Customer Reviews

Ultimate Yes: 35th Anniversary Collection (Dig)

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(11)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Before I begin, let me say to all the true die-hard Yes fans out there, "I am one of you". So please don't think that I am just some bitter newbie who joined up with the band in the 80's. Nope, I've been around - buying every album, compilation, box set, and remastered recording that Yes has released, as well as attending every tour for the last 15-20 years. And it is because I have been such a true fan that I am getting so frustrated.

Let's look at the facts. Since 1991, Yes has released 4 complete albums of new material (5 if you count Keystudio). In that same time, they have released 6 box sets or compilations which re-hash already released material. And with each new compilation comes a little sampling of new material that forces us to buy the entire catalog of songs that we have already purchased. To make matters worse, Rhino has, over the last year, re-released 11 Yes albums, each with another sampling of new material. So we are forced, yet again, to re-buy all of the same albums we already own. And then, just when we thought we had enough, they give us 2 box sets in as many years and include, once again, samplings of new material. Now, they could have just as easily taken ALL of the new material and put out a disc of completely unreleased material. But then they wouldn't get as much of our money that way, now would they? Of course, it's not all Rhino's fault because this seems to be an old Yes trick (see the 2 live Keys To Ascension albums that had new bonus material thrown on the end or the 3 Magnification releases that each had a different bonus disc of previously unreleased live material).

So, aside from feeling completely cheated and ripped off, what is this latest 3-disc compilation really like? Well, the first disc consists of the classic era songs - great of course, but definitely nothing new. The second disc contains the later era songs - right up through Maginification. Now, I love the fact that I have one disc that contains more recent material because I happen to love the 80's and 90's versions of this band. However, the choice of tracks is questionable at best. I don't mean that they chose the wrong songs, but, rather, the wrong versions. For example, they included edited versions of It Can Happen, Big Generator, The Calling, and Homeworld. But, unfortunately, they are terrible edits - cutting where they shouldn't cut and fading out in all the wrong places. And after being treated to butchered versions of these great songs, the disc closes with the full version of Maginfication which, in my opinion, is one of their weaker songs.

But the greatest dissapointment, contrary to what other reviewers have said, is Disc 3. This disc includes acoustic versions of Roundabout and South Side Of The sky as well as some other acoustic pieces that were clearly just thrown on to get us to buy "new material". The pieces, in my opinion, show very little creativity and come off as more of an impromptu jam session than as well-thought out pieces of music that the fans of this band have come to expect - and might I add, deserve. And to add insult to injury, the disc is only about 20 minutes long. So it hardly qualifies as a "3-Disc" set. Once again - the fans are cheated.

So, in conclusion, I do not mind the occassional marketing trick to get people to buy new albums. But, enough is enough. Again, just do the math: Yes has released 27 albums since Union in 1991, and, including KeyStudio only 5 of them have been new. C'mon guys. We're getting fed up. And we deserve better.

So, if anyone associated with Yes cares to listen, let me just say that I will always be a Yes fan, but I am done being a Yes customer.

There's not much to say about the quality of the music contained within The Ultimate Yes- it's great, of course. The song selection is very good, with every Yes studio album except their eponymous debut, Tales From Topographic Oceans, and Keystudio represented. Of course we can nitpick about what songs deserved to be on this collection and weren't (cough, cough, Beyond And Before, cough), but this is the best attempt thus far at a Yes best-of.

I applaud Yes for putting some lesser-known material on here. Their 2001 Magnification album, which sold like a lead balloon, was still hailed as wonderful by those who did buy it (including myself), and putting the title track on here might help to boost its profile. And just when I'm beginning to wonder if Yes will ever acknowledge the existence of their 1980 masterpiece Drama- which singer Jon Anderson did not perform on- they put "Tempus Fugit" on this collection. Great move. That song had the potential to be *huge* when it came out, and it is a real gem in the Yes catalogue.

And I must add, the sound quality on all of these songs is amazing.

