Yes in the 90's
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Printed Date: November 23 2024 at 12:31
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Topic: Yes in the 90's
Posted By: AFlowerKingCrimson
Subject: Yes in the 90's
Date Posted: November 16 2019 at 07:54
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For most people Yes is more or less a band from the 70's. Sure, their best selling album is from the 80's but their reputation as a top tier prog rock band was cemented in the 70's. When you consider that their most famous albums in the prog community were released in the time span of 71-74 and especially 71-72 it's easy to see why so many feel that way. Recently I went somewhere that sells posters of rock bands. The only Yes poster there was of Fragile. It's not their best album cover but it is certainly one of their most iconic(and the first to feature artist Roger Dean). The point here is that even today Yes are probably remembered by music fans(and especially classic rock not to mention prog rock fans) most fondly for their 70's era despite the fact that their only number one single was from the following decade. While I admittedly do feel their 70's albums were the best they have ever done(not to mention among the best in the entire prog rock genre)the band didn't end with that decade. Well, they almost did actually but then they resurfaced. However, many prog rock fans(and classic rock fans too for that matter; especially them) will have you believe that their 70's material is the only stuff that matters. In my opinion this is simply not true and those who believe that are missing out on some great music. For me personally, the 1990's is their most under rated and underappreciated decade. Sure, there were some albums that many people don't like and feel were poor but even on those albums there are a few gems. The decade started out with Union which, while a bit of a hodgepodge in terms of production especially considering the different musicians and lineups involved including ghost musicians, still has a few gems on it that wouldn't have sounded too out of place on the Anderson, Bruford Wakeman Howe album from 1989. Next up is Talk which in general is a very underrated album by the band. The production and engineering was handled by Trevor Rabin who wrote most of the music and as such some feel it is more of a Trevor Rabin solo album then a true Yes album. Nonetheless it is a very fine album and "Endless Dream" in particular is among the best epics they have ever done. Next up are the keys to ascension albums which saw a return to the classic lineup of Howe, Anderson, White, Squire and Wakeman. Unfortunately, that lineup didn't last that long and the band ultimately recorded the much poppier and less than stellar Open Your Eyes which still had a few good tunes on it although admittedly it is not the most representative of their career. Finally(no pun intended)we have the Ladder which was a bit of a return to Yes's roots and while not quite as progressive or retro sounding over all as the studio tracks to keys to ascension was certainly more of a bone thrown to their hardcore fans than Open Your Eyes. The opening track "Homeworld(the ladder)in particular is a good example of Yes reviving their glory days. Yes would continue into the next decade(and beyond)but the focus here is Yes from the 90's so I will conclude by listing 10 songs that I feel are worthy of checking out for those who don't know Yes past the 70's or 80's. Yes from the 90's song list: 1. I would have waited forever (Union) 2. Lift Me Up (Union) 3. Silent Talking (Union) 4. The Calling (Talk) 5. Endless Dream (Talk) 6. Be The One (Keystudio) (originally Keys To Ascension) 7. Mind Drive (Keystudio) (originally Keys To Ascension 2) 8. New State of Mind (Open Your Eyes) 9. Homworld (the ladder) (The Ladder) 10. The Messenger (The Ladder) There were a few other good songs from those albums and it's difficult to chose only ten but those in particular I feel are worth mentioning. |
Replies:
Posted By: Psychedelic Paul
Date Posted: November 16 2019 at 07:58
| Oddly, even though I'm a YES fan, I still haven't listened to the the six 1990's albums you mentioned in your list. |
Posted By: AFlowerKingCrimson
Date Posted: November 16 2019 at 08:00
Well, I figured there would be some fans like you out there which is why I included the song list.
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Psychedelic Paul wrote:Posted By: Psychedelic Paul
Date Posted: November 16 2019 at 08:14
| I like the two more recent YES albums though:- Magnification and Fly from Here. |
Posted By: AFlowerKingCrimson
Date Posted: November 16 2019 at 08:51
Well, you owe to yourself to at least check out some of these 90's albums. Both of those are good but I think Talk, KTA and the Ladder are at least as good if not better(imo).
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Posted By: SouthSideoftheSky
Date Posted: November 16 2019 at 11:50
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Nice post! I agree that the 1990's is Yes' most underrated decade. I like all these albums. A small note: the album that gathers together the studio tracks from the Keys to Ascension albums is called Keystudio (not "Studio Keys").
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Posted By: Psychedelic Paul
Date Posted: November 16 2019 at 12:02
I will, eventually. I have over 80,000 albums to listen to in my own personal Artists & Albums database.
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Posted By: AFlowerKingCrimson
Date Posted: November 16 2019 at 13:50
| ^Only 80,000 albums? Lol. |
Posted By: Psychedelic Paul
Date Posted: November 16 2019 at 13:51
Yes, but they're not all prog albums.
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Posted By: AFlowerKingCrimson
Date Posted: November 16 2019 at 13:51
That seems a bit nitpicky and trivial to me but fine. I'll change it.
