Geoff Downes talks Yes, Greg Lake, Light Program, more in new interview

[Dan Roth]

Downes chats about his career in this new interview:

https://www.loudersound.com/features...-anderson-once

Had to chuckle at this exchange about his first time that he was in Yes:

Not everyone saw it like that. You were booed on the subsequent tour…

Downes: Oh yeah. There’s no doubt about that. The Americans were much more accepting – they were so stoned they didn’t really care who was in the band. But people were much more cynical in the UK: “Oh, The Yeggles have spoilt it all.” There was a lot of animosity towards us. I remember we were doing a gig in Brighton and halfway through the keyboard solo, someone shouted out, “Rick Wakeman!” in the middle of it.

Was that demoralising?

Downes: It was at the time. And ultimately it had a destructive effect. Chris thought that maybe we weren’t going anywhere with it. I think he was looking to do something else at that point. After the last show, at Hammersmith Odeon, it just dissolved. So I went back to working with Trevor on the second Buggles album. And then that’s when I got the call from the management, saying they were putting together this new band, Asia.

[Steve983]

I was at the Lewisham Drama show, it did get a bit ugly, there was calls for Jon and 'wa*ker' called out to poor Trevor Horn- he did sing the whole set entirely flat though, it was painful to hear!

[ThomasKDye]

“I’m a non-confrontational kind of person,” he says.

*spits water, soda, and half his internal organs onto the computer monitor*

Because... because a "non-confrontational" person invents a word like "Yuppets."

Edit: That said, it's a very informative, interesting interview. Thanks for the link!

[yamishogun]

*spits water, soda, and half his internal organs onto the computer monitor*

Because... because a "non-confrontational" person invents a word like "Yuppets."

I thought it was clear that Downes meant that he gets along with all people well, not necessarily Yuppets or other lower primates.

[Dan Roth]

This quote about the Buggles made me laugh.

"But Trevor and I took the demo around to every single record label in London and got knocked back by them all: “Nah, don’t think so, it’s okay, but we just signed The Corgis.”

I don't know much about The Korgis except their song "Everybody's Got to Learn Sometime" which I loved at the time. I went back and looked at the cover of their first album which came out around the time of the first Buggles album - similar looking pop duo - and I guess from a record exec's point of view, they would say "That's ok, we have one of those already". Interestingly enough, Trevor Horn later did some production for them:

[dgtlman]

Downes was in a band called The Yuppettes

[Top Cat]

Now that was a great read, interview. Most interviews I read anymore don't have the meat and potatoes in both the interviewer and the person being interviewed.
I thought Geoff was a great interview, he seemed honest in his answers and provided a bit more depth than typical interviews where the person seems like they are doing you a favor by answering questions, and often they are short.
Hats off to Jeff Ewing who conducted the interview..I really enjoyed reading this.
Thanks for posting this Dan.

[Scott Bails]

Good interview.

I'm an unabashed Downes fan, and I've always thought that he's handled his career very well. He's taken an awful lot of unearned criticism from "fans" and I don't blame him one bit for lashing out the couple times that he has.

[revporl]

It's a shame that project Ride The Tiger with him and Greg Lake never bore fruit. They would have been a good pairing.

[Dan Roth]

It's a shame that project Ride The Tiger with him and Greg Lake never bore fruit. They would have been a good pairing.

Not according to Downes ("He was difficult to work with. He was a good guy, no doubt about it, and a fantastic musician and a fantastic singer. But he was very much a perfectionist. It wasn’t a very productive collaboration. We only wrote about six songs in six months. He didn’t want to sing one day or do this the next day. That project never had the legs.")

[jamesmanzi]

We only wrote about six songs in six months.

I think I vaguely remember that I knew this stuff was released and forgot.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnJD...IlHdGA&index=1

[jamesmanzi]

(I have Money Talks and Love Under Fire on some Greg Lake compilation from the 90s. It's the other 4 songs that I don't remember forgetting about knowing about).

[Top Cat]

I think I vaguely remember that I knew this stuff was released and forgot.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnJD...IlHdGA&index=1

Wow, thanks for posting this link. I remember the song Affairs of the Heart showed up later on ELP's Black Moon.
EDIT: just ordered on Amazon...for $8.76

[yamishogun]

We only wrote about six songs in six months.

That is a mind blowing pace from an ARW perspective.

[jamesmanzi]

Wow, thanks for posting this link. I remember the song Affairs of the Heart showed up later on ELP's Black Moon.
EDIT: just ordered on Amazon...for $8.76

Love Under Fire made it onto the first Payne/Downes Asia album, and Money Talks was reworked as Paper Blood on Black Moon. There's a song called Street War on In the Hot Seat which appears to only share the title with the version here.

[Top Cat]

Love Under Fire made it onto the first Payne/Downes Asia album, and Money Talks was reworked as Paper Blood on Black Moon. There's a song called Street War on In the Hot Seat which appears to only share the title with the version here.

I have that Asia album Aqua as well as Arena and Aura, so it will be nice having both versions. I also love Black Moon, which I think is some of their best work in the later years. Can't wait for it to arrive!

[hewhoknows]

I enjoyed the interview but was a bit surprised of no mention of the John Payne era of Asia.