I've had the pleasure of seeing them twice...once at 'The Fox Theatre' in Detroit in 2004 and another time in 1998 for the 30th Anniversary Tour...and it's amazing how good they sounded. Jon Anderson's voice didn't sound like it aged much. I have their '72 Tour on CD...'YESSONGS'...and they sounded pretty much the same as that when I saw them.

Any of you older guys have any good recollections of seeing them back in the way back?

Yes, saw them a couple of times. My favorite was on the "Topographic Oceans" tour. A great band, fully capable of doing their complex music live in concert.

In 74 I saw them. But that was with Moraz and White, so not sure if that's actually classic or not. IMO, White was on fire that night and easily walked over anything I've ever heard Bruford do. Moraz fit OK since they just put out Relayer, and he was up on the right corner of the stage sort by himself, up high his own sort of stage-like deal, back to the audience most of the time, but could see what he was doing easily.

My gal saw them three times, mid to late Seventies. Moi? None.

One of my favorite prog groups, tho'.

I saw them in 1971, second bill to Black Sabbath. It was their first US tour.
Wild Turkey was third bill. Doesn't seem like 36 years ago.


Carl

I saw 'em with Rick Wakeman; I do not recall who was drumming, ca. 1976. They were surprisingly ordinary live (and the sound wasn't good). I was very disappointed.

IMNSHO (and FWIW), they sank under the weight of their own pretentions after Close to the Edge.

EDIT: I'd like to have seen them in the early 1970's with Tony Kaye (and Bruford, of course). Not that Kaye was a great keyboardist, but I never liked Wakeman's histrionics.

They were surprisingly ordinary live (and the sound wasn't good). I was very disappointed.

IMNSHO (and FWIW), they sank under the weight of their own pretentions after Close to the Edge.



Wow, that is the first time I hear of someone thinking they were ordinary live, especially then, when Howe dominated the stage and sound..

Actually of their classic stuff, Close to The Edge is the one I listen to the least, Relayer the most...

My brother and me, saw them at The Forum when they toured Going For The One in The Round...

I think they did then and do still today kick ass live...

The Yes Album was their newest album the 1st time I saw them.


Carl

i saw them in 1985 in greensboro with my then wife who was 8 mos. pregant with my 1st son . they sounded great ,and my son loves yes today . timeless music .

The Yes Album is my fave, FWIW.

Saw them three times between 74 and 77. I think two of the times had Wakeman, one Moraz. I was always a huge fan so I'm sure I enjoyed myself (you never know about these things). Also saw the classic lineup about 2 or 3 years ago. Great show (times have changed...I remember now :D). Steve Howe was fantastic. They had a chidren's choir do a song with them. Also saw Wakeman solo last year. Very entertaining show. Yes he was a pompous ass at times. But he came across as very engaging solo. Side 2 of Close to the Edge is my fav...the whole Relayer album next.

Milwaukee, '72. Anderson, Wakeman, Howe & Squire, White on drums.
Burned I've Seen All Good People into my mind forever...

Eagles played with them. I seriously don't remember a thing about the Eagles performance.

If you want a glimpse of the earlier lineup with Bruford, get the ABWH Live CD or DVD, and listen to the end of Starship Trooper....Bruford is freaking awesome and doesnt drown out the band like White does sometimes abusing cymbals and snares ad nauseum...

Milwaukee, '72. Anderson, Wakeman, Howe & Squire, White on drums.
Burned I've Seen All Good People into my mind forever...

Eagles played with them. I seriously don't remember a thing about the Eagles performance.



Asbury Park, N.J. Convention Hall. The Eagles played Take It Easy to a very
enthusiastic audience. The best part was that I got the tickets at the
last moment for free!

I was 17 yrs.old. It was the summer of our Bicentenial. They were at their peak on stage and on FM radio. The backdrop was of clouds floating by. I am sure I got my monies worth.

Milwaukee, '72. Anderson, Wakeman, Howe & Squire, White on drums.
Burned I've Seen All Good People into my mind forever...

Eagles played with them. I seriously don't remember a thing about the Eagles performance.

Asbury Park, N.J. Convention Hall. The Eagles played Take It Easy to a very
enthusiastic audience. The best part was that I got the tickets at the
last moment for free!


I'm sure I don't remember because the Eagles put on a bad show, I think we got a little too "prepared" for YES.

Meggy...i think 72 is still Bruford...he didnt leave until after the touring had started...maybe it was 72..

Saw 'em in 77 ad 79. Great shows both times.

I saw them in '91, won the tickets on a local radio station.

http://www.forgottenyesterdays.com/ lists all the tours, dates, band lineup, set lists, etc...

I saw them in the round in Philadelphia in 1979. Was having too much fun to remember much of the show except the stage circled 17 times in each direction! :D

Yank

One of the best concerts I have seen and that includes 1977 Zeppelin as well as many of the top shows of the mid to later 70's. We forced our way to the front of the stage and it was a great show.

We were right in front of Steve Howe and I loved his assortment of guitars. Sound was good although being right up front always makes a difference just from being so close.

Date : Monday, August 01, 1977 (30 years, 1 month and 11 days ago)
City : Hampton, Virginia, United States Of America
Venue : Hampton Coliseum
Capacity : 13,800
Lineup : Jon Anderson (Vocals)
Steve Howe (Guitars)
Chris Squire (Bass)
Rick Wakeman (Keyboards)
Alan White (Drums)

Setlist : Firebird Suite
Parallels
I've Seen All Good People
Close To The Edge
Wonderous Stories
Colours Of The Rainbow/Turn Of The Century
And You And I
Going For The One
Flight Jam/Awaken
Starship Trooper
Roundabout

'Ram' dropped



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

With : Donovan

I saw them in MD in about '79. I liked their stuff, but the soundstage was too confusing because they put out so much at varying levels.... some orchestral unamplified and then Wakeman's synth's at full bore. I was kinda disappointed.

