This page last updated: 25 May 13

YES and projects with several Yesmen	Jon Anderson	Chris Squire	Steve Howe	Alan White
Geoff Downes	Trevor Horn	Tony Kaye	Peter Banks	Patrick Moraz
Bill Bruford	Rick Wakeman	Trevor Rabin	Billy Sherwood	Igor Khoroshev Oliver Wakeman
Benoît David Jon Davison	Asia	CIRCA:	Anderson & Wakeman	Others associated with the band

On this page—Yes: On tour - Cruise to the Edge - Next album - Fly from Here - DVDs/re-releases - Covers of Yes songs - Documentaries & books - Fandom

Projects involving multiple Yes men: Asia (Howe, Downes) - Anderson Wakeman - CIRCA: (Sherwood, Kaye) - Anderson/Wakeman/Rabin - Levin/Torn/White - Sonic Reality project (w/ Sherwood, Kaye et al.) - Cleopatra Records album with guest artists (w/ Sherwood, Squire, Howe, Downes, Wakeman, Kaye, Banks)

At the moment [...] we’re very busy with our new singer, Jon Davison, and doing a lot of touring work this year and we’re looking at making a new YES album with Jon Davison as the singer towards the end of this year. Going into 2014, there are other possibilities that might open up, but we haven’t detailed them yet.

"We're already looking at bits and starting to gather music together," he reports. "It's really just in the germination stage at the moment."

 [...]

"Jon [Davison] is also a writer, so he'll be bringing something to the table to add to the Yes mix," Squire notes. "He's definitely a creative spirit, so we're looking forward to that new material with him, and hopefully we'll get a refreshed new Yes studio album."

Well, there are only small ideas at the moment. There’s nothing that’s been seriously rehearsed or looked at yet. We’re just starting to collect ideas now and we won’t get into the recording of a new album until at least the end of this year. So there’s quite a lot of water to go under the bridge before we get there.

Thank you for your excitement about a new YES album with Jon Davison. I’m excited to be working on that also, especially as Jon is, as we all know, not only a good front man-singer, but also he a writer as well, so the combination of bringing some of his ideas into the YES camp are something we’re all looking forward to.

Yes is currently in the beginning stages of a new album. Everyone is really excited about getting into the studio, which should happen sometime this year or early into next year. [...] I plan to be very busy with Yes throughout 2013

Well, I’m not going to really talk about that[.] It’s a bit early; we might do … certainly there’s some enthusiasm. And there are certain issues about it, and, well, they’ve thus far not been resolved. .. But it’s talked about, let’s say.

It’s strange how the focus on your new CD is so different from what it was. Evidently, when we’ve been talking about The Yes album, Close to the Edge, Going for the One [...] they’re established, they’re documented, they’re important. You can’t attack them, they’re very good recordings. I think Fly from Here was a fantastic achievement after 10 years since Magnification.

Even though Fly from Here was enjoyed and it was a high quality project—there’s no doubt about it—we won’t talk about it as long as we will the other classics. So I’m not quite sure how we go forward. I think steadily and not in a hurry. Because there are always labels saying, “Bring out another record.”

I don’t know how Yes did so much so close together in the ’70s but it shows how much our creativity was combusting together. I would love to say the obvious answer, “Yes, of course, we would love to get back,” but that’s not really true. We would have to time it. We would have to consider it and weigh up our expectations because that’s where happiness lies. And also when we would be ready to do something worthy.

Chris keeps going round saying, ‘Oh yeah, Yes is going to do another album.’ I keep saying, ‘What do you mean?’ [...] There’s people in bands who want to make new albums irrespective of the downsides. I notice bands doing albums and that they don’t have any effect. Considering the abuse on the internet, people getting everything for nothing – you go to the trouble of spending our money making a record we believe in, then it doesn’t spread the news far enough. [...]

“Fly From Here was a nice record. It had certain repercussions that are going to take a while to sort out. [...]

[Speaking about the current 3 Albums tour:] “I got a kind of awakening that tells me that to have these albums that people still enjoy, that’s quite an achievement. What are we trying to achieve by doing another one? I’ve got mixed feelings – I’m not opposed but I’m certainly cautious.”

We released Fly From Here last year, but it's something that I kind of fight myself about. You take bands like Aerosmith and the Rolling Stones, bands bigger than anything I've been in, and they make new records and nobody really cares. The people want to hear "Satisfaction." That goes with Yes as well, because people want to hear Close to the Edge. We like playing it. We love it, too. We love the new music but it doesn't have the familiarity. It is questionable what effect a new album has on well- established bands. Sometimes, you have to step back and ask yourself what you should be doing. I think The Who had one of the most disappointing results when they put out that last album. It was practically ignored and they are The Who. If we were to come out with something even as good as Close to the Edge, that would be a major achievement. The collaboration on those early records between Jon Anderson and I was amazing. There was a remarkable sense of teamwork. I don't know how we did it back then. It doesn't work the same way now.

Both Yes men say there’s an appetite to get more new material in motion, but it won’t necessarily come soon. [...] Howe [...] in particular feels that Yes “wasn’t really as ready to make a record as we thought we were” with “Fly From Here,” which he says will factor into what the group does next.

“I would say (a new album) is blowing in the wind,” Howe says, “but I don’t want to put out something just to feel like it’s a follow-up record. I want it to feel like an opportunity to do a style of music, a certain project, an adventure.

“I don’t think we’re there yet at all, so I think it’ll take a long time to be ready for another record — which is fine so long as it serves the purpose of making a better album.”

This is one of those areas in life where people think slightly differently. I prefer getting the material and getting things in place and then talking to people about it. You've got even the shade or the color or the totality of the material. I don't really care to talk about that. We're in good shape. It's not a real conversation piece—we haven't started anything, so to talk to people in public about it seems ridiculous to me. As it may, we can only say what we believe in, and I believe we'll start to talk about it later.

Though Howe says "there's no clear-cut plan yet," he acknowledges that there's a desire to follow-up 2011's "Fly From Here" [...]

"There's been talk and it's going around in circles and we're not really able to say much about it yet," the guitarist explains. "I'm happy to say I've always got music backed up, and in January (and) February I had time to do more of that with some fresh ideas and getting some demos going. Some of it's for my solo work, some of it's for Yes, potentially, so we'll see what transpires."

We've discussed the possibility of doing another album next year [2014] [...] I think the appetite is there to do... you know, we've discussed it, and certainly I think Jon [Davison] would be a very useful contributor to that. And it would be nice to do an album with him. Because we did an album with Benoit, but we would also like to do an album with Jon.

Most of us have ideas that we start off individually and when we get together to produce a new album, people bring them to the studio. Some motifs and sections evolve into full songs and other ideas we may have a brainstorming session to try combining different parts to see if they’re complementary or if we can develop something entirely new around an idea, if we like it. There’s no one way we make Yes music; there’s a variety of methodologies we’ll try out in the studio.

Squire and drummer Alan White tell ABC News Radio they hope the band will record a new album with Davison next year [2013].

"[Davison is] capable of it and, he's got song ideas," maintains White.  "Yeah, [it] looks like he'll be a great addition to the creative process moving forward."

Adds Squire, "He's a writer as well, unlike Benoit…So, that's gonna be a bonus."

We’ve started looking at possibilities for material for an album which we will probably record sometime in 2013. [...] Any new member that comes into Yes that contributes as a writer is always valuable. Yes is an evolving thing. It’s going to evolve further with Jon Davison’s input.

Yes, I would imagine. There will be a slightly different concept. On Fly From Here, there was a desire on Trevor Horn’s part—as well as myself and Steve Howe—to revive [...] “We Can Fly From Here.” [...] I think the next album will be totally fresh and new. We’re hoping to work with Trevor again. I enjoy working with him a lot. I hope he’ll have the time to fit it in.

In a Q&A for YesWorld in Apr 2013, asked generally about composing, White said: "Composing is always interesting. I like the creative process in the studio. It's always challenging to come up with new ideas and a new adventure in the rhythm section when composing songs with YES. We're always searching for something new."

Cruises, a Camp & a Festival
Mar 2013 saw the inaugural Cruise to the Edge (Facebook): a 5-day, prog-themed Caribbean cruise headed by Yes, starting and finishing in Fort Lauderdale, FL. As well as Yes, also appearing were Glass Hammer, UK (with Eddie Jobson, John Wetton, Terry Bozzio and Alex Machacek), Steve Hackett's Genesis Revisited II project, the Carl Palmer Trio, Nektar (who have recently worked with Steve Howe, Geoff Downes, Rick Wakeman, Patrick Moraz, all of whom guest on their new covers album, Spoonful of Time, and with Billy Sherwood), Ambrosia, Joel Hoekstra (Night Ranger, Trans-Siberian Orchestra, worked with Foreigner; with a band consisting of Eric Levy—keys, Virgil Donati—drums, Ric Fierabracci—bass), IOEarth, Zebra, Heavy Mellow and Brook Hansen (doing Yes and prog covers). Most bands did both regular performances and 'Storyteller Performances' (Q&A sessions, sometimes including musical performance). Roger Dean was also on the cruise, exhibiting work and doing a presentation, while Jon Kirkman hosted Q&A sessions and did a talk about his forthcoming book about Yes too. Writer Armando Gallo was also on board.

Although Davison continues as lead singer of Glass Hammer in general and wanted to sing with both bands on the cruise, it was decided that he would only sing with Yes. Some sources described the situation as Davison's contract with Yes for the spring tour (including the cruise) forbidding him from singing with anyone else for the duration of the tour. However, in an Apr 2013 interview, Howe described the situation somewhat differently:

it was said the band had forbidden Davison to sing with Glass Hammer on the ship.

But Howe calls the story an “exaggeration,” [...] “There was a decision: we jointly, as a band, decided not to water it down – let’s all be Yes at that time. I won’t dabble with my thing and no one else will dabble with other things.

“When I saw how it had come out I went, ‘Yuck!’ I was uncomfortable. It should have just said – and it would have been more honest if it just said – ‘Yes members are only doing Yes on the cruise.’ It would have said the same thing in a much better way.

“There was a lot of logic in the decision and it applied to everybody, not just him. If we hadn’t make the decision we’d have been doing masterclasses, lunches, tap-dancing, using whatever other skills we had!”

Thus, Glass Hammer were fronted by former lead singer Carl Groves for their performances. Tangerine Dream were scheduled to appear, but had to pull out because of ill health (Edgar Froese broke his jaw and hand, and is not allowed to fly after corrective surgery); they were replaced by Ambrosia. At the last minute, Saga, who were also scheduled to appeared, pulled out of a full appearance because of a family tragedy, but some band members were on board.

On tour
Yes's current tour continues with 9 South American dates 16-30 May (support from Seven Side Diamond on 23 & 24 May and from Apocalypse on 26 May), covering Peru, Brazil (6 dates), Chile and Argentina. Two of the Brazilian dates (24 & 25 May) and possibly a third (23 May) sold out and the Peruvian date was reported to have an audience of nearly 5000. The Peruvian set was [SPOILERS—highlight to read] Close to the Edge, Going for the One, intermission, The Yes Album, encore: "Roundabout".

