Yes Survivor 2023 - Results & Discussion

[The Letter M]

Welcome to my next major band survivor - the Yes Survivor 2023 Edition. Hot off the heels of my Genesis Survivor, we'll be going over one of the other big bands of 70s prog that has endured through the decades. Below is the list of albums and songs that will be represented in this survivor.

As usual, each album will have two finalists that automatically advance to the Finals, and a third place song that goes to Consolation. That means 44 finalists from 22 albums, and of the 22 Consolation songs, we will include the top 6 for an even 50 songs in the Finals.

Yes, you read that right - 22 albums. Since *I* am running this Survivor, I've decided to include the albums that I consider are essential to the Yes discography, which includes the sole album from Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe, as well as the Keystudio/KTA Studio tracks released in the late 90s. For the former, this version of the band joined "Yes West" for Union, so it feels like an essential part of Yes history, and honestly, they're Yes in all but name. For the latter, the Keys material is some of the best latter-day Yes post-Union, so it would feel odd NOT to include in this survivor.

I did NOT include the "From A Page" EP of four songs (featuring Benoit David and Oliver Wakeman) mostly because it feels like an obscure release and I'm sure not as many people have heard those songs. I'm sure more Yesfans have heard H&E and TQ more than these four songs, and even if I were to include them, I doubt any of those songs would make the Top 50 anyway.

You'll also notice some albums have bonus tracks included, denoted by an asterisk*. I've decided to include the few of these because, for the most part, these are fully finished songs and recordings that have been easily available for most fans to listen to, and I think some of them might even make it consolation, and I just wanted to be thorough anyway. If there are any that I missed, let me know. I did not include the bonus tracks from Tormato or Drama because most of those are edits, or rough versions of songs that would later be reworked by various Yes members on other albums and projects. If anyone misses them, let me know and I'll plug them back in before we get to those albums' survivors.

During the Finals, I'll also run Studio and Live album survivors as well. If there are other Yes live albums that should be included in that survivor, let me know! I've only posted the ones I think most fans are familiar with.


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Yes
01. Survival
02. Yesterday And Today
03. Every Little Thing
04. Looking Around
05. Something's Coming
06. Beyond And Before
07. I See You
      Sweetness
09. Harold Land

--------------------

Time And A Word
01. Astral Traveller
02. Time And A Word
03. Sweet Dreams
04. The Prophet
05. Everydays
06. Then
07. Dear Father
08. No Opportunity Necessary, No Experience Needed
09. Clear Days

--------------------

The Yes Album
01. Yours Is No Disgrace
02. Starship Trooper
03. I've Seen All Good People
04. Perpetual Change
05. Clap
06. A Venture

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Fragile
01. Heart Of The Sunrise
02. Roundabout
03. South Side Of The Sky
04. Long Distance Runaround
05. The Fish (Schindleria Praematurus)
06. We Have Heaven
07. Mood For A Day
      America
09. Cans And Brahms
10. Five Per Cent For Nothing

--------------------

Close To The Edge
01. Close To The Edge
02. And You And I
03. Siberian Khatru

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Tales From Topographic Oceans
01. The Revealing Science Of God (Dance Of The Dawn)
02. Ritual (Nous Sommes Du Soleil)
03. The Remembering (High The Memory)
04. The Ancient (Giants Under The Sun)

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Relayer
01. The Gates Of Delirium
02. To Be Over
03. Sound Chaser

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Going For The One
01. Awaken
02. Turn Of The Century
03. Wonderous Stories
04. Going For The One
05. Parallels

--------------------

Tormato
01. On The Silent Wings Of Freedom
02. Onward
03. Don't Kill The Whale
04. Future Times / Rejoice
05. Release, Release
06. Madrigal
07. Arriving UFO
08. Circus Of Heaven

--------------------

Drama
01. Machine Messiah
02. Into The Lens
03. Tempus Fugit
04. Does It Really Happen?
05. Run Through The Light
06. White Car

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90125
01. Owner Of A Lonely Heart
02. Changes
03. Hearts
04. Hold On
05. It Can Happen
06. City Of Love
07. Our Song
08. Leave It
09. Make It Easy
10. It's Over
11. Cinema

--------------------

Big Generator
01. I'm Running
02. Final Eyes
03. Shoot High, Aim Low
04. Rhythm Of Love
05. Holy Lamb (Song For Harmonic Convergence)
06. Love Will Find A Way
07. Big Generator
08. Almost Like Love

