Yes (band)

Yes
Yes, 1977. L-R: Steve Howe, Alan White, Jon Anderson, Chris Squire, and Rick Wakeman.
Background information
Origin	London, United Kingdom
Genres	Progressive rock, symphonic rock, art rock, pop rock, psychedelic rock (early)
Years active	1968–1981 1983–2004 2008 – present
Labels	Atlantic, Atco, Arista, Victory Records, Sanctuary, Eagle
Associated acts	Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe, Asia, Yoso, Cinema, Flash, UK, XYZ, Circa, The Buggles, GTR, King Crimson
Website	Yesworld: The Official Yes website
Members
Chris Squire Steve Howe Alan White Benoît David Oliver Wakeman
Past members
See: Personnel section

Yes are an English progressive rock band formed in London in 1968, generally regarded as one of the archetypal bands and pioneers of the genre. Despite many lineup changes, occasional splits within the group and the ever-changing trends in popular music, the band has continued for over forty years and still retains a large following.^[1]

The band's music blends symphonic and other "classical" structures with their own brand of rock music, which is marked by sharp dynamic contrasts, long songs, abstract lyrics, and an integrated showcasing of instrumental prowess. Although the band's sole consistent member has been bass player Chris Squire (noted for his highly melodic and discursive playing as well as his early use of electronic effects), Yes are also generally noted for the distinctive high-register vocals of lead singer Jon Anderson and the eclectic musical stylings of a succession of guitarists (Peter Banks, Steve Howe, Trevor Rabin, Billy Sherwood), keyboard players (Tony Kaye, Rick Wakeman, Patrick Moraz, Geoff Downes, Igor Khoroshev) and drummers (Bill Bruford and Alan White). Several band members became celebrated musicians and/or bandleaders in their own right, and a 1980 lineup of the band was briefly fronted by future production star Trevor Horn. They have sold over 30 million records in over 40 years of activity.

Long-term band members Squire, Howe and White are currently touring with a Yes lineup featuring vocalist Benoît David and keyboardist Oliver Wakeman.^[2][3][4]

Contents 1 History 1.1 Early days (1968-1971) 1.1.1 Formation 1.1.2 The first two albums 1.1.3 Into the Yes style 1.2 Arriving at symphonic rock (1971-1973) 1.2.1 Fragile and Close to the Edge 1.2.2 A growing live draw 1.2.3 Uncharted waters 1.3 The fusion period (1974-1976) 1.3.1 Looking for a keyboard player 1.3.2 Relayer and tours; break in activity 1.4 The first "classic" revival (1977-1979) 1.4.1 Wakeman returns; Going for the One 1.4.2 Uncertainty and upheaval: Tormato; the failed Paris sessions; departure of Anderson and Wakeman 1.5 New-wave Yes (1980-1981) 1.5.1 Merger with the Buggles; Drama 1.5.2 1981 – band split (and posthumous releases) 1.6 A new Yes for a new decade (1982-1988) 1.6.1 A band called Cinema 1.6.2 Yes revived 1.6.3 "Yes West" (90125; 9012 Live; Big Generator) 1.7 The years of two Yes's (1989-1992) 1.7.1 Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe 1.7.2 "Union" and reunion 1.8 The Talk era (1993-1995) 1.8.1 90125 lineup renewed 1.8.2 Talk album; 1995 split 1.9 The second "classic" revival (1996-2003) 1.9.1 Keys To Ascension 1.9.2 Bridging the styles 1.9.3 Orchestral Yes; Magnification 1.9.4 Third return of Wakeman 1.10 Hiatus, side projects & health scares (2004-2008) 1.11 A new lineup (2008-present) 1.11.1 In The Present 1.11.2 The Perpetuation of Yes 2 Discography 3 Tours 4 Personnel 5 Covers and remixes 6 Notes 7 External links

History

Early days (1968-1971)

Formation

Yes were formed in 1968 by vocalist Jon Anderson and bassist Chris Squire. Anderson had already recorded a single in 1964 as a member of The Warriors, a beat band formed by his brother Tony, and later sang on a couple of 45s for Parlophone Records under the pseudonym Hans Christian. He was also briefly a member of the group The Gun. Squire had been a member of The Syn, a flower-pop outfit that recorded a couple of singles for Deram Records (one, "14-Hour Technicolour Dream", celebrating the "happening" held at Alexandra Palace on 29 April/30 April 1967). After the break-up of The Syn, Squire spent a year developing his bass-playing technique, strongly influenced by The Who's bassist, John Entwistle. In May 1968, he met Anderson in a Soho nightclub, La Chasse, where Anderson was working. The two had a common interest in vocal harmony, especially that of Simon & Garfunkel, and began working together soon afterwards.

At the time, Squire was in a band called Mabel Greer's Toyshop with guitarist Clive Bailey and drummer Bob Hagger, and invited Anderson to begin singing with the group. Hagger was soon replaced by Bill Bruford, a jazz aficionado who had played just three gigs with Blues revivalists Savoy Brown before leaving, and who was recruited from an ad he had placed in Melody Maker.

An earlier lineup of Mabel Greer's Toyshop had featured guitarist Peter Banks who'd previously worked with Squire in The Syn and who now returned to replace Bailey. Finally, the band expanded to include an organist and occasional piano player, Tony Kaye, a classically-trained musician who'd abandoned his studies to pursue rock and roll and had already been in a series of unsuccessful groups (Johnny Taylor's Star Combo, The Federals, and Jimmy Winston and His Reflections). In search of a more commercially useful bandname, Mabel Greer's Toyshop soon became Yes.^[5] Banks came up with the three letter name, with the rationale that it would stand out on posters.

The newly-rechristened Yes played their first show at East Mersea Youth Camp in England on 4 August 1968. Soon after this, they opened for Cream at their 1968 Farewell Concert from The Royal Albert Hall. Early on, influenced by bands like 1-2-3 (later Clouds),^[6] the group earned a reputation for taking other people's songs and drastically changing them into expanded, progressive compositions. In September 1968, Yes subbed for an absent Sly & the Family Stone at Blaise's and, as a result of that performance, gained a residency at The Marquee club. Soon after that, they made their first radio appearance on John Peel's programme. When Melody Maker columnist Tony Wilson selected them and Led Zeppelin as the two bands "Most Likely To Succeed" (as he states on the liner notes of the band's debut LP), it appeared that their future was assured.

The first two albums

Yes's eponymous debut album was released on 25 July 1969. The harmony vocals of Anderson, Banks, and Squire were an immediate trademark of the Yes sound. The band's optimistic, vaguely futuristic outlook on the world was delivered with a combination of complex melody and technical virtuosity. Standout tracks were a jazzy take on The Byrds' "I See You" and the album closer, "Survival", which displayed the band's vocal harmonies and deft song-construction. There was also a cover of The Beatles' "Every Little Thing". Notably, the album was given a favourable review by Lester Bangs in Rolling Stone magazine, which described the band as promising, the album displaying a "sense of style, taste and subtlety"^[7]

In 1970, the band released their second album, this time accompanied by a 30-piece orchestra. Time and a Word featured mostly original compositions and two cover songs – "Everydays" by Stephen Stills (originally recorded by Buffalo Springfield) and Richie Havens' "No Opportunity Necessary, No Experience Needed" (in a reworked version including excerpts from the theme song of the movie The Big Country). Although musically exceptional in terms of melody delivery, the orchestra (and keyboardist Tony Kaye) overpowered Banks and much of the vocal work, leaving Time and a Word somewhat uneven.