They then return to North America for further dates 6 Jul-14 Aug (so far confirmed are 26 in the US and 1 in Canada). The 13 Jul and 9 Aug shows have time limits and are 2-album-only shows. The 3 Aug show in Camden, NJ will be part of YES FEST, a half-day event featuring multiple acts: see above for details. A Yes Fantasy Camp also takes place during the tour, on 14-7 Jul.

In an Apr 2013 interview, Downes said the band has touring planned for 2014. Cruise to the Edge 2014 departs Apr 2014 and Yes are confirmed again. On this year's Cruise to the Edge, Squire said there would be a European tour (including the UK) in May/Jun 2014, while another Yes member told a fan the tour would be in Apr/May. In his second YesWorld Q&A, Davison said there would "definitely" be UK dates in 2014, but not in 2013.

The band's spring leg saw 24 US dates and one Canadian date in Mar/Apr 2013. Rehearsals were from the middle of the month through to 26 Feb in Los Angeles, CA. During the tour, Yes also headline the Cruise to the Edge, a prog-themed Caribbean cruise starting and ending in Florida, on 24-30 Mar 2013—see immediately above. The tour sees the band play The Yes Album, Close to the Edge and Going for the One in order, in their entireties (but not in that order). They are only playing two albums in 5 casino venues with time limits (1, 9, 22 & 24 Mar and 5 Apr); this is usually expected to be The Yes Album and Close to the Edge. (As Squire explained in this Feb 2013 interview, "It is a bummer for me because we wanted to do all three albums everywhere, but you can't argue with the man.") On their debut night, a casino venue, they played The Yes Album in order, and then Going for the One in order, with "Roundabout" as an encore (and "Firebird Suite" as the intro music); the switch to Going for the One for the second album is because full band rehearsals were delayed by a death in Geoff Downes' family and the band felt more ready for that album over Close to the Edge. On most nights of the tour, they have played: intro music: "Firebird Suite", Close to the Edge in order, Going for the One in order, intermission, The Yes Album in order; encore: "Roundabout". However, there has been some variation in the order of the albums, e.g. on their third night and on 17 Mar, they played the three albums in chronological order, i.e. The Yes Album, then Close to the Edge, then Going for the One, and then "Roundabout". And on 18 Mar, they played Close to the Edge, The Yes Album, then Going for the One. In an Apr 2013 interview, Howe discussed the order in which to play the albums:

There’s been a few internal ordering issues [with] different people thinking that we should do them in anything but a chronological order. [...]

Not playing them chronologically makes utterly no sense to me whatsoever. I’m not the only person who thinks that but not everybody thinks that. So there’s an internal combustion going on as usual in Yes where the order of the albums is seen to be something we can change. [...] To me, it tells a beautiful story of our naive, wet behind the ears ‘The Yes Album’ to our expansive ‘Close To The Edge’ development to our almighty reunion sense of openness and beautifulness with ‘Going For The One,’ with songs like ‘Turn Of The Century’ and ‘Awaken.’

They are a long way from ‘Perpetual Change.’ I love them all and they’re all dear to my heart [...] but [...] to me, it’s blindingly obvious [...] a no-brainer, if you like, that we would chronologically do the albums. But there’s another agenda and it’s a confusing issue. We keep changing it and trying it different ways around. Very rarely, do we actually go back to the logical chronological [sequence] which I think is perfect.

In a Jan 2013 Guitar International interview, Squire described rehearsal plans:

We’re familiar with most of the material. The most difficult piece we’ve played but not that often is probably “Turn of the Century”. That’s probably gonna require the most work in rehearsal [...] We’re giving ourselves a good week to rehearse before we start the tour.

[...]

Prior to that we’ll do homework individually. [...] Check it out at home and then come together and rehearse as a unit.

The 1 Mar show was reported to have an audience of ~1,500, while the 3, 5, 6, 16 & 17 Mar and 7 & 9 Apr shows have sold out. The 14 Mar show sold 1,425 tickets, grossing $105,357. The 5 Mar show was sold out, selling 1,741 tickets and grossing $105,259. Patrick Moraz was in the audience, a guest of the band, at one of the Florida shows.

The 5 Mar show was to be broadcast live on AXS TV, but the broadcast has been cancelled, with a plan (not yet confirmed) to have an alternate broadcast later in the tour. A 7 Mar Facebook post by the band explained further:

A member of the band had a personal tragedy shortly before the show. Rather than pull the whole show, the decision was jointly and bravely made, by the whole band, to continue the show but to cancel the broadcast.

It was not an easy decision and we're very sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused.

Our fans mean the world to us, and we're trying to get another broadcast in the works for later in the tour.

In the Billboard interview, Squire described the tour concept as "something we've toyed with and discussed over the last 10 years from time to time". In the Vintage Rock interview, asked what inspired the tour concept, Squire said:

We were [...] saying, “Next year, we won’t have a new studio album, so what’s a different angle that we haven’t looked at before for the live shows?” This idea has been on our back burner for a long time to do albums in their original sequence — so the time has come for us to try this out, see how it goes.

Explaining the choice of albums in the Guitar International interview, he said, "It probably could have been any of our albums. We just narrowed it down, probably because we know the material of most of those." Answering a similar question in the Vintage Rock interview, he said, "I think they're a good cross section of Yes' career [...] All of these albums marked a change in the band's career". Howe explained in a Dec 2012 interview, "I came up with the idea that we should play an album in full [...] and then it went to two and eventually to three". In an interview around Dec 2012, White described the choice of the three albums as being fairly quick and explained that they rejected Fragile because it has "some things in it that wouldn't appeal to the whole band" and he gave "Five Percent of Nothing" as an example. In the Guitar International interview, Squire also explained why they passed over Fragile:

with Fragile, there are certain things that are difficult to pull off, particularly my solo on “The Fish”. Although I’ve done live versions of it in the past, they’ve been quite different from the actual album. I think that’s the purpose of doing it this way.

It was to try and emulate the albums and the order of the songs to come out the same way. We decided there wouldn’t be too much room for improvising.

White also said that he would love to perform Relayer, and Davison said in this Jan 2013 interview that:

“Drama” did come up as a potential candidate. We’re confident that this event will go off well, which will hopefully encourage us to do further album tours in the future. I hope that all the classic albums eventually find their way to the stage.

In an Apr 2013 interview, Howe described the choice of albums further. He mentions an initial plan to pair Fragile and Close to the Edge, but then says that he'd pushed for including "Awaken" in the set last year, which led them to considering Going for the One.

Squire also mooted the possibility of future tours along the same lines but involving different albums. In a Jan 2013 interview for Billboard, Squire then says they have "left a space open for later in the summer" to continue the tour and that the next tour will then be to promote the new album. In the Guitar International interview, considering future plans, he says:

The logical thing might be to look at a different three albums. We’ll see how this one goes. We will also probably be looking at doing [i.e., touring?] some new material next year [2014]. We’re planning on recording a brand new album. That will probably be the focus [of touring?] in 2014.

He made similar comments in a Feb 2013 Rolling Stone interview, saying 2014's touring will focus on a new album but that, "Maybe down the line we might look at a different triple set." The interviewer then suggests Relayer and Tormato. Squire replies: "Yeah, both of those. Then, of course, there's the Eighties Yes as well. That's something we haven't concentrated on for a while, seeing how it was the Trevor Rabin era. We have a wealth of material to pick from."

In another Feb 2013 interview, Squire similarly said: "I kind of suspect that we won't do this [whole album format] again for a while, because probably by the time we get to our next touring cycle, we're hoping to have a new studio album in the bag. So we'll probably be concentrating more on promoting that in 2014. But then again, we could maybe come back to this idea after that. We'll see." He also added, "I'm pretty sure that maybe in 2014, we may reintroduce elements of [the album] 'Fly From Here' into a show that we do next year."

In this Feb 2013 interview, Howe talks of wanting to do "To be Over" and "Sound Chaser". When the interviewer mentions playing material from "more recent albums such as Keys to Ascension, The Ladder and Magnification", Howe responds that, "They're something we'd like to incorporate, possibly next year. Because, although we've ignored them quite considerably, there are some times we say, "Oh, should we try that one?" It's really been down to when it would be appropriate to return to that era. [...] "Bring Me to the Power" and some of the other songs on [Keystudio] are really quite the cream of what we were doing then." He also hints at re-visiting Tales from Topographic Oceans, particularly "The Revealing Science of God" and "Ritual". Then in this Apr 2013 interview, he said, "I hope we are going to return to this juncture, and maybe play Fragile, Drama and some other album."

In a Mar 2013 Q&A, Davison talked of wanting to sing "The Gates of Delirium" and "Survival", while in his in Apr, Downes talks of playing all of Relayer, Drama or 90125, and in response to one question said, "Drama live? We’ve talked about it!" To a question suggesting the band play "The Remembering", he replied:

I think you’re right; ‘The Remembering’ would be an interesting choice [...] But there are also so many other hidden gems on the albums that have been historically been overlooked by the touring band over the years. Talk, Big Generator, Union, The Ladder, & Keys to Ascension also have some killer tracks. How about ‘Mind Drive’ as a suggestion? ☺

Asked about playing '80s material in his May Q&A for YesWorld, Davison replied, "I think it would be really fun to perform Changes, It Can Happen, and/or Shoot High Aim Low." In Downes' second Q&A, he said, "whilst we are currently focusing on the 70's Yes, there was some great music came out in all chapters of the band's existence [...] Personal favourite is "Changes"", while White said to a fan in Apr 2013 that the band had considered playing the piece, and that he would also like them to perform "Endless Dream".

The North American tour in Jul/Aug 2012 was with Procol Harum in support; Yes played 2 hours at most shows. There were 29 dates: they began in Ontario, Canada on 10 Jul (without Procol Harum), then played US dates 13 Jul-19 Aug, and finished 21 Aug in Mexico City. Davison, as well as singing, also sometimes played a keyboard, additional percussion or acoustic guitar. Annie Haslam (Renaissance, worked with Steve Howe, Billy Sherwood) attended the 22 Jul show, which was reportedly sold out. Davison's Glass Hammer colleagues attended an Aug show; Trevor Rabin attended the 15 Aug show and Billy Sherwood also attended an Aug show. The set stabilised as the tour went on, e.g. the 4 Aug set was: "Yours is No Disgrace", "Tempus Fugit", "I've Seen All Good People", "America", Howe solo ("In the Course of the Day",  "Leaves of Green" with Davison), "Fly from Here", Wonderous Stories", "Heart of the Sunrise", "Awaken"; encore: "Roundabout". The 14 Jul show was reported to be nearly full (capacity 2890). The 17 Jul outdoor show was at a festival; Downes tweeted that it had sold out 5000 tickets. The 18 Jul show sold 1,395 tickets ($97,227 gross); 27 Jul show sold 1,617 tickets ($99,295 gross); the 29 Jul show sold 1,919 tickets ($145,411 gross); and the 14 Aug show sold 1,981 tickets ($90,270 gross). One fan estimated attendance at the 24 Jul show to be ~1100, at the 31 Jul show to be 3500-4000, and at the 7 Aug show to be ~3000. The final date (21 Aug) in Mexico sold 2,826 tickets ($131,065 gross).