--------------------

Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe
01. Birthright
02. Quartet
03. Order Of The Universe
04. Themes
05. Brother Of Mine
06. Fist Of Fire
07. The Meeting
08. Let's Pretend
09. Vultures In The City
10. Teakbois

--------------------

Union
I Would Have Waited Forever
Shock To The System
Masquerade
Lift Me Up
Without Hope You Cannot Start The Day
Saving My Heart
Miracle Of Life
Silent Talking
The More We Live / Let Go
Angkor Wat
Dangerous (Look In The Light Of What You're Searching For)
Holding On
Evensong
Take The Water To The Mountain
Give & Take*
Love Conquers All*

--------------------

Talk
The Calling
I Am Waiting
Real Love
State Of Play
Walls
Where Will You Be
Endless Dream

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Keys To Ascension (Keystudio)
Foot Prints
Be The One
Mind Drive
Bring Me To The Power
Sign Language
That, That Is
Children Of The Light

--------------------

Open Your Eyes
New State Of Mind
Open Your Eyes
Universal Garden
No Way We Can Lose
Fortune Seller
Man In The Moon
Wonderlove
From The Balcony
Love Shine
Somehow, Someday
The Solution

--------------------

The Ladder
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)

--------------------

Magnification
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
Time Is Time

--------------------

Fly From Here
Fly From Here
THe Man You Always Wanted Me To Be
Life On A Film Set
Hour Of Need
Solitaire
Don't Take No For An Answer
Into The Storm

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Heaven & Earth
Believe Again
The Game
Step Beyond
To Ascend
In A World Of Our Own
Light Of The Ages
It Was All We Knew
Subway Walls

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The Quest
The Ice Bridge
Dare To Know
Minus The Man
Leave Well Alone
The Western Edge
Future Memories
Music To My Ears
A Living Island
Sister Sleeping Soul
Mystery Tour
Damaged World

--------------------

Mirror To The Sky
Cut From The Stars
All Connected
Luminosity
Living Out Their Dream
Mirror To The Sky
Circles Of Time
Unknown Place
One Second Is Enough
Magic Potion

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Consolation
Every Little Thing
Sweet Dreams
I've Seen All Good People
South Side Of The Sky
Siberian Khatru
The Remembering (High The Memory)
Sound Chaser
Wonderous Stories
Don't Kill The Whale
Tempus Fugit
Hearts
Shoot High, Aim Low
Order Of The Universe

--------------------

The Finals
Survival
Yesterday And Today
Astral Traveller
Time And A Word
Yours Is No Disgrace
Starship Trooper
Heart Of The Sunrise
Roundabout
Close To The Edge
And You And I
The Revealing Science Of God (Dance Of The Dawn)
Ritual (Nous Sommes Du Soleil)
The Gates Of Delirium
To Be Over
Awaken
Turn Of The Century
On The Silent Wings Of Freedom
Onward
Machine Messiah
Into The Lens
Owner Of A Lonely Heart
Changes
I'm Running
Final Eyes
Birthright
Quartet

--------------------


The Studio Albums
Yes
Time And A Word
The Yes Album
Fragile
Close To The Edge
Tales From Topographic Oceans
Relayer
Going For The One
Tormato
Drama
90125
Big Generator
Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe
Union
Talk
Keys To Ascension (Keystudio)
Open Your Eyes
The Ladder
Magnification
Fly From Here
Heaven & Earth
The Quest

--------------------

The Live Albums
Yessongs
Yesshows
9012Live: The Solos
Something's Coming: The BBC Recordings 1969-1970
Union Live
House Of Yes: Live from House Of Blues
Symphonic Live
Live At Montreux 2003
Songs From Tsongas
In The Present - Live From Lyon

----------------------

-Marc.

[The Letter M]

As with the Genesis Survivor, I will begin by running several albums at once, so later tonight, I'll be posting the first rounds for the band's first FOUR albums.  Each album round will run for TWO days, so be sure to check in every other day or so to get your votes in!

-Marc.

[DTA]

I just realized I've not heard The Quest yet. I should check it out for novelty's sake and so I can participate in that round

[HOF]

Honest question since I almost never hear them spoken of anywhere, are those first two Yes albums worth checking out at all other than for completion's sake? Does anyone hold them in high regard?

