Jon Anderson and The Band Geeks
2023-04-16
NJ Performing Arts Center
Newark, NJ
Audience recording (A Kitty Lickin' Discs Production), very good quality
Available in both Lossless (FLAV) and Mp3 (320 kbps) versions
The current lineup of legendary progressive rock band Yes (consisting of Steve Howe, Geoff Downes, Billy Sherwood, Jon Davidson, and Jay Schellen) has recently released a new album, Mirror to the Sky, and has received positive reviews as their best album in many years. However, founding member and original longtime vocalist Jon Anderson, considered to be one of the all-time great prog vocalists, has not been a part of the group Yes for nearly 20 years now. But in the hearts and minds of Yes fans the world over, Jon Anderson will always be THE vocalist for Yes. And Jon is still very much interested in carrying on the music of Yes, and now he has teamed up with a talented group of accomplished musicians known as The Band Geeks, and he is currently on tour with them with a show called Yes Epics and Classics featuring Jon Anderson and The Band Geeks. And wow, what a show! Jon has still got it, even at 78 yrs old, his voice sounds great, and the Band Geeks admirably replicate the musical virtuosity of Yes at their peek. And the setlist is spectacular, filled with the band's greatest songs from their peak 70's period, including nearly all of the epic and classic tracks you would want to hear Yes play in concert. It is the greatest setlist ever for a Yes show, and comes in at amazing 2.5 hours They are all here, Yours is No Disgrace, Starship Trooper, Roundabout, Heart of the Sunrise, Close to the Edge, And You and I, Awaken, and one of my personal faves, Perpetual Change. And there are 2 further epic tracks that were played on alternating nights (rest of setlist same each night), Riual from Tales from Topographic Oceans, and The Gates of Delirium from Relayer. Just sensational. And if you are thinking, yeah, well it's still not the Real Yes, hey, it's pretty darn close, as close as you will get in 2023, and with Jon Anderson fronting, well it's got just as much a claim to the Yes name as the current incarnation of the band. So, the current yes band has a pretty good album out currently, but it doesn't hold a candle to the classics in this show, and it all sounds great. This show is from last month (4/16/23) in New Jersey, and it is a good audience recording. Ritual was the latter part of the shpow epiv played that night, but have included a bonus track of a recording of Gates of Delirium from the Reading PA show the following week, so that all of the songs they play are represented here (with the addition of the bonus track, the show is nearly 3 hrs long!). Although it is impossible to get a full real reunion of the classic lineup of Yes ever again (Chris Squire and Alan White have died, Bill Bruford has retired from drumming), this may just be the next best thing, at least for dynamite versions of the classic songs.
Tracklist:
Set One
1. Firebird Suite
2. Yours Is No Disgrace
3. Perpetual Change
4. Close To The Edge
5. Heart Of The Sunrise
6. Starship Trooper
7. Awaken
Set Two
8. And You And I
9. I've Seen All Good People
10. Ritual
11. Owner Of A Lonely Heart
12. Roundabout
Bonus Track (2023-04-23 - Reading, PA)
13. The Gates of Delirium
Jon Anderson - vocals, guitar, percussion, harp
Richie Castellano - bass, guitar, vocals
Andy Graziano - guitar, bass, vocals
Chris Clark - keyboards, vocals
Robert Kipp - keyboards, guitar, vocals
Andy Ascolese - drums
Ann Marie Nacchio - backing vocals on 9, 11 & 12
Rob Schmoll - acoustic guitar on 8 & 9
