The Official Yes Thread

[Mladen]

I can't figure out why GFTO isn't considered as good as TYE-->Relayer by so many people.

In my case, the problem is Parallels. The song never did anything for me. On the other side, the previous five albums don't have a single weak track. And even Wonderous stories and Turn of the century ain't that great.

[Perpetual Change]

OK, now you're making me angry 

I get what you mean, though. Relayer is slightly lower rated for me because I can't stand Sound Chaser. It's one of those songs that I'll skip every time.

[LieLowTheWantedMan]

I get what you mean, though. Relayer is slightly lower rated for me because I can't stand Sound Chaser. It's one of those songs that I'll skip every time.

WAT

Oh well I guess I'm bad too because I'm the same with Siberian Khatru, and I have to be in a very rare mood to enjoy And You and I.

[ZBomber]

I can't figure out why GFTO isn't considered as good as TYE-->Relayer by so many people.

GFTO is easily in my top 5 Yes albums. I think it is a near perfect album.

And Turn of the Century is a beautiful song.

[Mladen]

OK, now you're making me angry 

I get what you mean, though. Relayer is slightly lower rated for me because I can't stand Sound Chaser. It's one of those songs that I'll skip every time.

I used to dislike Sound Chaser, but now I can't help myself but enjoy it's craziness. It's such a sick track. 

[LieLowTheWantedMan]

GFTO isn't amazing, but it's still pretty damned good.

[Quadrochosis]

GFTO isn't amazing, but it's still pretty damned good.

What? It doesn't have a single bad track on it! Every song is killer. Easily a top 5 Yes album.

[LieLowTheWantedMan]

GFTO isn't amazing, but it's still pretty damned good.

What? It doesn't have a single bad track on it! Every song is killer. Easily a top 5 Yes album.

Well I have a pretty strict definition of amazing album-wise. I do agree there are no bad songs, and Awaken is just plain awesome.

[KevShmev]

"Awaken" and "Turn of the Century" are both really good, but while none of the other three songs are not bad, none of them are anything special. 

[Perpetual Change]

"Awaken" and "Turn of the Century" are both really good, but while none of the other three songs are not bad, none of them are anything special. 

Well, don't the constitute like 2/3rds of the album?

I've always thought Parallels is really cool. And Wondrous Stories is nice, too.

GFTO also had some great stuff on the remaster. Montruxe's theme and Vevey (Revisted) have pretty much become part of the actual album as far as I'm concerened.

[ytserush]

Maybe it's the production.  Going for the One has a very "light and airy" sound to it, lots of high end, no bass at all, plus the music itself has a lot of cymbals, bell trees, and high harmonies.  Add to that Jon Anderson's voice and Steve Howe's Telecaster on the opening title track, and the first thing that hits you is a lot of what really bothers many people about Yesmusic.  Much of GFTO is Yes at the "airy-fairy" (not my term) best.

It's a valid criticism, to be honest.  I don't agree with it; Going for the One my favorite, on days when Close to the Edge is not.

I think you may have identified one reason why I'm not very fond of Going For The One.

Although I really do like Going For The One, Wonderous Stories, and Awaken.

[Orbert]

I love every song on Going for the One.  "Turn of the Century" still moves me to tears every time.  If it doesn't move you, you have no soul.

[The Letter M]

GFTO also had some great stuff on the remaster. Montruxe's theme and Vevey (Revisted) have pretty much become part of the actual album as far as I'm concerened.

Indeed, and I agree so much so that I'm trying to figure out an alternate tracklisting for GFTO that includes "Montreux's Theme" and "Vevey (Revisited)", which are both pretty good instrumentals. I think for an album that has four pretty good SONGS, it misses some of the more interesting instrumental sections of their older, longer pieces.

So far, my favorite order has been this:
"Going For The One"
"Turn Of The Century"
"Montreux's Theme"
"Parallels"
"Vevey (Revisited)"
"Wonderous Stories"
"Awaken"

Another order I've tried has also been:
"Going For The One"
"Vevey (Revisited)"
"Wonderous Stories"
"Turn Of The Century"
"Parallels"
"Montreux's Theme"
"Awaken"

-Marc.