[The Letter M]

I just realized I've not heard The Quest yet. I should check it out for novelty's sake and so I can participate in that round

The Quest is a better effort than Heaven & Earth, though if I'm being honest, I don't think I've listened to it since it came out, but I'll definitely be spinning it when we get closer to that album survivor round.

Honest question since I almost never hear them spoken of anywhere, are those first two Yes albums worth checking out at all other than for completion's sake? Does anyone hold them in high regard?

I'd say they're definitely worth listening to. Hearing the young Squire and Bruford rhythm section is a treasure, especially on songs like "Every Little Thing", "Survival", "Something's Coming", "The Prophet", "Astral Traveller", and more. It's a great way to hear where the band was just before they hit greatness with TYA/Fragile/CTTE. I'd say their first two albums better represent what they would grow into more so than, say, Genesis' first two albums. There's a definite progression and thru-line for Yes in their first five albums than there was for some of their contemporaries like Genesis. If you've *never* heard them before, I'd say there are some songs you're definitely missing out on. It's not as proggy as they would later be, but there are some great performances from all members involved. I'd say I'd rather listen to the first two albums than most of what they've released since the 90s.

-Marc.

[The Letter M]

The Yes Album's Final Round's Results:
Yours Is No Disgrace 6 (35.3%)
Starship Trooper 11 (64.7%)
Total Members Voted: 17

01. Yours Is No Disgrace
02. Starship Trooper
03. I've Seen All Good People
04. Perpetual Change
05. Clap
06. A Venture

Both YIND and ST move to the Finals while ISLGP goes to Consolation!

With the self-titled debut and CTTE ending today, the first rounds for TFTO and Relayer will begin this evening!

-Marc.

[The Letter M]

Yes's Final Round's Results:
Yesterday And Today 5 (62.5%)
Survival 3 (37.5%)
Total Members Voted: 8

01. Survival
02. Yesterday And Today
03. Every Little Thing
04. Looking Around
05. Something's Coming
06. Beyond And Before
07. I See You
      Sweetness
09. Harold Land

I had hoped that "Something's Coming" would have at least made it to Consolation, but these top three aren't too bad.

Close To The Edge's Final Round's Results:
Close To The Edge 2 (13.3%)
And You And I 13 (86.7%)
Total Members Voted: 15

01. Close To The Edge
02. And You And I
03. Siberian Khatru

Expected results are expected.

We move on with the first rounds for TFTO and Relayer, and the final rounds for TAAW and Fragile tonight. Once those two wrap up on Wednesday, we will begin the first rounds for GFTO and Tormato.

-Marc.

[The Letter M]

I've got a trip in the middle of February, so I'll be taking a break on updating the Survivor then, so here's the planned schedule of Rounds between now and the 15th.

Feb 1
TFTO Round 2
Relayer FINAL
GFTO Round 1
Tormato Round 1

Feb 3
TFTO FINAL
GFTO Round 2
Tormato Round 2
Drama Round 1

Feb 5
GFTO Round 3
Tormato Round 3
Drama Round 2

Feb 7
GFTO FINAL
Tormato Round 4
Drama Round 3

Feb 9
Tormato Round 5
Drama Round 4

Feb 11
Tormato Round 6
Drama FINAL

Feb 13
Tormato FINAL

After my trip, probably on Tuesday the 21st, we will resume the Survivor with the first rounds for 90125, Big Generator, and ABWH and knock out the 80s albums all at the same time.

-Marc.

[The Letter M]

Time And A Word Final Round's Results:
Astral Traveller 3 (33.3%)
Time And A Word 6 (66.7%)
Total Members Voted: 9

01. Astral Traveller
02. Time And A Word
03. Sweet Dreams
04. The Prophet
05. Everydays
06. Then
07. Dear Father
08. No Opportunity Necessary, No Experience Needed
09. Clear Days

AT and TAAW go to the Finals while SD goes to Consolation.

Fragile's Final Round's Results:
Roundabout 11 (68.8%)
Heart Of The Sunrise 5 (31.3%)
Total Members Voted: 16

01. Heart Of The Sunrise
02. Roundabout
03. South Side Of The Sky
04. Long Distance Runaround
05. The Fish (Schindleria Praematurus)
06. We Have Heaven
07. Mood For A Day
      America
09. Cans And Brahms
10. Five Per Cent For Nothing

Well, my personal favorite off this album landed at number one, but both it and "Roundabout" go to the Finals while "South Side Of The Sky" gets another chance in the Consolation Rounds.

