He's said they want to do more touring and international touring. Touring appears to be going well, good crowds, so hopefully they will.Originally Posted by mozo-pg
He's said they want to do more touring and international touring. Touring appears to be going well, good crowds, so hopefully they will.
Where Are They Now? Yes news: http://www.bondegezou.co.uk/wh_now.htm
Blogdegezou, the accompanying blog: http://bondegezou.blogspot.com/
There is now a video for "True Messenger"
Pretty cool song, actually. I'll definitely be getting this album (True) when it comes out in late August. Thanks for sharing!
Yeah - I saw the first show of their current tour and this song was definitely the best of the bunch of the new songs premiered - definitely sold me. And smart on them to make some videos for these while they tour.
^^ Good song.
Pretty impressive how Jon can still deliver the goods and remain relevant.
"The White Zone is for loading and unloading only. If you got to load or unload go to the White Zone!"
WOW... didn't think I would like a JA song but this is good and the supporting cast lends quite a Yes-y feel to it....
You say Mega Ultra Deluxe Special Limited Edition Extended Autographed 5-LP, 3-CD, 4-DVD, 2-BlueRay, 4-Cassette, five 8-Track, MP4 Download plus Demos, Outtakes, Booklet, T-Shirt and Guitar Pick Gold-Leafed Box Set Version like it's a bad thing...
I saw Jon and the Geeks a week or two ago and wanted to share my review. PROS- I felt that he was in great voice and the band played the tunes with passion. CONS- You can play the music cleaner than Yes, but it does not make it better.....
Had a really good time at the Jon Anderson and the Band Geeks show tonight! It was great to share this experience with some of my close friends. That was my favorite part of it all. Seeing the looks on their faces. That and that $5 Dr Pepper. It was hot out there... Hearing Jon sing these Yes songs again after so many years was a rare treat. I think I've seen him all of three times in the twenty years since he and Yes parted ways. At nearly 80 he sounded like a man half his age. It's tough watching your musical heroes erode over the decades. How Jon side stepped that is a mystery to me, but he did. When I first saw Yes in 1984 and I never could imagine seeing him all these decades later. Holy shit! That's 40 years! There's some comfort in that... Having this music decorate our lives for so long and still feel so inspiring and familiar.
The Band Geeks were a prog cover band before they hooked up with Jon. I remember several Yes covers over the years and their attention to detail (and chops) are pretty stunning. Some have said (wrongly) that Yes has boiled down to a glorified cover band. Well, this IS one! Does it really matter who plays this music as long as it's played with passion and precision? Your mileage may vary, as does mine. They played the tunes with firey delivery. One that I suspect approached classic Yes firing on all cylinders. Some might say exceed it, even. If you can imagine that. This is the cleanest I've heard Yes music performed, though I'm not convinced that made this evening of music 'better' than a great Yes show. It didn't for me, but it was impressive. The guitar, keys players and bassist really brought it and approximated things quite well. I think the drummer was a bad choice though. He really dumbed things down and plodded through so much of it. He didn't seem to get Briford or White and it undermined the groove all night. Much of the subtleties were not there. Almost like he was some old hair metal drummer that just happened to like prog too. I know he's an old friend and collaborator with the bass player, but I think the music would have been served better by someone else.
There's magic in classic Yes' blend of personalities that is just impossible to recreate and hasn't been on offer since 2004. Fragments of it have sauntered on since then, offering up some but not all of the mojo. These guys do a great job of being themselves though and offering up some scorching chops. My brain was dazzled. My heart wasn't as easily won. I was open to it though. Still, this was a wonderful night of music that took me back and made me think about all the years I heard these tunes and what a rare treat it was to have what could be the last live dose of this music we get. You never know... I've said before that the Yes mojo goes wherever Jon goes, but this night reminded me how much I loved everyone else in the band too and how they were part of the recipe.
Some fave moments... A really tasty version of “Perpetual Change”, I enjoyed the jazzy bits in particular. “Close To The Edge” was my fave tune of the night. It's such a great arrangement that delivers big time by the end. The new originals they played were some of my fave tunes of the night too because for a few minutes they could just be themselves. The tunes sat nicely along side the Yes classics and had all sorts of cool arrangement twists. “Awaken” was my other fave and delivered the most Yessy magic. It's a Jon showcase and he was in fine form. I've really been enjoying “Starship Trooper” lately, despite hearing it 1000s of times, and this version was one of the top moments of the night. The “Wurm” section at the end was a real rave up! The solo the keys player on stage left, the guy from Brand X, played a killer solo that reminded me a lot of what Pat Moraz played when he was in the band. Really cool to hear an approach other than Wakeman's for a few moments. Killer guitar solo too. “Roundabout” got the crowd on their feet. My apologies for not knowing all the band members' names.
