------------------------------------------------------- DECEMBER 26, 2003 ------------------------------------------------------- Source: The Courier-Post http://www.southjerseynews.com/issues/december/emus122603a.htm Jon Anderson solo tour tops Jan. highlights Friday, December 26, 2003 By Nicole Pensiero Yes frontman Jon Anderson is one of many musical luminaries making stops in the Philadelphia area as the New Year kicks off. Other performers coming through town include the endearing Bette Midler, diva Sarah Brightman, jazz quartet Fourplay, former Monkee Peter Tork, and the acclaimed, unsung Motown session musicians known as The Funk Brothers. Up-and-coming Brit bands Starsailor and Gomez also play Philly venues, and there will be two "unplugged" acoustic performances by Beatlemania Now at The Point in Bryn Mawr. Anderson, who plays both the Keswick Theatre in Glenside, Pa., and the Trenton War Memorial in January, is in the midst of his first-ever solo tour. Although prog-rock super-group Yes is still together - in one form or another - after 35 years, the 58-year-old Anderson says the time is right to strike out on his own while Yes takes a breather between projects. "There's a first time for everything," the soft-spoken, affable Anderson said in a phone interview from his California home. "It's going to be a one-man show - just me, using some modern technology - and a piano, guitar and harp. I'm very excited." Anderson's cutting-edge Roland MIDI guitar system will trigger what's being billed as "visual and multimedia experiences" during each show. Anderson will premiere new songs from Yes' upcoming album, The Ultimate Yes - 35th Anniversary Collection, play some of the group's best-known songs and debut tunes from his upcoming solo record, The Big If. Yes got together in the late '60s in its native England, reaching the top 20 on the U.S. charts in 1971 with the still-compelling chess-match saga, "Your Move." Bigger hits soon followed, including "Roundabout" and "Owner of a Lonely Heart." "I have been very blessed. When you get successful in popular music, you have a choice: you can delve into it and become a celebrity superstar, or look on it as a stepping stone to develop and learn about life and spiritual conscious energy. I went on that second path." Despite his decades-long career with Yes - the band has sold more than 40 million albums worldwide - Anderson says he's never thought of himself as a rock star. "I'm just a musician who is still learning his craft and enjoying sharing his music," he says. In February, Yes will release a 2-disc DVD titled Yesspeak, narrated by friend Roger Daltrey of The Who. A documentary of the band's history, Anderson says it is the quintessential visual Yes experience. "We're like a brotherhood, and this film truly captures that," Anderson says. "We've been on an amazing journey together." In the spring, the band will launch a world tour with Anderson and original members Steve Howe, Rick Wakeman, Chris Squire and Alan White. Close Window YesInThePress.com For site comments, inquiries, corrections, or additions, contact YesinthePress@aol.com