Jon Anderson to undergo sinus operation

Former Yes frontman Jon Anderson is to have a sinus operation, he’s confirmed.

He’s been having issues since November, making it hard for him to sing and causing him to cancel a handful of live dates. He remains in good spirits and thanks fans for their support, insisting he’ll be back playing live later this year.

Anderson – who cannot play the violin – jokes: “I will be better very soon. I was told by my specialist at UCLA that I will be a different person after the operation. I said, ‘Will I be able to play the violin?’ He said, ‘Yes, of course.’ I thought, ‘Now that’s cool.’”

Anderson has been working in a new group with jazz-fusion violinist Jean-Luc Ponty. The Anderson Ponty Band also features guitarist Jamie Dunlap, keyboardist Wally Minko, bassist Baron Browne and drummer Rayford Griffin.

They launched a successful Kickstarter campaign to help fund an album which is due to land later this year.

Last month Anderson issued an audio documentary in which he explored the musical journey of his life. In the 40-minute piece, he revealed he was inspired by classical composers including Mozart, Delius and Greig.

Scott Munro
Louder e-commerce editor

Scott has spent more than 30 years in newspapers, magazines and online as an editor, production editor, sub-editor, designer, writer and reviewer. Scott joined our news desk in the summer of 2014 before moving to the e-commerce team in 2020. Scott maintains Louder’s buyer’s guides, scouts out the best deals for music fans and reviews headphones, speakers, books and more. He's written more than 11,000 articles across Louder, Classic Rock, Metal Hammer and Prog and has previous written for publications including IGN, the Sunday Mirror, Daily Record and The Herald, covering everything from daily news and weekly features, to video games, travel and whisky. Scott's favourite bands are Fields Of The Nephilim, The Cure, New Model Army, All About Eve, The Mission, Cocteau Twins, Drab Majesty, Marillion and Rush.