I experienced Yes several times between 1975 and 1980, but the show most memorable was in 1975, with Patrick Moraz on keyboards and their laser light setup.

Absolutely spectacular!! :thmbsp:

The auditorium was not even half full. :saywhat:

I can't adequately describe the concert. They Played "The Ritual" from "Tales of Topographic Oceans" and ALSO "The Gates of Delirium" from "Relayer", BACK TO BACK! :yes:

I have not, nor ever will, see the kind of show they put on that night in June, again! I still get goosebumps when I hear "Siberian Khatru". Not to mention "And You And I" and "Heart Of The Sunrise"

If there was one thing in my life I could do over, seeing this show would be it.

I think the first I saw yes was either the "Close to the Edge" or "Tales" Tour, and that was with Alan White and Wakeman. Then I saw the Relayer Tour with Moraz, then more recently I think it was Anderson, Bruford, Wakeman, Howe, and Squire. They were totally amazing in the recent tour, just as great as when they were young. They were obviously enjoying themselves and the audience was blown away. This was an outdoor concert at Blossom Music Center. It started to pour down rain and they let the folks on the grass come in under the pavilion, because there were open seats.
My favorite album is Close to the Edge.

I was amazed by the bass solo in the Symphonic Yes DVD in the Ritual from Tales. Favorite YES DVD by far.

I'm sure I don't remember because the Eagles put on a bad show, I think we got a little too "prepared" for YES.

That reminds me of when I went to a Moody Blues concert (my favorite band) in 1984 in Austin and had to sit through this local act before the Moodies came out....(hurry up kid, I kept telling myself...). In retrospect, I should have appreciated the first concert a lot more. Yeah, that Kid, Stevie Ray Vaughn was a pretty good act and guitarist afterall....

I know that Alan White has played on a lot more Yes albums than Bruford, but in my opinion, the "classic" lineup would be with Bruford. I saw Yes in the '80's and Alan White played one of the worst drum solo's that I have ever heard (with the exception of one of my own!)! Maybe he was just having a bad night.

Alan is allright...but he is definitely not very imaginative..he is a big arena drummer, which that time when he joined Bruford wasnt..(thats what people say anyway, and I dont buy it).

Chris Squire got a bit lazier without Bruford, and Bruford kept pomposity in check to a degree....If you get the Anderson Bruford Wakeman and Howe CD and you immediately feel that the music isnt so drum congested...Alan loves to ride the cymbals and mash the snares....Yes still did allright with him, but in the end, there is only so much a straight rock drummer can ad to the sound of a prog band like Yes...

Agreed

I saw them in '91 on the Union tour.
Jon Anderson (Vocals)
Bill Bruford (Drums)
Steve Howe (Guitars)
Tony Kaye (Keyboards)
Trevor Rabin (Guitars)
Chris Squire (Bass)
Rick Wakeman (Keyboards)
Alan White (Drums)

It was at Assembly Hall at U of IL and fell right in the middle of finals week. Fortunately for me, I was out of school and working for a university affiliate and I got a good lottery number. I was in the 3rd row and they played in the round with a rotating stage. Due to the finals the hall was only about 1/2 full. After the first tune, Anderson looks at the sound guy and says "it sounds like crap up here, can we turn it down a little". He did and it sounded fantastic. They had White playing an acoustic set and Bruford on electronics. They complemented each other pretty well. Rabin played an electric solo that scorched but Howe stole the show with an acoustic solo that just dripped emotion.

Ray

Clyde...did you check the Akira Jimbo links in a fav drummer thread I started yesterday?

Glad to find some Yes fans here.

I saw then on the 90125 tour, 03/12/84 Kansas City, Kemper Arena. My recollections like some here are a little fuzzy, too long ago and too much artificial stimulant. I do remember there was a metal pod thingy that opened up and they entered the stage as if emerging from a spaceship. They also had some three-dimensional graphics projections floating above the stage. Very cool. the show was great. They were feeding on the audience as they were riding an unexpected peak thanks to "Owner of a Lonely Heart," the place was sold out in advance and very high energy. Lotsa fun, one the best shows I've ever seen and i've seen way too many.

If I could choose, I would love to have seen Yes just as they were trying to break the american market. I have a great boot of them playing at Yale which is fantastic. Bruford is my favorite drummer by a long shot- he kicked ass in King Crimson too. My fave albums are the Yes Album and Close to the Edge. The remastered Close to the Edge sounds great and features some indispensible stuff, the band marking out the structure of "And You and I" and "Siberian Khatru," stripped of all studio pretentions and sounding just right on the money. Although I do not think the quality of material slumped dramatically- I like Going for the One and Tormato almost as well as the older LPs, for instance- but i do think they hit some sort of peak around that time.

If anyone has heard a good quality recording of Yes playing during the Topographic Oceans tour, please PM me- I have two shows from that tour but the recording quality is not good. I really like the sequence and the song choices though, I'd love to hear it in good quality.

Too funny seeing this thread..my 18 YO son has just "discovered" Yes and ELP. I'd seen Yes twice (Tales was the last one, and I think Edge was the first one) w/Wakeman and Wakeman "solo" on his Journey to the Center of the Earth Tour, which was a freakin amazing show. And ELP 3 times all at the New Haven , CT Collesium, from 72 thru 77. We were in the nosebleed seats for Tales and I remember nothing after aboout an hour into the concert, the haze was so potent. He just stares at me repeats his favorite quote "It's just not FAIR"...we were living a magical time, and didn't even know it...