A few days ago, I returned home after completing the third and final leg of the 2026 YES Epics, Classics and More tour with Jon Anderson & The Band Geeks, a run of dates which took us to the UK (11 shows), Sweden (two shows), Poland (two shows) and Paris (one show). We were out for almost six weeks. I can’t remember the last time I was out on a continuous run of dates for that long without a trip home in between.
I’m happy to say that the entire run went very well. Most of the shows were sellouts, and the audience response was fantastic. On more than a few occasions, the audience stopped the show with standing ovations, and—though many of those ovations happened after fan favorites like “Starship Trooper” or “And You And I”—there were more than a few times it happened after songs from True, the album released by Jon & The Band Geeks in 2024. It amazes me to hear Jon sing as if the clock’s been turned back 40 years. That man brings it, and so does the band.
Routing for the tour was quite civil, especially compared to some of the insane traveling I’ve done with other bands. We never played two days in a row, and max per week was three shows. Given the overall pace, I had some time to do some geeky, touristy things. Here’s a couple of highlights.
LIVERPOOL
Undoubtedly one of my favorite cities on the tour, and being a Beatles aficionado didn’t hurt. I went to see John’s and Paul’s boyhood homes (I knocked, but no one answered), and visited Strawberry Fields, Penny Lane and the Cavern Club.
Previously unbeknownst to me, part of Strawberry Fields is the Sir George and Lady Judy Martin Rose Garden. Alas, we were there too late in the season to see the roses bloom, but we did see a commemorative wall showing Number One Singles in the UK produced by Sir George from artists including Cilla Black. Gerry & The Pacemakers and, of course, The Mop Tops.
Surprisingly, the Cavern Club was not a tourist trap. Admission was a mere £6, and for that there was live entertainment and no minimum. Naturally, I had a pint with my buddy Drew while we soaked in the history of the room. I could imagine what it must have been like in there on a hot summer night, packed with rabid Beatles fans screaming along with “A Hard Day’s Night.” And I’m sure many a soundperson shuddered at the thought of trying to mix in that small, all-brick room with low ceilings. Yikes.
STONEHENGE
Our routing from Bath to London took us too close to Stonehenge to pass it by. How could we not visit and pay our respects to Spinal Tap?! It’s an interesting place and it does make you wonder, how did those stones get there? A Higher Power? Aliens? Leftovers from a previous Tap tour (oh, wait, those props were 18 inches). Lucky for us, the weather was okay, but if it’s cold and/or rainy, you’re in for a miserable time.
PARIS
Our last stop was Le Bataclan in Paris. We arrived on the evening of October 11, but the show wasn’t until the 13th, so I had an entire day off before the show. Woo-hoo!! Time to do some more touristy things: a visit to the Père Lachaise Cemetery, with stops at the burial sites of Frédéric Chopin, Jim Morrison and Victor Noir. I’m really not a fan of The Doors, so don’t tell anyone. It was the rock ‘n’ roll thing to do.
The name Victor Noir may not be familiar so check out the photo.
And with that thought still festering in my brain, off I went to see the Notre Dame Cathedral—which was absolutely beautiful despite the presence of quite a bit of scaffolding as the reconstruction continues.
As I walked the inside perimeter, I noticed a few chapels where priests were taking confessions. I decided to wait, thinking maybe I could cleanse my soul. When my turn was up, a priest emerged, but he didn’t speak English. “Perfect!” or so I thought. “I can babble my shortcomings for the past 45 years to someone who might not understand what I was saying anyway.”
• Discover more great stories—get a free Mix SmartBrief subscription!
Padre wasn’t having it. He directed me to another chapel where I might have found an English-speaking priest, save for the fact that the confessional was unmanned. Lucky for me. I don’t think there’d have been enough time before load-in the next A.M. anyway.
