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Jon Anderson at Fitzgerald Theater, St. Paul (20 April 2019)

Jon Anderson at Fitzgerald Theater, St. Paul (20 April 2019) Jon Anderson Setlist Set 1     Intro: Ocean Song Owner of a Lonely Heart* Yours Is No Disgrace* Ramalama State of Independence^ Makes Me Happy I've Seen All Good People (Your Move / All Good People) America (Simon & Garfunkel cover) WDMCF Set 2 Flight of the Moorglade Sweet Dreams* To the Runner Long Distance Runaround* First Born Leaders 1000 Hands (Come Up) Starship Trooper / Solid Space* -- Encore -- Roundabout* * Yes song ^ Jon and Vangelis song Band Jon Anderson - Vocals/Guitar Michael Franklin - Keys Tim Franklin - Bass Tommy Calton - Guitar Rayford Griffin - Drums Steady Joseph - Percussion Jocelyn Hsu - Violin/Ukelele Joe Cosas - Keyboards/Trombone/Guitar Billy Meether - Saxophones/Flute/Clarinet Tour Dates 24 April 2019 Humphreys Concerts, San Diego, CA 26 April 2019 Saban Theatre, Beverly Hills, CA 27 April 2019 Cannery Casino , North Las Vegas, NV 30 April 2019 The Van Buren, Phoenix, AZ 06 May 2019 Ryman Auditorium, Nashville, TN 08 May 2019 Capitol Theatre Clearwater, FL 10 May 2019 Dr Phillips Center, Orlando FL 11 May 2019 Beau Rivage Theatre, Biloxi, MS 12 May 2019 Kaboo Festival Arlington, TX 29 July 2019 Ocean City Music Pier, Ocean City, NJ 08 August 2019 Rocking the Riverfront Detroit, MI 29 August 2019 The Rose, Pasadena, CA 30 August 2019 Libbey Bowl, Ojai, CA 01 September 2019 The Canyon Montclair, Montclair, CA Read More Yes One of the most successful, influential progressive rock band in the world is Yes. In 1983, the band changed lineup (with Trevor Rabin) and concentrated mostly on more commercial and pop-oriented music. A second Yes band called Yes Featuring Jon Anderson …

Some albums takes days, weeks, or months to complete-- some take twenty-nine years…!

The latter was the case with former Yes vocalist Jon Anderson’s new solo record, 1000 Hands: Chapter One, begun as some between-album sessions in Big Bear, CA in 1990 with a former pre-Yes bandmate (and Yes’ Alan White and Chris Squire contributing), only to be shelved away in Anderson’s garage until a 2016 call from producer/keyboardist Michael Franklin re-awakened the project, who used those original tapes as the basis for a finished new album.

Anderson and band (including Franklin) brought some of the new songs to life, along with numerous classic songs, at a joyous and intimate show in St. Paul at the Fitzgerald Theater. The performance had no opener, and was split into two sets, with a brief intermission between, with the help of eight backing musicians in front of a video screen split into six long vertical sections that would show colors, patterns, and shapes as the songs progressed.

With a setlist that was one-third new album, one-third misc. solo, and one-third Yes songs, there was something for everyone, and the performance would also lean heavily on Anderson’s first solo album, with four tracks (including the intro music) from 1976’s Olias of Sunhillow played. The initial forty-five minute set immediately pricked up ears and eyes with 1983’s ‘Owner of a Lonely Heart’, the one and only song that would top the Billboard Hot 100 chart for Yes.

The classic ‘Yours is No Disgrace’ followed with the new ‘Ramalama’ sounding like late 80’s Yes with its ‘Leave It’ style acapella multi-layered harmonies beginning the song and continuing throughout. Similar to when we last saw Anderson with Jean-Luc Ponty, 1981’s ‘State of Independence’ had an elegant sheen about its revised arrangement, compliments of Franklin’s keys and violinist Jocelyn Hsu’s sweeping strings.

Spring was finally in the air outside, and reflected inside by Anderson’s sunny new ‘Makes Me Happy’ and a reggae-style version of ‘Your Move’ which led into a more familiar rock ‘All Good People’. ‘America’ has been a live Yes standard, with Anderson’s solo version having some swing and jazz elements injected, and he said announcing the intermission before the new ‘WDMCF ‘ that “We’ll have one more song, then we’ll lay down and have a cup of tea”.

