On The Road Again: Yes

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viernes, 24 de diciembre de 2021

Yes "50 Live"

Yes 50 Live is a double live album by English progressive rock band Yes, released on 2 August 2019 by Rhino Records.

Yes reached their fiftieth anniversary year in 2018. To commemorate the milestone, the band—consisting of guitarist Steve Howe, drummer Alan White, bassist Billy Sherwood, keyboardist Geoff Downes, and lead vocalist Jon Davison—completed the 50th Anniversary Tour across Europe and the United States between March and July 2018. The five were joined by American drummer Jay Schellen, who performed the majority of Yes's live sets since 2016 while White recovered from surgery and a bacterial infection that affected his playing. The tour's set list included songs that spanned most of the group's history, from Time and a Word (1970), their second album, to Fly from Here (2011), their twentieth album.

Yes 50 Live was recorded on 20 and 21 July 2018 at The Fillmore Philadelphia in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania during the North American leg of the tour. It features the majority of the set list performed on the two nights. This particular leg featured guest performances from former keyboardists Tony Kaye and Patrick Moraz; Kaye joined the group for the encores ("Yours Is No Disgrace", "Roundabout", and "Starship Trooper") and Moraz plays on "Soon", the closing section to "The Gates of Delirium".

Sherwood, who has produced and mixed several Yes albums, reprises his role as the mixer on this album.

The album was available as a 2-CD and 4-LP set, along with a colored vinyl pressing limited to 1,200 copies.

Track listing

Disc one

1. "Close to the Edge" Jon Anderson/Steve Howe 19:06

I. "The Solid Time of Change"

II. "Total Mass Retain"

III. "I Get Up, I Get Down"

IV. "Seasons of Man"

2. "Nine Voices (Longwalker)" Anderson, Howe, Billy Sherwood, Chris Squire, Alan White, Igor Khoroshev 3:52

3. "Sweet Dreams" Anderson, David Foster 5:26

4. "Madrigal" Anderson, Rick Wakeman 2:53

5. "We Can Fly from Here, Pt. 1: We Can Fly" Trevor Horn, Geoff Downes, Squire 5:58

6. "Soon" Anderson, Squire, Howe, White, Patrick Moraz 8:00

7. "Awaken" Anderson, Howe 18:19

Disc two

1. "Parallels" Squire 6:17

2. "Excerpt from 'The Ancient'" Anderson, Howe, Squire, Wakeman, White 5:18

3. "Yours Is No Disgrace" Anderson, Squire, Howe, Tony Kaye, Bill Bruford 12:07

4. "Excerpt from 'Georgia's Song' and 'Mood for a Day'" Howe 4:01

5. "Roundabout" Anderson, Howe 9:25

6. "Starship Trooper" Anderson/Squire/Howe 11:42

a. "Life Seeker"

b. "Disillusion"

c. "Würm"

Dean Mattson – recording

Maor Appelbaum – mastering

Roger Dean – painting, design, cover

Douglas Gottlieb – photography, design

Glenn Gottlieb – photography, design

Daniel Earnshaw – product manager

Yes "Changes (Video)"

"Changes" is a song by English band Yes, from their 1983 album, 90125. It reached number 6 on the U.S. Mainstream Rock chart in 1984.

The basic musical and lyrical structure of "Changes" was written by Yes guitarist Trevor Rabin, prior to his joining the band. Once Rabin joined the band, additional music and lyrics were contributed by singer Jon Anderson and drummer Alan White for the version that would appear on 90125. White contributed the shifting minimalistic rhythmic figures and melodies used for the introduction, while Anderson adapted lyrics and parts of the melody (including the chorus and the addition of the "one word from you, one word from me" section of the bridge).

Several live version of "Changes" have been released by the band: the 9012Live concert video, its companion album 9012Live: The Solos, and the 1991 box set Yesyears each include a live version of the song.

In 2003, Trevor Rabin released a pair of albums, each of which featured a different version of "Changes": Live in LA features a 1989 live performance of the song, and 90124 features an early demo of the song before Anderson and White's contributions were added.