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Posted By: AFlowerKingCrimson
Date Posted: November 16 2019 at 13:53
Oh god, I hope not.
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Posted By: Psychedelic Paul
Date Posted: November 16 2019 at 14:20
Less than 1% of the total (or less than 800) are actual prog albums, listed in the genres of Progressive Rock, Symphonic Rock & Neo-Prog. They were the same three prog genres we used when I ran my own music site. To be honest, I think ProgArchives system of multiple prog genres is much better. I wish I'd thought of it at the time when my music site was still up and running.
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Posted By: omphaloskepsis
Date Posted: November 16 2019 at 16:41
| I like 90's Yes. Talk is my personal favorite. Listen to Talk a lot. |
Posted By: SouthSideoftheSky
Date Posted: November 17 2019 at 01:31
Sorry for nitpicking
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Posted By: Cristi
Date Posted: November 17 2019 at 04:46
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The 90s were Yes's least inspired years, you have two uneven albums - Union and The Ladder, a decent album with Talk and the godawful and bland Open Your Eyes. |
Posted By: Psychedelic Paul
Date Posted: November 17 2019 at 05:12
Having read your two-star review of "Open Your Eyes" I'll take your advice and say "No" instead of "Yes" to listening to that "godawful" album.
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Posted By: Blacksword
Date Posted: November 28 2019 at 05:34
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I can take or leave 90's Yesm although I did enjoy the Talk album. Endless Dream is fantastic. I do have a soft spot for Lift me Up from Union, although it does sound like a John Farnham cheese on toast fest. ------------- Ultimately bored by endless ecstasy! |
Posted By: Chaser
Date Posted: November 28 2019 at 06:19
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Look, they weren't in the same ball park as the 70's classics but, for all that, they did make a couple of decent albums that I would recommend to anyone who likes Yes. The Ladder and Talk are the two that really stand out to me Endless Dream is a fantastic track and is one of the few that might have a chance of competing with some of the 70's output. ------------- Songs cast a light on you |
Posted By: Cboi Sandlin
Date Posted: March 26 2021 at 07:59
I know that i am kinda late to the party by a couple of years  but i would say that i really like the 90's Yes albums. Union is a really nice album, i think that the fact that a huge number of people collaborated on it intead of just a band of 5 or 6 people really gives a different flavor and perspective to the music. The Keys To Ascension albums I have not listened to in full, but i will say that i have listened to "That, that is" and it is prolly one of my favourite Yes songs of all time. Talk is not on Spotify so i have not listened to it yet, i am prolly gonna need to find somewhere i can buy it one vinyl or CD. As for Open Your Eyes, yes, it sounded very poppy, but i think that a lot of the tunes in it were very catchy. Of course, catchy pop songs are definently not what you are looking for when you listen to yes, but i still found it pretty good, i really liked the happy upbeat vibes in the album. I will say that the last song was complete trash though, idk what idiot would put 2 minutes of silence in the middle of a song, and then just put in nothing but bird sounds and small snippets of other songs for frickin 15 minutes! Still, other than that song, the album is pretty good. As for The Ladder, I think that it was also very good, i loved the positive vibes in the album. All in all, i think that Yes' 90's albums were very differant than Yes' 70's albums, but they were still amazing albums, prolly better than what most bands made in their prime years. I think that anyone reading this should definently give them all a listen.
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Posted By: Psychedelic Paul
Date Posted: June 15 2021 at 13:32
You're right! Having now listened to the entire Yes back catalogue, these are my current Top 7 Yes albums:- 1. The Ladder 2. Going for the One 3. Talk 4. Close to the Edge 5. The Yes Album 6. Fly from Here 7. Magnification |
Posted By: AFlowerKingCrimson
Date Posted: June 15 2021 at 16:47
^ No love for Fragile, Tales from Topographic Oceans or Relayer? 
