Yes in the Press: Yes: Yessongs: (released 1973)

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OCTOBER 27, 1997
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Source: Publiczny Dostep do Internetu

http://www.pdi.net/~eristic/yes/tr_57.html

Yes: Yessongs: (released 1973)

By Christopher Currie

Track: Rating:

1. Opening (excerpt from "Firebird Suite")*****
2. Siberian Khatru*****
3. Heart Of The Sunrise*****
4. Perpetual Change*****
5. And You And I*****
6. Mood For A Day*****
7. Excerpts From "The Six Wives Of Henry VIII"****
8. Roundabout****1/2
9. Your Move/All Good People*****
10. Long Distance Runaround****1/2
11. The Fish*****
12. Close To The Edge*****
13. Yours Is No Disgrace*****
14. Starship Trooper*****

Personnel:

* Jon Anderson: vocals
* Bill Bruford: drums (on "Perpetual Change", "Long Distance Runaround", and "The Fish")
* Steve Howe: guitars
* Chris Squire: bass
* Rick Wakeman: keyboards
* Alan White: drums on all tracks except for those played by Bruford

Credits:

* "Siberian Khatru" credited here to Anderson, elsewhere to Anderson/Howe/Wakeman.
* "Heart Of The Sunrise" written by Anderson/Squire/Bruford.
* "Perpetual Change" written by Anderson/Squire.
* "And You And I" written by Anderson, themes by Bruford/Howe/Squire
* "Mood For A Day" written by Howe.
* "Excerpts From The Six Wives Of Henry VIII" written by Wakeman.
* "Roundabout" written by Anderson/Howe.
* "Your Move/All Good People" written by Anderson/Squire.
* "Long Distance Runaround" written by Anderson.
* "The Fish" written by Squire.
* "Close To The Edge" written by Anderson/Howe.
* "Yours Is No Disgrace" written by Anderson/Squire/Howe/Kaye/Bruford.
* "Starship Trooper" written by Anderson/Squire/Howe.

* "Firebird Suite" written by Stravinsky.

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Comments:

Although very few people regard Yessongs as the group's best release, the general consensus among serious Yes fans is that this is a work of considerable importance. Taken from various Yes shows before and after the release of Close To The Edge, this work remains the most accurate documentation of Yes's talents as a live act at the time generally considered as the "prime" of their career.

The relatively low showing of Yessongs in fan surveys may be credited to the fact that all tracks on the album (except Wakeman's solo and the "Firebird" intro) are available on The Yes Album, Fragile, or Close To The Edge. Although about half of these tracks were given radically different treatments in live performance (and the other tracks were generally "different enough" to justify their inclusion), those Yesfans who prefer to consider Yes releases as "unified statements of expression" would be far more likely to give preference to the original studio albums than to this particular release.

The "carry-over" factor also places the abnormally high track ratings for this album into a slightly altered context. As most of these tracks were "five-star" recordings in their original form, their continued high ratings do not necessarily indicate anything more than a faithful representation. Many tracks go well beyond this, of course, but it must be remembered that the artistic success of this album has as much to do with the original strength of composition as with the value of the particular performances here captured.

These minor quibblings are generally irrelevant in assessing the value of the music, which is extremely high. Those fans who appreciate creative solos and fills in the midst of familiar material will not be disappointed by this release; Squire, Wakeman and especially Howe all come to the forefront on numerous occasions in this manner. The group also reveals themselves as capable of reproducing their relatively complex creations to a stage context without much difficulty, and the album is also generally regarded as an unqualified success in capturing the energy of the group in live shows. Fans of Jon might be slightly disappointed with the fact that his stage time is reduced in the light of various extended solos, but those Jon performances which do exist are quite good as well.

That said, there are two criticisms of this album which cannot be entirely overlooked. The first involves the quality of the recording. From a purely sonic perspective, this album frequently veers into nightmarish territories -- the cymbals and hi-hat in particular are poorly recorded, and can't help but detract from the overall merits of the work.

