The Yes Discography: Mirror to the Sky (2023)

[Orbert]

It's not up to him whether or not they play the song.  Yeah, he's being an asshole, but in this case, I actually kinda sympathize with him.  He didn't write the song, he had nothing to do with it, he honestly doesn't like it, but he has to play it because it was the Big Number One Hit by a band he wasn't even in.  Seriously, that's gotta suck.

There are songs on Drama that fans have been crying for for years, and Jon flat out refuses to sing them because he doesn't consider Drama a "real" Yes album.  Simlarly, Rick flat out refuses to play anything from Relayer.  So the two prima donnas in the band get to veto entire albums, but Steve has to shut up and just play "Owner"?

[Kwyjibo]

I've got no problem with Steve not liking the song and that he don't wanna play it. It's the "Messing up on purpose" part that bothers me.
Imagine Sammy Hagar thinking back then "I don't like Jump but if I have to play it because it was the Big Numer One Hit by a band I wasn't even in then I'm going to mess it up".  And I'm sure there are countless examples of musicians playing songs they don't like but are professional about it.
And if Jon and Rick get their way by refusing certain songs, Steve should be stubborn enough to refuse to play Owner.

[Jaq]

It's not up to him whether or not they play the song.  Yeah, he's being an asshole, but in this case, I actually kinda sympathize with him.  He didn't write the song, he had nothing to do with it, he honestly doesn't like it, but he has to play it because it was the Big Number One Hit by a band he wasn't even in.  Seriously, that's gotta suck.

There are songs on Drama that fans have been crying for for years, and Jon flat out refuses to sing them because he doesn't consider Drama a "real" Yes album.  Simlarly, Rick flat out refuses to play anything from Relayer.  So the two prima donnas in the band get to veto entire albums, but Steve has to shut up and just play "Owner"?

Actually that makes me respect him slightly more than Jon and Rick. Steve at least shuts up and plays the song because the fans want it. He just butchers it  Every song a band puts out is fair game to be played, regardless of the line up on it, and if the fans want to hear it, shut the fuck up and play it.

[Orbert]

There are people who like the solos he takes on "Owner".  He's been accused of tanking the solo on purpose, he's always claimed that that's just how he plays them.  I think people are expecting him to take a Trevor Rabin-style solo, and that's just not gonna happen.  If it sounds like crap to some people, then oh well, it does.  There are people who like the 90125 band's versions of "And You And I" and "Starship Trooper" and I think they totally ruin both of them.

[Orbert]

The Ladder (1999)




Jon Anderson - Vocals
Steve Howe - Guitars, Steel Guitar, Mandolin, Vocals
Igor Khoroshev - Keyboards, Vocals
Billy Sherwood - Guitars, Vocals
Chris Squire - Bass, Vocals
Alan White - Drums, Percussion, Vocals


Homeworld (The Ladder)
It Will Be a Good Day (The River)
Lightning Strikes
Can I?
Face to Face
If Only You Knew
To Be Alive (Hep Yadda)
Finally
The Messenger
New Language
Nine Voices (Longwalker)

----------

The Ladder is regarded by many Yesfans as a return to form.  Open Your Eyes kept the band going when its future was uncertain, but its music was relatively stripped-down, the songs themselves rather straightforward.  Yesfans are generally looking for something more adventurous from Yes, and The Ladder brings back some of the adventure.

There is no one definition for Progressive Rock, but most prog fans agree that longer songs with changes in tempo, time and/or key signature, and instrumental passages, are a large part of it.  About half the songs on The Ladder fit that description, so that puts things firmly back on track.  We also have the incorporation of various musical styles within the basic rock framework, another prog element, and that too is welcome.  The Ladder has a lot more variety to it than its predecessor.  Once again, the guys continue to bring new musical influences to the Yes canvas.

The Ladder is not full-on prog, however.  There are a handful of "regular" songs, including a few which probably would have fit better on a Jon Anderson solo album than a Yes album, but other than their famous three-album run in the early-mid 70's, Yes has always had the shorter, mellower songs as well as the epics and mini-epics.  Overall, The Ladder is a strong album and highly regarded among latter-day Yes.

Igor Khoroshev, who played on three tracks on Open Your Eyes, has been promoted to full-time keyboard player here, and he does an outstanding job.  Some songs feature Hammond and synths in key roles, while on others, the keyboards provide atmosphere and fills as necessary.  Billy Sherwood, who had played some keyboards on the previous album, is relegated to rhythm guitar for the most part.  This is a first for Yes, a six-piece lineup, as Steve Howe rather famously prefers to be the only guitarist on Yes albums.  But Billy is a good friend of Chris, and to put it bluntly, without Billy's efforts in both songwriting and just helping Chris carry the torch, Yes would not have existed, so some accommodation was in order.

