Listening to YES: Big Generator, Side 2 

How could anyone who claims to be a Yes fan not love BG and Talk?

It is nice to know I should not be embarrassed for loving this album.

Jon Anderson could sing the phone book and I'd still be listening

BG and Talk are the Yes Album and Fragile of their 80's perfection.

Yeah, I'm Running is the jewel of this album. What an eclectic treat. All the crazy changeups remind me of old Yes.

Trevor Rabin is an awesome guitar player 🎸

Surprised by such a positive reaction, but yes, it's definitely an improvement on 90125. Historically, the album as a whole suffered because it took an enormous amount of time to record and produce, didn't appear until the later 80s, and had much less commercial impact than its enormous predecessor. Thanks Jim for encouraging us to take a more positive second look and hear- it is certainly more progressive and Yes-like, and Trevor really stands out as such a versatile guitarist. And Alan was awesome as usual!

I too am always surprised by the criticism this album gets. It's a perfect pop melody/ prog rock blend. If this floats your boat, I thoroughly recommend Power Windows by Rush.

This is another YES album that shows what the guys are best at. Never afraid of taking risks, innovating, inventive ……. it’s YES. Wouldn’t worry about the record getting stuck Jim …… vinyl record . Great show Jim.

When this came out, it blew me away. Holy Lamb I listen to every day, and Shoot High, impeccable. 48 year YES fan here. 😎☮️❤️

This is a FANTASTIC album!! Love, love, love!!!

There's no doubt I missed Steve Howe on these last two albums but they would have never been made if it hadn't been for Trevor Rabin. He's an incredible talent as well. Can't help but love 'I'm Running'! Just another dynamic in the astonishing evolution of the greatest band to ever do it.

There's no denying the production quality is top notch

A far away comment Jim, but reiterating how much I enjoy your enjoyment of these gents. Thank you for your reactions.

"Final Eyes" is the real deal, just gorgeous

Love Will Find A Way is very special to me as it was to this song we fell in love. Four months later she passed from a hole in her heart.

it's great to see this album getting the love it deserves.

Side two is possibly the most overlooked/underrated vinyl sides in the entire Yes canon! YES it is 😊! Trevor Rabin is the man.

Big Generator is my 3rd favorite Yes album. All the words you used to describe it is right on. My 12th favorite in all music history. Only Magnification is more magnificent, and Topographic Oceans is the finest music in all music history. Yes worked on this album off and on for 3 years, and it shows. I will never understand why most Yes fans put Big G near the bottom of their catalogue. You are right. It is a fantastic, superb, wonderful, brilliant, amazing Yes album. Thank you for seeing it that way.

Superb example of late 80s pop rock. Jon’s and Trevors’s voices are perfect together. Add Chris’s and you have one heck of a unique sound.

I agree ....this album Big Generator and Talk are masterpieces and my favorites among the other Classic Yes albums!!!!

I first heard album after "talk", but i still found it very listener able "thats not a word" you know what i mean. I do think that "talk" was Trevor Rabin's pinnacle with Yes, you cant take away some of his great riffs and songs he wrote, awesome listening again.

Really enjoying your videos of Big Generator! One thing to note - being a huge fan of classic 70's Yes, is the nice full harmonies that they had in this period. Trevor Rabin was a wonderful and underrated vocalist. He has a nice full tenor voice that really rounds out the harmonies. This gave Yes what the really needed for the more pop oriented music that they were playing at that time. Rhythm of Love is beautiful example of that.

I've always liked this album, as I do all the Rabin era albums, but watching you listen to it has definitely opened my eyes to how much closer this was tying into their prog roots in the 70's!

YES! It was a very underrated album, but very, very good! 😊

When I got into Yes, Big Generator was their latest album, and I loved it. I spent the next few years listening to it, while collecting and enjoying all their previous albums too.

Been a fan since 1973 Going for the one was my first concert that I was was old enough to attend. I saw Tormato and 90125, Big Generator and Talk, Union plus AWBH also ARW. love all things YES

I got this album for $5 because people dislike this album so much. I play this record so much and I’m absolutely a 70s fan. So fantastic

I love this guy! Like listening to music with a bff.

