-------------------------------------------------------  OCTOBER 14, 1972   ------------------------------------------------------- Source: Melody Maker, p. 22 (from the Legendary Roxi Collection) Rick On By Chris Welch In neat inked capitals, Rick wrote from the Hotel Sonesta in Hartford, Connecticut one night, to while away the hours twixt gigs. Says Rick: "Imagine: You're bigger than Kellogg's Corn Flakes in Manchester, but nobody's ever heard of you in Leicester. The problem can be eased by doing some gigs in Leicester as distances are minimal in Britain. Not so easy in America, when similar problems arise, and unfortunately a few Transatlantic statements are giving false impressions of bands' status becasue of this. "New York State alone is bigger than Britain, and many a band knows the hard work and belief it takes in their music to break in Britain, so imagine if you had fifty Briatins to break in? "Very few bands make it everywhere here. Some well-known English bands here at the moment are sending back incredible reviews of the odd places they sold out. (The sixteen concerts that they either bombed out of, or were cancelled because of low advance ticket sales, are usually kept very quiet.) Which is the reason why a lot of American bands want to break in Britain. "If you're accepted in Britain, then you're guaranteed a hearing in America; but that hearing will be highly critical and being accepted in Britain doesn't guarantee you a mansion in the country, courtesy of America. "Comcert production is down to a fine art here. The PA is always one hundred percent. Schedules are tight, back stage passes are gold dust, and sound checks are guaranteed -- that is, if you're headlining. If you're not, it means rushing on to check and tune seven keyboards between the warm-up band's set and yours. The headline act takes all the soundcheck time. "Now we're headlining. I can't remember the last time a supporting band managed a sound check. It's not deliberate, just an understanding that the headliners get the perks. But they also have the problems of getting involved musically and spiritually with an audience that has already sat through two hours of music. "America has its advantages, though, for the untiring listener. Its radio set up here is superb. Every town is littered with AM and stereo FM stations, run commercially and playing wide selections of music 24 hours a day. The radio is almost an audio Melody Maker. "The American Musicians Union has banned the sale of Mellotrons, so the instrument well-used by an English band is as rare as arriving on stage in your own helicopter. "Which brings me to my next point... transport. "The majority of domestic airlines in America are money grabbers. For the first two tours, they made us purchase seats for each guitar we took on board. As our status improved on the third tour, we reckoned that if we traveled first class they wouldn't charge us for them. However, they charged us for first class seats instead. "Also the men who unload the equipment at airports seem to suffer very badly from illiteracy and hatred of other people's property. Cases bearing the word 'Fragile' or 'This Way Up' are invariably dropped from fifteen feet -- the other way up. By the time the fourth tour starts, it is economic to charter your own plane. "It is very worrying to notice the growing barrier betwen the police and audiences here. We actually witnessed police at one concert here kicking and beating some kids because a few stood up and came to the front of the stage. A far cry from a recent concert in Scotland where the police came round after the gig for a drink. "Basically playing America is a gas. Breaking new ground means meeting new people, making new friends and drinking more beer. "The musical rewards from Yes are endless. Attempting to forget a problem-ridden Crystal Palace, the band hasn't looked back since Bill left, and I'm convinced will continue to progress for some years yet." Close Window YesInThePress.com For site comments, inquiries, corrections, or additions, contact yitp@yesservices.com