In a Jun 2012 interview, Squire said that White had suggested including "Perpetual Change". In one of the Jul 2012 interviews, Squire said:

Son ideas que hemos estado hablando, que se cocinan a fuego lento, que se desarrollan. [...] No van a pasar ni este ni el siguiente año (del 45 aniversario), pero mantengan los ojos y los oídos abiertos, que algo escucharán de esto

[My translation: These are ideas we've been talking about, which are on the back burner and developing. [...] It is not going to happen this year [2012] or the next (the 45th anniversary), but keep your eyes and ears open, you will hear something about this.]

Interviewer: I read that there is a possibility of “Yes on Broadway” in 2013 to celebrate the band’s 45th anniversary [...]

Squire: Ya, I don’t know how this rumor really got started. It was something that we were discussing as a band that maybe, at some point, to do a history of Yes sort of show and possibly have all of the previous members come in and do bits here and there. But it’s kind of a backburner thing. It’s not really something that’s going to happen this year [2012] or next. But it’s something that we’ve been talking about for a while, so don’t be surprised if in 2014 something pops up.

It’s [...] on the back burner while we mull it over. The idea is to do a history of Yes concept, including past and present members, if it was physically and financially possible. [...] We were looking at Broadway as opposed to Las Vegas or Atlantic City, which is where people try to do residencies. [...] we put this idea out there to see if someone who controls the theaters on Broadway would come to us and suggest something. We’ve had a couple of enquiries, but it hasn’t gone that far. [...] Next year [2013], we’ll be looking at doing a new studio album [...] So, this idea may not surface for awhile.

As for Anderson coming back, "we haven't put that out of our minds at all," White says. But if it happens, "I've got a feeling it won't be these long, arduous tours, maybe just some one-off gigs in big cities and stuff like that."

And for these special occasions, "I think we probably would have Jon there, too, the other Jon [i.e., Davison]. He's that nice a guy. He'd work with us on it and be part of it."

A 25 Sep 2012 interview asked White whether he would like to play with Anderson again. The reply (seemingly translated into Greek and then back into English):

It would be great to play with Jon again but you know, he’s doing his own thing. Now, we have a new singer in Yes. I see the reason of playing with Jon again in a special concert or in a special occasion. In very special gigs around the world like New York, L.A.. That kind of things.

I would say it was more Trevor's opportunity—if we get back together, why don't we do that? Because we had talked about that at various times. It was never a finished song, and it was only available as a live song on an obscure volume three or volume four box set somewhere. So yeah, maybe it is a bit of a funny idea, but maybe they[ fans]'re missing the point. The reason we liked it is because it was already there. We hadn't really exploited it, and if we'd only played it as a three-and-a-half minute song like it was before, it would be fair criticism, but we took that and combined it with other songs like my instrumental "Bumpy Ride." [...] into actually the biggest piece we'd ever released at 25 minutes [...]

You asked me about my initial thoughts [when they started work on the album]: I knew what that was, you know what I mean? So I was familiar, and I was quite relaxed because it was part of the Drama story that didn't get concluded. So yeah, I think it was very much Trevor who made the offer of, 'Oh, I'll do that with you at least.['] And because to get Trevor involved at that stage in the whole album, we had to concede that he was in tune with our material. But the way it transpired with the album was far more complex than anybody would have imagined. It involved Geoff joining the group, involved us going through a pretty big investment into how we were going to make this record after ten years of there not being a Yes record. It was quite weighty in its sensibility because it was a good step to take but a slightly precarious and dangerous one. People have turned their backs on these kind of albums before. I think there were a few bands who do it thinking they would go up the charts, but it did rubbish! (laughs) We slightly reinvented ourselves—well, not slightly. We did reinvent ourselves, and we've slightly been able to bring ourselves closer to carrying on the legacy that's had a hole in it for ten years. So it's a pretty good showing, I would say. And I love being able to put "Solitaire," my solo, on it, and also "Hour of Need," which is another song I'd had floating around. So basically, there was room to collaborate and work, and it was a pretty healthy environment. It wasn't all easy, but as I said somewhere else, nothing good comes easy. (laughs)

Interviewer: Since this tour interrupts recording progress, does the time away offer perspective that will affect what happens next?

Howe: [...] There are two schools of thought. In one, you start making an album, and then you never stop until you completely finish it. The opposite of that is you do tracks, and then you come back to them. [...] So, you’re always thinking fresh. You’re not thinking, “God, I’ve been on this record for three months. I just want to stop hearing it!”

This is how we made our earlier records, and it may prove to be a much better way. [...]

Close to the Edge, Fragile and The Yes Album were made as we lived and toured, and stopped and started. I think, most probably, they were better because of it. They benefitted from renewing that fresh approach.

[...]

I would say that it [the new album] has turned into a good team record. I really hope that we all like it as much as we think we do at the moment. The collective enjoyment is very important.

It might be a little bit closer to Drama than we actually thought before. That might be due to the fact that Trevor cares a lot about the music. He’s a great writer, and has written some songs with us. [...] I don’t think [the album]’s very predictable. I think people are going to go, “Ouch! Ooh!,” in surprise. I don’t think they’re going to go, “Oh, God, it’s another Yes record.” [laughs]

[...]

[After praising The Libertines and the first Babyshambles album] I still need to have rock energy in music. Not in the same way, but I hope with the new Yes album that we’ve carried that rock message. Forget the poncing around with all the arty-farty music. Yes is fundamentally a rock band.

Line-up discussion & longer term plans
In a Mar 2013 interview, White had this to say about the possibility of Anderson returning to the band:

"I haven't put it out of my mind that it's a probability," he says. "We'll see down the line. I don't think it will be for a whole period. I think it will be for some specialized gig like New York, L.A., or London, that kind of a thing."

Despite Anderson seeming a bit bitter about the band recording its first album in ten years without him [...] White says there is no bad blood between them. "I spoke to Jon a few weeks ago," White shares. "He's a 49ers fan, and I'm a Seahawks fan, and we were having a conversation totally about football."

In an Apr 2013 interview (in Spanish), Squire was asked about the possible return of Anderson, Bruford, Wakeman and Moraz. His answer (translated): "Not at the moment, at least not this year. Perhaps in the future, there is a possibility of doing something with them again."

In an interview from around May 2013, Anderson said:

[...] I said to Chris the other month, if Geoff [Downes] and Jon [Davison] are in the band too, I don’t mind, you know, we can all work together. I’m very open. I think the music is more important, and the fans are more important than all that “I want the band to be my way” business. I was never into that. And I’m always very open for things to work out okay.

Rick is a very important part of the group [...] I think that it’s important that he should be involved as well.

And I spoke to Alan a couple of weeks ago. So we’re in touch, and when the time comes, when the stars align, we’ll probably be able to get together and perform together. I don’t see myself going on crazy tours for months on end, I don’t see the point in that—we’re all a lot older, and I hope a lot wiser. We should do shows here and there and we should make sure the shows are very important and very, very well produced

In a Q&A for YesWorld in Apr 2013, Howe said:

The current members of Yes respect and regard and appreciate the enormous contributions that our past members have made, not the least of all Bill Bruford, Jon Anderson, Rick Wakeman, Patrick Moraz, and the late Peter Banks, Billy and Trevor and so many people and they’ve all been contributing to the past. And what you have now is the Yes that is functioning because of multiple reasons: we want to, we’re able to, we have the energy, and we love the music.

And in an Apr 2013 interview, Downes said:

who knows, as regards Jon Anderson? It's something that's not really in my control. I've not really ever worked with Jon Anderson. So I know the other guys speak to him from time to time. So it's not... people say it was an acrimonious departure--probably not as much as people might think.

The article continues:

does it seem like it's healed over time, if indeed there was any acrimony?

"I'd say so, yeah. People get on. [...] when you get to your 60s, you don't want to be carrying too many grudges around with you (laughs)."

And in his Apr 2013 Q&A, Squire's answer to the familiar question was:

I’ve always said it’s never out of the question that there’s a possibility we could put together something that would involve Jon [Anderson], and I think Jon would be open to that, as well. At the moment, of course, we’re very busy with [...] Jon Davison, and doing a lot of touring work [...] looking at making a new YES album with Jon Davison [...] Going into 2014, there are other possibilities that might open up, but we haven’t detailed them yet.

In an Oct 2011 interview, Howe summarised the last few years for Yes:

And here's an interview with Squire conducted Dec 2012 where he also summarises the last few years:

Interviewer: [...] How difficult was it to find someone to fill in for Jon Anderson and do you think you'll ever work with him again?

Squire: Of course it was real difficult. [...] [In 2008,] we hadn't worked live for really four years. Jon was going through some medical issues and we were hoping Jon was going to come through that [...] We did set out to do a tour in 2008 with Jon. Just before we started rehearsing for the tour Jon had taken ill and I think at that point we had realized that we couldn't keep everything on hold and that's why we went with [Benoît David] [...] Then the end of last year [2011] he just sort of decided it wasn't really for him, he had various reasons why he didn't want to be away from home. It was sad that it happened, but fortunately we got together with Jon Davison, whom is really excellent, he's probably the closest thing to a great replacement of Jon. Jon Anderson is a landmark singer, you're never going to be able to replace what he brought to the band, because it was more than just his voice. It was us working together writing wise, so that dynamic is obviously going to be different with Jon Davison. [...] [W]orking with Jon Anderson again, I never turned my back on the idea. As far as I know he's not really physically able to do a hardcore rock n roll tour. If we do anything in the future it'd be some special event that was set up for that or maybe a couple of events. Right now Jon Davison just got on board so we'll work with that.

In a Jan 2013 interview, Squire said he had received a Xmas card from Anderson and "will return the favor in the new year." He goes on to say, "I want to say that one day it might be possible we could do something again. I wouldn't close the door on that." Asked about working with Anderson again in this Feb 2013 interview, Squire replies:

I always say in interviews that I've never closed the idea on working with Jon again. It would probably have to be some sort of speciality kind of set, a limited engagement kind of thing. I guess, right now, our plan is to do this [spring 2013] tour and then record a new album with Jon Davison towards the end of the year. Then we'll be out promoting that.

So, there's always an open door after that if we want to look at doing something with Jon. But, of course, it also depends on how he feels about it.

A Sep 2012 interview asked Howe: "Asia is a band that works so well with the original four, and not nearly as good without the original four. Yes, however, is a band where everyone, at one time or another, has come and gone, including you, yet it still works. What is the difference between the two?" His reply:

It must be personalities. Asia had a long break where we didn’t do anything and Yes has perpetuated all of these years. That has required people to come and go and it has meant we need to get new blood sometimes, as well.

Asia is really quite different as it doesn’t work unless it is the original guys. You could claim the same for Yes and say that we should bring back the original guys, but Bill Bruford is, sadly, retired. Peter Banks and Tony Kaye are both very good musicians, but it wouldn’t be the same as what we do now, or what we did in the past. Yes and Asia are very different kinds of creatures, really.

