Official Yes Top 50 Countdown Thread! - THE FINAL COUNTDOWN!

[Mladen]

The only one out of these last four I ranked was Release release, which I had at #42. That's a rare instance of Yes doing a fast, rockin' song. It's amusing. 

[Animal]

The Fish -32   Along with Mood for a Day, the only solo piece on Fragile I like (Why did they had to ruin a classic album with stuff as bad ad Cans and Brahms?). And unlike Mood for a Day, it actually does not feel out of place on the album.

It can happen - 37  I like the interplay between Rabin and Anderson.

Love Will Find a Way - NR  I not familiar with BG so I just listened to this one Youtube a couple of times. Feels like a leftover from 90125 sessions.

Release, Release - 43  A proof that even on Tormato, Yes still could do Yes when they wanted to. I really dig the frenetic vocal line.

[Stadler]

96 - Homeworld (The Ladder)
88 - Mood For A Day
86 - Leave It
72 - City Of Love
65 - The Fish
63 - The Ancients (Giants Under The Sun)
57 - I Am Waiting

43 - Does It Really Happen?
36 - Cinema
28 - It Can Happen
27 - Future Times/Rejoice
25 - Release, Release
15 - Love Will Find A Way
13 - Final Eyes
12 - Lift Me Up

"The Fish" is awesome but as a vehicle, not a song, so it slipped out of the top 50.  The rest are all WINNERS.  I love "Love Will Find A Way" and it could have been higher, but that there are so many good songs in the catalogue (plus the lyric "I eat at Chez Nous" bugs me).  But great riff and great harmonies.    It Can Happen is a great band performance and one of those songs that was made for live performance.  I like Release Release; it's a but gimmicky, but it's my favorite lineup and I rate Tormato higher than most, so...

Regarding the harmonica, Chris Squire plays the harmonica on the live version of "And You And I" from Mesa, AZ, though there's no record of him playing that on the studio version.

[pg1067]

Three today to make up for no reveal yesterday.





35 – Fly from Here (Fly from Here – 1)

Appeared on 8 of 17 entries
Top 10 finishes: 2
Highest Ranking: 7 (Dittomist)

I’m almost positive I’ve never heard this song before, and I’m not going to take the necessary 24 minutes to listen to it right now (but I will do so later today, although the fact that the vocals are done by someone I’ve never heard of gives me some trepidation).  For now, I’ll just point out that this is the only song from this album that came even close to making the top 50.


34 – The Calling (Talk – 2)

Appeared on 10 of 17 entries
Top 10 finishes: 0
Highest Ranking: 16 (Metro)

Stealing from Wikipedia:  “‘The Calling’ developed and evolved around the song’s introductory guitar riff.  The song has been described as featuring a modern sound, with heavy focus on Rabin's guitars, and a three-part vocal harmony featuring Anderson, Rabin and Squire.”  “Modern” is obviously a relative term, and the song drips of 1994.  It’s a decent track, but it sounds like just about everything else on this album, and I find it rather dull.


33 – Hearts (90125 – 5)

Appeared on 10 of 17 entries
Top 10 finishes: 1
Highest Ranking: 10 (devieira73)

This is the only song from today that I ranked (#30).  It ended up as my #4 song from 90125, but it’s really my #3 (not sure how that happened).  Anyway, at the time, this song got no run from anyone (in no small part because it’s one of only two songs from the album not to make the live video), but my friend directed me to it as being most reminiscent of “classic” Yes, which is definitely true, and it’s more than the fact that it’s the longest song on the album.  It’s a rare Yes song that is credited to all five band members.

[pg1067]

(plus the lyric "I eat at Chez Nous" bugs me).

It's one of those lines where, in my head, there's the sound of screeching brakes and the song comes to a halt, and I say, "what did he just say?"  I wouldn't mind it so much if it didn't make ABSOLUTELY NO SENSE in context.  "Here is my heart, waiting for you, here is my soul..."  "I eat at our place/house"??!!

Regarding the harmonica, Chris Squire plays the harmonica on the live version of "And You And I" from Mesa, AZ, though there's no record of him playing that on the studio version.

There's no harmonica on the studio version of AYAI, and it bugged the crap out of me when he started doing that live.  "What are you doing?!  That's just not needed!"

