----------------------------------------------------- DECEMBER 8, 1977 ----------------------------------------------------- Source: Circus Magazine Moraz Gets Jazzy Ex-Yes Keyboardist Catches Latin Fever By Janel Bladow Patrick Moraz sits on a sofa in Nancy Lewis' Central Park South apartment, chatting on the phone in broken English. Nancy part-time manages Monty Python and in the U.S. heads Chrisma records, Patrick's international label. Patrick is in New York only a couple of days, to take care of business, the usual ironing out contracts and deals, talking with the press and catching up on what's happening Stateside. It's late Friday afternoon, he's a little tired of it all, but he slugs through another interview, his eyes light up only to announce he's going to "Star Wars" the next day. Rick Wakeman, the original Yes keyboardist quickly replaced Patrick when he left the group last year. Quitting wasn't easy for Patrick; the anxiety the 28-year-old composer-musician went through shows clearly to anyone who looks at him closely. "I had to leave because of the enormous psychological pressures at the time within the group. By myself, I see clearly now why I was pressured like this. The new explosion of Yes with the return of Rick Wakeman is not foreign to that." It almost sounds as if he was forced out. "That's putting it blunt. The cards were not on the table at the time. I felt there were a few things going on that I didn't know. It's understandable in a multi-million dollar business like Yes. Strange, I did six or seven big tours with Yes, recorded one and a half albums and a live one (the half album is the current release on which Patrick did much of the back-up keyboards and some composing). The only mention I get now from the management is a quote that's totally false. They say I'm a jazzer at heart, but that's not true. I like all kinds of music. Unfortunately some people did not play the game fair, although the final decision was taken by all members." Even though Patrick feels he got screwed, he's quite happy with his life now. "I had a hard time coming out of a band like Yes. I had no help, was put out in the streets, but my record company (Chrisma, Import Records in the U.S.) supported me. This has made me much stronger. Winter is hard, especially in Switzerland." You see, Patrick has a recording studio in his native Geneva. It's here he recorded his first solo album, "The Story of i", and much of his current release, "Out In The Sun". During his transitional year, his interest in Brazilian music prompted a move to Rio de Janeiro where he's building another recording studio. Commuting between Geneva and Rio sure beats riding the Long Island Railroad, so life couldn't be that tough. Next year, however, his plans bring him to the U.S. most of the time. He wants to coincide his third album with a major tour, probably around March, 1978. He's putting together a "fantastic band," with five musicians including himself, Richie Cort, an English flutist and Iyricist who can also sing, and a second keyboard player, Louis Paulo. The group, traveling under the "Patrick Moraz Band" logo, will have an optional nucleus of two to five Brazilian percussionists and eventually a few back-up singers. "My new music will have people dancing in the aisles. It's magic, you know, when everyone hears it. We have fun rehearsing in Rio. There's a parallel between the concrete jungle of New York City and the real jungle of where we are in Brazil." Earthy Brazilian rhythms beat throughout "Out In The Sun". Primative, enchanting drumming closely intertwines with the galactic force of the moogs, synthesizers and electronic keyboards Patrick uses. The fourth movement, "Time For A Change," could easily be the soundtrack to a movie on U.F.O.s in South America. It could be a soundtrack, like many of his songs. In fact, Patrick already has created music for 25 foreign films, including "The Invitation." "In my music, I'm just a medium between the conscious and the listener," says Patrick. "Out In The Sun" is a bridge between the album before and the one to come. "The cover reflects the kind of tunnel I was in at a point, the title reflects the mood. I was on my own, 'out in the sun.' I could see a new light  ( in my own career) because I didn't have the name of Yes to shelter me anymore." Close Window YesInThePress.com For site comments, problems, corrections, or additions, contact YesinthePress@aol.com