There are a few edited tracks on the album. "Soon," the finale of "The Gates Of Delirium," is edited to include a minute and a half more of the song that the previous single edit version. It's an improvement, but "Soon" doesn't really work out of the context of the song from which it comes. I think Yes would've done better to include something else from Relayer, like an unedited "Sound Chaser." Oh well. The single edit of "The Calling-" which I've never heard before- doesn't sound right with its reworked intro. I loved the vocal harmonies in the beginning of the song, and this version does away with them. The radio edit of "Homeworld (The Ladder)," I have to admit, is sloppy. I'm not opposed to the idea of the song being edited down to 4:40 from it's full length 9+ minutes, but it's just so poorly edited that even if you've never heard the song before, you can tell exactly where the cuts were made. On the plus side, my favorite Trevor Rabin-era Yes tune, "It Can Happen," is flawlessly edited. The remix of "Big Generator" is good as well, although I would have just preferred a remastered version of the original.

And then there's the matter of the bonus disc. Any die-hard Yes fans who are not planning on buying this collection might want to reconsider- it's worth the price of this collection for this disc alone. Leading off is a jazzy acoustic interpretation of "Roundabout" which will have you clapping your hands along with the band. It's great. Keyboardist- or should I say pianist- Rick Wakeman is front and center on the acoustic version of "South Side Of The Sky." It's drastically different that the studio version, but excellent nonetheless. "Show Me" is a gentle and emotional ballad, which is reminiscent of "Let's Pretend" from the Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe album, only- well, better. Concluding the disc are two solo spots, including Steve Howe's reworked acoustic guitar showcase "Australia." The other is Chris Squire's take on "New World Symphony," a bass solo which puts you in the mind of his "Amazing Grace."

All in all, this is a wonderful collection. Anyone remotely interested in Yes should pick it up, as well as longtime fans who will be amazed by the material on the bonus disc.

Don't get me wrong. I've been a huge fan of Yes since the beginning. I eagerly snatched up YESYEARS in 1992, and with nearly an hour's worth of rarities it was a box set worth adding to my collection. When the 5-CD IN A WORD came out in 2002, I bought it, too. It not only broadened the scope of the earlier box, it brought it up do date covering the previous ten years. Now, however, Rhino/Elektra is asking me to shell out more money for essentially a condensed version of IN A WORD? I don't think so.

Other than the third disc of previously unreleased versions--mostly acoustic, there are only four tracks from the first two discs not found on IN A WORD. Obviously the third disc was meant to entice the die-hard fan, but it strikes me as nothing short of extortion by the record company and I'm not buying. If you're a casual fan and don't own either of their previous box sets, I'd say go for it. ULTIMATE YES probably includes everything you really need. For the serious fan, it depends on how deep your pockets are.

The songs in this collection never sounded better, thanks to a remarkable remastering job. The song selection, although not perfect, is solid. I wish they could have found room for "Love Will Find A Way," the only top forty single missing in this compilation. "And You And I," which was left off the last boxed set, takes its rightful place on a Yes collection. The lesser known later songs, particularly "Open Your Eyes," hold up well alongside the earlier classics. With several compilations and two boxed sets already released, the real reason to buy this collection is for the third bonus disc. While each of the first two discs were packed with nearly 80 minutes of music, the bonus disc lasts a meager 20 minutes. I didn't care for the jazzy remake of "Roundabout," which turned a classic into a Las Vegas lounge song. The acoustic version of "South Side Of The Sky" fared much better, with Rick Wakeman's "South Side Variations" sounding like a great piece of classical music. "Show Me" by Jon Anderson and "Australia" by guitar whiz Steve Howe were pleasant but unremarkable songs. Chris Squire's adaptation of Dvorak's "New World Symphony" was sluggish and barely listenable, closing this collection out on a weak note.

Ok, most people buying this set will probably be Yes fans anyway, so this review is mostly for the bonus track. But if not...

