Courtesy of Rick Wakeman
Courtesy of Rick WakemanEarlier this year, Jon Anderson told ABC Audio that he was unsure about the future of his Yes spinoff project with former band mates Trevor Rabin and Rick Wakeman, which went on indefinite hiatus following a brief 2018 U.S. tour. However, Wakeman now tells ABC Audio that the group, Yes Featuring Jon Anderson, Trevor Rabin and Rick Wakeman, is discussing doing a final trek.
“At the moment, we’re talking about going out in 2020 and 2021 as a sort of a ‘farewell, goodbye…we’ve really enjoyed it and want to say thank you to all the people that have followed us,'” the keyboardist explains.
The 70-year-old Rock & Roll Hall of Famer also says he thinks “there’s a fair chance” that the band will release some new music to coincide with the tour.
“Not a whole album’s worth, but there’ll be some music,” Wakeman maintains, adding, “[W]e always said that it had to be of such a high standard, had to be like classic standard, otherwise we wouldn’t [release it].”
Rick currently is in the middle of a North American solo trek dubbed The Grumpy Old Rock Star Tour, which is plotted out through an October 27 concert in Orlando, Florida. The tour features Wakeman playing selections from his two latest solo albums, 2017’s Piano Portraits and 2018’s Piano Odyssey, as well as other songs from his long career. Rick also preparing to release a follow-up record, a holiday collection called Christmas Portraits that’s due out on November 29.
“There’s 22 well-known Christmas pieces that I’ve…made 14 tracks out of,” Rick notes of the new record, “which is in the style of doing variations around the tunes.”
Here are Wakeman’s remaining U.S. solo shows:
10/8 — Allentown, PA, Miller Symphony Hall
10/10 — Englewood, NJ, Bergen Performing Arts Center
10/11 — Collingswood, NJ, Scottish Rite Auditorium
10/13 — Ridgefield, CT, Ridgefield Playhouse
10/16 — Seattle, WA, The Triple Door
10/17 — Portland, OR, Revolution Hall
10/19 — San Francisco, CA, Castro Theatre
10/20 — San Juan Capistrano, CA, Coach House
10/22 — Los Angeles, CA, Theatre at Ace Hotel
10/25 — Atlanta, GA, City Winery
10/26 — Clearwater, FL, Capitol Theatre
10/27 — Orlando, FL, The Plaza Live
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