"Changes" was first played live on the tour supporting 90125 and also played on the Big Generator, Union and Talk tours. After Rabin's departure from the band, the song was permanently dropped from their setlist.

It would not be played live again until 2016 when Rabin joined vocalist Jon Anderson and keyboardist Rick Wakeman in forming Yes Featuring Jon Anderson, Trevor Rabin, Rick Wakeman.

Yes "Hold On (Single & Video)"

Hold On" is a song by the progressive rock band Yes, from their 1983 album, 90125. It reached number 43 on the U.S. Mainstream Rock chart in 1984. Later, the live version from 9012Live: The Solos reached number 27 in 1985.

The core of "Hold On" was written by Yes guitarist Trevor Rabin, prior to his joining the band, as two separate songs: "Hold On" and "Moving In". Once Rabin joined the band, the two songs were combined, with band members Chris Squire and Jon Anderson contributing additional music and lyrics. All three are credited as writers.

Unlike the other songs on 90125, which are credited as "Produced by Trevor Horn" exclusively, Yes shares a production credit with Horn for "Hold On".

"Hold On" has also appeared on several of Yes' later compilations, including the Yesyears and In a Word: Yes (1969–) box sets.

Yes' 1985 follow-up album, 9012Live: The Solos, features a live version of "Hold On". A live version is also included on 2005's The Word Is Live, and a live performance of "Hold On" is included on the 1991 Greatest Video Hits DVD.

Demos of Rabin's early versions of "Hold On" and "Moving In" were released in 2003 on Rabin's solo album 90124.

Yes "It Can Happen (Single & Video)"

"It Can Happen" is a song by the progressive rock band Yes, from their 1983 album 90125. It was released as the third single from that album, reaching number 51 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1984. It also reached number 5 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart.

Following the 1981 breakup of the band, bassist Chris Squire and drummer Alan White joined with South African guitarist Trevor Rabin to form a new band called Cinema. An early version of song "It Can Happen", sung by Squire, was written and recorded during this time.

Squire, White and Rabin eventually joined forces with former Yes members Jon Anderson, Tony Kaye and Trevor Horn, changing the name of their new band Cinema to "Yes" in the process. Anderson rewrote the lyrics of "It Can Happen" and it was included in 90125, with Anderson singing the verses.

The Cinema version of the song was released on 1991's Yesyears box set, and later on the remastered version of 90125. The version sung by Anderson was released as a single in 1984, and was included in several later Yes compilations, including the In a Word: Yes (1969–) box set and The Ultimate Yes: 35th Anniversary Collection.

A video for the song is included in the Greatest Video Hits DVD, and a live performance appears in the 9012Live concert video.

The dialogue that can be heard under the guitar solo - about 3 minutes and 17 seconds in - on the 90125 version, is taken from The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde. The lines, "...Come, old boy, you had much better have the thing out at once...." and "...that is exactly what dentists always do. Now, go on! Tell me the whole thing" are spoken by the character Algernon Moncrieff in the play.

Yes "Into The Lens (I Am A Camera) (Single & Video)"

"Into the Lens" is a song written by Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes. It was originally released in 1980 by progressive rock band Yes, of which Horn and Downes were a part, as a part of the album Drama, before being reworked as "I Am a Camera" for the 1981 album Adventures in Modern Recording by the Buggles, a duo consisting of Horn and Downes; both versions were released as singles, with the Yes single being re-titled "Into the Lens (I Am a Camera)".

The Yes version of the song additionally credits Steve Howe, Chris Squire, and Alan White as co-songwriters; all of the songs on Drama were credited to the entire band.

The first version of the song was a demo, recorded on a Sunday afternoon when songwriters Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes started working on the second Buggles album in 1980. When they joined Yes, it gained input from other members Steve Howe, Chris Squire and Alan White, and therefore, "Into the Lens" features a more distinctive "prog rock" sound.

