Pop Break Live: YES 50th Anniversary Tour at The Fillmore in Philadelphia
Words and Photos by Cathy Poulton
Legendary Prog rockers YES played Philadelphia’s Fillmore on Friday July 20th. The sold out show was night #1 of the band’s two night run at the venue. The sell-out came as no surprise as it is common knowledge in the tri-state area, that Philadelphia is “Yes Country.”
As you’d expect, it was definitely an older crowd yet there were many younger fans as well, many donning their favorite YES t-shirts. You could sense this crowd was excited for the night to begin, especially since there would be three special guests joining the band — previous band members Tony Kaye, Trevor Horn and Patrick Moraz. There are two different touring versions of the band so the line-up tonight consisted of Steve Howe (1972), Alan White (1972), Geoff Downes (1980), Jon Davison (2011) and Billy Sherwood (’90s).
They band opened up with “Firebird Suite,” then went right into “Close to the Edge.” A few numbers later the band dedicated the song “Parallels,” which was from the hugely popular album Going for the One, to bassist Chris Squire. Squire, who had passed away in 2015 had co-written the song. The crowd cheered loudly when they mentioned his name. It was a bittersweet moment as he is clearly missed.
Another standout was “Mood for a Day” which had Steve Howe solo, front and center with his classical guitar. Guest #1 was Trevor Horn. He joined the band on “Fly from Here.” Horn produced many Yes albums such as 90125 (1983) and Big Generator (1987). The crowd looked really happy to see him. They ended their set with “Heart of the Sunrise.”
Singer Jon Davison really impressed on this song.There is no disputing his powerful beautiful voice. It’s similar to Jon Anderson yet different too. It doesn’t hurt that his charisma factor is off the charts.
The second set started off with “Perpetual Change.” Later, guest #2 Patrick Moraz (who had a brief stint with Yes in 1974) came out and joined the band on “Soon.” Moraz is quite an accomplished musician, having played with the Moody Blues for over 13 years. He got loud a reaction from the audience when he walked out on stage.
The band performed a three song encore of “Yours is no Disgrace,””Roundabout,” and “Starship Trooper.” One of the highlights was when Guest #3, Tony Kaye, the original keyboard player for Yes, came out and played on “Yours is no Disgrace.”
The encore was nothing short of spectacular. It was a joyous romp through time. There were many smiles coming from the band. It was apparent how much they were enjoying playing these last songs for this overly enthusiastic sold out crowd. That “vibe” had trickled out into the audience. At that point many fans left their seats and worked their way to the front of the stage.
The fact that the guitar work of Steve Howe can still induce chills after 50 years and the music of Yes can still ‘move” people really says something about the band and their music. When the news was announced that Yes was being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2017, fans around the world rejoiced. The consensus was they finally got it right.
Cheers to a truly legendary band who gave this Philly crowd a night they won’t forget.
Complete Setlist (via Setlist.fm)
Set 1:
Close to the Edge
Nine Voices (Longwalker)
Parallels (dedicated to Chris Squire)
Mood for a Day
Leaves of Green
Fly From Here, Part I: We Can Fly (with Trevor Horn)
Sweet Dreams
Heart of the Sunrise
Set 2:
Perpetual Change
Does It Really Happen?
Soon (with Patrick Moraz)
Awaken (with Alan White)
Encore:
Yours Is No Disgrace (with Tony Kaye and Alan White)
Roundabout (with Tony Kaye and Alan White)
Starship Trooper (with Tony Kaye and Alan White)
