Although Peter Banks sadly died in 2013, this new studio album features some of his work which has never been released until now. On 10th August 2010 he and David Cross got together for an afternoon of improvisation and all guitar and violin parts are from that time. Banks had expressed his desire for this music to one day be made available, so over the last few years Cross asked some friends to become involved and help in making this album a reality. Included here are some musicians who had worked with Peter during his lengthy musical career, as well as other notable names, Pat Mastelotto, Tony Kaye, Billy Sherwood, Randy Raine-Reusch, Andy Jackson, Oliver Wakeman, Jay Schellen, Jeremy Stacey and Geoff Downes. David Cross says “The response from the guest musicians was truly wonderful in the way that they gave their time and talent to this project and I would like to thank them on behalf of Pete and myself. They were asked to ‘interpret the music as freely and creatively as you wish’ and they have turned in incredibly skilled and inspiring performances which were not easy given the improvised nature of the starting material and the spontaneity of the structures.”
Due to the nature of the album, in being that it was improvised to begin with, and then other musicians have added other parts later, it is somewhat surprising in that it feels as cohesive as it does. Although it does have that improvised feel, it doesn’t sound as if it was recorded by musicians who weren’t at least in the same room as each other, even if they had no idea where the music was going to take them. However, apart from Cross and Banks everyone else did have the luxury of playing the music multiple times to work out where they could fit in their parts, and I expect some judicious editing has also taken place. That being said it is an enjoyable album, with plenty of light, with fluidity from both Banks and Cross, exactly as one would expect. One gets the impression this has been a labour of love for Cross to get this finished to a standard where he felt happy releasing this to the public. It is worthy of investigation for progheads who enjoy their music to be somewhat relaxing yet always moving in new directions. I’ll leave the final words to David, ““When I recall the original recording session with Pete I remember his fresh almost naïve approach, his positive energy and his constant and restless search for something new. It was a joy to know Pete Banks and an honour and a privilege to play with him: I think he would be pleased with the way our album turned out.” 7/10 Kev Rowland
YES and Flash guitar legend Peter Banks’s Be Well, Be Safe, Be Lucky…The Anthology 2CD & The Self-Contained Trilogy 3CD are now available!
PETER BANKS: BE WELL, BE SAFE, BE LUCKY… THE ANTHOLOGY
Peter Banks was one of the original members of YES and an accomplished guitarist, but sadly passed away in 2013. Be Well, Be Safe, Be Lucky…The Anthology is the FIRST EVER compilation of his solo career.
This set is being released in his memory, by his Estate via Cherry Red worldwide, during the 5th anniversary of his passing and the 50th Anniversary of YES. The 2CD set includes “Knights (Reprise)” which features Phil Collins, Steve Hackett and the late John Wetton. Also included is the first release of the short instrumental “Knights (Revisited)” which features Billy Sherwood, Jay Schellen and Tony Kaye of YES.
The second disc features numerous rarities, (including two previously unreleased extended tracks) collected together from 7 different compilations… a “catch all” of Peter Banks tracks that fans may not have heard before. The second disc includes the astonishing guitar led instrumental re-record of YES’s “Astral Traveller.”
The booklet features an original poem by Bill Ward of Black Sabbath, included with kind permission. The set also features new artwork and the audio has received a 2018 remaster.
The Self-Contained Trilogy 3CD set includes all three of Peter Banks’s solo studio albums from the 1990’s in one place: Instinct (1994), Self-Contained (1995) and Reduction (1997)
The booklet features the original album artwork, liner notes and credits. The set also features new artwork and the audio has received a 2018 remaster.
Featuring original YES & Flash Guitar Legend Peter Banks!
London – EMPIRE FEATURING PETER BANKS & SYDNEY FOXX – THE COMPLETE RECORDINGS is the first release by The Peter Banks Musical Estate (via Cherry Red) and is also fully endorsed by Sydney Jordan (Foxx). The set includes the songs from all three EMPIRE studio albums and The Mars Tapes together in one place. The 40-page booklet features six different sets of liner notes and extensive pictures from the personal archives of band members. The audio has received a 2017 remaster.