Always adore The Big Generator. Yes my favorite band. I've listened to this album more than any other Yes album.

This was the very first Yes album I bought, around a year after it was released. I would have been 17, in lower 6th form, and I really enjoyed it. I then bought Fragile next and, once I got over the (then hilarious and dated to me) analogue keyboard sounds, I realised they were an incredible band and slowly bought the back-catalogue. Sufice it to say they became (and remain) my favourite band and led me to become a firm fan of melodic Prog. Techno-expertise without great songs and melodies can leave me cold, but Yes (almost) always delivered great songs and melodies.

I was a so-so fan of Yes. Drama came along and I loved it. Trevor Horn sang on it. Then 90125 came out ant there were 2 Trevors. Big Generator was for us fans. The night is dark and full of Trevors.....

Tony Kate, a great musician. Discreet, brilliant.

Final Eyes.....fantastic....I've got something to say....classic love song....

Kudos to you for forging on beyond 90125, it has acted as a traffic light for most reviewers! There are many more delights further down the road.

You're right, "Final eyes" is THE great song of the album, remembering of the 70s, full of emotions. This song saved my life, back in 94

Nice to see that this album is finally getting some love. There are some wonderful pieces and there are few things as dynamic as 'I'm Running' in the Yes catalogue.

This album was instrumental in me healing myself from my child hood. Helped me process a lot of stuff.....especially Holy Lamb at the end.

Fun fact: My fav track I'm Running is originally an old Drama outtake. It was first recorded in spring 1980 with Howe, Squire and White after Anderson and Wakeman have left the group and before the Buggles have joined Yes. It was recorded and shelved again during the recording of Drama and reactivated with new lyrics by Anderson and a Flaminco-like guitar arrangement by Rabin as a longer track was missing for this album. :-)

The first arena rock concert I saw was the Big Generator Tour. Then, a few months later, I saw Robert Plant's Now & Zen Tour (with Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble as the opening act), followed by Depeche Mode's Music for the Masses tour a month later. I guess I was off to a good start. 😁 Even though I discovered YES with 90125, this album will always hold a special place in my heart.

I bought this album in my school days, I was exposed evenly in 70’s and 80’s Yes then always felt natural for me. They’re my all time favorite band in any iteration, as someone said Yes is an ideal and they always provide what is needed with high quality musicianship. Also Squire envisioned Yes’s music been played even after their time, a concept like in Classical Music. Thx for your reaction. ✌️👍💪🤙

Love Will Find a Way is nostalgic for me, it was the single that was out when I first became a Yes fan just before I reached my teens in the late 80's. It was originally written for Stevie Nicks to sing but she wanted to change a lot of the words. Trevor Rabin became territorial and kept it for Yes. Final Eyes gives me a lot of And You And I flashbacks, it's a beautiful track. Most of the music for I'm Running was written by Chris and Steve back in 1980 during early rehearsal and writing sessions for Drama before they were joined by The Buggles.

Back to back nights. First time I've sat through the entire album in decades. Thanks again for dusting off this masterpiece!

An unfairly maligned album. Shoot high aim low is magnificent. Talk is also an album that got panned and while patchy has a fantastic prog centrepiece.

Love Will Find a Way is such a Yes gem!

90215 ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha. Jim, you got it right. Big Generator-GREAT. 90125-SO SAD.

Glad you really like this one, Jim... It's one of my favs as well. I bought the CASSETTE the week (if not the day!) it came out in '87 and played it to ALL my friends. Saw them on this tour too (my 1st Yes concert!). The arrangements on this are sooo creative - full of ear candy - from the vocal harmonies, to the layered multi-toned guitars and synths that color and provide atmosphere. And the rhythm section of White/Squire showing some heavy muscularity. It's a shame they couldn't hold it together after this. And good idea going back to listen again to 90125. I believe you'll have a better appreciation for it having BG as a reference to put some context into their new sound. I think these two albums complement each other very well. Great video take, Jim!

