RIP Chris Squire

[AlreadyGone95]

Co-founder member and bassist of Yes, Chris Squire, has died at the age of 67.

http://ultimateclassicrock.com/chris-squire-dies-yes/

I had just discovered this article (http://somethingelsereviews.com/2014/11/18/chris-squire-eagles-cocaine/) in which Chris discusses the impact the Eagles had on Yes in terms of drug age, when I learned 9f Chris' death.

RIP to a great musician.

[Lisa]

Chris Squire was a great bassist and harmonies singer.

[Ive always been a dreamer]

Very sad to lose another talented musician. My thoughts are with his family and loved ones.

R.I.P. Chris Squire

[chaim]

There's so much Yes music (probably more than half of it) where you can hear Chris harmonizing with the lead singer - in the studio recordings as well. Personally I would have loved to see Jon Anderson in the band all the time, but even when there has been another singer, a bit of the Yes sound has remained in the vocals, because Chris was always singing.

Yes musicians have always looked rather intense and serious on stage, although Jon Anderson smiled a lot. When he wasn't there, it seems that Chris was the one bringing this kind of warmth to their stage performances. Check out 59:40 in this video, where Chris smiles at the camera. A BEAUTIFUL moment.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvSA1zR-bGM

Rest In Peace, Chris
I love you

[thelastresort]

I've been out all day so have only just come back to this awful news, I'm absolutely devastated. Incredible bassist (one of my inspirations to take up the instrument) and seemed like such a lovely guy, as chaim shows above (I've never seen that video btw, thanks).

RIP Chris, thanks for your wonderful work.

[AlreadyGone95]

Wow Chaim, that is indeed a beautiful moment :nod:.

I didn't have time when I made this thread to talk much about Yes and Chris. Yes are easily one of my top 2 70s prog rock bands ( the other being Genesis). I've heard their hits since I was little, and I've grown to really love them over the past year or so. I will say that for me, there's no Yes without Jon Anderson.

Since I'm not a musician, I can't say much about the technical aspect. I can only speak about what I feel. Chris Squire, alongside Steve Howe and Jon Anderson, wrote some of the best prog rock songs, imo. Chris and the music he helped create are loved by fans and have inspired people and musicians everywhere.

I'm now debating what Yes album to listen to in his honor. I'm thinking The Yes Album as its my personal favorite.

[DJ]

Great group RIP Chris

[NightMistBlue]

What a shock, I felt sick when I saw on the news this morning that Chris had passed. What a huge talent - not only a thrilling bassist but also, as several people here have mentioned, a brilliant harmony singer. He said his choirmaster taught him everything he knew about music, and it showed in his amazing arrangements. So glad I got to see Yes many times in recent years, and always made sure my seats were right in front of Chris, His Royal Bassness as we called him.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHFox6wyXfw

For any fans who may be interested, someone has compiled the public/social media statements from Chris' fellow Yes men, past and present. I was especially interested to read Jon Anderson's comments as I knew (everyone knew) they had a difficult relationship but there is a lot of love and history there too. http://www.bondegezou.co.uk/wncs.htm

[chaim]

What a shock, I felt sick when I saw on the news this morning that Chris had passed. What a huge talent - not only a thrilling bassist but also, as several people here have mentioned, a brilliant harmony singer. He said his choirmaster taught him everything he knew about music, and it showed in his amazing arrangements. So glad I got to see Yes many times in recent years, and always made sure my seats were right in front of Chris, His Royal Bassness as we called him.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHFox6wyXfw

For any fans who may be interested, someone has compiled the public/social media statements from Chris' fellow Yes men, past and present. I was especially interested to read Jon Anderson's comments as I knew (everyone knew) they had a difficult relationship but there is a lot of love and history there too. http://www.bondegezou.co.uk/wncs.htm

I feel that the relationship between Jon and Chris may have been a bit like the one between Tony Banks and Peter Gabriel. Two people who met when they were very young and this unique bond (and the good and the bad things that come with it) remains throughout their lives.

I have seen Jon Anderson play two times here in Finland in recent years. In both concerts he told (different) funny stories about Chris. It was obvious that there was a lot of affection there for Chris.

It felt good to read Bill's statement. Chris used to drive him crazy in the studio, and it seemed that Bill wasn't keen on working with Chris ever again. I loved Bill's thoughtful text and the (Close To The Edge) examples he mentioned. He really gave it some time.

[NightMistBlue]

Yes, I appreciated Bill's comments too. He described Chris' special musical gifts very well.

I just scrolled to the bottom of that page and saw where Chris was about half done (as of last year) with his autobiography. The actor Vincent Gallo was helping him. I guess it will never come out now.

