On his new album 1,000 Hands, former Yes frontman Jon Anderson worked with everyone from Chick Corea and Jethro Tull’s Ian Anderson to Jean-Luc Ponty and Journey’s Jonathan Cain. But when it came time to create a video for the single “Makes Me Happy,” he reached much closer to home and recruited members of his immediate family.
“I am very excited for people to hear and see this crazy wonderful video, created by my daughter Deborah and my wife Janee on the spur of the moment one day at home,” says Anderson. “It shows things that make me happy and you can see how much fun we were having by the look on my face. It was hilarious!”
“Makes Me Happy” features guitarist Rick Derringer and the Tower of Power horn section. The simple, homemade video for the song utilizes a green screen to show Anderson traveling all over the world, from Times Square to an exotic beach, while he holds up rock magazines, photos of his family, a toy lion and other things that bring him joy.
Anderson’s 1,000 Hands album began back in 1990 when the singer recorded a handful of songs with his Yes bandmates Alan White and Chris Squire that he never got around to completing. The LP was finished recently by producer Michael Franklin, who recruited a wide array of guest artists, including Yes guitarist Steve Howe. Anderson will support it with a tour that begins at the end of this month. The show will feature a number of Yes songs, including “Owner of a Lonely Heart,” “Roundabout,” “Starship Trooper” and “Sweet Dreams.”
Outside of a one-off at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony in 2017, Anderson hasn’t played with Yes since 2004. They now tour with soundalike Jon Davison on lead vocals, but Anderson still hopes they’ll bring him back some day. “It’s been 50 years now,” he recently told Rolling Stone. “You think something has got to happen. To me, a great album has to be made. That’s what I think. I don’t know how it’s going to be made, but the final Yes event should happen. I’ve talked to a couple of people about it and they get it. I really want to do this.”
Here are the tour dates for Jon Anderson’s 1,000 Hands tour.
March 29th – Lynn, MA @ Lynn Auditorium
March 31st – Cleveland, OH @ Hard Rock Rocksino
April 1st – Annapolis, MD @ Maryland Creative Arts Center
April 3rd – Ridgefield, CT @ Ridgefield Playhouse
April 4th – Englewood, NJ @ Bergen PAC
April 6th – Collingswood, NJ @ Scottish Rite Auditorium
April 7th – Derry, NH @ Tupelo Music Hall
April 9th – Reading, PA @ Santander PAC
April 11th – St. Charles, IL @ Arcadia Theatre
April 12th – Waukegan, IL @ Genesee Theatre
April 14th – Munhall, PA @ Carnegie of Homestead Music Hall
April 15th – Wilkes-Barre, PA @ F.M. Kirby Center
April 19th – Milwaukee, WI @ Marcus Center for the Performing Arts
April 20th – St Paul, MN @ Fitzgerald Theatre
April 23rd – Tucson, AZ @ Fox Tucson Theatre
April 24th – San Diego, CA @ Humphreys Concert by the Bay
April 26th – Beverly Hills, CA @ Saban Theatre
April 27th – Las Vegas, NV @ Cannery Casino
April 30th – Phoenix, AZ @ Van Buren
May 4th – Kansas City, MO @ CrossroadsKC
May 6th – Nashville, TN @ Ryman Auditorium
May 8th – Clearwater, FL @ Capitol Theatre
May 10th – Orlando, FL @ Dr. Phillips Center
May 11th – Biloxi, MS @ Beau Rivage Casino
May 12th – Arlington, TX @ Kaboo Dallas