The tea and twenty minutes away must have worked wonders because Anderson visibly seemed like he found a second wind and the vocals were even more emphatic and soaring, as the second set progressed. The band made their way to the front, surrounding Anderson initially as he re-visited Olias of Sunhillow, with ‘Flight of the Moorglade’ then went back to 1970 for Yes’ ‘Sweet Dreams’.

After a stirring ‘Long Distance Runaround’, Anderson confessed he never actually planned on singing the new ‘First Born Leaders’ live, but had a change of heart and asked the audience to forgive him as he needed a lyric sheet (and had keywords written on cue cards in front of him) in case he blanked on the song’s complex verse.

Before the new album’s title track, Anderson recalled the story of the lost tapes becoming the basis of the new record and the producer having to bake the thirty-year old reels, reactivating them to playback and be properly digitized. The Yes classic ‘Starship Trooper’ would end the main portion, with Anderson taking things full circle one final time, by adding part of Olias of Sunhillow’s ‘Solid Space’ onto the end, to finish the set.

Anderson’s wife Jane, who had been gleefully watching the show from up front disappeared before the encore, only to be seen (if you had the right vantage point) side stage as the musicians returned for the encore of Yes’ ‘Roundabout’. At the song’s instrumental break, Anderson dashed off stage to embrace his wife smiling, and swung her about in a brief lovely dance together behind the curtain, before he returned to the mic at just the precise second to finish the song.

The sound that would commence following would be more than1000 hands, all clapping and waving, with a standing ovation, as Anderson and band bowed, waved, and left the stage.

Anderson has hinted that he is open to a Yes reunion for their fiftieth anniversary, having already written eight prospective new songs for the occasion; but in the meantime, we have a fine new solo album, a lively tour, and Jon Anderson singing at his best level in years- bravo.

(click on any photo below to enlarge and see full image)

Jon Anderson at Fitzgerald Theater, St. Paul (20 April 2019)

john ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ facebook.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic

Minneapolis: September 8 to September 11, 2017

Here are some concerts taking place in the Minneapolis/St Paul area from September 8 to September 11, 2017.

Read more Minneapolis Music Guide.

Read More Yes Yes to cancel summer tour... The tour, celebrating the band's 40th anniversary, had been scheduled to come to the Susquehanna ... …

YES (feat Jon Anderson, Trevor Rabin, Rick Wakeman)
at Treasure Island Resort & Casino
Friday 09/08/2017 (7pm/$47)
ticasino.com

One of the most successful, influential progressive rock band in the world is Yes. In 1983, the band changed lineup (with Trevor Rabin) and concentrated mostly on more commercial and pop-oriented music. A second Yes band called Yes Featuring Jon Anderson, Trevor Rabin, Rick Wakeman (with original singer Jon Anderson) was formed this year.

Expect Yes feat ARW to play pre-90125 album, meaning Yes’ biggest hit song ‘Owner of a Lonely Heart’ and other classic songs.

We previously caught Jon Anderson’s project Anderson Ponty Band in May 2016 and noted that the vocalist was still singing Yes songs.

Tour dates:

08/26/2017 Bob Hope Theatre
08/28/2017 The Mountain Winery Saratoga, CA
08/29/2017 Table Mountain Casino Friant, CA
08/31/2017 The Smith Center Las Vegas, NV
09/02/2017 Kenley Amphitheatre Layton, UT
09/03/2017 Hudson Gardens Littleton, CO
09/05/2017 Kauffman Center Kansas City, MO
09/08/2017 Treasure Island Welch, MN
09/09/2017 Riverside Theatre Milwaukee, WI
09/12/2017 Fraze Pavilion Kettering, OH
09/13/2017 Filene Center Vienna, VA
09/15/2017 Goodyear Theater Akron, OH
09/16/2017 Massey Hall Toronto, ON
09/18/2017 Grand Theatre Quebec City, QC
09/19/2017 St. Denis Theatre 1 Montreal, QC
09/21/2017 Capitol Theatre Port Chester, NY
09/23/2017 Toyota Oakdale Theatre Wallingford, CT
09/24/2017 Tilles Center Brookville, NY
09/27/2017 Prudential Hall Newark, NJ
09/29/2017 Santander Performing Arts Center Reading, PA
09/30/2017 Patriots Theater Trenton, NJ
10/01/2017 Verizon Hall Philadelphia, PA
10/04/2017 Orpheum Theatre Boston, MA
10/05/2017 Palace Theatre Albany, NY
10/07/2017 Seneca Niagara Resort & Casino Niagara Falls, NY
10/08/2017 Count Basie Theatre Red Bank, NJ
10/10/2017 King Center Melbourne, FL
10/11/2017 Ruth Eckerd Hall Clearwater, FL
10/13/2017 Kravis Center West Palm Beach, FL
10/14/2017 Knight Concert Hall Miami, FL

