All Connected: Yes Through The Years
by Bill Kopp
The history of Yes is lengthy and byzantine. Since the progressive rock avatars began in London in 1968, more than 20 musicians have passed through its ranks. Through those changes, the successive and ever-shifting lineups of Yes have turned out a dazzling array of classic albums, earning worldwide acclaim, a Grammy Award and (in 2017) induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Today – nearly 60 years after the group’s start – guitarist Steve Howe leads the current lineup. Howe joined Yes in 1970, in time for the breakthrough release The Yes Album. Other longtime members in the current group include keyboardist Geoff Downes (first appearing on 1980’s Drama), multi-instrumentalist Billy Sherwood (on board starting in 1991) and drummer Jay Schellen (2016 onward). Vocalist Jon Davison is the band’s fourth lead singer, joining in 2012 and following on from founding singer Jon Anderson, Trevor Horn and Benoît David.
Just ahead of Yes’ current tour – which concludes with a November 16 date at The Grand Sierra Resort in Reno – Davison spoke with Rock On to talk about the band’s past, present and future.
From the times that I’ve seen the band, for the audience as a whole, there’s a list of songs that they simply must hear. How does that fact figure into the band’s mindset when it comes to writing new material? Do you find yourselves thinking, “How many new songs should we bother writing?” Because as good as they are, people want to hear “Starship Trooper.”
When we come to songwriting, we let the music write itself. There’s always a common thread that links us to the past of Yes, especially having a legacy member like Steve [Howe] so involved in the compositions. Ultimately, I think it’s about what we want to say lyrically and what we feel musically. That can be very different from traditional Yes, and I think that’s a healthy thing. Because whenever you try to recapture the past, you’re just imitating. So [instead] we think, “Let’s just move forward and create music that’s reflective of who we are today.”
2023’s Mirror to the Sky earned some of Yes’ best critical reviews of the last several years. With that kind of wind at your back, what can you tell me about the prospect of new studio music from Yes going forward?
We are working on music all the time. Steve is so comfortable in the producer chair. We’ve got an excellent engineer, the great Curtis Schwartz. I live in England, so Steve and I can get together with Curtis a lot of the time. So we’re keeping this comfortable creative flow going.
We’re writing and wrapping up an album now; it should come out, I think, around April of next year. It will have the same sort of flow and ebb of Mirror to the Sky and The Quest, the album just before it. But it’s also very different, which is exciting because it shows that we are continuing to evolve.
Do you have a favorite song from the Yes repertoire?
Wow. I love so much of it, but I tend to get sentimental about the songs we haven’t played for a while. So I’m really missing doing “Awaken.” I don’t often listen to Yes, I confess, just purely as a listener. Growing up, being a fan and loving it so much, it was the music I always listened to. But somehow being in the band, it’s a different kind of perspective, so I don’t find myself gravitating to just being a listener of Yes. And I miss that. So it’s fun to go back and think, “What’s something we haven’t played, or what’s a song or album I haven’t thought of for a while?” So currently it’s [1977’s] Going for the One and songs like “Awaken.” I love that song, and I would love to be able to perform it again. And I think we will, coming up here soon.
The band has done a number of tours focusing on a specific album; this tour it’s going to be Fragile. In all the years that you’ve been with the group, is there anything from the back catalog that you’ve never done live?
That’s a good question! Yeah, some of the stuff from the first couple albums. I will say that Steve has really supported those albums; we’ve done some one-offs that are really interesting, like “Survival” [from 1969’s Yes] and “Sweet Dreams” [from 1970’s Time and a Word]. Those are songs that haven’t seen the light of day – as far as being performed – in forever. It’s hard to imagine, but there are so many. There are some great moments on [1978’s] Tormato, too, and we’re looking at that album.
I would love to have the band look more laser-focused on Relayer [1974]; as you mentioned, we’ve been doing the album series, but that’s one that we haven’t quite taken on. We actually had that slated for an entire tour; the tour book was printed, we were all worked up and ready to go, and then Covid hit. And that shut everything down. And then through time and working with new material and having a reset, we’ve gone in different directions. But I think it’s time to get back and really look at Relayer.
After all these decades, what do you think explains the enduring appeal of Yes and the band’s music?