Into the Yes style

Peter Banks had been particularly dissatisfied with Time and a Word, as well as with the sacking of Yes' first manager Roy Flynn later in the year. The consequent tensions resulted in Banks' ousting by Anderson and Squire before the release of Time and a Word. He would subsequently play briefly in Blodwyn Pig before launching his own progressive rock band Flash. Former Tomorrow guitarist Steve Howe replaced Banks in Yes, and was included in the front cover photo of the American release of Time and a Word, despite not having played on it.

The group's emerging style coalesced on their next LP, the critically acclaimed The Yes Album written together in a rented country house in the Devon countryside. This was the first Yes record to be entirely made up of original band compositions, which were noticeably longer and more ambitious than those on the two previous albums. Howe had quickly established himself as an integral part of the Yes sound, adding to compositions and expanding the band's guitar influences to include classical and country stylings as well as playing a wider variety of instruments such as the 12-string Portuguese vihuela. The Yes Album also united Yes with their long-serving producer and engineer Eddie Offord, whose studio expertise was a key factor in creating the Yes sound.

In 1971, Tony Kaye left the band. Although some reports attest that he was fired, others indicate that he left voluntarily. It is typically reported that the decision had to do with his unwillingness to use the emergent Moog synthesiser and other modern keyboard technology, as he considered himself to be simply an organist (mainly on the Hammond). Kaye later formed the group Badger and would rejoin Yes in the early 1980s. In between, he would guest in Peter Banks' Flash (a band sometimes accused of stealing Yes's musical sound – a sound Banks and Kaye themselves had been instrumental in creating).

Kaye was replaced by another classically-trained musician, the rising keyboard star Rick Wakeman. Wakeman had just left Strawbs and was already a noted studio musician with credits including T. Rex, David Bowie and Lou Reed. Wakeman was also the piano player for the Cat Stevens hit, "Morning Has Broken". He brought the band's keyboard playing up to a much higher level of technical skill (as well as becoming the band's unofficial musical arranger) and proved to be the perfect foil for Steve Howe both as soloist and ensemble player. As well as embracing the use of the Minimoog synthesiser (which Kaye had only played with reluctance), Wakeman brought another vital addition to the group's instrumentation: the Mellotron. With his flowing blond hair and sequined cape, and surrounded by keyboards, he also provided a strong visual focus on stage.

Arriving at symphonic rock (1971-1973)

Fragile and Close to the Edge

The first album released with the new lineup was 1971's Fragile (a Top Ten album in America), Musically, the album continued to develop Yes' growing interest in the sounds and structures of classical music, notably the work of Sibelius and Stravinsky. (Wakeman also contributed an electric keyboard arrangement of the third movement of a Brahms symphony). The album was also notable for presenting the work of each member in a series of solo (or near-solo) showcases such as Howe's classical guitar composition "Mood for a Day" part of which can be heard on the studio version of "The Clap", and Squire's multiple-overdub bass guitar piece "The Fish". Fragile also marked the beginning of the band's long collaboration with artist Roger Dean, who designed the group's logo and their album covers, as well as (with brother Martin Dean) their stage sets.

In February 1972 Yes recorded a non-album track, their dynamic ten-minute interpretation of Paul Simon's "America" (which subsequently appeared on the 1972 album The New Age of Atlantic, a compilation with several acts from the roster of Atlantic Records). This song had been a staple of Yes gigs since the band's early days (a version featuring Kaye appears on the Word Is Live box set). While Wakeman played most of the keyboard parts on the recording, he was not particularly enthusiastic about it and the Mellotron part on the end of the track was actually played by Bill Bruford.

The next Yes album, 1972's Close to the Edge was recorded following a lengthy studio stint and solidified the template for Yes music for the rest of the decade. It was by far the band's most ambitious effort to date, consisting of three lengthy compositions. The title track took up an entire side of the album and was constructed in classical sonata form although it drew on combined elements of classical music, psychedelic rock, pop, jazz and field recordings to create the final sound. Like its predecessor, Close To The Edge was a Top Ten record in the United States. Some listeners consider the album to be the high point of the whole progressive rock genre.

A growing live draw

The growing critical and commercial success of the band was not enough to retain Bill Bruford, who left Yes after the Close to the Edge sessions but before the album release, in order to join King Crimson. He was replaced by former Plastic Ono Band drummer Alan White, who brought a more conventional rock approach (a distinct contrast to the jazz-influenced drumming of Bruford). A friend of Anderson's and Offord's, White had sat in with the band once during the weeks before Bruford's departure, and was brought into Yes several months before the September 1972 release of Close to the Edge. (After trying each other out for three months, Squire threatened to throw White out the window if he did not join.)

White learned the band's ambitious repertoire in a matter of three days before embarking on the tour. He has since remained with the band for over thirty years and has maintained a reputation for having a collaborative and "down to earth attitude".^[8]

By this point, Yes were beginning to enjoy enormous commercial and critical success around the world. They were also becoming one of the most popular concert attractions of the day, benefitting from the tremendous advances in live music technology that were taking place at that time. Yes were particularly keen and quick to embrace and develop this technology, and were renowned for the high quality of both their sound and lighting. After supporting Iron Butterfly on a European tour in 1971, they had in fact bought the headliner's entire PA system so they could take control of their own sound.^[9]

The band's early touring with White was featured on their next release, the three-record live collection Yessongs (recorded on their US and UK tours in November-December 1972). The album also included several earlier recordings with Bruford – the songs "Long Distance Runaround" and "Perpetual Change" (the latter with an extended Bruford drum solo), and an extended Bruford-backed Chris Squire solo on "The Fish". Yessongs was a hugely ambitious project and undoubtedly a major gamble for their label, Atlantic Records. It was one of the first rock triple-album sets, featuring live versions of all-original material from the previous three studio albums. Presented in one of the most lavish album packages to date, Roger Dean's artwork spread across a triple gatefold cover and continued the cosmic-organic design concepts of the two previous albums.

A video of the tour, released under the same name, featured concert footage (with Howe garnering a large amount of the focus because his brother-in-law was the editor) intermixed with psychedelic visual effects.

Uncharted waters

Yes' next studio album, 1973's two-disc Tales from Topographic Oceans, marked a change in the band's fortunes and polarised fans and critics alike. Coming after extensive touring, the album was later described by Jon Anderson as "the meeting point of high ideals and low energy." Based on Anderson's interpretation of the Shastric scriptures (from a footnote within Paramahansa Yogananda's book Autobiography of a Yogi), Tales from Topographic Oceans was Yes' most technically ambitious effort to date. Although extended compositions were by now a Yes hallmark, each of the four compositions on the new album lasted for roughly 20 minutes and took up an entire side.

Tales from Topographic Oceans earned mixed reviews and left many feeling that the band was beginning to overreach itself. It was another chart success, becoming the band's fourth consecutive gold album, topping the UK album charts and reaching #6 in the U.S. (buoyed by enthusiastic fan pre-orders). More significantly, Rick Wakeman was not pleased with the album, and to this day is critical of much of it.^[11] Fans have credited the elaborately-staged album tour as the inspiration for the 'mockumentary' film, This Is Spinal Tap, which appears to imitate some incidents on the Tales tour with fairly minimal comedic alterations.^[11]

By this time, Rick Wakeman was also developing a burgeoning solo career on the strength of his Yes work and his status as "celebrity keyboard player". His scepticism over Tales from Topographic Oceans led him to quit Yes at the end of the Tales tour in 1974. Notably, he felt that certain sections of the album's composition were being "bled to death" as well as containing too much of musical padding. There were also differences in politics, outlook and lifestyle between himself and the rest of the band which reinforced his decision.