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Posted By: Psychedelic Paul
Date Posted: June 15 2021 at 23:52
Yes, I like all three of those classic albums, but only one make it into my Top 10. 1. The Ladder 2. Going for the One 3. Talk 4. Close to the Edge 5. The Yes Album 6. Fly from Here 7. Magnification 8. Heaven & Earth 9. Tales from Topographic Oceans 10. 90125
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Posted By: Marcos87
Date Posted: April 21 2022 at 09:45
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Talk is great, it's my fav from the 90s Yes era. ------------- galeriaderaices.bandcamp.com/ |
Posted By: RockHound
Date Posted: August 27 2022 at 17:44
| Outside the run from TYA to GFTO, The Ladder, Keystudio, and Talk are my favorites. |
Posted By: Psychedelic Paul
Date Posted: August 27 2022 at 23:49
YES, it's TIME AND A WORD of well-deserved praise now for THE YES ALBUM that often gets overlooked. YES, it is of course the TALK album. The recording of this album was relatively trouble-free and was recorded, mixed and produced by YES guitarist Trevor Rabin at his home studio in Hollywood, California. The recording of TALK had none of the tensions and surrounding DRAMA of recording the legendary TALES FROM TOPOGRAPHIC OCEANS album twenty years earlier, where FRAGILE egos were at stake and a MAGNIFICATION of simmering tempers were often CLOSE TO THE EDGE of boiling over. In the constant RELAYER race of YES line-ups, the personnel for the TALK album were:- Jon Anderson, Trevor Rabin, Chris Squire, Tony Kaye & Alan White. The album was to have featured Rick Wakeman, but he was unable to appear due to "contractual obligations" and he appeared in a re-UNION with his YES bandmates on the following album, KEYS TO ASCENSION in 1996. The TALK album was generally treated like a squashed TORMATO by the music press, but it was well-received by YES fans and was a BIG GENERATOR of album sales, climbing THE LADDER of success to reach No. 20 in the U.K albums chart. The album may not have moved HEAVEN AND EARTH, but if you haven't heard the TALK album before, it may just OPEN YOUR EYES and ears to the sound of one of the best YES albums since the release of GOING FOR THE ONE in 1977 and 90125 in 1983. The TALK album contains nine YESSONGS and I'm going to FLY FROM HERE now and give the album another listen. 
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Posted By: I_Developer
Date Posted: April 05 2024 at 12:42
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My favorites from Union: Shock to the System Lift Me Up Miracle of Life My favorites from Talk: Walls Endless Dream ------------- See ya, I_Developer Asia Superfan and Album Reviewer |
Posted By: Octopus II
Date Posted: April 06 2024 at 01:52
That is brilliant. I don't know where you get the time to compose these monologues, they are all very entertaining!
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Posted By: Psychedelic Paul
Date Posted: April 06 2024 at 02:06
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^ Thanks! It's just a Roundabout way of sharing my love for YES.
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Posted By: suitkees
Date Posted: April 06 2024 at 06:26
This, in my opinion, is actually a very good assessment of that period of Yes - my compliments! Of this decade I easily prefer Talk over the rest. It is today my preferred Rabin-era Yes album. It is maybe a bit more "restless" than 90125 or Big Generator, but to my ears it is very cohesive and of high rock standards. ------------- The razamataz is a pain in the bum |
Posted By: RockHound
Date Posted: May 22 2024 at 09:13
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Although uneven, I think the '90s has some of the best Yes music. Union has some great songs and a few weak ones, and to me it's not very cohesive, which jibes with the way the album came together. Talk is one of my favorites, with The Calling, I Am Waiting, and Endless Dream being absolutely stellar. The only problem with the album is that Squire gets lost in the mix. Trevor was great on the album. On another note, IMHO, ARW put on better shows than the other Yes, save for the Drama-Tales tour in 2017, which was the only concert by post-Jon Yes (including the Drama tour) that made me feel like I was at a real Yes show. Keys is great, but the two releases combining the live and studio tracks was not a great idea, and the band didn't like that. If you combine the studio tracks into KeyStudio, you get a great album which approaches the great run from TYA through GFTO in quality. Combining the live tracks into a unified album also makes for a great live album that is well played and well produced. The live version of Onward is miles ahead of the original studio release, and I love that they included America along with two TFTO tracks. The interplay between Howe and Wakeman in Starship Trooper is just great and takes me back to the best Yes concerts I've seen. Open Your Eyes is a real mixed bag. The band went for a more modern sound with an AOR groove, and the album is hampered by some obvious filler, including recycled material from Animation and that inexplicable thing at the end of The Solution with the forest sounds and snippets from the songs. Highlights for me are New State of Mind, Open Your Eyes, Fortune Seller, and Love Shine. The Ladder is one of my favorite Yes albums. They played it kind of safe on that one, but the songs are so charming and well put together.
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Posted By: AFlowerKingCrimson
Date Posted: May 22 2024 at 10:15
| Imo, keystudio, while a good album on it's own terms, nonetheless seems like a deliberate attempt to recapture the bands glory days not to mention appease their longtime fans (who probably make up at least 70 percent of their fanbase). As such the album seems a bit contrived to me not to mention sounding totally out of place in the 1990s musical landscape. Still, I think it's a good tribute to days gone by. Of course that's all just my opinion. |
Posted By: Boojieboy
Date Posted: May 22 2024 at 11:11
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I've given that decade a try, but I'm sticking with the 1969-1983 period for stronger and more-fulfilling music. It just wasn't the same - for me - afterwards. But the earlier period has plenty of great music to satisfy a Yes fix.
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Posted By: TheGazzardian
Date Posted: May 22 2024 at 13:49
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I obsessively listened to Yes' entire discography when Magnification was the newest album they had out. Until the last ten years, 90s was their weakest era imo. Ladder is ok, Talk is the best Rabin album thanks to Endless Dream, KeyStudio is quite good. Union and Open your Eyes did the least for me of all their albums at that time. Union I can't remember anything from despite listening to it over twenty times. Open Your Eyes I don't think I even bothered beyond a few listens, it just didn't have any of the magic. |