overload
5. Trust In Something
6. Keeper Of The Flame
7. Life Going By
8. Look Inside
9. Brotherhood Of Man
10. band intros
11. Yes Medley (on a separate link)
12. Encore: Let Go (Yes:Union)

Links on comments!

2008 - Circa

CIRCA is a progressive rock supergroup founded by four musicians associated with Yes: current Yes member Alan White (drums), former Yes members Tony Kaye (Hammond, keyboards) and Billy Sherwood (bass, vocals), and guitarist Jimmy Haun, who played on the album Union. (from wikipedia)

After releasing an album in 2007, Circa hit the road with their tour, where the first half is the whole album, and second half was a superb Yes instrumental medley of 39 minutes, including a track from almost every Yes album, including several songs that haven't been played for ages (Looking Around, Something's Coming, Parallels, Tempus Fugit, Lightning Strikes, etc)

In addition to the players listed above, Billy Sherwood's brother Michael Sherwood was playing keys, vocoder and backing vocals. (bringing the question: was Kaye in a good moment or was Michael playing most parts?) Jimmy Haun, a guitarist who says Steve Howe was his main influence, is a good surprise. Alan White is brilliant in the songs originally played by Bruford.

From this show - Rosfest, Glenside, PA, US May 3, 2008 - I uploaded just the Yes medley. If there's interest and I can, I'll upload the rest.
You can know more about Circa on their long interview to Notes from the Edge. (part 1 and part 2)
Now the medley:
Looking Around; The Prophet; Every Little Thing; Harold Land; No Opportunity Necessary, no Experience Needed; Something's Coming; Yours is No Disgrace; Heart of the Sunrise; South Side of the Sky; Roundabout; Close to the Edge; And you and I; Ritual; Sound Chaser; Parallels; Arriving UFO; On the Silent Wings of Freedom; Tempus Fugit; Changes; Owner of a Lonely Heart; Cinema; Rhythm of Love; Lift Me Up; Endless Dream; Loveshine; Mind Drive; Open Your Eyes; Lightning Strikes.
Links on comments!

YES Cancels 40th Anniversary Tour

NEW YORK, NY, JUNE 4, 2008 -– Legendary rock band Yes announced today that the group will unfortunately be canceling their 2008 40th Anniversary Tour. The 26-city tour was scheduled to kick off in Quebec next month and run through the summer.

Said Jon Anderson, “In the wake of my recent respiratory attack, doctors have advised me to spend the coming months resting and recovering. Unfortunately, this means I won't be able to tour with Yes this summer as originally planned. I'd like everyone to know how deeply disappointed I am by this turn of events. I was looking forward to celebrating our music with the amazing family of Yes fans once again; but as we all know, health must come before anything else. Wishing you all the very best...”

Said Chris Squire, “We were all looking forward to performing for our fans after a prolonged leave of absence from touring. I am especially regretful of the fact that I know many of our fans and friends have probably laid out non-refundable airfares and hotels, etc. in order to enjoy the Yes shows this summer. Please join me in wishing Jon a speedy return to health, which at this point in time is our main concern.”

Yes frontman and founding member Jon Anderson was admitted to the hospital last month after suffering a severe asthma attack. He has now been diagnosed with acute respiratory failure and was told by doctors this weekend that he needs to rest and not work for a period of at least six months or suffer further health complications. Upon receiving this news the band has determined that their tour plans need to be put on hold.

Ticket refunds will be available at the point of purchase.

(from Yesworld.com)

1984 - Milano

This show was uploaded by the friend Tadreamer62.
It's an audience recording with very good sound. See the original notes:
It was strange to see one of the dinosaurs of the 70's to play and acting like a typical
80's band, in the vain of Spandau Ballet or Tears for Fears! But the music was sooo good and the audience was looking
forward to see them after a 10 years absence from italian territory.

