antiMusic’s Morley Seaver recently conducted an interview with former YES vocalist Jon Anderson. In the interview Anderson talks about his new solo album and more. Excerpts from the interview are below:

antiMusic: Congrats on Survival. It’s an amazing record and by far my favourite solo record by you. It’s a very interesting concept that you developed for this record. Tell us how it went from a germ of an idea to reality?

Jon Anderson: “Well, first of all I put an ad of sorts on the website and said I wanted to collaborate with people and I got all kinds of responses. So basically I started working with people once or twice a week and within two years I had a lot of people that I was working with and am still working with on the albums. Eventually I ended up with a lot of songs in a lot of different styles. Finally I had enough for one album, actually three albums so I decided to finish it and put it out and I was curious to see how people would react to the project.”

antiMusic: How many responses did you get and how many of them were actual serious entries?

Jon Anderson: “ I think I had over 100 but I ended up finishing up with about 20 people that I work with on a general basis. And every now and again someone will send me some music through the website that just fits somehow -I just got something interesting a week ago - and so I’m working with different people on different projects.”

antiMusic: So you’re looking at this as an ongoing project, not just limited to a one-time cattle call sort of thing?

Jon Anderson: “I think it will be an ongoing thing because there are a lot of very talented people out there and I’m very happy to work with them. So we’ve opened up some new avenues for me musically to work on, you know? So I’m very, very pleased at how this is all developing.”

antiMusic: For somebody that has always steered away from the commercial alleyways, what are your thoughts now looking back at the 90125/MTV era?

Jon Anderson: “Well, it was very exciting. When we started touring that album - which I love - because I love that production and I love the idea of that album. And my idea was that OK, I’ll do this record and then on the next one I’ll go back and help steer it back to longer songs because I loved the idea of more people getting exposed to longer-form music. But of course the guys didn’t want that and the record company didn’t want that. So they kept me out of the way for Big Generator and I did an album or two with VANGELIS. But I was glad I was in on 90125 because I thought the recording was amazing and the production was amazing. And then I went to see a movie called Spinal Tap and that changed my whole concept (laughs). But it was beautiful. It was good in one’s lifetime to become a mega-star for ten minutes, you know (laughs). But I wanted to take them on the next direction…another journey. I had so many dreams and ideas but they didn’t want to do that, so ….”

Read the whole interview at this location.

Anderson and RICK WAKEMAN will be playing a select number of engagements this coming fall.

The tour is being produced by Metropolitan Talent Presents and is booked by Keith Naisbitt of Los Angeles based Agency for the Performing Arts. John Scher co-CEO of Metropolitan says, "We are incredibly proud to be presenting the North American debut of this legendary duo! Jon and Rick ARE the voice and sound of YES, as well as famously successful solo performers! This tour will be areal treat for their legions of fans."

Tour dates include:

October

19 - Potawatomi Casino - Milwaukee, WI
22 - Carnegie Music Hall of Homestead - Munhall, PA
23 - Lisner Auditorium - Washington, DC
24 - Concert Hall - New York, NY
26 - Kleinhans Music Hall - Buffalo, NY
27 - The Palace Theatre - Albany, NY
29 - Tropicana Casino Resort - Atlantic City, NJ
30 - Temple Performing Arts Center - Philadelphia, PA

November

1 - Capitol Center for the Arts - Concord, NH
2 - The Ridgefield Playhouse - Ridgefield, CT
4 - Count Basie Theatre - Red Bank, NJ
5 - Sherman Theatre - Stroudsburg, PA
6 - Theatre at Westbury - Westbury, NY
8 - Hanover Theatre - Worcester, MA
10 - Grande Theatre du Quebec - Quebec City, QC
12 - St. Denis Theatre - Montreal, QC