Customer Reviews

Anderson, Bruford, Wakeman & Howe: An Evening of Yes Music Plus

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

First, my personal disclaimer: I know that this is technically AWBH, but technically AWBH is the classic version of YES that sprang up during the late 1980's in response to (or rather as a revolt against) the eighties modern YES, which remains controversial to this day. So with all due respect to the lawyers and the industry execs I'll refer to them as YES from here on out - even though there is no Chris Squire.

I was happy to learn that Voiceprint re-released this concert video on DVD for a number of reasons. First, the CD version of this concert has long been one of my favorite YES concerts. Second, this period of time is rather significant in YES history. It is when 80% of YES's classic lineup stood their ground and kept their music going so that it could be discovered by the ensuing generation of music fans - including myself. As I said in my 9012-Live review, I am one of the very few YES fans in existence who appreciates both the Trevor Rabin version and the classic version of YES. This period, just prior to the Union show/adventure/debacle, planted the seeds for my discovery of what classic YES is all about - and I am grateful. Third, and finally, it is a great show that covers a bunch of the great classic YES songs.

As far as the DVD itself is concerned, I'm not disappointed, but I am not particularly blown away either. The concert is from the 1989/1990 world tour, and if I recall correctly, this was originally a Laserdisc release that has since been dumped onto DVD. The result is something that looks marginally better than VHS, but is not quite up to par with the DVD video standards that we've all grown accustomed to, and hence have been spoiled by. The only real criticism I have is with the audio mix. This exact show was released on CD back in the early 1990's, as I mentioned earlier, it is one of my favorite YES audio concerts. However, when I play the DVD and the CD back-to-back, I swear the CD sounds better. And I don't think it is the DVD mastering, I think it is the audio mix used - and yes I ran them both through the same sound system. It is not that the DVD sounds bad, it is just that I know it could sound better, so I am always aware of it. It is not as crisp, and some of the lows are muddled.

On the positive side, again, this is a great concert with a considerable array of classic YES songs, a few tunes from the AWBH album, and some very worthwhile solo performances from Jon Anderson, Rick Wakeman, Bill Bruford, and Steve Howe. The performances themselves are top-notch. The two released songs from AWBH, Brother of Mine and Order of the Universe are both far superior to the album cuts. They sound alive and have a groove. Pull out the original CD and compare, you'll see what I mean. With regards to the classic YES songs, it's hard to pick a favorite because they're all well done - Long Distance Runaround, And You And I, Close to the Edge, Starship Trooper, All Good People, Heart of the Sunrise, and of course, Roundabout. What has always been amusing about this concert is the acoustic rendition of Owner of a Lonely Heart that gets thrown into Jon's Medley at the start of the show. Whether it's good natured humor or a deliberate jab at the other YES lineup, it is still very well done.

What stands out to me about both this concert and the Keys to Ascension concert from the later 1990's is that they represent authentic recordings of the classic YES work that feature modern recording and production technology. When YES recorded most of their original work in the early to mid 1970's it was ahead of all the technology. While the end result was the ultimate in progressive rock, the work was so harmonically and sonically rich that not everything really made it through to the albums. This particular concert represents one of the first times that these majestic rock compositions could be heard with digital clarity - Full, bright, crisp, clear, and powerful.

If you are a YES fan, then this needs to be in your DVD library. If you are a progressive rock fan, then the same holds true. If you're a concert fan or a holdover from the MTV generation, then maybe /maybe not. While I hold this concert in pretty high regard, it might not be for everyone. This one is targeted at a pretty specific niche. If you are in in that niche, then it ranks as pretty good and well worth it.

When news came out that this amazing concert was being re-released by VoicePrint, I was absolutely thrilled and pre-ordered it as soon as I could. The price was far from cheap, but hey... A 2007 brand-new release of such a classic concert, we'd have 5.1 sound, at least 2.0 DTS, we'd have remastered image, we'd have a single DVD-9 with the full (non-interrupted) concert and a bonus DVD with the "In The Big Dream" documentary.

At least we *thought* we'd have all this.

When I finally got this, my first impression was excellent, as the digipak case and discs are superb, very nice piece of work...

...which instanty vanishes as soon as you press PLAY.

I've known nearly all versions of this amazing concert, since it was first released on VHS, back in the late 80's. I even got the official LaserDisc release once, which I captured to my PC and authored my own personalized DVD, as I thought it would never be released as a DVD. Back then, the quality of this LD impressed me, and the "featurette" in the very beginning, during which Jon Anderson walks from his dressing room to the stage (through the crowd) was a pleasant surprise.