[Perpetual Change]

Man. The Ladder is pretty bad.

I'm no longer excited about any Yes albums I have left to purchase 

[Orbert]

Don't let The Ladder turn you off too much.  There are some good moments on The Ladder, but I don't think there's a single song which I consider classic-quality all the way through.  Most of it sounds like either "new Yes" (Anderson's world music influence or whatever the hell that is) or the guys trying to find the magic but failing.  I'm generally most critical of the keyboards, and they're not bad here, but I just don't feel the chemistry that you get with Howe and Wakeman.

I still think the Keys to Ascension albums are pretty good stuff, with some parts nearly at the 70's level in terms of quality.  Which isn't surprising as it's the same five guys, the last time we'll hear from that lineup.

The first two albums are also very good, just don't expect anything too proggy.  In the late 60's, prog was just getting started (and wasn't even called "prog" yet) but you can definitely hear the seeds of something much more adventurous coming out of the arrangements.  It's like they wanted to be a vocal group a la CSN or Simon & Garfunkel, but realized that they had some chops and wanted to let loose once in a while.  I still listen to the first two albums once in a while.

If Going for the One was hurt by its production, Tormato was basically killed by it.  I grew up listening to these albums on vinyl, which is better, but I can see (hear) why some people have trouble with them now.  The sound quality really is inferior, and combine that with some admittedly weaker songs, and the result is not great.  But not horrible, either.  There are still some great songs on Tormato even if the well was running dry by then.

[Perpetual Change]

Right now, it looks like Talk is my best bet. And the first two. Haha. That's not saying much.

Actually, I did like "Survival" and "There's a time, and the time is right for me..." or whatever on the greatest hits, so I can see myself really enjoying the first two records.

[Orbert]

Talk is said to be the best of the three Rabin-era albums, but I never picked it up the first time around, and only recently (well, within the past five years) got around to it, so I've listened to it many three times.  I heard Big Generator a bit when my future brother-in-law used to play it, but it sounded like 90125's inferior younger sibling.  Talk seems to have some cool stuff going on, but I just don't feel the need to explore that particular lineup any further.

Hunt down the Yes cover of "Something's Coming" from West Side Story.  I think someone said it's on the remastered first album, but I don't have the remasters.  I like the song anyway, as West Side Story is one of my favorite musicals, and they tear it up.  I have it in the YesYears box.

[ytserush]

I love every song on Going for the One.  "Turn of the Century" still moves me to tears every time.  If it doesn't move you, you have no soul.

I will listen to "Turn Of The Century" in the near future to determine if I have a soul.

I don't really have it in me to listen to Going For The One in its entirety sometime soon, but I'll take it out for "Turn Of The Century."

As far as "Something's Coming" is concerned, I have it on YesYears as well as The Millenium Collection which I think is a bunch of BBC Session recordings (The recordings exist under a bunch of titles), but wasn't also on that Yesterdays compilation?
I don't have the Rhino remaster of the first Yes album yet, only the '94 remaster.

I'm not sure if I can pick a favorite of the Rabin years other than to say Union would probably be my least favorite of the lot due to the "too many hands" theory.

[Orbert]

Yesterdays was a weird compilation of songs from the first two albums, some of them alternate versions, plus their cover of "America" which was actually recorded years later, by the Fragile/CttE lineup.

Union is another weird one, purely an artificial construct conceived by the suits.  It's hard for me to even consider it a "real" Yes album due to the presence of half the session musicians in the state of California, brought in to help finish the album when neither Rabin's band nor ABWH wanted anything more to do with it.  It's yet another example of Yes being meddled with by the suits.

[Perpetual Change]

And yet there's some great material on Union. Too bad it sounds less like a album and more like a compilation of Yes albums that never were.

[The Letter M]

And yet there's some great material on Union. Too bad it sounds less like a album and more like a compilation of Yes albums that never were.

