Archive of the former Yahoo!Groups mailing list: Mellotronists

Hi all!

Clay is correct when he says that Yes played very well. Not having seenthem in quite a long time, I was surprised at how much fun they were having(how many times can anyone play 'Roundabout' and still get off?)--especiallyWake Rickman, who has often looked sullen at times in the past. They workedhard, played well and tried to give us a good performance.

I say 'tried' because I don't know who their sound man was, but he shouldbe put in a small, dark room for two or three weeks and forced to listento Martinge sing the entire Jerry Vale repertoire. Now call me old-fashioned,but I don't believe the kick drum has become the most important part ofa kit, to be miked at twice the volume of the rest of the drummer's arsenal,and certainly shouldn't be the loudest thing coming off the stage. Theguy doing the mix probably is one of those bozos who pulls up next to youat a light and has 200 watts of sub-woofer in the back of his hatch back--allthe better to share his music with everyone in the surrounding three squaremiles.

The next most important thing in a band is the bass player's low E string.The sound system must be EQ'ed to make this string be twice as loud asthe rest of the instrument--let alone the rest of the band. Of course,this much bass makes it nearly impossible to hear most of the keyboardsand especially any nuance of the sounds Wakeman was using.

Also, if you're touring with a band, DON'T be familiar with any of theirmaterial if you can help it. After all, a sound man is an 'artist' tooand should be allowed to express himself in his own way. The other night,the best mix of the evening was 'Roundabout'. Small wonder. If you knowany Yes song, it would probably be this one.

I hate to sound like a killjoy and like I didn't enjoy the concert.I did. A lot. But I have also come to expect too much, it seems, sincea couple of other people who attended the gig have told me that what Iheard seems to be the norm. Yes used to have TERRIFIC sound. The MolsonAmphitheatre is a good-sounding venue with an excellent sound system, butyou still need someone who knows how to twiddle the knobs and also whoknows the music well enough to realize who should be where in the mix.Where's Eddy Offord when you need him?

I have an idea that the guys on the stage weren't hearing what we were.As stated above, they were having a good time and playing very well. I'dlove to sit down with them and make it clear what their front-of-housesound is really like. I'm sure
Messrs Anderson, Howe, Squire, White and Wakeman would be appalledat what was done to all their hard work.

Also, it's nice to have become legendary, Clay. Thanks! It was a goodconcert. It could have easily been a GREAT concert. Sigh...

If they're coming to a town near you, I would definitely recommend seeingthe show. Maybe they will have fired the sound guy by then. It's greatto see Wake Rickman back with the band and seeming to enjoy himself somuch. Hearing 'South Side of the Sky' and 'Heart of the Sunrise' againwas an added treat.

Now if only they'd played all of 'Topographic Oceans' and Martinge hadbeen there with us to marvel at its awesome beauty and majesty...

Cheers!

Rick
 
 

ceccles_ca wrote:

 Yes got off to a rough start last nightin Toronto.  The sound was
muddy for the first half hour.  As the sound gradually improved,the
band tightened up and took off!  The high point of the showfor me was
the 16 minute "Awaken" from Going For The One.  This trackis quite
an amazing composition, and they performed it very, very well. The
Church Organ and Choir near the end was ___________.  (fillin
superlative(s)...Something of the highest possible excellence.
Something even Martin would like).

Rick's Mellotron samples seemed to be layered with other modern
string and choir samples.  The 'tron parts sounded a bit sterile,(I
like dirt!) but it was all performed well.  It was nice tohear him
using a mini moog.  It was also nice to see that he wasn'tafraid to
be seen with his reading glasses, a music stand and sheet music.
(...for some of the tunes he's not too familiar with).

Other highlights:
Heart of the Sunrise - What a band!
Excerpt - And You And I - Great new arrangement!
Rick's keyboard solo - He is still a wizard and he has a new bagof
tricks (Korg Triton)
Long Distance Runaround - I had forgotten...What a great tune!
Yours Is No Disgrace - Same old arrangement - Performed flawlessly.

...and the legendary Devotion keyboardist, Rick Blechta was sitting
right next to me.  It was a great evening wasn't it Rick!