Oh, the power of the press! After Jon Anderson voiced his feelings of betrayal, it's been announced that the upcoming tour featuring three members of Yes minus singer Anderson -- who has been replaced by a Yes tribute band singer while he recovers from a respiratory ailment -- is not being billed as "Yes".

It is now called the In the Present tour with Chris Squire, Steve Howe and Alan White of Yes. Anderson had been very upset about their decision to go forward without him, saying it was "not Yes" and adding that he felt "very disrespected."

Upon hearing the news that they are no longer billing themselves as Yes, Anderson said, "Strange days, eh!" The tour starts November 4th in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

In an interview with Spinner-dot-com, bassist Chris Squire defends the decision to tour without Anderson, saying, "The Yes fan base in general has been very frustrated that Yes hasn't been doing shows for four years. Of course I wish [Jon] a full recovery, and I hope he'll be well enough to come back at a later date. On the other hand, this might not happen. So we decided to look into, in my own words, getting an understudy for him to fill in."

That understudy is Benoit David who fronts Close to the Edge, a Yes tribute band in Montreal and whose video Squire saw on You Tube. Squire adds that he has not spoken to Anderson and that their manager told Anderson of their decision.

Happy Anniversary, eh? I don't blame Anderson for being P.O.'d.

Jon Anderson's statement from his website had read in part...

"Disappointed, and very Disrespected

Disappointed that, with the exception of one phone call from Alan, none of the guys have been in touch since my illness, just to find out how I am doing, and how we will foresee the future for YES. And disappointed that they were not willing to wait till 2009 when I'm fully recovered.

And I feel very disrespected, having spent most of this year creating songs and constant ideas for the band, creating a stage design...

Getting sick was not "on my radar", and I thank my own angel Janeee and my family for helping me through this difficult time, and the many well wishers, friends and fans alike, for understanding that ''things happen''.

Of course I wish the guys all the best in their 'solo' work, but I just wish this could have been done in a more gentlemanly fashion. After all YES is a precious musical band.

This is not YES on tour...

Rick Wakeman is not participating in the tour citing health concerns but handpicked his son, Oliver, to sit in for him on keyboards.

[Source: Sal Cirrincione, Premiere Radio Network]

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