Yes- The Gates of Delirium (First Listen) 

I tend to agree but WOW what music

I have the same rankings. But kudos to Gates of Delirium: they exercise the compositional discipline in this song that was lacking in Tales from Topographic Oceans. I like Tales, but in every track I could stop you and say, "There. They needed to cut that. It just rambles on too long." Not true here. It all belongs.

@@David-iv6je Well said

GODs lyrics are way better and the concept is more consistent and coherent

Close to the Edge, the most overestimated album of ALL times!!!

Glad you got through it. I went through hell too. Still moving through it. Wim Hof and meditation have helped a lot.

@kainajones9393 6 seconds ago Soon oh soon the light...pass within and soothe this endless night.

Thank you again far a high quality anslysis of this complex music. I didnt like ”relayer” at all the first time i heard it 46 years ago, it was just too much of everything and topografic i just hated. I think one reason was poor speakers and equipment. 36 years ago these albums was my favorite albums.. I am envious of your ability to understand this complex music at just one listening!

What a wonderful thing to say...

These reaction videos are all fake! I like the track but the first 4 or 5 times you hear it, it's just noise. Takes a lot of getting into but here you are 'digging it from the word go. Fake, I say!

@@paulatB2B idk man, JP really gets it. You are certainly right, 80% of reaction videos are just them bobbing their head to the tempo. JP is not one of those guys, and I'd swear to that. Watch his reactions in this video and how he discusses this song afterword, he gets it.

Neighbor Bruce he gives actual analyses. It’s what I would want to do. And he’s doing it. Other reaction videos are too concerned with people watching them. JustJP has got something really cool going on.

Well, technically, the galaxy is IN the sky. But I agree with what you mean. I’ve always felt they should’ve worked more together.

Rick said he was glad he wasn't with the group when they did "Relayer." Well, so am I.

@@porflepopnecker4376 Sometimes I wish Bill Bruford was there for Relayer but that being said I think Alan White's playing on Sound Chaser was a career highlight for him.

I really love Jon Anderson’s idea for all of the surviving “ YesMen” to come together and tour, playing for 3-4 hours in different configurations, representing most or all versions of the band. That would include Moraz, obviously, and they could play all of Relayer, plus some of the Squire, Moraz and Howe solo albums from that time; which included most of t he then-present and former members in some form or other anyway! But they need to do it as soon as COVID permits, as Jon is 76 and most of the others are over 70

Somehow Patrick Moraz was the right choice for this album. His style fit perfectly with Steve Howe. This is Yes at their finest, in my view.

Yup! Steve Howe said his best guitar work is in The Ancient.

A Life In Words And Pictures He does unfortunately that album does not being too drawn out much of which had little guidance direction nor crescendo.

I believe Squire won best bass player 3 or 4 times during the same period as Howe

Steve Howe cannot be compared to anyone. He is a total badass. An amazing artist.

Took me awhile to like that album and even more that song but once it clicked I loved it

Thanks so much for watching and enjoying Steve!

Apart from the Scotland bit(Essex) I could have written this :)

I would 100% agree

Actually, I get that sense of calm and serenity from the Symphonic Live arrangement with the orchestra, but the album recording of "Soon" is so stark by comparison, that it comes across to me as (emotionally) strained, as if someone who has just gone through that battle is desperately trying to reassure themselves that it's over, and it'll be better soon, just so they can get up and walk away from the carnage and the sty.

Yes

Exactly...but what gives "Soon" so much impact is all that craziness that came before. Each part makes the other part even better

Could not agree with everyone more about Soon. it has to be one of the most moving, peaceful, hopeful and beautiful pieces of music ever created. Every time it starts the hairs on the back of my neck react and I almost cannot believe how deeply it touches you. I will be forever grateful to Yes for creating all their music but this is just beyond words.

@@douglindsey1216 "Soon" represents the calm after the battle.

@@steeleye2112 What’s funny to me is that Jon thought that it didn’t translate and sound well on the album and I totally disagree with him. It’s just so beautiful and moving.

