On This Day 14/04/1998 Yes

On this day, 14 April 1989, legendary prog rock band Yes played Cardiff International Arena on their Open Your Eyes tour.

Open Your Eyes received mixed reactions from critics and fans upon release. Many criticised it for its overproduction and lack of the trademark "proggy" Yes sound, though others praised it for its upbeat nature.

Setlist

Siberian Khatru

Rhythm of Love

America

(Simon & Garfunkel cover)

Open Your Eyes

And You and I

Heart of the Sunrise

Mood for a Day

(Steve Howe solo)

Sketches in the Sun

(GTR cover)

Clap

(Steve Howe solo)

Wonderous Stories

Keyboard Solo

Long Distance Runaround

Whitefish

Drum Solo

(includes an excerpt of Ritual)

Owner of a Lonely Heart

The Revealing Science of God (Dance of the Dawn)

Encore:

I've Seen All Good People

Encore 2:

Roundabout

Encore 3:

Starship Trooper

Line up

Jon Anderson

Vocals

Steve Howe

Guitars

Billy Sherwood

Guitars

Chris Squire

Bass

Alan White

Drums

Igor Khoroshev

Keyboards

On This Day 13/04/1980 Sham 69

On this day, 13 April 1980, punk/Oi rock band Sham 69 played Cardiff’s Top Rank. The band had recently released their fourth and final album The Game. Their single taken from the album Tell The Children reached #45 in the UK singles chart when released in March.

Formed in Hersham in Surrey in 1975. They changed their musical direction after seeing the Sex Pistols play live in early 1976. They were one of the most successful punk bands in the United Kingdom, achieving five top 20 singles, including "If the Kids Are United" and "Hurry Up Harry".

The group's popularity saw them perform on the BBC’s Top of the Pops, and they appeared in the rockumentary film D.O.A.. The original unit broke up in 1980, with frontman Jimmy Pursey moving on to pursue a solo career.

On This Day 12/04/1996 Terrorvision

On this day, 12 April 1996, rock band Terrorvision played Cardiff University. The band had recently released their acclaimed album Regular Urban Survivors which peaked at #8 in the UK album charts.

Regular Urban Survivors is the third album by British rock band Terrorvision. "Perseverance", "Easy", "Bad Actress" and "Celebrity Hit List" were each released as singles. "Perseverance" and "Celebrity Hit List" were both regular Match of the Day 'goal of the week' regulars.

They were formed in 1987 (as The Spoilt Bratz) in Keighley, West Yorkshire, and initially disbanded in 2001. The band used Bradford as a base after the name change to Terrorvision in 1991, by which time the band members had all moved there.

On This Day 11/04/1968 The Tremeloes

On this day, 11 April 1968, pop band the Tremeloes played Cardiff’s Capitol Theatre. Also on the bill were, Headiners The Kinks and The Herd.

The Tremeloes (formerly Brian Poole and The Tremeloes) are an English beat group founded in 1958 in Dagenham, England. They initially found success in the British Invasion era with lead singer Brian Poole, scoring a UK chart-topper in 1963 with "Do You Love Me".

The band achieved their greatest success after Poole's departure in 1966. The band reformed as a four-piece that year with Chip Hawkes on bass, Rick Westwood on lead guitar, Alan Blakley on rhythm guitar, and Dave Munden on drums. All four members sang, with most of the leads being sung by Hawkes and Munden. The quartet had 13 top 40 hits on the UK Singles Chart between 1967 and 1971

On This Day 10/04/1965 The Searchers

On this day, 10 April 1965, pop group The Searchers played Cardiff’s Sophia Gardens. Also on the bill were Dusty Springfield, Tony Jackson, Heinz, The Settlers and special guest star Bobby Vee.

Formed in Liverpool in 1959. Part of the Merseybeat scene, they flourished during the British Invasion of the 1960s, with hits including "Sweets for My Sweet", "Love Potion No. 9", "Sugar and Spice", "Needles and Pins", "Don't Throw Your Love Away", "When You Walk in the Room", "What Have They Done to the Rain" and "Goodbye My Love". With the Swinging Blue Jeans, the Searchers tied for being the second group from Liverpool, after the Beatles, to have a hit in the US, when their "Needles and Pins" and the Swinging Blue Jeans' "Hippy Hippy Shake" both reached the Hot 100 on 7 March 1964. In June 2025, The Searchers played Glastonbury Festival for the first time as the band's "final show ever" after 68 years of performing.

On This Day 09/04/1966 Small Faces

On this day, 9 April 1966, rock and pop band The Small Faces played Sophia Gardens supported by Lou Christie, Martha & The Vandellas, Slade Brothers, The Koobas, Fran & Alan and Alan Field & The Time Box.

The band had recently released their biggest hit so far in their career with Sha-La-La-La-Lee which peaked at #3 in the UK singles chart.
Because Small Faces' previous song release, the Marriott/Lane composition "I've Got Mine," failed to chart in the UK, their manager, Don Arden, determined that the Small Faces would not be one hit wonders, decided to bring in well-known songwriters Kenny Lynch and Mort Shuman to make sure the group's next single would be a success.

"Sha-La-La-La-Lee" was recorded on 13 December 1965 at IBC Studios in London with audio engineer John Pantry.

Following the huge success of this song, the band developed a large female fan base, like many of their contemporaries. This situation would ultimately end in Marriott becoming so disenchanted that he would leave The Small Faces in 1969 in a bid to be seen as a serious musician and form his next group, the heavier rock- and blues-sounding Humble Pie.

On This Day 05/04/1964 The Bachelors

On this day, 5 April 1964, Irish popular music group The Bachelors played Cardiff’s Sophia Gardens. Support was provided by Bern Elliott & The Fenmen.

The group had recently scored their first #1 hit in the UK singles chart with the song “Diane”.

Originally from Dublin, Ireland, but based primarily in the United Kingdom. They had several international hits during the 1960s, including eight top-ten singles in the UK between 1963 and 1966.

New Seekers 3 April 1972 Cap

On this day, 3 April 1972, pop group The New Seekers played Cardiff’s Capitol Theatre.

Formed in London, in 1969, by Keith Potger, after the break-up of his group, the Seekers. The idea was that the New Seekers would appeal to the same market as the original Seekers, but their music would have pop as well as folk influences. They achieved worldwide success in the early 1970s with hits including "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing", "You Won't Find Another Fool Like Me" and "Beg, Steal or Borrow".

The group were chosen to represent the United Kingdom in the 1972 Eurovision Song Contest. They entered with the song "Beg, Steal or Borrow", which was chosen by viewers of BBC1's It's Cliff Richard! show from six shortlisted songs performed by the group on a weekly basis. They went on to finish in second place at the Eurovision final in Edinburgh, where the group received the biggest cheer of the night from the partisan audience. The song was a No. 2 hit in the UK and sold well in Europe. Around this time, they also charted highly with their most successful album, We'd Like to Teach the World to Sing, which reached No. 2 in the UK Albums Chart. Another top five hit came with the next single, "Circles" in mid 1972.At the end of the year, the group took part in the BBC's anniversary TV show Fifty Years Of Music.