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Together with Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon and Genesis’ Foxtrot, Yes’ 1972 masterpiece Close to the Edge is probably the most fully realized album in progressive rock. It captures the band during an incredible (if fleeting) creative peak, and perfectly sums up the prog ethos; its lofty ideals and natural attraction towards the whimsical and cinematic. At its best, Seventies prog aspired to develop a universal musical language that drew equally from classical and the blues, folk and jazz, psychedelia and Eastern mysticism.

Just like The Beatles before them,...

Jon Anderson, the legendary founding and former singer of Yes, has announced a Spring 2025 US tour with his backing group The Band Geeks.

The 18-date outing kicks off April 1st in Tucson, Arizona, and runs through a May 18th show in Carteret, New Jersey. Along the way, Anderson and company will hit such cities as Las Vegas, Seattle, Milwaukee, and Cleveland, among others.

Get Jon Anderson Tickets Here

Tickets to select shows are available via Ticketmaster, with pre-sales starting on various dates, including today (January 10th). For the Live Nation pre-sale, the code is Octave. Fans can look for deals or get tickets to sold-out shows via StubHub, where orders are 100% guaranteed through StubHub’s FanProtect program.

Anderson and the Band Geeks are touring in support of their debut album, True (order here), which was released this past August, as well as their upcoming live album, Jon Anderson and The Band Geeks Live – Perpetual Change,...

The Forge has acquired North American rights to Guan Hu’s Cannes award winner “Black Dog,” and worldwide distribution rights to Alison Tavel’s “Resynator,” which won the best documentary audience award at South by Southwest.

The Forge also recently acquired North American rights for French horror-comedy “The Balconettes,” which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and plays the American French Film Festival in Hollywood next week.

“Black Dog,” which won Un Certain Regard’s prize at Cannes 2024, follows ex-offender Lang (Eddie Peng) who “returns to his hometown where he forms an unexpected bond with a stray black dog. Both outcasts, they embark on a transformative journey together,” according to an official logline. The film grossed more than $2.4 million after just two days at the Chinese Box office.

“Resynator,” which serves as Tavel’s feature directorial debut, “follows the legacy of inventor Don Tavel through the eyes of his daughter Alison,...

“Too twiddly didn’t really exist to us, in our minds,” guitar legend Steve Howe of Yes says in the new episode of Rolling Stone Music Now, explaining the musical mission of his band — and of prog-rock itself. “There wasn’t really such a thing. If you could play it, then it obviously isn’t too twiddly — because, hang on, you’re playing it! We wanted to sparkle, we wanted a surprise… We were taking untold risks and gambles and playing about with things.”

A new ultra-deluxe box set Yes’ 1971 classic,...

Exclusive: The Forge has acquired North American rights to Guan Hu’s drama Black Dog, along with worldwide rights to Alison Tavel’s documentary Resynator, slating both acclaimed features for release in theaters in the fourth quarter of this year.

Winning the Un Certain Regard prize in its premiere at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, Black Dog takes place on the edge of the Gobi desert in Northwest China, watching as Lang (Eddie Peng) returns to his hometown after being released from jail. While working for the local dog patrol team to clear the town of stray dogs before the Beijing Olympics, he strikes up an unlikely connection with a black dog; two lonely outcasts finding purpose in each other.

Released theatrically last month in China, the film grossed over $2.4M in just two days at the box office.

The winner of the Audience Award for Best Documentary Feature...

Is the Brat Pack coming back? According to Deadline, Sony wants to rekindle the flame for a St Elmo’s Fire sequel if primary cast members are willing to return. While Sony is ready with wallet in hand to strike a deal, the proposed project depends on the participation of Andrew McCarthy, Emilio Estevez, Rob Lowe, Demi Moore, Judd Nelson, Ally Sheedy, and Mare Winningham.

The coming-of-age romance drama focuses on a group of friends fresh out of college and looking to start their lives as adults. Xennials connected with St. Elmo’s Fire significantly, especially in the face of an ever-changing world and the pressure to carry the generational torch for Generation X. In addition to being one of Joel Schumacher’s cinematic gems, St. Elmo’s Fire boasts a legendary soundtrack with artists like John Parr, Billy Squire, David Foster, Fee Waybill, Jon Anderson, Vikki Moss, and Airplay contributing one banger after another.