Ty Barrow!

Same here. Saw Yes in concert 3 times, including the Gates tour.

And how wonderful it is

The album I would take with me to an island if i could only have one. Relayer

Absolutely cannot be comprehended in all its elements on just one listen. So much going on.

Alan White doesn't get enough credit for his amazing performance in this song..

With respect Going For the One is not in the same league as Relayer

This is probably THE best description of this song (and the approach one should take when listening to this song!) that I've ever read.

Thank you so much for sharing that Robert, and I'm sorry to hear about your best friends passing. Especially someone with whom you have such a strong connection, especially in music. At least the music and the memories you've shared will always be there to look back on with fondness. Hope you have a sunny weekend my friend

Looking forward to it😁

I was at that show. It was awesome. They used lasers fanning out from the stage to great effect at key points in the song, particularly the end.

The bootleg radio show from Roosevelt Stadium (June 1976) is also great, and un-reprocessed, plus you get Moraz playing on Ritual from Topographic Oceans! Of course, the radio sound guys never knew what was hitting them.

Detroit’s Cobo Hall...12,000+ fans reacting just like Justin !!! Great review Justin !!!

@@TmRnBn I was there

You're allowed to weep when consulting a priest

I love how he expresses his spirituality without being preachy

The musicianship here is astounding all around. But Chris Squire was other-worldly on this song. Listen again, and focus on Chris...it's amazing.

Agreed, also my favourite cover. Jon called it a grey cover, I disagree. Jon! it's a silver cover with dashes of white gold.

Thank YOU for being here with me

Utter garbage! This album isn't underrated in the slightest! Who do you know who thinks this album is rubbish?

@@markrae1317 actually, I know quite a few ‘Yes’ fans who don’t like this. Most of them are Wakeman disciples, which, frankly, I am not. I have never understood their undying devotion to him. He was never really dedicated to Yes. He came and went at his whim and didn’t really care about the other members or the music. Just another gig to him. They see this as an insult. Sort of like what a lot of people feel about Drama, which is tied with Fragile, and the Yes Album as my favorite Yes album to date. 90125 was also hated by what I have termed the ‘Yes snobs’.

@@magicalmystery1964 Yeah. It seems like many Yes don’t want to accept anything that doesn’t feature Wakeman. Wakeman is a master keyboardist, but it’s just show that he’s not always needed to make great music and it seems like that’s what those snobs don’t want to believe. Drama and Relayer are both some of my favorite Yes albums. Relayer actually being my favorite Yes album ever. People put down the Rabin mainly due to Howe being gone, but also due to Wakeman being gone and to me I find the music great even without Howe and Wakeman and I think Rabin added some new energy to the band. Just my opinion of course. I agree on your point about those people being “Yes snobs”. I have had many interactions with people on the Yes Facebook Group, who say that I’m not a real Yes fan because I like the Rabin era. What I don’t understand is that that is Yes music and if I like it…I like it. That’s my taste. It’s funny how they say that. It also funny how I say my favorite Yes album is Relayer and they go off on a whole tangent on how it’s a heap of garbage because Wakeman isn’t on it and all of this other stuff. Just makes me annoyed. It seems like I’m more of a real Yes fan than they are. I love Wakeman, but they made some incredible music without him. Yes (1969), Time and A Word, The Yes Album, Relayer, Drama, Magnification, The Ladder, Fly From Here. All great. And guess what? None of them feature Wakeman on keys.

It really is lol

"The pen won't stay the demons wings as the hour approaches, pounding out the devils sermon." - love that line.

Ed B No Top hit near bottom for me as far as YES’S early works before 1980!

Haha, thank you so much Mark

Tales is a very conflicting album for me. I regard the first two epics as masterpieces, but the second two as hot garbage.

I agree Mark Johnson. Tales From Topographic Oceans went over the edge before Relayer. To me it’s also a masterpiece and Justin if you decide to take the plunge please play all 4 epics in succession without placing other artists in between. It is like Genesis-The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway it must be heard from start to finish or you’ll be lost.

