----------------------------------------------------- OCTOBER 26, 2002 ----------------------------------------------------- Source: St. Petersburg Times, St. Petersburg, Florida http://www.sptimes.com/2002/10/26/Artsandentertainment/The_same_old_Yes.shtml The same old Yes By Tom Zucco Fans didn't seem to mind that the band wanted to stick to the script from yesteryears. Their energetic performance and intricate sounds had just the right pace. Yes? No. How about ... Maybe. The band Yes has been through more personnel changes than a fast food joint, and they've been around, in various forms, for more than 30 years. These guys were the opening act for Cream's 1968 farewell concert at Royal Albert Hall. No other band, not Emerson, Lake and Palmer, not the Moody Blues, not King Crimson, sounds quite like Yes. And that's the band's collective genius. But if Thursday night's concert in front of a sold-out Ruth Eckerd Hall audience was an indication of things to come for the rest of their two-month, 26-city tour, expect the same songs at the same pace. Textured, but tame. Not that their music is easy to reproduce. Yes plays some of the most intricate, technically difficult music in rock. These aren't 3-minute, 30-second ditties. But there was a certain sameness in the show. Which, of course, is exactly what many Yes fans want. Travel with us back in time. Pop in the 8-track tape, fire up the incense, and take one more trip to the magic kingdom. Is that really necessary anymore? Some people would answer ... yes. The five most recognizable members of Yes -- original members Jon Anderson and Chris Squire, plus early-1970s arrivals Steve Howe, Rick Wakeman and Alan White -- came to town Monday to prepare for the tour. They rehearsed for two days, which apparently was all they needed, because they got a standing ovation as they walked on stage. One got the feeling they could've come skipping out playing kazoos and the crowd would have swooned. For more than three hours, this group of 50-something men took the audience to the Yes zone, a complex, often mystical place of swirling keyboards and stinging guitars punctuated by thundering percussions. Howe, a Zen master of the electric and slide guitar, was at his finest, hunched over his Gibson like a mad scientist and playing as if he had nine fingers on his left hand. And Wakeman's keyboards and Squire's bass complemented him at almost every turn. How Anderson maintains the same haunting Graham Nash falsetto is a mystery. After a tentative start on Siberian Khatru, Anderson found his groove. His harmonies with Howe and Squire on Starship Trooper, Moondog/Southside, Long Distance Runaround and Close to the Edge were usually impeccable, but at times strained. The music Yes performs has been labeled space rock, British psychedelia and progressive rock, among other things. It is theirs and theirs alone. And after 30 years, they remain accomplished musicians and energetic performers. If they want to stick to the script, that's certainly a right they've earned. And for 2,173 people at Ruth Eckerd Hall, that was more than enough. Close Window YesInThePress.com For site comments, problems, corrections, or additions, contact YesinthePress@aol.com