That's probably because that's exactly what it was? It's got songs from what would have been ABWH 2, and the next Rabin-Yes album, but I do agree, there are some GREAT songs on there, and there are some stinkers too. I'd still rank the album, over-all, above Open Your Eyes.

Also, continuing on my Yes-album-a-day journey, today starts the Rabin era, with 90125. I just spend the last 10 days listening to each of the first ten albums in order, one a day/night, and it's really brought the Yes discography into a brighter light for me - I haven't been on a Yes binge in YEARS, and so this is really cementing their place in my Top 10 Bands. We'll see how the next few albums hold up, especially since I haven't really listened to Big Generator or Union very often. Also, I will be throwing in ABWH after BG, since it's KIND OF like Yes, and it'll be a good lead-in to Union.

-Marc.

[Orbert]

M, that's a pretty cool idea.  I should do an album-a-day thing with some of my favorite bands, or maybe some bands that will turn out to be favorites.

Regarding Union, yeah I went on a rant there for a minute and forgot to come back and say that I still like a lot of it.  Some of the songs are pretty cool, but it just bugs me for some reason knowing that it's not "really" Yes.  I mean, Elias replaced some of Steve Howe's guitar parts with some studio guy's, and Wakeman said he tried to listen to it once, and threw it out the window (he was in a car at the time) because he didn't even hear any parts he'd played.

Howe and Wakeman are not required for it to be Yes, but come on.  If someone's replacing their parts with session guys in order to "make it sound better" you know something's wrong.

[The Letter M]

M, that's a pretty cool idea.  I should do an album-a-day thing with some of my favorite bands, or maybe some bands that will turn out to be favorites.

This is the first time I've done this in a looooong time with any band I like, but it's been a sweet change of pace for my listening habits. What I've been doing is starting the day with an album and occasionally listen to it through the day, and then over night as I go to sleep (since dock my iPod and play it while I go to bed). It's been a fun experiment!

Today marks the day for Big Generator, and I will have to admit, I'm liking it a lot more than I originally thought I did! It's definitely not the worst Yes album out there (which still stands to be Open Your Eyes, which I don't think will ever change), and might even end up being a BIT better than Union, but I'll have to wait and see how listening to that goes on Monday - tomorrow will be ABWH, which I've not heard very often either, mostly because I was turned off by the island sounds, especially on Teakbois... I mean, what WAS that?! I'm hoping ABWH fares a bit better tomorrow than it has in years past.

-Marc.

[Perpetual Change]

So I'm so close to purchasing Tormato but I'm scared....


Someone please reassure it'll be better then The Ladder and Big Generator (which was my last haul).

I'm thinking this haul will be Self-Titled and Tormato.

[Perpetual Change]

Oh maybe I'll just get Yesshows. Why is that one so rare?

[The Letter M]

So I'm so close to purchasing Tormato but I'm scared....


Someone please reassure it'll be better then The Ladder and Big Generator (which was my last haul).

I'm thinking this haul will be Self-Titled and Tormato.

Tormato is indeed better than BG and TL. Some of the songs on it are a bit lacking compared albums like GFTO and Drama, but it's still classic-era Yes with the Anderson/Wakeman/Squire/White/Howe line-up, so the playing is still pretty superb. My favorite cuts on it are the first and last tracks, "Arriving UFO" and "Release, Release".

As for the self-titled debut, it's got some great tracks on it, but make sure you get the Rhino Remaster, which includes "Something's Coming", a cover of the West Side Story song. The debut is great to hear the early Squire/Bruford rhythm section, which, IMO, is the best part next to Anderson's and Squire's vocals.

Also - Yesshows is rare?
https://www.amazon.com/Yesshows-Yes/dp/B000002J24/ref=sr_1_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1298390619&sr=1-1
Unfortunately, the cheapest new is $23.34. I bought mine back on 12/25/05, for only $8.69 (along with Tormato and Drama, apparently, according to my Amazon.com order)
If you don't mind spending that much for a new one, or don't mind buying used, I would definitely recommend Yesshows, as it contains a killer live versions of "The Gates Of Delirium" and "Ritual" with Patric Moraz on keys!

-Marc.