Another first is a horn section on a Yessong.  "Lightning Strikes" features a piccolo, two saxophones, a trumpet, a trombone, and a tuba.  Jon's fascination with World Music also makes an appearance.  But for all the variety in styles and song structures, it is a well-balanced album.  It starts strong and ends strong, and takes the listener through many changes along the way.

We are treated once again to a new Roger Dean cover painting, this time with the new Yes logo introduced a few albums back.  It has been said that you can tell how "prog" a Yes album is by looking at the cover.  If it has a Roger Dean painting, it's prog.  This isn't always true, but it is true more often than not, and the band seems to know this and use Roger's distinctive visual style to help make a connection to their classic 70's sound.  It works.

----------

I know it's a stupid thing to get hung up about, but I've never liked song titles with parentheses in them, and there are four of them here.  Why?  Couldn't they decide which title to use, so they worked out a way to have both?  Four times?

Also, while musically this is a return to form for Yes, I found myself a little bit disappointed with the vocals on this album, especially after Open Your Eyes, where the harmonies were glorious and really helped elevate a number of the songs.  Most of the time here, Jon sings solo on the verses and the background harmonies come in on the choruses.  Pretty standard stuff, really.  It struck me as downright odd, actually, that all six members have vocal credits, yet there are considerably fewer vocals here than on the previous album.

Something else worth mentioning are the numerous references to earlier Yessongs.  "Can I?" includes a direct quote from "We Have Heaven" from Fragile.  The closing track, "Nine Voices (Longwalker)" sounds like a sequel to "Your Move" from The Yes Album , and I think I hear some "diddit-diddit-diddit" in there.  Wiki lists a few more references that I didn't pick up, even upon multiple listens with headphones and after several listens over the years, but apparently there are others.  It's clever how they're done, and most are quite subtle.  As I said, I haven't even noticed some of them, and I've listened to every Yes album many times, especially the older ones.  It just seemed like something that was clever to do once ("Quartet" on the ABWH album) but if you do it too much it loses its impact.

Anyway, the prog is back, and that's what really counts here.

[The Letter M]

I know it's a stupid thing to get hung up about, but I've never liked song titles with parentheses in them, and there are four of them here.  Why?  Couldn't they decide which title to use, so they worked out a way to have both?  Four times?

Is that how you feel about the songs titles on TFTO, which all have a second title in parentheses after the main title?

Anyways, The Ladder is a great album, and sounds like the proper sequel to their Keys material and even Talk, some prog, some pop, some Jon Anderson-y stuff...it's a good mix, even as a six-piece Yes, they still prove they can rock out and dole out some great Yessongs.

After the mostly mediocre Open Your Eyes, this was a welcome return to form, well, for what could be a proggy Yes in the 90's. This is chock full of great songs, and while I wasn't entirely open to it at first, the album has grown on me over the years. I was quicker to liking Talk, the Keys To Ascension studio tracks and Magnification more than I was with this album, but since then, in recent years, I've really enjoyed it!

-Marc.

[FreezingPoint]

This is the first Yes album that I actually remember being released. I recall that someone gave it to my dad as a Christmas gift. This CD got a lot of play from me at the time, and I still appreciate it very much. I do skip some songs (Lightning Strikes)--as an aside, I remember this song getting quite a bit of radio play here, which was cool for me, running down to tell everyone that the new Yes is on the radio!

There are a couple of songs that mean very much to me, mostly It Will Be A Good Day. That has a special place in my heart. I like this album quite a bit, a lot of it probably for nostalgia reasons, but I don't think I would still listen to it that much if the songs were less than decent. But the songs are good and this makes an excellent Yes album. I wonder if this would be a good starting place for new fans to get into the band, as it can be a stepping stone to any of the Yes era's IMO.

As far as the parentheses, I don't get em either. Especially since they really don't add much to the understanding of the songs. In fact, it might even confuse people as to what they have to do with the song.

[Orbert]

I know it's a stupid thing to get hung up about, but I've never liked song titles with parentheses in them, and there are four of them here.  Why?  Couldn't they decide which title to use, so they worked out a way to have both?  Four times?

Is that how you feel about the songs titles on TFTO, which all have a second title in parentheses after the main title?

You so silly.  Each movement of Tales from Topographic Oceans has a title and subtitle.  There are no parentheses.

The original vinyl gatefold.

