Concert Review
Rick Wakeman
Electric City
Buffalo, NY
Friday October 11, 2024
Review/Photos: Joseph Suto
The legendary keyboardist Rick Wakeman put on a clinic at Electric City this past week. Wakeman accompanied by a piano and a keyboard setup performed a one man show for his Buffalo diehards. He was initially supposed to play Babeville last year but had to postpone. The keyboardist played a variety of songs throughout his long career.
Wakeman is best known for his time in Yes that included five stints with the band in addition to being a member of ABWH (Anderson, Bruford, Wakeman & Howe) as well as ARW (Anderson, Rabin, Wakeman). He also was a session musician early on his career and also had a successful solo career. All these facets were featured during his set.
Long before he was a member of Yes he did session work and has worked on some amazing songs. “Space Oddity” and “Life On Mars” were just two gems he played on with David Bowie as he told story before performing each.
Of course he could not go without featuring Yes music. Yessonata featured thirty snippets of Yes music to please the fans. He noted how the song came about as he told the story. One thing with Wakeman live is his stories combined with his sense of humor and wit.
Known as Grumpy Rick (he calls himself that as his X handle), this will mark as his final solo tour. Wakeman reached #3 on the album charts with his 1974 release Journey To The Centre Of the Earth release. An amazing feat for that period of time. His encore featured that album and was a glorious way to bring the evening to a close.
Setlist
Jane Seymour
Catherine Howard
Space Oddity/Life on Mars? (David Bowie covers)
King Arthur Theme/Guinevere/The Last Battle/Merlin the Magician
Yessonata
Help!/Eleanor Rigby (The Beatles covers)
Encore
Journey to the Center of the Earth