For the uninitiated, this is an overall decent representation of Yes' music from the 70's to now, with at least one track representing every album except a few(the debut, Tales and Keys). As you can hear, the band has gone through many member changes and many styles and phases yet retaining a distictive sound of their own. For those not familiar with Yes, they pretty much have the following aspects: a couple high-voiced vocalists, clean cutting bass guitar loud in the mix, classical-tinged piano and synthesizer licks, somewhat country-ish guitar playing, long epic tracks done in sections often stretching up to 20+ minutes, positive yet undecipherable lyrics that deal with the spiritual/metaphysical etc, spacey album covers, revolving door of coming and going band members, all of which leaving lasting marks. That's pretty much Yes in a nutshell, and here are some fine songs to boot. A decent set to start off with, and good for those not willing to shell out for the 5 disc box set. Consider this the 2 disc version.

As for the third disc, there are 5 new tracks here, the first with Rick Wakeman since 'Keys to Ascension' from 1996, which give this set a strange sense of almost being a Fragile part 2 or a 'mini-Fragile'. Indeed, the content is very much like that classic 1971 Yes album in that it is comprised of solo pieces and band compositions. There is an solos for Anderson(Show Me), Squire(New World Symphony), Howe(Australia) and Wakeman(South Side Variations), plus acoustic versions of two tracks from the original Fragile(Roundabout & South Side Of The Sky). All that's missing is a new epic track(Heart Of The Sunrise-ish) and an Alan White solo. I suppose since Alan wasn't on the original Fragile that he doesn't get a solo. But anyway, I like the idea of a Fragile 2. This is almost that. The new tracks:

ROUNDABOUT: amazing what has been done to this road-weary classic rock song by stripping it down to a basic acoustic rock 'n' boogie number which kinda bops and jives in a jazzy, looser way. Of course Rick Wakeman has replaced the synth and organ with pub piano and Steve Howe brings out his country stylings. See, Yes can be fun and isn't all about tight, po-faced sophistication and muso wanking. The arrangement is different towards the end.

SHOW ME: a solo Anderson tune raided from his backlog of unreleased solo material which Yes has been performing as a new Yes song during their recent tours. It's kinda a short, sad-ish song, similar to maybe ABWH's quieter tunes or one of his solo albums like 'Earthmotherearth'. Again, acoustic with some madolin and piano.

SOUTH SIDE OF THE SKY: a different arrangement, shorter and features Rick Wakeman's solo spot- some beautiful classical-style piano variations on the themes of the song.

AUSTRALIA: Steve's obligatory acoustic solo this time is an instrumental acoustic rendition of a track from his first solo album from 1975. Why this track? Good to hear it though. I do think the band should go back and take some of the best of their solo songs and do them up Yes style as new recorded Yes songs, a stop-gap album. A lot of good solo stuff that would have made great Yes songs. Here's your chance to hear one.

NEW WORLD SYMPHONY: finally a new Squire solo! Worth the price of the album alone just for that novelty. Based on Dvorak's 9th symphony, it's short and has that trademark clean Rickenbacker bass sound. And it's all bass, nothing else.

they needed to add a few more tracks and an Alan White solo for a real Fragile 2. And this is the first new material with Rick Wakeman since 1996, and the first studio stuff since 2001. It makes one anticipate a next Yes album with Rick back on board.

So for the curious or the casual fan, a good collection/selection. For the Yes fan, more fun with Yes, the longest running proggy band.

This is a really excellent boiling-down of Yes' expansive collection, and is possibly the most fair representation of 35 years of utter Yes brilliance that has come out yet. All the tracks are well chosen to cover the glorious anthemic music of Yes from "Time and a Word" through to "Magnification", and the track sequencing is almost perfection, with enough gap of time between each song to let the previous delights waft into the ether before the next joys arrive.

