----------------------------------------------------- SEPTEMBER 20, 2003 ----------------------------------------------------- Source: Undercover Media http://www.undercover.com.au/news/2003/20030920_yes.html Yes Not Quite Close Enough To The Edge By Paul Cashmere Yes last toured Australia in 1973. Ticket prices were $4.50. On their return tour three decades later, parking your car at a Yes concert cost twice as much as a ticket on that first tour. With 30 years between shows expectations are high. Fans expect a level of perfection for their buck and also a catch-up round of songs they have never heard performed live. Technical problems hampered the show and guitarist Steve Howe copped the brunt of them. An out of tune guitar at one stage (and it had to be at the start of 'And You And I' of all songs), a bad pick-up or cable (and it had to be in his solo) plus feedback problems all around through-out the night seriously interrupted the flow and hindered the enjoyment fans should have had watching a band they had followed for decades. It's always difficult for a band that has been around for 35 years to please everyone but there were a few questions I'd throw at this one. Why perform a song written around the time of Fragile but never recorded? If it wasn't good enough for you then, why give it to us now, especially at the expensive, of say, 'Owner of a Lonely Heart'. That means their biggest Australian chart hit ever has still never been performed live in Melbourne. The less than successful Magnification album of 2001 was over-represented again at the expense of core fanbase songs such as 'Close To The Edge'. They did open with 'Siberian Khatru'. That did start us off on a positive footing but the 'And You And I' problems (they had to restart it three times) meant that one of the greatest rock albums of all time was given a poor presentation. Fragile was their break-though album in the USA and to hear them perform 'Heart of the Sunrise', 'Long Distance Runaround' and 'Roundabout' was an absolute highlight. For me they covered off Fragile at that point. 'South Side of the Sky' was a nice thought but out of the back of three relatively obscurities was starting to get a little self indulgent. Rick Wakeman stole the show with a stunning solo performance of excepts from his solo Six Wives of Henry VIIIth. Although he has had a roller coaster career with the band, departing on numerous occasions, the keyboard skills of the maestro is integral to this band. In fact, Yes is a fine example of the individual parts not equaling the whole but excelling it. Alan White drumming, Chris Squire's bass, Wakeman's keyboards and Howe's guitar showcasing Jon Anderson with one of the world's most unique voices has earned Yes their place in rock history. This same setlist on a different night minus the technical glitches may have given me a totally different opinion. Maybe we won't have to wait another 30 years to see them down this way again. Fans are always a lot more open to experimentation when they have various shows to gauge from. I think with another tour in the not too distance future to putty up the holes all just might be forgiven. Setlist for Yes at Vodafone Arena, Melbourne September 19, 2003: Siberian Khatru (from Close To The Edge, 1972)  Magnification (from Magnification, 2003)  Don't Kill the Whale (from Tormato, 1978)  In The Presence of (from Magnification, 2003)  Give Love Each Day/South Side of the Sky (from Magnification, 2003 / Fragile, 1972)  And You and I (from Close To The Edge, 1972)  Steve solo (To Be Over/Clap) (from The Yes Album, 1971)  John solo (Show Me)  Rick Solo (Six Wives)  Heart Of The Sunrise (from Fragile, 1972)  Long Distance Runaround (from Fragile, 1972)  Chris / Alan solo (White Fish/On The Silent Wings Of Freedom)  Awaken (from Going For The One, 1977) I've Seen All Good People (encore) (from The Yes Album, 1971)  Roundabout (encore) (from Fragile, 1972) Close Window YesInThePress.com For site comments, problems, corrections, or additions, contact YesinthePress@aol.com