Chris Squire, the influential rock bassist who was a founding member of the celebrated British band Yes, died Saturday in Phoenix. He was 67.
His death was confirmed by the band's keyboardist, Geoffrey Downes. Squire, the only member to have played on every one of Yes' albums and participated in every one of its tours, was being treated in Phoenix for acute erythroid leukemia and said last month that he would not be with Yes for its summer and fall tour, scheduled to begin on Aug. 7.
Yes, formed in 1968, was known for its blend of rock, jazz, folk and classical influences and also for its complex time signatures and pristine vocal harmonies. One of the first of the progressive (or prog) rock bands -- among the others were King Crimson and Emerson, Lake & Palmer -- it went on to become the most successful and longest-lasting.
The first Yes albums to reach a wide international audience were the group's third and fourth, The Yes Album (1971) and Fragile (1972), both released in the U.S. on Atlantic Records. The group's most recent studio album, Heaven & Earth, was released by Frontiers Records last year.
Squire's propulsive and often melodic bass playing was a key element of the Yes sound. A self-taught virtuoso, he has been cited as an influence by many other rock bassists.
He sang harmony vocals and had a hand in writing some of Yes' best-known songs, including "I've Seen All Good People" and "Owner of a Lonely Heart," recorded in 1983 when the group reunited after a three-year hiatus, which became Yes' first and only No. 1 single.
Metro on 06/30/2015