Read More Royal Canoe There is a complexity to their music, such as in the album’s title track or the single, ‘Bathtubs’ that still comes off as easy and palatable to the ear, despite the “everything including … Little Scream Montreal's Little Scream to open the show, she is currently finishing up her eagerly-anticipated second album, Dance in a Void. …

ROYAL CANOE / LITTLE SCREAM
at 7th Street Entry
Monday 09/11/2017 (7:30pm/$10)
first-avenue.com

We caught the Canadian band Royal Canoe in 2014 and wrote, “Opening the show to a strong crowd reception was Manitoba-based six-piece, Royal Canoe, in support of their debut U.S. release, Today We’re Believers (Roll Call Records). The Canadian ensemble can truly be described as unique and eclectic, with its hybrid of sounds, musical time changes, dual drummers, and singer Matt Peters, who often uses two microphones and manipulates his voice, electronically and otherwise.”

The last time we saw co-headliner Little Scream, she surprised us with two dancers on stage for the song ‘Dark Dance’. We also noted, “According to singer Laurel Sprengelmeyer, she said she was born in Iowa and went to shows like this one and actually dreamed of one day playing shows. The Montreal-based band was actually supposed to headlined the Turf Club in St Paul, as you can see from the original poster listing, but smartly the organizers decided to consolidate the two shows.”

Mariah Mercedes will open.

Tour dates:

09/11 First Avenue & 7th Street Entry · Minneapolis, MN
09/12 Subterranean · Chicago, IL
09/14 Mercury Lounge · New York, NY
09/15 Theatre Rialto A Montreal · Montreal, QC, Canada
09/16 Ottawa · City Folk Festival
09/17 The Great Hall Toronto · Toronto, ON, Canada

Read More U2 With yesterday's announcement of Apple Watch and iPhone 6, Irish band U2 made a surprise concert appearance to close out Apple's event. They also made it known that U2's latest album Songs of Innocence … Beck So you like Beck and was thinking about picking up Odelay (1996). Well don't! Wait until January 29, 2008, because there's a Deluxe 2-disc version coming out. More details on our press page …

Other shows in the area:

09/08-09/09/2017 The annual St. Croix Valley Chili Feed is this Friday and Saturday, with Autograph, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, 80HD and more. Free beer, soda, and chili included with the $45 pre-sale price ($60 at the door). 12pm, $45

09/08/2017 Two time Grammy-award winner John Prine is headlining the Northrop Auditorium. Prince’s latest book, Beyond Words is available now on Oh Boy Records. Beyond Words includes over 100 photographs from Prine's personal collection, copies of handwritten lyrics showing the creative process with select commentary, and lyrics with guitar chords for 60+ classic Prine songs. Larry Campbell and Teresa Williams to open. 7pm, $62.50

09/08/2017 Arkansas’ Justin Moore will be headlining Mystic Lake Casino, hot off his seventh #1 song ‘Somebody Else Will’, from his fourth album Kinda Don’t Care (The Valory Music Co). 7pm, $40

09/08/2017 Legendary Irish band U2 will be headlining the U.S. Bank Stadium this Friday. Beck to open. 5:30pm, $93

09/09/2017 AJJ is formerly known as Andrew Jackson Jihad. They had to change their name because some Muslims thought they were disrespectful to use “Jihad”. With the recent terrorist threat with the Allah-Las concert in Rotterdam, it’s probably best Andrew Jackson Jihad changed their name to AJJ. Anyway, they’ve sold out the 7th Street Entry this Saturday. The Homeless Gospel Choir will be offending the homeless as opener. 8pm, $15/Sold Out