I gather that a lot of fans at the time were very dismissive of the band continuing without Wakeman, which is very strange in hindsight since he'd only played on 3/6 of the previous Yes albums!

I truly believe Close to the Edge was a masterpiece because of Rick Wakeman's contribution and more likely the superb drumming of Bill Bruford. He's on a planet of his own with respect to prog drumming.

The "Roundabout" single is what got me into Yes, but "Tales From Topographic Oceans" is what made me love them.

DukesRocks Steve Howe was one of my guitar heroes. I spent many hours trying to learn his licks.

It's quite amazing isnt it?! Really glad you enjoyed it Dukes, love the visuals!

@@jaybird4093 He's definitely one of the greats but will the recent reactions to Yes, I've been appreciating him more. Wait, you play guitar as well?

@@JustJP My God, crazy good.

Thank you so much for enjoying that along with me Robert, glad you enjoyed it

Robert Jewell -- I'll admit, that when I first heard this piece, when it was first released in 1974, I was in shock. I didn't know what to make of it. But I knew it was like stepping into a 4th dimension. It was like nothing else on Earth. It was that radical. Back then it broke thru the ceiling, and many didn't understand it, just as you don't. If you only listened to it once, I strongly suggest you try again, take a long drive and let it seep in... it's a sublime masterpiece that I've had the good fortune of living with for several decades. And I had the ultimate honor of designing a Yes album cover some years ago for (Re)Union. Enjoy!

That's the kind of experience I love to read, ty for that

I think one big reason "Relayer" is so innovative and brilliantly creative is BECAUSE of the lack of Rick Wakeman. I loved Rick and still do, but he did not want to go where the others in the band were going at the time.

Thats the way to listen!😄 glad you enjoyed it

Oh dear. I too am 60 and I listened to this album the same way. And I saw the tour with Peter Frampton, Gary Wright and Gentle Giant. What a strange combo! By the time Yes came to the stage, everyone was a bit exhausted because of Frampton, who was on third, and " Frampton Comes Alive" was the biggest record in the world at the time. Then Yes came out, and all of the Frampton fans were unhappy. Not I!

Absolutely Paul! Ty for watching!

Exactly!

"How can music this complicated still be so totally accessible? That to me is the genius of the band..." Nicely said. I've been wondering about that since 1977, when YES got into me, a thirteen year old. YES music sounded so unusual, so off-beat, so complicated and weird to my young ears - yet I could not explain why I liked it so much - then came to totally love it. Still do. Call me stupid, but I only discovered many years later that the heart of the matter is that they were always able to play their music live. YES isn't a studio band. YES isn't built on carefully synthesized sounds, audio landscapes, special effects, tons of multitracks. YES is a true band, made of awfully gifted musicians, and their music has always passed the "sure, but can we pull this off live?" filter. Surely, their music has a thousand faces, and it can lift you up, get you down, bring you to tears or to moments of bliss, and it can rock your socks off - but the makers will remain the essence of rock music: they're a band on a stage. Five guys doing their very best, individually and together. Very compact. I think that is why their complicated music remains so accessible. It is a few guys getting together. It is human. It is real.

Yes! Howe Unleashed!

@Jaybird - Loved the man-tears comment. Hell yeah Howe. and Squire killed on this track

I second this, incredible!!

@@dantaylor98dt I third this lol

@Sebastian Already did it.

I also agree. You can't just hear one track without finishing the whole album.

Leon Haven Agreat one!

Haha exactly! Beyond comprehension

Emperor in his Warroom, VDGG....Suppers Ready, Genesis...War Pigs - Black Sabbath...But, I feel ya!

Right?! It's very unique

Us And Them

Thanks LJ!

So true. "Soon" just SLAYS the listener.

Even better live

It's not my favorite (that just might be THE LADDER but not by much) but it's brilliant, and every once in a while I've got to hear it.