[The Letter M]

I know it's a stupid thing to get hung up about, but I've never liked song titles with parentheses in them, and there are four of them here.  Why?  Couldn't they decide which title to use, so they worked out a way to have both?  Four times?

Is that how you feel about the songs titles on TFTO, which all have a second title in parentheses after the main title?

You so silly.  Each movement of Tales from Topographic Oceans has a title and subtitle.  There are no parentheses.

The original vinyl gatefold.

BAH... Wikipedia has lied to me! The article lists the subtitles in parentheses instead of after a hyphen.

Well I suppose that means the songs on The Ladder remain unique to having their subtitles in parentheses. I wonder if there really IS any sort of explanation for them.

-Marc.

[Mladen]

I'm not too familiar with post-Drama Yes, but I discovered a Making of The Ladder video and immediately fell in love with some melodies, so I had to check the album out.  It's really good. Very progressive and melodic. Homeworld and New language are two of my favorite Yes songs, and I have a very soft spot for If only you knew. Overall, the guys did a great job here, especially Igor Khoroshev - excellent stuff.

[Jaq]

One of the issues I've had with Yes post-Talk was simply how, for lack of a better word, safe the music was. Even the epics on the Keys albums felt safe, as if they sat down and said "we need a couple of epics" and banged out some 18 minute long songs. Open Your Eyes is safe in a different way, since it's closer to an AOR rock album than a prog album, but that can be discounted by how it didn't start as a Yes album. The Ladder, despite a couple of nine minute long songs, is still Yes playing it safe. It's a return to form of sorts, but I'm not particularly sure the band knew what the form was to be. It finds the band in some halfway home between prog rock and arena rock, but one where the prog isn't really too proggy and the rock isn't really too rocky. I listened to it recently and, other than Homeworld and a couple of other songs, nothing really stuck with me. I'm not sure if I can particularly articulate WHY this happens-it just feels a little flat to me. Part of it might be the production-I don't like to speak ill of Bruce Fairburn's production since this was the last album he worked on before his death, but there are times where this album sounds more like an 80s arena rock album than a prog album, which might be part of my problem with it. And yeah, I don't get ALL the titles with parentheses either.

[Orbert]

I agree.  I really don't expect to hear anything like "Close to the Edge" or "Heart of the Sunrise" ever again from Yes.  Or things like incorporating a real church pipe organ and choir like on Going for the One.  Or an entire album of epics.  Stuff like that was experimental and groundbreaking.  Now there's a feeling of "been there, done that".

And I think that that might be why we don't get stuff like that anymore.  The 70's was a time of incredible musical diversity and expansion, all while still somehow fitting the definition of Rock and Roll.  Minds were blown, boundaries were pushed, pushed again, and pushed some more.  I think that the guys are simply older and just don't have that youthful drive to keep pushing things the way they once did.  Even the epics on Keys to Ascension, yes we have the mood swings, the combining and contrasting of different musical ideas, but all of it feels pretty tame compared to the near-atonal insanity of the early days.

I guess I've accepted that.  And if it's huge sprawling epics or real prog with ridiculous instrumental excursions I need, I'm glad we have newer groups like Beardfish, The Flower Kings, and TransAtlantic to provide that.  Sad as it is, I'm really not surprised that Yes isn't still doing that after 40+ years.  That's a long time to rock, especially as intensely as they do sometimes.  You can see that they're physically and mentally exhausted now after playing "Close to the Edge" or "Awaken".  And it's completely understandable.  I don't want to say that the spark is gone, but it definitely isn't as bright as it once was.  They've been doing this for a long time.

[ytserush]

]

BAH... Wikipedia has lied to me! The article lists the subtitles in parentheses instead of after a hyphen.

-Marc.
[/quote]


Wikipedia lied? Say it isn't so....

[KevShmev]

The Ladder shocked me when it first came out, as I did not expect a Yes album that good at the time.  The middle of the album is pretty average, but the first five and last three songs are all keepers.  I still say this is easily the best Yes album of the post-Trevor Rabin years.

[Nel]

I... I honestly can't believe so many people like it. I couldn't get into a single song on the album. It's about on the same level as ABWH and Union are for me, as far as over-the-top cheesiness goes.

[KevShmev]

A song like If Only You Knew definitely lays the cheese on very, very thick, but that to me is the only real throwaway song on the album. 

Also, while I do like this album a lot, it is still not quite a top 10 Yes album in my book. 

[Perpetual Change]

Just revised this album.

I remembered how when I first listened, I really liked the first two songs. The "Lightning Strikes" came on, and I wasn't sure how to react to it. Now, I appreciate it for its catchiness. But I distinctly remembering feeling like I was listening to background music while standing in line for a high-tech roller coaster at an amusement park.

