Jon Anderson
Jon Anderson
Born and raised in Accrington in northern England, Anderson gave up manual labour in the early 1960s in favour of singing in The Warriors) with his brother. He moved to London and after several unsuccessful singles as a solo artist, co-formed Yes with Squire. Anderson left the band in 1980 due to growing internal friction and continued his solo career, which he had started in 1976 with his debut album, Olias of Sunhillow. He went on to collaborate with other musicians, including Greek keyboardist and composer Vangelis as Jon and Vangelis, Roine Stolt as Anderson/Stolt, Jean-Luc Ponty as the Anderson Ponty Band, and The Band Geeks as Jon Anderson and the Band Geeks), with whom he has toured repeatedly and released two albums in recent years. He has appeared on albums by King Crimson, Toto), Lawrence Gowan, Tangerine Dream, Iron Butterfly, Milton Nascimento, Battles), Mike Oldfield and Kitaro. Anderson was a member of the offshoot Yes groups Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe and Yes Featuring Jon Anderson, Trevor Rabin, Rick Wakeman.
Jon Anderson
In 2009, Anderson acquired American citizenship. In 2017, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Yes.
Early life
John Roy Anderson was born on 25 October 1944 in Accrington, Lancashire, England. His father Albert was from Glasgow, Scotland, and served in the army in the entertainment division and later worked as a salesman; his mother Kathleen was of Irish and French ancestry and worked in a cotton mill, cotton being the biggest export from Lancashire at the time. Together they became county champions in ballroom dancing, winning several awards. Anderson said they named him after an English singer who toured as "John Roy the Melody Boy" and the Scottish name Royston. Anderson grew up on Norfolk Street with brothers Tony and Stuart, and sister Joy. He is the third youngest. As a youngster, Anderson became a fan of several musicians, including Elvis Presley, Eddie Cochran, the Everly Brothers, and Jon Hendricks.
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