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Yes with chef Alan Skversky |
First off, there will be a Billy Sherwood interview going up at MSJ within the next week. That will be the only update until MSJ2K. The changes are underway, and doing well, but it is a lot of work. With that in mind, as asked for on the page, anyone wanting to do reviews this month, it would be appreciated. The metal and nonprog stuff is pretty well covered, but if anyone is interested in doing a prog review or two, let me know. Just email me, and we can hammer out the details. Deadline for reviews is the 16th, though. The other thing is this, every single review and interview on the page is being put into a new format. This means LOTS and LOTS of copy and paste work. So, if anyone feels like donating a little time and has a good web editing application and some experience with it, please let me know. All it pays is a thank you on the site, and my undying gratitude, but guess that is something.
Lastly....if you are looking to buy some CD's for people for the holidays, CDNow has a special deal going right now. Everything is 30% off, and if you order 3 or more items, US shipping is free. Please go there from one of the links on MSJ..they are everywhere.
The DirectTV broadcast will be made available on DVD in 2000. I know this because Chris Squire told me before their show in CT last Sunday.
My co-producer and I interviewed Chris Squire and Alan White for about 15 minutes before the Yes concert in CT last Sunday. We spoke about various things from the new album to even the possibilities of doing some Drama or Relayer material in upcoming tours.
Please visit http://www.retrorewind.com for more on Yes, our featured artists of the month, and for our interview in Real Audio (coming soon!). We'll also be giving away an autographed copy of the "Lightning Strikes" radio single this month as well.
Thanks!
Anthony -
anthony@retrorewind.com
Peter Banks, this past weekend, gave a live performance of "Beyond and Before" ~ with John Jowitt on lead vocals (he of IQ, Jadis and Arena fame).
The event was an awards ceremony, here in England, staged by CRS who do a sterling job at enhancing interest in music that is progressive.
Many of the awards went to Spock's Beard (+ Sweden's Roine Stolt as "best guitarist"), and new band Mostly Autumn. These accolades were presented by Steve Hackett, who also performed a bluesy number for an appreciative audience.
Tizwin
tizwin@progress.freeserve.co.uk
Progressive Maze *revised* official merchandise sale :
http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Vines/2757/mer-uk.htmhttp://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Vines/2757/mer-uk.html
Please email if you need shipping prices outside the UK.
While surfing away and looking for other reviews of The Ladder, I came upon a review in PC Gameworld for Homeworld. Funny thing is, it hardly mentions the game itself, but instead spends more time talking about Yes and their involvement. Then it encourages you to download the "Yes video". Hey promotion is promotion, right? Here's the link if you're interested. http://www.pcgameworld.com/movies/homeworld/index.htm
Iomega has a link to Yes and four songs. http://www.iomega.com/
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From: Hank Ingram [hingram@vt.edu] - Dec 4
Iomega has removed the ad from the site for the Yes music. Does anyone have the URL for the site where the music actually residing?
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From: Rob [kudla@pobox.com] - Dec 4
I don't know how much longer it'll be up, but
http://mc1.musicchoice.com/yes.html. (I think the two live tracks are from the widely circulated Universal Amphitheatre radio show from last year, so I'm not sure how much better the
ISDN-quality Liquid tracks will be than the mp3's going around. Guess I'll find out.)
Yes concert: The Past is destined to repeat itself
By Jerry Kishbaugh
Citizens' Voice Entertainment Editor
Audience-pleasers - Yes.
Great instrumentalists - Yes.
Great harmonies - Yes.
Long songs - Yes.
Dated music - Yes.
I know the many Yes fans who attended Tuesday night's concert at the F.M. Kirby Center may not like my assessment that the music of Yes is dated, but it is. The days of 15 and 20-minute songs are long gone (unless you're a Deadhead or a Phishhead, but
that's another story).
And, yes, I'm well aware of the fact that the Yes contingent - lead vocalist Jon Anderson, bassist Chris Squire, drummer Alan White, keyboardist Igor Khoroshev and guitarists Steve Howe and Billy Sherwood - performed as well or better than they did when they started 30 years ago. However, long, drawn out songs are a thing of the past.
The progressive rock that Yes dishes out features Anderson's
soaring vocals (which tend to become a bit taxing), intricate four- and five-part harmonies and complex, meandering song structures. I won't deny that the band sounded fresh and clean,
but during each lengthy song I began to feel as if I was immersed
in the same old song during the spiraling, incessant instrumental
breaks.
At times, the music was mesmerizing, but more often than not I found myself slipping into the world of ennui (boredom). I sorry, but the swirling psychedelics and computer-generated graphics playing on the large screen behind the band only served to
enhance my desire to drift off to another world. Yeah, it was somewhat relaxing.
As Yes veered off on its instrumental tangents and took you along for the ride, it was Howe's blistering, extraordinary guitar licks that brought you back to the environs of the Kirby Center. If any one player stood out, it was Howe, whether he played one of his many electric guitars or the six- and 12-string acoustic.
