Richard Christopher Wakeman (born 18 May 1949) is an English
keyboard player,
composer and songwriter best known for being the former keyboardist in
the progressive rock band Yes. He is also known for his solo albums,
contributing to the BBC comedy series
Grumpy Old Men and for
Rick's Place, his former radio show on Planet Rock that aired until December 2010.
Wakeman was born in West London. He purchased his first electronic
keyboard at 12 years of age. In 1968, he studied the piano, clarinet,
orchestration and modern music at the Royal College of Music before
leaving after a year in favour of session music work. He went on to
feature on songs by artists including Ozzy Osbourne, David Bowie, T.
Rex, Elton John and Cat Stevens. Wakeman joined the folk group Strawbs
in 1969 and played on three of their albums. He first joined Yes in 1971
to replace Tony Kaye, and left the group in 1974 to work on his solo
career. He returned in 1976 before leaving with lead vocalist Jon
Anderson in 1980. Wakeman was part of the side project Anderson Bruford
Wakeman Howe, a group of ex-Yes members formed in 1989, and the
eight-member Yes line-up that followed until his third departure in
1992. He returned for two years in 1995 and once more in 2002, where he
was part of the band's 35th anniversary tour until its end in 2004.
Wakeman began his solo career during his first run with Yes. His perhaps most known records being his first three,
The Six Wives of Henry VIII (1973),
Journey to the Centre of the Earth (1974) and
The Myths and Legends of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table
(1975). He has produced over 100 solo albums that have sold more than
50 million copies. In November 2010, Wakeman was awarded the Spirit of
Prog award at the annual Marshall Classic Rock Roll of Honour Awards.
