The Close to the Edge Tour was a concert tourbyprogressive rock band Yes in promotion of their 1972 album, Close to the Edge. Lasting from 30 July 1972 until 22 April 1973, and including 97 performances,[1] the tour began at the Dallas Memorial Auditorium, and ended at the West Palm Beach AuditoriuminWest Palm Beach, Florida.[2][3] The tour was Alan White's first with the band.[3]
| World tourbyYes | |
| Location |
|
|---|---|
| Associated album | Close to the Edge |
| Start date | 30 July 1972 |
| End date | 22 April 1973 |
| Legs | 7 |
| No. of shows | 97 (104 scheduled) |
| Yes concert chronology | |
| |
Recordings from the tour—both film and audio—were included on the band's 1973 live album, Yessongs.[4] The filmed performance was recorded at the December 1972 shows at the London Rainbow Theatre.[5]
Eleven songs from the tour (with no information about recording dates or locations) were included on the band's 1973 live album, Yessongs—the excerpt from Stravinsky's Firebird Suite, "Siberian Khatru", "Heart of the Sunrise", "And You and I", "Mood for a Day", excerpts from Wakeman's The Six Wives of Henry VIII, "Roundabout", "I've Seen All Good People", "Close to the Edge", "Yours Is No Disgrace", and "Starship Trooper".[4]
Film footage of the 15–16 December 1972 shows at the London Rainbow Theatre was the source of the 1975 film Yessongs. Fans determined that "Close to the Edge" and "Starship Trooper" from the film were the same versions from the 1973 album.[6] With the release in 2015 of the box set Progeny: Seven Shows from Seventy-Two containing concert recordings from between 31 October and 20 November 1972, in Canada and the United States, it became possible to identify the dates of most of the remaining performances from the album.
The line-up for the tour unchanged throughout its duration; the line-up was the seventh incarnation of Yes.[7] Bill Bruford left the band on 19 July 1972, after the recording sessions for Close to the Edge had finished.[8] Alan White joined the band by the end of the month, after a number of dates had been cancelled in the wake of Bruford's departure.[5] As he played on the album but was replaced for the tour Bruford was contractually obliged to share album royalties with White, and claims that Yes manager Brian Lane enforced a compensation payment of $10,000 from Bruford.[9]
The tour saw the band play a total of 97 concerts in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Japan and Australia over seven legs—three North American legs, two European legs, an Asian leg and an Australasian leg.[2]
Support came from Eagles, Gentle Giant, Edgar Winter, Lindisfarne, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Gary Wright, The J Geils Band, Wild Turkey, Badger,[5] and Focus.[3]
Setlist:[10]
Encore:
Occasionally played:
Covers:
The tour's first four scheduled shows were cancelled in the wake of Bill Bruford's resignation from the band. When Alan White was confirmed as a member, the tour began at the fifth scheduled show on 30 July 1972.[5] A whole leg, covering South America, was cancelled.[3] Dates and venues were never released, except for the scheduled performance at the Salle University in Acapulco on 1 May 1973.[3]
| Date | City | Country | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 26 July 1972 | Edwardsville | United States | Edwardsville Amphitheatre |
| 27 July 1972 | Louisville | Louisville Convention Center | |
| 28 July 1972 | Memphis | Mid-South Coliseum | |
| 29 July 1972 | Little Rock | Barton Coliseum | |
| 29 March 1973 | Auckland | New Zealand | Western Springs |
| 30 March 1973 | Wellington | Athletic Park | |
| 31 March 1973 | Christchurch | Town Hall | |
| 1 May 1973 | Acapulco | Mexico | Salle University |