Don't forget, Bruford walked in '73 before their "Close to the Edge" tour, and they found Alan White. He learned the whole album, and all their other stuff. Three days later he embarked on this major tour with them. He's great. Listen to "Sound Chaser".
Alan may not be as technical a drummer as Bruford, but his sense of groove cannot be dismissed. Alan White is as solid as they come, could tackle Bill's old parts with relative ease, and could also play odd time signatures that swung like crazy ("Machine Messiah" comes to mind). Bruford liked to play patterns and improvise, and White just liked to lay down solid time, and both drummers were legends in their own right. Two different drummers who handled the drummer role in Yes magnificently.
RIP Alan, Amazing duet.... Dear Alan thanks for your fantastic rolls and solid groove. It still sounds in my head your breaks in instant Karma are wonderful...
P.S. Some Yes fans may recognize the snare pattern as part of the opening of "Mind Drive" (which Chris & Alan demoed w/ Jimmy Page as part of the aborted XYZ project), and Yes later fleshed out and recorded in 1995/6. Imagine if all 8 musicians on the Union tour had cut an album after the tour (as Jon had wanted), and an extensive double drum section had led into the ominous Squire bass riff- would have been pretty sweet.
Comparison between the two is like comparing Emerson and Wakeman. Both exceptional artists. I prefer White, he has a funkier kind of groove. Excellent drummers, both.
Wish they had stayed together longer in that format. Union was ace. All that talent in one band. What they could of done, maybe another one or two albums. 👍
I'm so sick of hearing how everybody hates Union. I've seen Yes 11 times over the years and I think it was a truly magical show and I love the album. I get how there was all kinds of bad blood between the guys at the time but the album itself is wonderful. The music is very uplifting and the playing is stellar as always. When I hear how they called it "Onion" because it would make them cry, it saddens me. It was an interesting, transitional time for the band and it's a truly GREAT album.
It's not that they didn't love the tour and playing with each other. They just feel the whole album is a lie, because not only it was recorded separately (half the band was in the west coast and the other guys scattered) but the producer decided to call in a bunch of session players and add stuff that wasn't originally in the songs. So it makes them cry because the album is not what their original idea was. The tour that followed, they loved it, as you can see in Bill's face and all of them in the live videos. It's a great album, they just feel it's not their album.
Yes, this is the performance. Nothing wrong with Bill's playing, just the technical nightmare of all the electronic pads failing! th-cam.com/video/NCN9WW2kqtU/w-d-xo.htmlfeature=shared&t=3918
Two very different styles of drumming. Personally I felt Yes was much funkier and in a groove w/Bruford. Listen to the studio version or Roundabout, Long distance Runaround, Close to the Edge w/Bruford then hear the live versions w/White. Totally different grooves. Also all their best work was with Bruford on drums. Yes Album, Fragile, and Close to the Edge plus the Yes and Time and a Word.
I remember seeing this done live and thinking it was awesome. Yes, Bruford is the better drummer. But don't knock White, who is pretty damned good too (better than you I'd expect). At the 5 minute mark he changes the time signature on Bruford and Bruford has to struggle to reassert the original 7 beat. Look at the expressions on their faces during those moments - there's a fight going on and they're both enjoying it.
Bill`s tapping out rhythms like a casual joke whilst Alan`s gurning and pulling faces as he strives to compete with one of rock /jazz `s innovators. Gawd bless `em both...they`ve both been through the mill!
When an artist reaches a level of greatness like Bruford, Collins, White, Palmer, etc, etc have done it, comparisons aren't applicable anymore. Dali or Picasso? Mozart or Bethoveen? Cervantes or Hemingway? Silly, right?
2 greatest drummers ever playing the greatest drum duet ever! Some Alan White naysayers’ mouths will drop, but it was actually him who wrote the main rhythm on this duet, NOT Bill Bruford…
Bruford is amazing and the Simmons drum kit has some awesome attributes...just listen to some of textures on te duet piece with Levin on the ABWH NEC live album
Two are great, but I prefer Yes music with Bruford. Fragile and CTTE, are in my opinion the best performed records by Yes. A big Yes fan from Santander, Spain.