Anyway, what a memorable night! Weather was good too. First day without rain in a week. Hot for sure though. Funny to see so many people bring all sizes of portable fans. More than coolers! This venue, Frederick Brown Amphitheater, was really nice too. It reminded me of Chastain Park, if you chopped off the back 3/4ths of it. It was the perfect size for the event. They chose well. I saw Kansas there back in the late 90s and hadn't been back since. It's south of Atlanta in a affluent suburb full of golf courses and carts, Peachtree City.
I will be seeing him this Saturday..
Unfortunately, they didn't come close to me this leg of the tour.. I missed last years tour with Gates.. with that said I just listened to the show from Nashville (via Sugarmegs).. You gotta hand it to the band.. they truly transport you back to mid 70's Yes. And Jon's voice is remarkable.. Steve and Friends will tour in the fall with Deep Purple but I seriously doubt they will match the intensity and musicianship that Band Geek brings to the table.. Jon said recently that True will be it for working with the band in the studio.. although we might get one more tour from them next spring. Looking forward to hearing what they managed to create in the studio.
Uh, oh.
Mongrel dog soils actor's feet
Your comment about the drummer is interesting. I've seen four shows with this group and I found that he does a nice job of straddling the Bruford/White styles. Honestly, I was never much of a White fan post-1980, as I feel like he was dumbing down his parts and playing in a very bland and plodding style even before the obvious deterioration of his health. Agree completely about the rest of the band, though. Would be great to have Howe and Squire together on stage and firing on all cylinders, but alas, time catches up with us all. I notice that, on this leg, the guitars and keys are all playing down 1/2 step, as opposed to just some transpositions on previous tours. Jon's voice isn't as strong as it was even 20 years ago, but he is still a marvel. Nobody should sound that good at nearly 80!
My copy of True on CD is out for delivery today. As Laser's Edge describes "Ignore the cover art! Jon Anderson delivers the goods!!! I can't believe my ears. This is the best Yes album since Going For The One!! BUY OR DIE!" Based on what I heard them play on the tour, I ordered this as soon it was available and looking forward to ignoring the cover and listening!
I could care less about the art work LOL... I just want to hear this! Mine shipped as well! Jon can still sing and the band is superb. Having said that I have enjoyed all the Yes LP's since Fly From Here on some level. They are certainly all Yes "like", the first one with Oliver and Benoit being the best in my opinion... But since Chris passed they are just OK to awful live so I regret not seeing the Geeks live! Very odd they have not had west coast shows and I wonder why... yes, this leg they had Pheonix, Denver and Thousand Oaks but not a proper west coast swing. Hopefully they will add the left coast at some point and I for one am hoping for a bluray release!
Usually new release downloads are available on Qobuz at 6PM Thursday on the east coast so I’ll be listening for the first time around 6:30PM.
"It was a cruel song, but fair."-Roger Waters
This IS a really good album. I am a fan of the continuity-Yes and have quite enjoyed The Quest and Mirror, and I am not going to compare since True is not a Yes album. But it is a real good listen and reminiscent of the work Jon A did with them. The crack band he collaborated with here is a huge reason, clearly. His vocals are really something for his age.
Yep, believe the hype, folks. I feel like this album is kind of like what a lot us hoped/assumed the Stolt/Anderson project would be (but ultimately wasn't). The sound is pure Yes (not specifically 70's Yes but kind of distilling every era into an "essence of Yes" sound), the songwriting is focused, but still with plenty of space for instrumental interplay rather than wall-to-wall vocals. And speaking of which - man, Jon sounds incredible for a dude pushing 80! It's kind of akin to the studio material from Keys to Ascension, minus the cheap 90's production.
I need to give it several more listens to really let it all sink in, but the two longest tracks "Counties and Countries" and "Once Upon a Dream" are both immediate standouts. "Make It Right" is a little toe-curling, especially when the gospel choir shows up, but for the most part this is basically the solo album I've always wanted from Jon but never thought we'd get.
If Jon really isn't planning to do any more studio work with the Band Geeks then it will be a huge missed opportunity. But hopefully they can write some original material and bring Ann Marie Nacchio back into the fold, as her voice is great and she smashes it on those original Yes covers they did. It would be a great loss to the prog world if these guys just went back to being anonymous session musicians.
