Mostly agree. But if Anderson & Howe got back together I would still not endorse them as Yes. Jon doesnât pretend to be Yes. He plainly says he enjoys bringing those songs to stage for the love of the music. Howe is cashing in on the brand.
BTW, Iâve heard John Davison live. Heâs a decent singer but no where near Jon Andersonâs league. As a devoted Yes fan since 1972, I would find it uninspiring to hear any version of the group without Jonâs amazing voice & spirit leading them.
Wow, if Jon A & Steve Howe reconciled you wouldn't endorse them as Yes even though that's the closest you will ever get? Tough audience.
I will take the Jon Anderson incarnation over the other any day. Not arguing that point but sadly I wouldn't call either of those bands "Yes" even though I guess the second one legally can. To me they are just two different bands with members that have ties to "Yes". If/when Anderson is able to unite with Howe then I can acknowledge them as "Yes".
Mostly agree. But if Anderson & Howe got back together I would still not endorse them as Yes. Jon doesnât pretend to be Yes. He plainly says he enjoys bringing those songs to stage for the love of the music. Howe is cashing in on the brand.
BTW, Iâve heard John Davison live. Heâs a decent singer but no where near Jon Andersonâs league. As a devoted Yes fan since 1972, I would find it uninspiring to hear any version of the group without Jonâs amazing voice & spirit leading them.
He created the band, and Howe joined later. The only person that was in all incarnations is/was Squire.
Compare the Howe cover band to the Anderson led band and there's no comparison who's carrying the fire.
I will take the Jon Anderson incarnation over the other any day. Not arguing that point but sadly I wouldn't call either of those bands "Yes" even though I guess the second one legally can. To me they are just two different bands with members that have ties to "Yes". If/when Anderson is able to unite with Howe then I can acknowledge them as "Yes".
Location: At the dude ranch / above the sea Gender:
Posted:
Jul 20, 2025 - 8:12am
VV wrote:
Not so sure Anderson can be considered being with the real Yes when heâs fronting a very good Yes cover band. I think heâs the most important component of Yes but canât go so far as saying heâs with the real âYesâ when thatâs not the case.
He created the band, and Howe joined later. The only person that was in all incarnations is/was Squire.
Compare the Howe cover band to the Anderson led band and there's no comparison who's carrying the fire.
Anderson is killing it with the real Yes, not that cover band led by Howe.
Not so sure Anderson can be considered being with the real Yes when heâs fronting a very good Yes cover band. I think heâs the most important component of Yes but canât go so far as saying heâs with the real âYesâ when thatâs not the case.
Location: At the dude ranch / above the sea Gender:
Posted:
Nov 14, 2024 - 2:43pm
Driving around the UK last year we pulled over for a potty break. I opened up the Maps program and, there, easily visible, was Yes Tor.
No tomatoes, alas.
Going-For-The(ir)-One tour in Cologne we met. Once it was, I think around 1978-79 some time. I'd bought the hash for my friends & me, named Black Afghan. It was the stronger "chewing-gum" type, and it went straight into the blue cloud in front of the stage, which we were right in front of as teenagers.
Donovan opened the act with "Mellow Yellow", complaining about Mr. "Allah Rick Wakeman" and we never understood why, assuming it was because he was being served less promptly at the hotel bar.
All was good. *
I miss Yes and their musicianship. How their songs were never formulaic as no two were ever alike. Interesting time signatures, beat changes and how one song could morph into another and go on tangents and eventually come back to the central theme. Their songs were long but they packed them with so much interesting content that they never really felt too long (with the exception of Tales from Topographical Oceans). They obviously became more commercial on their 90125 & Big Generator releases. Plenty to like there but I still like their older stuff better.
I loved studying Roger Dean's wild seascapes? airscapes? pictured on the Yes ablbum covers. Half the fun of a new Yes release was getting lost in the cover while listening to Yes provide the soundtrack to the art.
Going-For-The(ir)-One tour in Cologne we met. Once it was, I think around 1978-79 some time. I'd bought the hash for my friends & me, named Black Afghan. It was the stronger "chewing-gum" type, and it went straight into the blue cloud in front of the stage, which we were right in front of as teenagers.
Donovan opened the act with "Mellow Yellow", complaining about Mr. "Allah Rick Wakeman" and we never understood why, assuming it was because he was being served less promptly at the hotel bar.
buddy when would that have been? When Jon first split with the band?
In any event I saw Jon recently as well with his new backing band and he sang great and the band performed the songs very well. The only Yes song that fell flat was "Owner of a Lonely Heart" and probably because those interesting sounds that the song incorporates just didn't sound that great in that particular live rendition. My only criticism with the performance was that they played too many songs from an album he recently put out with his new band. That is to be expected but they obviously don't hold up as well as the "Yes" catalog and sound like watered down unreleased Yes songs. They also played "Awaken" which is a deep Yes cut by most standards and I would have rather heard another stronger song from their back catalog. I was secretly hoping that he would do "America" the Simon and Garfunkel song but no such luck.
I would absolutely see him/them again.
A shame that he and the rest of the band can't reconcile their differences. I went to see Jon because (even though he is the only member of the band performing in that group) he is the heart of the band and I would rather see a Yes incarnation with him in it than a band without him.
I also saw them back in the day when they toured "in-the-round" (circular stage set up roughly in the middle of an arena on a slowly rotating platform) and if my memory serves correct, I think it was with a two drummer (Bruford, White) configuration? But my memory may be off.
Yes is a big part of my musical history and will always remain so.
If memory serves me right it would have been around 1979. But I could be off. Too lazy to look it up.
That would be the Union tour with every-freaking-one on stage. Bruford/White, Rabin/Howe, Anderson, Squire, Wakeman/Kaye. A video below. Too much noise, but an opportunity like no other time. Imagine the contracts and logistics to get them all touring together...
The new Jon Anderson album is prime Yes. With some nods to Squire and even to UK (an opening chord to remind you of Mental Medication/Holdsworth). Strong strong work.