Later in the same interview, he is asked if Anderson and Wakeman will ever work with the band again:

Well, how in the hell do I know? I wouldn’t particularly say that it is on the agenda. People have said the cliché like we have burned bridges and all of that.

We are realistic people, so in the sense of realism, for Yes to evolve, we had to be a strong group and we had to have people who were committed to it to warrant a position in the band. In other words, if you come in and say to Yes, “I play the drums but in Yes I am going to play the bongos.” We would say, “But we want a drummer.”

You’ve got to be able to provide the full story. [...] everybody in this group needs to accept that we look at the entire career of this group. We don’t just look at little pockets when certain people were in the group—we don’t do that anymore. [...] Of course, we do focus a lot on the ‘70’s but there were a few lineups there.

In a way, that is the commitment. It is not about Jon and Rick now. It is about who can do these tours and who can perform the repertoire from 1968 to 2012. If you can do that then you have an opportunity to be in Yes. I’m not going to say Rick and Jon can’t do that. I will say that I don’t think that is what they want to do. But that is what Yes demands. We want artists who can come in and perform with an open heart right across the board. I guess that is the key to it.

We were upset for several years when he wouldn't tour. It wasn't only because he had not been well. We were very sympathetic to that. When he was well, he went out and did Yes songs on his own. I'm not saying it is tit for tat. What I am saying that the circumstances have changed. Yes has toured with Jon Davison singing and it was very successful. We are going to continue with Davison next year [2013]. I know people would love to see Jon Anderson, but it's about does it work. Do we want to honor each other's position? Nobody leads Yes. Yes does not have a single, solitary leader who says I am the leader of the band. It's a team. We have pushed forward and we haven't had anyone going home unhappy or asking for their money back. We deliver what Yes is supposed to do.

I would never close the door on that possibility, but we're in the throes of promoting our new album and Jon Davison is doing a good job with that. If anything in the future happens regarding a possible collaboration with Jon [Anderson], I'm sure we'd look at it, but right now we're in a good place and not even thinking about it.

However, he also talked about a possible Broadway residency that would be in collaboration with Anderson and other ex-members: see above for more. He also supports the interviewer's suggestion of a get together if the band were ever inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, saying: ""That would be fantastic, wouldn't it? It would be great to get every member up there onstage. Fortunately, I think every member is still alive, so they shouldn't wait too long." In a mid-Jun 2012 interview, asked about a "reconciliation with Jon Anderson", White said

Who knows? One time, hopefully, we can, erm... get back together with Jon. Whether it'd be for a just a few specialised kind of... y'know, the shows are an occasion, and not much like a whole tour, will probably be the case [...] I'm still great friends with Jon. And he's just happy doing his solo thing.

The interviewer then says she spoke with Anderson last year and that he's ready, to which White replies: "I wouldn't count it out."

In this Jun 2012 interview, on the possibility of Anderson returning, Squire said:

I don't consider, er, closing the door on the idea of doing something with Jon again. It's just he himself has said that he couldn't commit to the kind of schedule it takes to do a Yes tour.

And on the same subject, a Jul 2012 interview has this:

Squire leaves the door open to working with fellow co-founder Jon Anderson [...]

"Of course, he would want to have to do it," Squire said [...] "But it would be probably a little bit different. Because I'm not sure if he'd be up for doing the hard slog, a long rock 'n' roll tour, at this moment. But I'm sure there's a good possibility we could do something together in the future."

Being the cordial chap that he is, Squire doesn't rule out any possibilities.

"Well, the funny thing is that more by default than desire, I've sort of been there the whole time," he said. "And various other members like Jon and [...] Rick Wakeman, for instance, have been in, they've been out, they've been back in, they've come back again. So, it's really par for the course with Yes. That's sort of a pattern. I wouldn't object to working with any former member of Yes, really."

And in another that month:

You know, I’ve never closed the door on doing something wi[th Anderson] again. But we’d have to see how that could be done. The setting would have to be right for that to occur, because it would be a shame to build up a new Yes lineup with Jon Davison and then bring Jon Anderson back in. That would make what we’re doing now seem like a secondary project. Even if we had him just in for a few dates, the business side would be pressuring us: Can you do more, can you do an album? It just may not ever happen. But, having said that, I haven’t closed my mind to it.

And another:

while Squire insisted that, “At the moment, we’re not thinking about doing anything with Jon Anderson again,” he seemed to take a “never-say-never” approach.

“It’s a possibility that we might do it one day,” he said, “but at the moment we’re out promoting ‘Fly From Here’ and introducing Jon Davison to people.”

An Aug 2012 interview with White said:

As for Anderson coming back, "we haven't put that out of our minds at all," White says. But if it happens, "I've got a feeling it won't be these long, arduous tours, maybe just some one-off gigs in big cities and stuff like that."

And for these special occasions, "I think we probably would have Jon there, too, the other Jon. He's that nice a guy. He'd work with us on it and be part of it."

In an early Sep 2012 interview for GTFM radio (Wales), the interviewer asked Downes about Squire having said he is "open" to Anderson returning. Downes replied:

What Chris might say in an interview might (a) be misinterpreted or (b) might be something that, y’know, he might want to… erm… not really mean what he’s saying in that respect. Certainly, at the moment, I don’t see that being a possibility, but you never say never in those circumstances. There may be some level whereby there is a kind of a Yes reformation some time down the line in the future, similar to the Union situation, maybe. But certainly I think that the level of touring we’re doing at the moment and the intensity of dates, I don’t think would probably suit Jon Anderson, not that I know him particularly well

An 8 Feb 2012 interview with Squire on Davison replacing David also had this:

In a Jan 2013 interview, Anderson was asked, "Will there ever be a chance at reconciliation with Yes that could result in a new tour, perhaps even a new Yes album?" His answer: "I would love that to happen!" He said more in this exchange from a Feb 2013 interview:

Interviewer: A few months ago[...] Squire [...] told me that he's never turned down the opportunity to work with you again, but currently your health is too poor to do an extensive tour. How is your health [...]

Anderson: Yeah, I nearly died a couple of times. My health is very good. The bizarre thing is I sing more on stage now doing my solo shows than I ever did with Yes. I sing and talk for an hour and three quarters. Chris just wants to own and control the band, that's his life. I wish he'd have called the band something else, it would have been more real, but bands do it, Journey carried on without their singer. I wish them luck; it's not my idea of Yes, obviously. My idea of Yes is "Open" and what I'm doing now. Emotionally I haven't left Yes at all. [...] I still have a great feeling about the future of my idea of Yes music. I'm still committed to the wonderful Yes music we've created over the years. I want to continue to make that kind of Yes music [...]

Interviewer: [...] Are you open to the idea of an extensive tour with them?

Anderson: I wanted to tour in 2009 when I got better and they said no. They turned me down. They said maybe next year. That's kind of bizarre to me that they'd say they already had a singer, six months later that singer, probably a lovely guy, couldn't handle the touring, because it's so hard. Now they have another singer, they didn't call me or ask me if I'd be interested, they just say oh he's sick, which is a lot of rubbish.

Interviewer: Would you ever work with them again?

Anderson: Sure, I'd love to. There's no reason why we shouldn't bury the hatchet, get together and make some music and do something very special for all the Yes fans around the world. And there are thousands of people who would like us to get together [...] Rick would have to be in the band. There's no point in just me. We'd probably do some shows or something, some beautiful new music [...] we could make a movie or something like that, just to honor all the fans.

Another Feb 2013 interview had this:

Anderson says he’s made overtures about joining the Yes fold again [...] His only condition [...] was that [...] Rick Wakeman return as well. [...] Chris Squire and [...] Steve Howe, Anderson adds, weren’t interested.

“Chris and Steve like to have control of things. That’s what they want to do,” Anderson says. “I’ve said two or three times, I’d love to get back together — as long as Rick is back in the band. They don’t seem to be hearing that, at the moment. Maybe, one day it will happen. We’ll see.”

He had earlier in the interview given his view of the current band:

They’re carrying on[.] Fans have lost interest in the whole concept, anyway. It’s what it is. It’s going to go the way it’s going to go — that’s really all I can say. I think a lot of people are just disappointed, like I was, that it’s lost that impetus that made Yes music so beautiful and different.

He also commented that he hasn't heard Davison singing, but he said of David: "I heard Benoit when someone sent me a link on YouTube, and he was singing pretty good. He's a good singer, but he was having a tough time after a year on the road. Singers, it's a very physical thing, and they are the most affected by long touring."

In the wake of David's departure, it was reported that an attempt was made to reach out to Jon Anderson, but that Anderson would not talk and no discussion with him took place (see, for example, here and here on Yesfans.com). In response to earlier, erroneous, online reports that he had been asked to re-join, Anderson released a statement on 8 Feb, from which I quote:

Interviewer: Because of your health issues, Yes decided to tour with a replacement vocalist. Can a band still call itself Yes and not have Jon Anderson singing?

Anderson: No, it's never going to be the same band. And they've just announced this week that they had to get yet another singer after the guy who replaced me became ill. I've told them that since I am healthy again that I would to get back with them. I told them that I wanted to create new music, but they don't want to do that. They just want to go on the road and make money. They don't care for the integrity of the band. I feel they have let a lot of fans down. They're just in it for the money.

In the wake of David's departure, it was reported that some sort of attempt was made to reach out to Anderson, but that he would not talk and no discussion with him took place (see, for example, here and here on Yesfans.com). In response to earlier, erroneous, online reports that he had been asked to re-join, Anderson released a statement on 8 Feb, from which I quote:

“A couple years back he [Anderson] did have some problems with his voice and problems with his breathing. It became a little obvious that he was reticent to want to commit to do any large-scale touring,” Squire said. “The rigors of going on the road as a lead singer, it’s a very difficult job. So, at the moment, we’re concentrating on this lineup.”

[...]

[“]Benoit has certainly grown into the job very well. He manages to pretty much pull off most of what Jon does, if not all,” Squire said. “Jon Anderson is a great singer and still is a great singer and obviously very difficult to replace, but the fans seem to have embraced Benoit [...]”

Another Jul 2011 interview had Squire giving this explanation of how Anderson was replaced:

Squire says the group moved on without Anderson after the vocalist developed serious respiratory problems.

"We took some time off in between 2005 and 2007 for Jon to get treatment for that condition," Squire says. "Then in 2008 we agreed to go on tour and Jon was up for it. But just before the tour started he got very sick and we had to cancel the tour. At that point we had to make a decision to bring somebody else aboard in order to carry on working. It's as simple as that, really."

In an 18 Apr 2011 interview, Squire said:

My standard answer [...] is that there’s no door closed on the possibility of that [Anderson re-joining] happening. Um, but you have to remember that, y’know, Jon did go through some quite severe respiratory problems, and I think he’s doing pretty well now. But, erm, the rigours of being able to do a large tour with Jon are probably gonna be a bit more than he’s capable of. But, y’know, we’ve always talked about doing some selected shows

In a 28 Jun 2011 radio interview, asked again about the possibility of Anderson returning, Squire protested the question, saying the band's focus "for the next couple of years" was touring in support of Fly from Here, but that after then, they could think about working with Anderson again. In another Jun 2011 interview, Squire said:

I’ve never closed the door on the possibility of working with Jon again. He has left and rejoined the band on a couple of previous occasions. It could happen again. But right now, having just finished the album and the fact that we’re all pleased with it and the reviews from outside all seem to be very positive, we’re at least going to spend the next year or two going around the world and promoting and playing live. [...] Ask me again that question in a year’s time and I might have a different answer.