Agreed. Two drummers, two completely different styles. I've enjoyed BOTH Bruford and White equally in Yes. White who is a flat-out rock drummer, and Bruford who is more of a jazz oriented drummer. BTW, if you wanna hear some GREAT Bruford drumming, listen to King Crimson's Live in Asbury Park, NJ. Or anything he did with Genesis live in '76.
Bill is an icon. The best pieces from YES, Genesis and King Crimson is when Bill is on the throne. That's not to take anything away from Alan but if you took a poll of percussionist's... Bruford wins hands-down (No pun intended) and it's not even close. That being said, I can't imagine YES without Alan nor do I wish to.
Interesting to see so many complaints about Bruford's kit and drumming on this tour and the one before it. Having seen him with Earthworks, David Torn, and the '95 edition of King Crimson, I can tell you he was doing different -- and better -- stuff, both in the studio and live, with those Simmons pads than what I heard him do with either ABWH or Union-era Yes. More melody and texture, less clatter. I think that some of it was a matter of context; the pitched/melodic percussion he was doing (especially with Torn and Earthworks Mk I) wouldn't have fit in Yes. Then, too, it's not like TH-cam does wonders for sound. The other clip that's floating around (Bill and Tony's ABWH duet) has atrocious sound 'cause it just sounds like he's banging away on trashcan lids, but when you saw them live the drumming had more depth and variety.
Once again bonebreath, It was NOT me who wrote that. It was the drummer I work with. When you don't know who you are talking to or what you are talking about, don't flap your fish lips unless you are prepared to be schooled.......like now. Holdsworth is gifted and amazing. Besides him, let's see if anyone else holds a candle to who I listen to. Brett Garsed, Tommy Emmanuel, Greg Howe, Guthrie Govan, Gary Wills, David Pastorious, Michael Manring, Virgil Donati, Marco Minneman...get it, shut up
This is great... enjoy it. And ....PPPLLEEEAAASSSEEE!!! DO NOT COMPARE this TWO excellent drummers. I don't think that's the purpouse of matic3060 for posting this.
Bruford was better in the 70s, but at least White stuck to acoustic drums. Never liked that machine gun electric drum sound Bruford adopted in the 80s.
I think the reason that Simmons drums didn't survive was that they didn't make a head that felt like a drum and that turned many drummers off. Geat solo by the way.
Two great drummers in their own right. As for this duet, however, I think that Bruford and Pat Mastelletto's "B'Boom" on King Crimson's Thrak flows much better.
thank you for the agreement, i still belive bruford and white are amazing musicians in their own right ,but they just dont produce an interesting piece of music together.
These are two very different drummers working together with humility. The arguments about who might be better are just plain stupid. They're both first rate, professional persussionists. If you want want mathematically calculated jazz, you go with Bruford. If you want hard edge, balsy rock you go with White. You can't go wrong either way. But don't underestimate White, there's a lot of intelligent calculating in his play, too!
@JT37072 And a great band called UK: i see them on stage withe GREAT Allan Holdsworth on guitar!!!!!!!!! and Eddie Jobson on Keys and John Wetton on bass and vocals!!!!! Then, Terry Bozzio,the virtuose,takes place on drums!!!
Okay....will someone put the Neil Peart v Anyone who drummed in bands who played complicated music prior to Rush arguement to bed here? Neil Peart LEARNED from these guys, and if you listen to Neil Peart`s drum solo from All the World`s a stage live album from 1976 you basically have that Neil Peart signature drum solo (give or take a few concessions to modernity). Neil Peart is perhaps one of the best ROCK drummers on earth. But please leave invention to the instigators. Either that or LISTEN.
Wenn man sich das genau anhört, den Solo-part von Alan, was er da macht, während Bill den snare-part macht, mitzählt........die absolute Härte! das ist ein hochtrainiertes Viech! Wenn ich jetzt an Colaiuta denke........dann trink ich mein Bier aus und geh beruhigt schlafen. Aber das...., sorry, hört da mal genau hin.....leck mich am Arsch!
well actually Bruford have a very unique sound and polyrythmic style but when he performed with genesis in the first part of "SECONDS OUT" (because they don't called "a trick of tail tour") he put a diffrent and precise notes for many songs of genesis i love phill collins style but bruford it's clean and precise meanwhile collins is dinamic and explosive i like a lot of the preformance of seconds out with bruford but he waste the last song LOS ENDOS which sound better the duel with chester thom
All these comments about how Brufurd is the better drummer... Well, obviously they're being make by non-drummers - or at least, not very good drummers. It's apples and oranges - two very different drummers with very different styles. White is (or was) F'n amazing - and he's done so much with Yes that Bruford couldn't dream of pulling off.