Wakeman has subsequently had a long, productive solo career including film scores, projects with his English Rock Ensemble and collaborations with other artists. He has also rejoined Yes on several occasions, and is still generally considered by fans to be the "classic" Yes keyboard player.

In 1976, Wakeman was involved in an attempt to form a new trio called British Bulldog with his former Yes bandmate Bill Bruford and with Bruford's fellow King Crimson alumni John Wetton. The project failed to get off the ground, although it subsequently led to the formation of the second-wave progressive rock band UK.

The fusion period (1974-1976)

Looking for a keyboard player

Yes auditioned several musicians to take over from Wakeman, including Roxy Music's Eddie Jobson and former Atlantis/Cat Stevens keyboard player Jean Roussel. For several weeks, they rehearsed with multi-instrumentalist Vangelis Papathanassiou—previously of Aphrodite's Child and later to find fame under his own name as Vangelis — which proved to be musically interesting but ultimately unsuccessful. (Vangelis would keep in touch with Jon Anderson, tapping the latter's vocal talents for his 1976 album Heaven And Hell and later teaming with him in 1979 as Jon and Vangelis.) Wakeman's eventual replacement was the Swiss keyboard player Patrick Moraz, a distinctive electric-jazz musician who'd previously been part of the trio Refugee (alongside two former members of The Nice).

Relayer and tours; break in activity

Moraz arrived in Yes fairly late during the sessions for the band's next album, Relayer, which was being recorded at Chris Squire's own home studio. He initially fit in well with the jazz-fusion influenced direction which Yes were pursuing with the album. This had been influenced by time on the road, during which Yes had crossed paths with fusion bands such as Return to Forever and Mahavishnu Orchestra.

Released in 1974, Relayer continued certain traditions in featuring a side-long track: a cosmic battle epic initially inspired by Tolstoy's War and Peace and called "The Gates of Delirium" (from which the "Soon" section was put out as a limited single release). The album was considerably more energetic than Tales from Topographic Oceans, featuring powerful ensemble playing and new musical ingredients such as electric flamenco guitar and additional emphasis on bizarre percussion (including a rack of found automobile parts).

Following an extended tour through 1975–1976, the band took a break while each member of the group released his own solo album, none of which were commercially well received, though Chris Squires's Fish out of Water was well received by the critics. At the same time, the compilation album Yesterdays was released, containing tracks from the first two albums as well as the 1972 Yes version of "America".

The first "classic" revival (1977-1979)

Wakeman returns; Going for the One

Late in 1976, Yes began working on sessions for a new album, to be titled Going for the One. During this period, Patrick Moraz was dismissed from the band, to be replaced by a returning Rick Wakeman. There are suggestions that the band had become disillusioned with Moraz's jazz-inspired approach when applied to the pre-Relayer repertoire (including his extensive use of pitch-bending). It has also been suggested that he did not fit in easily with the band's way of working and communicating.

There is some confusion about the sequence of events surrounding Moraz's dismissal. At the time Wakeman shared management with Yes, and it has been suggested that this may have played a strong role in engineering his return. Moraz himself is on record as saying he feels he deserves credit for much of the music on Going for the One. Steve Howe, in turn, has admitted that the group "tried to remove as much of Patrick from the songs as possible". This suggests that Moraz did, in fact, contribute to the initial sessions. Ultimately, Moraz ended up at the top of the ambiguous "thanks to..." list on the album sleeve. Following his departure from Yes, Moraz would embark on a solo career and would later go on to have additional success by joining The Moody Blues.

Meanwhile, (and after a considerable amount of negotiation) Wakeman had rejoined the band on a "session musician" basis. He became a permanent band member after hearing and being impressed by the new material, which he considered to be more energetic and interesting than Tales from Topographic Oceans.

Apart from the 15-minute track "Awaken", most of the songs on Going for the One were relatively short, including the madrigalesque "Wonderous Stories" (which was released as a single in the UK in 1977 and reached the top ten). Going for the One was also the first album not to feature Roger Dean's artwork since The Yes Album, although it does display the Yes logo that Dean designed. (Instead, the artwork was handled by design firm Hipgnosis).

Going for the One and its follow-up,1978's Tormato, were released at the height of the punk rock era in Britain, during which Yes were often criticised by the music press as representing the most bloated excesses of early 1970s progressive rock. Ironically, both albums were highly successful commercially, and Yes eventually outlasted almost all the groups of that era.

Uncertainty and upheaval: Tormato; the failed Paris sessions; departure of Anderson and Wakeman

1978's Tormato album saw the band continuing their movement towards shorter songs, played with a tighter rock feel that at points approached New Wave styling. At this point, there was evidence of Yes beginning to change aspects of their sound. Wakeman had replaced his Mellotrons with another tape-driven keyboard (the ill-fated Birotron) and Squire was experimenting with harmonisers and Mu-tron pedals. The band members themselves have subsequently said that they were not sure of some of the material on the album. This lack of focus extended to the production style, which was handled collectively by the band and saw disagreements at the mixing stage.

The album artwork would see large changes as well, with Hipgnosis taking a turn once again with their combination of manipulated photography and graphical elements in lieu of the traditional Roger Dean approach. Despite internal and external criticisms of the album, it was the first Yes LP to go platinum, and the band enjoyed successful tours supporting it in 1978 and 1979, though only a few cuts (usually "Future Times/Rejoice", "Circus of Heaven", "Don't Kill the Whale" and "Madrigal/On The Silent Wings Of Freedom") were played during the shows.

In October 1979, Yes convened in Paris with Queen/Cars producer Roy Thomas Baker. There are a number of statements by band members and rumours as to why the sessions did not produce a formal album, with dissatisfaction with Baker's approach usually being cited. (The release of some of the session demos on the Drama remaster confirms that Baker seemed intent on applying the tightly-compressed and deliberately artificial sound which had led to great commercial success with the Cars).

More significantly, the band's diverse collective approach was now succumbing to division. On one side, Anderson and Wakeman favoured a more fantastical and delicate approach to Yes' music – Howe, Squire, and White were on the other side, and preferred a heavier rock sound. During 1980, Howe, Squire, and White would later state that none of the three of them had liked the music which Anderson had been offering the band. They would also claim that it had been too lightweight and lacking in the heaviness that the guitarist, drummer and bass player had been generating during their own writing sessions. This description is borne out by bootlegs of the band's contemporary sessions. Some of Anderson's lighter songs (such as "Everybody Loves You") were played by Yes on the tour supporting Tormato but were never recorded by the band. (They would eventually appear on Anderson's 1980 solo album Song of Seven.)

In December 1979, the Paris sessions ended when White broke his foot, and recordings were abandoned. When the band reconvened to consider their next move, the aforementioned musical differences plus internal dissension obstructed progress. The tensions were primarily between Anderson and the rest of the band (although Wakeman "abstained" from the conflicts) and there is strong speculation that there was a falling-out over financial issues, predominantly involving Anderson spending more than his fair share of group monies. Claims and counterclaims followed. By May 1980, with agreement reached over musical direction and financial remuneration, Anderson left Yes. Rick Wakeman immediately followed suit, thinking that Yes could not continue without their primary voice.

New-wave Yes (1980-1981)

Merger with the Buggles; Drama

At the suggestion of Yes manager Brian Lane, Squire invited the synth-pop duo the Buggles (keyboardist Geoffrey Downes (keyboards) and singer Trevor Horn) to help out on a new Yes album. As the Buggles, Downes and Horn had recently enjoyed success of their own, including a worldwide hit with their single "Video Killed the Radio Star", and the initial idea was for them to help in writing new material. The duo already had a song called "We Can Fly From Here" which had been written with Yes in mind. To their surprise, they were invited to join Yes as full-time members. They accepted the invitation and performed on the Drama album in 1980 (on which "We Can Fly From Here" was not included).