[Stadler]

96 - Homeworld (The Ladder)
88 - Mood For A Day
86 - Leave It
72 - City Of Love
65 - The Fish
63 - The Ancients (Giants Under The Sun)
57 - I Am Waiting

50 - Fly From Here
43 - Does It Really Happen?
36 - Cinema
28 - It Can Happen
27 - Future Times/Rejoice
25 - Release, Release
21 - The Calling
20 - Hearts
15 - Love Will Find A Way
13 - Final Eyes
12 - Lift Me Up

So... Fly From Here; that's a crying shame that that's the only song to make it; it's not even the best song on the album (I had another at 19).   It's not a new song, and in fact was played live on the Drama tour.   You can quibble with the fleshing out of the material, but I really like that album (both versions; you can listen to Trevor Horn sing it too, if the Benoit David version is a bridge too far).

I like The Calling; yeah, it's dated, but I listen to Kiss and Rush from 1975, so there's that. .   I think it's a great song.

Hearts; so this is baffling to me: As Paul pointed out, it's one of the two songs not on the video and for the life of me, I cannot understand why.  When I saw the tour on the first leg in Hartford, it was a showpiece of the set.  They had lasers and during the song two hearts "moved" across the arena and joined in the center.  I've never seen anything like it before or since (I've seen lasers, with Rush and The Firm) but this was EPIC.  I remember telling my friend John, that was NOT a Yes fan and loved metal that he had to go to see Yes just to see that... and they didn't do it at the New haven shows later in the year, haha.  I had hoped that the video would have captured it, but in thinking back, maybe the lasers didn't catch on film all that well because of the flickering.  Either way, it's a fantastic song and for me, one of the songs from 90210 that was a clear link to the Yes of old. I think it's in the same vein as "And You And I".

[TheHoveringSojourn808]

Nothing from today made my list. I do really, really like Fly From Here, though

18. The Ancient (Giants Under the Sun)
33. Lift Me Up
34. Leave It
35. Mood For a Day
36. The Fish (Schindleria Praematurus)

Not ranked: Future Times / Rejoice
Not ranked: Cinema
Not ranked: City of Love
Not ranked: Does It Really Happen
Not ranked: Final Eyes
Not ranked: Love Will Find A Way
Not ranked: It Can Happen
Not ranked: Release, Release
Not ranked: Fly From Here
Not ranked: The Calling
Not ranked: Hearts

[DTwwbwMP]

50. Future Times / Rejoice (#17)
49. Cinema (N/R)
48. City of Love (#52)
47. Mood For a Day (N/R)
46. Lift Me Up (#14)
45. Homeworld (N/R)
44. I Am Waiting (#51)
43. Leave It (#41)
42. The Ancient (N/R)
41. Does It Really Happen (#55)
40. Final Eyes (#40)
39. The Fish (#54)
38. Love Will Find A Way (#53)
36. It Can Happen (#34)
36. Release, Release (#15)
35. Fly From Here (N/R)
34. The Calling (#20)
33. Hearts (N/R)

[HOF]

I have Hearts at 15. A really great song and a perfect closer to 90125 (goes from an owner of a lonely heart to "two hearts are better than one."). Definitely the most classic Yes sounding thing on the album, but it still fits really well with the album. Excellent song.

Have not heard the other two tracks, though I may have to check out Fly From Here. Benoit David has a really great voice, but I've never heard any of his work with Yes.

[Stadler]

I have Hearts at 15. A really great song and a perfect closer to 90125 (goes from an owner of a lonely heart to "two hearts are better than one."). Definitely the most classic Yes sounding thing on the album, but it still fits really well with the album. Excellent song.

Have not heard the other two tracks, though I may have to check out Fly From Here. Benoit David has a really great voice, but I've never heard any of his work with Yes.

Check both versions; they did a version with Benoit David, produced by Trevor Horn, then a second version. "Fly From Here - Return Trip", produced by Trevor but also sung by him.   There aren't massive differences between the two, but they are a nice snapshot and companion pieces (I personally like the Trevor version, but that's me.)

[Orbert]

I always thought Benoit David's voice sounded similar to Trevor Horn's, so between that and Geoff Downes on keyboards, the album Fly From Here was pretty much Drama II, as some liked to call it.  Then they went and re-did it with Trevor's vocals, which I thought was a total slap in the face to Benoit, so I've never listened to it.  Yes has shown and incredible callousness to former and sometimes even present band members.  I love their music, but most of them seem like pretty crappy people.

