All My Yesterdays

The Autobiography of Steve Howe

By: Steve Howe

Narrated by: Simon Vance

Renowned guitarist Steve Howe tells his own story in his own words, often unflinchingly as he recounts times of triumph and torment amidst the cream of the UK's prog rock bands.

Best known for his work with Yes, a group prone to sudden upheavals, and AOR supergroup Asia, Steve Howe's passage through these and other bands is a roller coaster ride of constant touring, tense recording sessions, and frequent trips to all corners of the globe. A workaholic, he soon realized that the temptations of the rock 'n' roll lifestyle weren't for him and instead dedicated his life to excellence in musicianship.

Born in North London in 1947, Steve got his first guitar at the age of 12 and thereafter devoted himself passionately to mastering its intricacies. After spells in psychedelic bands of the late '60s, he was invited to join Yes in 1970, thus finding himself in a spotlight that shines to this day. In the meantime, he raised a family, adopted vegetarianism as a lifestyle, and watched as many of his peers succumbed to the impulses he managed to avoid. As well as Yes and Asia, Steve has led bands of his own, released numerous solo recordings in many different musical styles, and amassed a legendary collection of priceless stringed instruments.

©2020 Omnibus Press (P)2021 Tantor

3 Claps 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

Not a bad book, though I was hoping for more. Too much minutia, and not enough, in my opinion, of what I’m sure was a lot of the fun stuff during his career.

Long on Facts, Short on Feeling

I liked this book despite itself because I love Steve Howe and adore the music of YES. Yet I can’t deny that it’s a huge miss for us readers his emotional take on the big moments of his life. Sure it’s nice to to k ow about the new wah-wah pedal he used in June 1976 and details of how certain tracks we recorded on specific mics, but where is the musings on how songs emerged and the creative process.

Howe also teases juicy stories only to an abruptly pullback and say he can’t name names. On other occasions he’ll allude to such things like a profound series of events that was absurdly wild only then not to divulge anymore details. Why write a book when you can’t be candid and don’t open your heart at least a little bit.

A good read for die hard fans, but severely lacking in emotional details and song backgrounds, which leaves one wanting and feeling a bit letdown.

Gets bogged down

I love Steve's work but I gotta be honest. The years up to around 1997 are a great story. After that it REALLY gets bogged down with song by song breakdowns of what gear he used live and in studio, who played on them, what car he drove, each bit of each tour and when his wife and kids visited, who the team members handling the business side of things were, on and on. It's like unnecessary minutiae to add length instead of just focusing on the parts fans care about. I've read and listened to just about every Rock bio available and this one just flatlined 1/2 way through for me.

How deeply honest this autobiography was sharing many unknown truth to people until this autobiography came out.

There wasn’t anything I just liked about this. I would have liked it to have been read and Steve’s own voice, but Simon was spectacular. I truly love to learning so much about one of my absolute famous musicians who I have followed since 1971. Thank you Steve Howe for decades of so much wonderful music and for sharing your life story up to that point.

Well documented story of his entire career

For true Howe and Yes fans. We get a glimpse of his personality and some inside dirt about the other great musicians we worked with.