Roger Talkington- The Ancient (by Steve Howe)

This is my arrangement of "The Ancient." This excerpt was composed in the 1970's by Steve Howe, an English guitarist/composer most well known for his work with the band Yes. I stayed pretty close to his original version, then expanded my arrangement to include the vocal melody line and the closing ensemble section by adapting them for solo guitar.

I recorded this in my home in 2003. It's less than perfect but it's a pretty accurate representation of what I was going for.

I was determined to hand a copy of this to Steve when Yes played at The Pageant in St. Louis in 2009. I worked my way right up against the stage at the end of the show when the band was taking their bows. I was yelling for Steve while waving the CD like a lunatic. I couldn't get him to look at me. In desperation, I lobbed the CD on the stage and got it within 2 feet of where he was standing.. He didn't pick it up, though, dammit. Alan White made eye contact with me and saw me do this, but he didn't pick it up either. He had to step over it during the final bow. Even though he wouldn't pick it up, I appreciate that he at least glanced down and purposely avoided trodding on it. When the lights came up and the band left the stage I asked a roady to hand it back to me. So there it sits on my shelf-- the disk I got within 2 feet of Steve Howe.

Maybe Steve Howe will come across this here some day. If he ever discovers this, I hope he finds it interesting and gives it a smile and a nod. The guy is great. If you haven't checked him out before, go do it. The things he did with Yes are very inspiring.

my website: http://www.rogertalkington.com

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Roger
• Talkington
• Yes
• Steve
• Howe

[martinaxman]

I do like your style. Nicely done.

[taoistaoistao]

Superb!!