Given quite a lot of the album was written by Jonathan Elias and Jimmy Haun, who were a big part of a Yes album (Union), you can see why it would sound Yes-like.
Where Are They Now? Yes news: http://www.bondegezou.co.uk/wh_now.htm
Blogdegezou, the accompanying blog: http://bondegezou.blogspot.com/
Ironic as many people would say that Union does not really sound like Yes.(I personally kinda like Union. At least more than average Yes-fan.)
But did I understand correctly that Elias and Haun has participated on True? That is news to me.
My progressive music site: https://pienemmatpurot.com/ Reviews in English: https://pienemmatpurot.com/in-english/
My first impression is that this is a nice, solid, enjoyable album. You can safely ignore the album cover and buy with confidence. However, I’m not sure about some folks I’ve seen declaring this the best Yes related whatever in xx years. Maybe I can give True a very slight advantage over Mirror To The Sky only because True doesn’t have a “Living Out Their Dream” on it, but I find Invention of Knowledge and 1000 Hands to be fuller and richer listening experiences. I also think Rio is a better record.
"It was a cruel song, but fair."-Roger Waters
I did not like Rio but after one listen I agree that Invention Of Knowledge and 1000 Hands seem to be little bit stronger albums than True. But as I said I have listened True only once and reserve the right to change my mind!
My progressive music site: https://pienemmatpurot.com/ Reviews in English: https://pienemmatpurot.com/in-english/
Seeing them next month in Port Chester (anybody from here going?).
Just how many new songs are they playing?
Nobody wants to hear new songs.
If you're not religiously reading every update on my news site at http://www.bondegezou.co.uk/wnja.htm#geek , you only have yourself to blame! The album was recorded by Jon and the Geeks, but only about half of it was written by Jon and the Geeks. Haun and Elias get co-writing credits on 2 songs a piece, although they were not involved in the recording of the album.Ironic as many people would say that Union does not really sound like Yes.
But did I understand correctly that Elias and Haun has participated on True? That is news to me.
"Build Me an Ocean" and "Realization Part 2" were pieces by Haun that Anderson sung over. (Those recordings were then given to Castellano, who developed/re-recorded them.) "True Messenger" was a piece by Jamie Dunlap that Anderson sung over. (Again, re-recorded by the Geeks.) "Once Upon a Dream" began as a short demo by Anderson and Elias, and was then greatly extended/added to by Anderson and Castellano. Elias also gets a co-writing credit on "Make It Right", although how developed it was with Elias is unknown. "Thank God" is an old song with Robin Crow.
There are only 3 songs on the album that didn't involve outside writers. "Shine On" was an idea by Castellano that Anderson sung over. "Still a Friend" may have been the same. "Counties and Countries" is the only song that is credited to Anderson alone, although it was expanded by Castellano.
Where Are They Now? Yes news: http://www.bondegezou.co.uk/wh_now.htm
Blogdegezou, the accompanying blog: http://bondegezou.blogspot.com/
Ditto, in that I've only listened to it once and reserve the right to change my mind. I think it's a good album, a very good album. I agree with Frum that some of the rhetoric/advertising around it is exaggerated.I did not like Rio but after one listen I agree that Invention Of Knowledge and 1000 Hands seem to be little bit stronger albums than True. But as I said I have listened True only once and reserve the right to change my mind!
I think it's up there with Rio. It's a different sort of album to Rio. Rio is a very Rabin-y album and True is a very Anderson-y album!
The obvious comparison for me is 1000 Hands: Chapter One. I think it's possibly better than 1000 Hands. I possibly prefer Invention of Knowledge, but that's because IoK was trying to do something slightly different with its focus on long-form pieces. But, yeah, thumbs up to Mr Anderson.
Where Are They Now? Yes news: http://www.bondegezou.co.uk/wh_now.htm
Blogdegezou, the accompanying blog: http://bondegezou.blogspot.com/
Sounds a lot more like Anderson / Stolt than Union to me after the first few spins
I think JA fans may lose their minds with this one, its very Jon and definitely among his better more recent ones.
1K Hands hasn't worn as well as I hoped based on a recent spin, but I think this one strikes me as having some more meat on the bone instrumentally
Seems pretty solid so far
Some good news there I see on Anderson / Stolt II, highly anticipated personally and it appears it will be a double albums worth and things are finally moving along!
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
Bookmarks