Just give a listen to "Relayer"...particularly the intro of "Sound Chaser" - Alan at his very best! Also, how he turned Bruford's finesse drumming into real power on "Yessongs".
I find it interesting how Bruford decided to play the electric drums on this tour. I always thought he was a stickler when it came to playing drums, but apparently not!
@MarcGrauCat I truely doubt this is a real improv, this is obviously blocked out. The fun is listening to 2 different styles. As far as I am concerned Bruford is by far the better but White is no novice. Serious play between 2 professionals.
@sunrajah It was just for kicks man, I just got sick of how many people fight over these two drummers, they're both awesome. Point is, there are many drummers that are better, as far as technique goes.
Bill Bruford was more adventurous with his drumming. Alan White was a rock drummer. This is akin to if Peter Criss and Eric Carr (may he RIP) did a drum duet. Peter came from Gene Krupa/Buddy Rich background while Eric came from John Bonham and Keith Moon school of drumming. I only envisioned what their drum duels would have been like.
Steady on boys. Yes, Bill Bruford is clearly the 'better' drummer, a signature even Alan White, I'm sure, wouldn't dispute . . . but White ain't chopped liver. Enjoy this opportunity of seeing them whack the skins together whilst you can!
This is like seeing two Dr Whos in the same episode, or two James Bonds in the same movie - very different but brilliant
Don't forget, Bruford walked in '73 before their "Close to the Edge" tour, and they found Alan White. He learned the whole album, and all their other stuff. Three days later he embarked on this major tour with them. He's great. Listen to "Sound Chaser".
100% true! My favorite drummer. May he rest in paradise
I am so lucky to have seen this tour. Freaking amazing!
Rest in Peace, Alan White🙏🕇
Alan may not be as technical a drummer as Bruford, but his sense of groove cannot be dismissed. Alan White is as solid as they come, could tackle Bill's old parts with relative ease, and could also play odd time signatures that swung like crazy ("Machine Messiah" comes to mind).
Bruford liked to play patterns and improvise, and White just liked to lay down solid time, and both drummers were legends in their own right. Two different drummers who handled the drummer role in Yes magnificently.
Two great drummers, two different styles. Bill a little jazz, Alan more rock. Both great contributors to the Yes sound! Thanks for sharing this.
Nice to see the boys having fun together. Music is meant to be fun, not always a competition.
Never a competition
RIP Alan, Amazing duet.... Dear Alan
thanks for your fantastic rolls and solid groove. It still sounds in my head your breaks in instant Karma are wonderful...
RIP Alan White
The one show I regret missing
P.S. Some Yes fans may recognize the snare pattern as part of the opening of "Mind Drive" (which Chris & Alan demoed w/ Jimmy Page as part of the aborted XYZ project), and Yes later fleshed out and recorded in 1995/6. Imagine if all 8 musicians on the Union tour had cut an album after the tour (as Jon had wanted), and an extensive double drum section had led into the ominous Squire bass riff- would have been pretty sweet.
You're right.
I forgot, this is before Mind Drive.
Two excellent drummer..you can't compare them..they are different..just like Trevor Rabin and Steve Howe..two excellent guitarist,but very different.
People bash Bill's electric kit but I think it's super cool.
Me encantan ambos pero Alan White tiene un toque especial que conecta más conmigo. Bravo 👏👏👏
Comparison between the two is like comparing Emerson and Wakeman. Both exceptional artists. I prefer White, he has a funkier kind of groove. Excellent drummers, both.
watching these 2 guys playing live in 1991 was a treat.2 of the best drummers in the world,beside niel peart
@klongyaw7 I agree totally, Bruford enhanced every band he played with. One of the most inovative drummers around, sorry that he retired!
AMAZING THE TWO GREAT MONSTERS..!!! AWESOME!!!
I keep expecting them to start playing "Mind Drive". Killer. I wish I could remember how this drum duel sounded at the Oakland show.