[HOF]

I always thought Benoit David's voice sounded similar to Trevor Horn's, so between that and Geoff Downes on keyboards, the album Fly From Here was pretty much Drama II, as some liked to call it.  Then they went and re-did it with Trevor's vocals, which I thought was a total slap in the face to Benoit, so I've never listened to it.  Yes has shown and incredible callousness to former and sometimes even present band members.  I love their music, but most of them seem like pretty crappy people.

From what I’ve read, it sounds like David was not treated well, by Squire in particular which is kind of sad.

[pg1067]

So... Fly From Here; that's a crying shame that that's the only song to make it; it's not even the best song on the album (I had another at 19).   It's not a new song, and in fact was played live on the Drama tour.   You can quibble with the fleshing out of the material, but I really like that album (both versions; you can listen to Trevor Horn sing it too, if the Benoit David version is a bridge too far).

I like The Calling; yeah, it's dated, but I listen to Kiss and Rush from 1975, so there's that. .   I think it's a great song.

Hearts; so this is baffling to me: As Paul pointed out, it's one of the two songs not on the video and for the life of me, I cannot understand why.  When I saw the tour on the first leg in Hartford, it was a showpiece of the set.  They had lasers and during the song two hearts "moved" across the arena and joined in the center.  I've never seen anything like it before or since (I've seen lasers, with Rush and The Firm) but this was EPIC.  I remember telling my friend John, that was NOT a Yes fan and loved metal that he had to go to see Yes just to see that... and they didn't do it at the New haven shows later in the year, haha.  I had hoped that the video would have captured it, but in thinking back, maybe the lasers didn't catch on film all that well because of the flickering.  Either way, it's a fantastic song and for me, one of the songs from 90210 that was a clear link to the Yes of old. I think it's in the same vein as "And You And I".

I think the AYAI comparison is really apt.

You were the high ranker (out of 4 total rankings) for that other FFH song.

As for The Calling, it's not really that it's dated; it's got a sound that makes it immediately obvious when it was made.  That's not either intrinsically good or bad; it just is (although in this case, it's not good for me).

[Stadler]

I always thought Benoit David's voice sounded similar to Trevor Horn's, so between that and Geoff Downes on keyboards, the album Fly From Here was pretty much Drama II, as some liked to call it.  Then they went and re-did it with Trevor's vocals, which I thought was a total slap in the face to Benoit, so I've never listened to it.  Yes has shown and incredible callousness to former and sometimes even present band members.  I love their music, but most of them seem like pretty crappy people.

I don't get involved in that. It could just as easy been an atto-boy to Trevor Horn as a slap to Benoit.   Many here would cream their jeans if James resang WDADU. Is that a slap to Charlie?  I don't know.  It's a band dynamic, and I'm not in the band, so I can't say.

[Orbert]

Fair enough.  With most bands, I don't care.  And even with Yes, I usually can look the other way as they kick people out of the band because they want someone else.  After all, it's the music that matters.  But since I like Yes so much, I end up reading a lot about them, and while fans can never know exactly what goes on behind the scenes, when multiple stories come out over the years from multiple people and they generally agree with how things went down and how people were treated, it gets harder to turn the blind eye.

Still, that wasn't what made me ignore Return Trip.  Basically, I thought Fly From Here was fine the way it was.  Apparently I'm one of the few who actually liked that album.  And Trevor Horn had gone on record saying that his days as a lead singer were done.  Then the next thing we know, they're re-recording parts for Return Trip with Trevor on lead vocals.  It just didn't seem necessary.  So it was a pretty easy decision for me to not support that project.  I'm sure they're crying about it.

[Mladen]

I didn't rank Hearts, but The Calling was my #23. It's a brilliant, memorable opener, but still my second favorite song from that album. Lets see if my favorite makes it. 

Fly from here was my #18. That's a fantastic piece of music, filled to the brim with great, infectious moments. It was an exciting time becoming a fan fifteen years ago and being around when Fly from here came out, because there was still some excitement around the band and it was sort of their comeback. Although it gets slightly tedious in the second half, the title track makes up for it.

I always thought Benoit David's voice sounded similar to Trevor Horn's, so between that and Geoff Downes on keyboards, the album Fly From Here was pretty much Drama II, as some liked to call it.  Then they went and re-did it with Trevor's vocals, which I thought was a total slap in the face to Benoit, so I've never listened to it. 

