One of the first concerts I ever saw was Yes at the Hampton Coliseum. Amazing show. Helped give me the singular focus I've needed to become the man I am today...a dude who listens to Classic Rock and talks about it. YES!

Well my friend, that amazing band may never hit the road all-together again. Rick Wakeman is no longer in Yes and he is not terribly happy about the current state of the band. The group is touring overseas without singer Jon Anderson, who originally bowed out due to illness but now that he is better, hasn't been allowed back in the band due to contractual issues with his substitute, Benoit David. Here are Rick's thoughts on what's going on with Yes.

"My personal opinion is you can't have Yes without Jon singing. It's like having Led Zeppelin without Robert Plant, The Who without [Roger] Daltrey, it just doesn't happen. But what I think is very sneaky and what really annoys me is not, in the advertising, saying who is in the band. I mean, I'm just getting hundreds and hundreds of emails from people who've gone on to say, 'Hey, we arrived there to see the Yes show. You're not there, Jon's not there, what's going on?'"

How likely is it that the classic line-up will go on the road together again? Not too..., as Rick explained.

"It is upsetting and I think the tragic part of it is, I mean I think that Yes deserves, because we're all getting on a bit, Jon's in his mid-60s, everybody's in their 60's, and so things have to wind down and I think Yes deserved a really special and dignified wind-down and it's not getting it. And now the classic line-up, I can't see it ever working again."

It's sad to think of these classic bands slowly falling apart...whether through dissention or even death. At least we'll always have their music with more choices becoming available daily.

If you need some Rick Wakeman in your Rock n Roll diet pick up his new DVD. It's the Hampton Court Palace performance from earlier this year. He performed his 1973 solo concept album The Six Wives of Henry VIII.(I have the original vinyl at home and still pull it out occasionally) The DVD is on store shelves now. Yes, sans Anderson, plays in France tonight.