TALES FROM TOPOGRAPHIC OCEANS

Tales from Topographic Oceans is often regarded as minor work between its precedent and following studio albums. The critics are usually right when they say the album is too long but they are not when they come to terms with its music. It is true, though, that there are moments that are a bit too experimental or even boring and that the album lacks editing here and there.

Actually, I've always thought that, instead of a four sided album with Tales... it could have been a three sided one with a fourth live side or something like that. Or even better, a double album with a selection of Tales... and Relayer materials altogether.

It is clear for many followers or proggers that side two and three are the weekest part of this title. Reducing them both to half their length so that to fill just one album side would have been the solution. If you can do that with the appropiate software... you have an excellent record. The Revealing Science of God (Dance of the Dawn) is one of the best all-time Yes long pieces, and so is Ritual (Nous sommes du soleil). These two deserve five stars. However, The Remembering (High the Memory) and The Ancient (Giants under the Sun) are just three-star pieces or so.

So four star on the whole and waiting for Awaken to come...