I absolutely agree with this. I prefer Benoit's voice to Jon Davison's, and it's a shame the guy stuck around only for one album. However, I don't think his voice would have improved Heaven and earth. 

So... Fly From Here; that's a crying shame that that's the only song to make it; it's not even the best song on the album (I had another at 19).   

May I guess which one you're thinking of? Knowing you're a fan of Supernatural and Better than walking away, it's probably The Man you always wanted me to be. If so, that's indeed a great song, I had it at #29. 

[DTA]

I had these at:

Fly From Here (9)
The Calling (20)
Hearts (35)

Fly From Here is a brilliant epic, and one I listen to frequently, moreso than say Ritual or The Ancient. I love the main theme and each section feels unique and interesting. Bumpy Ride is goofy and feels a bit shoe-horned in, but it’s short and enjoyable.

The Calling just hits me in all the right spots. Feels very fresh to me and full of energy. Alan’s bass drum was extremely present on this album and I like the power and feel that it gives.

Hearts is probably the best song on 90125. I feel like I underranked this one too. Great melody and the chorus is very well done. I always forget that the Howe version of the band did this one live too on The Ladder tour.

[Stadler]

I absolutely agree with this. I prefer Benoit's voice to Jon Davison's, and it's a shame the guy stuck around only for one album. However, I don't think his voice would have improved Heaven and earth. 

I'm going to go on record here and say something controversial:  I am starting to actively NOT like Jon Davison's voice. I chose to not include any JD material in my countdown (not an easy choice since I am sort of anal about ranking ALL songs, since I like to see what's at the bottom as well) because of that.   I listened to the three live albums he's done, the ones with the complete album performances, and it's a crying shame, since the concept is so friggin' cool.  But I think Jon Andersons gets short shrift.  He's known for the high tenor vocals and the twee lyrics and all, but under neath that he's a GREAT - not good, GREAT - ROCK singer.  When he's in full flight he's an amazingly STRONG singer.   

I've always had a theory about prog bands; the great ones are always a mix of two (or more) genres.   ELP was rock and CLASSICAL.   Genesis was rock and POP (starting as a group of writers heavily influenced by the Beatles and the Bee Gees, yes, the Bee Gees).   King Crimson was rock and JAZZ.   Pink Floyd was rock and BLUES.   Well, yes was rock and... ROCK.  Particularly with Squire and White, they were as influenced by the heavier rock of the late 60s - Hendrix, Cream, Zeppelin - as anyone else.   And Jon could carry the water.   I listen to JD on the live stuff, and he just doesn't have it. It's too fey, too soft, too twee.  He's going for note perfect and there's no tension, no fraying in his voice.  FOR ME, he sucks all the power out of that band and when you have people like Squire and White in it, that's saying something. 

May I guess which one you're thinking of? Knowing you're a fan of Supernatural and Better than walking away, it's probably The Man you always wanted me to be. If so, that's indeed a great song, I had it at #29. 

Close, and that's one of the best songs of side two for sure, but I was referring to the last track; I just love Squire's bass line in that last song. 

[Stadler]

I had these at:

Fly From Here (9)
The Calling (20)
Hearts (35)

Fly From Here is a brilliant epic, and one I listen to frequently, moreso than say Ritual or The Ancient. I love the main theme and each section feels unique and interesting. Bumpy Ride is goofy and feels a bit shoe-horned in, but it’s short and enjoyable.

The Calling just hits me in all the right spots. Feels very fresh to me and full of energy. Alan’s bass drum was extremely present on this album and I like the power and feel that it gives.

Hearts is probably the best song on 90125. I feel like I underranked this one too. Great melody and the chorus is very well done. I always forget that the Howe version of the band did this one live too on The Ladder tour.

Has that been officially released? (I can go check, but maybe you know off the top of your head)?

[Stadler]

Paul, I was going to start "projections" around 25 or so... when is it okay to publish my BOTTOM songs?  For me, I ranked 168 songs, so at some point I thought it would be fun to tell "159 through 168".

[pg1067]

On most days from here on out, I’m going to reveal three songs per day because I need to finish this up by next Friday.




