When the progressive rock band Yes first set the standard for it’s genre, vocalist Jon Anderson was the youthful Bilbo Baggins of the group, with his alto voice a perfect foil for the complex themes and rhythms, as well as a source for the rich madrigal harmonies that were the signature of the famous and influential ensemble. Now, half a century later, Mr. Anderson has grown into the Tolkien role of Gandalf, as the wise sage who joined with a second generation of Yes fans in the form of The Band Geeks in order to inspire the students and encourage the elder. The result was an almost 3 hour show that had the 80 year old vocalist singing to and with the audience as if he’d been imbibing from the fountain of youth.
Anderson displayed that both he and the Yes catalogue have aged amazingly well, as the intricate themes, patented vocal harmonies and virtuosic solos on pieces like ‘Yours Is No Disgrace” or the opus “Close To The Age” serve as an Ebenezer as to how far sophisticated music can reach and still be popular. I mean, who else can create an 18 minute song and have the entire audience follow along note by note in imitation? Their gear shifting and soloing through the fiendishly tricky and dramatic pieces like the maniacal and mercurial “Heart of the Sunrise” were tighter than J Lo’s legging.
Then, there are the gorgeous madrigals such as the cheerful medieval “I’ve Seen All Good People” that veers into a festive boogie. In respect to the classic Yes configuration Band Geek leader Richie Castellano/b, brought in two keyboardists to replicate Rick Wakeman in Robert Kipp and Christopher Clark, and while neither one wore a cape, their work throughout was still impressive. Likewise guitarist Andy Graziano was supplemented by guest six stringer Rob Schmoll for Steve Howe’s more pastoral moments as on “And You And I”.
But it wasn’t all just nostalgia, as Anderson and the gents have put together some new material such as the peppy “Shine On” and the pastoral “Thank God” that are only missing Roger Dean artwork. The evening closed with the anthem “Roundabout” and who else but a bunch of Baby Boomers would get together to sing in unison about “Ten true summers we’ll be there and laughing too”. Quite interestingly, since that song first came out, it’s been about 50 summers, and Anderson had as all laughing, going well beyond what he promised.
Upcoming shows at BAPAC include Bonnie Raitt 09/17, Kansas 09/24, Dustbowl Revival 09/27, Sierra Green 10/04, Black Violin 10/19, Dr Wu 10/26 and ZZ Top 10/29