After three postponements, Prog-Rock behemoth Yes finally returned to Paris. Since the first scheduled show, the tour has gone through many iterations: it was first supposed to concentrate on 1974's Relayer, but then that was changed to a tour celebrating the 50th anniversary of 1972's Close To The Edge. But they've also released two new albums in the interim: 2021's The Quest and 2023's Mirror To The Sky. So they've had to work at least one song off of these album into the tour, which ended up being billed as The Classic Tales Of Yes... But more significantly, drummer Alan White passed away, making Steve Howe the last member of the classic era on that stage.
Yes has been touring without any founding member since the passing of Chris Squire nearly a decade ago, but has somehow maintained the spirit of the band despite the turbulent membership, acrimonious splits and tragic deaths. Lead vocalist's Jon Anderson's departure nearly twenty years ago was a tough pill to swallow for many fans, but his subsequent replacements have all managed to successfully emulate his elfish timbre.
Still, it's hard to shake the feeling that what you are witnessing when attending a Yes show these days is only a few notches above a tribute band. An excellent tribute band, mind you. One that plays the material perfectly but also embodies everything the original band stood for... but a tribute band nonetheless. And this is what classic bands are bound to become, as they grow old and lose musicians for one reason or another. But much like a classical orchestra or the Mingus Big Band, they carry on because the repertoire needs to be played and heard, and this is how you keep music alive.
So when you put all of these considerations aside, and listen to the music, which is what truly matters, it's hard to find a fault in the performance of the musicians gathered on this prestigious Parisian stage formerly reserved for classical music and symphonies. Jay Schellen on drums, Billy Sherwood on bass, Geoff Downes on keyboards, Jon Davison on vocals and Steve Howe on guitar all do the catalogue justice. These pieces are famously intricate, and it's quite a feat to reproduce all the parts to perfection.
The setlist is long and generous, and most of the expected crowd-pleasing tunes are there: Roundabout, Starship Trooper, and meaty excerpts from Tales From Topographic Oceans and Drama. No Owner Of A Lonely Heart, their biggest hit, but it was a tune recorded without Steve Howe the self-appointed guardian of the Yes temple, and its art-pop stylings never really fit with the progressive suites that are the band's real raison d'être.
Nothing lasts forever, and bands like Yes are closer to the end than they'd like to admit. Howe is the last lifeline to the classic era, and even if the band carries on after he goes it'll never be the same. His presence brings legitimacy to the current touring and recording enterprise billing itself as Yes. And as a guitarist, his virtuosity remains astounding.
Yes is still around. It's the same band. It may look different, but then again Yes has always been a revolving door. This incarnation makes all of its former members, and more importantly the fans, proud. It deserves your support.
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