Mellotronists

Hi all!

Clay is correct when he says that Yes played very well. Not having seen
them 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?)--especially Wake Rickman, who has often looked sullen at times in
the past. They worked hard, 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
should be put in a small, dark room for two or three weeks and forced to
listen to 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 of a 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. The guy doing the mix probably is one of those
bozos who pulls up next to you at a light and has 200 watts of
sub-woofer in the back of his hatch back--all the better to share his
music with everyone in the surrounding three square miles.

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 as the 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
keyboards and especially any nuance of the sounds Wakeman was using.

Also, if you're touring with a band, DON'T be familiar with any of their
material if you can help it. After all, a sound man is an 'artist' too
and 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 know any 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, since a
couple of other people who attended the gig have told me that what I
heard seems to be the norm. Yes used to have TERRIFIC sound. The Molson
Amphitheatre is a good-sounding venue with an excellent sound system,
but you still need someone who knows how to twiddle the knobs and also
who knows 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'd
love to sit down with them and make it clear what their front-of-house
sound is really like. I'm sure
Messrs Anderson, Howe, Squire, White and Wakeman would be appalled at
what was done to all their hard work.

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

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

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

Cheers!

Rick



ceccles_ca wrote:

>  Yes got off to a rough start last night in 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 show for me was
>
> the 16 minute "Awaken" from Going For The One.  This track is quite
> an amazing composition, and they performed it very, very well.  The
> Church Organ and Choir near the end was ___________.  (fill in
> 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 to hear him
> using a mini moog.  It was also nice to see that he wasn't afraid 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 bag of
> 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!