[Funk 50]

For any fans who may be interested, someone has compiled the public/social media statements from Chris' fellow Yes men, past and present. I was especially interested to read Jon Anderson's comments as I knew (everyone knew) they had a difficult relationship but there is a lot of love and history there too. http://www.bondegezou.co.uk/wncs.htm

Thanks for posting the link NightMistBlue

Chris's plaintive Onward is one of my favourite Yes Songs.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Soz7u47-9rc

As a Genesis fan I'm delighted that he recently made a record with Steve Hackett. Even more delighted that they named it Squackett.

Never saw the bass guitar as a lead instrument until I heard Christopher Squire.

Thanks for posting the live vids. That triple neck bass was most impressive :).

[NightMistBlue]

My brother and I went on the 2013 Yes cruise and Steve Hackett (with his band Genesis Revisited) was one of the guests. I would often see Steve and his young wife at breakfast. He seems like a humble, quiet man. When fans would approach him, he would invite them to sit down and talk.

I'm too shy to approach anyone, though I did make an exception for Carl Palmer and his two bandmates - they were freakin' amazing, everyone was talking about their performances.

I digress, sorry.

Steve Howe has made a brief statement on his Facebook page about Chris:
https://www.facebook.com/guitarrondo

I love the photo! The Rickenbacker bass looks like a toy in Squire's huge hands.

Gotta share just one more, and it's special: Brian May has written a lovely (and long!) tribute: http://brianmay.com/brian/brianssb/brianssbjun15.html#22

[MaryCalifornia]

Very sad. I just read Chris' Wikipedia page, I don't know very much about him or Yes, but I'm interested.

It says that Yes will tour with Toto starting August 7, and it will be the first time ever, since 1969 that Chris isn't with them. Crazy. I wonder who will play bass for them? Big shoes to fill. I can think of one sweet-harmony-singing bass player the same age as Chris who could be available...but I don't know if Timothy can play in the same style. They need Flea. It would be cool if they had famous bass players rotate in and out, you can't try to replace him.

[chaim]

Very sad. I just read Chris' Wikipedia page, I don't know very much about him or Yes, but I'm interested.

It says that Yes will tour with Toto starting August 7, and it will be the first time ever, since 1969 that Chris isn't with them. Crazy. I wonder who will play bass for them? Big shoes to fill. I can think of one sweet-harmony-singing bass player the same age as Chris who could be available...but I don't know if Timothy can play in the same style. They need Flea. It would be cool if they had famous bass players rotate in and out, you can't try to replace him.

The bass player will be Chris's friend Billy Sherwood. Chris and Billy have done two studio albums and, I believe, one live album together under the name Conspiracy. Billy had already played as a backing musician on YES's Talk tour. Later he was even a member of YES (second guitarist - much to Howe's delight, I'm sure!:hilarious:) for a couple of years. Billy did the albums Open Your Eyes and The Ladder with YES. Open Your Eyes was a Squire/Sherwood project that became a YES album. I don't think anyone - fans or band members - considers it a real YES album. Whereas a lot of people - fans and band members - consider The Ladder a "return to form" in that the band wrote, arranged, rehearsed and recorded the songs together, like they often did during the "classic era".

I believe Billy has also mixed and recorded some YES stuff when he hasn't actually been a YES member. He has always been a YES fan, and he knows all their music. So if anyone is going to replace Chris for a tour (and no one really can), Billy Sherwood is the man IMO. He loved Chris dearly and Chris's death has been hell for Billy. I believe Chris and Billy met in the late 80's or early 90's.

https://www.facebook.com/billy.sherwood.54?fref=ts

[AlreadyGone95]

MC, if you're looking for Yes albums to start with since you're interested, my top 3 are The Yes Album, Going for the One, and Fragile. I'm afraid that I know little of Chris's work outside of Yes.


I'm glad that Chris's "replacement" is someone who's been in the Yes camp before. I don't like when bands bring in completely new members, especially for a band that's been around as long as Yes has.

[chaim]

MC, if you're looking for Yes albums to start with since you're interested, my top 3 are The Yes Album, Going for the One, and Fragile. I'm afraid that I know little of Chris's work outside of Yes.


I'm glad that Chris's "replacement" is someone who's been in the Yes camp before. I don't like when bands bring in completely new members, especially for a band that's been around as long as Yes has.

Check out Chris's solo album from the 70's, "Fish out of water". It's a masterpiece. Especially this one:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2WYvryNoZM

[AlreadyGone95]

Check out Chris's solo album from the 70's, "Fish out of water". It's a masterpiece. Especially this one:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2WYvryNoZM

That is a good song. I'll have to check out the rest of the album as soon as a get a chance. :)

[NightMistBlue]

Going for the One is way up there for me too - so many great songs: the title track, Parallels, Wonderous [sic] Stories and the epic to end all epics Awaken.

I wish the best for the guys moving forward, but I just can't imagine Yes without Squire. He's irreplaceable.