"Those [the Anderson/Wakeman shows] were all fairly lightweight, acoustic kind of shows," Squire says. "Singing for Yes is a very taxing position and I don't know Jon's abilities to do a heavy rock & roll tour."

[...] Squire insists that there is no bad blood between Anderson and the rest of Yes. "We exchange Christmas cards," he says. "I'd be happy to work with him in the future. I'm proud of the fact that we started this thing together. If there's a way in the future that we could work together, and it's something that's comfortable for him and everyone else involved, I'm certainly open to looking at it."

In a different Mar 2011 interview, Howe said: "It's got a lot to do with commitment. We didn't want Jon to leave, and we didn't want Rick to leave, but basically, they didn't want to be part of the party." He then continues:

[David and O. Wakeman] They’ve brought [the Yes] sound. It’s quite a similar tone, and that’s helped us maintain a familiar sound[.] You shut your eyes, and you think it’s Jon and that’s never happened before.

We didn’t go out with a sloppy show with a singer who couldn’t deliver. I think the audiences have been impressed by Benoit and, thankfully, have accepted him.

And there is this from another interview with Squire that month:

A reunion of the two original Yes men [Squire and Anderson] might happen.

But don’t expect it anytime soon.

“I don’t see why not,” Squire said. “That door is always open.”

He added, “But that would be something to look into two or three years from now.”

And Squire in a 22 Mar 2011 interview, asked about Anderson:

“We always exchange Christmas cards,” Squire began with a hearty laugh, “but I haven’t spoken to him recently. I don’t have any problem with communicating with him, I believe he’s doing very well and is a lot more recovered from his respiratory problems he was having, so that’s good news.

“It wouldn’t be out of the question that we would do something with him again in the future, but we’ve got to get at least another year and promote this new album before we turn to any special guesting from Jon — but it’s not impossible to happen.”

An interview with Squire from around Feb 2011 has the following:

When asked how Yes keep things fresh [...] Squire chuckles and says bluntly, “[We] change the other guys in the band.” [...] Squire is matter of fact about the circumstances that led to Anderson being replaced as well as the number of fans who are upset about the change. “I find that to be the minority of people at the moment, as far as I am concerned. Obviously, there are going to be people who will miss him or whatever but life must go on. Believe you me, if Jon was up and his health was good, then it would be a different situation, but that is not the situation. We decided at one point to go one with Benoit. Otherwise the band would have just slipped into obscurity.”

[...] “We were very lucky to find someone [in David] who can basically do the job. He pretty much has all of the ideas surrounding the job as well,”

Some 2009 reports had Anderson (and maybe R. Wakeman) returning to the band at some point in 2010, but this did not happen. Anderson has said that he told Howe/Squire/White that he was ready to return to the band in 2009, but they told him they would stick with David. Squire was interviewed in Oct 2009 on Planet Rock radio (UK):

I love Chris [Squire] like a brother and wish only the best for him. But I think Jon is such an important part of YES, and it's not just the sound. It's the input and perspective that Jon brings. It sometimes is tough, but it's so worth it.

I have and like any fan of the music one has their favorites of this or that.... That said, it's not my business how bands evolve, who should be there and who shouldn't. i just enjoy the fact music is being made.

With Yes I have learned to never say no lol... Anything is possible, every time I thought I was finished working with the band it would then re-enter my world in some significant way. I have no plans to re-join or produce etc... but I didn't have that plan when it came at me in the past so.... let's leave it at who knows.

Yes has certainly stood the test of time. We’ll see what happens down the line. It’s possible there might be a Yes band 100 or 200 years from now, much in the same way cities have symphony orchestras that have been around. [...] the name could be kept and you could have new musicians come in. [...] Yes isn’t necessarily contingent upon my presence. By now, people know what my contribution to the band has been, both in songwriting and playing. Of course, I can be emulated and my style can be borrowed from for any future bassist or secondary vocalist for the band. I’ve thought about it a lot, and this could be a possibility looking toward the future.

Hace poco la compañía Universal Pictures se mostró interesada en hacer una película de animación en la que se muestra un poco de nuestra trayectoria musical, desde cuando surgimos, hasta la actualidad, incluyendo obviamente, nuestras canciones más representativas. Lo estamos analizando, todavía hay algunas puntos por precisar, como la historia, de qué trataría y cómo se abordaría, cuáles etapas de la carrera se incluirían, las canciones, pero creo que es muy pronto para hablar del tema, esperemos pronto poder dar más detalles. [...]

Son muchos años, muchas anécdotas que contar, creo que tendríamos que seleccionar muy bien lo que quisiéramos abordar, porque una película, comúnmente tiene una corta duración, cerca de dos horas y es muy poco para contar tanto, ya casi cumplimos cincuenta años de estar juntos.

It is unclear whether Yes are involved with current planning for "Floating Islands". The film is expected to feature music by the band. Asked in the Mar 2008 interview about Yes making some music especially for the project, Dean replied: "all members of the band have spoken enthusiastically about doing that. [...] That's definitely what we would like." He goes on to say he would like both existing and new songs, and discusses the options for either existing or new recordings of old songs. He talks about both "Awaken" and "Soon". Back in Jun 2007, Dean had said that Yes are not currently involved with the project beyond authorising the use of their music. A report from around 2005 had that the film is intended to contain 8-12 classic tracks (a re-recorded "Close to the Edge" was mentioned in one rumour) and at least 4-5 new recordings. In Jun 2007, Dean confirmed there had previously been discussion of Yes writing new music for the film and that the band had been thinking of "re-recording everything" (presumably meaning re-recording classic pieces), but that there hadn't been any discussion of new music recently with Yes then being dormant.

Further back, there were more reports from Yes about contributing. In a Dec 2004 Delicious Agony interview, White said, "We're starting to write music for it." In his Christmas Newsletter 2004, Wakeman said: "There are certainly ideas in the offing which include [...] making a film/and/or DVD with Roger Dean involved with all of the visuals which I particularly like, but there is much to be sorted out within the band itself before any decisions". Wakeman indicated that one of their main reasons to prefer the DVD format over CDs is Internet piracy. In an Oct 2005 interview with Squire for YesFANZ, he said:

We are looking at various options from the various major companies. Universal have shown interest and we are going to be looking at trying to put together a show that maybe then after the film has been made of the same, we can then tour the world with that kind of a look and with that kind of combining the film and the touring aspect.

I think Roger’s floating Islands idea is a very good project. But after Lord of the Rings was made [...] with such good quality, it[']s hard to know quite whether Roger may be a bit late in thinking about that because it has been done so well with the correct amount of money [...] His idea, I fully support it but I am not quite sure where it is going to go. I had a couple of meetings with him to try and figure it out but so far nothing is happening.

[...] I think pretty much [he is looking for funding]. [...] Yes is a separate entity really from Roger [...] I have to look out for what’s best for Yes as opposed to Roger. But I think the idea of animated film for a Yes musical project is a good one but there are various options on the table that we are looking at.

Covers of Yes songs & other news
Mellow Records have released a 2CD tribute to Yes, Tales from the Edge: A Tribute to the Music of Yes (MMP519 A/B), another in their long line of prog tribute albums (bands are Italian unless otherwise specified). The album is available from Bandcamp or from Mellow via eBay here. Details in Yescography. Tracks:

Disc 1:|

1. The Samurai of Prog (Finland) - "Starship Trooper" (10:33); with Jon Davison on vocals
2. Periplo - "To be Over" (9:04)
3. Aquael - "Run Through the Light" (4:26) (previewed here)
4. ZeroTheHero (Carlo Barreca) - "The Fish" (3:05) (previewed here)
5. SETI (Chile) - "Machine Messiah" (10:56)
6. The Opium Cartel (Norway) - "Clear Days" (3:41) (previewed here)
7. Vanilla Project - "Heart of the Sunrise" (8:37)
8. TenMidnight - "Tempus Fugit" (4:39)
9. Yessongs - "Siberian Khatru" (9:00)
10. B612 - "Long Distance Runaround" (3:20)
    
11. Aurora Lunare - "Don't Kill the Whale" (4:57)
12. Greenwall - "Onward" (3:36)
13. Yesterdays (Romania) - "White Car" (3:14)

Disc 2:

1. Luca Scherani - "Holy Lamb" (4:54)
2. Jay Tausig (USA; worked with Billy Sherwood) - "Wonderous Stories" (4:03) (previewed here)
3. Raven Sad - "Soon" (7:43) (previewed here)
4. Supernal Endgame (USA) - "Parallels" (6:23) (previewed here)
5. Subterra (Chile) - "Shock to the System" (5:36) (previewed here)
6. Stefano Vicarelli - "Mood for a Day" (4:04)
7. Conqueror - "Lift Me Up" (4:38)
8. Armalite - "Time and a Word" (6:00)
9. Spirits Burning (USA) - "South Side of the Sky" (7:16)
10. 3RDegree (USA) - "Going for the One" (5:44) (previewed here)
11. Alessandro Corvaglia feat. Matteo Nahum - "And You and I" (9:21)
12. Marco Masoni - "Show Me" (4:45)
13. Din Within (USA) - "Changes" (7:19) (previewed here)

Media, books, documentaries & fandom
Journalist Jon Kirkman (worked on the "Union Live" and other releases) has written a new book about Yes, "Time and a Word: The Yes Interviews" (Facebook, YouTube; Rufus Stone Limited Editions), due 2013 (now on pre-sale). The book contains new and archive interviews with current and past band members, covering Anderson, Squire, Bruford, Kaye, Banks, Howe, Wakemans R & O, White, Moraz, Downes, Rabin, Sherwood, Brislin, David and Davison, as well as with Phil Franks, the photographer for The Yes Album. The book will also contain many photographs, several not previously published (including from Moraz's personal collection). A limited edition signed by band members is planned; there may also be some of the interviews on CD included. A regular, softback edition and an e-book are also expected. Kirkman discussed the book on the Cruise to the Edge. He is also working on a second Yes book project.

Brian Draper is updating his book "Yes in Australia" to cover the 2012 tour. The update will be in electronic format.

A documentary entitled "And You & I: A Musical Documentary" (IMV Blueline; 61 minutes) is being advertised, out 19 Feb 2013 in the US. The blurb describes it as "featuring rarely seen television interviews, behind-the-scene stories and super-rare performances from 1974." Further details are unknown.

Will Romano's "Mountains Come Out of the Sky: The Illustrated History of Prog Rock" (Backbeat Books) covers Yes, Asia, King Crimson, Genesis, Pink Floyd and many other bands. The foreword is by Bill Bruford. Another new book about progressive rock is "Prophets & Sages: An Illustrated Guide to Underground and Progressive Rock 1967-1975" by Esoteric Recordings label manager/founder, Mark Powell (worked with Soft Machine, Caravan, Camel).