Hi Jim….been waiting for your reaction to Part 2 of BG, especially your reaction to Holy Lamb…a bit of a kite moment again💛

Hi Jim, nice to see / hear you back on your YES journey! Couple of bits of trivia, 9012LIVE (the live 90125 video), 'listen, the music of big generators' is said in one of the film dialogue interludes. Also Trevor Rabin wrote Love Will Find A Way for Stevie Nicks, upon hearing the demo Chris Squire said 'no way!' We're having that! The 12" inch version is brilliant.

This album, along with Fragile, The Yes Album, Close to the Edge and Drama are my faves.

Jim, you should definitely record and release your second listen to “90125.” It would be interesting to hear your observations the second time around. It’s actually a pretty good album. 🙂 I bought “Big Generator” when in came out in 1987. I was a Yes fan, and I didn’t think much of it. I grew up in the 80’s, but musically I spent a lot of my time looking back at the 70’s and 60’s. At the time, it sounded way too 80’s for my ears. It sat on my CD rack, basically unplayed, for decades. It was only a few years ago that I gave it another chance, and came to realize how excellent it is. Fresh ears. You can really hear that the band has cohered, learning to write and play together. In that regard it is light years beyond “90125,” which always sounded to me like it was made up of bits patched together with sticky tape. Glad you enjoyed it. 🙂

Just want to say once again that the opening track of "the ladder" was made to be the theme song for a computer game named Homeworld, which to this day is one of the most evocative and thought provoking games yet made, so yes I'm hugely excited to hear your reaction to that one and hope you've taken in this particular tidbit in time to mention in at the start of that video!

Great reaction to this!!! Have always loved this album!!!!

I think the reason why I like *I'm Running* so much is because it contains so many of "The Old YES" elements, much more experimental as in the earlier days, Jon's soaring idealistic vocals at the end, even Alan White seems to channel Bill Bruford at times. I have to agree with you that the one thing is lacks is Chris absolutely dominating the song throughout. _More Bass!_ That, in spite of the really great opening riff he came up with. Ya know, Chris said his style changed with a different drummer. So was it Bruford's eclectic, experimental approach that brought out Chris' inspired contributions? Who knows? All I know is that after Drama, Chris seemed to be content to just be The Bass Player in the band with only the occasional inspiration here and there. While I still heard plenty of redeeming musicianship in this album to make it a good listen, I have to admit that Chris Squire's domination of The YES Sound in its earliest iterations was the one element that made me shake my head in wonder at what this YES band was able to create. As he backed off of that role, my infatuation with YES began to wane...

I remember getting the album when it came out. Played the hell out of it. It's been a while, so it was refreshing to hear it again.

"I eat at Chez Nous"? Never could figure that out but there are theories as to the meaning. I absolutely love Final Eyes. Cheers Jim!

I'm Running remains an absolute favourite of mine. It is absolutely 100% Trevor Rabin and 100% 70s Yes at the same time. Quite a feat to pull off.

Once again we agree! Love this record! Shoot High, Aim Low is one of my favorites. By the way, I know you love Squire, and if you haven’t already, you need to check out Squackett- A Life Within A Day. Featuring Chris Squire and Steve Hackett from 2012! It’s a great collaboration!

I have no truck with the 70s Yes versus 80s Yes divide. I think this is a great album. I just think that Close To The Edge and Relayer are better. There's no shame in trailing in the wake of two of the greatest recordings in the history of music.

Good Album

Whereas the great legendary epic masterpieces that are Close to the Edge, Tales from Topographic Oceans, and Relayer are timeless works of art, Big Generator is a product of its time with its polished mid-eighties production. The natural, organic, analog world of recording was perfect for a band like Yes, who actually debated recording outside in a forest. But, with the eighties, they embraced a more synthetic sound with digital technology which I believe was largely responsible for them never again achieving the majestic heights of their early 70s glory and greatness, even when they tried to create more 70s style material, such as Keys to Ascension. But, I digress. With that said, Big Generator is nevertheless a fantastic album in its own right and terribly underrated. People ought to stop comparing it to Yes’s timeless works and just relax and allow themselves to enjoy it for what it is… just a really good album, and I would argue one of the best of the eighties.

