Customer Reviews

Yes

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This debut album »Yes« was the only Yes vinyl album I hadn't been able to track down anywhere, so when I got the chance, I paid as much as $50 for it. Just to complete my Yes collection.

At first, I was kinda disappointed. But this album gains credit with time. And you end up really appreciating it - not only because of the affectional value but also for the music itself.

Especially Side One is very jazzy. »I See You« is an absolutely great jazz song, full of soul and Yesness! In fact, every single track is very worth listening to. And Jon Anderson's voice in its youth is very fragile yet very very beautiful and skilled.

On the back of the cover, it says: »(...) My second runner in the Great Group-Most-Likely-To-Make-It Stakes. And my money is on them! (...)« (Tony Wilson, Melody Maker).

You bet!

(Oh, by the way, »Sweetness« is used in Yes freak Vincent Gallo's movie »Buffalo 66« starring Christina Ricci. Support Yes, watch it!)

A wonderful beginning, the promise of the future, ahead of it's time in many ways. This album showcases what would bcome classic harmonies as well as the musical standards that continue to drive this group. The shape of the future, a solid foundation for what was to come.

This album is one of music history's almost completely forgotten chapters. In the beginning, a man with negligable instrumental talent yet a phenominal voice (Jon Anderson) met with a bassist who would eventually become, far and wide, one of the greatest in the history of the instrument (Chris Squire). After recruiting a guitarist (Peter Banks), a keyboardist (Tony Kaye), and a drummer (Bill Bruford), these two men started the band we all know and love. Yes was born.

This album has few but unmistakable instances of brilliance, and even this early on, it was quite apparent that this group--after they gained some experience--could rise to monumental heights. And they did. They just didn't do it by playing the music you will find on their debut album.

'Yes' (1969) is an odd creature. First of all, the production quality is lamentable, even for 1969. Even if music analysts might have had high hopes for Yes, certainly Atlantic records didn't. The band were obviously shoved in a backwater studio somewhere and recorded by a totally skilless sound producer. Second of all, there are two covers from the original set of eight tracks. The band, while quite capable of producing its own original material, still clutched firmly to its mother's bosom, it seems. The band at times sounds like no more than a Beatles clone, and yet, there are a few shining glimpses of something that would eventually far outstrip the scope and quality--if (unfortunately) not the popularity--of the cookie-cutter rock bands like the Beatles produced.

And that will be what I concentrate upon in this review. Normally I would do a track-by-track breakdown, but in this instance, I will comment upon just three selections, and not in order, either.

1. "Beyond and Before" - This song is the pinnacle of the more mainstream-bound brand of Yes rock. I consider it prudent because, while no aspect of this track is represented in the "Classic Period" of Yes (1971 through 1977), this particular selection shows another possible path the band could have taken. Die-hard Yes fans thank their lucky stars the band didn't imitate this song in their future escapades. Even mired within this track is the musical competency of the three core members of the band (Anderson, Squire, and Bruford), though it is not directed toward a project even approaching the magnitude of something from the Classic Period. There is something charming about this song. Charming, but nothing else.

8. "Survival" - This track reveals the arrangement skills of the band, as well as their penchant for slightly longer-form songs (they would extend this in years to come). The layered vocal harmonies are more in the vein of 1960's mainstream music than the progressive mastery the band would explore in later years, but they still demonstrate the emerging vocal prowess of the band. Most significant, however, is the experimental arrangement of this track, with a beginning section that contrasts the main song body. Furthermore, snatches of this beginning portion are slipped into the the main song body, thereby binding the two together. Still, this track suffers from extremely poor production, inexpertly performed backing vocals (this improves drastically by 'The Yes Album'), and horribly dated organ registration and a limited instrumental palate.

5. "Harold Land" - This, more than any other track on this album, indicates the direction in which Yes would head. And, in my honest opinion, had they not experimented any further and had perfected this particular style, I believe they would have been successful in a completely new way. I would not have minded listening to a band that produced work like "Harold Land." Instead, of course, the band gave us the unparalleled work they did in later years.