The soundtrack of St. Elmo's Fire, composed by David Foster, was a Grammy-nominated hit. The film is a classic 1980s Brat Pack movie, with a group of 7 friends navigating adult life. The iconic song "St. Elmo's Fire (Man in Motion)" by John Parr was a No. 1 hit in 1985.

The 1985 film St. Elmos Fire is known for having music almost as memorable and significant as the movie itself. The films soundtrack was the work of composer David Foster, who helped produce and write the songs. Fosters work earned the soundtrack a nomination for the Best Album Of Original Score Written For A Motion Picture Or A Television Special at the 1985 Grammy Awards. The movie was the creative and directorial effort of Joel Schumacher, who sampled the romance-drama genre with St. Elmos Fire before moving to direct more intense action films.

Along with The Breakfast Club, St. Elmos Fire was considered an...

Richie Castellano is living the dream of every pro musician: He’s going on tour with one of his favorite artists.

Castellano’s group, the Band Geeks, are hitting the road alongside Jon Anderson, the original lead singer of the progressive rock band Yes. Anderson discovered Castellano’s gang of geeks after the band published a cover of the Yes track “Close to the Edge” on Castellano’s YouTube channel.

The cover in question arrived on YouTube in 2018. “Close to the Edge” is a technically demanding, 18-minute epic, and the Band Geeks rose to the challenge. Their performance of “Close to the Edge,” which displays their virtuosity on their respective instruments, has received more than 500,000 views to date.

Anderson was one of those viewers. After watching the Band Geeks’ cover, the longtime Yes frontman phoned up Castellano to ask if he was interested in a collaboration. “They were quite amazing,...

In the summer of 2018, Richie Castellano and his buddies posted a remarkable cover of the 1972 Yes epic “Close to the Edge” to their YouTube channel and watched it rack up over half a million views. “I’m blown away by these comments,” he wrote in response to the outpouring of love by prog fans. “This isn’t a bunch of music snobs showing off. This is genuine love for Yes and their music. We are hardcore Yes fans and this video is not about conquering a song or doing it better than anyone.

In the documentary “Resynator,” director Alison Tavel resurrects a synthesizer prototype that her late father, Don, invented.

Tavel, who lost her father when she was just 10 weeks old, initially wanted to make a short film doc about the synthesizer, which her father called the Resynator. The late-1970s invention generated a lot of buzz but never reached mass production. Tavel’s curiosity about the instrument ultimately led the director on a journey that helped her not only understand the Resynator and how it worked, but also who her father really was.

Tavel’s short doc eventually turned into a 96-minute film that includes interviews with estranged family, friends, inventors and celebrated musicians including Peter Gabriel, Fred Armisen and Jon Anderson.

Variety spoke to Tavel ahead of the doc’s SXSW world premiere on March 10.

What inspired you to make this documentary?

I had been on tour with [musician] Grace Potter for...

Original Yes singer Jon Anderson has announced the 2024 “Yes Epics, Classics, and More” tour, featuring special guests The Return of Emerson, Lake & Palmer on select dates.

The US outing currently consists of two legs, one running from May 30th in New Brunswick, New Jersey to June 27th in Ridgefield, Connecticut, and the other taking place from July 21st in Patchogue, New York, until August 16th in Thousand Oaks, California. The Return of Emerson, Lake & Palmer, which features sole surviving member Carl Palmer, will provide support on five dates from late July through early August.

Tickets to select dates are set to go on sale via Ticketmaster and local venue websites. Fans can also check for deals or pick up tickets to sold-out shows via StubHub, where your purchase is 100% guaranteed through StubHub’s Fan Protect program.

Get Jon Anderson Tickets Here

The “Yes Epics, Classics, and More” tour features Anderson...

Initially endeavoring to make a short about the synthesizer her late father, who died when she was ten weeks old, invented, documentary director Alison Tavel found herself learning much more about her dad and his legacy, leading to a feature film that’s both a music picture as well as one of family reckoning. Resynator, named after the synthesizer, premieres March 10 at SXSW, features music names such as Peter Gabriel and Jon Anderson, and is Tavel’s first picture. She’s made previously shorts and music videos for the Tom Petty Estate, where she’s the sole archivist. Read below her director’s statement […]

The post Trailer Watch: Alison Tavel’s SXSW Premiere, Resynator first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.

