Oliver Wakeman News 2019

Oliver will apear as part of Roman Guzmans show this evening - the show is being broadcast on https://www.facebook.com/romanguzman and the show starts at 7pm PST.

The website has now been updated with some reviews of the Yes record From a Page from various websites. We will continue to add more to the site as we find them!

Trinity - the long awaited album by Rodney Matthews & Jeff Scheetz with Oliver Wakeman is released today!

This was a nice thing to see from Burning Shed just before Christmas. From a Page was the second best selling item for the whole of 2019 even though it was only released in the last quarter!

My recent interview with Garry Foster is on the Prog Rock Files Show this coming Thursday 12th December from 10pm on 101.8WCR FM and online at wcrfm.com

PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE • RODNEY MATTHEWS & OLIVER WAKEMAN

'IN THE BLEAK MIDWINTER' Christmas Single to be released 29 NOVEMBER 2019

Internationally acclaimed fantasy artist and drummer Rodney Matthews and award-winning composer and Yes keyboardist Oliver Wakeman have joined forces once again to deliver yet another stunning art and music package, this time in the form of a Christmas Single - expect to feel a sense of nostalgia, before being brought back to the present by an outburst of prog that is sure to rock your Christmas!

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Painted to the lyrics of the much-loved carol In the Bleak Midwinter, Matthews' vision is of a windswept snowscape, braved only by a couple of hardy Highland cows, while the residents of the medieval village are indoors making merry. The image inspired a new arrangement of the Gustav Holst classic, with a whole new section written and arranged into it by Wakeman.  The track is both gutsy and elegant in equal measures.  Alongside Matthews on drums and Wakeman on piano and keyboards is David Mark Pearce on guitars, Steve Amadeo on bass and Pete Coleman on recorder. Vocals are provided by Miv Cameron and Charlotte Dickerson. 

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In the Bleak Midwinter is available on CD format, with both a Carol Edit and Radio Edit included, at www.rodneymatthewsstudios.com.

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For more information or for interviews please contact:
Sarah Matthews, Partner (Manager and Agent), Rodney Matthews Studios
Email: sarah@rodneymatthewsstudios.com

Oliver will be appearing as the guest on the NewEARS Prog Show.
The show airs on Saturday from 2pm to 4pm and Sunday from 7pm to 9pm EST. It can be heard on Delicious Agony deliciousagony.com.
The podcast will rest here - newearsprogshow.libsyn.com

The guys from the Yes Music Podcast have devoted a entire show to discussing the From A Page album in great detail. It can be heard here...

Great news!

You can hear the new YES track "To The Moment" from the "From A Page" Box set on the Livewire Network show over the next 3 weeks on around 25 radio stations across the UK.

For details of which stations the show will be featured on please see here - Steve Osborne https://steveosborne.info/live-wire/ 

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If you have a favourite radio station please feel free to phone them up and ask them to play the track too!

I was delighted to be invited onto this podcast to discuss the new Yes From A Page CD by the hosts Kevin Mulryne and Mark Anthony K. I had a great time chatting to them about Yes history and how the new album came about.

It can be heard here...

The recently released Yes album 'From a Page' has entered the UK official rock charts at #23

YES is pleased to announce the release of a promo video for ”To the Moment”. This is a single mix which is available on the vinyl release of 'From A Page'

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It can be viewed on Oliver's YouTubeChannel

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Please consider subscribing whilst you're there!

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The track comes from the the recently released “From a Page” five piece box set and vinyl which is exclusively available here:  burningshed.com/store/yes

Featuring the line up of Chris Squire, Steve Howe, Alan White, Oliver Wakeman and Benoit David. This line-up toured extensively between 2008 and 2011.

THE PUBLICITY CONNECTION

UK and INTERNATIONAL PRESS AND PROMOTION SERVICES

Album Release ******Album Release ******Album Release

Legendary Prog Rock band YES reveals four previously unreleased 2010 recordings, on the new ‘From A Page’ five piece mini-box set, personally overseen by ex-member Oliver Wakeman. OUT NOW!

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25th October 2019:  YES has returned to the recordings made in late 2010 to mix the four completed tracks as new content for a miniature five piece box set of recordings from that era.

The box features two booklets and three discs containing the four studio tracks and Live From Lyon 2009, all of which were recorded by the line-up of Chris Squire, Steve Howe, Alan White, Benoit David and Oliver Wakeman:

1. To The Moment (6:09)

2. Words on a Page (6:18)

3. From the Turn of a Card (3:24)

4. The Gift of Love (9:52)

Oliver Wakeman has personally overseen the preparation of the previously unreleased recordings which were mixed by Karl Groom and mastered by Mike Pietrini. 

