Trevor Rabin Is “Really Happy” to Be Touring with Yes Spinoff Group ARW

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Credit: Deborah AndersonARW, the new prog-rock group featuring ex-Yes members Jon Anderson, Trevor Rabin and Rick Wakeman, is in the middle of its first tour, and Rabin says it’s the best road experience he’s ever had.

The South African-born guitarist, who played with Yes from 1982 to 1994, tells ABC Radio that he, Wakeman and Anderson had discussed collaborating together again for years, but he kept putting it off as he focused on his work as a film composer.

“At some point Jon and Rick both said, ‘Look, we’re either gonna do this or we’re not,’ and they kind of grabbed me by the throat and said, ‘OK, let’s go,'” explains Trevor. “So, here we are, and I’m really happy I’ve done it.”

Rabin admits that it initially took him a little while to feel comfortable playing live again, since he hadn’t toured for about 17 years.

“Getting back up there was a little bit foreign to me,” he maintains. “But I think after the first five shows, something kicked in and I think we’re really jelling incredibly well now.”

ARW’s concerts have been made up almost entirely of Yes material, and include a mix of the band’s best-known songs and some deeper cuts.

Rabin tells ABC Radio that one if his favorite highlights of the shows has been the group’s performance of “Owner of a Lonely Heart,” Yes’ only #1 hit, during which he and Wakeman both go out into the audience and play dual solos.

“That’s kind of like a Zen moment,” notes Trevor. “[And] every night it becomes more and more intense.”

ARW’s U.S. tour is mapped out through a December 3 concert in Indio, California, and the band will follow that with a European trek in March. Here are all of the band’s upcoming stateside dates:

10/28 — Atlantic City, NJ, Borgata Event Center
10/29 — Akron, OH, Goodyear Theater at East End
11/1 — New York, NY, Beacon Theatre
11/2 — Buffalo, NY, UB Center for the Arts
11/4 — New Buffalo, MI, Four Winds Casino
11/5 — Chicago, IL, Chicago Theatre
11/7 — Nashville, TN, Schermerhorn Symphony Center
11/9 — St. Louis, MO, Fox Theatre
11/11 — New Orleans, LA, Saenger Theatre
11/12 — San Antonio, TX, Majestic Theatre
11/14 — Austin, TX, ACL at the Moody Theater
11/16 — Denver, CO, Paramount Theatre
11/17 — Salt Lake City, UT, Capitol Theater
11/19 — Las Vegas, NV, Pearl Theater at Palms Casino Resort
11/20 — Phoenix, AZ, Celebrity Theatre
11/22 — Los Angeles, CA, Orpheum Theatre
11/25 — San Francisco, CA, Masonic
11/29 — Portland, OR, Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall
11/30 — Seattle, WA, Paramount
12/2 — Anaheim, CA, City National Grove of Anaheim
12/3 — Indio, CA, Fantasy Springs Resort Casino

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