[chaim]

From yesterday: http://ultimateclassicrock.com/alan-white-yes-chris-squire/

I thought they were going to do only the already-scheduled dates, but I guess they will continue after them. Before this YES either lost an essential voice or an essential player when one member left. This time they lost both in one person!
Although I must say that Steve Howe's low voice is very distinctive too and works perfectly when he sings on YES material - like the lowest vocal part at the end of Parallels.

[NightMistBlue]

What are the chances that Jon Anderson would return to the fold at some point? I know he can't do anything (with Yes) this year, because his project with Jean-Luc Ponty is about to be released, but maybe down the line sometime.

Someone at the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame should get a clue and give Yes the honor they deserve.

Chaim, you bring up an interesting point about Chris' distinctive harmony vocals. Who the hell can perform that? Steve Howe has a nice, soft voice but Chris would do that sharp counterpoint stuff. Billy Sherwood has some very big britches to step into.

[AlreadyGone95]

I'd love to see Jon Anderson back with Yes, but I'm not holding my breath on it.

The RnRHOF has a habit of ignoring very deserving bands for long periods of time. Yes was eligible before the Eagles were!

[chaim]

Found this yesterday. They've collected together tributes from musicians. I have noticed before that the YES guys tend to have a rather good memory when it comes to their music and their own parts, but check out Oliver Wakeman's writing. WOW!

http://yesworld.com/2015/06/chris-squire/

Although I have to admit that I have no idea where this "run down from C", or B for that matter, is in that song, and I know the song well. I checked a bass TAB too and couldn't find any kind of "run downs".

[NightMistBlue]

Thank you so much, Chaim! It is remarkable to see all the loving tributes to Chris.

[AlreadyGone95]

Wow! Chaim, thanks for sharing that! I especially loved Jon Anderson's comparison of Chris being Christopher Robin and Jon being Winnie the Pooh. That brought a tear to my eye. Words cannot describe reading all of those meaningful, from the heart tributes and memories!

[chaim]

Glad you enjoyed the page. From everything I've read it seems that Chris was a real sweetheart. Seems that he never acted like he was above anyone and there was always the classic Chris Squire smile when a fan met him.
I've read some stories from fans. One said that when he had ordered the special version of Chris's solo album there was a postal strike or something. So there was a delay, and Chris PERSONALLY called him to apologize!!

[NightMistBlue]

Yes, I read that too! I would have fainted if that happened to me.

It's nice that Chris and his wife Scottie felt a kind of friendship with the fans. I used to hang out on YesFans and Scottie would post there on occasion - more frequently after their daughter was born prematurely in December 2008. She got a lot of support and advice from people who had gone through the same experience.

You've probably seen this posting on Chris' Facebook page, if anyone wants to donate:
MESSAGE FROM CHRIS'S WIFE, SCOTLAND SQUIRE
I just wanted to say thank you so much for the love from all of our friends.
Many of you have asked if you can send flowers but Chris asked that I make sure that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to Mayo Clinic.
Please designate donations to Leukemia Research at Mayo Clinic Arizona in memory of Christopher Squire.
Donations can be called in to +1(480)301-8326
online at https://philanthropy.mayoclinic.org/christophersquire
or mailed directly to:
Mayo Clinic, Department of Development, 13400 East Shea Boulevard, Scottsdale, Arizona 85259 USA
I cannot thank all of you enough for your love and support throughout this very sad and difficult time.
Love,
Scotland Squire

[chaim]

Yeah, I've seen that. But I had no idea that she participated in a YES forum. If you have any more stories about that I'd be thrilled to "hear"!

[NightMistBlue]

She shared some photos of their baby (Xilan) and Chris holding her in the hospital. I also remember her complaining about someone posting a photo of Chris' ex-wife Nikki and said she is crazy!

I guess the Yes fan community is ... "small" is not the right word, but small enough so that there can be some interaction with the band. When a devoted fan who went to many shows passed away a few months ago, a couple of band members announced it on their Facebook pages.

[chaim]

Interesting. I thought that the "Yes world" is much bigger.

[NightMistBlue]

Maybe that's just a false impression I got, because it seems the majority of people posting in YesFans seem to have met the band several times. I felt quite left out! :)

[chaim]

A clip from 1994. Chris answers fan questions. One of them wants to know is she can hug Chris. What follows is a very sweet moment. Starts at about 12:55 mark.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1RYQkTA8F1s

[Ive always been a dreamer]

Aww - that's so sweet. Thanks for posting it, Toni.

[NightMistBlue]

Oh my gosh, that was lovely - Chris looked as if he enjoyed it as much as the lady did.

What a good-humored man. Nice legs too :)

[RushFanForever]

Jon Anderson was interviewed by Rick Beato in August 2020.

Jon briefly discusses how Yes toured with Peter Frampton and The Eagles in this video with Beato here (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mWib02yZmKc&t=1740s), which I time-stamped.