Yes fans across the globe greeted the band’s recent induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with a collective response: “It’s about time!”
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Noting theYes fans across the globe greeted the band’s recent induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with a collective response: “It’s about time!”
Noting the institution’s lackadaisical, almost begrudging acknowledgement for prog, which began in 2013 with Rush’s induction, guitarist Steve Howe observes, “They have been a bit slow to come around, but we’re quite pleased to finally be inducted. We heard the same thing from Rush, who inducted us. They noticed the change that’s happening. It seems like there’s an acceptance for prog the second time around.”
Onetime Yes members Bill Bruford and Tony Kaye weren’t able to take part in the band’s Rock Hall performances of “Roundabout” and “Owner of a Lonely Heart,” but players past and present were represented with a lineup that consisted of guitarists Howe and Trevor Rabin, keyboardist Rick Wakeman, singer Jon Anderson and drummer Alan White.
Geddy Lee subbed for the late bassist Chris Squire on “Roundabout,” and Howe then strapped on the bass for “Owner of a Lonely Heart.”
“It was a little unusual,” Howe notes, “but it was a lot of fun. We practiced just enough to navigate our way through it all.” Responding to the notion that the Rock Hall performance could lead to an eventual reunion of the Union-era lineup, which featured every major contributor from the band’s legacy, Howe says, “I think what we just did was a one-off. It wasn’t a demonstration of anything we’re going to do again.”
Instead, the current iteration of Yes (Howe, White, keyboardist Geoff Downes, bassist Billy Sherwood and singer Jon Davison) is celebrating the group’s epic history this summer with a full festival show called, appropriately enough, “Yestival” (the dates also include openers Todd Rundgren and Carl Palmer’s ELP