Yes -Royal Affair Tour (Live in Las Vegas)

[Rick L.]

I don't have a belly button.

[MudShark22]

Finally - we've found the first human!

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[per anporth]

This cover of Imagine is brutal. Every one of Davison's limitations as a singer is exposed. But in truth, the whole band are excruciating.

[moecurlythanu]

^ And yet with grim determination, they soldier on.

[Top Cat]

I don't have a belly button.

I have no opinion about that..

[bondegezou]

I'm at a loss to understand why Yes would do a cover song in a concert setting, when they have a plethora of good Yes songs they haven't played live.
Help me out here, ok?

Which particular songs do you want them to play? They've covered the 1970s pretty well.

But, anyway, why do it? (1) It gives the promoters something to say about the show that gets punters' attention. (2) White clearly feels an attachment to the song and often plays it in non-Yes contexts.

Henry

[Top Cat]

why be limited to the 70's?
I think there are some good songs on The Ladder, Union, Keys and it would be a nice gesture to represent one of Billy's songs from Open Your Eyes.
So, to me there is enough material to choose from that fans rarely get to hear rather than this rendition of Imagine.
I also wonder how much impact a song like Imagine being promoted as part of the set is going to make or break a fan's decision to the level "I have to see this because they're playing Imagine".
That's just how I feel, everyone else can roll their own.

[Halmyre]

Which particular songs do you want them to play? They've covered the 1970s pretty well.

But, anyway, why do it? (1) It gives the promoters something to say about the show that gets punters' attention. (2) White clearly feels an attachment to the song and often plays it in non-Yes contexts.

Henry

This was touched on in an earlier topic. I suggested Instant Karma would have been a better choice. They could segue it into Your Move/All Good People, even.

[Mister Triscuits]

I suggested Instant Karma would have been a better choice.

Oh yeah. I'd rather hear "Instant Karma" than "Imagine," no matter who is performing it.

[chalkpie]

Its four minutes. They've played 10s of hours of way worse shit than that.

[Dan Roth]

I just cant see the point in buying this without Gates. Imagine sounds pretty good - although hardly an exciting song.

And this version includes John Lodge on harmony/backing vocals too. Did he do this at all of the shows on that tour?

[jrw]

And this version includes John Lodge on harmony/backing vocals too. Did he do this at all of the shows on that tour?

I don’t think so. At least he did not on the night I saw the show.

[Sean]

That version of Imagine exceeded my expectations. Nice steel on it...

[iguana]

I don't have a belly button.

it’s all about navel gazing here …

[bondegezou]

This was touched on in an earlier topic. I suggested Instant Karma would have been a better choice. They could segue it into Your Move/All Good People, even.

"Imagine" is the bigger, better known, more commercially successful song, and White seems to like "Imagine" more. He's often performed it outside Yes. I can't remember him ever doing "Instant Karma!", although he has done other Lennon material.

Henry

[bondegezou]

why be limited to the 70's?
I think there are some good songs on The Ladder, Union, Keys and it would be a nice gesture to represent one of Billy's songs from Open Your Eyes.
So, to me there is enough material to choose from that fans rarely get to hear rather than this rendition of Imagine.
I also wonder how much impact a song like Imagine being promoted as part of the set is going to make or break a fan's decision to the level "I have to see this because they're playing Imagine".

I concur that there are many great Yes songs from after the '70s and I'd be very happy to hear something from one of the albums you list. (Yes have in recent years occasionally done something from Union or The Ladder, but not much.)

This wasn't a Yes solo show. It was the Royal Affair tour with multiple acts. Many people there may not have been primarily Yes fans. I suspect "Imagine" is a better known song to much of the audience than anything on Open Your Eyes or The Ladder, not great selling Yes albums. Audiences for classic rock shows like to hear songs they know. I don't support such neophobia, but I understand why promoters and bands care about it.

Does the fact they're playing "Imagine" make or break a fan's decision to attend? Probably not. But that's not necessarily the point. You want to grab people's attention so that they pay attention to the fact that there's a tour. It's not that someone is thinking about the tour and this will be the decider. It's that there's a large pool of more casual fans who might go to various gigs in the summer and you need to let them know this show is an option. Lots of promo is trying to be eye-catching, suck people in so that they then read the full article.

Henry

[Top Cat]

You make some good points Henry. I didn't realize this was a multiple line up show.
Imagine to me is such an iconic song, and one of my favorite John Lennon's songs.
If folks enjoy hearing it covered, that's great, just not my cup o tea.

[JKL2000]

Who is that singing on Imagine? Jon Davison with an extra pair of nuts?

[Frumious B]

I’m holding out for “How Do You Sleep?” with Steve Howe singing lead.

[Dan Roth]

[moecurlythanu]

Where's the Wayne Newton duet?

[mozo-pg]

Such a great song. I think they did a pretty decent job of it.

[Garyhead]

It's kinda like the PBS fundraiser shows of the ole Do-Wop bands with one original member.....

[fiberman]

That's doing a disservice to the Do-Wop bands, even at 70 plus years old they are far better than this, IMO. Even at 80 actually.

[Garyhead]

That's doing a disservice to the Do-Wop bands, even at 70 plus years old they are far better than this, IMO. Even at 80 actually.