Another new book, released in 2012, about progressive rock took its name from Yes: "Beyond and Before: Progressive Rock Since the 1960's" by Paul Hegarty and Prof. Martin Halliwell from Continuum.

"Yes is the Answer (And Other Prog Rock Tales)" (Rare Bird Books), edited by Marc Weingarten & Tyson Cornell, sees novelists and journalists sharing their personal experiences of prog. The book was released 14 May 2013.

Garry Freeman (author of "The Bootleg Guide" and the forthcoming "Emerson, Lake and Palmer—A Live Guide 1970-1978") is working on "Yes—A Live Guide 1968-1979" (Helter Skelter Publishing). The book aims to review as many shows as possible from this period, including details on equipment specifications and so on. If you can help with recordings of shows or technical information (what equipment the band used, what was the set list etc.), please e-mail Garry. The Gottlieb brothers are working on a book on Yes collectibles and Bill Martin (author of "Music of Yes—Structure and Vision in Progressive Rock") has been rumoured to be working on a new Yes book.

In a Jul 2004 interview, Wakeman said he would be writing a book about Yes: "I am going to do [a book] about Yes. There have been lots of books written about the band and I want to do one from what it's like inside the band." In a Jan 2005 interview, he said he was "seriously thinking about" writing a book about Yes having been asked to do one by a "big publisher". See further details under Wakeman. Moraz too is planning an autobiography that "will reveal the truth of what happened with Yes" (Oct 2010 interview). Squire and Howe are both working on autobiographies, which will cover Yes.

Yes were nominated in the Lifetime Achievement category for the Progressive Music Awards 2012, but lost out to Genesis. Rick Wakeman won in the Prog God category, in which Jon Anderson was also nominated.

The well-known Forgotten Yesterdays site is back! The site is a comprehensive guide to Yes's touring history and much recommended.

Management
Yes are managed by Paul Silveira. Precisely who owns the Yes name, or what that question even means, is unclear. Yes as a corporate entity (Yes, LLC) is currently owned by Howe, Squire and White. Anderson and R. Wakeman were equal co-owners 2002-4, but subsequently sold their shares back. Consider also this Jul 2009 interview with Squire:

• Asia, with Howe and Downes, is covered on its own page here.
• The Buggles and Producers, with Horn and Downes, are covered under Horn.
• Cleopatra Records have released and are releasing a large number of projects with multiple guests: some of these are headed by Sherwood (including The Prog Collective and The Prog Collective 2, The Fusion Syndicate and various tribute albums, with guests including Squire, Wakeman, Kaye, Downes, Moraz, Banks and Levin) and are covered under him, while others (including a Nektar covers album, with Howe, Wakeman, Moraz and Downes) are listed below.
  
• CIRCA: and related projects with Sherwood and Kaye are covered on their own page here.

Jon Anderson & Trevor Rabin
Anderson and Trevor Rabin have been sporadically collaborating over the last 5 years or so. A Jun 2006 report had Rabin saying he and Anderson had just spent a week writing together and that they were both very pleased with the results and the pair were also working together for about a week in Mar 2006. Anderson has mooted both the possibility of joining Rabin on some film work and of touring the YesWest catalogue. In a May 2008 article, he talked of him and Rabin "maybe touring some of that '80s-period music, because it was very special. [...] I wouldn't do it, like, Yes. I'd do it like me and Trevor aspiring to be the two of us making music and see what we come up with." The article describes Anderson as being "amenable to some sort of reunion of the Yes[West] lineup", although it is unclear whether Anderson indicated the involvement of any of Squire, White or Kaye. However, it appears this co-writing activity is now being directed to a project with Rick Wakeman as well: see immediately below.

Jon Anderson, Rick Wakeman & Trevor Rabin
Anderson, Wakeman and Rabin have been working on a project together, but the collaboration has proceeded slowly and appears to have stalled currently. Some material has been written, initially by Anderson/Rabin in early 2011 and before, but also through online interaction since. The latest comment came in an interview with Anderson from around May 2013. Asked about the collaboration, he said:

Well, I made the mistake of mentioning it once, and obviously a lot of people want to know what’s happening, and it was just one period of time about a year and half ago or so when I was seeing Trevor quite a lot and we’d been writing a couple of songs and we talked about maybe working with Rick. It’s funny because you spend time talking ideas and then six months later you’ve stopped talking about them, and then Rick’s busy and Trevor’s doing another movie and I’m on tour. It was very hard to bring it together, and at the moment we’re sort of in limbo.

However, this Apr 2013 interview with Anderson had this: "there's now some talk of Rick and I doing an album with Trevor Rabin. Rick's doing some music so I'll send that off with some vocals on it to Trevor and he may put some guitar on it if he's not too busy composing another film score." And then in another May 2013 interview, he said that he, Rabin and Wakeman would like to tour playing Talk with another couple of musicians.

The initial idea for the project was in early 2010. In 2011, it emerged that plans had shifted to the main activity being in 2012. By early 2012, Anderson was being cautious in his descriptions. A Mar 2012 interview had this:

We talked about it, we wrote a couple of things together, Trevor got sidetracked, we talked about this year [2012].  We haven’t really finalized a time. It’ll happen when it happens. That’s my new mantra: ‘It will happen when it happens.’

The article then continues:

is there any chance of Anderson, Wakeman and Rabin hitting the road and playing Yes songs?  “No, I don’t think so.”

“Rick’s recording as we speak,” Anderson says. “He said he’d send me some music this month or next month. And then I would send it to Trevor.  We’d actually written a couple of songs, me and Trevor, and me and Rick have written a couple.”  Last time, Anderson said he couldn’t imagine an Anderson/Wakeman/Rabin tour, but he may have warmed up to the idea. If they do tour, fans shouldn’t expect a Yes “greatest hits” show.

“If we make music that we really like, and we put it out there, we’ve got a good fan base who wants to see us do new music… I don’t think we’d want to go out just doing old music, I don’t see the point.  I’d rather go out there and do some new music, of course, you’d do old stuff that people want to hear. But you don’t rely on that as your show.  You want to take some new music out there and have an adventure.”

An 8 Nov 2012 interview then had this:

Anderson: [...] like anything.  It's a process.  It will happen when it happens.  I'm never that sure when it will happen, but I just know it will happen.  I'm in touch with Rick and Trevor all the time.  They're busy doing things [...] I'm busy doing things, but we've talked about some ideas we've come up with and music that we've come up with and it's really a question of timing. Maybe next year [2013] is going to be the year.

Interviewer: [...] who will be on drums and bass?

Anderson: Got no idea at all.  We talked about getting an ensemble on stage with three of us, rather, you know, than five or six or seven other musicians. [...]

Interviewer: Do you think it will be something you do in a virtual studio or do you think that you'll try to do some studio time together [...]

Anderson: [...] we'll probably do virtual.

Another Mar 2012 interview with Anderson had been more negative:

Over the past year, Yes fans have been looking forward to a proposed project from [...] Anderson [...] Rabin and [...] Wakeman. Unfortunately, as Anderson tells Ultimate Classic Rock, the grouping has been put on hold.

“We did some songs last year, and Trevor had some things going on in his life that he had to sort out, you know, family things and he gets very, very tied up in his music for movies, so we just found it hard to collectively get together. And Rick’s got so many things that he’s doing in England. He has TV shows and radio shows. So eventually, it will happen. You keep the door open and hope that it will happen.”

With Trevor it’s all about timing being everything you know. You never know, Trevor always said he wanted to do but right now he’s going through some changes in his work, seeing what he wants to do. I am very open to when it happens it happens, always ready to try things like that.

[...] I think Trevor is waiting to jump into that adventure but he’s not quite ready yet in his heart. We wait and see and when we will work together I think it will be real spontaneous music. That’s what we talked about, making it spontaneous. A bit different than we used to do…

A May 2012 interview with Anderson had: "It Happens When It Happens, is my mantra! [...] we're always in touch. [...] we'll see what happens."

Interview comments from Rabin also express some uncertainty over timing. In this May 2012 interview, Rabin is asked whether there is anything he cares to discuss about the collaboration and replies: "Nothing I care to discuss as of yet. Rick is supposed to be sending me something pretty soon for us to work on, so we'll see what comes of it." In another May 2012 interview, he said:

We’ve been wanting to do something for a couple of  years now but we’ve not been able to get together. Either I was on tour [this appears to be in reference to Rabin accompanying his son's band, Grouplove, on tour], or Rick and Jon were on tour. I met with Rick about eight months ago in London. Rick and I get along so well [...] As musicians, we get on really well, and the same goes with Jon. The three of us are really intending on doing something but time has not been our friend.

In my interview with Rabin from Jul 2012, he said:

While Jon, Rick and I are excited about the prospect of doing something together nothing is organized yet and there’s no telling when or how something will be done. We really want to. Time is the enemy at the moment.

An article in Prog magazine, issue 26, stated that, "While nothing is confirmed, Rabin hopes recording will happen in 2012." This issue was published May 2012, although it appears to be based on an interview around Mar. Rabin is quoted as saying: "I haven't spent time with Rick since we had dinner in London at the end of last year. And I last saw Jon ever earlier, when he stayed with me. The problem is that all three of us have so much going on in our lives that it's been impossible to find the time to take it forward. The one thing I can tell you is that we all want to make this happen." He describes plans for the album: "What we want to end up with is an album that showcases what we're all about as individuals, but to make certain that it has an overall sound which represents this new band." He also mentions the possible involvement of Bill Bruford, which has been previously ruled out by Bruford (see below): "I know Bill Bruford's name has been mentioned, and I'd be happy to have him involved. But right now, we've approached nobody else at all. And, to be realistic, until we have our schedule mapped out, then there is no point in bringing anyone else in." In yet another May 2012 interview, Rabin said, "Jon and I speak all the time. [...] Rick Wakeman, Jon and I have been talking about doing something for the last 3 years. [...] schedules are a real problem."

Wakeman: [I'm] waiting to hear from Trevor at the moment. To be fair, I certainly haven't chased him, as I've been so busy this year [2011] (as indeed Jon has and certainly Trevor as well). I really want this to happen; I believe it could be amazing in so many ways. I will certainly play my part in trying to bring this to fruition.

Anderson: We've talked about creating a project; it's just finding the right time to work together.

The Nov 2011 Classic Rock Presents... Prog (issue 21) has this on the collaboration:

Rabin is also to be involved in a new project with [...] [Wakeman and Anderson.] But things are still in the formative stages right now.

"We are still working it all out. I did spend some time with Jon when he was over in the States doing solo shows not that long ago. I'm sure this'll happen."

The original idea was for the project to be made up of and be called Anderson Bruford Wakeman Rabin, echoing the Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe project of 1988-90, but Bruford is not to be involved. I had multiple reports that plans for the project came to a halt in Mar 2011, but the project returned to being a going concern. I reported the project's demise here on 31 Mar, but in response to the subsequent online discussion, Wakeman explicitly denied that the project was cancelled and his webmaster advised looking to the RWCC for any official news. A report from close to Jon Anderson also denied the project had come to an end. Wakeman discussed the matter at some length in his April 2011 GORR:

In his 18 May blog, Bruford said in reply to questions:

a lot of people talking about Yes, which you may all know that I am not re-joining and have received no such invitation from anyone connected with the band. [...] Can’t we just let rumours be rumours? It just clogs up the place.