Initially endeavoring to make a short about the synthesizer her late father, who died when she was ten weeks old, invented, documentary director Alison Tavel found herself learning much more about her dad and his legacy, leading to a feature film that’s both a music picture as well as one of family reckoning. Resynator, named after the synthesizer, premieres March 10 at SXSW, features music names such as Peter Gabriel and Jon Anderson, and is Tavel’s first picture. She’s made previously shorts and music videos for the Tom Petty Estate, where she’s the sole archivist. Read below her director’s statement […]

The post Trailer Watch: Alison Tavel’s SXSW Premiere, Resynator first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.

Rick Wakeman is hanging up his sequined cape after one final U.S. tour. “I always planned to stop touring by my 77th birthday,” the prog rock keyboardist said in a statement, “for those of you who wish to send me a card, it’s May 18th! — but there is so much to fit in before then that I’m having to make plans now, and so my final one-man shows will have to cease by that date.”

The first leg of the tour kicks off March 19 at the Ridgefield Playhouse,...

Rolling Stone interview series Unknown Legends features long-form conversations between senior writer Andy Greene and veteran musicians who have toured and recorded alongside icons for years, if not decades. All are renowned in the business, but some are less well known to the general public. Here, these artists tell their complete stories, giving an up-close look at life on music’s A list. This edition features backup bassist Billy Sherwood.

If you saw Yes on the 1994 Talk tour and then again anytime during the past seven years, you were essentially seeing two different bands.

There’s no way around it, so just let’s say it: On album number three, Greta Van Fleet still want to get the Led out. Despite being praised or damned for its fealty to the hammering of certain gods, the Michigan band is still not remotely backing down from its mission. The vaguely Celtic acoustic intro to “Meeting the Master,” the misty-mountain hopping in “Wasted All Your Life,” the Bonham big-bottom wallop that kicks off “Sacred the Thread,” the howling Plantesque vault in singer Josh Kiszka’s delivery: It...

Ian Bairnson, the Scottish guitarist best known for his work with The Alan Parsons Project, has died after a “long battle with dementia.” He was 69.

“It is with deep sadness and regret that I let you know that my loving husband Ian Bairnson has passed away on Friday 7 April,” Bairnson’s wife Leila shared in a statement (via The Guardian). “Ian was the sweetest, kindest, loving husband I could ever have wished for and I take comfort that he is resting now up there in his very own piece of ‘Blue Blue Sky’. Although Ian has left us, his musical legacy stays with us and will continue to delight and brighten our lives, as it did his, forever.”

Her statement went on: “I would like to thank the doctors and nurses at Frimley Park hospital, the managers and carers at Lynwood care home and our families and close friends for...

Ian Bairnson, longtime guitarist for the Alan Parsons Project who also featured on Kate Bush’s first two albums, has died at the age of 69.

The Scottish-born musician’s wife Leila Bairnson revealed on social media that her husband died following a “long battle with dementia.”

“It is with deep sadness and regret that I let you know that my loving husband Ian Bairnson has passed away on Friday 7 April,” Leila wrote (via The Guardian). “Ian was the sweetest, kindest, loving husband I could ever have wished for and I...

Jon Anderson started Yes in 1968 with bassist Chris Squire, and the prog rock band was at the center of his life for the next four decades through numerous permutations. But when illness forced him off the road after the group’s 2004 tour, Yes decided to hire a replacement vocalist and carry on without him. Anderson has been healthy and active for well over a decade, but the band — which now features Seventies guitarist Steve Howe, Drama-era keyboardist Geoff Downes, and hired guns — refuses to take him back.

That hasn’t...

Rolling Stone‘s interview series King for a Day features long-form conversations between senior writer Andy Greene and singers who had the difficult job of fronting major rock bands after the departure of an iconic vocalist. Some of them stayed in their bands for years, while others lasted just a few months. In the end, however, they all found out that replacement singers can themselves be replaced. This edition features former Yes singer Benoît David.

In the fall of 2008, Yes stunned their fans when they announced that founding vocalist Jon Anderson...

When Jo Koy was starting out as a stand-up comic, he would spend hours making flyers at Kinko’s and putting them on car windshields in mall parking lots to hawk his latest gig.

“I used to get in trouble with the security guards,” Koy remembers. “I was the annoying guy who would do anything to promote himself.”