The album dips in quality, but opens strongly. It's probably beat only by Talk in terms of 90's Yes, and isn't anywhere near as good as Magnification. But ultimately, it (along with Magnification) prove one thing that I've felt more frequently as we do this discography run-through: If you've got Jon, Chris, and Steve in the band, miracles can happen. With one of those three absent, it can never really get as good as classic Yes.

[The Letter M]

Without one of those three absent, it can never really get as good as classic Yes.

Wait....what? Did you mean "With one of those three absent", not "Without"? Otherwise, it sounds like a double-negative

And I agree, the better Yes albums have all three, but at least Jon and Chris, which why I don't really rank ABWH or Union very high, and even though Open Your Eyes had all three, the album's material wasn't Yes-centric at the onset, so it suffers from that a bit.

And from here on out, Steve Howe definitely helps the band come along, having been on every album SINCE the Keys material, joining Chris and Alan again, forming a tight trio-core of the band because, really, the keyboard spot was always a rotating door, and so much so that the band even decided to record an album WITHOUT a keyboard player.

-Marc.

[FreezingPoint]

I agree.  I really don't expect to hear anything like "Close to the Edge" or "Heart of the Sunrise" ever again from Yes.  Or things like incorporating a real church pipe organ and choir like on Going for the One.  Or an entire album of epics.  Stuff like that was experimental and groundbreaking.  Now there's a feeling of "been there, done that".

And I think that that might be why we don't get stuff like that anymore.  The 70's was a time of incredible musical diversity and expansion, all while still somehow fitting the definition of Rock and Roll.  Minds were blown, boundaries were pushed, pushed again, and pushed some more.  I think that the guys are simply older and just don't have that youthful drive to keep pushing things the way they once did.  Even the epics on Keys to Ascension, yes we have the mood swings, the combining and contrasting of different musical ideas, but all of it feels pretty tame compared to the near-atonal insanity of the early days.

I guess I've accepted that.  And if it's huge sprawling epics or real prog with ridiculous instrumental excursions I need, I'm glad we have newer groups like Beardfish, The Flower Kings, and TransAtlantic to provide that.  Sad as it is, I'm really not surprised that Yes isn't still doing that after 40+ years.  That's a long time to rock, especially as intensely as they do sometimes.  You can see that they're physically and mentally exhausted now after playing "Close to the Edge" or "Awaken".  And it's completely understandable.  I don't want to say that the spark is gone, but it definitely isn't as bright as it once was.  They've been doing this for a long time.

This is very true. And it seems like many bands tend to fall into this, for any number of reasons. Either the fans expect you to sound a certain way and will not accept anything else, or time and an entire career of doing things differently leaves you with less of a drive to be innovative as before. Furthermore, it is easy to "play it safe", to release an album that the fans pretty much know what it sounds like before it actually hits the shelves. All that being said, I do not blame any band who falls into this, especially Yes who's career has been absolutely amazing.

Now, I think it is still possible for Yes and bands to be innovative and fresh. The way I see it, there are two main ways to be innovative as a band:

1) Remove and push boundaries where they have never been before

or 2) create boundaries and confines and force yourself to work within them.

These two ways are not exclusive to one another. Actually, both can be done at the same time. Think of something like this: Create boundaries by saying, "I will only use African percussion on this track", but since the band may not have done that before, you are pushing boundaries as a band. I think that Magnification as a wonderful example of Yes doing something different, and they did it very well. I would like to see them do more of the same thing in the future. Maybe that is as simple as working with a different producer, or recording in a different place. Sometimes, it can be a bigger change. What I don't want is to have Yes be different for the sake of being different, and have it feel unnatural. However, if the next, if any album Yes puts out sounds like the last, I will understand completely, and will not hold it against them. Heck, I would love to be still making music at their age.

[Orbert]

The Magnification project was, as you point out, pretty different in how it was both conceived and executed.  The Keys to Ascension studio material would have been their first album of new material to have two epics and an instrumental (other than a Steve Howe acoustic solo), which is also very rare for Yes.

So maybe they're still pushing in some ways, and maybe I'm grasping at straws a bit here.  But if there's one thing that Yes has shown us, it's that there can be a huge variety to their music, lineup changes which are almost comical in number and scope, and it all still sounds like Yes.  Some say that their product is wildly inconsistent; I say that having a lot of variety in your catalogue is not necessarily a bad thing.  I think albums like Open Your Eyes and Tormato, or even 90125 and Big Generator, are underrated.  People think of Yes and think of entire albums of epics, forgetting that that was a relatively short period in their very long history.

