Yes: All things about their 50th Anniversary Tour

Obviously Yes fans have taste as varied as the band members themselves.
But it is still hard for me to wrap my mind around how different individual taste can be.
How one band can be amoung all OUR favorites and yet WE can be so at odds about what is good and bad.

My case in point is that I feel that 1989's ABWH is a true Yes album and a better album than this dozen:

the debut
Time And A Word
Tormato
Drama
90215
Big Generator
Union
Open Your Eyes
Talk
Magnification
Far From Here
Heaven And Hell

To verify how far apart YES fan taste can be,
PLEASE POST where ABWH ranks in your Top 12 WORST YES studio albums.

 

Better than Drama??? I'm gonna have to go ahead and disagree with you on that one. ABWH sounded like New Age dreck compared to Drama which has a fresh sound. I also like most of the albums in your list better than the ABWH album. Remember that half of Union is ABWH. I do agree that Magnification, Open Your Eyes and Heaven and Earth (I like your title better) are way worse, though.

 

I agree that it’s interesting how varied tastes are, but I disagree with AWBH being better than Yes, Time and a Word, Drama, and 90125. I think AWBH is a solid album, not bad, but certainly not great. I enjoy it.

 

Saw his lecture at a university in Cleveland a week ago. In order to make a point about playing for what is currently going on in the song, he actually said what he thought. He thought that it was “OK I suppose”. He said the problem was that the older guys (Howe and White I assume) were ahead of the beat, and the younger guys were behind the beat, and the problem was the drummer was playing in time, rather than with the group, if that makes sense. He didn’t seem ultra impressed when he talked about it. Great opportunity to meet him though, I was probably pretty awkward around my biggest “hero” in my drumming, but he was cool about it.

 

agreed...Ill take ABWH over every one of those. But what do I know Ill take Topographic Oceans over CTTE

 

I mostly concur with the exceptions of 90125 and Magnification.

 

This reminds me I haven’t played ABWH in a long time, so I’ll have a listen tomorrow.

I do know I always thought Order Of The Universe, in particular, was classic Yes.

 

Start with Teakbois.

 

Order of the Universe is pretty good. My favorites off that album are Brother of Mine and The Meeting probably. Everything else is solid, except for Quartet and the AWFUL Teakbois.

 

No, no and a thousand times, no.

I’d blanked out that aberration.

 

I like ABWH well enough. Evening of Yes Music plus I was a bit more mixed on. From what I remember I liked the live versions of the ABWH material, but all of the solo sections on disc one dragged the pacing down for me.

 

It sounds so plastic. The electronic drums with the cheesy synth sounds that Wakeman came up with. Hard to get past it all all even for a decent song.

 

remove teakbois and you have a pretty solid album.

 

Teakbois is the one that sounds like its from the soundtrack to COOL RUNNINGS or in general any crummy island tourist bar soundtrack from the late 80s, right? I just remember so much CLATTER on that record. Weirdly, it is a record I barely like yet have obtained or bought FOUR times, more than any other album! Picked up promo cassette while working in record store when it came out. So unimpressed I taped over it for a gift for someone else. In mid 90s saw the vinyl in a parking lot quarter sale and thought what the hell. Then when Tower records was closing I was in a real strong Yes phase and picked up the cd for a buck, and never opened it. Forgetting I even owned it, a decade or so later when I got my first car CD player picked it up AGAIN in a bargain bin for a buck on CD. I'm sure I'll listen again someday in some format.

 

there are two different 2 cd editions for you to grab nowadays!

 

Teakbois, is undoubtedly rubbish.

But to be fair to Yes, they had a much better stab at this style of music, with Lightning Strikes, from The Ladder:

 

You're not into Teakbois dawg? It can be jarring, from a yes standpoint, i know....

 

I'm sorry you guys, I'm way into it. I mean, if EVERY yes song was like this, then we'd have a problem.....but one song- ONE SONG! Ah! Que Rico!

 

What's not to like? Great little number. Brave. 'Nuff respect for kicking down the walls of the box.

 

Hey, thanks for the reminder that I haven’t played ABWH in a long while...even though Teakbois has just come on.

It’s a really beautiful album that feels like connecting with an old friend.

I have regular 80s sessions, so the sound and production is no problem to me...

...except Rick’s sound on Teakbois is hideous.

 

Don't bother.

 

I like ABWH. The tour was fantastic and really special to see at the time. I saw a few shows including the tour closer at MSG where they did Sweet Dreams. I like all of the Yes related catalog up to ABWH - it gets spotty for me after that. I have to admit, with Squire plus 2 fractured groups my excitement for the 50th is dulled. There’s far more possibility in the potential for a live show and archival releases than is being capitalized on.

 

At this point my 5 would be
Yes
Close to the edge
Tales from topographic oceans
Going for the one
90125

 

Totally agree. Once again, the personalities of Yes put their politics ahead of the fanbase that made them who they are.

 

Super stoked to finally see Tony this summer even if he just comes out a few songs, which is what he is doing.