Three decades, three Netflix specials and hundreds of sold-out engagements later, Koy is continuing to hustle as he works to draw attention for “Easter Sunday,” Universal’s upcoming comedy based on his Filipino American family.

But this time he’s moving far beyond photocopying: At his shows, Koy has been sharing a trailer from “Easter Sunday” and urging audience members to buy tickets using an interactive Qr code displayed on large-format screens that surround the stage. As an added incentive, Koy has offered fans who purchase tickets the chance to enter a...

Yes drummer Alan White, who joined the progressive rock band in 1972 and stayed with them for the next 50 years, has died at 72 after a brief illness.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee is most famous for his work in Yes, but also performed with John Lennon in the Plastic Ono Band — He’s featured on both “Instant Karma” and “Imagine” — and with George Harrison on All Things Must Pass.

“Throughout his life and six-decade career, Alan was many things to many people,” his family wrote in a statement confirming his death.

Vangelis, the Greek prog-rocker and Oscar-winning composer for films like Chariots of Fire and Blade Runner, has died at the age of 79.

The influential artist born Evángelos Papathanassíou died late Tuesday night, a statement from Vangelis’ “private office” announced to his Elsewhere fan page Thursday. The Athens News Agency also confirmed news of Vangelis’ death. No cause of death was provided, but Greek newspaper Ot reports that Vangelis died at a hospital in France where he was being treated for Covid-19.

“Vangelis Papathanassiou was a great Greek composer who excelled at a global level,...

Vangelis, whose instantly recognizable musical theme for 1981’s Chariots of Fire won an Oscar and became a sort of aural shorthand for tales of endurance and triumph, died May 17, according to his representatives. He was 79.

His assistant Lefteris Zermas has confirmed the death but did not provide a specific cause, saying only that Vangelis died in a hospital in France. Greek newspaper Ot is reporting that Vangelis was being treated for Covid-19.

Born Evangelos Odessey Papathanassiou in Greece, the composer and musician known worldwide simply as Vangelis, combined orchestral music, electronic synth sounds, jazz and ambient to create a then-new sound for the film that seemed to provide the musical equivalent of the ocean waves that crashed as the story’s Olympic runners sprinted down the beach. (Watch the video below.)

Vangelis would go on to compose scores for Blade Runner (1982), Missing (1982), Antarctica (1983), The Bounty (1984), 1492: Conquest of Paradise (1992) and...

Vangelis, the electronic-music pioneer who won an Oscar for “Chariots of Fire” and composed such other landmark film scores as “Blade Runner,” died Tuesday, the Athens News Agency reported. He was 79.

The self-taught musician enjoyed a long career in European pop music before the magical colors and textures of his 1970s solo albums brought him to the attention of film and TV producers. The use of a track from his 1975 album “Heaven and Hell” as the theme for Carl Sagan’s PBS series “Cosmos” brought his name and music into prominence in America.

But it was his music for the 1981 film “Chariots of Fire” that brought him worldwide fame. Producer David Puttnam made the unorthodox choice for his period sports drama after hearing Vangelis’s music for the French nature documentary “Opera Sauvage” and the studio album “China.”

As he often did, Vangelis performed all of the instruments, including synthesizer,...

Ric Parnell, who played the fictional band Spinal Tap’s drummer Mick Shrimpton in the classic 1984 heavy metal “mockumentary” “This Is Spinal Tap,” has died at the age of 70, according to a post from the group’s Harry Shearer and Yahoo News. No cause of death was initially reported.

Ric Parnell, our drummer in This is Spinal Tap, passed away today. No one ever rocked harder.

— Harry Shearer (@theharryshearer) May 2, 2022

The group — fronted by actor-musicians Michael McKean (as David St. Hubbins), Christopher Guest (as Nigel Tufnel) and Shearer (as Derek Smalls) — crossed the line between fiction and reality from their inception: the band literally road-tested tested their concept shortly after making the film, opening shows for psychedelic sludge-rockers Iron Butterfly, and no one in the audience was for the wiser.

Spinal Tap’s drummers are a running punchline in the film — all of the group’s previous drummers had died,...

Front and Center, the public television concert series, has announced its 10th season lineup and premiere date. The new season includes eight performances by artists ranging from Americana icon John Hiatt to mainstream country duo Maddie & Tae.