A reporter asked Squire how he felt about the lack of his impact on the album in an almost supporting role. To which Chris said " I really didn't mind, didn't have to work to hard, chuckle ". Half of this album is really the continuation of Olias of Sunhillow.

I've been pondering what to say about this. I love 70's Yes, especially Relayer, and this rather different album grabbed me from the first time I heard it. I think it is the way Old Yes celebrated New Yes and made it exciting and fun. Trevor is the new and Tony the old, and they seem to get along splendidly. I played it to death when it came out, and I think I'm going to put it on again now. Oh, and "Magnification."

I used to not often put side 2 on because I really don't like the first one on it (still don't), I tended to just put side 1 on as it has Shoot High, Aim Low on it. But enjoyed the rest of this side more than I remembered enjoying it before. Nice one!

I really appreciate the increased harmonies on Big Generator compared to the rest of the Yes catalog and maybe appreciate that aspect more on 90125. I agree it took too long for this to follow Owner of a Lonely Heart. Big Generator came out while I was in college and we spent many hours together and I love it, unashamedly. It seems like Yes leans on its new members to change their sound and Rabin had a very specific skill set that was in the pocket of 1980's. Given the context 90215 was almost like a new band launched and they were trying to figure out what they were up to and Trevor Horn's fingerprints are all over it. Big Generator seem like they had sorted themselves and there was the protracted battle of the Trevors delaying things but also kind of breaking free of some of Horn's trademarks. Overall Big Generator's second side is stronger than it's predecessor in my opinion.

Yep. I like side 1, but I LOVE side 2. Thank you for the reaction, Mr. Newstead. Whether you're playing old favorites, or bringing me something I've never heard your more laid back listening style is cool. I appreciate it.

Another great reaction from Jim! I've always had a thing about 'I'm Running.' such a complex piece of music when it starts to build up. I used to think that even they wouldn't be able to do it live, and then I found a video of them doing it live. Jaw-dropping!

And yes, the music of Yes in the 80s,90s is still unique

I listened to this many times in the late 80s on cassette. Threw all my cassettes away 20 years ago and wasn't really interested in listening to this album on youtube because I thought it wasn't as good as Relayer or Going for the One etc. I have just listened to your positive reaction to it and my appreciation of it has returned! Your right - it's damned good. I shall be listening to it again. Well done you!

Union next then jim. Chris's base is back up there full of cracking tracks

Love your reaction. Same as mine. Yes snobs dismiss but it is a damn fine rock album of its time. Better than 90125. I love all eras up to Magnification. Can't wait to see your reaction to Talk. My favourite and I have been listening to Yes from the Yes album on.

One the best Yes albums, at least with Trevor! It was a shame they didn't continue with this lineup after this record...

I had this album back when it came out but haven’t listened to it in a long time. I forgot how much I enjoyed it. Great Reaction Jim!

"Hold the light Hold the light Out of love we'll come a long long glorious way At the start of every day A child begins to play And all we need to know Is that the future is a friend of yours and mine". (Holy Lamb) I'm putting aside the supposed religious reference if the title but this song is powerful, majestic, gives me goosebumps

This album is even more entrenched in that 1980s sound than 90125* was, yet somehow it holds up pretty well without feeling too dated. I'm glad we did this listen; I needed the reminder of how good it is! Next up is Union, which purports to be a collaboration between eight current and former members of the band, but in reality it is just a compilation of leftover tracks from the Big Generator and ABWH sessions that were finished (and "polished") by studio engineers without much input from the band. * I laugh every time you say "90215" instead of "90125" 😀

I heard this record so many times, final eyes was my favourite song on the album. So disappointed that it didn't had the success it deserved. Exited what you would say about the last album TALK with this band constellation. Thanks for another great reaction to my favourite band of all times

