Jon and Vangelis | |
|---|---|
 Jon Anderson and Vangelis, 1981 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Greece United Kingdom |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 1979–1991 |
| Labels | Polydor Records Arista Records Higher Octave Records |
| Past members | Jon Anderson Vangelis |
Jon and Vangelis was a music collaboration between British rock singerJon Anderson (lead vocalist of theprogressive rock bandYes) and Greeksynthesiser musicianVangelis. The duo released four albums between 1980 and 1991.[1]
In 1974, Vangelis was considered as a replacement forRick Wakeman as keyboardist in Yes,[1] and although the job went toPatrick Moraz, it led to several collaborations with Anderson, who contributed vocals to Vangelis'Heaven and Hell (1975) on the song "So Long Ago, So Clear",harp toOpera Sauvage (1979) on "Flamants Roses" and finally vocals toSee You Later (1980) on "Suffocation" and "See You Later".
They recorded their first album together,Short Stories, in 1979,[1] producing the major hit "I Hear You Now" as well as "One More Time". Anderson wrote the lyrics and Vangelis composed the music. In 1980, Anderson left Yes and released his second solo album,Song of Seven. Vangelis released hisSee You Later album the same year, with Anderson contributing vocals to two songs. The two reunited to record their second album,The Friends of Mr Cairo, in 1981, including the songs "Friends of Mr Cairo" and "State of Independence". Later pressings of the album included the UK top 10 hit "I'll Find My Way Home".[2] In 1983, Anderson rejoined Yes and they released the album90125. Jon and Vangelis released their own album,Private Collection, the same year.[1]
In 1986, the duo made a few attempts at writing a new album, but much of this work was never officially released under the Jon and Vangelis name. Twelve tracks were compiled on 1991'sPage of Life, while other songs from these sessions appeared in later works, including "Let's Pretend", the last song on the 1989 albumAnderson Bruford Wakeman Howe. Anderson ultimately took it upon himself to reworkPage of Life, which was released in 1998 in the United States only with nine tracks. In 2011, Anderson approached Vangelis for a possible new collaboration but he did not receive a reply.[3]
Vangelis died on 17 May 2022.[4][5][6][7]
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | Certifications | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK [8] | AUS [9] | AUT [10] | CAN [11][12] | GER [13] | NL [14] | NZ [15] | SPA [16] | SWE [17] | US [18] | |||
| Short Stories | 4 | 65 | 18 | — | 30 | 1 | — | — | — | 125 | ||
| The Friends of Mr Cairo |
| 6 | 9 | 8 | 2 | 13 | 3 | — | — | 35 | 64 | |
| Private Collection |
| 22 | 31 | 18 | 78 | 27 | 15 | 45 | 10 | 24 | 148 | |
| Page of Life | — | — | — | — | — | 37 | — | — | — | — | ||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory. | ||||||||||||
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK [8] | GER [13] | NL [14] | ||
| The Best of Jon and Vangelis |
| 42 | 52 | 42 |
| Chronicles |
| — | — | — |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory. | ||||
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK [8] | AUS [9] | BE (FL) [23] | CAN [24] | GER [13] | IRE [25] | NL [26] | SWI [27] | SPA [16] | US [18] | ||||
| "I Hear You Now" | 1979 | 8 | — | 3 | — | 69 | 12 | 9 | — | — | 58 | Short Stories | |
| "One More Time"[A] | 1980 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "The Friends of Mr Cairo" | 1981 | — | 99 | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| The Friends of Mr Cairo |
| "State of Independence" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Back to School"[B] | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Outside of This"[C] | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "I'll Find My Way Home" | 6 | 22 | 3 | — | 6 | 2 | 2 | 1 | — | 51 |
| Non-album single[D] | |
| "And When the Night Comes" | 1983 | 87 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Private Collection | |
| "He Is Sailing" | 61 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Deborah"[E] | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 22 | — | |||
| "Polonaise"[F] | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "State of Independence"[G] | 1984 | 67 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | The Best of Jon and Vangelis | |
| "Wisdom Chain" | 1991 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Page of Life | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory. | |||||||||||||
Notes:
| Year | Title | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 1979 | "I Hear You Now" | Short Stories |
| 1981 | "The Friends of Mr Cairo" | The Friends of Mr Cairo |
Vangelis died at hospital in France on Tuesday, where he was being treated for Covid-19
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| Other collaborations | |
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| International | |
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| Artists | |