But Season 10 actually kicks off with an older concert — a 2008 performance by Glen Campbell at the Troubadour in Los Angeles. It’s billed as the Country Music Hall of Fame member’s last recorded concert and includes timeless Campbell hits like “Rhinestone Cowboy,” “Galveston,” and “Wichita Lineman.” Campbell died in 2017. Taped around the...

Yes have revealed plans to release their 22nd studio album, The Quest, on October 1st. It’s their first collection of original songs since 2014’s Heaven and Earth.

“It is simply an honor for me to have the opportunity to bring together the band members in the development of a well-refined set of songs that capture the band’s true potential,” guitarist Steve Howe said in a statement. “Much of the music was written in late 2019 with the rest in 2020. We commissioned several orchestrations to augment and enhance the overall...

Original Yes frontman Jon Anderson is hitting the road with the Paul Green Rock Academy for an 11-city tour of U.S. theaters that kicks off July 30th in Patchogue, New York, and wraps up August 20th in Woonsocket, Rhode Island.

According to a press release, the show will feature “a set of Yes classics, deep cuts, mashups, and solo works, all with lush arrangements featuring choral singing, horns, and all the other benefits of having a backing band of 25 young musicians.”

The Paul Green Rock Academy is an outgrowth...

Yes have announced plans to release The Royal Affair Tour: Live From Las Vegas on October 30th. It’s a live album recorded July 26th, 2019 at the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas.

The set mixes Yes classics like “I’ve Seen All Good People,” “Roundabout” and “Starship Trooper” with covers like Simon and Garfunkel’s “America,” Richie Havens’ “No Opportunity Necessary, No Experience Needed” and John Lennon’s “Imagine.”

“Having the opportunity to bring together the band members in the development of a well-refined set of songs that captures...

Rolling Stone interview series Unknown Legends features long-form conversations between senior writer Andy Greene and veteran musicians who have toured and recorded alongside icons for years, if not decades. All are renowned in the business, but some are less well known to the general public. Here, these artists tell their complete stories, giving an up close look at life on music’s A list. This edition features keyboardist and guitarist David Sancious.

If the entire musical career of David Sancious had been confined to 1972 to 1974, he still would be a...

The dawn of the Eighties was supposed to make prog bands like Genesis, Yes, and Rush die out like the dinosaurs, now that we were in the age of MTV and New Wave. That’s not quite how it played it out, however. The men of these bands chopped off their long hair, cut their standard 20-minute songs down to size, and somehow became more popular than ever. They even joined forced in various short-lived supergroups and charted with slick hits that competed for Top 40 airplay alongside the latest offerings by Madonna and Michael Jackson.

Yes fans have spent the past 15 years hoping that the surviving members of the group will put aside their differences for a reunion tour, but guitarist Steve Howe tells Rolling Stone that that is a very unlikely proposition.

“I don’t think [the fans] should stay up late nights worrying about that,” he says. “There’s just too much space out there between people. To be in a band together or even to do another tour like Union is completely unthinkable.”

He’s referencing the group’s 1990 Union LP and tour, where...

Yes guitarist Steve Howe has teamed up with the band’s current frontman, vocalist Jon Davison, for Love Is, his first solo album since 2011. It will arrive in stores on July 31st.

“I called the album Love Is because it hints at the central idea that love is important but also love of the universe and the ecology of the world is very important,” Howe said in a statement. “Alexander Humboldt went around the world and recognized we are destroying the planet, but that was 200 years ago! We are still destroying the planet and,...

Dan Rather was born 10 years before America entered World War II, is more familiar with long-ago singing cowboy Tex Ritter than his actor son John, and took a stab at playing bassoon as a child growing up in Texas. In other words, he’s admittedly the last person anyone would associate with rock & roll. “I once said to my wife Jean, ‘Why didn’t I catch on to rock & roll earlier?’” Rather says. “She said, ‘Dan, for one thing, you were working all the time.’ And that’s true. I...

In an alternate universe where the coronavirus hasn’t shut down the entire concert industry, progressive-rock fans from around the globe are heading down to Florida to set sail on the Cruise to the Edge next week. The lineup this year included Yes, Marillion, Steve Hackett, and other giants of the prog-rock universe.

Yes backed out of the cruise last week and there was a brief moment when the cruise planned on carrying on without them, even though the thing is named after one of their most famous records, Close to the Edge.

