------------------------------------------------------- AUGUST 29, 2004 ------------------------------------------------------- Source: The Post-Standard (Syracuse, NY), p. 6 Yes Brings Rock'n'Roll to State Fair By Mark Bialczak Jon Anderson's feeling playful. "Sir-ah-kus? Where's Sir-ah-kus?" the lead singer for the art rock band Yes says after being patched through to a reporter's call by an intermediary publicity agent who apparently has pronunciation problems regarding cities in Upstate New York. That's Sear-a-kews, Jon. You may recall playing here at the Landmark Theatre in 1997 or the State Fair Grandstand in 1994. The Londoner remembers. "Yes, Syracuse," Anderson says, with the accents all in the right places. "Quite beautiful theater and the fun state fair." Yes returns to the grandstand for a decade-later encore at 7:30 p.m. Thursday. As fans of Yes' heady blend of rock with classical strains would suppose, Anderson is serious about the band's music. For instance, the return trip to the fair means Yes will bring its "rocking set." "We have three choices," he says. "Rocking for state fair. Another, more acoustic, for arenas. Another still, longer and more intricate, for theaters. It'll be rocking. It'll be rock'n' roll for two hours." Yes has been making music - of the rocking electric, acoustic and sophisticated varieties - since Anderson joined with bassist Chris Squire, guitarist Peter Banks, keyboardist Tony Kaye and drummer Bill Bruford in London in 1968. At that time, Yes and Led Zeppelin were the first two British bands signed by Atlantic Records. For the liner notes used in that major label debut, Melody Maker magazine writer Tony Wilson wrote: "At the beginning of 1969, I was asked, as were all writers for Melody Maker, to pick two groups who I thought would make it in the following year. One of my choices was Led Zeppelin. The other was Yes." But the group's mix of rock with classical strains didn't get noticed in the United States until its third record, "The Yes Album," came out in 1970. By then, Steve Howe had replaced Banks on guitar. From that album, "I've Seen All Good People" and "Yours Is No Disgrace" are still Yes fans' favorites. For 1971's "Fragile," Rick Wakeman took over on keyboards for Kaye. "Roundabout" and "Long Distance Runaround" were shorter, radio-oriented songs, and the former made it to No. 13 on the Billboard pop charts. The next year's "Close to the Edge" was truly a concept album, containing just three songs: "Close to the Edge," "And You and I" and "Siberian Khatru." After its release, Alan White replaced Bruford on drums. All told, 14 members rotated through Yes through the years, some leaving and returning more than once. The 1980s were marked by Anderson, Squire and White's enlistment of a young South African guitarist by the name of Trevor Rabin. The 1983 album was "90125" - that's the catalogue number given it by Atlantic. "Owner of a Lonely Heart" from that collection went to No. 1 on the Billboard pop chart. The current lineup includes Anderson, Squire, Howe, Wakeman and White. "I think it's quite amazing that, A, we're still together, and B, we have so many fans all over the world, and we're still making music and committed to performing well," Anderson says. Anderson says Yes' continued popularity has little to do with cycles of interest in the music world and lots to do with the longing for creativity. "Art rock, or progressive rock, will always be," Anderson says. "It's a fact that musicians have got to spread their wings musically. Especially in modern, computer-oriented electronic music. There are a lot of young people doing extraordinary things, lots of adventurers." Consider the guys in Yes among the adventurous, still. "(In the beginning) we were making music that we were inventing rather than copying," Anderson says. "We're still inventing the next three years in our heads." The future plans, believe it or not, may not include full-length audio recordings. With the help of Robert Dean, the artist who became famous in part because of his breathtaking covers for Yes albums, starting with the peaks of "Fragile," Anderson's talking about putting together music and images. "I just got off the phone with Robert Dean. DVDs are good for us, with computer animation and the like," Anderson says. "DVDs is where it's at, so you've got to visualize what to do with it." As far as songs go, Anderson says he foresees Yes crafting "a series of ideas over the next two or three years and let them come out one or two at a time on the Internet," he says. "Not being tied to 60 minutes of music that takes a long time to create. Rather, two songs a month for, say 24 months. A series." Would Yes, one of the fathers of the concept album, forego themes completely? No. "By the time you get all the music, it's like a jigsaw puzzle. By the time you get the final work, you realize what the whole thing is," he says. "That's what I think," Anderson says. "The others in the band? Who knows." The details What: Yes, with Jon Anderson in concert. Dream Theater opens. When: at 7:30 p.m. Thursday. Where: Wegmans Grandstand at the New York State Fair. Tickets: $38 and $36, available at fair box office, Ticketmaster outlets, www.ticketmaster.com and by phone charge at 472-0700. Close Window YesInThePress.com For site comments, inquiries, corrections, or additions, contact yitp@yesservices.com