The second criticism involves Alan White. Although White has proven to be a skilled member of Yes for over 25 years, he has never completely escaped the criticism that his talents are somewhat lesser than those of Bill Bruford. It must be admitted that there is some justification for this complaint. By juxtaposing tracks featuring Bruford and White, Yessongs highlights the fact that White isn't as given to creative fills as is Bruford; although competent enough, White's playing on this album often gets stuck in fairly basic grooves for longer than is necessary. Eddie Offord may have spoken unfairly when he claimed White's playing on his first few Yes tours was rather poor, but the motivation behind his comments was not entirely unreasonable. Thankfully, the deficiencies caused by White's playing only seriously reduce the impact of one particular song.

These aside, Yessongs comes very close to being an unbroken triumph from start to finish. The decision of the band to open the album with an excerpt from Stravinsky's "Firebird Suite" merits a five-star rating by the simple virtue of the fact that many young progressive fans were probably introduced to the piece (indeed, to 20th century classical music in general) through this particular release. Moreover, the transition to "Siberian Khatru" is considerably more tasteful than most other classical-rock mixes of the day.

"Siberian Khatru" is one of the showcase pieces on the album, and (with the exception of one four-second segment) this version does not disappoint. Howe's introductory guitar riff is about as equally powerful as that which begins the studio version; although his "shifting of tones" section shortly thereafter almost seems to falter at one point, he recovers nicely at its resolution. Squire's part is more powerful here than on the original track, and White generally contributes a strong performance as well (though the heavy rock drumming in the first vocal section seems a minor step down). The sitar and harpsichord parts are played here on more conventional instruments, but this doesn't seriously harm the recreation; moreover, the guitar solo which follows after list indicates Howe's appreciation of "sultry" sustained notes, which generally isn't conveyed on his studio releases. The vocals (from both Jon and Chris) are excellently done throughout, and Howe's solo at the end is also very impressive. The only minor problem in this piece is an ill-considered drum line which occurs about four and a half minutes into the track; thankfully, this is too short to seriously damage the track's impact.

"Heart Of The Sunrise" is also reproduced in an extremely effective way. The opening section is almost indistinguishable from the studio track, despite the change in drummers; the bass spotlight which follows this is also done extremely well. All of musicians give strong performances in the part of the track affectionately known as the "Schizoid Man" section, particularly as regards an interesting mix of notes and tones from Howe and Wakeman. This doesn't substantially differ from the version on Fragile, but it is quite good as it is.

"Perpetual Change" begins with Howe giving another strong performance, with Wakeman doubling him on the track's main theme. Bruford's performance is far more distinctive than those provided by White, and his refusal to act as a "standard rhythm section player" also provdes Squire with the opportunity to play a more active role in the melodic development of the piece than may have been the case otherwise. The vocal section of this work is almost not far removed from the original, but Howe's subsequent solo provides for a consider distinction -- after "hanging" for a moment after Howe's section is completed, the band then returns to the vocal section without any problems in transition. Bruford's two-minute drum solo at the conclusion of the track is not a career high point, but it fulfills its purpose well enough.

This version of "And You And I" replaces the acoustic guitar introduction with the quasi-orchestral theme from "Eclipse" (ie. the second "And You And I" movement), and replaces the acoustic guitar with electric guitar throughout; otherwise, it differs very little from the version on Close To The Edge. Aside from the fact that the backing vocals are more audible, the only other differences between this and the album version are those of nuance (Howe using more sustained notes, Squire adding a few more fills, minor differences as a result of White, etc). Likewise, the version of "Mood For A Day" which follows this is almost identical to the Fragile version, save only for a few minor variations in assorted fills. This does not, of course, prevent both tracks from being extremely good.

"Excerpts From The Six Wives Of Henry VIII" is Wakeman's solo section, featuring various motifs from his first officially released solo album (Piano Vibrations doesn't count). As might be expected, Wakeman begins the solo with "Catherine Of Aragon", and returns to it after a few further excerpts from other tracks. This is generally a solid performance, and the performance of "CoA" which appears here may actually be better than that on his studio album. Still, RW must be penalized somewhat for incorporating an absurd version of the "Hallelujah Chorus" into the middle of the piece.

