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TOP TEN TOUR HITS!
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Reviews YES Hammersmith Apollo/ November 17th 2009 When you’re judging a show by any of rock’s elder statesmen the best way to measure how good it was is to look at the size of the queue for the men’s toilets after the show. The longer the queue, the longer the inevitably aging, prostrate-challenged fans have held back from nipping out mid show; crossing legs and gritting teeth until the last encore… It was a measure of 'Yes' that the queue at London’s Apollo’s bogs stretched well outside the door, though from the evidence of foot-to-foot hoping, the pre-show pints before this musical marathon were probably regretted. 'Yes' are still a phenomenal act. With the sheer strength of their material as the bedrock, the surviving members of the act have enough creditability and musical virtuosity to more than successfully incorporate a tribute-band clone taking the part of their most recognized vocalist and the son of a past keyboards player filling in for his dad. There’s no hiding that Chris Squire, Alan White and Steve Howe are physically showing their advancing ages. Squire perhaps ought to avoid striking too many guitar hero poses which don’t look quite right on a teddy bear body. When seen from the circle seats, with spots shining through a thinning pate, Howe increasingly resembles a cross between a Halloween zombie and a Lord of the Rings character; Gandalf on a magic carpet. White’s not overlong drum solo is given relatively early in the set, perhaps in case he runs out of steam later on. There’s no doubt, however, from the evidence of this near-perfect two and half-hour set that they have the stamina and are still very much in their prime musically. As a long-term fan (ok, an old bastard), you go to such a show in trepidation. An integral component of 'Yes' was always Jon Anderson’s unique vocal. Drafting in a sound-alike (and from a tribute band no less) could be well, embarrassing. But no, it works. Benoît David sounds like Anderson and harmonises well with Squire. More importantly for the project he seems to know his place. Perhaps it’s a lack of confidence (which noticeably grew during the concert) but there’s no attempt to push himself centre-stage. He just fits in. Maybe he’s still in awe of actually being there. Oliver Wakeman also works. Hard. He’s not as flamboyant as his old man but tight and a worthy holder of the Kaye/Moraz/Wakeman flame. Standing in front of a minimalist though unmistakably Yes stage set, they served up a table of classic stuff. Wisely steering clear of symphonic excess most of the material was off the first four Yes albums. Favourites ‘I’ve Seen All Good People’ ‘Starship Trooper’, ‘Astral Traveler’, ‘Roundabout’, 'Yours is No Disgrace’, ‘Siberian Khatru’, ‘Owner of a Lonely Heart’ were what the fans came for and got, along with ‘Tempus Fugit’ and ‘Machine Messiah’ from the later Drama album. One disappointment was the absence of ‘The Clap’ from Howe’s solo turn. They started a bit slowly, and if you listen in the cold light of day to live show (incredibly available on a USB stick within 5 minutes of show end) you might hear a few wobbles, but by the end of the gig the atmosphere was electric and three and a half thousand delirious fans were defying bursting bladders and on their feet shouting for more. ENDIT Rock on! |