I am one of those fans who was lucky enough to see Yes on the 1977 Going for the One Tour, and then on the 1978 10th anniversary Tormatour. Both of those tours were fantastic, the "classic" yes line up. I then saw them on the Drama tour and they were still brilliant but unfortunately the fans gave Trevor Horne a very hard time, and I believe the band refused to change tuning to help him out. To be honest though, I loved the "new Yes" I thought 90125 was a great album, although a huge departure from the Yes I had known. Big Generator was, and is a great album, Holy Lamb and Shoot High Aim Low are just superb songs. Unlike some Yes fans I also love the Talk album, which contains one of the great Yes songs, "Endless Dream". After that, however, I felt the preceding albums went rapidly downhill, still worth listening to, but I found the songs rather bland and sterile. When Jon left and they replaced him I felt they should have called it a day, and doubly so when Chris sadly passed. I still love Yes music, and seeing them at the peak of their powers in 77 and 78 will always stay with me.

Great album side! Vocals are really good with three outstanding singers. The last song is much like Jon Anderson's solo album City of Angels, which also has some very good musicians playing on it.

Loved your reaction Jim, have been a fan since '74 when I first heard Close to the Edge. I adore the 70's classic period as we all do, but in later years have come to really appreciate a lot more what Yes produced with Trevor Rabin. I remember an interview with Jon, Trevor and Rick when touring with ARW, Jon saying he preferred the term adventurous instead of progressive in describing their approach to Yes music. In context Big Generator regardless of what genre you place it in is an excellent album, of it's time it no doubt influenced many artists then and after. Having followed them through their career it's so remarkable how they've adapted over the years but always strove to be adventurous & creative. The remaining two albums of the Rabin era are well worth listening to. Union as the name suggests is the coming together of ABWH and Yes with each ensemble performing half the tracks, apparently Jon drove the project with the goal of the 8 of them touring which IMO was a masterstroke. It's a controversial album as there were a lot of liberties taken on the production side, but I've always loved it. Talk was the final album with Trevor and like Big Generator in it's own right not compared to the 70's is an excellent album, the final track Endless Dream IMO is the masterpiece of the Rabin era, it will blow your mind. Keep up the great work mate!

Talk is a masterpiece! Can’t wait for you to get to that album

When this album was new I didn't get the memo that it wasn't worthy. I thought the title song was trying too hard to be Owner Part2, but I really enjoyed the album and probably would have worn the vinyl out if I hadn't already enthusiastically already converted to CDs for reasons exemplified in this playing. It's really hard to go wrong when Jon Anderson and Chris Squire are involved, and Trevor is effing great as well. No slight meant for Alan and Tony, but those guys are so beyond. I often forget to dust this one off and go start to finish. I blame Talk for that because, as you're probably get tired of reading, that is an even more amazing record. Thanks for the enjoyable experience.

Love will find a way ,and I'm running I think are two good songs on the second side , a good album .

At the time it was quickly forgotten. Thanks to you Jim it has been discovered as a very good album. You should try Trevor Rabin ‘ Can’t Look Away’ album it’s very good and shows his rocky style

Holy Lamb stands out for me. One of Jon’s hymns.

Just wait until you get to Talk; arguably the best of YesWest.

I did not go to a Yes concert after GFTO, I didn’t see Drama or 90125, but when I heard they were coming to Charlotte with a new LP, Big Generator I was so excited because I finally got over Trevor & bought 2 tickets ASAP, had great seats, what a Show ..........I am glad that I am not the only person who really appreciates this Album. Plus reading other comments here, to know that I’m Running always a great pick me up song I am not alone. Thank You Jim & others here, I think as the 1980s were coming to a close this effort by this lineup of YES in my opinion is the best. I saw Talk Tour too, but I could see that Jon was not as engaged. ABWH & Union I saw both, ABWH twice, but I could hear and see Anderson was not happy. By then we all had computers and were following Yes Magazine & then Yesworld. Fast forward to Open Your Eyes, The Ladder, Magnification, & several live CDs, DVDs, I bought all of the Keys Material, then crickets, until In The Present Tour. Which I was quite worried about Anderson, we all know what happened or we think we do. Chris’s Death was a very hard blow to me, and then Alan. I just put on whatever YES music suits my mood, and thank GOD I was a teenager in the 1970s, YES, spoiled me, and what a wonderful trip it’s been. May their music live on into the Future, I am in hope & keep an open mind that maybe, just maybe, something Wonderful will Happen. 😎🌍❤️ Peace.