The concert opened with a film and photo collage of Yes - from the beginning to the present - as the band members took their places on the stage to pre-recorded music. Howe, who appears
to be at odds with the band's newer guitarist (Sherwood), stood
at opposite ends of the stage, flanking Anderson and Squire. On
risers behind the foursome were the keyboardist and drummer.
Most notable, besides the fact the original Yes members haven't
aged well, was the attire of Anderson and Squire. Brian the
circulation boy summed Anderson's clothing up best when he said it looked like he bought his togs at a yard sale featuring Bea Arthur's wardrobe from "Maude." Squire's white knickers, long doctor's jacket and combat boots made him look like a character from a Dickens' novel.
The two hour and 10-minute show, which seemed to consist of five
or six songs, opened with a sparkling rendition of Yours Is No
Disgrace. And Yes wasted no time in mixing the old with the new by following up with Homeworld from their 1999 release, The Ladder.
Throughout the night, Yes interspersed songs from their self-titled debut album, as well as their other big-selling
albums (Fragile and Close To The Edge) with select tunes from The
Ladder.
Of course, no yes concert would be complete without the obligatory tunes: I've Seen All Good People, Your Move, Lift
Me Up and the closers Owner of a Lonely Heart and Roundabout,
among others. One of the highlight's from the new album proved to
be the island-flavored tune, The Message, which Anderson
said was a tribute to Bob Marley.
For what it's worth seeing Yes in concert is like taking a trip back in time. However, there are times when reliving the past just doesn't cut it.
As I said, the band played and sang as good or better than they did back in the early '70s. The sad part is that the new millennium is upon us and it's time for Yes to move into the future. I realize this is not a "wondrous story," but at Tuesday night's Yes concert I couldn't help but think we were getting a "long distance runaround."
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Unique as ever, Yes affirms fans' faith
Group displays its hybrid sound in mixture of old and new
material in Kirby Center performance
December 2, 1999
By ALAN K. STOUT
Times Leader Staff Writer
WILKES-BARRE -- Did you ever watch a band perform on stage and
think, "These guys were simply born to play in a group together"?
Did you ever listen to a band and think, "How does one even begin to write songs like this?"
If your answer is "yes," then perhaps you've seen the group Yes in concert.
The polished progressive band performed on Tuesday at The Kirby
Center in Wilkes-Barre, engaging the crowd of 1,500 with its unique hybrid of rock, pop, jazz and classical sounds.
The group opened the show with "Yours Is No Disgrace," and soon
followed with the new "Homeworld (The Ladder)." "Lightning
Strikes" and "The Messenger" were also among the new numbers performed early in the set, with vocalist Jon Anderson dedicating the latter to the late Bob Marley.
In addition to pristine sounds, Yes' concert also offered a fine
visual display that included brilliant lighting and an enormous video screen, which offered serene spacey images that seemed to correlate with the music.
Classic Yes songs also brought roars from the crowd, and the
band was met with several standing ovations throughout the evening. "And You and I: Cord of Life/Eclipse/The Preacher The Teacher/The Apocalypse"-- from the renowned "Close to The Edge" LP -- was one such occasion and a lengthy performance of "Awaken" inspired the same response from the audience.
Still, melodic newer numbers such as "It Will Be A Good Day (The
River)" were also warmly received. (If you like Yes, the band's new LP, "The Ladder" appears to be a more-than-worthy companion to the catalogue.)
Anderson had a warm rapport with the audience, and although his
soft-spoken nature sometimes made his dialogue with the crowd
hard to decipher, his gratitude to the Yes fans for their loyalty, his well wishes for the upcoming holidays and his excitement at the arrival of a new millennium appeared sincere.
Steve Howe's guitar work consistently displayed virtuosity and
often brilliance, and guitarist Bill Sherwood complemented his work well. Chris Squire's bass-lines were rhythmic and punchy, Alan White offered fiery percussion and keyboardist Igor Khoroshev also brought the appropriate flare to each number and anchored what remains an integral part of the Yes sound.
The set ended with "I've Seen All Good People (Your Move/All
Good People)" and encores included a slightly extended version of
"Owner of A Lonely Heart" and a spirited performance of "Roundabout."
More than 30 years after its debut, Yes proved on Tuesday it
still has much to offer its fans. The new material was particularly strong, and the older work served as a pleasant reminder of just how vastly different and how pioneering the sounds the band first brought to pop music were and still
remain.
Just as other older groups who have visited the area this year
-- Jethro Tull, The Moody Blues and Styx -- Yes continues to do its own thing and do it well. And considering the music industry's consistent desire to mold artists' sounds and images to fit certain criteria, that's something for which Yes should be most proud.
1999 The Times Leader
Hey gang..there is an article in todays NY Post on Yes entitled
"Yes-Still Together". It has a short interview with Jon. Some
highlights:
Post: "you're said to be a very spiritual person"
Anderson: "I've always been interested in things I cannot see. Through meditation I've realized there is more to this world than we can see".