"Harold Land" is the most progressive track on the album. Beginning with an atrociously arranged sequence (it sounds like ghastly gameshow music), the song suddenly launches into a rush of inspired brilliance. Now where the hell was that in the beginning?! Jon Anderson comes in, with a tone that must be heard to be believed. It is in some ways more expressive than he would become in later years, more raw and emotionally charged. It's also more immediate and urgent, somehow. It's a tone I sometimes wish he would have distilled and conjured occasionally on some of the classic material. It's a one-of-a-kind element of this very brief era of the band's catalogue.

The background vocals are really, really bad. Some of this was the producer's fault, who let stuff like the teeth-gnashingly horrid foghorn tone to precipitate into the mix not once but twice in the "Going home" sequence. The vocal levels are completely random; sometimes Jon is obscured by the backing vocals, sometimes the balance is correct, and other times he's blasting. The most noticible instance of the latter is when he sings "There is no heart in Harold Land!" Here it literally sounds like he leaned about a millimeter away from the microphone when he belted out that line. All these things are sort of charming, yet much more unfortunate. This song deserved a better arrangement, and certainly better production. Where was Eddie Offord when the band needed him?

There are some generalities that apply to this album. Jon Anderson's vocals are spot-on. Even wreathed in the substandard background vocals of his bandmates, one can hear Jon's distinctive, optimistic tone lilting upon the ugly oil sea of his bandmates. Also, Squire and Bruford have occasional moments that show their singular talents on their respective instruments. In addition, there are fleeting glimpses of the compositional brilliance--most notably on "Harold Land"--the band would develop in later years. Finally, and probably most apparent, the lyrics are not the high-brow, esoteric material the band would first explore in 'The Yes Album.' Jon Anderson had not yet become the commendable poet he would be in later years and on later albums. All the material on this album is highly accessible lyrically.

Is this album anywhere near the work the band would later produce? Absolutely not. And I must judge it by the same standard by which I judge the other Yes material. And when your curve is set by the greatest album in all of music (1972's 'Close to the Edge'), somehow this debut album--though unfairly overlooked--just pales in comparison. No, 'Yes' doesn't even come close to the Classic Period of the band's canon, but is it an essential album for die-hard Yes fans to own? Absolutely! You truly have to pay homage to the phenominal bunch of talent that is Yes, and what better way to do that then by starting at the beginning and glimpsing between the fronds the rising sun that would eventually reach over the horizon in 1971, with 'The Yes Album.'

NOT BAD FOR A DEBUT ALBUM! The sound here is rather raw for YES;
JON ANDERSON's voice sounds very strained and scratchy on a few
songs, tho' he still sounds great! CHRIS SQUIRE's bass guitar
is the lead instrument on much of this, providing the melody
for some of the songs. I really love the opening song BEYOND AND
BEFORE; this is a very powerful and heavy song, with a very
catchy bass guitar line and some very raw and electric guitar
soloing from PETER BANKS. The vocals are also outstanding on this
song and BILL BRUFORD really has a blast smashing away at his
cymbals and his snare drum! I SEE YOU is also a great tune, with
PETER BANKS longest guitar solo with YES.There's a slightly
jazzy feel to this song! YESTERDAY AND TODAY is a quiet, mellow
song and leads right into the hard rocker LOOKING AROUND, which
has some nice Hammond organ playing from TONY KAYE. HAROLD LAND
is also an enjoyable song, with a very prominent bass line from
SQUIRE. Those YES fans not familiar with their two first albums
may be pleasantly surprised at how good this album is, as I was!

For those who are familiar with the progressive rock Yes is noteworthy for, you may be surprised when you listen to this, Yes' first offering. The reason for your probable surprise is that very few, if any of the tracks featured on "Yes", display any sort of a progressive feel. The closest thing to progressive rock is most likely found in the opening track "Beyond And Before" and in "Looking Around". Otherwise, the rest of the tracks display either a softer, more mellow feel (the melancholy ballad "Yesterday And Today", the equally touching "Harold Land" and "Sweetness") or a rather bluesy perspective ("I See You"). The band has its one and only cover tune, and it graces this first album in fine musical form - the Beatles tune "Every Little Thing", a nice, quaint rocker. "Survival" closes things out nicely, although somewhat on a somber note. Even though it would take a few more albums for Yes to reach their full blown progressive pinnacle, that being on "Fragile", when Rick Wakeman and Steve Howe joined the band (although Howe became part of Yes during their previous album "The Yes Album", an effort that features some noteworthy progressive chops). That said, this first effort, titled "Yes", is not a bad album, to say the least - for on the group's next album "Time And A Word" (the last to feature guitarist Peter Banks), there would be a sign of things to come in the realm of Yes' style of progressive rock, which is somewhat absent on this first effort. If you're a completist, you'll definitely want "Yes" in your CD library. Even if you aren't a fan of this band, but are a fan of more "casual" rock, you just might want to make this title an essential purchase before Atlantic decides to take it out of print.