Well... Surprise ! You DON'T get that on this "new" DVD. And that isn't all that was taken away... Most of the dialogue and interaction with the audience between songs has simply been chopped off by VoicePrint ! To make things a little worse, the image quality is only acceptable, very similar to the old LD release... I also had the chance to check the first DVD release of this concert (by Image Entertainment itself), and I really saw no difference at all.

Not to mention the fact that what you get are two regular DVD-5 (single layer) discs, so you have to experience the first half of the show and when the best comes, near "The Meeting"... Surprise again ! You must take disc 1 off and insert disc 2 ! Kind of nostalgic that is... It reminded me of the LD release, when we had to switch it to "side-B" halfway through the concert (as was the first DVD as well, I might add). I mean, are DVD-9 (double layer) discs still so expensive to master these days ?... Even to a "limited edition" release ? Oh well.

This concert was a true gem, an amazing performance by fantastic musicians, with a loving selection of songs. That is exactly why I got so disappointed with VoicePrint, as absolutely no effort appears to have been made to improve in any way the quality of video and audio. I know we're talking about 1989 audiovisual technology, but once you have the masters, a little REAL re-mastering would be very welcome.

At least that nice digipak work looks great on the shelf. And there this DVD will remain, because I'll stick to my "home-made" version, made off the LD.

Not many people I know enjoyed the ABWH stuff as much as I did. Since I have never seen this and missed the first printing of this DVD, I was glad when they re-released this at a decent price. This 2 ½ hour concert consists of the basic Yes faves (killer version of "Close to the Edge") and a nice selection of tunes from the ABWH album. The video footage is clear but the camera is not always where it should be and there are some cheesy video effects. The audio is decent but comes only with a stereo mix and there are no extra features - what a bummer.

Anderson, as always, appears to be in a state of bliss, Bruford is armed with his electronic kit and seems to be enjoying most of the gig, Wakeman is surrounded by nine keyboards (not sure if he uses all of them) and is nearly flawless, and Howe is animated and looks happy. The other rarely seen musicians on this DVD are - Jeff Berlin (bass, vocals), Julian Colbeck (keys, vocals), and Milton McDonald (guitar, vocals).

Overall this is an awesome souvenir of a brief moment in time and all ABWH fans, that don't already own this, should get this before it goes out of print again.

FYI - Amazon's product description mentions this comes with a photo booklet and sleeve notes. Mine didn't have these items.

This lengthy live DVD concert presents interesting material of the original Yes music. In the beginning Jon Anderson conducts a nice charming chat introduction of the band. He appeared walking between the audience to get into the stage to perform an acoustic sing alone section of hits including "Owner of A Lonely Heart". After this, Steve Howe, Rick Wakeman and Bill Bruford play respectively a solo section too. In this concert we can see the great feelings and a sense of respect and fraternity between the members of the band. This Time the YES performance delivers its music with Bill Bruford on board, the band plays the well known songs of the Yes repertoire like "Close to The Edge", "And You & I" or "Roundabout" being helped too by the support of jazz bassist american virtuoso Jeff Berlin to reinforce the classic YES SOUND, even though we really miss a bit the fat metalic sound playing of former bassist Chris Squire (at the time with another founder member Tony Kaye). YES presents The songs of their first ABWH recording that really gets better with the performance of the mystical songs "Birthright" and "Heart Of The Sunrise"

This is really a great opportunity to get a marvellous concert at the nineties stage of a superprogressive group like YES. Is a good recording, with good image and sound and a great feeling in it, and it well worth the price to pay. Every Yes fan must have this... So get it! and Good Luck!...

Without having had the benefit of seeing Yes-Symphonic Live 2001, this 1989 concert of ABWH is the best concert DVD I've ever seen. Far better than 9012Live, Keys to Ascention, Live from the House of Blues and the 35th Anniversary concert.

At this time, the band was reorganizing after nearly a decade of Trevor Rabin-based music. Their youth and their musical energy is still in top form, as is Jon Anderson's voice.

Despite what other viewers might think, the picture and sound are excellent! The only flaw I find is that I know that for whatever reasons, the makers of this DVD chose to edit portions of the show where Jon addresses the audience in between songs. I know that it's missing because I remember seeing this identical show back in 1989 on Pay-per-View. Beyond that, a classic YES show!

