FRAGILE

Yes's 'Fragile', considered one of their two most notable masterpieces, starts off with the progressive rock classic 'Roundabout'. Some of the lyrics to this track either inspired or were based on the cover art. This song features one of Chris Squire's funkiest bass lines ever. The track can feel at times both somber and happy. This is also the second-longest tune on this album, only behind 'Heart of the Sunrise'. 'Cans and Brahms(Extracts from Brahm's 4th Symphony in E Minor Third Movement)' is undoubtedly the weakest track on the album, but far from bad. It earned this title by being slightly out of place in this record, that is all. This is Rick Wakeman's 'solo tack', per se, on this record. 'We Have Heaven', a quite short Yes masterpiece, is just one long Gentle Giant-esque harmony to music, but is nonetheless amazing. This is Anderson's main track. It ends with a bang (a literal bang!). 'South Side of the Sky', the reason I didn't originally like this album all that much, didn't take long to grow on me. Starts off kind of like a metal song, but eventually slows down to a beautiful la-la session with piano in the background. After a while, the music returns to the metal-ish opening and ends. On the flipside is 'Five Per Cent for Nothing', a Bill Bruford composition. This lasts just about thirty seconds, but on its own is funky as hell. 'Long Distance Runaround', a kind of pop-prog track. Three minutes and a half of some of Jon Anderson's best vocals and more. 'The Fish(Schindleria Praemataurus)' is bass at its finest, with some great cowbell in the background. Jon Anderson begins chanting the Latin in the parentheses close to the end (look the Latin up, you'll get some funky-looking fish). This a Chris Squire composition. 'Mood for a Day', my second-favorite song on the album, is as heart-wrenching as an acoustic guitar can get, to the point where as I'm writing this and listening to this song, am getting teary-eyed. This is Steve Howe's track. 'Heart of the Sunrise' is similarly heart-wrenching. Beautiful lyrics and vocals, gripping crescendos, and many moods to convey. It ends with a 'We Have Heaven' reprise. This is is my second-favorite Yes song, only behind the 'Close to the Edge' suite. A wonderful, powerful ending to a strong album in Yes's catalog.

Share this YES review

Social review comments () BETA

---

---

Review related links

• Send comments to Boi_da_boi_124
• Report this review (#2901779)
• Buy YES music online with PA partners
• Show all YES MP3/Stream
• Go to YES page for videos, full discography with ratings, reviews and much more
• Go to Fragile page for more details, where to buy and ratings/reviews
• Search the Forum for YES related discussions