09/10/2017 Local rappers/hip hop artists J Flight to play the 7th Street Entry, with help from Tha Rift Of Freewifi, Destiny Roberts, Lyric Marid, Student 1, DJ D.Mil and DJLow. 7pm, $10

vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ facebook.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic

Anderson Ponty Band at the Ames Center, Burnsville (10 May 2016)

Setlist Set I intro / One in the Rhythm of Hope A For Aria Owner of a Lonely Heart✔ Listening With Me Time and a Word✔ > Let's Get Together Infinite Mirage > Soul Eternal Jig^ New New World Set II The Revealing Science of God (Jon spoken intro) New Country^ Never Ever Wonderous Stories✔ Long Distance Runaround✔ Renaissance of the Sun State of Independence* Enigmatic Ocean, Part I^ > Drum solo > Enigmatic Ocean, Part II^ (end) And You and I✔ > violin/keys duet Bass solo > Roundabout✔ -- Encore --                Soon* (Gates of Delirium finale) ✔ Yes song ^ Jean-Luc Ponty song * Jon & Vangelis song Tour Dates 05/17/16 North Tonawanda, NY Riviera Theatre 05/18/16 Tarrytown, NY Tarrytown Music Hall 05/20/16 Beverly, MA The Cabot 05/21/16 Northampton, MA Calvin Theater 05/23/16 Ridgefield, CT Ridgefield Playhouse 05/25/16 Albany, NY Hart Theatre 05/26/16 Montreal, QC St. Denis Theatre 2 05/27/16 Quebec City, QC Palais Montcalm Read More Yes Yes to cancel summer tour... The tour, celebrating the band's 40th anniversary, had been scheduled to come to the Susquehanna ... …

When talking about wine, people often mention how the grapes will mature with age, giving a fuller-bodied flavor and yield results not previously seen, and also how blended variations can often be better than just a single varietal.  With Anderson Ponty Band’s recent two-and-one-half hour musical master class performance, the results were very similar.

Take the classic vocalist of prog–rock legends Yes, Jon Anderson, and match him with a former Frank Zappa band member and premier jazz-fusion violinist, Jean-Luc Ponty, back them with a crack band, and the result is an awakening of old songs, and the discovery of the new.

Anderson reportedly had the idea to collaborate as long as thirty years ago, but the project finally came to fruition after he downloaded one of Ponty’s tracks and sang new lyrics over it, with Ponty liking what he heard.

A resulting live CD/DVD, Better Late than Never (Liaison Records) was released last fall but the rare chance to see the duo perform live in concert, was too good to pass up.

The stage was relatively sparse as Anderson, Ponty and the four-piece band (Rayford Griffin - Drums; Wally Minko - Keys ; Keith Jones - Bass, vocals; Jamie Glaser - Guitars, vocals) entered, but three banners hung above with the band’s logo and a video backdrop was behind the band, showing various color patterns moving about to the music.

The first of two sets clocked in at just shy of an hour, starting with the same intro and song ‘One in the Rhythm of Hope’ that starts the live CD.  Anderson proved to be in great voice again (conquering health issues of a few years back) and Ponty and band were musically tight and finessed.

Anderson Ponty Band photograph courtesy of Cathy Miller

Tackling the ‘80’s Yes hit ‘Owner of a Lonely Heart’ early in the set, Ponty’s violin proved a more than ample replacement for Trevor Rabin’s guitar solo on the original.

‘Listening with Me’ (based on Ponty’s own instrumental ‘Stay With Me’) was Anderson’s first foray of adding new lyrics and the song becomes a panoramic soundtrack to a world-spanning journey.  ‘Time and a Word’ converted into a reggae song, with Ponty’s violin adding a gypsy-like quality to the re-invention, with Anderson adding a verse of Bob Marley’s ‘One Love’ on the end.

‘Jig’ was a Ponty tour-de-force and ‘New New World’ was the last song of the set before Anderson “could have a cup of tea… and Jean-Luc a bottle of wine”…with Ponty raising fingers to signify maybe more.

