Yes. With Syd Arthur. 8 p.m. July 30. $49.50-$125.50. Symphony Hall, Woodruff Arts Center, 1280 Peachtree St., Atlanta. 404-733-4900, atlantasymphony.org.
The first time Yes drummer Alan White had to play songs from the 1972 album “Close to the Edge,” it was under less than ideal circumstances.
He was replacing Bill Bruford, who had participated in the recording of the album, and White had all of three days to learn the songs from “Close to the Edge” as well as other material Yes planned for its tour behind the album.
“It was pure insanity,” White recalled in a phone interview. “You wake up quite a lot, all day eating and sleeping Yes music. And I didn’t really have any hands-on rehearsal with the band. I think we did play together for an hour once, and then the equipment had to leave or something. So, for me, it was like jumping into the deep end. All of a sudden I was in front of 10,000 people in Dallas all screaming their heads off and I had to play everything right.”
White has played the songs from “Close to the Edge” countless times since then, as he has remained the drummer in Yes for the vast majority of the 40 years since then.
This summer, he’s once again playing that entire “Close to the Edge” album — plus the album that preceded it, the 1971 release “Fragile.” The group then finishes its show with an encore featuring hits and a couple of songs from the new Yes album, “Heaven & Earth,” which was released July 22.
The tour plays Symphony Hall Wednesday.
“Fragile” and “Close to the Edge” are considered two of the most important albums in the career of the influential progressive-rock band.
“Fragile,” with its hit single, “Roundabout,” became Yes’ first hit album. Then came “Close to the Edge,” which marked the group’s full-on move into writing extended pieces. The title track took up an entire side of the vinyl LP, while two other tracks, “Siberian Khatru” and “And You and I,” made up the other side.
The group encountered internal conflicts as the 1980s arrived and broke up for a short time before returning with a revamped lineup and more of straightforward pop-rock sound. The new sound connected with an audience, as the 1983 album “90125” (with the hit song “Owner of a Lonely Heart”) sold 6 million copies.
The next album, “Big Generator” (1987), became another major success, as “Love Will Find a Way” topped Billboard’s Mainstream Rock singles chart.
“Heaven & Earth” marks the start of a new phase for Yes, as it’s the first album to feature singer Jon Davison. He turned out to be a major songwriting contributor, writing the lyrics and some of the music and vocal melodies on the new album.
White said he doesn’t think “Heaven & Earth” calls to mind any specific previous Yes album, although there are songs scattered throughout the band’s catalog that could serve as reference points for what the group did on the new collection.
“We enjoyed making that album,” he said of “Heaven & Earth,” which was produced by Roy Thomas Baker (famous for his work with Queen and the Cars). “It seems to fit in with the other Yes material to me. I think when you mix songs from that album and the other material, it all starts making more sense.”
“Heaven & Earth” adds to a catalog that fans long have felt merited a spot for the group in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. But Yes wasn’t even nominated until last year. However, with Rush having made it into the Hall in 2012 and Kiss last year — two bands of similar vintage that, like Yes, haven’t been critics’ favorites — some feel Yes’ time will come soon.
That would be fine with White, although he said no one in Yes loses sleep thinking about the Rock and Roll Hall.
“Everybody in the world keeps saying ‘You guys better get in next year,’” White said. “I think the band’s attitude is, if it happens, it happens. We’re very happy carrying along like we are right now.”
