The Official Yes Thread

[King Postwhore]

Can't Look Away is a very good album.

I still play this CD a ton.

[KevShmev]

I'm also a big fan of Can't Look Away; great record.  The Cape is a great song to show off a great stereo.

Rabin's debut record is pretty underrated as well.

 and you can hear here that Rabin was a major influence in the sound of Yes West

Not just a major influence, but more or less the main songwriter.

[Architeuthis]

The fact that I really like Rabin's guitar playing may have something to do with it.

The Lift Me Up guitar solo remains one of my favorites. Still gives me goosebumps.

This!  Union is a fantastic album IMO, even though the band didn't think so. I also love the guitar solo in Silent Talking.  The More We Live, Let Go is another great song!

[Architeuthis]

Top 10. Tough choice as there are so many.
 Endless Dream
I would Have Waited Forever
Lift Me Up
Changes
It Can Happen
Shoot High Aim Low
Wonderous Stories
Awaken
The More We Live, Let Go
Starship Trooper

[Architeuthis]

Btw, has anyone heard the Song Jon Anderson did with Tangerine Dream called Loved By The Sun? It's off the soundtrack to the Movie LEGEND.  It is a hauntingly beautiful song!

[Orbert]

It's the song that plays over the closing credits, isn't it?  If so, yes, that's a great song.  We have the movie on DVD.

[SebastianPratesi]

I think two of his songs with Vangelis -"I'll Find My Way Home" and "So Long Ago, So Clear"- are also beautiful.

[Architeuthis]

It's the song that plays over the closing credits, isn't it?  If so, yes, that's a great song.  We have the movie on DVD.

That is correct. I have the soundtrack to the Movie on cd. Tangerine Dream has a lot of great catchy instrumentals on this release, also with extended version of LOVED BY THE SUN with Jon Anderson.

[Stadler]

I'm the first guy to say "hey, you can't write off great musicians just because it's not the "classic stuff"", and I'd also be the first guy to defend things like the current Deep Purple, non-makeup and Tommy/Eric era Kiss, etc.    But I can't help think that while the latter day Yes stuff may be okay, or even pretty good, if you have a finite time on this planet, would you rather use it listening to "Open Your Eyes" or "Going For The One" or "Fragile" or "The Yes Album", etc.

I totally get that this isn't entirely fair, but for whatever reason HERE it is the thought that struck me.

[Orbert]

It isn't entirely fair, but there is a logic to it.  I still don't think it's that bad, but I'll probably never listen to it again because so many other, superior Yes albums exist.  If I feel like listening to Yes, there are at least 10 albums I'll reach for before I even consider Open Your Eyes.  Is that "fair"?  I don't know if "fair" or not really enters into it.  It's just how it is.

[Architeuthis]

It's "fair" to say Open Your Eyes is a mediocre album at best. I haven't listened to it in years,  the cd itself is probably still like brand new without a scratch in it's case, lol!  The title track is good though.

[Stadler]

It isn't entirely fair, but there is a logic to it.  I still don't think it's that bad, but I'll probably never listen to it again because so many other, superior Yes albums exist.  If I feel like listening to Yes, there are at least 10 albums I'll reach for before I even consider Open Your Eyes.  Is that "fair"?  I don't know if "fair" or not really enters into it.  It's just how it is.

I just said "fair" so that you all didn't think I was just coming in here saying "that album BLOWS, MAN!" like my opinion counted or anything.  It's more just a relative observation. 

Bottom line, fair or not, if that music gives you pleasure (like Tormato, Fly From Here and Magnification does for me) then it's all moot.

[Architeuthis]

Yep, good point!  I do like Magnification, and some of Tormato, such as Don't Kill The Whale.

[Heavy Metal Hippie]

hi DTF,
I guess this this the right thread for my introduction, because I'm a big Trevor Rabin and Yes fanboy. 90125 was basically my first album and YES in 1984 my first concert experience in the Festhalle Frankfurt/Germany.

To this day Endless Dream remains my favorite song. So it's nice to see it's getting some love in here.

Do you guys know Trevor Rabins solo album Jacaranda from 2011 ? It's instrumental fusion-jazz-prog. So it's not for everybody (A friend said it sounds like Yes instrumental sections), but I consider it to be the best music coming from the Yes familiy since Talk.

[Architeuthis]

Yes indeed! I prefer the Trevor Rabin era as well. Endless Dream is my favorite Yes song also, and one of my fav songs of all time. I got to see them play that live in 1994 at The Gorge in Wahington State. A beautiful peach colored sunset behind the hills to accompany Endless Dream. Just magnificent! If I could relive any moment in my life again, that would be one of them..

[Orbert]

I've heard good things about Jacaranda, but still haven't heard it.  I should remedy that.