32 – Hold On (90125 – 6)

Appeared on 11 of 17 entries
Top 10 finishes: 1
Highest Ranking: 7 (DragonAttack)

Yup…another 90125 song.  That’s 6 of the first 19.  This is a great rock song.  The verses are a bit “sing-song,” but it has catchy melodies and a memorable chorus with some great trademark Yes harmonies.  The breakdown after the second chorus is really fun too.  I ranked it at #34.


31 – Mind Drive (Keys – 1)

Appeared on 8 of 17 entries
Top 10 finishes: 1
Highest Ranking: 10 (DTA)

Interesting rankings with this one.  Only appeared on 8 lists, but no one who ranked it had it lower than 29.  I had it at #19.  I bought each of the Keys albums when they were released, but I went straight to the live material and didn’t listen to the new songs until many years later.  Mind Drive is a worthy modern successor to some of the classic era epics.  My only real complaint is that there are long stretches in which Chris Squire didn’t do much of anything.


30 – On the Silent Wings of Freedom (Tormato – 3)

Appeared on 10 of 17 entries
Top 10 finishes: 0
Highest Ranking: 11 (devieira73, jammindude)

I remember first hearing this song back in the late ‘80s and being excited about the bass taking the lead, but the meandering intro initially lost me (although I eventually came around).  Seems clearly to be something that they just jammed in the studio and developed into a song.  It reminds me a bit of America, which, of course, was a jam into which they dropped a Simon and Garfunkel song.  I really dig the “where we are coming from section” (is that a chorus?), and Chris Squire’s tone and playing are super tasty.  I ranked this at #28.

[pg1067]

I've always had a theory about prog bands; the great ones are always a mix of two (or more) genres.   ELP was rock and CLASSICAL.   Genesis was rock and POP (starting as a group of writers heavily influenced by the Beatles and the Bee Gees, yes, the Bee Gees).   King Crimson was rock and JAZZ.   Pink Floyd was rock and BLUES.   Well, yes was rock and... ROCK.  Particularly with Squire and White, they were as influenced by the heavier rock of the late 60s - Hendrix, Cream, Zeppelin - as anyone else.   And Jon could carry the water.

I think it depends on which version of Yes you're talking about.  I couldn't begin to tell you where I read it, but I vividly recall reading something to the effect that Squire didn't really like rock music when the band was formed.  Anderson, Banks and Kaye brought rock sensibilities, but Kaye also brought some soul, which Squire also had, being a big fan of gospel music.  And Bruford brought the jazz in spades.  How brought in a huge mixed bag of rock, jazz, folk and classical.  Wakeman was a classical guy with rock sensibilities.  White was most a straight ahead rock guy.  Moraz was a jazz fusion guy, and Horn and Downes brought in a bit of pop and punk.  In other words, Yes threw everything into a blender.  When it worked it was wonderful, but it sometimes didn't work.

Paul, I was going to start "projections" around 25 or so... when is it okay to publish my BOTTOM songs?  For me, I ranked 168 songs, so at some point I thought it would be fun to tell "159 through 168".

Yeah...that's about the right time.  My plan was to post the list of songs that no votes tomorrow after I post songs 29-26.  I may drop one other tidbit of information.

[HOF]

I have Hold On at 16, and it's another of the great feel good tunes on 90125. Really tasty lead guitar work by Rabin here. It's actually my lowest ranked song from 90125, but still a great tune. Like how "Hold On" follows "Owner of a Lonely Heart."

On The Silent Wings of Freedom was at 18, and I think I may have been a little too low on this. It's such a tasty groove from Squire, and one of the easiest tunes on the ears melodically from that era of the band. It's just a really nice song all the way through and one I am always excited to hear when it comes on. If I had thought a little more about my list I might have had this more in the 10-15 range.

Do not know Mind Drive.

[Stadler]

I think it depends on which version of Yes you're talking about.  I couldn't begin to tell you where I read it, but I vividly recall reading something to the effect that Squire didn't really like rock music when the band was formed.  Anderson, Banks and Kaye brought rock sensibilities, but Kaye also brought some soul, which Squire also had, being a big fan of gospel music.  And Bruford brought the jazz in spades.  How brought in a huge mixed bag of rock, jazz, folk and classical.  Wakeman was a classical guy with rock sensibilities.  White was most a straight ahead rock guy.  Moraz was a jazz fusion guy, and Horn and Downes brought in a bit of pop and punk.  In other words, Yes threw everything into a blender.  When it worked it was wonderful, but it sometimes didn't work.

