Heart Of The Sunrise

I'm glad I got to see Yes in concert again during one of their recent tours. I'd seen them play back in the 70's on a couple of different occasions. The sound wasn't all that great back then, plus there were other recreational factors going on, so this time around, I wanted to be able to remember the show, at least. Sure enough, the audio was first rate. The performances were measured, and the band was able to work in subtle musical nuances that the faster tempos of the past would not allow. Their decades of playing this music together were apparent. It was great to be part of an audience that was not only appreciative, but also, for the most part, knew when to shut up and listen.

Yes in concert, 2013

Yes is one of Rock music's most enduring bands. One reason for this is they've been re-engineered more times than the average '55 Chevy restoration project. This makes sense for a band that has been around since 1967 or so. (The original Yes opened for Cream at their farewell concert at the Royal Albert Hall!)

It would seem that the norm for Yes is to have a rotation of band members around the core of bassist Chris Squire, who remains the only band member to perform in every recorded incarnation of Yes, along with drummer Alan White, and guitarist Steve Howe. This time out, we have the controversial, but perfectly appropriate replacement of original vocalist Jon Anderson; first with Benoit David, who was found in a Canadian Yes tribute band, then again in 2011, with Jon Davison, late of the band Glass Hammer. I got to hear Davison perform with Yes during their stop here in Omaha, and I can tell you first hand that Davison's performance was not only capable, but at times brilliant.

Former Yesmen Rick Wakeman & Jon Anderson

I'm not a singer, but I can well imagine that the music of Yes is challenging to sing well. Unfortunately, there is a stigma that some diehard fans carry around that Yes without Anderson is not Yes, to the point that a couple of cretins in the audience would shout Anderson's name periodically, as if by doing so, they could make him appear onstage, despite the obvious fact that Anderson was not in the building. Let's face it, none of those guys in Yes are kids anymore and those high notes don't get any easier to hit cleanly. Davison has acquitted himself heroically and earned his place as the vocalist for Yes, so all the boorish fanboys that are out there bellowing for Anderson need to stay home and listen to the old recordings, while the rest of us enjoy a beautifully performed concert in peace. It's worth noting that I've heard no squawking at all, either in person or online, about the absence of keyboardist Rick Wakeman. His parts were wonderfully covered by 80's era Yes veteran, Geoff Downes. Perhaps those detractors would have felt better if Downes had worn a glittering gold cape, as Wakeman often did in the early 70's, though it's probably best to not provoke the monkeys, lest they resume their poop throwing in earnest.

For their recent shows, Yes has been performing three of their classic 70's albums in their entirety: "Close To The Edge", "The Yes Album", and "Going For The One". For 2014, they have swapped out the last one for their signature album, "Fragile", which closes Side 2 with one of the true masterworks of the Yes canon, "Heart Of The Sunrise". Instead of posting the usual Mp3 link here, I thought it would be best for you, dear reader, if you could see this incredible group in live performance. But, since there is no officially released video of the new band as of yet, I will defer to the classic Yes lineup. From the 2003 tour, which may well have been their final go-round, here is Squier, Anderson, White, Wakeman and Howe (sounds like a law firm), performing "Heart Of The Sunrise" in Montreux, Switzerland. It's a lengthy tune, so kick back and enjoy this glorious music. All you musician types may want to take notes.

It would be challenging at the least, and ultimately redundant for any band to attempt to cover a symphonic performance like this verbatim, so the only thing that makes any sense would be to capture the core melody as best you can. I've rarely heard covers of Yes music, likely due to the high level of difficulty. But recently, while browsing in a record shop, I heard a familiar melody on the overhead that was being run through an interesting new filter.

I've gotta admit right up front that The Flaming Lips are one of those bands that I just don't understand all that well. I know they're extremely popular, enough so to secure headlining slots at major music festivals. Maybe I've felt they're a bit too weird for me, which is interesting, seeing as how I've been exposed to the likes of Pink Floyd, Frank Zappa, and Captain Beefheart for decades now. But one thing The Flaming Lips seem to have down is an ability to entertain large crowds, despite or perhaps because of the chaotic circus of their performances. In all reality, it's likely a tightly organized program that only has the appearance of pandemonium, but it entertains just as well. Ask Alice Cooper about all that.

Electric Würms

The Flaming Lips have developed their musical sound over the course of several albums, yet always keep the door open for sideshow experimentation, usually involving covering other music to greater or lesser degrees. They've released a front-to-back cover of Pink Floyd's "Dark Side Of The Moon", and have collaborated with Chris Martin and Kesha, all while delving into even more abstract sonic territory, including a sure to be cosmic Beatles cover album featuring Miley Cyrus and Moby that's due next week. The Lips have also released a 6 hour long track, as well as a 24 hour one, perhaps as a nod to Andy Warhol's films. All of these projects point to a group not content with formula. Now, frontman Kevin Coyne has teamed up with fellow Lips band member Steven Drozd and an experimental psychedelic band from Nashville, Linear Downfall, for a side project by the name of Electric Würms.

The group’s debut EP is nearly as weird as its title, "Musik, Die Schwer Zu Twerk", which roughly translates to "music that's hard to twerk to". It boasts all the spacey, almost dopesick indulgences that have made The Flaming Lips' most recent releases melodically inaccessible to me. But just before it's too late, we have the surprising cover of Yes's "Heart Of The Sunrise". In yet another odd move, the song has been promoted as the first single from the EP. Why a single is necessary if it's only a 6 song EP is beyond me.

Linear Downfall, who themselves have covered King Crimson's 1969 prog classic "21st Century Schizoid Man", parts of which (I believe) were subliminally incorporated by Yes into "Heart Of The Sunrise", not only help solidify the direction of this wobbly side project with a cover version, but also prove that Drozd and Coyne picked the right players. Tempered down from the epic 11 minute original, The Electric Würms focus on the song's central melody to create a 4 minute abbreviated visit into early Progressive Rock that's more trippy than stoney, but it works.

The Electric Würms EP is available online at iTunes and Amazon, but if you check with your local indie record shop, you are likely to find it there on CD, or as a translucent purple vinyl edition, which is always a fun thing to add to your record shelf. The cosmically conscious catalog of The Flaming Lips is procurable on both CD and vinyl as well. Seriously, who needs drugs when you've got this stuff?

The now monumental catalog of Yes music is all in print and recently remastered for your listening pleasure with a choice selection of bonus material as well. There is also an excellent 13 disc boxed set of Yes albums that spans from their very first album through 1987's "Big Generator". Though there's no booklet, and the box surely deserves one, all of the albums have bonus tracks and come packaged in mini LP repro covers. Those of you with high end audio systems (and budgets to match) might be interested in this Japanese Super Audio CD box set. Yes completists will want this far more affordable 5 disc box of their later albums, post-2000. Any of these options are a fine way to add some essential Progressive Rock music by one of the genre's finest purveyors to your collection.