Chris Squire, Progressive Rock Pioneer and Yes Co-Founder, Dies at 67

Chris Squire
Chris Squire

British progressive rock bassist, vocalist and composer Chris Squire passed away last night, June 27 in Phoenix, Arizona. Chris Squire was the co-founder of legendary progressive rock band Yes and was one of the first bassists in rock music to turn the bass into a solo instrument.

Christopher Russell Edward Squire was born in central London, England on March 4, 1948. He studied music and was a choirboy during his youth. This background gave him a solid background in choir arrangement and vocal techniques. He was initially inspired by English bassists like Paul McCartney and John Entwhistle.

Squire continued to develop his style and became a member of several bands, including The Selfs and The Syn (with Andrew Jackman and Peter Banks), Mabel Greer’s Toyshop (with Peter Banks and Clive Bailey) who co-wrote “Beyond and Before”, which appeared on the first Yes album.

The collaboration between Chris Squire and Jon Anderson sprang from their mutual admiration of vocal groups, especially Simon and Garfunkel. They formed the rock group Yes in 1968 and released their first LP record in 1969. The line-up included vocalist Jon Anderson, Chris Squire on bass, guitarist Peter Banks, drummer Bill Bruford and pianist Tony Kaye. Yes gained vast popularity in the 1970s and have managed to keep a faithful following throughout the past decades.

Their album Time and a Word reached number 45 on the UK Albums Chart. Peter Banks was replaced by guitarist Steve Howe, who became an essential component of the Yes sound. Howe played his first show with Yes at London’s Lyceum Theatre.

The Yes Album, the band’s third, was released in January 1971. It was the first to exclusively feature original compositions, which the band wrote and rehearsed in a rented farmhouse in Devon. Howe quickly established himself as an integral part of the Yes sound, and played a wider variety of instruments including the Spanish vihuela. The Yes Album also united the group with their long-serving producer and engineer Eddie Offord. According to Offord, the recording sessions would last for 12 hours or more.

During the 1970s, Yes released a series of masterful albums that have become classics and reference points in the progressive rock genre: Fragile (1971), Close to the Edge (1972), the live triple album Yessongs (1973), Tales from Topographic Oceans (1973), Relayer (1974) and Going for the One (1977).

The superb lengthy symphony pieces faded away with the following album, Tormato, which took Yes into a more commercial direction, with shorter, pop-style songs.

In July of 2011, Yes released their first studio album in a decade, Fly From Here. Their 20th studio album marked the band’s return with producer, Trevor Horn, who produced the band’s album 90125, in 1983 and also sang for Yes on the Drama album in 1980.

Although the band had many personnel changes over the years, Chris Squire was the only member who survived through the many versions.

“GRAMMY winner and co-founder of the iconic progressive rock band Yes, Chris Squire was an exceptional bass player and talented vocalist,” said Neil Portnow, President/CEO of The Recording Academy. “From his humble beginnings as a church choirboy in London, to selling out arenas worldwide with Yes, it was his commitment to mastering his craft, as well as his enthusiastic demeanor, that made him one of the most respected and influential bass players of all time. We have lost an undeniably gifted musician and our heartfelt condolences go out to Chris’ family and friends, and to all of those he entertained during his impressive career.”

Chris Squire was always credited as the owner of the ‘Yes’ name. Nonetheless, the name is co-owned by Chris Squire, Alan White and Jon Anderson .

Chris Squire’s first solo work was 1975’s Fish Out Of Water, featuring Yes musicians Bill Bruford on drums and Patrick Moraz on keyboards, as well as The Syn and The Selfs musician Andrew Jackman, also on keyboards.

Chris Squire was also a member of the short-lived XYZ (eX -Yes-Zeppelin) in 1981, a group composed of Alan White (Yes) on drums and Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin). XYZ recorded several demo tracks at Chris’ home studio in Virginia Water but never released anything formal.

Squire formed a short-lived band called Cinema, along with his friend Trevor Rabin on guitar, Tony Kaye on keyboard, and drummer Alan White.

Another side project was a band called Conspiracy that included guitarist billy Sherwood. The group’s self-titled debut album contained the foundation of several songs that were to appear on Yes’ recent albums.

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