Would you want a song about Taylor Hawkins on the new album?

[rabin105]

Simple question...


for me the answer is yes Davison is at his strongest when doing emotional stuff (Subway Walls, Light of the Ages, The Ice Bridge, A Living Island, and Future memories) so any chance for him to do that on the new album will always be welcomed by me.

[Mr. Holland]

Not especially. If Davison wants to turn it into a general song about grieve, loss and friendship, using his bond with Hawkins as an inspiration that could be good, but I don’t especially need a specific tribute to him.

[True]

No, I don't want that- but if the band wanted to do it, then they should do that.

[Gilly Goodness]

WishYouWereHere is a good example of a song bein' about loss and grief and bein' done in a universal way.

Stuck in a Moment was about Michael Hutchense.

Any others?

[Chrisklenox]

I feel like it’s kind of ghoulish to wish for that. Jon’s childhood friend dying should not be used as a springboard to get a good performance out of Jon for our enjoyment and dissection. I feel like wishing for the next album to have a dedication in the liner notes would be a more appropriate, reasonable, and humane thing to wish for, especially considering how Taylor was a friend of the whole band. Death is a real thing. If Jon happens to write about it, fine, but I think it’s out of line for us to wish for him to do so so that we may benefit from his loss and grief. Just my two cents given with peace and love as Ringo might say.

[Yorkshire Square]

Candle in the Wind was about Marilyn Monroe, Life is Real is about John Lennon. I'm sure Hawkins was a great guy and a good friend, but he was no Lennon.

[rabin105]

I feel like it’s kind of ghoulish to wish for that. Jon’s childhood friend dying should not be used as a springboard to get a good performance out of Jon for our enjoyment and dissection. I feel like wishing for the next album to have a dedication in the liner notes would be a more appropriate, reasonable, and humane thing to wish for, especially considering how Taylor was a friend of the whole band. Death is a real thing. If Jon happens to write about it, fine, but I think it’s out of line for us to wish for him to do so so that we may benefit from his loss and grief. Just my two cents given with peace and love as Ringo might say.

No disrespect intended and I apologize

[Yesed]

I’d rather a song about Ron Wood first, then maybe. I know he’s still alive, but I still think id be a better song.

[downbyariver]

I'm not against it, but I'm not pushing for it either. Yes didn't do songs about Peter Banks or Chris Squire after they passed away, and they were founding members of the band, and in one case someone who had played on every studio album up until the point of his death. So, I don't see why there would be a special impetus to do a song for Taylor Hawkins, who wasn't a member of Yes, or even a session/touring musician/someone they purchased a song from.

I understand that he was very important to his friends and family, and to Foo Fighters fans, as well as to Jon Davison personally, but Yes doesn't have a history of doing songs about band members' best friends dying either (John Wetton, for example).

And of course with a band that started in the late 1960s, and which has had 20+ members over 20+ albums and 50+ years, plus touring musicians, sessions musicians, and prominent side project companions and friends, there is a simple sad but obvious likelihood that there will be a lot of important deaths inside or related to the Yes family to come.

I don't think we want that many songs about people who've died. It's a bit of a downer and could get repetitive.

With all that said, if Juano feels like he really needs to do the song and can do it in such a way that he'll break new ground while staying within the Yes sound, and that everyone will love it a lot more than simply doing an unrelated song, then I'd be fine with that. Otherwise, he could always do it and release it as a solo thing if he felt called to do so.

I just don't see a need for Yes to go there as a band unless they have a tremendously compelling related song idea, though. I think this would be more something the Foo Fighters might do, if any band does, though many of them were in Nirvana and I am not sure they did a Cobain related track.

It might be more in keeping with how these things usually go for Jon to dedicate a pre-existing Yes song to Taylor on the next live tour and leave it at that.