“Thank you to Daniel Earnshaw, QEDG Management, Cherry Red Records, Carl Glover and Mike Pietrini for the remastering, design and release of this wonderful, definitive collection of ‘Empire’ recordings. Peter has always said that ‘Empire’ and the music we created was where his heart was and that it was the closest he had come to his dream of creating another band like ‘YES’. With ‘Empire’ we achieved 90% of what we set out to. 10% was lost to pressure from the industry and the misfortune of being in L.A. during the ‘Disco Era’. But the 90% that remains in this complete collection of ‘Empire’ recordings is timeless, magical and yet another valuable musical testament to one of the most innovative and greatest guitar players ever, who co-created one of the greatest bands ever!” – Sydney Foxx
Peter Banks passed away in 2013 but his musical legacy will live on with a series of official definitive album releases throughout 2018 and 2019. The Peter Banks Musical Estate is represented by Daniel Earnshaw.
Track List:
DISC ONE: THE BEST OF EMPIRE
1. OUT OF OUR HANDS
2. DESTINY
3. FARAWAY
4. FOUNDATION
5. SKY AT NIGHT (Featuring Phil Collins)
6. WHERE YES MEANS NO
7. OFF WITH THE KING’S HEAD
8. MORE THAN WORDS
9. SHOOTING STAR
PART 1 – FROM THE TOP
PART 2 – COMMON GROUND
PART 3 – ICELAND ON THE ROCKS
PART 4 – SHOOTING STAR
10. FOR A LIFETIME
11. DO WHAT YOU WANT
DISC TWO: THE MARS TAPES
1. OUT OF OUR HANDS
2. FOUNDATION/DESTINY/FARAWAY
3. SOMEWHERE OVER THE RAINBOW BAR AND GRILL
4. DO WHAT YOU WANT
5. DANCING MAN
6. SOMETHING’S COMING
7. THE FALL OF THE EMPIRE
8. WHEN THE BANKS OVERFLOW
9. ASCENDING TO THE PLANET MARS
10. AS SILENCE PREVAILS
DISC THREE: THE REST OF EMPIRE
1. EVERYTHING CHANGES
2. SKY AT NIGHT (MARK II VERSION)
3. STILL OUT OF OUR HANDS
4. GOODBYE
5. DESTINY (MARK II VERSION)
6. SOMEONE WHO CARES
7. AIN’T THAT PECULIAR
8. DANCING MAN
9. HEAR MY VOICE ON THE RADIO
10. WHO (Featuring Ray Bennett)
Mabel Greer’s Toyshop: The Secret Is Out… A new song was written to celebrate 50 years of Peter Banks and Chris Squire joining the group in 1967.
London- On a new Mabel Greer’s Toyshop album “The Secret” to be released on December 15, and for the first time in 50 years, Peter Banks and Clive Bayley are heard playing a guitar duo. Clive has written a new song around previously recorded guitar parts by Peter Banks. The song is included on the album as a tribute to Peter Banks and Chris Squire joining Mabel Greer in September 1967. “I did it because a reading of Peter’s passing in 2013 was the catalyst for meeting Bob Hagger again and coming up with the crazy idea of re-forming Mabel Greer. The result is that we have produced two new albums since then, and released re-mastered BBC tapes from 1967 on the EP ‘Images’”, said Clive.
Clive and Bob first met in 1966 – a time when the London underground music scene was an impressive force for the future development of a different kind of rock music. Clive at sixteen years old, had already been playing music in a band since the age of 13, he was writing his own compositions and already had an idea of what kind of music he wanted to perform. Bob had previously been for an audition in the band ‘The Syn’. The bass player happened to be Chris Squire and the guitarist Peter Banks, it wasn’t long before they both joined Bob and Clive in Mabel Greer’s Toyshop and the seeds of ‘Yes’ were planted. In early 1968, Jon Anderson also joined the group, in June Bill Bruford replaced Bob and Tony Kaye joined on keyboards. But in August of that year, Clive left the band and they changed the name to ‘Yes’.
Fast forward to 2013, Clive met Bob again for the first time in 45 years! Both now in their sixties. The first thing Clive said to Bob was “let’s get into the studio, see if we still have the old magic”. The result became the album “New Way Of Life” featuring Billy Sherwood and Tony Kaye, released in 2015.
This new album of 9 songs “The Secret” with Max Hunt on keyboards and Hugo Barré on bass will be available on or before December 15, 2017, on CD and digital download at: https://mabelgreerstoyshop.bandcamp.com
Special thanks to Daniel Earnshaw of QEDG Management for providing the Peter Banks recordings.
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