Yes - Fragile / Drama tour

[D S]

Well, after having seen them last night in Glasgow, I'm pleased to report (to TA and any others who may be interested) that Yes are alive and well, even without Chris Squire and Jon Anderson.  They kicked off their latest tour yesterday and it includes all the songs from Fragile and Drama (in their correct album order) plus some surprises (no spoilers!).  Drama sounded fantastic (it's where I came in to Yes music) and although Fragile isn't my favourite Yes album (too much solo filler IMO), I now appreciate it more for having heard it live.

It must be said that Steve Howe and Alan White (who inexplicably wore a 'pork pie' hat throughout) are looking quite elderly now but they can both play as well as ever.  Geoff Downes was surrounded by 9 keyboards and a set of Moog Taurus bass pedals and he comfortably handled both his own keyboard parts from Drama and the challenging Wakeman parts on Fragile.  Jon Davidson sounds impressively like 'the other Jon' (and I actually find him less irritating to watch than JA!).

However, the star of the night for me was Billy Sherwood.  OK, I've long been a fan of his work and thought that if anyone could step into Chris Squire's (rather large - in every sense) boots, it would be him.  What I didn't know is how the traditionalist Yes fans would take to him – after all, Chris was the only person to have been in every line-up of the band.  In short, he totally nailed it, both in terms of the sound and the complex basslines.  If anything, Billy has revived the band a bit, as the last time I saw them, it felt a little bit like some old men just playing the same old stuff without much passion.  Tracks like Does It Really Happen?, Into the Lens, Tempus Fugit, Long Distance Runaround, and Heart of the Sunrise really showed just how good he is and his bass solo in The Fish earned him a standing ovation.  Now that's fan acceptance! 

There were a couple of minor hiccups, as you'd expect on a first night, such as Billy being given a fretless bass a song too early, but, much to my surprise, I actually enjoyed last night's gig the most of any Yes gig I've been to (although being 5 rows from the front helped). 

In summary, if you are going to any of the forthcoming shows, the band's music is in safe hands and you should have a great time! 

[MikeEvs]

Guess who's photographing their Bristol gig 

[D S]

Lucky you! 
Make sure and post the results up here! 

[MikeEvs]

I will post up a link to the review that will feature my photos but I'm not allowed to post my photos anywhere else. I had to sign an agreement to that effect with Yes pr/management company. Oh and I only get to photograph the first song but I've been told it's 12 mins long.

[D S]

It might be Machine Messiah...    (Almost unbelievably, they were on stage before 8 o'clock and so I missed the first couple of minutes of it.  )

[MikeEvs]

It might be Machine Messiah...    (Almost unbelievably, they were on stage before 8 o'clock and so I missed the first couple of minutes of it.  )

That's what setlist.fm told me it would be  I then had to google Machine Messiah to see how long it was *not a Yes fan

[Trapezium Artist]

Not a Yes fan? Heresy. Buy yourself a copy of Drama now, Mr Evans.

TBH, I had really been ignoring this tour, which comes close by in Utrecht on 15 May. For me, Yes means Jon Anderson as much as anything else, his dippy dancing and loony toons intersong burbles notwithstanding. "I think we all feel a tiny bit cosmic sometimes" (Anderson, 1978, Wembley).

It's his voice, the unique voice: no-one can imitate it or substitute for it. It's probably unfair to the enormous legacy of Squire, but it seems to me that you can imitate his bass playing more readily than anyone could come close to Anderson's voice.

Then again, I did see the Drama tour in 1980-ish with Trevor Horn, and I've always really liked the album, so perhaps, after all, this would be a good moment to put aside my purist objections and enjoy ...

Wonder if there are still tickets left ...

[D S]

You know you want to... 

[DavSel]

I saw them in Manchester last night! I've only seen them once before in 2014 during the 3 album tour and loved every minute of it! Fragile is one of my favourite Yes albums I think partly because it was one of the first albums of Yes I heard (though yes granted I'm talking early 2000's when I first started listening to Yes ) I've only really listened to Drama recently and have to say I really like it! It's been on repeat for the last few days leading up to gig night! And what a night, absolutely loved both sets, very enjoyable to watch and rare treat (for someone of my age) to see both these albums live in their entirety! I would highly recommend seeing them if anyone has the chance 

[MikeEvs]

Not a Yes fan? Heresy. Buy yourself a copy of Drama now, Mr Evans.

TBH, I had really been ignoring this tour, which comes close by in Utrecht on 15 May. For me, Yes means Jon Anderson as much as anything else, his dippy dancing and loony toons intersong burbles notwithstanding. "I think we all feel a tiny bit cosmic sometimes" (Anderson, 1978, Wembley).

It's his voice, the unique voice: no-one can imitate it or substitute for it. It's probably unfair to the enormous legacy of Squire, but it seems to me that you can imitate his bass playing more readily than anyone could come close to Anderson's voice.

Then again, I did see the Drama tour in 1980-ish with Trevor Horn, and I've always really liked the album, so perhaps, after all, this would be a good moment to put aside my purist objections and enjoy ...

Wonder if there are still tickets left ...

Oh Jon Anderson isn't in the band anymore   I might actually like them now 

[Trapezium Artist]

Not a Yes fan? Heresy. Buy yourself a copy of Drama now, Mr Evans.

TBH, I had really been ignoring this tour, which comes close by in Utrecht on 15 May. For me, Yes means Jon Anderson as much as anything else, his dippy dancing and loony toons intersong burbles notwithstanding. "I think we all feel a tiny bit cosmic sometimes" (Anderson, 1978, Wembley).

It's his voice, the unique voice: no-one can imitate it or substitute for it. It's probably unfair to the enormous legacy of Squire, but it seems to me that you can imitate his bass playing more readily than anyone could come close to Anderson's voice.


Then again, I did see the Drama tour in 1980-ish with Trevor Horn, and I've always really liked the album, so perhaps, after all, this would be a good moment to put aside my purist objections and enjoy ...

Wonder if there are still tickets left ...

Oh Jon Anderson isn't in the band anymore   I might actually like them now 

You may leave.

[Trapezium Artist]

You know you want to... 

No, I'm not entirely sure I do, but ...

[rogerg]

heh

and

heh