I remember hearing people describing the time they had
seen the band more than 10 years before in Milano, with PFM opening. The sound of the hall was quite good, despite the fact
this sports hall was not really designed for music events. Eventually, it was shut down and then destroyed one year later,
when a big snow in winter resulted in collapsing the venue's roof. This version comes from a direct copy from the master
I had in the early 90's from the taper himself, I big german guy who used to go around Europe and tape many shows with his
Sony Pro (thanks Robert L.!). It sounds amazing if you consider it's almost 23 years ago. I reduced a little bit basses
and enhanced trebles to sound it more clear, balanced the volume of the two channels and eliminated tape flips.
It's a very good sounding show, a real improvement from the master.
ldb


01 Intro / Cinema
02 Leave It
03 Yours Is No Disgrace
04 Alan White drums solo /
05 Hold On
06 Hearts
07 I've Seen All Good People
08 Si (Tony Kaye solo)
09 Solley's Beard
10 Changes
11 And You And I
12 Soon
13 Make It Easy/Owner Of A Lonely Heart
14 It Can Happen
15 Long Distance Runaround/
16 Whitefish/Amazing Grace
17 City Of Love
18 Starship Trooper
19 Roundabout
20 Applause / Outro music

Links on comments!

Steve's busy year

After touring with Asia and releasing their new album, Phoenix (some fans really liked it, check here) Steve Howe announced on his website a new tour from his Steve Howe Trio and a studio album by the group, to be released on June 4 on Steve's label Howesound.
The new album will be called The Haunted Melody (name of a flute piece by Roland Kirk, rearranged by Howe) and my expectations are high, as the shows from the trio, last year were probably the most original thing Steve has done since the 70s. In these concerts, Steve showed his jazz influences and also rearranged completely a few Yes classics. If you still haven't heard it, click here right now. Probably a great albums is to be released.

1976 - Memphis

June 04, 1976 - Memphis, Tenessee, USA
Yes's solo album tour didn't work as expected and the set-list was ever-changing. Quoting Circus Magazine from September 13, 1976:
At a concert in Memphis' Mid-South Coliseum, when Yes was still performing various solo material, Chris Squire got his turn with "Hold Out Your Hand," the opening track from his own Fish Out Of Water album, and some ten thousand people responded to the Squire tune with a standing ovation. "We were still experimenting with the show at that stage, and we were playing different songs every night, and I think that one night we just happened to play my song," says the too-modest bassist.

Indeed the best thing about this show was Squire's great song. He sings so well, and then in the end there's an instrumental rendition of You by my side, with Howe on steel guitar. Not to be missed.
Other high points are Sweet Dreams, with all the band playing intensely and freely that early song, and Moraz's solo, this time not on mellotron but on a bluesy piano.
The tape was from audience and sound quality is not the best.

Set-list:
Apocalypse
Siberian Khatru
Sound Chaser
I've Seen All Good People
Song Of Innocence
Hold Out Your Hand/You By My Side
Leaves Of Green
Clap
Long Distance Runaround/Moraz Solo
Harp Solo
Heart Of The Sunrise
Gates Of Delirium
Roundabout
Sweet Dreams

Links on comments!

1974 - The Tooleman presents Yessongs 2

Live at Madison Square Garden, New York City, Feb 18, 1974

Some Yes fans have commented on the blog thanking for the "full Tales experience" or, in other words, the chance of hearing the full Tales from Topographic Oceans played live on stage. To those, this bootleg is the holy grail.
Tooleman, one of the greatest Yes aficionados in the world, managed to get a tape with the full Tales played live in New York, in a very good sound quality. Bad news is the tape didn't contain the rest of the show (the whole Close to the Edge album and Roundabout). He did a wonderful job remastering the tapes, and they sound fresh and lively. You can hear the moog as if it were beside you!
It might be just my imagination, but they sound so interested in this evening... The Ancient is simply dazzling: Howe plays with all his soul, and Rick has a more important role than in the studio version.
Links on comments!

New Tour: Close to the Edge and Back

As most of you must know, Yes is coming back in 2008, for a two months tour in North America. Jon gave a long inetrview about it, very interesting, commenting Yes's retirement time, his role in the band (not just singing, he says), the setlist for the next shows and much more.

Well, we had been on the road for three years with Rick, and we hadn't made any new music, which really bummed me out. With a band, you should be making music at least every year together, and we'd never found time to create, as a band. I kept saying we should spend time with Rick in the studio and do some recording. It wasn't that I mentioned it a lot of times; it just wasn't collectively understood.
(...)
I'm very excited about working with young people. Oliver Wakeman will be playing in the band, because Rick can't tour anymore. His doctors have told him that you can't do it. He can do small tours, but he can't do the big work, you know. He's excited that his son's playing.