Someone once asked Rick Wakeman what the deal was with Yes members coming and going, and how it might even lead to Yes continuing after they're all dead.  It's hard to tell how serious the question was, but Rick answered it seriously.  Yes has transcended what it even means to be a band.  There is no one person who "must" be on the album for it to be Yes.  He points out that the London Symphony Orchestra has been around for over 100 years.  It's still called The London Symphony Orchestra, but obviously it has not been the same members for all that time.  People join and leave over the years, and the group itself carries on.  Why should the rules be different for rock bands?

That's a pretty crazy statement, pretty out there, but it makes some sense.  And then I thought about how orchestras will record albums of symphonies, or light classical works, or popular music, or show tunes.  There can be a great variety to the types of albums.  And if Yes is something like a symphony, why can't they have all different types of albums?  Albums of short pop songs, albums of prog epics, albums with an orchestra instead of a full-time keyboard player?  It's all Yes.

[The Letter M]

The Magnification project was, as you point out, pretty different in how it was both conceived and executed.  The Keys to Ascension studio material would have been their first album of new material to have two epics and an instrumental (other than a Steve Howe acoustic solo), which is also very rare for Yes.

So maybe they're still pushing in some ways, and maybe I'm grasping at straws a bit here.  But if there's one thing that Yes has shown us, it's that there can be a huge variety to their music, lineup changes which are almost comical in number and scope, and it all still sounds like Yes.  Some say that their product is wildly inconsistent; I say that having a lot of variety in your catalogue is not necessarily a bad thing.  I think albums like Open Your Eyes and Tormato, or even 90125 and Big Generator, are underrated.  People think of Yes and think of entire albums of epics, forgetting that that was a relatively short period in their very long history.

Someone once asked Rick Wakeman what the deal was with Yes members coming and going, and how it might even lead to Yes continuing after they're all dead.  It's hard to tell how serious the question was, but Rick answered it seriously.  Yes has transcended what it even means to be a band.  There is no one person who "must" be on the album for it to be Yes.  He points out that the London Symphony Orchestra has been around for over 100 years.  It's still called The London Symphony Orchestra, but obviously it has not been the same members for all that time.  People join and leave over the years, and the group itself carries on.  Why should the rules be different for rock bands?

That's a pretty crazy statement, pretty out there, but it makes some sense.  And then I thought about how orchestras will record albums of symphonies, or light classical works, or popular music, or show tunes.  There can be a great variety to the types of albums.  And if Yes is something like a symphony, why can't they have all different types of albums?  Albums of short pop songs, albums of prog epics, albums with an orchestra instead of a full-time keyboard player?  It's all Yes.

GREAT post!

And I sort of agree, Yes is more like an orchestra than many of their contemporaries - Genesis had their own line-up changes, sure, but they had 2 long runs of albums with the same line-up, creating and evolving a certain sound that was typically Genesis; King Crimson was always Robert Fripp at the helm, with a changing line-up, sure, but nothing like Yes, although their sound did change more dramatically as the line-ups transformed over the years and decades; Other bands had their changes, but for many of them, they had primary writers and/or lyricists, so it seemed more like THEIR band with other performers.

Some might say that about Yes, it being "Jon's band" or "Chris's band", but to be honest, there have been Yes albums without either, and they're still stylistically, in some form, a version of Yes. I tend to agree with Rick's statement - there doesn't always HAVE to be one person on every Yes album for it to be Yes. Heck, Jon made a Yes album without even being able to CALL IT Yes, and it was still (and still is) regarded as Yes. That's saying something.

It's a style, a sound, a feel, a movement, a philosophy or mindset... Yes is just more than the sum of it's parts. I think I could see Yes moving forward after Steve, Chris and Alan call it a day. Rick Wakeman's son could move on with it, maybe invite Steve's sone Virgil Howe, and maybe bring in some other up-and-coming musicians who love the sound of Yes. I think it depends on where the band is going in the next couple of years, especially if the current line-up does another album.

If I had it my way, I wouldn't mind seeing Steve and Geoff take off and commit to Asia from here on out, and then Chris and Alan find new and fresh musicians to play guitars and keyboards, and keep Jon Davidson singing. This would open the door for "the next generation" of Yes, with a younger vocalist, keyboardist and guitarist. Alan would probably step down later and have his spot be filled (How great would it be for Nick D'Virgilio to be the next Yes drummer?!), leaving Chris Squire to be the last old-man out the door before the band continues on for another 10-15 years!

Ah well, I could dream, and I would love to be able to enjoy new Yessongs with my kids (whenever I have them ) over the next couple decades.

-Marc.