-Marc.

[The Letter M]

Tales From Topographic Oceans's Final Round's Results:
The Revealing Science Of God (Dance Of The Dawn) 4 (33.3%)
Ritual (Nous Sommes Du Soleil) 8 (66.7%)
Total Members Voted: 12

01. The Revealing Science Of God (Dance Of The Dawn)
02. Ritual (Nous Sommes Du Soleil)
03. The Remembering (High The Memory)
04. The Ancient (Giants Under The Sun)

Relayer's Final Round's Results:
The Gates Of Delirium 3 (18.8%)
To Be Over 13 (81.3%)
Total Members Voted: 16

01. The Gates Of Delirium
02. To Be Over
03. Sound Chaser

-Marc.

[The Letter M]

Going For The One Final Round's Results:
Turn Of The Century 10 (76.9%)
Awaken 3 (23.1%)
Total Members Voted: 13

01. Awaken
02. Turn Of The Century
03. Wonderous Stories
04. Going For The One
05. Parallels

-Marc.

[The Letter M]

Tormato's Final Round's Results:
Onward 8 (61.5%)
On The Silent Wings Of Freedom 5 (38.5%)
Total Members Voted: 13

01. On The Silent Wings Of Freedom
02. Onward
03. Don't Kill The Whale
04. Future Times / Rejoice
05. Release, Release
06. Madrigal
07. Arriving UFO
08. Circus Of Heaven


Drama's Final Round's Results:
Machine Messiah 1 (10%)
Into The Lens 9 (90%)
Total Members Voted: 10

01. Machine Messiah
02. Into The Lens
03. Tempus Fugit
04. Does It Really Happen?
05. Run Through The Light
06. White Car

And there we have it, the band's first ten albums' survivors done! As I've said before, the survivor will take a bit of a break as I am on vacation this week. If I remember to when I get back home next Tuesday, I'll start the first rounds for 90125, Big Generator, and ABWH. If not Tuesday, then definitely Wednesday.

-Marc.

[DTA]

Have a good vacation Marc. Thanks for doing these!

[The Letter M]

So I had no idea that Yes' next studio album would come out so soon (May 19th). If I slow things down a bit, I could possibly include Mirror To The Sky at the end of May just after it comes out. Granted, we would only have a week or two with it before the Survivor begins, but would anyone object to me including it? I'm not sure when a Yes Survivor would come around again, so I don't want to miss this nearly-well-timed chance to include it.

I would slowdown to 2 albums per update after Union/Talk/Keys are done, continuing with OYE/TL next, then Magnification/Fly From Here, and finally H&E/TQ, which would take us to late May, not long after MTTS comes out. I know those last few albums probably won't get a lot of participation, but I'm hoping curiosity about the new album will drive fans to come in here and play along as we near May 19th.

-Marc.

[Mladen]

I wouldn't mind slowing things down so that we can include the new album. That's a cool idea.

[DTA]

Sure that sounds like a solid plan

[The Letter M]

90125's Final Round's Results:
Owner Of A Lonely Heart 5 (45.5%)
Changes 6 (54.5%)
Total Members Voted: 11

01. Owner Of A Lonely Heart
02. Changes
03. Hearts
04. Hold On
05. It Can Happen
06. City Of Love
07. Our Song
08. Leave It
09. Make It Easy
10. It's Over
11. Cinema

Both "Changes" and "Owner Of A Lonely Heart" move on to the Finals, bur by one vote, OOALH takes the top spot.

Big Generator's Final Round's Results:
Final Eyes 7 (87.5%)
I'm Running 1 (12.5%)
Total Members Voted: 8

01. I'm Running
02. Final Eyes
03. Shoot High, Aim Low
04. Rhythm Of Love
05. Holy Lamb (Song For Harmonic Convergence)
06. Love Will Find A Way
07. Big Generator
08. Almost Like Love

Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe's Final Round's Results:
Quartet 5 (100%)
Total Members Voted: 5

01. Birthright
02. Quartet
03. Order Of The Universe
04. Themes
05. Brother Of Mine
06. Fist Of Fire
07. The Meeting
08. Let's Pretend
09. Vultures In The City
10. Teakbois

The 80s albums are now done as we move on through the first three 90s albums!

-Marc.