The answer to Roger Norway - 3/16/2010 12:02:37 PM [who asked about the reports of Bruford's involvement in the Anderson/Wakeman/Rabin project] is therefore – I have no interest. These rumour things often get started by a ‘slow news’ day over at the magazines and blogs.

Jon Anderson & Peter Banks
A few years back, Jon Anderson and Peter Banks began working together remotely. The collaboration was soon abandoned, but contact was re-established in 2011. In an Aug 2011 interview, Anderson said: "I was actually talking to Peter Banks just a couple of days ago. He's been pretty sick, and I gave him a call, and he's gonna send me some guitar music to sing to." However, it is unclear how likely this will ever come to fruition.

Levin Torn White Out is a new collaborative instrumental album by Levin Torn White, a trio of Tony Levin (bass, Stick), Alan White (drums, percussion) and David Torn (worked with Bill Bruford, Terry Bozzio, Jeff Beck, David Bowie, John Legend; guitar, textural events). (Levin previously played with Torn with Bill Bruford.) The project was recorded over the preceding year in Seattle, WA, Woodstock, NY and Plymouth, New Zealand. The 14-track album, simply called Levin - Torn - White (Lazy Bones), was produced by Levin and Scott Schorr, and mixed by Tony Lash. Torn, on The Gear Page forum, described it as: this was a real "project"-project, w/deep involvement, concept & direction from the producer..... scott schorr, who, fwiw, is a lovely & hyper-enthusiastic dude. also, the mixer --- tony lash --- was very positively involved. Schorr described how the project came about on Yesfans.com: [It] all started when I produced Tony Levin's solo CD, "Stick Man." Tony & I hit it off so well that we were looking for something else to work on. Alan has always been one of my fav. drummers and Yes my all time fav. band. I mentioned it to Tony & he dug Alan so he was way into it. Tony then recommended David Torn

Buy from Amazon (US):

He later had this to say:

it all started w. Alan in the studio. I just said, "rip it up, Alan. The more hardcore the better. Whatever you feel." Then we ran a click track through his headphones & began recording him just jamming. We'd stop then give him another tempo & he'd be off and running. In between takes, he'd just be messing around; off beats & fills galore (no click) & I would tell the engineer to start recording. Alan had no idea he was being recorded during these "breaks". Most of these free jams made the record. His timing was impeccable & he was so locked in the entire time. [...] after drumming, he sat at the piano & blew everyone's mind. Awesome pianist & he actually wrote a very cool piano piece that didn't make the record.

And:

I've been a life long fan of classic Yes & Crimson & I just asked myself, "what kind of sound would I personally like to hear as a fan." You make that guess & then hope you're right. Also, isn't FREEDOM FOR THE MUSICIAN (in the recording studio or live) one of the most important aspects? It seems that when you have players of this caliber, you let them GO OFF, without any restrictions. What you hear is what Alan, Tony & David came up with. My main guidance to them & I hope it wasn't restrictive: Hard Core & Progressive!!

I've known Alan and admired him for some time, but never got to do a project with him. (Not counting the "YES" album where we both played with different incarnations of the group, but not together!)

David is an old friend and co-conspirator [...]

When I realized from Alan's ideas, and my reactions, how radical the direction was for this music, David seemed not only the best choice, but pretty much the ONLY choice for guitar!

He went on to describe how the album was made:

It's a category I don't know quite how to describe. Improvisational, to be sure, but with each player improvising separately to what the others had done, and then re-assembling and then re-improvising.

In an interview published early Nov 2011, White said:

I came up with some really different drum patterns and timings. Some of it was especially for this, but some of them were things I have been working on for years. Tony and Torn [...] then came up with their own ideas [...] Toward the end, it was more Tony and Torn who collaborated, since I was on tour with Yes. I was on the telephone quite a bit, talking to them. Some of those things were inspired from me as the source. It might change direction slightly, become something different.

He went on:

When we were first getting into it, we were all just trying to find our own way. [...] I think all of these ideas have been doing through the three of us for a lot of years, and those things just naturally come out when you’re inspired by the people you are playing with. It was mostly improvised but, at the same time, it still sounds really articulated. There are spaces within all of that stuff to breathe.

In an Oct 2011 interview, White describes the project starting with him, Levin and Schorr, but then they considered a number of guitarists, before Levin and Schorr proposed Torn.

You can order the album through Levin's website. Tracks: "No Warning Lights", "Ultra Mullett", "White Noise", "The Hood Fell", "Monkey Mind", "Cheese It, the Corpse" (full streaming audio available here), "Convergence", "Pillowfull of Dark", "The Eggman Cometh", "Sleeping Horse", "Prom Night of the Centipedes", "Crunch Time", "Brain Tattoo", "Lights Out". Schorr, on Yesfans.com, described White's work for the album as "more in the style of Classic Yes (Relayer, Tales, Going for the One.)" There is a preview video on YouTube and various samples on SoundCloud and Facebook. Details in Yescography.

Asked about the possibility of live work, Torn said: "we've been talking about it, but a few periods-of-time already haven't worked-out, so..... dunno." Levin, in the aforementioned interview, said, "We're indeed talking about that… too early to know if it can come together. Alan busy touring with Yes -- I have Fall and Winter commitments with Stick Men sharing a bill with Adrian Belew. So … we'll see." While in White's Nov 2011 interview, he said: "We've talked on email about doing some shows, maybe next year [2012] sometime. I think everybody still has that in the back of their minds. But I told Tony we would have to rehearse at least a month to recreate that stuff!"

White and Schorr discuss the project further with YesFANZ' Brian Draper here. The interview ends with Draper asking about live work:

White: [...] we bandied about on that for a while. Even so with Tony's schedule and my schedule and stuff like that its really hard to pull off. And so as far as that material goes, the answer is you would have to rehearse for about 6 months! (laughs) That's the way I can see it. Now, I reckon we could latch into it but it would be an intimate live version of that and it would be the same thing but a live version but the framework is the same.

Schorr: Alan knows this I would love to do another one with him. But the thing, maybe the second time would be to get the three guys in the room. So we talked about that but he is so slammed with Yes and other stuff that he does. This is kind of almost like a once in a life time opportunity to get something with this.

A 25 Sep 2012 interview asked White about a follow-up album. He replied: "we're talking about it, right now. I'm not sure when and where but we're talking about not doing something similar, but just move on. Probably we'll not do it until early next year [2013]."

Sonic Reality progressive rock project
Sonic Elements (Facebook; SoundCloud) is a group of progressive/classic rock projects led by Dave Kerzner (Sound of Contact, Lo-Fi Resistance, working with Billy Sherwood, worked with Francis Dunnery, Jon Anderson, Steve Hackett, Steven Wilson, ex-Giraffe), founder of the music software development company Sonic Reality. Kerzner is the main producer and keyboardist of a number of "virtual bands" involving several guests, including often Billy Sherwood, that are recording various covers (including of Yes, Rush, Pink Floyd, Genesis and ELP) and original songs for upcoming releases, but where some of the instrumental tracks are also available through Sonic Reality's sample libraries. In Dec 2011, Kerzner described to ProgressiveEars.com a plan consisting of:

Sonic Elements Fantasy Interactive Dark Side of the Moon w/ Alan Parsons
Sonic Elements XYZ Fantasy Band Tribute to Rush featuring Neil Peart Drums
Sonic Elements Lamb Lies Down on Broadway Fantasy Soundtrack Tribute to Genesis
Sonic Elements Trifecta (original music with Billy Sherwood and drums from Terry Bozzio, Rod Morgenstein, Neil Peart...)
Sonic Elements TBA fantasy progressive rock project featuring...

... all involving Sherwood in some capacity. The tribute to Rush and 'Trifecta' serve to explain the model for these projects. The original track "Trifecta", previewed here, features newly composed material performed by Sherwood (bass, guitars) and Kerzner (keys) to an existing drum track for Rush's "YYZ" that was recently recorded by Neil Peart for a sample library at Sonic Reality with producer Nick Raskulinecz (worked with Rush), while the Rush tribute consists of covers of Rush songs, again using Peart's drum tracks.

In Feb 2012, Kerzner said on Facebook: "So that no one has to wait too long for these wonderful projects to make their way to full album releases... a decision has been made [...] to release a variety of singles and EPs spanning originals and covers." Full-length albums will follow. A 5-song EP, XYZ—A Tribute to Rush, produced by Kerzner, came first on download and as a limited edition CD from esoundz. Pre-orders included a bonus, downloadable 6th track. Details in Yescography. Tracks:

1. "Tom Sawyer", with John Wesley (Porcupine Tree, ex-Fish; vocals, guitar), Sherwood (bass) and Kerzner (keys); sample here
   
2. "Red Barchetta", with Rik Emmett (Triumph; guitars, vocals), Matt Dorsey (Sound of Contact; bass), Kerzner (keys); sample here; video in production
   
3. "YYZ", with Sherwood (bass, guitars), Alastair Greene (Alan Parsons Live Project; guitars), Kerzner (keys); sample here
   
4. "Limelight", with Sherwood (bass), Wesley (guitars), Kerzner (keys), Randy McStine (Lo-Fi Resistance; vocals); sample here
   
5. "Trifecta" [Sherwood/Kerzner], with Sherwood (bass, guitars), Kerzner (keys); composed around the existing Peart drum track for "XYZ"
6. pre-order only bonus track: "Times Gone" [Sherwood/Kerzner], with Sherwood (bass, guitars), Kerzner (keys); composed around the existing Peart drum track for "Tom Sawyer"; sample here
   

In Apr 2012, Kerzner explained that there:

will at least be another EP of different material (the "keyboard era" stuff) and then eventually a full album and that will have different versions of some of these songs on it as well.

Plus there's going to interactive versions of the songs similar to Jammit except they can work inside products like AmpliTube where you can play guitar through modeled amps and pedals or inside Garageband and play anything you want. That's coming along with Neil Peart's isolated drum tracks. But these interactive versions are more for musicians to interact with.

We're also thinking about putting XYZ out on limited edition vinyl. Just 300 of them.

However, in an Oct 2012 post to ProgressiveEars.com, he said the next Rush-related release will be the full-length album Moving Signals & Waves, covering tracks from the Rush albums Moving Pictures, Signals and Permanent Waves. The album is due, digitally and as a CD, late summer 2013; mixing was going on in May 2013. Confirmed tracks for the album include "Digital Man" with Sherwood (vocals, guitar, bass), Kerzner (keys) and Fernando Perdomo (Dreaming in Stereo, worked with Mika; guitars); "Spirit of Radio", with Sherwood (bass), Kerzner (keys), Mike Keneally (ex-Frank Zappa, ex-Stanley Snail, worked with Robert Fripp; guitars), Nick D'Virgilio (Mystery, ex-Spock's Beard, Big Big Train, ex-Genesis, ex-Tears for Fears, worked with Chris Squire; vocals); and "Subdivisions", with Kerzner, John Payne (ex-Asia, Asia Featuring John Payne, GPS; vocals), Erik Norlander (Asia Featuring John Payne). Another song on the album features Kerzner (keys), Sherwood (bass, guitar), Steve Hackett (Squackett, ex-GTR, ex-Genesis) and Keith Emerson (ex-ELP), while either that one or another features guitar from both Hackett and Francis Dunnery (ex-It Bites, ex-The Syn, worked with ABWH). The album will also include "Red Barchetta" with vocals from Emmett and further musicians appearing include Wesley, McStine, Dorsey and Greene, so I presume the album includes the 4 Rush tracks on the XYZ EP.