[FreezingPoint]

These are some great points and I have really enjoyed reading them. Imagine then, Yes breaking that last boundary. "Yes, the rock group that transcends time and space!" It really is amazing though, how much Yes has changed yet is still completely Yes. There are just so many different styles and sounds in the different eras that it is a complete musical journey in its own. I like how one can hear the influences of the decades come and go. To address M, I think three things need to happen for Yes to continue into a second generation of players. (Yeah, I'm in a list making mood today)

1) You addressed this one already. Phase out the old players and cycle in the new ones.

2) Release albums more regularly to get fans accustomed to the new people.

3) Be able to pass on the love of the band to the next generation

The problem is that all of these have to happen at the same time. I can see some push back happening from some older fans if some of the orignals or long standing members leave. Another problem is number three. Honestly, I am the only Yes fan that I know my age. I am sure some others have heard the hits and all, but I do not know anyone who knows the catalog and appreciates all the eras. There is no way the band can continue into a new generation of members unless a new generation of fans is there to support them. I do also hope that any new members are able to both play and create awesome newer material, yet nail the older material as well. I don't want some keyboardist to come out and try and play through Wakeman's ABWH solo. I would much rather they do a great solo of their own.

Ultimately however, in my gut I am not sure this would happen. But who knows really. I do look forward to what Yes has in their future. I can see at least one album coming from the current group. I do not know if they have plans to do so or not, but I will always look forward to hearing new Yes music.

[Orbert]

It's pretty crazy idea, and I don't really think it will happen.  But it did get me thinking about the different "kinds" of Yes albums out there, everything from all shorter pop songs to all epics, and how it's all Yes and IMO all at least pretty good.  I didn't expect to enjoy Open Your Eyes as much as I did.  I tried it when it first came out and thought it sucked.  But listening again with an open mind and open ears, I found the good in it, and there's really quite a bit.

Same with Big Generator.  I still can't say that I really like that one, but I don't dislike it as much as I did.  In general, it sounds too similar to 90125 but not as good.  I think the fact that Yes keeps changing their sound is a plus, not a minus.  Each person in the band has, by now, been involving in several different bands and projects, and brings many diverse influences to the table when they get back together.  It actually doesn't make sense to expect that their sound wouldn't change, even when it's the same five guys.

Obviously Yes is known first for their prog, and because of the notoriety they gained when they were cranking out the epics in the 70's, they'll always be associated with that.  I just think it's unfair and a bit close-minded to write off their less proggy stuff.  And that's speaking as someone who used to do exactly that.

[Orbert]

House of Yes: Live From House of Blues (2000)



Jon Anderson - Vocals
Steve Howe - Guitars, Vocals
Igor Khoroshev - Keyboards, Vocals
Billy Sherwood - Guitars, Vocals
Chris Squire - Bass, Vocals
Alan White - Drums, Percussion, Vocals


Yours Is No Disgrace
Time And A Word
Homeworld (The Ladder)
Perpetual Change
Lightning Strikes
The Messenger
Ritual - Nous Sommes du Soleil
And You And I
It Will Be A Good Day (The River)
Face To Face
Awaken
Your Move / I've Seen All Good People
Cinema
Owner of a Lonely Heart
Roundabout

----------

I'm including this one for completeness only, in case some people want to discuss it.  I rented the DVD a while back and watched it twice.  The CD and DVD came from the same concert and they only played the one night, so presumably it's the same music, but I don't have the CD (double CD actually) so I can't give really go into any detail.

This is the only official recording from The Ladder tour and lineup, and by the time it was released, Billy Sherwood had already left the band and Igor Khoroshev was not far behind.  The end of the another chapter in Yes history.

I remember thinking that the material from The Ladder was stronger live than on the album, but the older classics were not as good, mostly due to the band being older and not as tight.  But this could also be simply because I'm so used to the earlier recordings and I'm just more accustomed to them.

[The Letter M]

I remember watching this DVD (and listening to the album) when I first got into the band and actually really enjoying it. Of course, there were (at least 2 more) better live DVDs after this one that were a LOT better, but I did like this one. Good set list choices and a good performance over all. A LOT of new material, comparatively speaking.

I've compared this to performances on the OYE and Talk Tours (of which I have good quality live bootleg DVDs) and I could sort of tell that they were definitely slowing a bit, but it wouldn't get more painfully obvious for another 5-6 years, after the 35th Anniversary Tour, at least.

Anyways, this is a good set to have, even on CD if you don't have time to watch the DVD. Also, this was the first official live release to include "Awaken", as it was not on Yesshows or any other live albums between then and this one. Of course, after this release, there have been 3 more live versions of "Awaken" from different tours released on 3 different sets, but this was the first, so that's probably the most exciting part of LFHOB.