Drama clearly displayed a heavier, harder sound than the material Yes recorded with Anderson in 1979, opening with the lengthy hard rocker "Machine Messiah". While Drama was well received by many fans, and often regarded as one of the finest moments for the trio of Squire, Howe, and White, despite the Horn/Downes contribution, many other Yes followers missed Anderson's unique lyrics and vocal style. The album's artwork (the album was nicknamed "Panthers" by some fans after the black cats featured in the Roger Dean cover) raised eyebrows as the inside cover also displayed a bit of a horror-house style in photo and graphic design, an anomaly that perplexed some fans.

The band undertook a North American tour in September 1980. The general consensus is that Horn sang the new material on tour well (although he had no experience fronting a band that performed on the scale of Yes shows) but struggled on the classic Yes material, as it was not in his range. When the band returned to England later in 1980, the English press heaped great criticism on Horn and Yes.

1981 – band split (and posthumous releases)

After the Drama tour, Yes reconvened in England to decide the band’s next step. Their first significant action was to dismiss their long-term manager Brian Lane, but this did not solve the immediate problems within Yes itself. Ultimately, Trevor Horn chose to leave and pursue a career in music production, and the band then began to disintegrate in earnest. Alan White and Chris Squire were the next Yes members to depart, leaving Downes and Howe as the only remaining members of Yes. They opted not to continue with the group, and went their separate ways. An announcement came from the group's management in late March 1981 confirming that YES no longer existed. Two more albums were released to apparently close Yes' career: the live album Yesshows (covering the pre-Drama tours supporting Relayer, Going for the One and Tormato) and the Classic Yes compilation.

Within the year Downes and Howe had reunited as part of the new "supergroup" Asia (with former King Crimson and UK bassist/vocalist John Wetton and Carl Palmer from Emerson, Lake & Palmer on drums).

Squire and White also continued to work together, initially recording sessions with former Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page for a proposed band to be called XYZ (short for "ex-Yes-and-Zeppelin"). Page's former Led Zeppelin bandmate Robert Plant was also to be involved as the vocalist, but he ultimately lost enthusiam for the project (citing his ongoing grieving for recently-deceased Zeppelin drummer John Bonham). Minus an appropriate frontman, XYZ ground to a halt. The project did produce a few demo tracks, elements of which would appear in later Yes music (most notably "Mind Drive" from Keys to Ascension 2, and "Can You Imagine", from Magnification).

Later in 1981, Squire and White released a Christmas single – "Run With the Fox" – as a duo, (with Squire on lead vocals and with words by onetime King Crimson/ELP lyricist Peter Sinfield), which received heavy rock-radio airplay thru the 80's and early 90's at Christmastime.

A new Yes for a new decade (1982-1988)

A band called Cinema

In 1982, over a year after the break-up of Yes, Chris Squire and Alan White linked up with South African rock guitarist and singer Trevor Rabin (ex-Rabbitt) to form a new band called Cinema. Since leaving Rabbitt, Rabin had released three solo albums, developed a parallel career as a record producer (including work with Manfred Mann), and been briefly considered as a member of Asia; he was a prolific songwriter with an understanding of popular music. These factors fitted Squire's concept for the new band, which was not initially intended as a continuation of Yes, although Squire and White's personal musical styles did ensure that certain aspects of Yes' original style remained (particularly in terms of vocal harmonies and the roots of songwriting). Original Yes organist Tony Kaye was later invited to participate as Squire felt that Kaye's textural approach to keyboards would suit the band.

Demos were recorded, and Cinema subsequently entered the studio to record a complete album. The initial material was promising, and included a catchy riff-oriented song called "Owner of a Lonely Heart". At this point, Rabin played most of the keyboards during the actual recording of the album in the studio (Tony Kaye had departed after 6 or so months of rehearsing due to friction with producer Trevor Horn) as well as playing guitar. Initially the lead vocals were shared between Rabin and Squire, but there was concern about Rabin as the lead vocalist. Another former Yes member, Trevor Horn, was involved with the project as a potential replacement lead singer but eventually opted to produce the sessions instead. Cinema remained under pressure to find an acceptable frontman.

Yes revived

Meanwhile, Jon Anderson had been continuing with his solo career, having recorded two solo albums (Song of Seven and Animation) since leaving the band. He had achieved greater success with the "Jon and Vangelis" project which reunited him with Vangelis Papathanassiou in 1979 to produce two albums – 1979's Short Stories (which generated the UK hit single "I Hear You Now") and 1981's The Friends of Mr Cairo (which in turn had produced the North American FM hit "Friends of Mr. Cairo" and another U.K. hit "I'll Find My Way Home"). Despite this success, Anderson later confessed that he had been "missing the band terribly."

In early 1983, Anderson encountered Chris Squire at a party in Los Angeles. Squire took the opportunity to play him some of Cinema's demos. Seeing that Anderson was impressed with the band's new approach in songs like "Leave It," Squire invited him to add his vocals to the new project. Anderson's involvement with Cinema was initially comparatively minor, involving re-singing vocals in the last few weeks of production. As he became integrated into the band, he also re-wrote lyrics.

At this point, the record company decided it made more commercial sense to market the album under the name of Yes. Trevor Rabin initially objected, as he now found that he had inadvertently joined a reunited band with a history and expectations (rather than helping to launch a new one).^[12] At this point the band contained three of the previous band's founding members (Tony Kaye was asked by Chris Squire to return just after the album's recording sessions had ended) and its longest serving drummer. The band agreed to go along with the plan, and Yes was formally relaunched.

"Yes West" (90125; 9012 Live; Big Generator)

The 1983-1988 lineup of Yes is nicknamed "Yes West" by many fans, due to the band's relocation to Los Angeles and their more American, radio-friendly sound during this period. Certainly the band's comeback album – 90125 – quickly established itself as a radical departure from their earlier sound. Although it featured the trademark Yes harmonies, these were now applied to shorter, punchier songs with distinct pop hooks and allied to Trevor Rabin's more hard-rock oriented guitar approach. The new material had more in common with contemporary album-oriented rock (such as Foreigner and the current three-man Genesis) than it did with previous Yes albums such as Close to the Edge.

Rabin was now the main writer and processor of the band's material: his multi-instrumentalism and additional skills as a producer had brought in a densely layered and multitracked arrangement style more akin to the work of Les Paul and far more attuned to contemporary pop expectations. As the album's main producer, Trevor Horn had polished the songs with modern electronic effects and digital sampling tricks via the then-new Fairlight CMI, and also played a prominent role in vocal arrangement (even contributing his own vocals at various points on the record, most notably on the predominantly a-cappella showcase "Leave It". Kaye's more streamlined playing style and the loss of Steve Howe's rawer electric guitar approach also smoothed down the sound. The album's music varied from deftly arranged power pop ("Owner of a Lonely Heart") and near-heavy-metal ("City of Love", and "Hold On") to energetic minimalist riffs ("Changes") and a more classic Yes-styled finale ("Hearts").

Some of the more long-term fans were dismayed by this stylistic shift and debate continues regarding the relative merits of this period of work. Fans preferring the "classic" 1970s version of Yes are sometimes labelled "Troopers" (after the 1970 Yes song "Starship Trooper") while fans of the "Yes West" lineup are often called "Generators" (from the title of that lineup's second album), although it should be noted that many Yes fans enjoy both periods of the group's music. However, it was undeniable that 90125 had introduced Yes to a massive new fan-base (including a new and younger audience) and a re-interest in their older material.