And maybe that's the assumption I'm making that I shouldn't; the things that "didn't work".   I LIKE the early Banks stuff, but it's not the Yes I LOVE.  Clearly, for me, the essential Yes is whenever someone is tugging Chris Squire into the "rock" area, be it Wakeman, Rabin, or, to a lesser extent, Howe. Relayer is largely a mess for me.  Not that I don't LIKE it, it's just not a record I go back to a ton.  I listen to Tormato more than Relayer, by a LONG shot.  There are moments - Magnification, for one, the Symphonic interpretations - but very little of the latter day Yes really holds up for me against the classic stuff.

[Stadler]

96 - Homeworld (The Ladder)
88 - Mood For A Day
86 - Leave It
81 - Mind Drive
72 - City Of Love
65 - The Fish
63 - The Ancients (Giants Under The Sun)
57 - I Am Waiting

50 - Fly From Here
43 - Does It Really Happen?
39 - Hold On
36 - Cinema
28 - It Can Happen
27 - Future Times/Rejoice
25 - Release, Release
21 - The Calling
20 - Hearts
18 - On The Silent Wings Of Freedom
15 - Love Will Find A Way
13 - Final Eyes
12 - Lift Me Up


I'm sure that #81 for Mind Drive isn't at all fair, but it is what it is, and I stand by it.   Doesn't make me want to revisit it, and to this moment I'm not sure I could sing you any passage from it.   Contrast:  I could "sing" you through OTSWOF all the way through.  Hold On, too. 

Hold On is a great tune on a great album, but as a SONG it doesn't elevate, so it gets a sort of low score of 39.   OTSWOF is a great tune on a patchy album with problems, so it benefitted from that.  Latter day, I sometimes wish that OTSWOF would be the vehicle for Squire's solos not The Fish.   I'm sure there's a way he could have worked it out (I'm pretty sure I remember him playing the lead bass line during The Fish somewhere along the way as well.)

[Orbert]

Random notes:

Jon Davison at first was my favorite "new" Yes singer (anyone after or other than Jon Anderson) because his voice sounds very similar to Jon Anderson's, thus making him practically a no-brainer to sing the classic material.  But it soon became evident that he has the voice but none of the strength and only some of the emotion necessary to carry Yes.  He has the soft, twee side down, but there's no Rock and Roll.

Mind Drive is my favorite "latter-day" Yes epic, and that distinction becomes more and more silly as time goes on, but in 1997 when it came out, I was thrilled to find that the classic lineup could still put together a good longer-form piece 20 years later.  Another 20+ years on, and I still like it.

On the Silent Wings of Freedom is probably my fave from Tormato.  Yeah, the intro goes on a bit, but I like it, I like a slow build.  I think it was Chris Squire who once said it seemed like Howe and Wakeman were competing to see who could play the most notes.  Squire is right in there with them, though, so he's not guiltless there, and I don't know if that's a bad thing anyway.  I like hearing the guys push each other.  I like hearing lots of notes, as long as they're good notes.  Yes has a mellow, almost impressionistic side, but they can bring the Rock and Roll, and "Silent Wings" is one of my favorite rockers from them.

[TheHoveringSojourn808]

Just one for me, today

18. The Ancient (Giants Under the Sun)
33. Lift Me Up
34. Leave It
35. Mood For a Day
36. The Fish (Schindleria Praematurus)
45. On The Silent Wings of Freedom

Not ranked: Future Times / Rejoice
Not ranked: Cinema
Not ranked: City of Love
Not ranked: Does It Really Happen
Not ranked: Final Eyes
Not ranked: Love Will Find A Way
Not ranked: It Can Happen
Not ranked: Release, Release
Not ranked: Fly From Here
Not ranked: The Calling
Not ranked: Hearts
Not ranked: Mind Drive
Not ranked: Hold On

[Mladen]

Speaking of Jon Davison, I went to my first ever Yes show on Saturday. I opted to go in order to see Steve Howe, even though I'm not thrilled with their newer material nor with the current line up. Jon Davison sounds fine live, more energetic compared to the studio recordings, but as you guys pointed out, Jon Anderson was able to rock out, whereas Davison lacks punch and comes across as shy. Regardless, it was a pleasant show and I'm glad I got the chance to see any version of Yes.