Alan White is a Great Drummer
Bill Bruford is a unique Master Percussionist
Descanse en Paz Alan White
Wish they had stayed together longer in that format. Union was ace. All that talent in one band. What they could of done, maybe another one or two albums. 👍
this was a great show all the members of yes brilliant and as i remember it was in the round on a revolving stage
No two musicians are alike, thankfully. Rest easy, Al.
Saw this Union tour in the round, from second row, 1991 I believe, in Hartford CT.
I'm so sick of hearing how everybody hates Union. I've seen Yes 11 times over the years and I think it was a truly magical show and I love the album. I get how there was all kinds of bad blood between the guys at the time but the album itself is wonderful. The music is very uplifting and the playing is stellar as always. When I hear how they called it "Onion" because it would make them cry, it saddens me. It was an interesting, transitional time for the band and it's a truly GREAT album.
It's not that they didn't love the tour and playing with each other. They just feel the whole album is a lie, because not only it was recorded separately (half the band was in the west coast and the other guys scattered) but the producer decided to call in a bunch of session players and add stuff that wasn't originally in the songs. So it makes them cry because the album is not what their original idea was. The tour that followed, they loved it, as you can see in Bill's face and all of them in the live videos.
It's a great album, they just feel it's not their album.
Read about this tour in Bill's autobiography, and was wondering if there is a video of the time his kit wasn't working...
Yes, he set it up beautifully, and then moved right past punchline. i have always wnated to hear the end of that story
Yes, this is the performance. Nothing wrong with Bill's playing, just the technical nightmare of all the electronic pads failing! th-cam.com/video/NCN9WW2kqtU/w-d-xo.htmlfeature=shared&t=3918
they're both really awesome.
Two very different styles of drumming. Personally I felt Yes was much funkier and in a groove w/Bruford. Listen to the studio version or Roundabout, Long distance Runaround, Close to the Edge w/Bruford then hear the live versions w/White. Totally different grooves.
Also all their best work was with Bruford on drums. Yes Album, Fragile, and Close to the Edge plus the Yes and Time and a Word.
I remember seeing this done live and thinking it was awesome. Yes, Bruford is the better drummer. But don't knock White, who is pretty damned good too (better than you I'd expect). At the 5 minute mark he changes the time signature on Bruford and Bruford has to struggle to reassert the original 7 beat. Look at the expressions on their faces during those moments - there's a fight going on and they're both enjoying it.
Not better. Different. White is much more rock
@@deansusec8745 thank you.
Bruford is not a better drummer
wow, that was great, having both of them on stage together. that would be like wakeman and moraz on stage playing together!
bruford is the greateste drumer!!!!
Two awesome drummers,and two of my drumming influences.
wow, simply amazing!
This is drumming at its most excellent.
Always adored BB and still do, but listen to AW on Relayer (if you haven't)- thats some inspired playing.
Bill`s tapping out rhythms like a casual joke whilst Alan`s gurning and pulling faces as he strives to compete with one of rock /jazz `s innovators. Gawd bless `em both...they`ve both been through the mill!
Bill's a bore. White is far funkier.
Two Monsters on drums🎵🎼🎶😎👊
When an artist reaches a level of greatness like Bruford, Collins, White, Palmer, etc, etc have done it, comparisons aren't applicable anymore. Dali or Picasso? Mozart or Bethoveen? Cervantes or Hemingway? Silly, right?
union tour is the nuts
Having fun
2 greatest drummers ever playing the greatest drum duet ever! Some Alan White naysayers’ mouths will drop, but it was actually him who wrote the main rhythm on this duet, NOT Bill Bruford…
RIP Mr. White.
Bruford is amazing and the Simmons drum kit has some awesome attributes...just listen to some of textures on te duet piece with Levin on the ABWH NEC live album
Bill also played with phil collins and chester thompson in trio....... amazing bill...!!!
Art Zoom He only played with Phil Collins. Chester Thompson was his replacement.
Wild 😜
Two are great, but I prefer Yes music with Bruford. Fragile and CTTE, are in my opinion the best performed records by Yes. A big Yes fan from Santander, Spain.
