Following
years of internecine power struggles and schisms within the band, and the recent
death of original member and bass player Chris Squire, the beating heart and
soul of Yes - Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman - are finally friends re-united
onstage with Trevor Rabin, uber-guitarist from Yes' 1980's mega-stardom period,
playing an imperious set of Yes songs spanning the whole spectrum of the band's
career.
Opening
instrumental 'Cinema' segued hypnotically into the classic early 70's song
'Perpetual Change' with a wizardly caped Wakeman conjuring otherworldly sounds
from behind his assembled banks of keyboards.
At
72 Jon Anderson's voice still has that inimitable angelic upper register and
power that lesser mortals and singers aspire to. There were multiple pinch me
moments throughout the show and listening to Anderson's vocals rolling back the
years with flawless precision on the epic songs 'I've Seen All Good People',
'And You and I' and 'Heart of The Sunrise' his uniqueness of voice and delivery
coupled with the stunning guitar mastery of Rabin possessed elements of the
transcendental.
When
not singing, a fidgety Anderson on tambourine, Tibeton Bells, acoustic guitar or
just plain old fashioned handclap remains the central point around which the
band pivots particularly on an awe inspiring take of 'Awaken', with Anderson
playing mini-harp to Wakeman's church organ - a magical coupling of instruments
that you don't hear every day - before the magnificently crunching riff of
Karaoke fave 'Owner of a Lonely Heart' with Wakeman and Rabin wandering around
the stalls aisles like latter day minstrels chugging out on portable synth and
guitar.
With
Anderson, Rabin and Wakeman joining their former colleagues for Yes' induction
at the Rock'n'Roll Hall of Fame on April 7, this was about as perfect an ending
to a long awaited reunion as it gets.
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