YESTERDAYS

Don't you hate it when one of your favorite bands puts out a "best of" compilation that includes one or two previously unreleased tracks? You already own all the previous albums/cds that make up this particular compilation. So then you fork out your hard earned dough for two songs! And then you discover that the "bonus" tracks suck! ARRRGGGHHH! It's enough to make you mental. Happily, that is NOT the case with YES' 1974 release "Yesterdays". More on that in a moment. But first, a little history. "Yesterdays" was simply a gathering of the best material from YES' first two albums (pre-Steve/Rick/Alan for all you Wakeman-come-latelys). It must have been put out for those bandwagon Roundabout fans afraid to commit to a Howe-free Yes. Don't worry...Howe does appear on a track here, so relax. Whatever the reason, "Yesterdays" is a great place to dive into the early works of a soon-to-be legendary band.The cohesiveness and consistency of future YES releases wasn't quite in place yet, however, the band's first two LP's, "Yes" and "Time And A Word" certainly stand on their own merit and are well represented on "Yesterdays." Marvel at Tony Kaye's swirling, twirling keyboard riff of "Looking Around," complete with patented YES harmonies and hooks around every corner. Oggle over the lush orchestral arrangements of "Time and a Word," and "Then." Lose yourself in the devastating beauty of "Survival." And for all you Squire freaks out there, try playing along with Chris through "Astral Traveller." All basslines should be this fun and creative. Genius! And if that weren't enough, they even throw in a couple of unreleased tracks. "Dear Father" is a decent enough song, probably from the TAAW sessions, however, YES knock it out of the park with their rendition of "America." The aforementioned Howe and Wakeman do the honors on this track, a catchy little Simon and Garfunkel ditty, that YES turn into a full-blown 10 minute+ prog masterpiece. This time tested track has proven itself so wildly popular, that they still play it live to this day, (check out Keys To Ascension I.) "America" includes a mind-blowing, full-tilt intro, with instruments and sounds going in every direction, a "West Side Story" bass riff, some of the tastiest Steve Howe licks and leads ever recorded, a middle section that has the band running with a downright funky groove (whodathunk?), and an outro as manic as the intro. No bench players here. Everyone's in the game and kicking ass. Even if the rest of "Yesterdays" sucked (which it doesn't), "America" itself is worth the price of admission. Trust me on this one. "Yesterdays" is a great album by an extraordinary band. But you knew that. -yak