At various times, Kerzner or others have described covers of further Rush songs:

• "Freewill", with Sherwood (bass), Dunnery (lead guitar), Alastair Greene (Alan Parsons Live Project; rhythm guitar)
  
• "Time Stands Still", with Sherwood (bass)
• "Mission" with Kerzner (keys), Steven Robinson (guitar), Valerie Spinner (bass), John Beagley (vocals)
• "Between the Wheels" with Kerzner (keys), Dorsey
• "One Little Victory" with members of Queensrÿche
• "Losing It"

Dunnery is also singing on some of the Rush songs.

Also expected is an EP It—A Tribute to Genesis & Peter Gabriel, with Kerzner (keys), Francis Dunnery (vocals, guitar), Nick D'Virgilio (drums) and an orchestra, plus samples of Tony Banks' keyboard playing. This will be 4 or 5 tracks from the forthcoming Lamb Lies Down on Broadway Soundtrack Tribute album, and at one point was expected to include a 'bonus track' of a Peter Gabriel cover, "Rhythm of the Night", with Dunnery (vocals), using Sonic Reality's Jerry Marotta drum library. Either the EP or eventual album (I'm unclear) will also feature Sherwood, McStine, Steve Rothery (Marillion) and Mark Hornsby (worked with D'Virgilio).

Seemingly referring to the 'Trifecta' album project, in Jan 2012, Kerzner said on Facebook: "Among the various music releases you can expect this year [2012] from Sonic Elements are some original tunes, many of which have been done with ex-Yes-man Billy Sherwood along with SR sampled grooves of great drummers such as Rod Morgenstein of the Dixie Dregs." However, this release has yet to appear There is an accompanying clip to a piece entitled "Razors Edge" with Sherwood and samples from Morgenstein. Then there's "Racing Through Time" (sample), another original piece by Sherwood, this time using a sample library from Alan Parsons.

The Pink Floyd/Dark Side of the Moon project also involves Nick Mason (ex-Pink Floyd), Nick Davis (worked with Genesis), Dorie Jackson (works with Dunnery, ex-The Syn; vocals), Guy Pratt (worked with Pink Floyd, Michael Jackson; bass), Colin Edwin (Porcupine Tree; bass), Natalie Azerad (vocals), Durga McBroom-Hudson & Lorelei McBroom (worked with Pink Floyd; vocals). The Sonic Elements Facebook page in Jan 2013 said: "I've assembled a Sonic Elements band in LA this week to work with the McBroom sisters (former backing vocalists for Pink Floyd). Billy Sherwood, Randy McStine, Fernando Perdomo and myself (with Pink Floyd's rhythm section already recorded/sampled)".

Kerzner's also described doing 3 tracks for the Alan Parsons project with Sherwood. An ELP cover with Keith Emerson (ex-ELP; keys) and Payne (vocals) is planned.

In 2005, Kerzner (keys) led a live performance of "Long Distance Runaround", with an instrumental intro taken from Genesis' The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway, with Jon Anderson (vocals), D'Virgilio (drums), Hornsby (bass) and Stan Cotey (ex-Giraffe; guitar), briefly available on Sonic Elements' SoundCloud. Kerzner also said on Facebook in March 2012:

I also WROTE a song with Jon Anderson that's absolutely beautiful. It's not finished yet but he sang a rough and it's really cool. Stylistically between old Yes, Vangelis and something futuristic/film soundtrack-like. Not sure if that will end up on his albums or one of ours but at some point we'll be able to share something!

Cleopatra Records tribute/covers projects
Cleopatra Records continues to release multiple albums—generally tribute and covers albums—featuring multiple guest artists, including in some cases multiple Yesmen. Several of these—notably The Prog Collective and Songs of the Century: An All-Star Tribute to Supertramp, both with Chris Squire, Geoff Downes, Rick Wakeman, Tony Kaye, Peter Banks and Tony Levin, and a forthcoming Steve Miller tribute—were projects led by Billy Sherwood and these are covered in his section. Below describes other Cleopatra Records releases led by various other people.

Nektar's A Spoonful of Time

Progressive rock band Nektar's latest release is a covers album entitled A Spoonful of Time, available as a CD, download or 2LP (LP1 side A is tracks 1-4, side B is tracks 5-7, LP2 side A is 8-10), performed by Roye Albrighton (lead vocals (except 14), guitars), Ron Howden (drums, percussion, except on tracks 5 & 9) and, on some pieces, Klaus Henatsch (keys, Hammond, Mellotron). The album was produced by Jürgen Engler & Chris Lietz. It also features multiple guest musicians, including Steve Howe, Geoff Downes, Rick Wakeman and Patrick Moraz. The idea for the album, including the track listing and performance details, came from the label, Cleopatra Records. Tracks: "Sirius" (Alan Parsons Project) – with Michael Pinnella (Symphony X; keys) "Spirit of the Radio" (Rush) – with Mark Kelly (Marillion; keys), replacing an earlier plan to have Keith Emerson (ex-ELP) "Fly Like an Eagle" (Steve Miller) – with Geoff Downes (keys), Joel Vandroogenbroeck (Brainticket; flute, keys) "Wish You were Here" (Pink Floyd) – with Edgar Froese (Tangerine Dream; keys) "For the Love of Money" (The O'Jays) – with Ian Paice (Deep Purple; drums), Nik Turner (The Prog Collective, The Fusion Syndicate, ex-Hawkwind; sax); John Wetton (bass) was planned, but is not involved "Can't Find My Way Back Home" (Blind Faith) – with Steve Howe (guitar), Derek Sherinian (Black Country Communion, ex-Dream Theater, ex-Billy Idol; keys), Mel Collins (ex-King Crimson, ex-Camel, ex-Caravan, worked with Chris Squire; flute, sax) "2000 Light Years from Home" (The Rolling Stones) – with Henatsch, Simon House (ex-Hawkwind, ex-David Bowie, worked with Japan; violin) "Riders on the Storm" (The Doors) – with Billy Sheehan (Mr. Big, Niacin; bass), Rod Argent (The Zombies, Argent; keys) "Blinded by the Light" (Bruce Springsteen) – with Joakim Svalberg (Opeth; keys), Ginger Baker (ex-Cream; drums) "Out of the Blue" (Roxy Music) – with Henatsch, House (violin) "Old Man" (Neil Young) – with David Cross (ex-King Crimson; violin) "Dream Weaver" (Gary Wright) – with Jerry Goodman (ex-Mahavishnu Orchestra, ex-The Flock, worked with Dream Theater, Billy Sherwood; violin) "I'm Not in Love" (10cc) – with Rick Wakeman (keys), Vandroogenbroeck (flute, sitar) "Africa" (Toto) – with Patrick Moraz (keys), Bobby Kimball (ex-Toto, ex-Yoso; vocals), Vandroogenbroeck (flute, sitar)

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The album was released briefly around Sep 2012, but then pulled. While some reports talk of a fault with the initial batch of CDs, it appears Cleopatra Records (specifically Brian Perrera) were unhappy with the mix. Thus, Billy Sherwood, who is working on Nektar's next album and has worked extensively for Cleopatra before, was brought in to do a new mix for the album and record further parts: on this new version, Sherwood is credited with bass (5, 9, 13, 14), backing vocals (2, 4, 6, 7, 9, 14), a synth intro (2), synth (7) and a guitar solo (4). (Engler plays bass except on 5, 9, 13, 14.) By late Sep, Sherwood had completed work and passed the record on to Maor Appelbaum for mastering. The new version is now out, including a digital deluxe edition including instrumental versions of all the tracks. The album's Facebook page says they will refund or replace the early batch and fans confirm Cleopatra have sent copies of the new version. The 2LP release of the new version came out 4 Dec in the UK; I'm unclear if a vinyl of the original version was ever released or not. Some retailers appear to stock the original release; Sherwood is listed on the back of the jewel case for the new version, but I am unclear how you can tell which version you are purchasing if doing so online. (Nektar (without Sherwood) also supported Yes on their Cruise to the Edge.)

William Shatner's Seeking Major Tom
Steve Howe and Patrick Moraz both appeared, albeit separately, on the space-themed concept album of covers entitled Seeking Major Tom (after the character in David Bowie's song "Space Oddity") by actor William Shatner (Star Trek, worked with Ben Folds). The 2CD album, on Cleopatra Records, is now out. A 3LP vinyl box set with the same track list is also available. Howe plays on a cover of Duran Duran's "Planet Earth", while Moraz is on a cover of Thomas Dolby's "She Blinded Me with Science" with Bootsy Collins on bass. Other guests include Ritchie Blackmore (ex-Deep Purple, Blackmore's Night; guitar), Alan Parsons (keys), Manuel Göttsching (ex-Ash Ra Tempel; guitar), Ian Paice (Deep Purple; drums), Steve Hillage (System 7, ex-Gong; guitar), Peter Frampton (guitar), John Wetton (Asia, ex-King Crimson; bass, backing vocals), Sheryl Crow (worked with Kevin Gilbert; lead vocals), Edgar Froese (Tangerine Dream; guitar, keys, synth) and Dave Davies (ex-TheKinks; guitar). Shatner is working with Billy Sherwood for his next album.

Days Between Stations
In Extremis, out in the US and out digitally in the UK, is the second release from Los Angeles prog band, Days Between Stations. The band consists of guitarist Sepand Samzadeh and keyboardist Oscar Fuentes Bills, who have previously worked with The Pineapple Thief. The album is co-produced by the band and Billy Sherwood (executive producers: Sam H Samzadeh & Days Between Stations LLC); Sherwood also performs drums and lead vocals and mixed the album. The music was written by Samzadeh/Fuentes, the vocal melodies and lyrics by Samzadeh/Fuentes/Sherwood. Other guests on the album are Peter Banks (who contributed to the album before his death in Mar 2013), Rick Wakeman, Tony Levin (bass throughout the album) and Colin Moulding (ex-XTC, works with Sherwood). Artwork & layout are by Paul Whitehead (worked with Genesis, Van der Graaf Generator, Le Orme), with photography and additional layout by Erik Nielsen. The album was mainly engineered by William Kaylor (worked with Fleetwood Mac, Ray Charles, Michael Jackson) and mastered by Evren Göknar. Wakeman's sessions were mixed by Erik Jordan; Banks' by Leigh Darlow; Levin's by Levin and Sherwood's by Sherwood. A documentary about the making of the album is being made, and the album may see a limited edition vinyl release.

Any news, additions or corrections, please e-mail Henry Potts. Thanks.