Matthew Putzel

Last night I attended the Yes concert in Poughkeepsie, NY. It was my sixth show this tour and my best seats yet, sixth row dead center. First of all, the venue they played reminded me of a high school gymnasium. In fact they seemed to have it sectioned off with pee-wee hockey in the other section. There were a couple of differences from the other shows I attended. Alan had the new "Open Your Eyes" Yes logo on the bass drum, and thee was a large "Open Your Eyes" poster hanging on the right side of the auditorium. The stage area was shorter than in the other arenas so the entire "tent" could not be put up that they usually use. Jon also mentioned that the spotlights weren't working, which made some of the solos harder to see.

The band was in good form as usual. They are opening now with Firebird Suite leading into "Siberian Khatru." "Rhythm Of Love" was lacking the vocal harmonies in the beginning, instead opening with a steady drum beat from Alan. The Poughkeepsie crowd seemed fascinated by balloons as they hit the around all evening. Steve and Chris seemed annoyed by the balloons but Jon seemed to love them, even working them into his introduction to "And You And I." He also had a lot of fun popping the "big blue balloon." Steve played "Clap" and "Mood For A Day." He mixed "Clap" with something else that I recognize but don't recall the name of right now. (Any help?) Jon messed up the words to "Owner Of A Lonely Heart" and seemed a little embarrassed about it. After the song he recited the lines that he missed.I gor's solo was much longer now and it was very good. My one criticism of him is that he used a different organ sound for "Roundabout." It wasn't as good as the usual sound.

All in all, another fine concert from these guys. I don't know what else I could say. It's probably my last show for a while unless they swing around and play the Northeast again in the spring. I'd like to thank everyone I met at the Yes shows for all their help and kindness. See you in the spring!

Davis Tunip

Last night's concert in Poughkeepsie, NY was amazing. I saw them last Friday (Halloween) at the Beacon in NYC but the sound and audience were WAY better in Poughkeepsie! The band were playing great at the Beacon but the crowd was WAY too loud and rowdy (During Steve's solo set he told the crowd to "Shut up"... he needed to though) and the sound always seems to suck at the Beacon.

Last night was GREAT. The crowd was frantic between songs but piped down during the music. The sound was a bit high-endy (especially the keyboards) but otherwise was clear and strong. The Mid-Hudson Civic Center is a great place for shows.

At both shows I found that Billy Sherwood was non-existent sonically aside from the Trevor stuff he plays on and his solos. I guess it's intentional and I have to admit it's a good decision, I don't want to be hearing any other guitarists when Steve is in the band. Igor was good but his sounds are a bit off. I'd wished they were more true to Wakeman's... and less high-end.

The rest of the band were great.. they were inspired and played the hell out of those songs. They played with the parts here and there but in a good way... Squire's intro to "Heart of The Sunrise" (the quiet part) was nice! Steve was awesome.. he played so good. He works his ass off.

Anyway.. both were great shows but because of the sound and crowd, Poughkeepsie wins!