Yes I definitly agree Alan White comes from a deep rock backgound as Bruford from a jazz origin!
the snare riff ta-ta-ta/ ta-ta-ta/ ta-ta-ta-ta is the same they will use after for Keys to Ascension (track Mind Drive)
RIP White
Agreed. Two drummers, two completely different styles. I've enjoyed BOTH Bruford and White equally in Yes. White who is a flat-out rock drummer, and Bruford who is more of a jazz oriented drummer.
BTW, if you wanna hear some GREAT Bruford drumming, listen to King Crimson's Live in Asbury Park, NJ. Or anything he did with Genesis live in '76.
Nice synchronization
Bill is an icon. The best pieces from YES, Genesis and King Crimson is when Bill is on the throne. That's not to take anything away from Alan but if you took a poll of percussionist's... Bruford wins hands-down (No pun intended) and it's not even close. That being said, I can't imagine YES without Alan nor do I wish to.
@Spradlinn As a drummer who loves all mentioned, I agree.
Interesting to see so many complaints about Bruford's kit and drumming on this tour and the one before it. Having seen him with Earthworks, David Torn, and the '95 edition of King Crimson, I can tell you he was doing different -- and better -- stuff, both in the studio and live, with those Simmons pads than what I heard him do with either ABWH or Union-era Yes. More melody and texture, less clatter.
I think that some of it was a matter of context; the pitched/melodic percussion he was doing (especially with Torn and Earthworks Mk I) wouldn't have fit in Yes. Then, too, it's not like TH-cam does wonders for sound. The other clip that's floating around (Bill and Tony's ABWH duet) has atrocious sound 'cause it just sounds like he's banging away on trashcan lids, but when you saw them live the drumming had more depth and variety.
Once again bonebreath, It was NOT me who wrote that. It was the drummer I work with. When you don't know who you are talking to or what you are talking about, don't flap your fish lips unless you are prepared to be schooled.......like now. Holdsworth is gifted and amazing. Besides him, let's see if anyone else holds a candle to who I listen to. Brett Garsed, Tommy Emmanuel, Greg Howe, Guthrie Govan, Gary Wills, David Pastorious, Michael Manring, Virgil Donati, Marco Minneman...get it, shut up
I don't see why people dislike White. As far as I'm concerned he's more Yes than Bruford having been a part of the band for such a long time.
fuck bruford is just so fuckin good
This is great... enjoy it. And ....PPPLLEEEAAASSSEEE!!! DO NOT COMPARE this TWO excellent drummers. I don't think that's the purpouse of matic3060 for posting this.
Bruford was better in the 70s, but at least White stuck to acoustic drums. Never liked that machine gun electric drum sound Bruford adopted in the 80s.
Cant really say he was "better in the 70's", rather you didn't like his sound in the 80's.
I think the reason that Simmons drums didn't survive was that they didn't make a head that felt like a drum and that turned many drummers off. Geat solo by the way.
Pre 1972: Bill Bruford (Electronic)
Post 1972: Alan White (Acoustic)
A smile came upon my face...drummers...so sexy.
Why, because he does his job and KEEPS THE BEAT? Who do you think is a great drummer or exciting? One who is real busy? This ought to be good...
ずっと通しで8分の7拍子に聞こえます。
This IS Mind Drive before it turned into Mind Drive...
Two great drummers in their own right. As for this duet, however, I think that Bruford and Pat Mastelletto's "B'Boom" on King Crimson's Thrak flows much better.
2:25 Olias of Sunhillow symbol
it would have been great if Steve and Trevor would have performed a guitar duet as well.....
oo that's the drum intro from Mind Drive
@trankuser9 you said slayer , that is what you really have to apologize for!
I prefer Alan on acoustic drums
@saarnoldbhm
Well... one couldn't say no when summoned by THE CRIMSON KING !
You've gotta be freakin' kidding me on that one...
Buford is genius, and Alan White was better than good enough to shine as bright.
thank you for the agreement, i still belive bruford and white are amazing musicians in their own right ,but they just dont produce an interesting piece of music together.
These are two very different drummers working together with humility. The arguments about who might be better are just plain stupid. They're both first rate, professional persussionists. If you want want mathematically calculated jazz, you go with Bruford. If you want hard edge, balsy rock you go with White. You can't go wrong either way. But don't underestimate White, there's a lot of intelligent calculating in his play, too!
