Wednesday, June 15, 2022

746 days later...

Playlist
UMA - Hymn to Undiscovered Land
Jonathan Richman - I, Jonathan
Umphrey's McGee - The Bottom Half
The Unwinding Hours - The Unwinding Hours
Yes - Tormato
Yes - The Yes Album
Yes - Time And A Word
Yes - Drama
Yes - Going For The One
Yes - The Quest
Yes - Fragile
Yes - Close To The Edge

Finally written up on 10 June 2024...

Here we go...

Up late on Yes day...


...and to picking a random box...




..from which I avoided the usual suspects...


Scenes...



Did I mention it was Yes day?


Accordingly, pre noon, out and down the hill...



...and onto the bus to that Glasgow...





...paying nowt for the privilege...


The beast was on the bus...


...arriving just after 12:30...



...and noting, as I walked by, the set up for this evening taking place...


Time for a walk around...



...including to Missing Records...




...and Monorail...



..and Tollcross...



...and buskers playing some of "our" songs...


Along Sauchiehall St...


Purchases were made as I went along...






In all, almost 6 miles walked...


...before meeting up with Dr Prog for a pizza...


Yum...


...followed by drinks...


Dr Prog arranged a drug deal on his burner...


...not really...

We were in town for Yes (did I mention that?), only 746 days after we were supposed to have witnessed them playing the whole of their 1974 classic and, possibly, most complex work, "Relayer"...


Of course, the pandemic put paid to that and, tonight, they would instead, be celebrating 50 years of "Close to the Edge" - all of which we've heard a million* times before...

(*not actually, just seems like it)...

In the foyer, an exhibition and sales effort by Mr Roger Dean...














...all of which was slightly too expensive for us but not for everyone...

Here, Mr D rakes it in...





The band too were doing good business at their Merch stall...


Nice jacket!


And so...


In...

The view from the desk...


And, the view from our seats...


By chance, sitting in the row behind us, Twitter chum Iain Mackinnon, Raith Rovers fan extraordinaire, designer of bridges and taker of top pics from way back in the 1970s...

Meanwhile, Mr Dean gave a chat pre the performance...


And then, showtime...

Nothing from "Relayer" (disappointingly) but a fine first set nonetheless (see below) with some eclectic choices and including two songs from the new LP - we would have liked to have heard more of course...


An ovation for the closer "Heart of the Sunrise"..



After a break, the whole of "Close to the Edge"...






...and a final encore of the old warhorses, "Roundabout" and "Starship Trooper"...

And it was done...

Superb show, highlight for me being that they actually played some new songs...

As we made our way to the bus station for the trip home, we bumped into Geoff Downes at the stage door, having a fag...

Good chat re the future of Yes and good to know that there are plans for Asia in the pipeline, despite the sad passing of John Wetton...

Accordingly, ticket signed and, back home, added to the new CD...


The midnight bus home...


...meant a 1:30 am arrival back at base...


A top day...

Highlight of the Day : Yes playing some new songs...

Setlist

Intro Tape:
Turn of the Century (Alan White tribute)
The Firebird Suite

Set One:
On the Silent Wings of Freedom
Yours Is No Disgrace
No Opportunity Necessary, No Experience Needed
Does It Really Happen?
Clap
Wonderous Stories
The Ice Bridge
Dare to Know
Heart of the Sunrise

Set Two:
Close to the Edge
And You and I
Siberian Khatru (Restarted)

Encore:
Roundabout
Starship Trooper

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