The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
A bit of affirmative action
‘Yestival’ brings Yes, two other well-known acts to Jacobs Pavilion
When one thinks of vocal fan bases protesting their favorite group being passed over for Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction, the followers of Kiss and Rush come to mind. Also on that list are Yes fans, who for the better part of the last two decades were close to the edge of insanity over the perceived snub.
Thankfully, any wrong was righted earlier this year when the quintessential prog-rock band finally was inducted. For Alan White, who has been Yes’ drummer since 1972, life hasn’t changed much as a Rock Hall inductee.
“Now that we’re in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, it makes me feel so damn old,” said Alan White, calling from Greensboro, North Carolina.
White added that when word came earlier this year that Yes indeed would be inducted, he didn’t receive a phone call. Instead, he found out by watching NBC’s “Today” show.
“For years, people would ask us why we weren’t in the Rock Hall,” White said. “I didn’t know the reason. I think actually Chris Squire (who died in 2015) had given up on the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. He said, ‘I don’t care. It doesn’t bother me at all.’ The fans are all really pleased that we’re finally in, but for us, we’re just carrying on.”
Carrying on for Yes this summer means hitting the road on its “Yestival” tour, which comes to Cleveland for a show Aug. 20 at Jacobs Pavilion at Nautica. The current incarnation of Yes — White, Steve Howe (guitar), Geoff Downes (keyboards), Jon Davison (vocals) and Billy Sherwood (bass) — will be performing material from 1969’s “Yes” to 1980’s “Drama.”
The set list includes fan favorites such as “Roundabout” and “Starship Trooper,” as well as one gem White said hadn’t been played in nearly half a century.
“The one song that we never really played in its entirety with Yes is ‘Survival,’” White said. “It’s from the ‘Yes’ album. The song is interesting to play. We’ve modernized it now a little bit, but it’s still got the character of Yes in it.”
As is the case with so many classic-rock bands these days, Yes also has a touring rival act in the form of Jon Anderson (vocals), Trevor Rabin (guitar) and Rick Wakeman (keyboards). The outfit returns to Northeast Ohio for a show next month in Akron.
White mentioned that next year Yes will celebrate its 50th anniversary. Naturally, diehard fans hope htat means a reconciliation is in order among the two touring factions of the band.
“There’s a possibility there I’m sure in a lot of people’s eyes, but we’re just focused on what we’re doing now,” White said. “There’s no conversation. It’s just kind of rumors and all of that speculation. So I don’t want to commit to anything because no one knows.”