Due to “current health issues,” YES drummer Alan White will not take part in the band’s upcoming 50th-anniversary “Close To The Edge” tour of the U.K. and Ireland. Alan‘s close friend Jay Schellen will be taking on drumming duties in White‘s place.
According to YES‘s management, Alan “was really looking forward to playing live again preparing to celebrate 50 years with YES, having joined the band for the July 1972 ‘Close To The Edge’ tour, coming full circle in 2022.”
The tour, which will celebrate the 50th anniversary of YES‘s iconic album “Close To The Edge”, will feature the album performed in full, along with other classic tracks from YES‘s extensive catalogue.
In addition to Schellen, YES‘s touring lineup will feature Steve Howe (guitars),Geoff Downes (keyboards),Jon Davison (vocals) and Billy Sherwood (bass guitar and backing vocals).
The show will comprise full production and a high-definition video wall directed by Roger Dean who will also be joining the tour with an exhibition of YES-related art.
Tour dates:
June 15 – Glasgow Royal Concert Hall
June 17 – Manchester Bridgewater Hall
June 18 – Nottingham Royal Concert Hall
June 20 – Liverpool Philharmonic Hall
June 21 – London Royal Albert Hall
June 22 – York Barbican
June 24 – Birmingham Symphony Hall
June 26 – Newcastle O2 City Hall
June 28 – Dublin Vicar Street
June 29 – Cork Opera House
A full performance of the “Relayer” album will now be featured in a future U.K. tour in “The Album Series”. Rescheduled European dates were recently announced for 2023.
Formed in 1968 by Jon Anderson and the late and much-missed Chris Squire, YES has been one of the most innovative, influential and best-loved bands in rock music history. Their 1970s albums “The Yes Album”, “Fragile”, “Close To The Edge”, “Yessongs” (a triple live album set),“Tales From Topographic Oceans”, “Relayer” and “Going For The One” were ground-breaking in musical style and content. Their music also became synonymous with artist Roger Dean, whose distinctive YES logo design and artwork adorned the lavish gatefold presentation sleeves of many YES albums.
With sales of over 50 million records, the Grammy Award-winning YES was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2017, where they performed “Roundabout” from the album “Fragile” and the FM radio-friendly “Owner Of A Lonely Heart” from the 1985 album “90125”.
In 2021, YES released its 22nd studio album, “The Quest”, produced by Steve Howe, which went to No. 1 in the U.K. rock chart and entered the official U.K. album chart at No. 20.