Obviously we've had many "best of" collections of Yes since "Classic Yes" came out, all offering some form of sweetener with the deal (a live track, an unissued song, etc.) to encourage even the most ardent Yes fans to pick up copies of material they already own. Here the sweetener is Disk 3, all new releases and well worth the price of the whole set. The highlight for me is a terrific jazz-tinged acoustic performance of Roundabout, in which we are an unsuspecting audience on a new treatment of this old chestnut. Here we find the Gods of Prog (Rick and Jon particularly) infusing the song with a new joy, as if they were playing it again for the very first time. If you, like I, have heard Roundabout hundreds of times and dissected it note-by-note in your head, this new version will delight your every musical nerve, and you will feel like it is all new again.

As we have come to expect from Yes, the packaging is superb as ever. Roger Dean's cover design is delicious, and I love the 35th Anniversary logo, but the real joy awaits you when you crack the plastic, open the box and see how wonderfully Dean has combined the Classic curvy Yes colophon with the new logo on the face of each disk, where the white background brings the new colors out with terrific vibrancy. Also the liner notes fold out into a very attractive poster, and the summary of Yes' career by Chris Welch is certainly both informative to the new Yes fan, while not being redundant to the seasoned listener.

If you are a new fan of Yes, welcome to the best club on Earth, and buy this set as the beginning of your long journey into the greatest music of the Twentieth Century. If you are a seasoned and experienced Yes fanatic, you should still buy this set, start with Disk 3, and enjoy - there are enough new tweakings (remixes, alternative edits etc.) to keep you happy.

There is no doubt that Yes is one of the quintessential bands in history. Close to the Edge, the Yes Album, and Tales are all desert island disks. That is part of the problem I have with this album. I'll talk about the cons first, then the pros. [ALSO, PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS IS NOT A REVIEW FOR YES MUSIC, JUST THE COMPILATION.]

CONS-

-only has shorter songs because it's not a box set, just cds. You won't find anything of the nature of Revealing the Science of God or Close to the Edge.

-focuses a LOT on middle years [late 70s and early 80s]. For some Yes enthusiasts, this is very good. If you haven't guessed, I like the early stuff a bit more. That is still on there, though.
-they left a lot of space on the third disk which could have held a load of unreleased things or used more songs to show their career span.

PROS-

-remasters are beautiful. Every song sounds like you're in the studio. No disappointments there.
-even though its a little bit compact, this compilation has at least one song from ALMOST every album. This is a good introductin to this great band [see bottom of review]
-extra trcks, even though they are few in number, they are worth buying alongside all of these Yes classics. I never liked the song Roundabout until I heard the new acoustic version. It's like a new song, but much clearer and more fun.
-for Yes followers like me, as I've already said that the remasters are really good. It's probably worth buying just for those.
-THE PRICE IS RIGHT

All in all, this compilation is very good, though it had some more potential. For the price, though, you're getting a lot of material.

If you are new to Yes and you want to understand this band and have a good introduction to them, I would recommend purchasing their second album, called, "The Yes Album," along with this. That sould give you a good idea of this band. As you progress, you'll get to their LONG classics, "Close to the Edge," and Tales From Topographic Oceans."