By the way, the word PLUS in the title refers to songs from the Anderson, Bruford, Wakeman, Howe album that are performed in addition to classic YES songs - An evening of Yes music PLUS. Get it?

i remembering goin to see this show in 89 and really looking forward to its release, sure i was skeptical sometimes things are not as great as you remembered. this is definately not the case here!!! its alot better than i thought the recording as well as the show. besides not having tony levin there is nothing to complain about. even though it isnt the classic lineup the show is amazing i highly recommend it. i enjoyed it so much more than the new release from the 2003 montreaux show and the other latter day efforts

FYI - I ordered this directly from Voiceprint and received it last week.

I picked up the VHS video shortly after it came out and was thrilled to have this piece of ABWH history. The one thing that bothered me about the video, and the later CD release, was Jeff Berlin's bass being almost non-existent in the mix. I missed the DVD when it was first released in the late 90's.

I was so excited to get this new release. In this day and age, I fully expected to get a 5.1 mix (either Dolby Digital 5.1 or DTS) and hoped to hear Berlin's bass. However, I didn't get either of them. It's still in DD 2.0 and the bass is still missing.

Considering the premium I had to pay to import it, I feel sadly disappointed. At least I have a better picture and "clearer" sound.

Update 3/6/07 - I guess I wasn't paying attention before, but Voiceprint has also edited out almost all of the between song dialogue. I read about it in someone's review at a German site, and confirmed it last night. It's hard to believe the band had any input into this release.

I have had the Gold disc set of this concert for years but was not able to get this DVD. Now I have it and it is great,that is if you can get pass the horrible 80's clothing and hair. The song selection is great,the musicians are in top form and Jeff Berlin. What more could you ask for. For the people wondering what the plus in the title is for, I have an answer for you. It means they play ABWH songs in addition to Yes music. I am very happy with this purchase.

I can remember when the CD came out and I, like many other Yes fans, were starved for new music. Along comes ABWH to save the day.

Having subsequently seen them in concert, I was only to pleased to buy this CD of An Evening of Yes Music Plus. I proceeded to wear it out, lose it, buy it again AND lose it again.

Somehow when I saw this DVD the other day I couldn't help but purchase it.

OMG! This is probably the best YES DVD ever. Amazing concert footage, awesome songs, great sound and lots of close-ups of Steve Howe and Rick Wakeman. Overhead views of Bill Bruford gleefully playing the synth drums.

I had forgotten how wonderful a concert experience this was (not this show, but ABWH in Houston) and now I can finally enjoy it again and again.

I often wished that there were a video to go with the CD. I'm not sure why it took so long to release, but this is absolutely one of the better Yes releases in years.

Yes Symphonic is good, too. :)

After all the 80's pop and fresh of Trevor Rabin's "Yes West" and Steve Howe's Asia, Jon and Steve decided enough was enough and time to "get back" to what real progressive rock was all about. So they picked up old comrades Rick Wakeman and Bill Bruford (who hasn't worked with these three as a group in 16 years!) to reinvent the old classic Yes sound. Yes co-founder and bassist Chris Squire didn't participate because legally the name Yes was considered still active at the time. So, our friends adopted the law firm name of Anderson, Bruford, Wakeman and Howe (much like the law firm name Dewey, Cheatham, Wright and Howe!) The result was an album that was a real breath of fresh air. No masterpiece like Fragile or CTTE in any comparison, but close enough to the edge of stellar playing. Then the inevitable tour followed which this DVD captured.

Unlike most Yes concerts that open with Stravinsky's Firebird Suite and an explosive opening number, we're treated with solo treatments from each member to showcase their individual talents. Certainly unexpected! The whole show is great with Jon as his usual angelic self, Bill, still in his Simmons electronic drums phase (as a drummer myself who has followed him fervishly, I was a bit disapointed on his reliance of Ben Franklin's discovery!), Rick, who's fingers on the 88s continue to blur your eyes with grace and ease, and Steve just keeps getting tasteful as always on the 6-12 string wonder instrument.

After the solo performances, we get a real workout of both Yes classics and the recent ABWH releases. The highlights for me on the classics is Heart of the Sunrise, a very complicated track that hasn't been performed live for well over ten years. On the ABWH side, Birthright stands out with Bill's electronic tribal rythms kicking in full force. Too bad the best cut on the album, Quartet, couldn't be performed, but to do that you need 4 Steve Howes, 3 Rick Wakemans, maybe 2 Bill Brufords and about 8 Jon Andersons to do it. And yet it's called "Quartet", oh well! Too much to go over here on this concert, but take my word, it's all great.

In closing, ABWH was a great reunion even though Chris is sorely missed (Tony Levin fills in beautifully on the studio album as does Jeff Berlin does here on the tour). So like one of the previous reviewers stated, get it before it's out of print.