[Stadler]

If I'm repeating myself, I apologize (I can't be arsed to go back and reread what I wrote in this thread) but the thing that kills me about the Rabin era is it is SO damn consistent.   I'm not saying every song is as good as the next, but the difference between the "best" and the "worst" is quite narrow, especially when you look at the rest of the catalogue and recognize that it has "And You And I" and "Close To The Edge" and "Arriving UFO" and "Circus of Heaven" and some of Jon's truly inane lyrics in the '90's (Janie being on "crack time" being one of them). 

Plus Rabin was able to get this pretty unique sound that I really really like.  Instantly recognizable.

[Orbert]

I agree with you overall, but it's remember that it's easier to be consistent across a smaller sample set and shorter span of albums.  Rabin's band only put out three albums, the first in 1983 and the last in 1994, a relatively short period in the band's history.

It was 25 years between Close to the Edge and "crack time", during which time Jon Anderson's writing style had changed considerably.  Yeah, "crack time" is cringeworthy, but there are people who generally prefer Jon's more literal lyrics as opposed to "a seasoned witch could call you from the depths of your disgrace and rearrange your liver to the solid mental grace" which is pure gibberish.  Jon himself admits that the early lyrics were a mix of poetry, trying to create imagery which got the point across, and just throwing together syllables which fit and sounded good.

With over 20 albums across a history now nearing 50 years, I accept the relative low points if it means we get the highs.  Nothing in the Rabin years IMO comes close to "Awaken" or "Close to the Edge".  The Rabin years are very consistent, very good, but they also all sound the same to me.  Every time I put on Big Generator or Talk, in an honest attempt to become more familiar with them and hopefully appreciate them more, there are at least a few times during each album that I realize that I haven't been listening at all, and have no idea how long I'm been daydreaming.  It doesn't grab me and hold my attention.  At least 90125 has some variety.  To me, it's similar to what happened with Boston.  The first album is incredible, groundbreaking, solid cover to cover.  Then the second album came out and sounded exactly the same and broke no new ground.  Then the third album also sounded exactly the same and broke new no ground.  I tried getting into them, but the same thing happened.  I found myself daydreaming, bored with what was playing, because it was all the same.  Great sound, great songs, and still somehow boring overall.

[Stadler]

Nothing in the Rabin years IMO comes close to "Awaken" or "Close to the Edge". 

Fair point.  Can't argue with that at all. 

[Bill]

One of the first proper bands I got into, back in the late 70s in my case. Looking forward to seeing them at The Royal Concert Hall in Glasgow on 27th April. My friend has had to pull out, and I have spare ticket if anyone is interested at face value. Middle of stalls, Row B I believe.

[KevShmev]

Do you guys know Trevor Rabins solo album Jacaranda from 2011 ? It's instrumental fusion-jazz-prog. So it's not for everybody (A friend said it sounds like Yes instrumental sections), but I consider it to be the best music coming from the Yes familiy since Talk.

It's a very nice record, yes. I don't listen to that much, but whenever I do, I enjoy it a lot.  I am hoping for another Rabin solo album someday with vocals.

And welcome to the forum! 

Nothing in the Rabin years IMO comes close to "Awaken" or "Close to the Edge". 

Fair point.  Can't argue with that at all.

I can.

Okay, Close to the Edge is hard to top, even though it is not my favorite Yes song, but while Awaken is a good song, it doesn't deserve a mention with the best of the best from the 70s. It's a good song, no more, no less, IMO.

I think, from an epic standpoint, Endless Dream is arguably better than Awaken.  It seems weird to compare a song like Awaken to many of the pop rock tunes from the Rabin era, but I will just say that there are probably 8-10 songs from the Rabin albums that would be higher on my favorite Yes songs list than Awaken (Changes, Hearts, Shoot High Aim Low, the majority of the songs from Talk, and maybe another one or two from 90125).

It has never helped its cause, for me, that Awaken comes from an album that sounds like ass, but the live versions have never wowed me either.  It has some awesome moments, but it often seems like work to get through the whole song.

[Orbert]

Everyone's entitled to their opinion.  I think "Awaken" is pretty much the epitome of prog, by Yes or any other band.  I know some people have trouble with the middle section, but I love it.  The slow, steady buildup is incredible.  Then it seems to break, but actually continues building, just in a different way.  Then it shifts gears and builds some more, and when it finally breaks, it's mind-blowing.

To me, anyway.  But I know I'm far from alone in that opinion.

[KevShmev]

I love the middle section, actually.  Very soothing and great to just kick back and relax to.

I swear, whoever decided on the sound and mixing of Going for the One ought to be ashamed of himself.  Yeah, let's mix it to where is no low end and everything sounds high and super trebly. 