Post: "Like what"?
Anderson: Fourth dimension beings who evoloving into light beings of the fifth dimension".
http://www.nypost.com/entertainment/19003.htm
.
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From: Toltec7 - Dec. 9
Here's a funny review that was in the NY Post!
Modified pajamas!!! LOL!!! http://www.nypost.com/entertainment/19301.htm
Sorry if this is old news. (old news?....jumbo shrimp?...military
intelligence? feel free to join in) Saturday night. Family night with a video. It's Jack Frost starring Michael Keaton (whatever happened to him?) as a dad who's killed in a car accident and comes back to life as a snowman. Those of you with kids may be familiar with it. Those without don't care. Anyway, during the opening sequence of the Jack Frost Band playing some bluesy rock and roll in a club, the credits are rolling along and what do I see but "music by Trevor Rabin". Then lo and behold, there he is on stage, wailing away, the T man! Now I guess he's got his SAG card as well. It was good to see him. But it's true what they say about the camera adding a few pounds...
Hello all. I was relaxing and watching the Monday Night Football game last night. It was turning out to be just your normal NFL game. Tampa Bay and Minnesota. At half time ABC goes to New York at the ESPN Zone restaurant for the weeks highlights with Chris Berman. Well, when the camera is panning the crown there is the little guy himself. Jon and his wife Jane were clapping and waving to the camera on Monday Night Football. I thought I was seeing things. But then when it went back to Chris Berman he said this live on the air. "Was that Jon Anderson of YES? YES!." I was laughing. I was wondering if anyone else caught this? Maybe Jon should of had a copy of The Ladder in his hand. Millions of people watch MNF you know, talk about good promotion ;-)
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From: Rick [Samgeyser@aol.com] - Dec 7
Two questions...What team shirt was groupie Jane waving and does Jon own any other clothes besides the army green jacket/shirt and white robes?
Has anybody else heard this too? I never even knew Pt.1 was ever broadcasted on the radio, let alone there was a Pt.2 too. Did anybody happen to catch this first time around? The second part is supposedly on this weekend on your local station. I'll be tapin' it!
There is a photo of them at their first meeting at the Classic Rock Society Awards 1997 near the bottom of John's new homepage at http://www.aubitt.co.uk/john_jowitt.htm.
There are some other photos of them at http://www.aubitt.co.uk/news.htm. This time from their trip to Connecticut in October 1999 for the cancelled Peter Banks gig.
In today's copy of the Philadelphia Weekly, there's an ad saying that Steve Howe will be making an appearance at 8th Street Music, 1023 Arch Street, in Philly, Monday, 12/13, 2:30-3:45pm. He will be autographing copies of the Steve Howe Interactive CD-Rom and laminated souvenir passes (given to the first 50 in line).
"I don't know what the name of this building is," admitted Jon Anderson, "but tonight we'll call it the House of Yes."
Anderson and his Yes bandmates turned the A.J. Palumbo Center into just such a home field last night. Eschewing any opening act, the latest six-man version of the group performed a 13-song, two-hour-and-20-minute set.
The audience responded with rapt devotion. Literally every song Yes played earned a standing ovation from at least one-third of the crowd. A simple wave of Anderson's hand, a hot five-second-long bass fill by Chris Squire or a fiery solo from guitarist Steve Howe was enough to inspire fits of furious applause.
The band's performance often warranted such a reaction. Anderson's scratchy tenor voice remains intact, and he took classic Yes songs such as "I've Seen All Good People" and the show-opening "Yours Is No Disgrace" to dizzying vocal heights. Howe proved to be no less engaging, switching between hollow-bodied electric guitar, classical acoustic guitar and lap steel for his eclectic, yet distinctive, solos.
The concert sometimes lost momentum, however, during performances of songs from the new Yes album "The Ladder." The group tried for a Caribbean feel on "Lightning Strikes," but never got the song to truly flow. "Homeworld" sounded more rocking live than on CD, but the suite's stylistic shifts were more confusing than exciting.
Anderson's engaging personality and relentlessly upbeat attitude helped to sell a couple of new songs, though. Anderson explained that "The Messenger" came about at the suggestion of Ladder producer Bruce Fairbairn, who said Anderson should write a song about someone who had a profound influence on his life. The singer wrote about reggae great Bob Marley.
Anderson offered no stories about "It Will Be a Good Day," but he made the bouncy song sound warm and earnest. Though relatively slight, the tune had its charms in celebrating freedom and belief.
It would be easy to carp over some disappointments about the show. Igor Khoroshev's keyboard sounds were dated, Billy Sherwood's guitar solos screamed needlessly and Howe wasn't note-perfect on all of his lightning-fast runs.
That said, there was much more to like about Yes' mild, uplifting show. As the band played an encore of "Owner of a Lonely Heart" and "Roundabout" to smiling, joyous listeners, the concert's less inspiring moments were simply irrelevant.