This set appeases to no one! It's way too much for casual fans to ever need, too much of the same crap we've been buying for years now for the die hards, and too overpriced for a bonus disc with 3 great tracks and 2 half decent (at best) tracks that clocks in at about 20 minutes or so! Trust me guys, the fans of "Owner" could care less about "Magnification"! Had this been one of a few hits collections from Yes, it might have stood a chance, but sadly, Yes is entering compilation land where the likes of Jethro Tull and The Who have gone to die a slow and painful death! A casual fan would be better served with "Highlights - The Very Best Of Yes". It spans from '69-'91 and has all the familiar stuff. Hardcore fans dread that album (just like Deadheads loath "Skeletons from the Closet") so that's pretty much a good sign that it's all you'll ever need. Not to say that there isn't more to Yes than what would be offered on a best of, but if you are not a big fan, heard Roundabout on the radio and want one Yes album just to have, I would send you there instead of here. Every song here on the anniversary collection is great, any diehard will tell you that, and many songs that are equally as great were left off - any diehard will also tell you that, but not many would send you to a different best of, they would tell you buy all of the albums: so that's something for you to think about. If it helps at all, this set does contain most of the radio songs, but not all of them, and adds another 10 years by the end of disc 2. This set also contains every song from "Highlights", so that's more food for thought. The following is more for the diehard Yes fans, Yes themselves (I pray), record execs, and anyone who feels they are being taken advantage of by musicians who keep making thier fans buy the same thing over and over.
This is my first review for anything online, not just Amazon or a piece of Yes merchandise but I feel the time is now, that I have had enough of what is going on. "What is going on?" you may wonder.....well frankly this message is for Yes...Jon, Steve, Alan, Chris, Rick, (or even Trevor or Tony)......please stop with the best of's!!! I love all Yes music, from the first album up to the bonus disc that is included here, but I think someone needs to tell you guys.....you only have hardcore fans!! I'm only 26 years old, I've been a life long fan and have collected EVERYTHING - solos, boots, soundtracks, remasters: you name it, chances are I own it. I have yet to meet anyone my age who is into Yes as much as I am (that's if they even know who I'm talking about!). Maybe I'm missing something here? Maybe you guys just know that we'll buy it if you put it out? Here's a great example of what I mean: "The Yes Album" only had 6 songs on it and even though I own this (which has 3 of them), "In A Word" (which has 5 of them), "Classic Yes" (which has the same 3 this one has, but alas one is live!), "Yesyears" (which has yet again the same 3), "Highlights - The Very Best Of" (which has 2 of the same 3!) that Yes still had the audacity to reissue "The Yes Album" with bonus tracks!!!! Are you kidding me? Furthermore.......didn't I already have to re-buy the Yes catalog in 1994???? This leads to me to my next point.
I don't think Yes, or the fat cats at "Warner Strategic Marketing" (Yeah, read it again, that's the name of the people in charge of re-issuing just about everything you've had to buy more than once.....does it make you sick too??) even know what they are doing! I think the re-issues were suppose to delete some other albums, (ie: By sticking "America" on the "Fragile" disc & "Dear Father" on the self-titled first album, there would be no need for the "Yesterdays" compilation) but it does'nt work out? Yesterdays is one rare case where it did (sort of - Survival is different, but let's not get too pushy right?), but it seems like the big goal was to eliminate "Yesyears", the 4 disc box set of 1991. This did not happen!! Instead, hardcore fans got the same rarities over again, yet still needed "Yesyears" because they did not put all of the rarities on other releases! To make even less sense, ANOTHER BOX SET WAS RELEASED????? What the hell is this? It's up to 5 discs now......but only about 5 songs were even unreleased.....further more, the only one of real need to die hards was the horrendous outtake from "Magnification". Oh wait! I forgot about the essay from Cameron Crowe - thank God that was included - I feel way better about spending $60 now that I know Cameron approves!!
While everything else was pretty much easily available on a bootleg, you'd think that 5 discs would be enough to stick all those leftover rarities from "Yesyears" on here, right? NO!! Why? Because this box set was for the hardcore fan who wanted things like "To Be Over" on the first box, but didn't get it! Nice in theory if "Yesyears" never happened, but it did, so giving me everything over again is a complete waste, especially since there are PLENTY of unreleased gems that you could have given us! I don't need the alternate version of "Fist Of Fire", I need "Vultures: In The City" to be put on CD!! Shame on you Warner "Strategic", shame on Steve Howe for his selection of crap that I own way to many times, and shame on Yes fans who don't stand up and do something about it!
Online Yes fans have always annoyed me because of their constant moaning and whining over which line-up was better, which album was better, etc. I refuse to do it, I like all the Yes albums, for better or worse. Some are better than others, but they all have thier own character. For all this bickering you would think that one of you would stop and say "I'm not going to sign an online petition to get "Big Generator" re-issued because they have already ripped me off enough!" Nope, they'll sign away......meanwhile the real shame is that while "Big Generator" has always been in print, Jon Anderson's "Animation" has never been in print. Most of the other solos have to be bought as Japanese imports in the upward of $30 a piece, but they don't seem to cry about these things??? Why not? Seems to me that everone would beneift from this stuff being released here.....ARE YOU LISTENING "WARNER STRATEGIC"? Here's a strategy........if 1 million Yes fans signed a petition for the official release of "Animation", and no Yes fans asked for a second box set......which will sell more copies?? I would think that at least half a million copies of Animation are a guarantee sale......and if you offered it exclusively through Yesworld.com, or opio.com, I bet you'd sell even more!!! Now that's strategy you corporate slugs! And PS members of Yes.....you may want to treat your fans a little better than this.......you can't possibly have that many left, at least that will stick with you through all the thick and thin......I've been here awhile, but I don't think I can take another series of re-re-issues! I hope that someone can sypathize and agree with me, and that maybe we can do something about this corporate greed! Thanks for your time.

