Oliver Wakeman, the son of Yes keyboard legend Rick Wakeman, will be touring with his dad`s old band and doing his dad`s old job.
Rick Wakeman will not be part of the forthcoming Yes tour, which will also be missed lead singer Jon Anderson.Rick chose not to go on tour with the band citing excessive touring as a health hazard. “My major concern was that of over-touring, which I felt Yes had done since 2002 with far too many shows, especially in America which for me diminished the "specialness" of the band,” he wrote earlier this year at his website. “I also was concerned for the health of the band, both as a whole and as individuals. It`s a matter of public record for instance, that Jon in particular really suffered during the last weeks of the previous YES tour which was extremely worrying for us all”.
Instead of Rick, his son Oliver will be behind the keyboard.
“Chris (Squire) and I met up a few times and spoke about who I felt would be able to do a good job in the keyboard department and I put forward just two names, my two eldest sons Adam and Oliver,” he said. “Adam, to be truthful, was not really a "contender" because he is fully committed to Ozzy and is touring constantly. Oliver has worked with Steve of course on various recordings and so there was already a rapport there. I was therefore very happy when Oliver told me that Steve had called him”.
Rick hasn`t ruled out returning to the band one day. “I truly hope that this is not the end of the Classic Line-Up and that something very special may happen in the not too distant future,” he said.
Jon Anderson will not tour with Yes due to health reasons. He suffered a severe asthma attack earlier this year and was later diagnosed with acute respiratory failure.
Instead, Benoit David, a singer from a Yes covers band will front the tour. Yes discovered Benoit after searching Yes cover bands on YouTube.
