I've been meaning to check out this band as I've heard so many great things about them. One of them being that they heavily influenced my favorite band Dream Theater. I was looking for best of albums on Amazon and based on reviews for them, they aren't really best ofs. A reviewer recommended the live album Yessongs. As a new listener, would I enjoy them live? I don't listen to much 70s prog. Thanks.
I think hearing them in a live context definitely shows how good of a band they are on stage, which isn't usually too far off from how they sound in the studio.
If you want to try your luck with a live album, definitely get
Yessongs. Definitely one of the best live records of a 70's prog band (right up there with ELP's
Welcome Back My Friends and Genesis'
Seconds Out.
As for a studio album, I would suggest
Fragile and
Close To The Edge. With the former, you get an album that's basically 4 songs by the band and 5 compositions, one by each member, that show cases their talents; with the latter, you get their nearly universally praised album, comprised of only 3 songs and their first side-long epic, the title track.
I started with Yes on those two albums, in addition to their 6th album, the lengthy "concept"
Tales From Topographic Oceans, comprised of only 4 side-long tracks that definitely challenge the listener. Even 37 years later, some fans have trouble getting into this album while others dive right into it and absorb every bit of it. It just really depends on your mind and your patience.
Beyond those three albums, it just really depends on whether or not you like them, then I'd say go two albums in either direction - back to
The Yes Album and
Time And A Word, or forward to
Relayer and
Going For The One. Most fans will tell you their "classic period" runs
The Yes Album-
Going For The One, and that their first two albums and their two after GFTO are more for those who really enjoy the band/are die-hards.
Either way, each Yes album definitely has something different to offer and they're all a bit different characteristically, so it's not like you're listening to the same album over and over.
-Marc.