90125 eventually became Yes' most commercially successful album by far, selling over six million copies and securing a new lease on life for the band, who toured over a year to support it. The album's lead song, "Owner of a Lonely Heart", was a number 1 hit on the main charts and even crossed over to become a top hit on the R&B and disco charts. Sampled countless times since, it remains a defining song of 80's-era pop. The 90125 Tour was the most financially lucrative in the band's history, and made all the members, as well as Yes's management, extremely wealthy.

The video clip for "Owner of a Lonely Heart" also reveals a brief Yes personnel shuffle. During the promotional period for the song, Tony Kaye (who had continual conflicts with producer Trevor Horn during recording sessions) had left the band after 90125 had been completed, but not yet released, and had been replaced by Eddie Jobson. This resulted in Jobson appearing (though edited out as much as possible) in the original version of the song's video. Jobson has reported on his own website that he was first asked to replace Kaye and then (as relations were mended between Yes and Kaye) to share the keyboard duties. Jobson declined, and left the band as Kaye returned.

Yes also scored significant hit singles with "Leave It" and "It Can Happen," and garnered a Grammy award for Best Rock Instrumental ("Cinema," a short, highly compressed and complex track recorded live in the studio), suggesting that the group had not totally abandoned their musicianship in favour of commercial success, as some fans had alleged.

90125 also spawned a concert video, (9012Live, directed by a fresh-out-of-film school Steven Soderbergh) and a live mini-album (9012Live: The Solos). The latter featured full band performances of two 90125 songs ("Hold On" and "Changes") and a set of solo performances (Anderson performing "Soon" from "The Gates of Delirium", Squire performing a solo version of "Amazing Grace" and Rabin performing the McLaughlin-esque acoustic guitar piece "Solly's Beard"). The album also featured a lengthy drums-and-bass duet called "Whitefish" in which Squire and White performed a medley of music from "The Fish", "Tempus Fugit" and "Sound Chaser".

In 1986, Yes began recording the follow-up to 90125 – a record which would eventually be called Big Generator. Unfortunately, interpersonal problems (between Rabin and initial producer Trevor Horn) kept the album from timely completion. Eventually Rabin took over final production and the album was released in 1987.

Although Big Generator did not fare as well as 90125, it still sold well over two million copies. Some Yes fans have considered Big Generator more faithful to the vintage Yes sound than its predecessor because of a concentrated effort to record longer songs such as "I'm Running" and "Shoot High, Aim Low" in addition to the more poppy tunes. Notably, the album fared less well than its predecessor as a launchpad for singles, with the radio-friendly, Rabin-written-and-sung "Love Will Find a Way" charting only moderately well, and the Beach Boys-inspired "Rhythm of Love" barely scraping the US Top 40.

The 1988 tour ended with a gig at Madison Square Garden as part of Atlantic Records' 40th anniversary celebrations, but left Yes members exhausted and frustrated with one another.

The years of two Yes's (1989-1992)

Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe

By this point Jon Anderson had grown tired of the musical direction of the "Yes West" line-up and wanted the band to return to its classic sound: he had also been feeling increasingly sidelined by Rabin and Squire. Following the 1988 tour he took leave of the band, asserting that he would never stay in Yes purely for the money. Soon afterwards he began working in Monserrat on what initially appeared to be a solo album but which soon involved three other former Yes members from the band's "classic" 1970s period – Rick Wakeman, Steve Howe, and Bill Bruford. Inevitably this led to suggestions that there would be some kind of reformation of "classic" Yes (although from the start the project had included bass player Tony Levin on bass, brought in by Bruford after the two had worked together in King Crimson). As it turned out, the new project was contractually unable to use the Yes name, as Squire, White, Kaye, Rabin (and, ironically, Anderson) held the rights, dating back to the 90125 contract. Consequently, the new group called themselves "Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe", or simply ABWH (which suited some members of the project – particularly Bill Bruford – who wanted to distance themselves from the "Yes" name).

Appealing to old and new Yes fans, the eponymous Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe album of 1989 featured "Brother of Mine", a popular MTV video in its own right, and went gold in the United States. it later emerged that the four band members had not all recorded together (as they had in the early 1970s) and instead their parts were slotted into place on the album by Anderson and producer Chris Kimsey. Howe has stated publicly that he was unhappy with the mix of his guitars on the album (a version of "Fist of Fire" with more of Howe's guitars left intact eventually appeared on the In a Word box set in 2002). It is also worth noting that according to Bruford, the four-way writing credit does not reflect the actual writing process and was instead an incentive to have the ex-Yes men take part in the recording sessions.

After the album's release, legal battles (sparked by Atlantic Records) soon followed over the title of ABWH's tour, An Evening of Yes Music Plus, the live recording of which featured Bruford colleague Jeff Berlin in Levin's bassist spot, who was forced to sit out for two weeks because of illness. In addition, the live sessions were augmented by second keyboardist Julian Colbeck and guitarist Milton McDonald. The tour alternated between music from ABWH and vintage Yes classics, and each night opened with short solo stints from all four Yes members. Every ABWH song except for "Fist of Fire" and "Vultures in the City" were performed live, with "Quartet" and "Let's Pretend" only heard at the first show in Memphis, Tennessee.

"Union" and reunion

Meanwhile the Anderson-less Yes in Los Angeles were working on their follow-up to Big Generator and had been shopping around for a new singer. Ex-Supertramp vocalist Roger Hodgson had already rejected the post: although he enjoyed working and writing with the group, he thought it unwise to attempt to pass off the resulting music as "Yes". The band had also been working with songwriter Billy Sherwood of World Trade.

When presented with the initial mixes of the second ABWH album (which was to be called Dialogue), ABWH's new label Arista notified the band that they would not release it, as they felt the material was too weak. Instead they encouraged ABWH to seek outside songwriters, preferably ones who could help them deliver hit singles. Anderson approached Trevor Rabin about the situation, and Rabin sent Anderson a demo tape with four songs (indicating that ABWH could have one, but had to send the others back). Anderson selected one, "Lift Me Up", for use, and contacted Arista, who listened to all four songs and wanted all of them, a request to which Rabin would not agree.

Arista sensed the commercial possibility of a Yes re-union, and suggested that the 'YesWest' group (with Jon Anderson on vocals) record the four songs to add to the new album, which would then be released under the Yes name. This would lead to the end of Yes having new albums released by Atlantic Records after more than 20 years of their initial recording contract. Throughout early 1991, phone calls were made, lawyers soothed, and agreements were struck, with Yes West joining ABWH for the Union album. Each group did its own songs, with Jon Anderson singing on all tracks. Chris Squire sang background vocals on a few of the ABWH tracks (with Tony Levin doing all the bass on those songs). The album was clearly a somewhat forced combination of the music from the two line-ups, since none of the songs on Union featured all eight members at once; two-thirds were actually ABWH compositions, while Trevor Rabin and Chris Squire contributed four songs (including the Billy Sherwood collaboration "The More We Live").

The album itself fared well, with approximately 1.5 million sold worldwide. However, nearly the entire band have subsequently – and openly – stated their disliking for the finished product predominantly due to producer Jonathan Elias and Jon Anderson's involvement of session musicians on the ABWH tracks (the four Rabin supplied songs were all recorded and produced by the YesWest line-up) after the initial sessions. Bruford has disowned the album entirely, and Wakeman was reportedly unable to recognise any of his keyboard work in the final edit, and threw his copy of the album out of his limousine. He has gone on record as referring to the entire venture as "Onion" because it makes him cry when he thinks about it.