-Marc.

[Jaq]

I have the DVD, and really, it's the newer songs that come off the best. The classics come off with a certain lack of fire, not quite to the point that they're disinterested in playing them, but definitely to the point where it's starting to become obvious that it's getting harder for Anderson, Howe, Squire, and White to play the classics. They were starting to edge closer to playing the classics by the numbers, but a little of the old spark still remains. Plus we get Billy Sherwood taking Rabin's solo in Owner and proving at last he actually DID something in Yes. 

Hardly what you call essential, but worth a rental if you can find it that way these days.

[jammindude]

Anyways, this is a good set to have, even on CD if you don't have time to watch the DVD. Also, this was the first official live release to include "Awaken", as it was not on Yesshows or any other live albums between then and this one. Of course, after this release, there have been 3 more live versions of "Awaken" from different tours released on 3 different sets, but this was the first, so that's probably the most exciting part of LFHOB.

-Marc.

Awaken was on Keys to Ascension 1.

[Orbert]

"Awaken" is my favorite Yessong of all, but I've found very few live versions of it that move me the way the original studio version does.  When you're there at the concert watching it and hearing it live, it's a different experience and you're there in the moment.  Watching it on DVD is similar, though not quite as engrossing.

Listening to the live recording, the imperfections just jump out at me.  Without being able to see it and "experience" it, all I really have is a version of the song that isn't as clean, isn't as good overall as the one I love.  Sometimes with a live recording, the band takes it up a notch, or there's a solo or other section that's particularly inspired and really great to listen to.  I don't remember getting that from this version, but I probably should have hunted down a copy of checked it out before saying anything.  As I said, I've really only included this album for completeness.

[The Letter M]

Anyways, this is a good set to have, even on CD if you don't have time to watch the DVD. Also, this was the first official live release to include "Awaken", as it was not on Yesshows or any other live albums between then and this one. Of course, after this release, there have been 3 more live versions of "Awaken" from different tours released on 3 different sets, but this was the first, so that's probably the most exciting part of LFHOB.

-Marc.

Awaken was on Keys to Ascension 1.

GAH! I knew I wasn't totally 100% sure on that. Either way, the performance of "Awaken" here isn't at least riddled with over-dubs and studio changes. (as far as we know...)

-Marc.

[Orbert]

Magnification (2001)



Jon Anderson - Vocals, Acoustic Guitar, MIDI Guitar
Steve Howe - Acoustic, Electric, and Pedal Steel Guitars, Mandolin, Vocals
Chris Squire - Bass, Vocals
Alan White - Drums, Percussion, Piano, Vocals

Larry Groupé - Conductor, Arrangements, Orchestrations

Magnification
Spirit of Survival
Don't Go
Give Love Each Day
Can You Imagine
We Agree
Soft as a Dove
Dreamtime
In the Presence Of
 I) Deeper
 II) Death of Ego
 III) True Beginner
 IV) Turn Around and Remember
Time Is Time

----------

I tried to find some reference as to why Billy Sherwood left Yes after The Ladder tour, but could not.  Billy had worked most closely with Chris Squire over the years, as far back as the late 80's, when Yes was on hiatus following Big Generator.  Some of the fruits of that collaboration made it onto Union, and Billy remained associated with Yes through the 90's and was an official member on Open Your Eyes and The Ladder.  The Squire/Sherwood collaboration Conspiracy was released in 2000, and a second album The Unknown came out in 2003 under the band name Conspiracy, so there was apparently no falling out.  My guess is that there simply was no room in Yes for a second guitarist/keyboardist.  They had Steve Howe and Igor Khoroshev.  So Billy moved on.

In 2000, Yes embarked on the "Masterworks" tour as a five-piece.  They'd conducted an online poll to see what songs fans wanted most to hear, and the response overwhelmingly favored the epics and other longer songs, so that's what they played.  The set list was "Close to the Edge", "Starship Trooper", "The Gates of Delirium", "Heart of the Sunrise", "Ritual", and "I've Seen All Good People", with "Roundabout" as the encore.

During the tour, however, Igor was involved in an incident for which there aren't a lot of details, but two female security guards were also involved and criminal sexual assault charges were filed.  It was settled out of court, which is why not much is known publicly, but it is widely presumed that this is why Igor was asked to leave Yes upon conclusion of the "Masterworks" tour.

That left Yes without a keyboard player.  They asked Rick Wakeman if he would like to rejoin, but he was busy.  (Rick released five albums in 2000 and two more in 2001.)