After the spoken word intro, the second set began with a country-western flavor as Ponty and band shifted styles for ‘New Country’ and ‘Never Ever’, moving then to a laid-back jazz club style to interpret Yes’ ‘Wonderous Stories’ and an abbreviated ‘Long Distance Runaround’.

After the Jon and Vangelis song ‘State of Independence’, band members each got their turn in the solo spotlight, notably drummer Griffin, who turned in an impressive solo bookended by the Ponty song, ‘Enigmatic Ocean’.

Anderson reminisced fondly of Yes’ late bassist Chris Squire, and tenderly dedicated ‘And You and I’ to his memory, the song shortened and done in with a jazz lounge flavor.  Ponty and keyboardist Minko then shined with a somber, stirring solo that hushed the crowd, before the upswing of Yes’ ‘Roundabout’ ended the 80 min. set.

Sensing time was late, the band ended the evening with ‘Soon’, the end portion of Yes’ “Gates of Delirium” from 1974’s Relayer with the band emerging for three collective bows amidst cheering and a standing ovation.

Setlist

Unlike some of their contemporaries, Anderson and Ponty are re-inventing and creating new music in a still-growing and very age-appropriate way; not by succumbing to any current musical trends, but effectively combining their collective musical maturity, while still expanding their musical palette.

If it were a wine, consider it a vintner’s reserve.

Anderson, in particular has always been entertaining playing solo, but seems to really excel when collaborating with other artists. His musical blending continues as not only do Anderson Ponty Band consider making a studio album, but he also plans on re-convening with ex-Yes members Trevor Rabin and Rick Wakeman for new music and a fall tour, as well as releasing new music with Swedish Roine Stolt (Flower Kings, Transatlantic).  Can’t wait for the resulting harvest.

Anderson Ponty Band at the Ames Center, Burnsville MN (10 May 2016)

john ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic

World Beat 3

This is World Beat part 3, read other more World Music here. Yeah, this might be the 4/20 edition.

SEUN KUTI
knittingfactoryrecords.com

Seun Kuti is the son of Nigerian musician Fela Kuti . Like his father before him, Kuti took up music and even leading his father's band Egypt 80! Kuti and Egypt 80 are currently on tour in America.

I have previously mentioned that Kuti released his album, From Africa With Fury: Rise via Knitting Factory Records. If you liked the album, good news: some of those songs have been remixed in an EP that came out yesterday (4/10) called From Africa With Fury: Rises Remixes.

Tracks includes "The Good Leaf (Spoek Mathambo Remix)", "Slave Masters (Jacques Renault Remix)", "African Soldier (JD Twitch Remix)", and "You Can Run (Falty DL Remix)". The first track mentioned is available as a free download via thefader.com. I believe this is a digital-only release.

If it all goes well, I will be covering his Minneapolis show:

4/12 - UW Madison - Madison, WI 4/13 - Rhythm Foundation - Miami, FL 4/14 - The Cedar - Minneapolis, MN 4/15 - Coachella - Indio, CA 4/16 - Campbell Hall - Santa Barbara, CA 4/18 - UC San Diego - San Diego, CA 4/19 - Zellerbach Hall - Berkeley, CA 4/20 - UCLA Royce Hall - Los Angeles, CA

4/22 - Coachella - Indio, CA 4/24 - KTAOS Solar Center - Taos, NM 4/25 - Albuquerque Museum Amp - Albuq, NM 4/27 - New Orleans Jazz Fest - New Orleans, LA 4/29 - Houston Internat'l Festival - Houston, TX 5/2 - House of Blues - New Orleans, LA 5/13 - Lake Eden Arts Fest - Black Mountain, NC

THE BLACK SEEDS
theblackseeds.com

The Black Seeds are described as "New Zealand's reggae-soul heavyweights". Their album, Dust and Dirt, just came out yesterday (4/10), and to celebrate, their previous albums (Keep On Pushing, The Black Seeds Live Vol. 1, On The Sun and Into The Dojo) are also seeing a North American release.