When Horn and Downes resumed work on the Buggles album which would become Adventures in Modern Recording, the song was reworked as "I Am a Camera". Trevor Horn said about the two versions:

The song "I Am a Camera" was a Buggles track and we had adapted it into a Yes track. It became "Into the Lens" and, naturally, slightly more overblown. I don't mind "Into the Lens"—the melody's unadulterated while the arrangement's a lot more complicated—but I still prefer The Buggles version. I think Geoffrey's brilliant on the Buggles version.

Along with the "On TV" and "Lenny" singles, the Buggles' "I Am a Camera" was re-released by ZTT on iTunes in 2012, including three bonus tracks: the aforementioned "12" Mix" of the song, and two demos both titled "We Can Fly from Here" ("Part I" and "Part II" respectively). The latter two songs would (like the "I Am a Camera" demo) be reworked as Yes songs, and in fact become the basis of Yes' future album, 2011's Fly from Here, which would mark the second time that both Horn and Downes would work with Yes following a departure by Jon Anderson - Downes returning on keyboards for both the album and the tour, but Horn taking the role as producer and offering some backing vocals, but reserving lead vocals for Benoît David. Along with the "12" mix", the B-side, and the two demos also appear on ZTT's 2010 re-release of Adventures in Modern Recording.

The single edit of Yes' own "Into the Lens" was titled "Into the Lens (I Am a Camera)".

Yes "Tempus Fugit (Video)"

"Tempus Fugit" was another song sketched out by the Squire, Howe and White trio in late 1979. Its title is a Latin expression that translates as "time flies".

According to Howe, its name was derived from Squire's habit of arriving late to places.

Yes "Run Through The Light (Single & Video)"

Run Through The Light is the second single off Drama, released January, 1981.

"Run Through the Light" features Howe playing a Les Paul guitar, "in the background being very melancholy", with Squire playing a piano and Horn playing bass, something which Horn did not particularly wish to do, but Squire convinced him to perform. "I didn't quite know what to play on it ... one day we spent twelve hours playing and working the final bass part". A different version of the song was recorded with Anderson.

jueves, 23 de diciembre de 2021

Yes "The Quest"

The Quest is the twenty-second studio album by English progressive rock band Yes, released on 1 October 2021 by InsideOut Music and Sony Music. It is their first studio album featuring Billy Sherwood since The Ladder (1999), having replaced founding bassist Chris Squire following his death in 2015, and their first without any original members. It was produced by guitarist Steve Howe.

After completing touring commitments in July 2019, Yes began to collaborate on new material by exchanging ideas for songs online. The subsequent COVID-19 pandemic caused all touring to be cancelled in March 2020, which presented the opportunity for them to focus on the album during lockdown. When the songs had been arranged, the album was recorded in California and England and orchestral arrangements by Paul K. Joyce were performed by the FAMES Orchestra in North Macedonia. Frontman Jon Davison was the main lyricist, who wrote about various themes including hope, optimism, and environmental issues.

The Quest was released in various formats, including CD, LP, Blu-ray Disc, and on digital platforms, and debuted on the UK Albums Chart at number 20. It received generally positive reviews for Howe's production and as an overall improvement over Yes' previous album Heaven & Earth (2014), although some negative responses cited the album as lacking unique or distinct songs.

In July 2019, the Yes line-up of Steve Howe, Alan White, Geoff Downes, Jon Davison, and Billy Sherwood, with second guest drummer Jay Schellen, finished their 28-date Royal Affair Tour, which saw the group headline a package tour across the U.S. that included performances from Asia, John Lodge, and Carl Palmer's ELP Legacy with Arthur Brown. Around this time, InsideOut Music co-founder Thomas Waber asked the band if they were ready to make a new studio album. Yes had planned to resume touring from March 2020, continuing their Album Series Tour with Relayer (1974) performed in its entirety, but it was rescheduled for 2021, and later to 2022, due to the subsequent COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown. The situation presented the opportunity for the band to work on a new album, their first since Heaven & Earth (2014). This marks the first Yes album to involve Sherwood since The Ladder (1999), who replaced original bassist Chris Squire following his death in 2015, and the first without any founding members.