@JT37072
And a great band called UK: i see them on stage withe GREAT Allan Holdsworth on guitar!!!!!!!!! and Eddie Jobson on Keys and John Wetton on bass and vocals!!!!!
Then, Terry Bozzio,the virtuose,takes place on drums!!!
Okay....will someone put the Neil Peart v Anyone who drummed in bands who played complicated music prior to Rush arguement to bed here? Neil Peart LEARNED from these guys, and if you listen to Neil Peart`s drum solo from All the World`s a stage live album from 1976 you basically have that Neil Peart signature drum solo (give or take a few concessions to modernity). Neil Peart is perhaps one of the best ROCK drummers on earth. But please leave invention to the instigators. Either that or LISTEN.
Yeah, they found Alan White in the Plastic Ono band, with John Lennon
look up plastic ono band, john lennon and eric clapton played one show together in toronto
Wenn man sich das genau anhört, den Solo-part von Alan, was er da macht, während Bill den snare-part macht, mitzählt........die absolute Härte! das ist ein hochtrainiertes Viech! Wenn ich jetzt an Colaiuta denke........dann trink ich mein Bier aus und geh beruhigt schlafen. Aber das...., sorry, hört da mal genau hin.....leck mich am Arsch!
well actually Bruford have a very unique sound and polyrythmic style but when he performed with genesis in the first part of "SECONDS OUT" (because they don't called "a trick of tail tour") he put a diffrent and precise notes for many songs of genesis i love phill collins style but bruford it's clean and precise meanwhile collins is dinamic and explosive i like a lot of the preformance of seconds out with bruford but he waste the last song LOS ENDOS which sound better the duel with chester thom
Satiaraha yea Chester played on that whole album except for cinema show sorry bro
All these comments about how Brufurd is the better drummer... Well, obviously they're being make by non-drummers - or at least, not very good drummers. It's apples and oranges - two very different drummers with very different styles. White is (or was) F'n amazing - and he's done so much with Yes that Bruford couldn't dream of pulling off.
Just give a listen to "Relayer"...particularly the intro of "Sound Chaser" - Alan at his very best! Also, how he turned Bruford's finesse drumming into real power on "Yessongs".
I find it interesting how Bruford decided to play the electric drums on this tour. I always thought he was a stickler when it came to playing drums, but apparently not!
Alan White is captain Kirk! You need age to to realize it....
@MarcGrauCat I truely doubt this is a real improv, this is obviously blocked out. The fun is listening to 2 different styles. As far as I am concerned Bruford is by far the better but White is no novice. Serious play between 2 professionals.
Malzarin Malvado what it most likely was was them having specific sections and then talking to each other with their expressions
It’s what Phil Collins and Chester Thompson used to do
Unfair comparison. Bruford is playing electronic drums on which you can easily play paradiddle combinations.
When there is 2 drummers somewhere
BB explode the other..
White knows , Collins knows and Bozzio too
One question: Who's playing the synth part from 2:38 to 3:06?
Kaye surely
Nah it was a trigger
grande bruford peccato ke sia andato via dagli yes poteva dare molto di piu
Its a simmonds drum pad, triggered with tuned patch over it
@sunrajah It was just for kicks man, I just got sick of how many people fight over these two drummers, they're both awesome. Point is, there are many drummers that are better, as far as technique goes.
with alan white
I actually think these seven people who don't like this, they'd love to play any bruford's songs, but ...cannot!!
Did I out troll you?
@kdaltonbarrett Plant bailed of course, like he has on so much other stuff. I'm sure it wasn't his style...he leans towards R&B.
Bill Bruford was more adventurous with his drumming. Alan White was a rock drummer. This is akin to if Peter Criss and Eric Carr (may he RIP) did a drum duet. Peter came from Gene Krupa/Buddy Rich background while Eric came from John Bonham and Keith Moon school of drumming. I only envisioned what their drum duels would have been like.
Except Peter had the talent of neither.
Is this true or are you being sarcastic.
Steady on boys. Yes, Bill Bruford is clearly the 'better' drummer, a signature even Alan White, I'm sure, wouldn't dispute . . . but White ain't chopped liver. Enjoy this opportunity of seeing them whack the skins together whilst you can!