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Topic ClosedYes covering "Watcher of the Skies" in 70's?

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cstack3 View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Topic: Yes covering "Watcher of the Skies" in 70's?
    Posted: July 13 2011 at 12:53
This popped up on Facebook's Notes from the Edge.  Very intriguing....I have no doubt that many bands of the era experimented with tunes by other bands, so I think it is plausible.  

Do we think it is authentic?  Squire's bass sounds like the real deal, and the heavy Hammond tone suggests Tony Kaye. Otherwise, I'm not sure.  

Can anyone else think of artists covering each others' tunes?  When Yes was reaching out to Fripp to replace Peter Banks, I remember reading that Squire visited Fripp's flat, and the two of them jammed to "Cat Food"!  


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Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 13 2011 at 13:20
Interesting.  Do they have a date for the recording?  And maybe it's just the sound quality, but it doesn't sound like Jon singing until the end.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 13 2011 at 13:31
Maybe... 
It could also be The Watch doing the song with a murky recording sound. After all they did start out as a Genesis tribute band, and I think it sounds way too much like Gabriel to be Jon. But yeah it could be the real deal I´m not sure, after all stranger things have happened.  
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 13 2011 at 13:48
Sounds phony to me, especially combining the "I get up, I get down" part at the end.

Jon Anderon's voice is unmistakable, and that isn't him (the inflections don't even match).

The drumming sounds nothing like Bruford's style.

The guitar playing is definitely not Howe.

If anything, it could be members of the two bands doing the song together, but I highly doubt that too.




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Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 13 2011 at 15:08
In his autobiography, Bruford noted (with great disappointment) that none of the big prog bands ever covered each other's music, and repeatedly noted that his work with Genesis began after Crimson.  I'd think he would have mentioned this.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 13 2011 at 15:11
Definitely not JA singing

Interesting interpretation, though.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 13 2011 at 15:17
Not Yes. At the time Yes was much more popular than Genesis so if anything I could see Genesis doing a Yes song, not vice versa.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 13 2011 at 15:51
I tend to agree, this might be a generated hoax (as some YouTube commenters noted), or something else.  

Perhaps the classic prog bands missed an opportunity back in the day....artists like John Wetton eventually did very well with "Watcher of the Skies," Hackett & Wetton's version of "ITCOTCK" was sublime, and various other tribute compilations showed what might have been.  

However, this one smells funny....




Edited by cstack3 - July 13 2011 at 15:51
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 14 2011 at 05:04
Gentle Giant used to play short snippets of Close To The Edge in one of their american tours, and Derek Shulman jokingly presented the band as "the Yes"
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 14 2011 at 07:00
Not Yes for sure, afpr all the reasons already given!
 
But I do feel it has some merit!
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 14 2011 at 07:26
Albums I recommend if you really want to hear prog artists covering other prog artists:
Various Artists (Tributes) - Schizoid Dimension - A Tribute To King Crimson CD (album) cover


These might qualify loosely as well:
Watcher of the Skies: Genesis Revisited  




Edited by Slartibartfast - July 14 2011 at 07:29
Released date are often when it it impacted you but recorded dates are when it really happened...

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Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 14 2011 at 10:08
Similar thread at Prog Ears. Sounds like a mess of a mash, with Gabriels' original vocal being used but slightly distorted and odd bits of Yes instrumentals being cut'n'pasted over. 3 out of ten. 
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 14 2011 at 10:27
One only needs to look at the Youtube comments to realise it's fake: Yes couldn't be playing "Watcher of the skies" in 1969-1970, as the song was written in 1972.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 14 2011 at 11:37
Originally posted by Anthony Anthony wrote:

One only needs to look at the Youtube comments to realise it's fake: Yes couldn't be playing "Watcher of the skies" in 1969-1970, as the song was written in 1972.

Details, details. LOL
Released date are often when it it impacted you but recorded dates are when it really happened...

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Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 14 2011 at 11:52
^Psychic prog - the unveiling of a brand new genre....  
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 16 2011 at 21:42
I don't know - sounds like a load of s' if you ask me.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 21 2011 at 10:45

It just can't be, I'm sure it's not.

La victoire est éphémère mais la gloire est éternelle!

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Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 21 2011 at 11:37
One small(ish) question - why is this recording from a 1970s French pirate radio station in stereo?
 
Another minor point is that the recording's owner (Gilles Lefèvre) says Gabriel was brought to the studio during the Yes session by Jonathan King... another small discrepancy in the chronology I think.
What?
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