Yes Plot Summer Tour Behind ‘Drama,’ ‘Topographic Oceans’ LPs
Yes will perform the entirety of their 1980 album Drama, sides one and four of their 1973 double-LP Tales From Topographic Oceans and a selection of greatest hits on their upcoming American summer tour. The 25-date trek kicks off July 27th at the Ohio State Fair in Columbus, Ohio and concludes September 4th in San Diego, California. Further dates and ticket information will be announced at the band’s website.
“We are proud to present the American public with forward-looking albums from the past,” guitarist Steve Howe said in a statement. “Promoting Drama at Madison Square Garden on multi-nights was a career milestone in 1980, and we are especially looking forward to performing both the opening and closing sides to Topographic Oceans [“The Revealing Science of God (Dance of the Dawn) and “Ritual (Nous Sommes du Soleil)”].”
These dates will mark Yes’ first-ever full performances of Drama, a transitional album recorded with singer Trevor Horn and keyboardist Geoff Downes, who – as New Wave act the Buggles – cemented their place in rock history with their lone 1979 hit, “Video Killed the Radio Star.” (That track later became the first music video ever played on MTV.)
Horn and Downes replaced two of the band’s most recognizable members (co-founder/frontman Jon Anderson and acclaimed keyboardist Rick Wakeman) for this one album, before quitting themselves. Horn reunited with the group as producer of 1983’s 90125; Downes re-joined the line-up in 2011.
Tales From Topographic Oceans, which found drummer Alan White replacing longtime percussionist Bill Bruford, remains one of Yes’ most divisive albums: an 81-minute, four-song behemoth that polarized critics but nonetheless topped the UK charts, leading to a bold tour cycle in which the band played the whole track list on-stage.
Yes will perform both Drama and 1971 classic Fragile during a UK/European tour launching April 27th. The band has also scheduled another edition of their floating festival Cruise to the Edge for February 2017.
Yes 2016 American Tour Dates
July 27 – Columbus, OH @ Ohio State Fair
July 30 – Atlantic City, NJ @Tropicana
July 31 – Bethlehem, PA @Sands Event Center
August 2 – Lewiston, NY @ Artpark
August 4 – Lynn, MA @ Lynn Auditorium
August 5 – Wallingford, CT @ Oakdale Theatre
August 6 – Westbury, NY @ Theatre at Westbury
August 9 – Staten Island, NY @ St. George Theatre
August 10 – Englewood, NJ @ Bergen Performing Arts Center
August 12 – Port Chester, NY @ The Capitol Theater
August 13 – Morristown, NJ @ Morristown Performing Arts Center
August 16 – Washington, DC @ Warner Theatre
August 17 – Munhall, PA @ Carnegie of Homestead Music Hall
August 19 – Sterling Heights, MI @ Freedom Hill Amphitheatre
August 20 – Chicago, IL @ Copernicus Center
August 21 – Milwaukee, WI @ Pabst Theater
August 24 – Denver, CO @ Paramount Theatre
August 26 – Anaheim, CA @ The Grove
August 27 – Las Vegas, CO @ Las Vegas Events Center
August 28 – Santa Barbara, CA @ Arlington Theatre
August 30 – Los Angeles, CA @ Orpheum Theater
August 31 – Saratoga, CA @ The Mountain Winery
September 2 – Reno, NV @ Silver Legacy Casino
September 3 – Paso Robles, CA @ Vina Robles Winery
September 4 – San Diego, CA @ Humphrey’s