NEW Trevor Rabin Interview- On Rio, ARW, Yes, and more!

[Sean]

Hey, all!

You probably have seen a number of interviews with Trevor about his great new solo album, Rio. I got my chance to chat with him this week and decided to go in a different direction than the ones I have seen so far. No doubt the best has been the chat he did with Anil over at Innerviews. That one really goes in depth into what the lyrics are about. Pretty much the definitive word on them. I went in more of a guitarist / studio direction with my questions. I was granted 30 minutes up front to chat, but it wound up going for about 90. I guess Trevor enjoyed the angle I took it in, which I greatly appreciate. I have yet to run across a chat with him about some of these subjects. I hope you enjoy it. I indexed the sections in the comments at YouTube, if you want to skip around.




1:44 How the new album came to be called Rio
5:04 The cover art Trevor created for the new album
8:55 The genesis of the album and how far back some tracks go
16:43 The evolution of his home studio since the early 90s
24:00 His Fender Strat- where/when he got it, the time he spent in the Army with it and more...
36:20 Trevor's occasional slide guitar playing and it's inspiration
39:15 His approach to layering vocal harmonies- any Yes influence?
38:24 Endless Dream and the possible inclusion of a reworking of Silent Spring on Rio
40:55 Could any of the songs on Rio have wound up on the proposed ARW album instead?
45:25 Steve Morse dropping by one day to jam
50:45 A look at individual tracks on Rio, starting with Big Mistakes
55:00 Trevor as am occasional bass player. Influences and his awareness of Yes, years before being in it
57:50 Push from Rio and Vinnie Colaiuta guesting on drums
1:02:50 Paradise and how it could have been the lead off single
1:07:48 Thandi, inspirations and thoughts on the despicable practice of ivory poaching
1:13:00 Talk of the bluegrass inspired tune, Goodbye
1:16:05 Tumbleweed- it's jazz influence and stacked vocal harmonies
1:18:17 Toxic and it's boogie roots
1:21:40 A bit about the three bonus tracks on Rio and their inspirations
1:24:42 His memories of a few overlooked tracks from his time in Yes- Final Eyes, I'm Running and Our Song
1:30:05 A few thoughts on the 9012Live film
1:32:45 Closing thoughts

[Man In The Mountain]

Great interview! Really enjoyable.

[Mstove]

Nicely done. Really good interview!

[Aquatarkus]

Excellent, thank you!

[mozo-pg]

That's great Sean. I'll look at in more depth tonight!

[ScottAM]

One of the benefits of being towards the end of interview cycle is you can ask all the questions no one else has thought of, since he's talked ad nauseam about the main subjects already. I tried that a bit with my interview with him (a couple of weeks back), but am glad to see you've taken it much further. Of course, it's always down to how much time he has, or if he has to jump off to another interview. I was glad my 25 minutes were extended to 45, that helped get in a lot more questions that turned out quite interesting.

I look forward to watching this!

[Sean]

Your interview is fantastic. One of the best I have seen.

[Sean]

Just wanted to bump this.... Take a few minutes to watch it today, if you have time.

[Plasmatopia]

I've still got a half hour left, but this is awesome. Thanks for taking this interview in an interesting direction, Sean.

[gearHed289]

I started watching late last night. I've got a ways to go. Great story about the album title!

[Sean]

Glad you all are digging it. A lot of folks have said it's the best one yet about the new album. That you can watch....

[revelogicPA]

wonderful stuff man. great job


you manage to insert the nerd without being the nerd (too much) if that makes sense.

[Sean]

Sounds like a fine line to walk. Thank you for checking it out.

[dgtlman]

Great interview. I was really hoping there would be more news on ARW. Like a continuation specifically.

[Sean]

I don't think that's going to happen. That ship has sailed. I'd enjoy another round of ARW too, but yeah, doubtful. It's basically the "whale" that's nearly impossible to "get in the water", as Trevor put it. It's not Yes in name, but basically is when it is set in motion and comes with the same high expectations.

[Mstove]

I saw ARW three times and enjoyed each of the shows. But, after the third one I realized I didn't need to again unless they either made new music (never seemed all that likely to me) or changed up the setlist quite a bit (that one I thought was possible). They were really fun nights and they were in excellent form all three times I caught them, but for all the hand-wringing about Yes' setlists, ARW played almost the same set every night for the entirety of their run. That was enough for me, as fun as the shows were.

[revelogicPA]

I saw ARW three times and enjoyed each of the shows. But, after the third one I realized I didn't need to again unless they either made new music (never seemed all that likely to me) or changed up the setlist quite a bit (that one I thought was possible). They were really fun nights and they were in excellent form all three times I caught them, but for all the hand-wringing about Yes' setlists, ARW played almost the same set every night for the entirety of their run. That was enough for me, as fun as the shows were.

I went to leg one in Phila (burbs) and enjoyed it but missed the second return leg and the addition of 'I Am Waiting' which I would have loved and which I feel added more authenticity to the 'R' in ARW. for me and lots of others . . . let's face this : the real appeal was Trevor Rabin's first tour in YEARS. having Jon there added to the 'Yes' appeal obviously but for some of us a focus on their work together was the real appeal. I actually wish there were a tour sans Wakeman and all of that buddy duddy cape crap. and sure, I would love a solo Trevor Rabon your where he played material like Final Yes and Our Song etc etc etc. we had several Jon shows in different guises, and of course the duo shows


just a missed opportunity for me


same as the cancelled More Drama tour



these holes in the performed Yes canon. when will they be fllled?

[gearHed289]

I saw ARW three times and enjoyed each of the shows. But, after the third one I realized I didn't need to again unless they either made new music (never seemed all that likely to me) or changed up the setlist quite a bit (that one I thought was possible). They were really fun nights and they were in excellent form all three times I caught them, but for all the hand-wringing about Yes' setlists, ARW played almost the same set every night for the entirety of their run. That was enough for me, as fun as the shows were.

Pretty much my experience/feelings as well, but I only saw them twice - Chicago Theater and Ravinia.

[Mstove]

Pretty much my experience/feelings as well, but I only saw them twice - Chicago Theater and Ravinia.

I saw the Chicago Theater show that was pretty early in their run.

[veteranof1000psychicwars]

Did he mention anything about reuniting with Rabbitt? Supposedly they are getting back together this year.

[Sean]

No, that didn't come up. He did us about a "Big Mistake" they made, back in the day, while playing in Rhodesia. Check it out.

[Sean]

I'm scaring the heck out of 1K views for this chat. Can you help get me over the hump?

Thank to all of you that checked it out so far. It's one of my fave chats so far.

[bondegezou]

Did he mention anything about reuniting with Rabbitt? Supposedly they are getting back together this year.

The Rabbitt reunion is without Rabin, although he is supportive of what they are doing.