Asia
FANTASIA - LIVE IN TOKYO

During the fall of 2006, the 25th anniversary of the progressive-rock supergroup Asia was commemorated with the return of the original line-up to American concert halls. The foursome had an impressive prog-rock pedigree. Lead singer and bassist John Wetton had been in King Crimson, drummer Carl Palmer was, not surprisingly, from Emerson, Lake & Palmer, and from Yes, their long-time guitarist Steve Howe and a keyboardist for one album Geoffrey Downes, who also a member of The Buggles.

Yet, Asia found them cutting some of the excesses of the genre to make music more pop radio friendly. They succeeded as their debut album hit #1 on the Billboard album charts, propelled by the hit single, “Heat of the Moment,” which continues to stay a fixture of pop culture through South Park and The 40-Year-Old Virgin.

This quartet only played together on the first two albums. I had thought they had disbanded, but Downes has been venturing forth all this time. Under the name Asia, he has been periodically releasing albums, at times with appearances by different founding members. Although latter incarnations didn't make the same splash as the original outside their cult fan base, presuming there was one.

Fantasia - Live in Tokyo is double CD recorded from their March 8, 2007 concert at Shinjuku Koseinenkin-Hall, Tokyo, Japan. Because of their short time together and limited catalog, they played the entire Asia album, three tracks from Alpha, and the B-Side “Ride Easy.” Rather than play music by the numerous permutations of Asia, the set list was completed with more familiar songs by the members other endeavors, which was hit and miss. King Crimson’s “In the Court of the Crimson King” sounded very good. Howe’s guitar imbued ELP’s “Fanfare for the Common Man” with more of a rock sound, similar to what Palmer has done recently with his Carl Palmer Band. Howe and Downes traded great solos during the bridge. Speaking of solos, Howe performed a very good acoustic guitar solo called “Natural Timbre” from his 2001 album. Unfortunately, The Buggles’ “Video Killed The Radio Star” didn’t work because the chorus sounded absolutely dreadful. Neither did Yes’ “Roundabout.” The tempo is slowed down and Wetton’s deep vocals didn’t fit well with this signature song.

A couple of bad songs aside, fans of Asia will probably enjoy this trip down memory lane and will be glad to hear the band is working on an album of new material. If this band or the other bands mentioned are unfamiliar, a best-of Asia album would be a better introduction.

Yes
LIVE AT MONTREUX 2003

Yes, one of the definitive progressive rock bands in both success and excess, has had an ever-changing roster of musicians throughout the band’s almost 40-year history, which explains why the DVD lists the line-up as “The Definitive Yes.” Some fans may disagree with that designation, not to slight Alan White, but because Bill Bruford was the drummer on three of the band’s most successful albums, The Yes Album, Fragile, and Close To The Edge. However, as a unit, singer Jon Anderson, guitarist Steve Howe, bassist Chris Squire, keyboardist Rick Wakeman, and White have logged the most time together under the name Yes, from 1972-’74, ’76-’79, ’90-’92 (during this time Yes was an octet), ’95-’96, and 2002-to the band’s current hiatus, which began in ’05. That doesn’t include time spent as members of Yes in other variations, which they all have done.

Live at Montreux 2003 captures Yes touring in celebration of the band’s 35th anniversary. Audio from nine of the songs was previously released in the Essentially Yes box set from 2006. While they do play a few hits that all classic rock fans know, such as “I’ve Seen All Good People” and “Roundabout,” which close out the show, this is a concert for the serious Yes fan.

They open with “Siberian Khatru” from Close to the Edge. I found it an odd choice as the keyboards sound terrible, delivering a flat, harsh sound straight out of the ‘80s. Next, they perform two tracks from Magnification, their last studio album from 2001 sans Wakeman. They offer up the very obscure “Don't Kill The Whale” from 1977’s Tormato for the die-hards before finally performing something the causal Yes fan would recognize: “We Have Heaven,” the first of six out of the nine tracks off of Fragile that appear in the set list.

While the years have certainly caught up to their appearances, they are still very talented musicians whose skills get displayed throughout the night together and solo. In the latter category, we get Howe on acoustic guitar playing “To Be Over” and “Clap,” Wakeman on an untitled keyboard medley, Anderson plays “Show Me,” a new track off The Ultimate Yes: 35th Anniversary Collection, which features him on an instrument that looks like an electric lute, and Squire and White close out “The Fish” as a duet.

Yes’ lyrics have a wonderful blend of sincerity and nonsensicalness embued with New Agey optimism. Anderson’s vocals are a perfect evocation of the mood, greatly suited for listening to while smoking pipe-weed in the Shire.

The only drawback of the DVD is the camera work isn’t that great. Far too often, the camera zooms in to catch the musicians’ finger work, but they are so tight that the object easily slips out of frame. If they had pulled back slightly, it would have made all the difference.

Troopers, and you know who you are, should get this for the collection. Yes “Greatest Hits” fans and those new to prog rock should rent it first.