Yes began writing for the album in November 2019, one month before the outbreak of COVID-19, with the rest put together in the following year. Howe had become increasingly dissatisfied in recording with external producers who at times "didn't fully know what this band was", and put himself forward to produce the album, which was agreed upon. As the band were unable to get together, they developed songs by exchanging ideas online which were managed and stored at Curtis Schwartz Studio in Ardingly, West Sussex, owned by Curtis Schwartz, the album's engineer and mixer. Howe said there was "a lot of creativity" in the ideas that the band had presented, and wanted the album to be different from what Yes had done before. Davison wanted to support Howe in particular while making the album and "really let him shine". A typical scenario involved one member contributing an instrumental section for a track, which Davison would then take and develop vocal lines and lyrical ideas. Davison preferred writing in this way as it allowed him to work in his own studio at his own pace, as opposed to the pressure of working "on the clock" in a professional facility. Howe then sifted through what had been put down, suggesting parts that were to be developed or scrapped. Davison had no predetermined agenda with his lyrics, but he was inspired to write about life, one's destiny, and environmentalism, and noticed Howe had presented lyrical ideas on similar topics. Howe approached the writing process with caution, which he had also done for Fly from Here (2011) and Heaven & Earth, to ensure the songs were fully arranged and to every members' satisfaction prior to recording. By the end of 2019, Yes had put together "Damaged World" and "Future Memories".

The album was recorded in two main locations in 2020 and 2021; White and Sherwood put down their respective drum and bass parts first at Uncle Rehearsal Studios in Van Nuys, California, and Schellen contributed percussion. After sharing the recording files to the group online, and once COVID-19 restrictions began to ease, Davison travelled to England to join Downes and Howe at Curtis Schwartz Studio, where the album was completed. The Quest features orchestral arrangements that Howe said were to "augment and enhance the overall sound", after the idea of using one appealed to him. Downes felt the orchestra complemented his keyboard parts as opposed to being a "me versus them" situation. Yes had previously used an orchestra on two other studio albums, Time and a Word (1970) and Magnification (2001). The parts were written by English composer and arranger Paul Joyce, a longtime fan of the band who had produced orchestrations for Howe's solo album, Time (2012). Joyce arranged a full score for a 47-piece orchestra which was performed by the FAMES Studio Orchestra in Skopje, North Macedonia, with conductor Oleg Kondratenko. Schwartz and Howe mixed the album in March 2021.

InsideOut Music suggested that the album should be under 50 minutes, and the band selected eight tracks in the final running order. The label went on to suggest that a second disc of additional tracks recorded during the sessions be added, so Yes chose three songs that Howe said were "high-quality reserve tracks" and were not necessarily ones that they would have scrapped. He added that the two-disc configuration of The Quest is not strictly a full double album, but "a second part to the story."

The Quest was announced on the band's official website, YesWorld, on 7 July 2021, revealing the track listing, artwork, and scheduled release date. The Quest is scheduled for release in five different versions: a 2CD digipak, a limited edition deluxe box set containing 2LPs, 2CDs, and a Blu-ray Disc, a limited edition 2CD and Blu-ray Disc artbook, a gatefold sleeve LP and 2-CD set with a booklet, and on various digital platforms. "The Ice Bridge" was released as a digital single on 23 July 2021, including a YouTube video with lyrics and Dean's artwork. A similar-styled video accompanied the release of "Dare to Know" on 1 September 2021.

The album reached No. 20 on its debut week on the UK Albums Chart.

Track listing

The Quest – CD 1

1. "The Ice Bridge" Jon Davison, Francis Monkman, Geoff Downes 7:01

a) "Eyes East"

b) "Race Against Time"

c) "Interaction"

2. "Dare to Know" Steve Howe 6:00

3. "Minus the Man" Davison, Billy Sherwood 5:35

4. "Leave Well Alone" Howe 8:06

a) "Across the Border"

b) "Not for Nothing"