[Orbert]

Supposedly there was a major fuck-up with the mastering of the album.  Dolby noise reduction was used during the recording process, and the prevailing theory is that it was never decoded when they went to create the master tape, the one from which the records were actually pressed.  I don't remember all the details, but I do know that if you record something using Dolby, then play it back without, you get a lot of high end.  Anybody who made mix tapes in the 70's knows this.  To grossly simplify things, the high end is boosted during the encoding, then reduced the same amount during the decoding, but background noise is somehow affected more by this process, so the result is the same amount of music but less noise on the final tape.  Something like that.  But somebody fucked up, and the master ended up with a shitload of high end because the Dolby was never decoded properly.  Because it was the last step in the process, it was never caught.

So yeah, the whole album sounds super bright, but remember that it was the next album after Relayer, which also bothered a lot of people.  Howe's Telecaster is brash and in your face throughout, so many assumed that Eddie Offord was just too fucking stoned to do his job right, and the band was too fucking stoned to notice or give a shit.  And that's probably not far from the truth.

As for letting it affect my opinion of the music itself, not an issue.  Turn down the treble and bump up the bass.  Use graphic or even parametric EQ if you have it.  "Going for the One" is my favorite Yes album, and really, the sound isn't that bad.  Just EQ it.

[KevShmev]

Interesting; I did not know all of that, or I might have been aware of it at some point and simply forgotten...sucks getting older.

Thing is, Turn of the Century and Awaken are the only two songs from Going for the One that I ever listen to.  Parallels is a solid tune, but it's just not one I go far.  The title track features perhaps the most annoying playing of Steve Howe ever.  And Wonderous Stories isn't bad, but it's just kind of there.  For me, anyway.

[Heavy Metal Hippie]

Quote from:KevShmev

I am hoping for another Rabin solo album someday with vocals.

I was hoping for this for years. Not that the 54 soundtracks hadn't their brilliant moments, but a rock album with vocals is the real deal.
There is a fantastic song he wrote for Bryan Adams "Never Let Go" indicating what can happen when Trevor is returning to the good old rock song structure. 

About 2 years ago Trevor announced he's working on exactly that kind of an album. In January (2016) he put that album, halfway done, on hold to finally get the Anderson Rabin Wakeman project started.

The last years release of the album from the Anderson Pointy band showed that Jon Anderson recovered quite a bit of his voice . Much more power compared to his collaboration with Wakeman The Living Tree and his solo album Survival & Other Stories. 

So I quess looking forward to another Anderson Rabin collaboration isn't exactly a cold comfort. I'm not too hot for the late Wakeman,though, but I trust Trevor to lead this project in the right direction.

 

[Stadler]

Interesting; I did not know all of that, or I might have been aware of it at some point and simply forgotten...sucks getting older.

Thing is, Turn of the Century and Awaken are the only two songs from Going for the One that I ever listen to.  Parallels is a solid tune, but it's just not one I go far.  The title track features perhaps the most annoying playing of Steve Howe ever.  And Wonderous Stories isn't bad, but it's just kind of there.  For me, anyway.

Couple things:  Going For The One is my favorite album of all time by any band ever.  Seriously.  LOVE that album. I've come to embrace the sound.  Yeah, it's bright, but Squire's bass has always been bright, and I think it adds to what I see as the "light" and "positivity" of the album.  I know I'm off in lala land with this, but I consider that a very spiritual album, and I think it just all fits.  There are many times I have just turned out the lights, laid down on my bed and listened to Awaken on repeat in order to find some solace and peace.   My opinion only.

I also think that part at about 4:50 of Awaken, with Wakeman's synth, is one of the most epic moments in rock, and seeing it live a couple times has been an experience.  I also like the end part where Wakeman's keys just seem to keep elevating, like a circular staircase.  It helps that I have heard the studio tapes of that, where Anderson was trying to tell Wakeman what to play (or rather, the effect he wanted) and Wakeman just NAILS it.

[Orbert]

Going For The One is my favorite album of all time by any band ever.  Seriously.  LOVE that album. I've come to embrace the sound.  Yeah, it's bright, but Squire's bass has always been bright, and I think it adds to what I see as the "light" and "positivity" of the album.  I know I'm off in lala land with this, but I consider that a very spiritual album, and I think it just all fits.

"Me too" to all of this.  Anderson has always been a very spiritual person, and has named "Awaken" many times as the epitome of what he considers Yes music to be and represent.  The lyrics, the whole thing with the pipe organ and the church choir, it's as close as you can come to religious music without coming right out and labelling it as such.  Our old lead singer (now an ordained minister) said that Yes was the most well-known Christian Rock band that no one realizes is Christian Rock.

There are many times I have just turned out the lights, laid down on my bed and listened to Awaken on repeat in order to find some solace and peace.