The debut YES album featuring the original line up of Jon Anderson(lead vocals),Chris Squire(bass,vocals),Bill Bruford(percussion),Tony Kaye(keyboards) and Peter Banks(Guitars) is an impressive beginning. The style,in my opinion,is melodic/progressive with perhaps more emphasis on melodic structure than progressive improvisation. The songs are shorter(for YES) combining powerful, intense pieces with softer,emotional love ballads. The musicianship on the album is clear and well defined; not lost in electronic distortion; with Chris Squire's dark,moody,lumpy bass and Bill Bruford's crisp, adept - albeit a little conservative - percussion giving the arrangements direction while Tony Kaye and Peter Banks provide interesting but not overly intricate improvisation. On top of this there are rich, intense and somewhat ethereal-like harmonies led by(the always superb) Jon Anderson on lead vocals. Add to this a highly descriptive and evocative lyric base which conjure feelings and emotions ranging from sheer optimism, love, insecurity and uncertainty to reflective melancholy and tragedy. All this integrated together produces an excellent fusion of forceful intensity with softer harmonic delicacies. However, that being said, everytime I listen to this album I can't help but feel it could have been just that little bit better. For example I think Tony Kaye and Peter Banks could have been a tad more adventurous with their improvisations although there are some good interludes. Also I would have liked to hear Bill Bruford "cut loose" a little more and the harmonies in the second half of the album become,in my opinion, overly dramatic. Nevertheless I think this is a fine first up effort for the band. I would actually give the album 3 and 1/2 stars. N.B. anyone new to YES please ignore David Cavanagh's snide,unreliable,uninformative and grossly subjective critique of the band. Rod.

The debut YES album featuring the original line up of Jon Anderson(lead vocals),Chris Squire(bass,vocals),Bill Bruford(percussion),Tony Kaye(keyboards) and Peter Banks(Guitars) is an impressive beginning. The style,in my opinion,is melodic/progressive with perhaps more emphasis on melodic structure than progressive improvisation. The songs are shorter(for YES) combining powerful, intense pieces with softer,emotional love ballads. The musicianship on the album is clear and well defined; not lost in electronic distortion; with Chris Squire's dark,moody,lumpy bass and Bill Bruford's crisp, adept - albeit a little conservative - percussion giving the arrangements direction while Tony Kaye and Peter Banks provide interesting but not overly intricate improvisation. On top of this there are rich, intense and somewhat ethereal-like harmonies led by(the always superb) Jon Anderson on lead vocals. Add to this a highly descriptive and evocative lyric base which conjure feelings and emotions ranging from sheer optimism, love, insecurity and uncertainty to reflective melancholy and tragedy. All this integrated together produces an excellent fusion of forceful intensity with softer harmonic delicacies. However, that being said, everytime I listen to this album I can't help but feel it could have been just that little bit better. For example I think Tony Kaye and Peter Banks could have been a tad more adventurous with their improvisations although there are some good interludes. Also I would have liked to hear Bill Bruford "cut loose" a little more and the harmonies in the second half of the album become,in my opinion, overly dramatic. Nevertheless I think this is a fine first up effort for the band. I would actually give the album 3 and 1/2 stars. N.B. anyone new to YES please ignore David Cavanagh's snide,unreliable,uninformative and grossly subjective critique of the band. Rod.

Far from the finest Yes cd, their 1969 debut is still a fascinating and engaging record. It is worth the price for the tremendous 'Survival' alone, and their cover of The Beatles album track 'Every Little Thing' is an unheralded classic. It is very interesting to hear Yes as they are developing their soon-to-be legendary progressive rock direction at this early stage. They play extremely well and this was one of only two Yes albums to feature original guitarist Peter Banks. Pick "Yes" up, it really is a fine cd. Just don't expect anything like "Close To The Edge" or "Drama". This is pretty much a psychedelic folk- rock debut.

