stirring the Yes roumor mill

[TheFish]

Pretty bored with NMOM today so I did some poking around. Found this in a blog.

Bear in mind This is somewhat conjecture based on a few facts. It's up to you to believe it or not.

Fell free to chime in. I think I'm going to enjoy the discussion.

Yes have been recording a new album in Los Angeles, CA, produced by Trevor Horn and due by summer 2011. The band has signed a worldwide record deal with Frontiers Records, who already have Asia and Yoso in their stable. Geoff Downes has also been involved in sessions while in LA in Jan and early Feb 2011, as well as attending NAMM and guesting on John Wetton's new solo album. Downes was back in LA for approximately 16-23 Feb, presumably for further work with Yes, although this has not been confirmed. He tweeted on 23 Feb, "This last week has been flat out working in the studio - hope the results will be there for all to see later this year. Ciao Americanos ftm"

The first batch of Yes's recording sessions were 3 Oct-12 Nov; they then played a short South American tour before a period apart, and a returned to the studio in the first week of Jan 2011. Sessions should continue through Feb (somewhat longer than originally planned) before the band tour again in early Mar. The final stages of recording and then mixing the album is expected in Apr after the tour leg. On 30 Dec on BBC Radio5Live, Horn said he would be working on a couple of tracks with Yes in Jan 2011.

Release early summer 2011 is expected: Howe's website says "early 2010" (presumably a typo for 2011!), while a source close to Squire predicted early summer. Promo in Dec 2010 for the Nov 2011 UK tour, a separate Nov 2010 article and more recent promo for the spring US tour all report a summer release, but another article said "before" summer 2011 and, in a Jan 2011 Canadian TV interview, David spoke of a release at the end of spring or in early summer. The Feb 2011 issue of German magazine Eclipsed gives the album as due in Apr. In a Jul 2010 interview, Howe said:

We’re planning to start recording some music in October together. We hope to finish up by early next year [2011], then we would think there would be something out next summer. No guarantees, but there’s a feeling that we’re going to move on to it. We’ve been writing material, we’ve been talking to producers, and basically we think we’ve got something happening.

The album will include a newly recorded version of "We Can Fly from Here". In an interview in the Oct Classic Rock Presents... Prog, Squire is asked whether Horn will contribute as a writer and performer as well as producing. His reply: "He may! We've talked about recording a track which didn't end up on Drama called 'We Can Fly From Here'. We did it on tour and its time might have come. Plus Trevor did backing vocals on 90125 anyway." At The Buggles show in Sep 2010, Horn said he was going to record "We Can Fly from Here" with Yes in early Oct. One report suggests Horn will be doing lead vocals on the song (David remains lead vocalist for the rest of the album).


And On Another note

Jon Anderson, Rick Wakeman & Trevor Rabin
Anderson, R. Wakeman and Rabin "are working on putting a band together to both record and perform" (to quote Wakeman in Jan 2011). In a Feb 2011 blog, Wakeman continued, "Plans are [...] moving forward with the Trevor Rabin/Jon Anderson/Wakeman project which is potentially very, very exciting." Asked about whether the project will move forward, in a Jan 2011 interview, Anderson said:

I don't know. I got an e-mail from Trevor today [...] I was with Trevor last week. He was finishing off music for [...] "I am [Number] Four" [...] We've talked over the last couple of years about maybe getting together and doing some concerts, re-looking at the album Talk, and 90125, Big Generator, and a couple... two or three Yes classics, but centering in on that and maybe... We've written a couple of new songs and... me and Rick have written two songs for the project. But like anything, it's timing. It will happen when it happens, and I'll be there!

The interviewer then asked who else would be involved, mentioning Bill Bruford and Tony Levin, and Anderson replied:

No, Bill's not touring any more. [...] He's decided he doesn't want to do it no more. But you can never discount that. We'll see what happens. [...] Timing... Trevor's got work, Rick's got work, and I'm busy, but eventually the timing will work. It'll either be this summer or next summer, but we'll do it.

In a Feb 2011 interview, Anderson said of the project:

Rick and I and Trevor (Rabin) might make some music together and tour. It's all in the talking stages but if we did something I might ask Roger [Dean] for something [in terms of cover art]. He did Anderson, Bruford, Wakeman and Howe so I'd probably ask him. When I work with Rick and other people that were in Yes, it feels like Yes music no matter what. You can't get away from that, so there's no harm in dressing it up that way.

Initial reports mentioned an unnamed fourth former Yes member, probably Bill Bruford, but he insists he is not involved. News of the project first emerged in the 6 Feb 2010 edition of Wakeman's Planet Rock radio show: a listener sent in a question asking Wakeman about the possibility of he and Trevor Rabin "re-uniting to play Yes material again." Wakeman responded:

Just last week, a discussion took place between myself, Trevor and a couple of other ex-members of Yes who will remain nameless [...] about doing just that, about doing an album, and I think the odds are extremely high that it will happen this year [2010]



LET THE GAMES BEGIN!