[Quadrochosis]

Oh maybe I'll just get Yesshows. Why is that one so rare?

Yesshows is rare? I found it in a used record store for like 2 or 3 dollars.

[Perpetual Change]

I just bought that $9 one. Before, I didn't see it, just a bunch of $20, which I refuse to spend on most albums these days.

So, next up: Tormato and the Self-Titled probably. Or Keys. I dunno. I just can't wait for Yesshows now

On a side note: I'm really starting to feel like the time for buying cheap records online is passing. I remember being able to get into a bunch of bands VERY cheaply circa... 2005 or so. Now it seems like everything's a bit more expensive.

Or maybe I'm just poorer. Fuck. Gradschool. LOL.

[Quadrochosis]

I just bought that $9 one. Before, I didn't see it, just a bunch of $20, which I refuse to spend on most albums these days.

So, next up: Tormato and the Self-Titled probably. Or Keys. I dunno. I just can't wait for Yesshows now

On a side note: I'm really starting to feel like the time for buying cheap records online is passing. I remember being able to get into a bunch of bands VERY cheaply circa... 2005 or so. Now it seems like everything's a bit more expensive.

Or maybe I'm just poorer. Fuck. Gradschool. LOL.

You're buying them online is the problem. I know you're in a foreign country, but surely there's some sort of used record store around?

[The Letter M]

I remember being able to get into a bunch of bands VERY cheaply circa... 2005 or so. Now it seems like everything's a bit more expensive.

I think you are right on about this, but it depends on the band/label. Looking at my old Amazon.com orders from 2005/2004, I spent about as much as I would now on many of the Yes albums. In some cases, like with TFTO, the album is cheaper now than it was back in 2005 when I bought it (by about 4 dollars actually). Many of the Rhino Remasters are under $9.00 on Amazon, which is great for anyone's budget - maybe get an album a week or every two weeks, and you'd end up with the whole discography by year's end!

Unfortunately, things like Yessongs and Yesshows, which weren't part of Rhino's remaster campaign back in 2003, are a bit pricier. I think it evens out if you manage to buy all the Rhino Remasters for under $9 a piece - that's 11 studio albums for about $100! Pretty hard to beat that!

EDIT - actually, after surfing Amazon a bit more, I've found many Yes albums are now nearly HALF the price I paid for them over 5 years ago. Tormato is now as cheap NEW as $4.82, but when I bought it back in 2005, it cost me $9.93!!!
When I bought the self-titled debut album back in 2006, it cost me $8.31, but now you can find it for $4.32!
Same with Drama (paid $8.05, now can be bought new at $4.77).

I'll just put it this way - now is the time to buy the Yes Rhino Remasters if you haven't done so already!! Many of them are UNDER $5.00 (before shipping), so it'd be real easy to get them all!

-Marc.

[Perpetual Change]

Yeah, that's a good idea. What is absolutely baffling though is how the cheapest version of Keystudio is going for 20, and that's used.

[ZBomber]

I like Tormato. It isn't as focused as their earlier albums and is a bit spotty, but its pretty energetic and an interesting album imo.

[The Letter M]

Yeah, that's a good idea. What is absolutely baffling though is how the cheapest version of Keystudio is going for 20, and that's used.

I'm actually pretty lucky I got mine (new) about 5 years ago for only $10.97 after shipping. Since then, it's become pretty rare, and thus, because of it's short production run, has gained high prices in the secondary market, even used. I think if you have gotten the rest of the Yes Rhino Remasters for as cheap as they are right now, it kind of evens out if you pay a bit more for some of the live albums and harder-to-find studio albums.

-Marc.

[King Postwhore]

Or be like me who bought both Keys to only find out years later they combined the studio stuff.

[Gadough]

I know it doesn't really matter, but I just watched the trailer for the Classic Artists documentary on Yes, and I was blown away at how high pitched Anderson's speaking voice is. I don't know why it surprised me so much taking his singing voice into consideration...I guess because singers like Axl Rose and Claudio Sanchez have deep speaking voices despite high singing voices, so I wasn't expecting Jon to sound so feminine.