Yes

This re-appraisal has been so good at reminding me what a great album this is. I'm Running was the standout track for me when I first heard the album back in 1987 and I can hear clear links to songs like Everydays from Time and A Word - not so much in the melodies, but the FEEL and Trevor Rabin's guitar style which in places echoes that of Peter Banks. Try a listen to Everydays - especially one of the extended sessions versions and you'll hear what I mean perhaps. Between 1986 and 88 some of my favourite bands released their 'mid 80s efforts. Genesis' Invisible Touch, this and Rush' Hold Your Fire. They're all in that 80s electronic era, but Big Generator is by far and away the best of those three for me. If only they had been able to capitalise on it then we could have seen a very different history of Yes. Great review!

I think it´s a shame that 90125 and Big Generator don´t have Roger Dean´s artwork. It would be perfect. But I love this album. It seems to be underaprecciated by many Yes fans.

A bit of a historical perspective: There were a lot of problems producing this album it took about 2 years. It also created a dilemma for Jon Anderson as the record producers were pushing them more and more towards the pop genre and "make hits". Jon Anderson rejected this left Yes and formed ABWH. He mentions his anger with the music industry in Themes and Owner of The Universe. Then a surprise, ABWH and Yes joined forces to make an album together called Union in 1991. The parts of the band were in different places and so the parts from ABWH part of the band were recorded separately and sent to Jonathan Elias. He was not happy with the recording quality of Steve Howe's guitar and Rick Wakeman's keyboards. So he got session musicians to re-record those parts. This is why Union is so hated by many Yes fans and Rick Wakeman called it "Onion" because it made him cry. However, I loved it! I didn't know any of the background when I bought it. I love the music on it and I am one of very few who think it's one of the best Yes albums made. You have the CD Jim. You decide if you want to play it on the channel or not, as you may invoke the wrath of 90% of Yes fans. However, if you don't play it on your channel at least listen to it privately and tell me what you think.

Jim, us old-timers would hear a skip and yell "DON'T MOVE! Possible unintended sample!"

Jim, The reasons BG is superior to 90125 is Jon came in VERY late to 90125 and just added some writing and vocals. BG is Jon involved from the outset. Walt

I think I'm Running isn't liked very much because of the latin vibe, which is very rare in rocl music, Santana excluded of course.

Fantastic.....cheers

Jim, the next album YES album Talk will give you all the bottom end your system can handle, it was recorded to hard drives and digitally mastered, no tapes were used. Trevor Rabin recorded & produced it. 106db S/N ratio as normal CD are 90 db. And by the way I love Big generator as well.

Final Eyes is a masterpiece.

For the record, I don't mind you talking more over the music. I've heard this record a billion times, and you have a Bob Harris kinda voice!

Top tip for remembering what the album before this is called? Memorise the matrix number of the US original pressing (or ignore the 7 at the beginning of the UK one) Much easier than looking at the album cover! Again, this is an underrated Yes album (though no way it's in the top 10) because it's largely eighties pop rather than prog. It is rather good eighties pop though.

This record too SO long to finish after 90125 being recorded and mixed in different countries that different producers didn’t know of Chris Squire’s expertise and definitely mixed him too low ; this album would have been even better if he was more to the forefront especially on The Rhythm of Love ! One way to hear Rhythm with the bass to the fore is with the best RU-vid bass cover player MIGUELBASS who also has an extensive base of other Yes songs he’s covered; he’s gone to great lengths to discover the exact make of bass, strings, amps etc that Chris used for each song and it sounds SO authentic !

The Jim Newsread remix is due for release in the fall. I was listening to Radio Caroline which was anchored off the coast near Margate and one evening the DJ had gone for a smoke or something and the record got stuck for about 10 minutes. However it just sounded like a modern remix.