The whole interview is on Notes From The Edge

For the ones that will be able to see Yes playing this yer, I hope you have the best time!

REUPLOADED: Steve Howe and Dream Theater

This is a bootleg from a Dream Theater concert that had as a very special guest Mr. Steve Howe. I think the year of this concert is 1995, but I'm not sure...
Set list is a medley of Yes classics, all of them instrumental:
Machine Messiah
Heart of the Sunrise
Close to the Edge
Siberian Kathru
Starship Trooper

The guys from Dream Theater do a very good job, and Steve really shines, especially on Machine Messiah, a song he hasn't played with Yes since 1980. Audio quality is excellent.

Ps: I'm very busy this year, I won't be able to post more than once a week.

Links on comments!

2003 - Full Circle in Berlin

In 2003 Rick Wakeman joined the band once more. This would be his fourth and hopefully final time becoming a member. The newly reformed Yes classic line up proceeded through 2002 and right into 2003 with a tour known as “Full Circle”. Unexpected at this time was the inclusion of songs such as “We Have Heaven” and “South Side Of The Sky” in the set list, songs that were only rarely performed live at the time that they were composed. The “Full Circle” tour provided Rick Wakeman with an opportunity to put his own stamp on a couple of songs from the MAGNIFICATION album as both the title track and “In The Presence Of” were performed this time. It also marked the unexpected return of the song “Don’t Kill The Whale”, from the much underrated TORMATO album. This performance in Berlin on June 11th 2003 is a good example of the sound of Yes at the time. Those who were there describe a few mistakes, a bit of humour, but most of all a classic Yes performance by classic Yes musicians. Now that is NOT unexpected!
(from the inner notes of the bootleg from PRRP #024)


1.1 Opening: Firebird Suite 2:45
1.2 Siberian Khatru 10:20
1.3 Magnification 7:02
1.4 Don't Kill The Whale 4:51
1.5 In The Presence Of 12:23
1.6 We Have Heaven/South Side Of The Sky 12:51
1.7 And You And I 12:07
1.8 To Be Over (Acoustic) 5:14
1.9 Second Initial 3:30
2.1 Show Me 4:52
2.2 Rick Wakeman Solo 5:09
2.3 Heart Of The Sunrise 11:46
2.4 Long Distance Runaround 3:49
2.5 The Fish/Whitefish/Silent Wings Of Freedom 9:06
2.6 Awaken 17:54
2.7 Encore Applause 2:58
2.8 Roundabout 6:07
2.9 Starship Trooper 13:29

Links on comments!

1980 - Los Angeles

Another boot from Drama tour, showing the encarnation of Yes that showed a new sound, belonging in the 80's but still undoubtedly with the Yes signature.
This one is from the very nice blog All the World's a Bootleg


Setlist:
CD 1
1.Young Persons Guide To The Orchestra/Apocalypse
2.Does It Really Happen?
3.Yours Is No Disgrace
4.Into The Lens
5.Clap
6.And You And I
7.Go Through This
8.Man In The White Car Suite
9.We Can Fly From Here

CD 2
1.Tempus Fugit
2.Amazing Grace/The Fish (Schindleria Praematurus)
3.Machine Messiah
4.Starship Trooper
5.Roundabout

Links in comments!

1998 - Unplugged in Paris and in Philadelphia

In March 7, 1998, one day after playing at the Palais Des Congrès De Paris, Yes did a signing event in Fnac by the afternoon, including questions and answers, and also playing music, actually more than they expected to play.
A detailed description of this event can be seen here, on forgottenyesterdays, in the story told by Yann Clochec. The funniest moment was when someone told them to play Turn of the Century, then Jon said that it was "not a spinning wheel where you can quote any song and we'll play it, especially 'Turn of the century' which needs just a little bit of rehearsal, you know, it's a tricky cookie". Steve Howe ignored him and started playing the song, but Jon didn't remember more than two verses... So they asked for more suggestions. Awaken was their next try, but Igor Koroshev hadn't learnt the song properly...
Another curious moment is when Alain le Blanc (Alan White) tries to speak french but doesn't understand the most simple question (Comment allez-vous célébrer votre trentième anniversaire? - How will you celebrate your 30th anniversary?)