This "Roundabout", although generally a solid performance, is also the only track here which is serious hindered by Alan White's performance. In AW's hands, the eclectic backbeat of the track becomes reduced to that of a more conventional rock number; even the "eagle" section of the track isn't quite up to par on this regard. Aside from this, however, there is no reason for serious complaint with this track; diversity from the original is provided in Howe's commencement of the track on electric guitar, and the fact that Wakeman's organ solo is completely different from the original album version. Despite being somewhat overplayed in subsequent concerts, this piece still comes off extremely well here.

The matter of why "I've Seen All Good People" was re-titled as "Your Move/All Good People" here has never been solved to this reviewer's satisfaction, but this has little relevance to the value of the piece. The "Your Move" section presents a fairly good performance by all concerned, with Anderson filling his role well, Squire adding interesting fills and background vocals, and Howe managing to remain distinctive in a rhythm-oriented role. Howe and Wakeman take dominant roles in the "All Good People" section, with White putting in a much better showing than on the previous track, and Squire presiding over the action fairly well. The best part of this section is Howe's solo, but the entire thing comes off well. Another overplayed track, but still a very solid version.

Not too much need be said of "Long Distance Runaround", except to note that it faithfully recreates the album recording and that Squire is particularly notable in his role (it should also be noted that the "**** 1/2" rating here is not a demotion). In contrast, this version of "The Fish" is nothing less than revelatory. Howe begins the track with an extremely high-pitched solo, which leads immediately to Squire's solo -- revealing the power of the bass as a melodic instrument in a slightly different manner than he did on the studio version. This extended solo features impressive runs, melodic developments, distortion, changes in dynamics, etc., etc. -- it also doesn't overstay its welcome, which cannot be said of all subsequent Squire solos. An essential work for bass-playing Yes fans, to say the least.

In contrast to this, "Close To The Edge" appears in a form very similar to that of its studio version. The track begins with Jon's "nature sounds" tape, seemingly combined with a "jungle recording" of some sort as well. The frenetic introduction is generally kept in its original form, save that Wakeman takes a more prominent role; White, it should be noted, delivers a strong performance here, and credit must also be given to Anderson for reproducing his introductory vocal role in an impressive manner. The first combination of Howe and Squire in the vocal section seems slightly "murky", but this problem resolves itself before too long; the rest of "The Solid Time Of Change" and "Total Mass Retain" differs only marginally from the album version. "I Get Up I Get Down" is primarily notable for Wakeman taking a more prominent role, with the guitar seemingly being mixed slightly lower. The vocal section of this work, as before, is faithfully reproduced, with Squire and Howe providing extremely impressive backing vocals. Although this isn't really Wakeman's fault, it must be noted that the church organ effect can't really be replaced, and brief solo which follows doesn't come off in entirely the right manner as well. As against his, RW handles his "Seasons Of Man" solo perfectly, with the rest of the band performing equally well. The loss of echo effect in the closing section isn't a terrible annoyance, and the track is able to conclude on a strong note.

This version of "Yours Is No Disgrace" is a fair reproduction as far as it goes, but is obviously more notable for the additions which Steve Howe incorporates into the work. The track begins with Howe and Wakeman holding a brief duet, most notable for Howe's inclusion of the American southern folk style which he has praised so strongly in subsequent interviews. The track begins in earnest after this, with Howe still providing the leading role in spite of Wakeman's embellishments on Tony Kaye's original parts. This version does not differ strongly from the original version until the second guitar solo, wherein Howe is allowed considerable space to improvise along various themes -- on his own at first, and with band accompaniment later. This is obviously a high point of the song, lasting for several minutes and incorporating a number of diverse, though internally developmental themes. The song concludes with a brief reprise of the vocal section.

Finally, the album concludes with a version of "Starship Trooper", which remains generally faithful to the Yes Album version save for a brief "dueling solos" section by Howe and Wakeman towards the end of the "Wurm" piece. One might complain that some of the quirks of the "speak to me" section were streamlined in his version, but this is a very minor complaint.

And such is Yessongs, an album overflowing with so much talent and musicality that listening to it in one setting (yet alone writing a complete review of it in one setting) can sometimes be a bit draining. This album is strongly recommended to serious Yes fans, but newcomers are advised to purchase The Yes Album, Fragile and Close To The Edge before adding this work to their collection.

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