This too, except for the repeat part.  I kinda have a rule about not repeating songs, no matter how much I like or even love them.  I never want to tire of a song I enjoy that much, and while it rarely happens, I know it can.  Listen to a song over and over, and eventually burn yourself out on it.  I don't want that to happen to "Awaken".  It's too awesome, and even time I listen to it, it's special and amazing.  I never want to lose that.

[RoeDent]

I bought my first Yes album today, appropriately titled The Yes Album. I heard Starship Trooper last year, not long after Chris Squire passed away. Fell in love with it immediately, and now I have the album.

[Orbert]

Congratulations!

You have the opportunity to start with what many consider to be the first "classic" album and proceed chronologically from there.  If you have the means and the opportunity, that is what I suggest.  This is coming from someone who's listened to Yes since 1972, and for whom Yes has been their favorite band since at least 1977.

[Mosh]

That's what I did, except I started from the very first Yes album. One of the best bands to listen to chronologically, especially up to Drama. It's like each album builds on the last until Tales, then they start deconstructing their sound album by album.

[KevShmev]

Quote from:KevShmev

I am hoping for another Rabin solo album someday with vocals.

I was hoping for this for years. Not that the 54 soundtracks hadn't their brilliant moments, but a rock album with vocals is the real deal.
There is a fantastic song he wrote for Bryan Adams "Never Let Go" indicating what can happen when Trevor is returning to the good old rock song structure. 

About 2 years ago Trevor announced he's working on exactly that kind of an album. In January (2016) he put that album, halfway done, on hold to finally get the Anderson Rabin Wakeman project started.

The last years release of the album from the Anderson Pointy band showed that Jon Anderson recovered quite a bit of his voice . Much more power compared to his collaboration with Wakeman The Living Tree and his solo album Survival & Other Stories. 

So I quess looking forward to another Anderson Rabin collaboration isn't exactly a cold comfort. I'm not too hot for the late Wakeman,though, but I trust Trevor to lead this project in the right direction.

Me too, but I still fear that this project is like 15 years too late.  I think it could still be good, but could have been better years ago when all of their creative juices were still working full time.

Going For The One is my favorite album of all time by any band ever.  Seriously.  LOVE that album. I've come to embrace the sound.  Yeah, it's bright, but Squire's bass has always been bright, and I think it adds to what I see as the "light" and "positivity" of the album.  I know I'm off in lala land with this, but I consider that a very spiritual album, and I think it just all fits.

"Me too" to all of this.  Anderson has always been a very spiritual person, and has named "Awaken" many times as the epitome of what he considers Yes music to be and represent.  The lyrics, the whole thing with the pipe organ and the church choir, it's as close as you can come to religious music without coming right out and labelling it as such.  Our old lead singer (now an ordained minister) said that Yes was the most well-known Christian Rock band that no one realizes is Christian Rock.

Wakeman's performance in Awake is definitely nothing short of spectacular. I would never disagree with that.  And again, I do like the song a lot...I just like quite a few of their songs more.

[ytserush]

When I did the Yes discography, I listened to every album critically, which includes finding both the good and the bad.  Familiarity can bring acceptance, and after listening to Open Your Eyes a few times, I found a fair amount of good.  The songwriting wasn't great, but it didn't send me running from the room screaming or anything, and it was more Yes.  More Steve Howe's finger-lickin' pickin', more great Yes harmonies, etc.  I was fine putting it on and letting it spin.

Sure, the Keys to Ascension releases are superior, but I hate statements that are "I don't like ______ because ______ is better."  By that logic, only the best of anything can be liked, since it's better than the rest.  Keys being better has nothing to do with the worth of Open Your Eyes.

Well that is one reason it never thrilled me. I can usually find something to like about most albums and I gave it a chance (maybe not as much of a chance as most albums because of the songwriting and Billy Sherwood.)  I was really happy to see Yes inspired with the Keys and the live stuff and Open Your Eyes didn't seem very inspiring. (at least to me.)

[ytserush]

hi DTF,
I guess this this the right thread for my introduction, because I'm a big Trevor Rabin and Yes fanboy. 90125 was basically my first album and YES in 1984 my first concert experience in the Festhalle Frankfurt/Germany.

To this day Endless Dream remains my favorite song. So it's nice to see it's getting some love in here.

Do you guys know Trevor Rabins solo album Jacaranda from 2011 ? It's instrumental fusion-jazz-prog. So it's not for everybody (A friend said it sounds like Yes instrumental sections), but I consider it to be the best music coming from the Yes familiy since Talk.

I love Jacaranda. Might be my favorite Rabin solo album ever (of the four or five I have.) Without a doubt my most listened to Rabin album. 90124 is second.

[ytserush]

Never got the love for Awaken than many others get. I like the album well enough and I do like it better live, but I'd definitely prefer any Rabin Yes album over it.  I'm that way with Gabriel-Genesis too. Guess I don't get it.