The second half of this bootleg is from a show in the Tower Theater, Pennsylvania. It's just the part of it that could be called acoustic or almost.
Sound quality is excellent.

Set list
01 Band Introduction
02 Yes Jam
03 Owner Of A Lonely Heart
04 Children Of Light
05 Turn Of The Century & Awaken
06 Alan White Discussing With The Fans
07 Open Your Eyes
08 Jon Anderson Discussing With The Fans
09 I've Seen All Good People
10 Corkscrew
11 Masquerade
12 Clap
13 Leaves Of Green
14 Children Of Light
15 Soon
16 Happy Birthday Jon Anderson

Thanks for the anonymous commentary who gave us the link, I'm glad to see more people contributing...

Links on comments!

REUPLOAD: 1976 - Vancouver

By 1976, Yes had Patrick Moraz, a keyboardist loved by many, and hated by perhaps even more. The band was at the peak of their success, making enormous shows, often on stadiums.
This one is from July 22, and features two epicss with astounding musicianship from the whole band: Ritual and The Gates of Delirium. Sound Chaser is another special moment. In spite of the song's complexity, it worked sso well live!
Very interesting as well are the solo sections, with a good mellotronesque solo by Moraz, Steve playing Clap and his arrangement of Vivaldi's Winter (which would be recorded much later on his solo album Natural Timbre) and Jon doing an harp solo, joined by Steve's steel guitar.
Audio quality is good (not excellent), but worse in some moments. Alas, the tape probably ran out before the end of the show, and Roundabout is cut.

Setlist:
Apocalypse
Siberian Khatru
Sound Chaser
I've Seen All Good People
The Gates Of Delirium
Long Distance Runaround
Moraz solo
Steve Howe solo
Jon solo
Heart Of The Sunrise
Ritual
Roundabout (end cut)

Recommended for:
Those who like Relayer and Patrick Moraz.

Links on comments!

REUPLOADED: 1977 - Best of Wembley

October (from 24 to 29), 1977
During their tour for Going for the One, Yes had a week-long stand in Wembley Arena, UK. Mick Dillingham and Steve Darton recorded all of the shows in their cassete tapes. Later, TheTooleMan (a great Yesfan who mastered countless bootlegs) had access to these tapes, made some noise reductions, and chose the best songs from each day, to give us the best. The result is an astonishing bootleg, with powerful performances of the band, in their homeland. Audio quality is good, and you can hear the crowd only between the songs.
Close to the Edge is slightly different: Steve Howe changed very much the introduction, giving us a rougher and rocking guitar playing. Rick also changed his awesome organ solo near the end, with results not so good. And the church organ's sound is not the best (neither it is in Parallels)
Turn of the Century is very beautiful here, the song's tender feel is recreated very well on stage.
Awaken features, again, astonishing work from Chris Squire. It looks like he gets better when playing this song in Wembley. I'll quote Simon Barrow's opinion in Forgottenyesterdays: "What really turned me inside out was ‘Awaken’. To some it’s an overblown cycle of fifths, I know. But to me, that evening, it was simply transcendent. The organ solo building to a tremendous delayed climax, then tapering off into the haunting vocal refrain and Howe’s brief, whimsical acoustic coda: it all left me drained and elated."
But the encore is the best. At this tour, the band started to play a very long version of Starship Trooper, which can be listened here at its best. The long jam of minimoog and guitar (changing frantically from one to the other) is so exciting, with Chris and Alan doing a steady accompaniment for Steve and Rick's long musical extravagance. Here, it is an extravagance of perfection.

CD1 Tracks:
Firebird Suite (10/29)
Parallels (10/29)
All Good People (10/26)
Close to the Edge (10/28)
Wonderous Stories (10/29)
Colours of the Rainbow (10/28)
Turn of the Century (10/27)
Tour Song (10/29)
And You And I (10/28)

CD2 Tracks:
Intro Comments (10/26)
Going for the One (10/26)
Flight Jam (10/27)
Awaken (10/27)
Starship Trooper (10/24)
Roundabout (10/24)

Lins on comments!