Producer Jonathan Elias later stated publicly in an interview that Jon Anderson as the associate producer knew of the session musicians. He added that he and Anderson had even initiated their contributions, due to the hostility between some of the band members at the time (notably between Anderson and Howe and Wakeman) with the result that none of the work was getting done.^[13]

The Union world tour united all eight members on one stage in a short-lived "Mega-Yes" line-up of Anderson, Squire, Howe, Rabin, Kaye, Wakeman, Bruford, and White. The tour itself featured tracks spanning the band's entire career, and it was one of the highest grossing concert tours of 1991 and 1992. Only a few songs from Union were performed live. "Shock to the System" and "Lift Me Up" were played at every show of the tour. "Take the Water to the Mountain" was only played at the first date in Pensacola, Florida. "Saving My Heart" was played at a handful of shows during the second North American leg. Steve Howe would play "Masquerade" on later tours.

When the Union tour was over in 1992, Bill Bruford and Steve Howe recorded an album of Yes instrumental music reinterpreted by an orchestra for RCA Victor, which featured Jon Anderson's vocals on two of the songs. Entitled Symphonic Music of Yes, the album offered new presentations of Yes songs. String arrangements were done by David Palmer, and the record was produced by Alan Parsons.

The Talk era (1993-1995)

90125 lineup renewed

While the Union tour had been commercially successful, it had not healed the band's fractured personnel situation. Bill Bruford chose not to remain involved with Yes, instead returning to his jazz project Earthworks. Jon Anderson had begun to write with both Howe and Rabin separately, as the two guitarists had still not managed to achieve a good working relationship with each other.

As with Union, the next Yes project was masterminded by a record company rather than the band itself. Victory Music approached Trevor Rabin with a proposal to produce an album solely with the 90125 "Yes-West" lineup. Rabin initially countered by requesting that Rick Wakeman also be included (although Steve Howe was not invited to participate). Rabin began assembling the album at his home (via the then-pioneering concept of a digital home studio) using material written predominantly by himself and Anderson.

By 1993, the new album was well into production, but Wakeman's involvement had finally been cancelled as his refusal to leave his long-serving management created insuperable legal problems. (Rabin and Wakeman have both expressed regret that they never played together on a Yes album – excepting the patchwork of Union – although Rabin did guest on Wakeman's Return to the Centre of the Earth album in 1999). With Howe and Bruford already out of the picture, Yes were back to their popular 1980s lineup of Jon Anderson, Chris Squire, Trevor Rabin, Tony Kaye, and Alan White (as Victory had desired).

Talk album; 1995 split

In 1994 Yes released the new album under the title of Talk. Entirely digitally recorded, it blended elements of Yes-West radio-friendly rock with a more structurally ambitious approach taken from Yes' 1970s blueprint (even including the lengthy epic "Endless Dream" across most of the second half) as well as ingredients of contemporary electronic dance music, heavy metal and jazz. It also featured the more AOR-inclined song "Walls", which Rabin had written with Roger Hodgson for one of the latter's solo albums. Rabin's dominance over the album had extended beyond being producer, engineer, songwriter and guitarist to include playing all of the album's keyboards (bar occasional Hammond organ work from Tony Kaye) and some of the bass guitar, and the response from fans was mixed.

Despite Victory Music's hopes, Talk ultimately proved to be one of Yes' poorest selling releases (possibly affected by the sudden rise in the popularity of grunge music at the time). Although the first single from the album – "The Calling" – was perhaps Yes' strongest single since "Owner of a Lonely Heart", neither the record label nor US radio stations provided much promotion for it. Fortunately, one broadcast of the single had been heard by David Letterman while driving: impressed, and unaware of the source of the single, he had immediately taken steps to find out more about the "new band" who had performed it in order to have them appear on his show. Yes performed on Late Night with Letterman on 20 June 1994, just days into their 1994 Talk tour, performing the song "Walls" (co-written with Roger Hodgson).

For the tour, guitarist/vocalist Billy Sherwood joined as a live band member, playing additional guitar and keyboards. The Talk tour featured an innovative sound system via which fans at a concert could listen on their portable FM radios turned to a specific frequency to hear greater dynamic range and stereo effects during the concerts.

Following the tour, Trevor Rabin opted to leave the band to pursue other projects (he would go on to become a highly successful film score composer). Tony Kaye also left the band to retire from performance (he subsequently returned to it, providing Hammond organ on several tracks on the Sherwood-produced Return to the Dark Side of the Moon in 2006 and then working on further projects with Billy Sherwood).

The second "classic" revival (1996-2003)

Keys To Ascension

With Rabin and Kaye now out of the picture, Jon Anderson, Chris Squire and Alan White opted to return to the classic 1970s style of Yes music. Repairing their working relationship with the remaining members of the core 1970s lineup (Steve Howe and Rick Wakeman), the band reunited for a three-night live performance near Anderson's home in the California town of San Luis Obispo in 1996. The shows sold out and were recorded, with the band's enthusiasm continuing into further studio sessions. The band formed a brief contract with CMC International Records who released some of the live tracks from the show later in 1996 as the Keys to Ascension which also included two new studio tracks. A live DVD under the same name was also released.

With the revived lineup now established and enthusiastic, the band recorded new tracks (drawing in part on material written around the time of the bands initial split in 1980 and included material demoed by Squire and White for the XYZ project. Although at one point the new material was to be released as a standalone studio album (with the working title of Know), commercial considerations meant that the new tracks were eventually packaged with the remainder of the 1996 live material on another hybrid live-and-studio album, Keys to Ascension 2. (The studio material from these two albums was later combined and released on a single CD called Keystudio.)

The initial "classic Yes" reunion was short-lived, due to disagreements with Rick Wakeman. These included his disgruntlement at the way in which a full new Yes studio album had been sacrificed in favour of the two Keys to Ascension releases, and were worsened by Wakeman's feelings about a Yes tour being arranged without his input or agreement. Wakeman left Yes for the fourth time, shortly before the release of Keys to Ascension 2, leaving the band without a key performer and undercutting the commercial potential of the "classic" reunion.

Bridging the styles

Now in need of material for a new Yes studio album which could reflect the change in circumstances, Chris Squire turned to a project called Conspiracy, which he'd been working on with Billy Sherwood (and which had included contributions from Alan White). Squire and Sherwood reworked existing Conspiracy demos and recordings to turn them into Yes songs, as well as adding new material. Jon Anderson and Steve Howe were less involved with the writing and production at this stage, and expressed dissatisfaction about this later. Sherwood's integral involvement with the writing, production and performance of the music led to him formally joining Yes as a full member at the end of the sessions, taking on the role of keyboard player, harmony singer and second guitarist. On tour, he would concentrate on backing vocals and guitar, playing backup parts to Steve Howe and performing the solos on Rabin-era songs (Howe refused to do this himself, claiming that his style would not fit those solos).

The new album, Open Your Eyes, was released in 1997 – this, and future releases, would come out on the Beyond Music label to ensure that Yes had more of a say in packaging and titling the albums. The title track and one other, "New State of Mind", received a fair amount of radio airplay. The tour that followed featured only a few pieces from the new album ("Open Your Eyes", "From The Balcony", and "No Way We Can Lose"), and mostly concentrated on the revival of early Yes material such as "Siberian Khatru", and was very well attended by the public. Yes also performed "Children of Light" from the album Keys to Ascension 2. The return of Steve Howe to the touring Yes, along with a heavier emphasis on 1970s-era Yes music, was considered an exciting development by many fans. The tour also featured keyboards from Russian keyboard player Igor Khoroshev, who had played on a few of the Open Your Eyes tracks.