When Yes were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2017, the surviving members of the band lined up behind a podium at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn and delivered the sorts of speeches you’d expect from veteran musicians who had waited decades for this moment of validation. Frontman Jon Anderson thanked departed Yes members Chris Squire and Peter Banks, 1980s-era guitarist Trevor Rabin thanked his wife and son, drummer Alan White paid tribute to the fans, and guitarist Steve Howe read prepared remarks about how the...

Futuristic NYC avant-rockers Battles have announced the upcoming release of their fourth album, Juice B Crypts. Due in October via Warp, the record finds the band scaling back to the duo of guitarist-keyboardist Ian Williams and drummer John Stanier, following the departure of bassist Dave Konopka in 2018. Much like the group’s second LP, 2011’s Gloss Drop, Juice B Crypts will feature a wealth of guest vocalists; one of those singers, Sal Principato of NYC dance-punk pioneers Liquid Liquid, appears on new single “Titanium 2 Step.”

The track pairs a lean,...

Yes are hitting the road this summer with a prog rock superstar-bill featuring John Lodge of the Moody Blues, Carl Palmer’s Elp Legacy with guest vocalist Arthur Brown and Asia. They’re calling it the Royal Affair Tour. “Yes is delighted to headline this celebration of British music,” Yes guitarist Steve Howe said in a statement, “which has been so warmly received in America over the past five decades.”

The Yes saga has gotten a bit complicated since former members Jon Anderson, Trevor Rabin and Rick Wakeman put their...

On his new album 1,000 Hands, former Yes frontman Jon Anderson worked with everyone from Chick Corea and Jethro Tull’s Ian Anderson to Jean-Luc Ponty and Journey’s Jonathan Cain. But when it came time to create a video for the single “Makes Me Happy,” he reached much closer to home and recruited members of his immediate family.

“I am very excited for people to hear and see this crazy wonderful video, created by my daughter Deborah and my wife Janee on the spur of the moment one day at home,...

Twenty-nine years ago, Yes lead singer Jon Anderson abandoned a half-finished solo album called Uzlot that he’d been been recording in Big Bear, California, with his bandmates Chris Squire and Alan White. Yes were gearing up for a massive reunion tour and he simply put the master tapes in his garage and gave them very little thought as the years started racing by. But just a couple of years ago, producer Michael Franklin reached out to Anderson to see if he’d let him take the tapes and finish the album.

Nearly 30 years ago, Yes frontman Jon Anderson began work on a solo album with help from his bandmates Alan White and Chris Squire. He never got around to finishing it and eventually got sidetracked by Yes work, but recently went back into the studio to complete the album with help from producer Michael T. Franklin. Anderson originally called the project Uzlot, but now that it’s finally done, he’s calling it 1,000 Hands. It comes out March 31st.

“I’ve spent long periods of time making some records, but I...

The Buggles could have gone in a lot of different directions once their debut single “Video Killed the Radio Star” became a huge hit all over the world in late 1979. The synth duo (featuring Trevor Horn on lead vocals and Geoff Downes on keyboards) could have spent the next couple of years touring the world to to capitalize on their new fame. They could have headed right back into the studio and tried to craft an even poppier song. They could have even gone their separate ways under the assumption...

Sad news for Yes fans, as one of the best guitarists in the world, Chris Squire, the bassist and founding member of Yes, has died, a month after revealing he had been diagnosed with leukemia. He was 67.Squire and singer Jon Anderson co-founded Yes in 1968, and although their performance lineup of band-members was altered during the years, Squire was a constant band-member, playing bass on all of Yes’ albums and performing with the band for almost 50 years. Squire’s band-mate Geoffrey Downes made the announcement of Squire’s death via Twitter.The band confirmed the news Sunday on its official Facebook […]...

Chris "Fish" Squire, the heart and soul and, yes, the foundation of iconic prog-rock band Yes, passed away Saturday at the age of 67. He had been battling leukemia, and last month had left the band for the first time -- he is the only member to appear on every Yes album (21 studio albums and a plethora of concert recordings). Squire, who played with a pick, achieved his unique sound by rewiring his Rickenbacker bass to stereo and sending the output of the bass and treble pickups into separate amplifiers. His sound -- and, let it be remembered, his vocals, usually heard in harmony or counterpoint to lead vocalist Jon Anderson's, but still prominent enough to be immediately recognizable -- was integral to the classic Yes albums of the 1970s.