Interviews - Delicious Agony

Delicious Agony is a very good online radio specialized on progressive rock. Since 2003 they have interviewed some of the best musicians from the genre, and Yes members were interviewed quite many times!
Today I give you a first lot of interviews, where you can hear (separatedly) Chris Squire, Rick Wakeman and Steve Howe.

Chris talks about his excitement with the reformation of The Syn (band that he would leave some months after the interview), and also praises his recently dead friend Andrew Jackman, former keyboardist of Syn and responsible for the orchestral arrangements in Fish out of Water.


Rick Wakeman tells us that he's becoming such a famous comediant that there are kids that get surprised when they find out he plays piano. Rick also says there's a weird thelepathy between him and Steve Howe, because on every show they do any improvisation of one is perfectly followed by the other, in a way he never saw with another guitarist.
When the interviewer says "I've been talking to the legendary keyboardist Rick Wakeman..." Rick corrects him "You know, legendary means old"
He also talks about his (then) new album Out There how difficult are his one-man shows, when he has to entertain people, alone, for two hours.

Steve, on the other hand, is interviewed after a solo show in New York, and says there's something fascinating about doing a gig alone, being able to change everything as his mind pleases, and he feels much closer to the audience. He comments his album Spectrum and how nice it is to play with a new generation of Yes-related musicians (his son Dylan Howe and Rick's son Oliver Wakeman).

No downloads this time, only streaming audio. Any problems, contact me.

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In the studio - The Yes Album

The Yes Album was also featured on this radio show. This time, the interviews are with Jon Anderson, Chris Squire and Tony Kaye.

We can hear from Jon that Yours is no Discgrace was their first very extended piece, and once they had done that, each song they did, in that time, would be divided into parts. He admits having learned this kind of structure from classical music.

Chris praises Bill Bruford: "Initially, any band is only as active, criative and as good as its drummer. (...) He was a particularly good influence on me"

Jon's opinion on what made Yes different from other 70s bands is revealing:
The idea of strong melody came from Stravinsky. He made music very avant-garde, but he retained what the others didn't, and that was the melodies. (...) He holds it all together with melody. And I never wanted to lose that. (...) I realised that, if we didn't go that way, we'd have a Mahavishnu.

But the most amusing is when Jon admits they admired, with some jealousy, the early King Crimson:
In 68, (...) we heard this band was playing called King Crimson, and we said "Ok, let's check them out, see how good they are". And they were great! (...) For about a week, we tried to get over the fact that they were better than us. (...) Very similar attitude to music, but more... well organized. And that pushed the group on, it made us work harder.


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In the studio - Fragile

In this month of January, I'll dedicate the blog to interviews and radio programs about Yes.
The first one will be the "In the Studio" series, a radio show in the USA, presented by Redbeard, which focuses each time on a different classic album.
The Fragile program featured interviews with Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman. I cut the songs from the album.
Amongst the most interesting moments are Jon's unexpected explanations to Roundabout's lyrics: "Roundabout was actually formulated in Scotland, we were travelling from Aberdeen through Glasgow, and we started the song by the time we were in Aberdeen, me and Steve were singing in the back of the van (...) and the mountains are sheer from both sides of the road, they just climb up to the sky, and because it was a cloudy day we couldn't see the top of the muntains, we could only see the clouds, 'cause it went straight up (...) and I remember me saying "Look, they're coming out of the sky!" (...) Just before you get to Glasgow there's a lake, a very famous one, Loch Ness, so we were driving "in and around the lake, mountains come out of the sky and they stand there"
Jon also states that one melody in the wordless sung part in the end of the song is actually "Three Bilnd Mice"
Jon talks about Long Distance Runaround: "It was how religion have seemed to confuse me totally. It was such a game that had to be played, and I was going round in circles, looking for the sound of reality, the sound of God.

Rick gives a great inside view of his musician life, in statements such as "We were convinced that music and musicians of the so-called rock age, or some of them, at least, should be taken seriously" and "What we would like to happen is in twenty years time, that a joker on the radio somewhere could pull a track off and play it, and it would not sound out of place"

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