Khoroshev continued to work with the band, becoming a full member by the time the band recorded their next album, The Ladder. This would be the last album that record producer Bruce Fairbairn would work on before his untimely death. Many fans were reminded of the band's 1970s sound – largely because of Khoroshev's classically-oriented keyboard approach – although Alan White also brought in a strong world-music influence (with the band experimenting with Latinesque arrangements and with multi-instrumentalist Randy Raine-Reusch contributing to the album's textures). Sherwood's role continued to be limited to backup vocals and backup guitar.

"Homeworld (The Ladder)", a track from The Ladder, was written for Relic Entertainment's Homeworld real-time strategy computer game and was used as the credits and outro theme. It is interesting to note that the band stated that they wrote the song not because they were requested by the game's developers, but because they liked several aspects of the game itself.

The 1999 tour resulted in a live DVD of the performance at the Las Vegas House of Blues.

Sherwood, finding Yes's internal politics uncomfortable , left the band before the 2000 Masterworks tour, which featured a revival of the Moraz-period extended piece "The Gates of Delirium" (from the album Relayer). Shortly before the scheduled recording of Yes' next album, Khoroshev was fired from the band amidst a cloud of controversy over his backstage conduct (which included a sexual assault charge).

Orchestral Yes; Magnification

Yes' following studio album, 2001's Magnification, was recorded without a keyboard player in the band. Instead, Yes was backed by a 60-piece orchestra performing specific parts and arrangements written by notable film composer Larry Groupé (and filling the dynamic range and arrangement space usually filled by a keyboard player). The band took an orchestra on tour with them to promote the album, although they also hired keyboardist Tom Brislin in order to reproduce some of the classic Yes keyboard material more faithfully.

Third return of Wakeman

Fans who felt they were short-changed in 1996 were delighted as Rick Wakeman announced his return to the group on 20 April 2002, and a world tour for Yes followed, including a return to Australia after more than 30 years. The lineup enjoyed a somewhat revitalised presence in the public consciousness, especially during the celebration of their 35th anniversary in 2004. This revitalisation showed itself during a show in New York's Madison Square Garden. Near the end of the song "And You and I" where Howe finishes his pedal steel part, before the last few acoustic notes, the band was overwhelmed with thunderous applause. It lasted so long that by the time it subsided, the roadies had already removed Howe's guitar – Wakeman then had to play the last bit with Anderson singing.

Reacting to an online survey of popular Yes songs to play, the band added "South Side of the Sky" to the touring set list, a surprise given that it had rarely been played before (even on the original Fragile tour). In later legs of the tour, the band performed some songs in acoustic style, after doing a live-via-satellite concert as part of the Yesspeak documentary premiere.

Hiatus, side projects & health scares (2004-2008)

Following the 35th Anniversary tour, Yes went on hiatus. In lieu of releasing new albums, they formed deals with Image Entertainment and other video firms to release past concert performances, music videos, and interviews on DVD. Howe, Squire, Wakeman and White had all expressed an interest in recording and touring, but Anderson had been firmly opposed because of personal health concerns. During the hiatus, band members pursued a variety of solo projects.

In January 2004, Anderson embarked on a solo tour called the "Tour Of The Universe", while Squire joined a reformed version of The Syn, one of his pre-Yes groups from the 1960s. The reunited group also included original singer Steve Nardelli and original Syn/Yes guitarist Peter Banks, augmented by new musicians. Squire's involvement would last until 16 May 2006, when he announced that he had left the group.^[14] (Banks had previously departed the reformed group in the early stages of the reunion). The Syn would continue for a few more years around the nucleus of Nardelli, with a variety of musicians including Francis Dunnery and members of Echolyn.

On 11 November 2004, for one night only, Trevor Rabin, Steve Howe, Chris Squire, Alan White, and Geoff Downes performed "Cinema", and "Owner of a Lonely Heart" at the Prince's Trust concert at Wembley Arena, which was a tribute to former Yes vocalist/producer Trevor Horn. It remains somewhat unclear why Anderson did not perform that night, although since Horn was being honoured that night (the other acts that played that night were all produced by Horn), there may have been a desire to emphasise Horn's role rather than Anderson's. One report said that Anderson needed time to rest, under doctors' orders, and that Wakeman declined to join in because of Anderson's absence. Whatever the exact reason, fans of the 90125 era were delighted to see Rabin perform with the group for the first time in ten years, and, as on the Union tour, the audience was treated to guitar solos by both Rabin and Howe.

Meanwhile, White had formed a new Seattle-based group, White, featuring Downes. Their debut album, also called White, was released on 18 April 2006. Plans for a joint tour by White, The Syn, and Steve Howe (which would have included the Yes members, augmented by White singer Kevin Currie, performing songs from Drama) were cancelled, partially . Instead, White toured separately in 2006.

On 16 May 2006 the original members of Asia – including Howe and Geoff Downes – announced that they would be reuniting for a 25th anniversary tour in September that year. Anderson and Wakeman toured together in October 2006, and the set list for most shows featured Yes material along with songs from both their solo careers, and at least one ABWH song.

In March 2007, Billy Sherwood, Tony Kaye, Alan White and guitarist Jimmy Haun (who'd played many of the guitar parts on Union) formally announced the formation of the Yes-related supergroup called Circa, which they had been rehearsing since the previous year. On 30 July 2007, the band self-released on Internet their debut album, Circa 2007. Their debut live performance was held on 23 August 2007, at The Coach House in San Juan Capistrano, at which time the band performed its entire debut album followed by an hour-long medley of Yes songs.

In November 2007, Anderson embarked on a one-month European solo tour. In the first half of 2008, he toured North America solo (as the "Tour Of The Universe") extensively visiting Canada. Meanwhile, Howe continued to tour with Asia and White toured with Circa. Anderson also commented that he had also composed some new music with former Yes bandmate Trevor Rabin, although to date this music has not surfaced..

Yes themselves were due to return for a 2008 world tour in honour of the band's 40th Anniversary, entitled Close to the Edge and Back. This tour would have featured Oliver Wakeman sitting in on keyboards, in lieu of his father Rick (who had had to bow out on the advice of his doctors). At the time, Anderson claimed that the band had been preparing four new "lengthy, multi-movement compositions" for the tour which were "very, very different." (After the weak sales of Magnification, Anderson also suggested that "putting together an album really isn't logical anymore" and no announcement was made as to a release of recordings of the new material in any form.)^[15]

However, the tour was cancelled when Anderson was admitted to hospital in May 2008 following a severe asthma attack. He was diagnosed with acute respiratory failure and advised by doctors not to work for a period of at least six months in order to avoid suffering further health complications. On 4 June 2008, the band officially put their tour plans on hold.^[16]

A new lineup (2008-present)

In The Present

On 4 November 2008 in Ontario, Canada, the band began a separate, North American tour entitled "In The Present" as "Steve Howe, Chris Squire and Alan White of Yes", featuring Howe, Squire & White, along with Oliver Wakeman on keyboards.^[4] Most notably, Anderson had been replaced as lead vocalist by Canadian singer Benoît David,^[4] (previously best known for fronting the progressive rock band Mystery and for a Yes tribute band called Close to the Edge). The tour saw the return to the live set of material from the Drama album ("Tempus Fugit" and "Machine Messiah"), "Astral Traveller" from Time and a Word (not played live since 1971), as well as one new Chris Squire composition, "Aliens (Are Only Us from the Future)."

