Wakeman/YES
2002-12-06 by MAinPsych@aol.com
Greetings, everyone! Some of you know that I had tickets and backstage passes for last Monday's YES concert, courtesy of Rick Wakeman. It was nothing short of terrific. I gave the other pass to my long-time best friend and keyboardist, and he was just blown away by the group, and particularly Rick's playing. Chris Squire played 2 bass solos that were also incredible. Jon Anderson was in fine voice. Steve and Alan were their usual solid selves, although Steve looks like they must put him in cryogenic freeze after each gig! The opening was the familiar finale to Stavinsky's Firebird, but I miss the Mellotron segueway into Siberian Khatru from the Yessongs days. I didn't really hear anything that I perceived as Mellotron samples, although Rick told me afterward that he does use them. There were a couple of newer songs I didn't recognize (and didn't care for), but a highlight was their playing a good number of songs from Fragile, including We Have Heaven/South Side of the Sky, Long Distance Runaround/The Fish, and Heart of the Sunrise (nope, no Roundabout or Mood for a Day). Rick's solo spot was totally excerpts from 6 Wives, primarily, Catherine of Aragon, Catherine Howard, and Jane Seymour - 10 keyboards worth! The backstage passes (ah yes, when is he going to talk about the damn backstage passes?) were somewhat of a disappointment. Let me explain: In the good ol' days a pass was a major priv, and not too many people got them. Nowadays it seems that every schmuck can get one (maybe that's why I got mine, who knows!). So rather than having some decent 1:1 time with Rick/the band, he, Jon, and Alan, came out to greet what must have been at least 100 people, all jostling for a word or two. I did manage to chat with Rick for a couple of minutes and he signed the book (mostly a scribble, but hey, he signed it!). He is a very pleasant guy to talk to (Martin concurs, for what that's worth). He said he'd still like to have a Mellotron for studio use, but doubts he'd use it on the road (too many bad memories, I guess, or he might have heard that the new MkVI's use a flame retardant). He's back to using a MiniMoog on stage, and anyone who can't hear the difference between that great sound and all the digital stuff he's using is either tone deaf, or plain deaf, period. My buddy got a nice pic of Rick and I, and I hope it comes out. I had also brought my CD copies of 6 Wives, the rare Criminal Record, and Yessongs, but with the aforementioned pass conditions didn't even attempt to get those signed. Interesting side bits: a few weeks ago I wrote to Markus and passed on Rick's mention of wanting to use a tron (if someone gave him one). Now, having been in sales management in my younger days (did I really say that?), I figure what better marketing tool than to give him a unit to promote future sales. Markus' brief response was that they "don't endorse anyone". Huh? Turn down a currently touring/recording/high-profile/Mellotron-associated performer like Rick who could potentially generate more sales = more profit, etc? Go figure. I mentioned this to Martin a few days ago and his response was that Rick was always looking for something for free. Well, Markus, just how much of a business do you want this to be? Well, Martin, how about a well-placed one of those limited edition Novatron T-550's that we've been hearing about for the past two years? Perhaps turn a limited run into a regular production item again? Am I missing the boat somewhere here? Is there some unwritten rule that the tron community has to remain as cloistered as it has been? Some unresolved control issues, perhaps? Ken Merbler's response to this was, "Markus and Martin have very small operations, and the loss of a machine would probably have a large impact on their cash flow, relatively speaking. I think the Mellotron market is very small, and even and endorsement from Rick wouldn't help much. I'm more surprised that Wakeman's trying to weasel a free Mellotron out of these guys. After all, he is a rich(?) and famous musician, currently on tour." Touche! (But you gotta be willing to spend money to make money...) Any and all feedback welcome, agree or disagree, generate a topic for discussion... Still waiting on the damn insurance settlement (read: MkII), Frank Samagaio San Diego CA M400 #908