This collection gives both the diehard YES fan and the newcomer a good overview of YES's music. It definetely skew's toward the band's classic period (71-78), and only lightly touches on the 68-70, and 1980 to the present. As the bands biggest selling discs (90125 and Big Generator) are under-represented here, as is the music the band has done in the 90's I would have tried to squeeze in another BigGen cut: "Love Will Find a Way", (and also drop "Big Generator"-the song that is, and add "Shoot High Aim Low" instead) another from Union: "Miracle of Life", another cut from Open Your Eyes: "New State of Mind" (in my opinion as good a song as YES has ever done), and instead of the title cut from Magnification, I would have chosen either "Time is Time", or "Can You Imagine". I've always thought "Don't Kill the Whale" (while a noble effort at a "message" song) was banal, and I would have substituted "Future Times/Rejoice" as input from the TORMATO disc. The bonus accoustic tracks are a great touch, especially Jon Anderson's wonderful "Show Me" which was a delight to hear live during the 2004 tour. All in all a set of disc's well worth buying, especially for the very low price.

I never expected "The Ultimate Yes" to be the best twenty dollars I ever spent, but I was at least expecting the whole to equal the sum of the parts. It doesn't.

I bought this collection to fill in the last twenty years of Yes, which I really didn't know too well. But judging by the years I am familiar with, and what's not only missing but also included from them, I'm left wondering how well the last two decades are represented.

The problem with any retrospective collection of anything is that, even given the best scenario, the consumer must trust the editing judgement of someone else. Given that someone decided to fade out "Long Distance runaround" just as the piece begins to go where it's been headed makes me question that trust. (Perhaps another someone just like this someone removed from "Get Back" on "Beatles 1" the opening banter, which had simply become a part of the song. I'd be very surprised if it was actually George Martin.) And someone didn't include "Five percent for nothing" from "Fragile," a fun, wonderful and telling window to the times in which this music was conceived. (It's only about 00:35, and it's not like space must be rationed on a CD, on both this count and "Long Distance runaround.") Someone did include the cover of Simon and Garfunkel's "America" (it simply doesn't work) while just as inexplicably not including any part of "Close To The Edge."

I would also like to have seen a little more history about Peter Banks. He wasn't a founding member, but he was an original member and any listener familiar with Banks' subsequent band Flash knows he contributed very significantly to the sound of Yes.

The one true plus to this collection is the final disc of unreleased acoustic versions, which contains at least interesting and often very good work, and more than a few hints about the roots of Yes. Still, I get the impression anything appearing dangereous was left out of this collection. Someone took Yes - and for all I know it was Yes themselves - and added an automatic transmission, multiple airbags, antilock braking, traction control, onboard navigation and Onstar. And where's the fun in that?