David's position as lead singer on the tour led many to question Anderson's ongoing role in the band, and even whether Anderson remained a member of Yes. The issue was complicated by the fact that the shows were formally billed as "Howe, Squire and White of Yes," although many reports and outlets simply referred to the band as "Yes".^{[17][18][19][20]} Anderson's own public reaction was one of disappointment, with the singer stating on his website that he felt "disappointed" and "disrespected" by the move and by the lack of contact the other members had had with him since his illness. Later, this announcement was removed from his website,^[21] and Squire has since said that the tour had Anderson's "blessings".^[22] Subsequently, Jon Anderson conducted solo tours in Europe and North America,^[23] and a tour with Rick Wakeman is planned for late 2010.^[24][25]

On 9 February 2009, Squire had emergency leg surgery on 11 February 2009. His month of recuperation resulted in the postponement of the remainder of the scheduled "In the Present" shows, mostly in the Western USA.^[26][27] Howe took advantage of the postponed tour to fit in some more work with Asia. Following Squire's recovery – and similarly taking advantage of the gap in Yes' tour schedule, Squire and White reunited with Trevor Rabin at a benefit reception on 18 April 2009 in Snoqualmie, Washington, playing the music of John Lennon.

The Perpetuation of Yes

The Yes tour resumed in the summer of 2009 and early 2010, with the same "In the Present" band, simply billed as "Yes" playing shows in Europe and North America.^[28] This tour featured Asia as an opening act, with Steve Howe playing with both bands. Yes began further touring in June/July 2010 with Peter Frampton. On 9 July 2010, Trevor Rabin performed live with Yes on stage, for a one-time show at the Greek Theater in Los Angeles, for the first time in nearly six years.

Chris Squire confirmed in a radio interview that Oliver Wakeman and Benoît David are now official members of the band, stating "this is now Yes." ^[29] This lineup has been working on new material and will enter the studio in October 2010.^[30][31] Steve Howe has stated that Jon Anderson would not be included on the new studio album, stating, "this is the lineup that actually… does the work. We're the perpetuation, the continuation, and the saga of Yes."^[32]

Discography

Only studio albums are listed below, including releases by ABWH.

• Yes (1969)
• Time and a Word (1970)
• The Yes Album (1971)
• Fragile (1971)
• Close to the Edge (1972)
• Tales from Topographic Oceans (1973)
• Relayer (1974)
• Going for the One (1977)
• Tormato (1978)
• Drama (1980)
• 90125 (1983)
• Big Generator (1987)
• Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe (1989)
• Union (1991)
• Talk (1994)
• Keys to Ascension (studio & live) (1996)
• Keys to Ascension 2 (studio & live) (1997)
• Open Your Eyes (1997)
• The Ladder (1999)
• Magnification (2001)

Tours

Personnel

Year	Lead vocals	Guitar	Keyboards	Bass	Drums
1968–1970	Jon Anderson	Peter Banks	Tony Kaye	Chris Squire	Bill Bruford
1970–1971		Steve Howe
1971–1972			Rick Wakeman
1972–1974					Alan White
1974–1976			Patrick Moraz
1976–1980			Rick Wakeman
1980–1981	Trevor Horn		Geoff Downes
1981–1983	Group disbanded
1983–1989	Jon Anderson	Trevor Rabin	Tony Kaye Trevor Rabin (studio only)	Chris Squire	Alan White
1990–1992		Trevor Rabin Steve Howe	Tony Kaye Rick Wakeman		Alan White Bill Bruford
1993–1994		Trevor Rabin	Tony Kaye Trevor Rabin		Alan White
1995–1997		Steve Howe	Rick Wakeman
1997		Steve Howe Billy Sherwood	Billy Sherwood (studio only)
1997–2000			Igor Khoroshev
2000		Steve Howe
2001–2002			Tom Brislin (touring only)
2002–2004			Rick Wakeman
2004–2008	Group on hiatus
2008–present	Benoît David	Steve Howe	Oliver Wakeman	Chris Squire	Alan White

Album Lineup Chart

Instrument

Yes

Time and a Word

The Yes Album

Fragile

Close to the Edge

Tales From Topographic Oceans

Relayer

Going for the One

Tormato

Drama

90125

Big Generator

Union

Talk

Keys to Ascension

Keys to Ascension 2

Open Your Eyes

The Ladder

Magnification

Vocals

Jon Anderson

Trevor Horn

Jon Anderson

Guitar

Peter Banks

Steve Howe

Trevor Rabin

Steve Howe

Guitar 2

Steve Howe

Billy Sherwood

Keyboards

Tony Kaye

Rick Wakeman

Patrick Moraz

Rick Wakeman

Geoff Downes

Tony Kaye

Rick Wakeman

Igor Khoroshev

Keyboards 2

Trevor Rabin

Rick Wakeman

Trevor Rabin

Drums

Bill Bruford

Alan White

Drums 2

Bill Bruford

Bass

Chris Squire

Note that Trevor Rabin played many of the keyboards in the studio during his time in Yes.

Covers and remixes

In 2005, DJ Max Graham remixed Yes' "Owner of a Lonely Heart", credited to Max Graham Vs. Yes. The song reached the Top 10 on the UK Singles Chart.^[33]

Two characters in the film The Break-Up sing "Owner of a Lonely Heart" a cappella at a dinner. The song is included on the soundtrack album of music from the film.

Notes

External links

• YESFANS: The Official Fan Forums
• Yesworld: The Official Yes website
• 1983 audio interview with Trevor Rabin, Alan White, Chris Squire, Jon Anderson, Rick Wakeman

Yes Chris Squire · Steve Howe · Benoît David · Alan White · Oliver Wakeman Jon Anderson · Peter Banks · Bill Bruford · Geoff Downes · Trevor Horn · Tony Kaye · Igor Khoroshev · Patrick Moraz · Trevor Rabin · Billy Sherwood · Rick Wakeman Studio albums Yes · Time and a Word · The Yes Album · Fragile · Close to the Edge · Tales from Topographic Oceans · Relayer · Going for the One · Tormato · Drama · 90125 · Big Generator · Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe · Union · Talk · Keys to Ascension · Keys to Ascension 2  · Open Your Eyes · The Ladder · Magnification Live albums Yessongs · Yesshows · 9012Live: The Solos · Keys to Ascension · Keys to Ascension 2 · House of Yes: Live from House of Blues · Live at Montreux 2003 · Symphonic Live · Union Live Compilations Yesterdays · Classic Yes · Yesstory · Highlights: The Very Best of Yes · Something's Coming: The BBC Recordings 1969–1970 · Keystudio · Yes Remixes · The Ultimate Yes: 35th Anniversary Collection · Yes, Friends and Relatives · Greatest Hits Live Video releases Yessongs · 9012Live · YesYears · Greatest Video Hits · Yes: Live - 1975 at Q.P.R. · Live in Philadelphia · Keys to Ascension  · House of Yes: Live from House of Blues · Symphonic Live  · Yesspeak · Yes Acoustic: Guaranteed No Hiss · Songs from Tsongas · Live at Montreux 2003 · Classic Artists: Yes · Yesspeak Live: The Director's Cut  · Live in Chile 1994  · The Lost Broadcasts  · Union Live Box sets Yesyears · In a Word: Yes (1969–) · The Word Is Live · Essentially Yes Related articles Yes discography · Yes Tours  · XYZ · Cinema · UK · The Buggles · Asia · Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe · Circa · Yoso · GTR · Yesoteric