What follows is basically a list of Yes’ best songs, but balanced somewhat by my desire to spread out the...

Simon & Schuster negotiated the project -- due on shelves Dec. 10 -- with CAA.

What does the fox say? How about, "Ka-ching, ka-ching, ka-ching?"

"The Fox," the ridiculous viral hit from Norwegian comedy duo Ylvis -- whose members are brothers Bard and Vegard Ylvisaker -- is soon to become a children's book.

Story: Ylvis, of Viral Sensation 'The Fox,' Lands Major Label Deal Ahead of U.S. Live Debut

Simon & Schuster negotiated the deal with CAA, and is hard at work adapting the catchy, call-and-response song with lyrics like, "Hatee-hatee-hatee-ho!" and "Gering-ding-ding-ding-dingeringeding!"

What Does the Fox Say? will hit shelves Dec. 10, in time to capitalize on Ylvis fever and the holiday buying season. This is the latest coup for the brothers Ylvisaker, who recently signed a music deal with Warner Music Group and were parodied by Kerry Washington during her recent hosting stint on Saturday Night Live.

Video: 'SNL...

Among the seminal progressive rock groups of the late '60s and early '70s, Yes has undergone its share of personnel changes. The group started out with Chris Squire (bass), Peter Banks (guitar), Jon Anderson (vocals), Bill Bruford (drums), and Tony Kaye (keyboards), and released two albums, the eponymous Yes, and Time and A Word. Banks either left or was fired (it depends on who you believe), and was replaced with Steve Howe. [N.B. Peter Banks passed away in March 2013.] This new line-up produced just one album, The Yes Album.

Kaye left due to band friction, and was replaced by Rick Wakeman. This line-up produced two albums, Fragile and Close to the Edge -- the latter being the band's tour-de-force, and one of the most revered progressive rock albums of all time (see my Cc article, The Absolutely Essential Progressive Rock Albums), as well as one of the first albums on which the entire first side...

As the New York Times so aptly observed this weekend, eerie '80s synths score are synonymous with the German experimental electronic music group Tangerine Dream. And yet, the group and their sinister and moody but anonymous modulations were never celebrated as loudly in that era (or since) compared to the works of other '80s synth-heavy composers like Harold Faltermeyer ("Top Gun," "Fletch," "Beverly Hills Cop"), John Carpenter ("Escape from New York," "The Thing"), Vangelis ("Chariots of Fire," "Blade Runner") and even Giorgio Moroder ("Scarface," "Cat People").

The cinephile-friendly arthouse BAMCinematek tries to right that wrong this week in Brooklyn with their retrospective series centered around the atmospheric and ambient scores written and performed by Tangerine Dream. And so to help celebrate the undervalued composers we give you five of their best scores. Make sure to head to Bam this week if you're in the New York area (and hurry,...

I watched the Tom Cruise 80s fantasy movie Legend this week for the first time since reaching the age of being cognizant-of-things, and while I fully braced myself for its ridiculousness, hoooo-leyyy crap it did not disappoint. I vaguely recalled the film being a bizarre entrant in the wave of “80s fantasy films for kids but kind-of not really for kids,” and remembered Tim Curry as Basically Satan, but my memory ended there. You’d think it goes without saying, but the film is Loaded with awesomely nonsensical aspects: The whole film is about 20 minutes long, Tom Cruise plays a ‘kid’ but looks the same as he does now, the film opens with like 9 paragraphs of slow-scrolling text that sets up about 7 different absurd rules about the world of the film (evil can’t touch earth as long as these two unicorns are around, but also there’s no light...

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In this week's "Even More" section there is a link to a Tom Cruise Blu-ray Collection, which includes Collateral, Days of Thunder, Minority Report, Top Gun and War of the Worlds for only $34.99. It's a good price and worth a look either for you or perhaps as a Christmas present for someone else. However, until November 17 you can buy it at Fry's for only $19.99! Get on it!

Also, I have two Criterion titles I'm recommending this week, but instead of using the Buy Now links next to each you may want to head over to Barnes and Noble where their 50% off sale is still on for I believe another week. Unless I am mistaken it ends on November 21. So, get to shopping!

Three Colors Trilogy (Criterion Collection) I received Criterion's Blu-ray edition of Krzysztof Kieslowski's Troi couleurs (Three...