Ty Michael!

I still much prefer the studio version.

I concur. The live version on YesShows is definitive. Such energy...

100% agreed!

@@JustJP FYI Here's my review of RELAYER made some time ago... dvbooks.net/yesrelayer Great Album!

A Yes fangirl here since 1980! 🙋🏻‍♀️ Ashamed to say that I finally listened to the whole album recently. I’ve heard only “Soon” from one of their greatest hits albums when I was in my 20’s. I loved it but was hesitant to listen to the rest of the album. I’m glad that I finally wised up. Forever Yes!

Moraz has more range than Rick. I love seeing him live.

I’ve also left some Yes still to be explored, so don’t be ashamed. One of these days, I’ll really give Tales the time that so many of the faithful says it deserves (it has never grabbed me and pulled me in). Re: the Soon edit. When I saw the show on the 1979 tour, Gates was played from the end of the battle. They put it in a medley and picked it up right after the drum beats slow to a crawl.

“Tales...” is another one that I need to discover. I watched the yes years video and heard how would cause so much turmoil within the band. I guess that kind of scared me into believing that the music wasn’t so great. I’m ready to give it a listen though.

@@iluvpepi Reveling Science of God. and Ritual . The two best of the four. enjoy. LMK

Haha! Hope you enjoyed it!

@@JustJP I did! Well worth the time as always! Keep up the good work!

It's like an epic battle scene from Lord of the Rings set to music!

Depends on how you master it. You could get 23 per side, or even more, but then you're sacrificing volume and low frequencies.

Back when Tales was released, there was a great review of it on BBC radio, with a full preview. But then the Rolling Stone's album reviewer gave it 2 1/2 stars, mostly out of ignorance, and in that same issue, another reviewer gave an album by a punk band the New York Dolls 4 1/2 stars. Today, hardly nobody ever listens to the New York Dolls.

@@bobholtzmann I always think about Ellsworth Toohey, in "The Fountainhead," when I read something like this. He would have given The New York Dolls 5 stars, and Tales ZERO! It is all part of what I call "The Ugly is Beautiful Movement." Yes was one of the most beautiful bands of all time.

Rolling Stone critics, as well as many others of the time, were anti-prog jackasses.

@@porflepopnecker4376 I used to be afraid to read their review of the latest John Lennon album. In those days they seemed to gonzo on just about anything, perhaps because Mr. Fear and Loathing Himself, Hunter S. Thompson, was writing for them. And the rest of them, I think, were on the board of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

I am huge Yes fan who first saw them at age 16 on the Big Generator Tour, then the ABWH tour, then the Union tour... Loved almost everything they did. I never listened to Topographic Oceans because everyone said how bad it was. I didn't listen to it until I was..... 46 years old, and sometimes, Revealing Science of God my favorite Yes song. It's just spilling over with great riffs, melodies, ideas.... If you like Close to the Edge or Relayer, you're gonna like Revealing Science of God. Not sure why it was so hated. Overlooked for sure.

That's awesome Ansel, must've been fun going together!

Agree with you my friend!!!!..

I agree with everything you said, except the stodgy part. I LOVE Rick Wakeman, and I believe his days with Yes, were their best days. Patrick Moraz does an incredible job on Relayer, so I am not knocking him in the least. You are most definitely right, about the devolution...

@@katyland1015 I loved and still love Rick as well, especially his classic albums with Yes, but he just wanted to tread water musically and didn't want to go to the kinds of places the rest of the band were headed to with "Relayer." Rick's idea of crazy experimentation was "Cans and Brahms" and grandiose adaptations of old English legends and Jules Verne novels. Patrick Moraz' was "The Story of i."

.....please?

It’s really good

All of tales

Ty so much Stuart, Gates is one epic piece!

I used to love Tales...and it really does have a lot of great music in there, but it isn't the most coherent album. White is not as good as Bruford and Wakeman isn't as good as Moraz, so it does seem musically disappointing.