UK Music Paper-New Musical Express, 27 March 1971. (Roy Carr)

Jon Anderson and Steve Howe talked about the use of the opening music in the UK music newspaper just a few weeks from starting to do so.

JA: “As far as our concerts are concerned, we intend to reach even wider dimensions by utilising electronic things. For the moment, we open by using a tape of ‘Also Sprach Zarathustra’ from the soundtrack of `2001′, played through the P.A. and believe me it really wakes up the audience and makes them most attentive.”

SH: “Without being pretentious, we have plans to play half-an-hour of popular classics on tape prior to us actually going on stage. We feel that it will put both the band and the audience in a relaxed mood, also to give some people their first chance of hearing some of the finest music ever written and performed.”

The link with the 2001 movie for this piece of music was probably a little too strong for YES as they moved forward and so it had been two years since it’s cinematic release, so perhaps maybe a call for change was needed, likely it would have been Jon who suggested a piece by one of his favourite composers, the Firebird Suite to replace this epic and legendary piece of music?

YES seen here on of the infamous ‘Highland’ bootleg makers CD covers about one month from the first date they began to use the opening music Sprach Zarathustra for a show. Interesting as it shows Chris Squire on the left of stage for some of these early shows, maybe battling with Tony Kaye on the Hammond organ was too much of a clash of sound and too near the big Lesley cabinet speaker system and so moving across to the front right for most of the rest of his career. The opening can be seen to last 1.27 seconds, it’s not totally clear as to how long it was played every night as the recordings from these early dates are based on when someone would press record on their tape deck.

The bootlegged YES show at The Berlin Arts Festival, Germany 27 March 1971. Track 1 showing as Also Sprach Zarathustra. © unknown

This is a rare UK music paper clipping discussing the failed use of the entrance music on the 4 March 1971. The last performance of the 2001 theme was at the Saturday, July 31, 1971 Crystal Palace Bowl show in England.

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