Jon Anderson’s return to the stage recently reminded me of my only Yes concert: at the Allentown Fairgrounds in 2004.
My friend Chris, who is an avid Yes fan, got us tickets and we trekked up to PA in my new RX-8 (yes we broke a few laws getting there) for this concert. Though I’m not quite the Yes fan he is, I love their music, and was thrilled to see them live.
Dream Theater opened. Their mix was terrible, unfortunately. But that did not keep them from putting on a good performance. I’m not a big fan of their music, but I was glad to see these guys live finally.
The lineup for Yes was Jon Anderson, Steve Howe, Chris Squire, Rick Wakeman, and Alan White. Their mix also did not start out great, but improved during the first couple of songs. I was impressed how much these guys can still rock! The setlist was:
Firebird Suite
Going For The One
Sweet Dreams
I’ve Seen All Good People
America
South Side Of The Sky
Don’t Kill The Whale
Yours Is No Disgrace
And You And I
Awaken
Starship Trooper
Roundabout
Steve and Rick are just beasts! At the end of South Side of the Sky, they traded solos back and forth, which was a highlight moment that I remember. I found the song on YouTube (from the Prince’s Trust concert that same year):
It is hard to list other highlights because the whole show rocked. The band seemed to be in top form, which I found amazing. That was 5 years ago, and they’re still at it!
But the biggest highlight came the next morning when Chris and I came down for breakfast in our hotel to find Jon and Steve eating there. Jon was very warm and kind to us and we talked for a moment or two. Steve, on the other hand, saw us approaching and barked, “I’m not a rock star until after breakfast, OK?!” That’s OK, I don’t begrudge the man his privacy. And my respect for him as a player is as strong as ever.
No related posts.
I saw Yes years ago and the one thing I remember more than anything else was their virtuosity. There are a lot of good players out there, but what they did live just blew my mind.