This was probably my first or second concert . I was 15 at the time and went with a few friends from High School. Fantastic, when you think about who we actually saw on the same bill, totally unrelated genres! I do recall Edgar Winter doing Frankenstein which lit up the audience more than the lightning...hmm, I wonder what ever happened to the Eagles?
What prompted me to write this was a preview of Desert Island Disks on Radio Four here in the U.K. Rick Wakeman told the story of how he first started to wear his famous shiny capes...he said he got the idea from a DJ(?) in Hartford, Ct 1971. It was used to disguise his large frame! Who'd a thunk?
And to think I then saw a slightly re-ordered Yes just a couple,of years ago at a small venue in Leicester, UK...doing the complete first three albums...43 years after the last time...brilliant!

That was one of the best outside small venues ever. Will always remember the young kids in front of us drinking straight Jack out of the bottle and thinking "what a shame it was for them to be so plastered". I was all of 21 with a short memory. Lol. We talked about that concert for years. We all had been to the Pocono Festival as well as Watkins Glen a year later. Memories of great times.

I remember this concert so well. I was 14 yrs old at the time and I had lived at a private school in Deep River, Ct. I have been to many concerts, but that one in Hartford was the best. With the Eagles coming on stage saying, "hello, we're the Eagles from LA and started playing "Take it easy". Edgar Winter was awsome, but Yes relly put on a great performance.

I was at this show. People were shouting at the Eagles to leave and throwing full cans of beer at them . . . half of the crowd left immediately after Edgar Winter Group played their hit "Frankenstein" . . . the remainder of the evening was spent in bliss with a very cool audience, many sitting down and grooving to the music. I was 15 years old at the time and playing bass in a garage band, aspiring to be Chris Squire . . . when my friend Rich and I emerged from the stadium after show we found his Impala up on cinder blocks with the tires gone . . . the only concert of that era that exceeded the awe inspired by this one was Mahavishnu Orchestra at the Trinity College Field House, also in Hartford.

This show actually occured on Monday September 25, 1972.
The initial date was rained out.

This was my 2nd YES concert and it was a great performance!
I didn't have a ticket and then, about 4 hours before the show, a friend offered me a ticket and a ride.
We drove like crazy up I-91 to make it in time for the warm-up acts.
The EAGLES opened. They were the "new band from California" and were well received. I recall enjoying their set and looking forward to following their career.
The EDGAR WINTER GROUP was next and they tore it up!
Dan Hartman, Chuck Ruff and Ronnie Montrose backed Winter in a 40 minute set that blazed from beginning to end. This set was an eye-opener for me and I probably attended 10 Winter shows after this.
As I write this, I'm reminded of how spoiled we were in those days. I paid $5.50 for a general admission ticket and saw 3 great bands!
Also, it was a time when audiences were a lot more open to different types of music. I can't imagine that most of today's audiences would be willing to sit through 3 completely different brands of rock.
Anyway, YES came on and, from the moment the "Firebird" began, the entire stadium was focused on the stage.
Most of us didn't realize that Bruford had been replaced by White but it didn't take long before you could hear the difference in style and tone. The fact that White learned the bulk of the YES material in about 3 days still boggles my mind!
Every tune was performed exceptionally well and, technically, this may have been my favorite YES show. The sound, lighting and pace of the set were all perfect.
When you listen to YES albums, you wonder how they'll pull the vocals off live.
On this night, the vocals were flawless!
I recall leaving Dillon Stadium with "Roundabout" still ringing in my ears and a desire to attend the very next YES show possible.

This was my first of about 40 yes shows,in fact it was my first large concert ever.I was about 14 and the only things I can remember are the fact that it was rained out and we went to the show about a mounth later when it was rescheduled,and I can remember HOTS was the most ausome thing I'd ever heard,oh and I couldn't believe that MFAD was played by only one guitarist,that blew me away.Sometime that week I bought the CTTE album and have been a huge fan ever sinse.

My dad bought tickets to see Yes at Dillon Stadium in Hartford, Connecticut on August 14, 1972. The band was sharing the bill with Edgar Winter and the Eagles. He remembers going to the stadium with his friends and a lightning storm started. There was no roof on the stadium so it looked like it was going to have to be cancelled. My dad and his friends got their money back and went and bought the Fragile album. My dad swears that he thought the show was cancelled, but I checked some web sites and apparently the show did go on. I guess the rain must have cleared up later on.

Jon Anderson:
A song from the new album. Its..the album is called 'Close To The Edge' and the title of the track is 'Close To The Edge' that we're going to play for you now. Here we go.

Jon Anderson:
Thank you, thank you very much thank you. [???] because..uh..Steve's going to play something for you it about things that happen everyday [???]. Steve.

Jon Anderson:
I wish it would stop howling!

Jon Anderson:
Quickly, Ah, uh. [???]

Jon Anderson:
..the realization and..uh as I was saying earlier just because of what we felt this year in America. And the view from the outside [???] big change could happen this year and..uh as I think about it and besides that, the uh..the song relates to all these things that [???] our songs. In the end, the song uh..finishes with a dream and secrets. Because we all dream of these incredible things that we get together for ourselves and..

Jon Anderson:
Thank you, thank you thanks a lot. Now I'm going to introduce you to our resident keyboard player [???] somewhere along the line they say. The contract he has in his pocket and..uh [???] appears to ride in the sky. That's what he was telling me last night. [???] Here is our resident keyboard player, Mr. Wakeman.

Jon Anderson:
Thank you for listening. Hope you enjoyed yourself. Goodnight. Take care. Thank you.

Jon Anderson:
Want to rock and roll and boogie? [???]

Jon Anderson:
Thank you again, thank you. Take care. Thank you. Thank you.