Peter Banks

Born on July 15, 1947, in Barnet, Hertfordshire, England, Peter Banks earned his primary recognition through his contributions to the progressive rock band Yes. Focusing solely on that chapter overlooks a broader sequence of earlier projects and later pursuits. His initial collaboration with Yes bassist Chris Squire occurred in the Syn, a band that gained modest attention across England between 1966 and the end of 1967. Following the Syn’s dissolution, Squire and Banks joined Mabel Greer’s Toy Shop. Banks departed around the period when vocalist Jon Anderson began appearing in the same circles, setting the stage for a future partnership. He spent a brief interval with Neat Change before rejoining Squire and Anderson’s ensemble.

At that point the lineup already included Tony Kaye and Bill Bruford, and the musicians were preparing to adopt a fresh identity. Banks’ return coincided exactly with the adoption of the name Yes. The group issued two albums during his tenure: its self-titled debut in 1969 and Time and a Word in 1970. Shortly afterward the band concluded that Banks was not the appropriate guitarist and brought in Steve Howe as his replacement, leaving Banks without a group affiliation.

He responded by forming the progressive band Flash, whose approach echoed the direction Yes might have continued had Banks stayed. Keyboardist Tony Kaye, who had also exited Yes, soon joined the new project. Flash delivered its self-titled debut album in 1972, followed in quick succession by In the Can later that same year and Out of Our Hands in 1973. A live recording that originated as a bootleg later appeared under the title Psychosync. The band dissolved in 1973, the same year Banks issued his first solo album, Two Sides of Peter Banks, which featured Ray Bennett and Mike Hough from Flash along with Jan Akkerman, John Wetton, and Phil Collins. Banks next assembled a lineup initially called Flash Mark II that eventually became known as Empire; the group completed three albums before disbanding in 1980.

After Empire ended, an extended period of silence followed before Banks returned with the 1993 solo album Instinct, on which he performed every instrument himself. Two years later came Self-Contained, supported only by keyboardist Gerald Goff. Reduction appeared in 1999, and the archival collection Can I Play You Something? followed in 2000. Peter Banks died of heart failure at his London residence on March 8, 2013, at the age of 65.