In this day and age, everything’s so immediate; people want it quick. And there’s great production skill and vocal harmony skill in so much songwriting today; I’m not knocking it; I love all kinds of music. But there’s also this wave of pop music [being] almost like a TV commercial: it’s all instantaneous. As Freddie Mercury used to say, pop music’s just disposable tissue; you use it, discard it and forget it. So there is that element to it.
[As far as Yes,] I think there’s so much to it. I think that having a pure album experience – one that takes you on a journey, that’s very thoughtful, that’s imaginative storytelling – is very refreshing to people. There’s all the virtuosity that draws people in, but it’s also John Anderson’s beautiful melodies, which are to the level of the Beatles. There’s that wonderful quality, the melodic quality. I was just talking to someone about “Long Distance Runaround” [from Fragile] and how we hadn’t played it for so long. It’s such a joy to sing; it’s such a gorgeous melody when you analyze the flow of it and how it builds. It’s as great as any melody that’s out there.
I think there are all those elements in Yes. In classic rock, there’s an equality among all the musicians. Chris Squire made a statement. As much as Jon did, as much as Steve did, as much as Rick [Wakeman] did. You could be a keyboard player and a huge fan of Rick Wakeman alone and understand Yes. But you had all those avenues, and it’s a complete picture, and that’s just something that’s classic and timeless. Much like classical music, it will never die, and for the very same reason.
Thanks for taking time to speak with me today, and thanks for the music.
It’s been an absolute pleasure to talk to you. We’re having a great time out here on the road, as are the fans, and it’s all good. All is well in the Yes world.
Colbie Caillat: A Sustained Overnight Sensation
By Bill Kopp
The term “overnight sensation” describes a phenomenon that rarely ever happens. But to some degree it applies to Colbie Caillat. She seemingly came out of nowhere, becoming a bona fide success on MySpace, landing a record deal and releasing a blockbuster debut album, 2007’s Coco. Caillat would go on to a successful and sustained career, with her gentle folky pop earning her a legion of dedicated fans. In recent years, her musical journey has taken her toward country music, and her most recent release, This Time Around finds her teaming up for an album’s worth of duets.
Caillat’s current tour is a joint effort with Gavin DeGraw; the pair covers Post Malone’s “Circles” on the new disc. In a recent conversation with Rock On, Colbie Caillat discussed her start in music, her breakthrough, her songwriting process, how she deals with stage fright and much more.
Your dad is Ken Caillat. As a child, how aware were you of your father’s work as a Grammy-winning record producer and engineer for artists like Fleetwood Mac, Michael Jackson and Warren Zevon?
I was aware music was in our house. We had a [studio] mixing console on our pool table in the living room. There was always music blasting out of the speakers. I would [often] get to go to the label or to the studio and hear about all of it. I always loved Fleetwood Mac. I’d hear their music in places, and I was like, “Oh, that’s so cool. My dad worked with them!”
Did your father’s work in the world of music influence your own path as an artist?
It helped give me the tools to really home in on my love of singing. Early on, my parents could tell that I had a good voice, and then once they knew that was something I was passionate about – I wouldn’t stop singing all over the house – they were like, “Wow. If you want to do this, you should. Why don’t you take piano lessons, guitar lessons and vocal lessons?” So because I had the interest and the talent, they gave me the tools to progress with it. They gave me those tools, but they didn’t give me any connections. After that, it really all happened [via] MySpace.
You’ve said that Lauryn Hill’s performance in the 1993 film Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit was a turning point for you; tell me about that.
You know, it’s such a small part of the movie, and she’s only singing part of the song! But her voice is so beautiful and soulful and effortless; when she sings that part, it’s like this pent-up [urge], like she’s afraid to sing. She’s not allowed to sing at home, and then she gets to be in her own world. That was something I really related to, because I didn’t really want to sing in front of people. She thought she was alone, at the piano just really singing her heart out. And I resonated with all of it and how it felt when she was just releasing that feeling, free and in her own world. That was something that really inspired me.
Tell me about your experiences auditioning in the early 2000s for American Idol.Oh, gosh. It wasn’t something I wanted to do. I got encouraged by my friends in high school and from my parents. But I was nervous; I didn’t really want to be on the show. I have stage fright. But when you’re encouraged to do something, you take people’s advice. But I wasn’t ready for something like that.