Jon suggested that they try something he'd been thinking about: working with an orchestra.  Not like on Time And A Word, where strings and horns are basically laid on top of existing songs, or mixed in while keyboards and guitars are mixed out, but actually writing the songs with the orchestra in mind, fully integrated and playing parts which would generally be covered by keyboards, but taking advantage of the additional sonic and tonal range.  Real strings and horns instead of Moogs and Mellotrons.

The result was Magnification, and it is exactly how Jon envisioned it.  Yes vocals and harmonies, Steve's guitars, minimal keyboards (Alan plays some piano), and a full symphony orchestra "magnifying" the sound.  Song lengths vary from two or three minutes to over 10 minutes, with most falling into the six- or seven-minute range.  It is progressive and orchestral and sometimes over the top, but is it Yes?

Yes.  By now, listeners have come to realize that Yes music has many facets and many elements, and there's no one thing that makes it Yes.  And while Magnification doesn't sound anything like Close to the Edge or Relayer, there are definitely parts which are reminiscent of the mellower, more orchestral moments from the early catalog.  There are also moments of great power when the horns and winds come blasting in and Alan is slamming the drums and Steve is wailing and Jon is rocking out... okay, rocking out as hard as Jon can, anyway.  His voice doesn't really lend itself to rock and roll screaming, but he knows how to emote, and the passion comes through in his delivery.

Magnification is another unique Yes album, for obvious reasons, and it perhaps is not for everyone.  But it is most definitely Yes, and while some listeners will miss the Hammond and the synths, those who listen with an open mind and open ears will be rewarded with some really great music.  Yes, it's different.

[KevShmev]

A dud.  I like Spirit of Survival quit a bit, and Can You Imagine? is also good, but the rest does very little for me. 

In the Presence Of is like the biggest tease ever.  It starts off so good, that main theme in the first few minutes being great, but then it veers off into something, never revisiting that main theme, and pretty much peters off into a boring ending.

Overall, I'd call this one of their three or four least best records.

[The Letter M]

From what I remember about this album, I really like it. The orchestra really adds something different to the Yes-sound, and the songs are written well enough. I think the live concerts were a better representation of Yes with an orchestra, but for the purpose of writing an album with an orchestra in mind, I think they achieved their vision.

The longer tracks are pretty good, but I will have to admit, most of the material isn't THAT memorable. I think, of the last 5 albums (Keys, OYE, Ladder, Magnification, and FFH), this is my 2nd least listened-to album. Not that it's as bad as OYE, but I just don't get as much joy out of it as the other 3. Maybe I just need to go back to it again and listen closer.

-Marc.

[Orbert]

It doesn't have a lot of memorable material.  For me, mostly it's just nice stuff to put on in the background.  I know, that should be heresy for Yes, but that's how I listen to a lot of classical music, and it works out really well.  I can appreciate classical music, but most of the time, I'll put on about 30 string quartets, hit Shuffle, and let it go while I study, watch TV, or play on the computer.  This isn't Yes music to listen to actively, like "Close to the Edge" which demands your attention.

On the other hand, a lot of people do listen to Magnification actively.  I can understand why this one's not as popular as most, but I still think it's a great album.

[Perpetual Change]

This is up there with Yes' 70s material. I didn't know what to make of it at first, but the more I listened to it and allowed Magnification to move me, the better it got. I was never big on the first two songs, but after that the album gets way better. "Don't Go" is one of Yes' catchiest and best "simple" songs ever, and is even better than most Rabin-era Yes songs in that regard. "Give Love Each Day" has an awesome intro, which I love. The way Chris comes in from the Orchestra is awesome, and I get chills down my spine as soon as Jon comes in with "standing here on sacred ground".  "Can You Imagine" is another great simple song.  After that, I love the great acoustic work and soundscaping verses of "We Agree" that, again, send chills down my spine. "Dreamtime" and "In the Presence Of" are both great, but the latter is just heart wrenching. I remember laying in bed with my headphones listening to "turn around and remember that/when it gets so low as you finally hit the ground" wishing the song would never end.  I couldn't believe I was listening to the same Yes whose newer material often has such a glossed-over happiness to it. Whereas albums like The Ladder often sound kinda cheeful in a shallow and phoney kind of way, Magnification is thoughtful, dark and melancholic. I just love it so much. It might be my favorite Yes album. 

[Nel]

The best album to happen since Drama, considering the long line of dreck in that timespan. I love Magnification, with its orchestra. Dreamtime is one of my favorite Yes songs. Admittedly, In The Presence Of doesn't really go anywhere interesting, and the last track doesn't even need to be there, but the rest of it is great.