The box and one of the booklets features new artwork by Roger Dean, and the graphic design was undertaken by Oliver Wakeman, plus the set also includes his newly written liner notes about his time in the band.

The double CD album Live From Lyon was first released in 2010 and this edition restores “Second Initial” which was previously a Japanese only bonus track.  The booklet for Live From Lyon has been re-designed and expanded.

Steve Howe described the project as “Good music never goes away or lays down to the commercial pressures that exist. Oliver's compositions, “To the Moment”, “Words on a Page” and “From the Turn of a Card” demonstrate his musicality and talents, while “The Gift of Love” explores the collaborative essence of Yes, pooling ideas and then working together on its arrangement, whilst utilising all of its many themes and variations. Karl Groom and Roger Dean both contributed their skills towards making this a worthy further 'page' in Yes' long and diverse musical adventures." 

Oliver Wakeman says: “Following Chris Squire’s passing, I felt that the new music we'd created, but not released, should be heard and not sit unfinished on a shelf. And with Steve, Alan and Benoit's enthusiasm for the project, I am proud to know that this music will get to see the light of day and, hopefully, be enjoyed by YES fans as a piece of previously hidden Yes history.” 

Alan White added: “I'm pleased to see a gem of YES history coming to fruition in the form of this mini box set. New songs from the past and I'm hoping we can find even more music in the archives for future releases.”

The set is IN STOCK NOW and exclusively available from the band’s own Burning Shed store and it cannot be bought in the shops or on Amazon.

The mini-box set and a vinyl release of the new songs are exclusively available here:

https://burningshed.com/store/yes

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For product, interviews, more information and jpgs please contact:

E-mail: sharon@thepublicityconnection.com

Tel: (020) 8450 8882 

Twitter: @PRConnect

Website: www.thepublicityconnection.com

It has taken quite a while to rebuild the website and import all the information from the old one but it is now nearly finished!

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It is now fully responsive (ie works on a mobile) but should you find anything not working please do let us know.

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There are a few things left to do, a bit of tidying up, a few new projects to add to the albums page and a store to set up but hopefully you'll all like the new look.

Special thanks to Leandro Vivas M. for the Main photograph in the background and to Robert Knight for the main profile image,

In the Bleak Mid Winter - Rodney Matthews & Oliver Wakeman

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This is a new arrangement of the well loved Christmas carol which will be part of a Christmas Card/CD package. It has been great fun to do and is nearing completion (hopefully before Christmas...). The recording is all being finalised on the weekend of the 14th September and the mix begins the following week.

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It will feature Rodney on Drums as well as Steve Amadeo, who played bass on the album Ravens and Lullabies I recorded with Gordon Giltrap. Miv Cameron is supplying the vocals and I have been tasked with writing a new section and arranging it into the original piece along with adding far too many keyboard parts...

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It will also feature David Mark Pearce on guitars - some of you may remember Dave from my "Mother's Ruin" album and Oliver Wakeman Band "Coming to Town" CD/DVD. It's the first time we've worked together in some time and we've had a great time catching up.

I was recently interviewed for PROG magazines '100 Prog Icons' article and I chose the ex-Marillion singer 'Fish' as my choice. I have always been a big fan of Fish's work and was honoured when he asked me to consider becoming part of his band.

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Unfortunately it didn't come to pass due to various reasons but when Prog approached me for this article it gave me a chance to talk about my admiration for his Vigil in a Wilderness of Mirrors album.
 

On the 11th May I performed two acoustic Piano sets at the Assembly Halls in Leamington Spa as part of the Trinity Annual Charity concert.

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This was a lovely show in between the morning and evening sets and was in a separate location surrounded by Rodney Matthews artwork. One of which was the original sketch for 'The Boy' from the front of the Jabberwocky album. (It's now in my studio!)

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My portion of the show raised money for my chosen charity, The Friends of Alderman Knight School. It is a charitable trust which supports the main school, Alderman Knight; a very successful and well-established special school for children aged 4 to 19 with moderate and additional learning difficulties, complex needs and Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD).
 

Wildest Dreams - Light Freedom Revival

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I was asked by John Vehadija to be involved in this CD single release of a 'Yesified' version of the Taylor Swift song. Also appearing on the record is Billy Sherwood and Steve Howe's son Dylan Howe!

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More information can be found at lightfreedomrevival.com