Members of YES, Rush, Black Sabbath and more have paid tribute to legendary YES bassist Chris Squire, who has died at the age of 67. Squire, who co-founded the band in 1968 with singer Jon Anderson, was diagnosed with Acute Erythroid Leukemia, an uncommon form of Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML), earlier this year. 

The band confirmed his death in a statement: “It’s with the heaviest of hearts and unbearable sadness that we must inform you of the passing of our dear friend and Yes co-founder, Chris Squire. Chris peacefully passed away last night in Phoenix Arizona. We will have more information for you soon.”

Squire was the only member to appear on each of their 21 studio albums, released from 1969 to 2014.



Jon Anderson: “Chris was a very special part of my life; we were musical brothers. He was an amazingly unique bass player - very poetic - and had a wonderful knowledge of harmony. We met at a certain time when music was very open, and I feel blessed to have created some wonderful, adventurous, music with him.  Chris had such a great sense of humor... he always said he was Darth Vader to my Obiwan. I always thought of him as Christopher Robin to my Winnie the Pooh. We travelled a road less travelled and I'm so thankful that he climbed the musical mountains with me. Throughout everything, he was still my brother, and I'm so glad we were able to reconnect recently. I saw him in my meditation last night, and he was radiant. My heart goes out to his family and loved ones. Love and light....."

Rush’s Geddy Lee: “Although we never met, I’m so sorry to hear about Chris Squire from Yes passing. As a bass player and innovator on the instrument he was a huge inspiration to me. Simply put, he was one of the greatest rock bassists of all time. My most sincere condolences to his family and friends.” 

Black Sabbath’s Geezer Butler: “Shocked to hear of the passing of Chris Squire, one of the great bass players. RIP.”

Matt Sorum (Velvet Revolver, Guns N’ Roses, The Cult): “Lost the great bassist Chris Squire of Yes today, he was an incredible visionary in the progressive world and a very kind man, he was actually the first rockstar I met in 1974. I was 14 and snuck backstage with my friend , he gave us passes and let us stay. Later in life we crossed paths in Hollywood and I ended up jamming with him long hours in the hills at his home in Laurel Canyon over drinks and other assorted fun. We dove into musical expression and many laughs along the way. He challenged me to learn the entire album Tales from Topographic Oceans which is a tough being it is four songs of 20 mins each. I gave it my best shot and ended up at Chris's house for three days playing it. The progressive world has lost a Giant today, I'm glad I was able to make some incredible noise with you fine sir and will see you on the other side someday.”

Eric Bloom (BLUE ÖYSTER CULT):"A true innovator. RIP."

Adrian Belew (King Crimson): “I’m sorry to hear that Chris Squire is gone. He was a great player in one of the best rock bands ever. He forged his own unique style, something few musicians can say. Chris came to hear The Bears once and loved the band. Later he said in an interview The Bears were the most exciting live band he'd heard since The Who in the 60's. A huge compliment. Speaking of The Who, I know the three bassists who influenced a young Julie Slick were Jack Bruce, John Entwhistle, and Chris Squire. All greats of their time. It's your time now Julie, and you deserve it."

YES will be honouring their commitment to their North American summer tour with Toto, as well as confirming their performances on the Cruise To The Edge in November. Chris's role in the band will be covered by YES alumnus Billy Sherwood.

To quote Chris prior to his death while receiving treatment for Leukemia: "This will be the first time since the band formed in 1968 that YES will have performed live without me. But the other guys and myself have agreed that Billy Sherwood will do an excellent job of covering my parts and the show as a whole will deliver the same YES experience that our fans have come to expect over the years."
 

Like It Is - YES At The Mesa Arts Center is due out on July 3rd in Europe and July 10th in North America. Available in 2CD/DVD, Blu-ray and Digital formats, with a later release planned on vinyl too, this new live album, which follows a similar path to the successful release Like It Is – YES At The Bristol Hippodrome, sees two of the band’s signature albums, 1971’s Fragile, and 1972’s Close To The Edge performed live in their entirety on the band’s 2014 world tour.

Recorded live on Tuesday August 12th, 2014 at the Ikeda Theater in Mesa, AZ, featuring Chris Squire, Steve Howe, Alan White Geoff Downes and Jon Davison, offers an exciting take on two amazing pieces of music which include live staples such as “Roundabout”, “Heart Of The Sunrise”, “And You and I” and the epic “Close To The Edge”.

“That evening in Mesa, Arizona was a great one. The audience was fantastic; they loved the music and really made it a very special night for us. And we were in top form. The music sounded great and we could have played all night,” says YES co-founder and bassist, Chris Squire. “Like It Is brings the magic and wonderful music of that evening to fans everywhere, and we’re sure they’ll enjoy listening to it as much as we did performing it.”

This new live release comes as YES continues one of its most fertile musical periods in their nearly five decade history and is a perfect companion piece to the other retrospective live release,  Like it Is – YES At The Bristol Hippodrome, which included amazing renditions of Going For the One and The Yes Album. Formed in 1968, the band has endured for nearly five decades and remains one of the most popular live touring acts in rock n roll. They have recently announced their US tour with label-mates Toto. All dates and ticket links here.

Tracklisting:

CD1 (LP 1):

“Close To The Edge”
“And You And I”
“Siberian Khatru”

CD2 (LP 2):

“Roundabout”
Cans And Brahms”
“We Have Heaven”
“South Side Of The Sky”
“Five Per Cent For Nothing”
“Long Distance Runaround”
“The Fish (Schindleria Praematurus)”
“Mood For A Day”
“Heart Of The Sunrise”

DVD / Blu-Ray:

“Close To The Edge”
“And You And I”
“Siberian Khatru”
“Roundabout”
“Cans And Brahms”
“We Have Heaven”
“South Side Of The Sky”
“Five Per Cent For Nothing”
“Long Distance Runaround”
“The Fish (Schindleria Praematurus)”
“Mood For A Day”
“Heart Of The Sunrise”

“Heart Of The Sunrise”:

 "South Side Of The Sky":