------------------------------------------------------- MAY 15. 2004 ------------------------------------------------------- Source: New York Post http://www.nypost.com/entertainment/20933.htm Garden Crowd Just Says Yes By Dan Aquilante EVERYONE I invited to see Yes answered with a resounding no. Even so, Madison Square Garden was filled Thursday night with folks willing to spend three hours hearing the progressive rockers noodle away at ancient songs. The gray-beard crowd smoked dope, drank beers and let the years fall away to the old daze, when they smoked dope and drank beers listening to Yes in their dorms. Yes - currently on tour celebrating its 35th anniversary - is made up of excellent players who've been together so long, they've developed musical ESP. It was a marvel how Rick Wakeman's 12-finger keyboard attack always made room for Steve Howe's fleet guitar work, and how Alan White's drum beats and Chris Squire's bass thumps always quelled exactly whenever Jon Anderson's reedy upper register was needed in front of the music. This is a band that sounds as if it's just jamming, yet the players have such classical precision that every note of every song is accounted for. The Garden crowd didn't seem to notice how dated the music was. They applauded, hooted and hollered for every tune, each of which was a 10-minute-plus-long epic. It was that way right from the start of this very long concert. When Yes launched its famous opus "I've Seen All Good People," the piece seemed to ramble on so long, you wondered if the boys played it twice. But even to a Yes naysayer, the group sounded very good on its yesterday radio hit "Owner of a Lonely Heart," and updated the moldy "Roundabout" by transforming it into an acoustic blues number. The retooled "Roundabout" wasn't superior to the original, but it showed how Yes, 35 years later, is trying to keep the music interesting. While the wizened quintet can still fill the Garden (where, to their credit, they delivered excellent sound), Yes should consider playing a few symphony halls, where the fans would be able to see these accomplished musicians work their instruments. Close Window YesInThePress.com For site comments, inquiries, corrections, or additions, contact yitp@yesservices.com