So I auditioned. We camped out overnight. You have to wait in line with thousands of people, so that’s what I did. I was so shy and quiet and timid, and my outfit was horrible. It wasn’t a good fit at all, but now it’s an experience to talk about.
How did you overcome that stage fright?
It was a really long process; it took many years. I would sing with my eyes closed and not talk or acknowledge the audience. I had a therapist out on the road. At one point, I had a coach out on the road; she would actually talk in my [in-ear monitors] and tell me what to say, because I was so introverted and inexperienced with performing. So she helped me lean into that.
And over the years of having done it so much, learning the techniques and feeling more confident, she also taught me: “Before you go on stage, get calm and centered and tell yourself five great things about yourself – whatever they may be – just to make you feel grounded.” Now I think my performing has transitioned; I’m very honest with people on stage. At the beginning, I was taught to really hide that I was introverted, to hide that I had stage fright. And that made me feel even more terrified!
Once I wrote my song “Try,” and I started explaining the song to the audience, they loved it. And I was like, “Oh, I can tell you that I’m scared.” It freed me from all of that.
You mentioned MySpace. When MySpace launched, it was touted as the Next Big Thing for artists. But for most of them, it wasn’t. Yet it worked for you in 2005. Why?
You know, it’s so interesting how so many things can line up to make something happen. I think it took so many different people and timing of things that aligned that way. But overall, what I’m most grateful for with MySpace is that fans got to choose the songs, and they chose my music. It wasn’t a label pushing a song out to radio. It was truly fans who heard it randomly from someone else’s page, and then added it to theirs; it was their choice. And they helped build my career. That feels so much more meaningful to me. I [still] meet those people at meet-and-greets, the first people who started listening.
But that’s how it happened.
Your first album went triple-Platinum; Coco was a success all around the world. That’s pretty amazing for a debut release. Did that success catch you off guard?
It all caught me off guard. It happened so fast, I really couldn’t keep up with any of it. There was MySpace, I became the number one unsigned artist, and then I got a record deal. And then months later, I went on tour with the Goo Goo Dolls, and then doing TV and then traveling the world for two years. Every moment was like, “I can’t even comprehend what’s going on!”
It was a lot to take in because it happened so fresh for me. I wasn’t one of those artists that had been doing it for years, trying to “make it.” It just literally happened, and I had no preparation. So I think it was a harder experience for me than, for other people. You have to just go with it: “I have this opportunity that people are dying for and waiting for; I have to go with it. It doesn’t matter how unprepared I am.” You say yes.
One of the adjectives that’s used to describe your music is relatable. Do your early songs still resonate with you? Do they mean the same thing to you now that they did when you wrote them?
No, they don’t. That’s something else that I’ve really been enjoying. Sometimes it hits me on stage; I’m singing “Realize,” and I’m like, “This is making me think about this person right now, someone I’m dating.” Or another song makes me think of something a family member is going through. It can either be really uplifting, or it can be emotional and heavy. And I’ve found that a lot of the songs have new meaning [connected] to whatever I’m currently experiencing.
What can audiences expect at this upcoming run of dates including the Reno show?
Well, Gavin [DeGraw] and I are going to be singing Christmas songs, and songs of ours that people may know from over the years. We’re going to be singing together; we’re sharing a band and a stage and everything.
I’ve played in Reno so many times. My grandparents used to live there, and they would always come to my show, so it’ll be good to be back.
Let’s go way back. What was your introduction to the blues? And did it come before the Paramounts and Procol Harum?
I’ve got a feeling I was already in the Paramounts when I first heard B.B. King’s “3 O’Clock News.” I think that was the introduction. And then I just started hunting out more stuff from there.
Was the blues your favorite and preferred style of music from the very beginning?
Well, up to that point, I’ve been very much a rock ‘n’ roll fan. As I say, after I started to get into BB King, then I looked around and found other people: Howlin’ Wolf, Muddy Waters.
You began having co-writing credits with Procol Harum around the time of 1969’s A Salty Dog. Did you have to push to be involved in the group’s writing, or was it welcomed?
It was usually Gary [Brooker]’s idea that I come up with something, just as a different sort of string to the band’s bow, as it were.
