IN A WORD

Yes have released numerous box sets and compilations over the years, but this is the most ambitious yet. Five discs, each packed full of great tracks, going through the band history on each disk. The set comes with a near book of the band, about 200 pages full of great pictures, biographies, and other goodies all about this spectacular landmark Prog band. All five discs add up to an impressive 390 minutes, including some of the bands very best tracks, with the longs, the shorts, the in-betweens, the unreleased, the underappreciated, and so much more. Overall this box set is perfect for the Yes newbie, as I was back in 2002. I didn't appreciate them then, but when I got into prog, having this in my dad's collection was essential for my small prog collection. I listen to this whenever I want a good mix of Prog- and you should too! Instead of reviewing each track (I would be insane), I will go by each disk.

Disk 1 ("Yes" to "The Yes Album") contains the very earliest Yes music, from their 60s psych roots to their early beginnings in symphonic rock. The disk contains classics like Survival, I've Seen All Good People, and Perpetual Change. Starting from the beginning is good for an retrospection on this band, as you can see the developing styles all throughout the set.

Disk 2 ("Fragile" to "Tales") encompasses the bands more classic (pretentious) period, with both massive tracks Close to the Edge and The Revealing Science of God contained on the disk. The disk showcases the delicious symphonic excesses that Yes had in their classic hey-day, with some of their best from that period.

Disk 3 ("Close to the Edge", "Relayer" to "Tormato") (Siberian Khatru didn't fit on Disk 2) shows the bands peak, with the massive Gates of Delirium contained on the disk, as well as hits from Going for the One and the overlooked Tormato. This disk contains some of the bands better tracks, as well as the collection's first unreleased track, Richard.

Disk 4 ("Drama" to "Union") contains the bands dreaded period, the 80s, and the early 90s. With the departure of Jon Anderson for Drama, the band made a slow decline into the sad dead period for classic prog during the 80s, and didn't fully recover ever again. Although this period in Yes history is frowned upon by die hard Yes fans, the band was able to bring together a collection of great tracks, some really great unreleased material, and overall a decent display of Yes's "pop" era.

Disk 5 ("Talk" to "Magnification") contains the band's newest material and the band's closest return to their 70s greatness. This collection shows the band's new sound, with some of their better tracks from each of the modern albums. Overall, the disk closes the history of Yes rather nicely, with the great In the Presence Of...

ALBUM OVERALL: In A Word, although not containing much "new" material (save the numerous unreleased tracks that appeared on the album), is an essential collection for any aspiring Prog fan. Five discs of Yes history capture the best of each of Yes' 18 studio records. With all the essential classics, this box is huge: and hugely important to a growing prog collection. 5 stars.

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