The Black Seeds are currently on tour:

April 11 – Vancouver, BC – Fortune Sound
April 12 – Seattle, WA – The Crocodile
April 13 – Denver, CO – Cervantes Masterpiece Ballroom
April 14 – Boulder, CO – Fox Theatre
April 15 – Brooklyn, NY – Brooklyn Bowl
April 17 – Ithaca, NY – Castaways

SECRET STASH RECORDS
secretstashrecords.com

We've mentioned Secret Stash Records a few times here. Not because they're based out of Minneapolis, but that we actually like them. They concentrate on collectable and cool looking vinyl as their main bread and butter. And no different, their latest release will be a compilation called Long Live Boogaloo. The double vinyl will be out April 17th, while the CD version will be out in May 8th.

The first 250 copies will come with an extra 7". Based on the fact that their limited T-Shirt are sold-out, I would recommend pre-ordering now for the 7".

Description from the label:

In the mid 1960s Latin teenagers in New York's Spanish Harlem neighborhood created a new style of music called Latin boogaloo. The sound was a mix of the Cuban music they grew up with and American R&B like James Brown and Hank Ballard. It quickly caught on and before long the young purveyors of this new sound were taking business from the likes of Tito Puente, Tito Rodriguez, and Eddie Palmieri. Soon the established acts reluctantly joined the craze and recorded a smattering of Boogloos. However, many of them were not happy about it. In general they felt it was beneath them. Eventually a small group of the most powerful people in the Latin music business conspired to kill off the Boogaloo and make way for the burgeoning Salsa craze. Concert promoters, DJs, and venues were bribed to turn away any and all Boogaloo business. As soon as it came, it left.

BRIEFLY:

SIMON RICHARDS simonrichardsmusic.com World musician, Simon Richards announced that he's officially signed with Fontana/Universal for his debut album Kaleidoscope Worlds. The album is so far in advance (to be released on September 2012) that I don't actually have a cover artwork for it. Look for his first single, "Bee Bopping to My Life", to be a reggae influenced song. Speaking about the single Richards stated, "This is just one of those fun songs where the idea is for you just to kick back and enjoy life! I wanted the single to be a fun, upbeat track that everyone can relate to."

BOB MARLEY bobmarley.com Universal Music Enterprises (UMe) will be releasing the official soundtrack from the documentary on Bob Marley, simply titled MARLEY, as a 2-CD collection and a special 3-LP vinyl set! The soundtrack will contain 24 tracks, hand-picked by the Marley family and Chris Blackwell, so expect hits like "Jammin", "One Live", and "Exodus". Academy Award-winning director Kevin Macdonald's MARLEY will open in US theaters on… 4/20, duh.

ZZK RECORDS simonrichardsmusic.com Nicole wrote about ZZK Records before, describing them as "as Cumbia, mixed with electronic beats, funk, tribal sounds, dancehall, tons of random neon objects, and hallucinogenic substances, boiled in a pot under extreme pressure, causing an awesome, danceable, music explosion known as ZZK". The Future Sounds of Buenos Aires is a new compilation record from ZZK, set for release on May 1st.

ELISA LUU elisaluu.com Italian ambient electronica artist Elisa Luu is releasing her second album Un giorno sospeso (which literally translate to "One day suspended") via Hidden Shoal Recordings on June 1st. Her music is described as a mix of digital manipulation and analogue tones with immersive drones. Listen for yourself, a free download of "Se fosse per me" at hiddenshoal.com.

ELIN FURUBOTN elinfurubotn.com Norwegian Elin Furubotn's International Debut Album, Heilt Nye Vei (New Path), just came out yesterday (April 10th) via Ozella Music. The singer-songwriter describe her music on the album as: "crosses lines between jazz and singer-songwriter stuff, between rock and folk, but I don't like to split my interests and passions up. And in scenes like in [sax player Karl] Stavanger, you get to know everyone very well. It's a more intimate scene, and it's easy for musicians from different backgrounds to work together."

THE HIGHEST PASS thehighestpass.com The Highest Pass is a full length documentary about a journey to the high mountain region of Ladakh. It is directed by Jon Fitzgerald, and will premiere in Los Angeles at Laemmle’s Monica 4-Plex and in Pasadena at Laemmle’s Playhouse 7, starting April 27, 2012. The singer from YES, Jon Anderson, wrote two original songs for the film including the title song, "The Highest Pass", with composer Michael Mollura. Mollura's work was influenced by his love of world music and yoga meditation.

vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ podcast.weheartmusic.com