Procol Harum released your song “Whisky Train” as the single off of the 1970 album Home. That track seemed to hint at the direction that you’d follow in your solo career. Arguably, it fits into your body of work far more than it does into the Procol Harum catalog. Was there a specific moment during your time in the band at which you realized, “I really need to go my own way, go solo”?
I think it was when I was starting to write a bit more on Broken Barricades [1971]. I started to realize I was coming up with a lot of guitar-based songs, and that there wasn’t really space in Procol Harum for it all. So I would have to do my own thing, have my own band.
You mentioned Broken Barricades. My favorite performance by you during your years in Procol Harum is “Simple Sister.” That song has a very strong, sharp riff, and it also has the Procol Harum progressive, semi-orchestral approach. The song is credited to Brooker and lyricist Keith Reid; did you have a hand in writing that song’s signature guitar part?No, no. That was Gary’s song. And I really love the music.
Your 1973 album Twice Removed From Yesterday was a very strong debut, and it received very positive reviews. Yet it it didn’t really sell in great numbers. Did that muted success concern you at the time, a sort of, “Oh, what have I done?”
No, not at all. I mean, I was selling records, never mind about how many! It was good.
Your solo career did truly take off with 1974’s Bridge of Sighs and For Earth Below [1975].Were you at all surprised at the commercial success of those albums?
I think I was, a little bit. I think we all knew when were recording Bridge of Sighs that it had a real potency, but you can never tell how people will take to it, you know. So yeah, I think it was a bit of a surprise.
For Earth Below has just recently been reissued in expanded form, with bonus tracks, outtakes, alternates and a complete live show. It’s a really nicely put together package. How involved do you get in those expanded reissue-type projects?
The only thing I do… I have to pass everything new that they’re they’re adding. I have to hear it and pass it. Otherwise they put it all together at Chrysalis Records. And I think they do an excellent job.
Are there more such projects in the pipeline?
Yes. I think they’re wanting to do a reissue of the original live album [1976’s Robin Trower Live! recorded in Stockholm, Sweden]. So that should be interesting, with a remix.
After years with James Dewar on bass, did you change your approach to playing guitar at all when you made the two albums – 1981’s B.L.T. and Truce from ‘82 – with former Cream bassist-vocalist Jack Bruce?
No, I don’t think I did. I think my approach has always been that I’m trying to move forward and be creative. Working with Jack was different, but I don’t think it really changed anything about my own style.
Did that trio – you, Jack Bruce and drummer Bill Lordan – every play any live dates?
No, we didn’t. We talked about it, but by the time the second one was out, I was already moving on, thinking I’d like to try something else.
When you write lyrics, from where do you draw your lyrical inspiration?
I think it’s genuine creativity. I think that reading a lot gives you vocabulary; maybe phrases and stuff like that. But I think it’s just the blessing of creativity, really.
On your new album Come and Find Me, “Tangled Love” is certainly a standout track with Jess Hay’s lead vocal. To my knowledge, other than Sari Shore’s work on 2023’s Joyful Sky, it’s one of the few times that you’ve recorded with a female vocalist…
That’s right.
The female voice is a different instrument than the male voice. Does working with a female singer call upon or inspire you to bring a different approach to your playing?
To be honest, if it had been Richard [Watts] singing them, I don’t think I would play it any different. It’s just [about] choosing the right material I’ve written that I think might suit a female voice; that’s really the key. Obviously, on lots of [songs with a female singer] I have to play in a different key than they were written in. So that’s a sort of compromise.
Your guitar work is so fluid and precise. Do you practice?
Yeah, every day.
What is your practice regimen like?
Oh, I just basically doodle and try and come up with new songs as well at the same time. I’m always looking for new ideas on the lead stuff that gives me a little sting in the heart. And I have to play every day, because otherwise I lose my calluses. That’s a big deal.
What inspires you to keep recording and playing live after all these many years?
Well, I love it! I love playing the guitar, I love doing shows, and I love being in the studio. While I keep writing new material, I have to keep recording. And the natural follow-on from that is to play live as well.
What’s in the future for you after this run of live dates?
Well, I’ve got a live album coming out. It’s taken from the U.S. tour that we’ve just done. And I’m very happy with that. And in the new year, I’m going to finish off another studio album. So there’s a lot in the pipeline.
Robin Trower comes to Harrah’s Lake Tahoe on Friday, Sep. 26.