CLASSIC YES

Classic Yes was one of my first, if not the first, recollections of hearing Yes. I remember being completely fascinated by the artwork of Roger Dean which was a great companion to the music featured on this compilation. All these first experiences really bring a feeling of nostalgia whenever I revisit this album, which is why it's now an important part of my album collection.

You really cannot go wrong when compiling a collection from the classic Yes years of 1971-72. I think that whoever compiled this album made a decent job and even if the addition of Wonderous Stories makes no sense in the great scheme of things, it adds charm to the already well-balanced compilation. One might question the addition of Chris Squire's Fish (Schindleria Praematurus), but just listen to the combo track of Long Distance Runaround / The Fish off Yessongs and it will hopefully make a bit more sense.

I like the idea of hearing Heart Of The Sunrise as an album-opener and not its conclusion, as it's positioned on Fragile, and it makes me wonder why it wasn't placed as such on the original studio release? Maybe it has to do with Yes being a commercial act that always put their hit material in the beginning of the album, but now I digress. I miss a few tracks like South Side Of The Sky, Sound Chaser and the live version of Perpetual Change. Even though I love both Close To The Edge and Gates Of Delirium, I can clearly see why those tracks wouldn't make much sense on a compilation album and therefore have no problem with their absence.

I could start a discussion on how this and that track could have easily substituted some of the material on this record, but this type of talk only strengths the argument against all type of compilation albums. If you want to hear what Yes were all about, then I suggest you listen to their original studio albums. This compilation gives a solid first bite for anyone who has previously never heard Yes, but remember that you're only seeing a very biased retrospective of their music. Luckily it's not a bad thing in the grand scheme of things, especially since the music here is so good!

***** star songs: Heart Of The Sunrise (10:32) Yours Is No Disgrace (9:41) Starship Trooper (9:26)

**** star songs: Wonderous Stories (3:45) Long Distance Runaround (3:33) Fish (Schindleria Praematurus) (2:35) And You And I (10:07) Roundabout (live) (7:23) I've Seen All Good People (live) (7:00)