YES: Self titled debut album. The debut YES album featuring the original line up of Jon Anderson(lead vocals),Chris Squire(bass,vocals),Bill Bruford(percussion),Tony Kaye(keyboards) and Peter Banks(Guitars) is an impressive beginning. The style,in my opinion,is melodic/progressive with perhaps more emphasis on melodic structure than progressive improvisation. The songs are shorter(for YES) combining powerful, intense pieces with softer,emotional love ballads. The musicianship on the album is clear and well defined; not lost in electronic distortion; with Chris Squire's dark,moody,lumpy bass and Bill Bruford's crisp, adept - albeit a little conservative - percussion giving the arrangements direction while Tony Kaye and Peter Banks provide interesting but not overly intricate improvisation. On top of this there are rich, intense and somewhat ethereal-like harmonies led by(the always superb) Jon Anderson on lead vocals. Add to this a highly descriptive and evocative lyric base which conjure feelings and emotions ranging from sheer optimism, love, insecurity and uncertainty to reflective melancholy and tragedy. All this integrated together produces an excellent fusion of forceful intensity with softer harmonic delicacies. However, that being said, everytime I listen to this album I can't help but feel it could have been just that little bit better. For example I think Tony Kaye and Peter Banks could have been a tad more adventurous with their improvisations although there are some good interludes. Also I would have liked to hear Bill Bruford "cut loose" a little more and the harmonies in the second half of the album become,in my opinion, overly dramatic. Nevertheless I think this is a fine first up effort for the band. I would actually give the album 3 and 1/2 stars. N.B. anyone new to YES please ignore David Cavanagh's snide,unreliable,uninformative and grossly subjective critique of the band. Rod.

For a first album, it's pretty darn good. Some of their subsequent albums like _Yes Album_, _Fragile_, _Close to the Edge_, and at least half of _Relayer_ ("Gates of Delerium") were so astounding that this one pales in comparison, but as I say, this is quite good for a first effort.

The sound production was mediocre in spots. For example, Tony Kaye's piano part on "Yesterday and Today" sounds so weak and muffled that I wonder if he was using an upright instead of a grand. It sound almost like a toy piano. That is a pretty song, though.

Guitarist Peter Banks and bassist Chris Squire both harmonize their voices really well with singer Jon Anderson. These harmonies are very good on both the cover tunes and their original material. They cover one Beatles' tune -- "Every Little Thing," and one Byrds' tune -- "I See You." The latter is a good cover, but Pete's extended guitar solo (accompanied by Bill Bruford's jazzy drums) lacks planning and direction. It sounds way too much off the top of his head. He's doing bits of jazz and bits of Bach, but he doesn't develop any of it. It's not until the end of that section, when the quintet returns in full force with a powerful, direct rock sound, that the song sounds like a song again. It's then that you hear Peter Banks playing well again.

Some of the lyrics are as interesting as the music. "Harold Land," for example, is about a (Vietnam?) veteran who returns from a war experience physically intact, but not feeling like his old self.

"Beyond and Before" is a good, positive, powerful rocker with hippie-dippie lyrics and airy-fairy harmonies. "Sweetness," however, is an example of Jon Anderson taking the sappy love ballad form too far such that the listener is left needing a shot of insulin.

There are two totally awesome and perfect tracks on this album which really make it worth getting: "Looking Around" and "Survival." The former is a breath-taking, heart-pounding rocker where the whole band is at their best. Tony Kaye plays a blazing Hammond organ that really holds the whole song together. The latter is a beautiful piece with sharply contrasting passages in terms of volume dynamics, tempos, rhythms, sparseness and thickness of arrangement, moods & emotions, etc.. Here you hear some of Banks' best accoustic work and more great organ and vocal harmonies with counterpoint. Here, the instrumental passages really make sense, and the refrains/choruses are quite uplifting. It's on tracks like these that you get to hear the subtle and superb interaction of Banks and Kaye, which was one of early Yes' coolest qualities. Yet it was Banks who would be the first of these five to be fired from Yes, and it would be Kaye who would also be fired a little later only to join Banks on the first album of Banks' next band, Flash (a band for Yes refugees?). Though Yes ousted two guys who had made good contributions, thankfully guitarist Steve Howe and keyboardist Rick Wakeman proved to be excellent replacements who had their own not-so-subtle, superb way of playing together.