NEWS PLUS: News

Jon Anderson Expands 2023 Tour

by Best Classic Bands Staff

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Jon Anderson (Photo: M.Salamone Carrick Photography; used with permission)

Legendary YES lead vocalist and songwriter Jon Anderson has announced a summer 2023 tour of Europe where he’ll be performing the band’s Close To the Edge album and other YES classics in its entirety. Anderson will be joined by the Paul Green Rock Academy, an acclaimed group of teenaged musicians, with whom he has toured previously. The tour, announced on April 10, follows a spring run in the U.S., where he’s joined by the Band Geeks. The latter ensemble will be performing such classic YES favorites as “And You and I,” “Starship Trooper,” “Heart of the Sunrise” and epic works like “Close To The Edge,” “The Gates of Delirium,” “Awaken” and others.

In the earlier (Oct. 6, 2022) announcement of the U.S. tour, Anderson said, “I never left YES in my heart and soul…ever!! Too many amazingly powerful memories. And of course the music never left me. So here I am, still wanting to sing the songs again, and bring my true feelings to the lyrics.

“Melody and lyrics has always been my passion. I sing them now with an older and I hope wiser state of mind.

“I’ve been wanting to have that feeling again…of performing the songs I lived for, and the music I helped to create and design, with the sound of the band of old around me once more. The first time I heard the Band Geeks I truly freaked out; they sound just like the classic YES of the seventies, the YES that I know and love.”

Anderson is one of the most recognizable voices in music as the lead vocalist behind YES. Anderson was the author and a major creative influence behind the groundbreaking album, Fragile, as well as the group’s series of epic, complex pieces such as “Awaken,” “Gates of Delirium” and especially “Close to the Edge” which were central to the band’s popularity. Additionally, Anderson co-authored the group’s biggest hits, including “I’ve Seen All Good People,” “Roundabout” and #1 single, “Owner of a Lonely Heart.” He has worked with many variations of YES, as well as collaborations with Vangelis, Kitaro, Roine Stolt and Jean-Luc Ponty, and released many critically acclaimed solo albums spanning Olias of Sunhillow to most recently 1000 Hands.

Watch Anderson perform with the Paul Green Rock Academy

The Band Geeks began as the house band for the Band Geek podcast, an internet show created by Richie Castellano (Blue Öyster Cult). The band gained popularity on YouTube with their incredibly detailed recreations of music by artists like Queen, Toto, Black Sabbath and Yes, which have earned them over 30 million views.

Watch a detailed video presentation and you’ll see Anderson hasn’t lost anything off his fastball

The current lineup of the Band Geeks features Castellano – Bass, Guitar; Chris Clark (Brand X, John Entwistle) – Keyboards; Andy Ascolese (Kasim Sulton’s Utopia) – Drums; Robert Kipp (Kashmir) – Keyboards, Guitar; and Andy Graziano – Guitar, Bass.

Jon Anderson 2023 Tour Dates (Tickets are available here and here)
Apr 14 – Westbury, NY – The Space
Apr 16 – Newark, NJ – NJPAC
Apr 21 – New York, NY – Palladium Times Square
Apr 23 – Reading, PA – Santander PAC
Apr 28 – Collingswood, NJ – Scottish Rite Auditorium
Apr 29 – Collingswood, NJ – Scottish Rite Auditorium
May 03 – Tysons Corner, VA – Capital One Hall
May 06 – Baltimore, MD – The Lyric
May 09 – St. Charles, MO – Family Arena
May 12 – St. Charles, IL – Arcada Theatre
May 13 – Des Plaines, IL – Des Plaines Theatre
May 16 – North Tonawanda, NY – Riviera Theatre

With the Paul Green Rock Academy
Jul 09 – Budapest, Hungary – Papp Laszlo Sports Arena*
Jul 12 – Zoetermeer, Netherlands – Stadstheater
Jul 15 – Bad Doberan, Germany – Zappanale Festival
Jul 19 – Madrid, Spain – But-La Paqui
Jul 22 – London, UK – Shepherd’s Bush Empire
Jul 23 – London, UK – Shepherd’s Bush Empire
Jul 26 – Uppsala, Sweden – Parksnackan
Jul 28 – Breitenbach am Herzberg, Germany – Burg Herzberg Festival
Aug 01 – Dublin, Ireland – Vicar St
Aug 05 – Valkenburg, Netherlands – Open Air Theater Valkenburg
Aug 09 – Brno, Czech Republic – Sono Centrum
*With Manfred Mann’s Earth Band