Back to the countdown, Hold on is one of the two songs from 90125 that I included in my list. I had it at #44. The opener and Hold on really kick things off well, and then the album kind of loses me, unfortunately.

I enjoy Mind drive just fine on the Tsongas DVD, but I never listened to the studio version, so I didn't rank it.

And then On the silent wings of freedom was my #33. It's quite possibly the only great song on Tormato. Well, maybe Release release is also great.

[hefdaddy42]

Corrected the thread title for numerical accuracy

[Animal]

1/3 today. I didn't rank either Mind Drive and Silent Wings, former because I have never heard it and the latter seemed like one of the less accessible songs on Tormato, an album that I don't really listen to, so I ranked only its more immediately rewarding songs.

On the subject of Yes singers: I have only fleeting familiarity with Davidson and David, but they came across to me like good Yes cover band singers - they can do the job as their voices are similar enough to Anderson's, but that's also their (pretty much) only selling point.
What fascinates me about Anderson is that he is so much more than "just a singer". The guy can play barely any musical instrument, yet he managed to be on of the masterminds and principal songwriters in a band that makes highly complex music. I would really like to see how their songwriting process worked, especially with Howe (since many songs are credited to just these two).

[Stadler]

1/3 today. I didn't rank either Mind Drive and Silent Wings, former because I have never heard it and the latter seemed like one of the less accessible songs on Tormato, an album that I don't really listen to, so I ranked only its more immediately rewarding songs.

On the subject of Yes singers: I have only fleeting familiarity with Davidson and David, but they came across to me like good Yes cover band singers - they can do the job as their voices are similar enough to Anderson's, but that's also their (pretty much) only selling point.
What fascinates me about Anderson is that he is so much more than "just a singer". The guy can play barely any musical instrument, yet he managed to be on of the masterminds and principal songwriters in a band that makes highly complex music. I would really like to see how their songwriting process worked, especially with Howe (since many songs are credited to just these two).

That last part fascinates me as well.  He wrote GFTO solo!!!

As I understand it, he knows basic chords and sings out the parts and melodies and asks the music mechanics to do the heavy musical lifting. He is in every sense of the word a musician, for sure!

[devieira73]

Hearts (my #10) is a fantastic song already well described by HOF and Stadler. Personally I feel it's like And You And I for most Yes fans.
Fly from Here (my #21)  is great, on par with Drama material.
The Calling (my #30) is so catchy, but also has some good instrumentation stuff going on.

[pg1067]

Corrected the thread title for numerical accuracy

Thanks.  I also updated the song list in the original post.

And maybe that's the assumption I'm making that I shouldn't; the things that "didn't work".   I LIKE the early Banks stuff, but it's not the Yes I LOVE.  Clearly, for me, the essential Yes is whenever someone is tugging Chris Squire into the "rock" area, be it Wakeman, Rabin, or, to a lesser extent, Howe. Relayer is largely a mess for me.  Not that I don't LIKE it, it's just not a record I go back to a ton.  I listen to Tormato more than Relayer, by a LONG shot.  There are moments - Magnification, for one, the Symphonic interpretations - but very little of the latter day Yes really holds up for me against the classic stuff.

I think their best stuff is where they were tugging each other into areas where they weren't necessarily comfortable (and often, Anderson was doing the tugging).  That's probably why there are so many stories about "fighting" in the studio.


P.S.  Tomorrow will feature the first song on which I'm high ranker!

[DTA]

Has that been officially released? (I can go check, but maybe you know off the top of your head)?

I could’ve sworn I saw it somewhere but now that I’m looking through the House of Yes DVD track listing I’m not seeing it. Maybe im just misremembering seeing the setlist vs. actually seeing a video of it.

[DTwwbwMP]

50. Future Times / Rejoice (#17)
49. Cinema (N/R)
48. City of Love (#52)
47. Mood For a Day (N/R)
46. Lift Me Up (#14)
45. Homeworld (N/R)
44. I Am Waiting (#51)
43. Leave It (#41)
42. The Ancient (N/R)
41. Does It Really Happen (#55)
40. Final Eyes (#40)
39. The Fish (#54)
38. Love Will Find A Way (#53)
36. It Can Happen (#34)
36. Release, Release (#15)
35. Fly From Here (N/R)
34. The Calling (#20)
33. Hearts (N/R)
32. Hold On (#16)
31. Mind Drive (#21)
30. On The Silent Wings of Freedom (N/R)