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Yes: The Ladder (1999)
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Psychedelic Paul View Drop Down
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Points: 40091 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Psychedelic Paul Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 16 2020 at 13:43
Originally posted by ToANMusic ToANMusic wrote:

Right on! I think I first started frequenting around 2010 or so, so you and are probably pretty close in lurking age. Either way, a warm welcome to us both! How has your year been so far on here?
I've had an amazing year and joining ProgArchives is one of the best decisions I've ever made. Thumbs Up
 
Barely a day goes by when I don't discover an amazing "new" album here, just like the day I discovered The Ladder album for instance. Smile
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It's a reasonable late-period album with some good tracks, but a touch inconsistent too. I saw them on that UK tour, but the classic period still dominated the set list. I read that Bruce Fairburn was trying to get the band to go back to their 70s style - but really it came up short (he sadly died during the mixing process, so not sure if that played a part or not). In hindsight it stands up better than other later albums (don't get me started on Heaven and Earth or Open Your Eyes!), but I think it was a missed opportunity. Both it and Magnification were on the verge of something greater, but didn't quite pull it off.
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Originally posted by Squonk19 Squonk19 wrote:

It's a reasonable late-period album with some good tracks, but a touch inconsistent too. I saw them on that UK tour, but the classic period still dominated the set list. I read that Bruce Fairburn was trying to get the band to go back to their 70s style - but really it came up short (he sadly died during the mixing process, so not sure if that played a part or not). In hindsight it stands up better than other later albums (don't get me started on Heaven and Earth or Open Your Eyes!), but I think it was a missed opportunity. Both it and Magnification were on the verge of something greater, but didn't quite pull it off.

I don't think that was Bruce's goal really especially since Yes already revisited their 70's sound on the two keys to ascension albums that came before it. Maybe he just wanted to move them away from the poppier open your eyes and so if that was the case he succeeded. I actually prefer the ladder to magnification. For one thing I don't see how the ladder could have been improved upon based on what they were obviously going for on this record. With magnification I think the orchestra could have been done differently. To me it sounds like the orchestra was recorded in another room. That's ok if it was as long as it doesn't sound that way but to me it sounds too distant. Rick said he wished he was involved and I agree he probably could have done something different with it.
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Points: 66262 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (1) Thanks(1)   Quote rushfan4 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 16 2020 at 17:59
I remember when The Ladder first came out was around the same time I got my first computer and was definitely one of the first times I went on line.  I seem to recall that I was listening to the Stanley Cup Finals on-line, quite possibly the game that went to triple overtime and ended on a controversial goal by Brett Hull...but I digress.  I was definitely an internet n00b but I remember knowing that they were releasing Homeworld (The Ladder) that night so I was super excited when I was able to find it and listen to it.  I pretty much like everything that Yes has done no matter which line up.  There's is just a sound that I really enjoy. 

P.S. if you want to see a Yes live video that is super fun, you should check out Symphonic Live.  They play with an orchestra and it just looks them and the orchestra are having a blast playing that night.
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Points: 66262 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (1) Thanks(1)   Quote rushfan4 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 16 2020 at 18:04
Also, the poster on my office door.
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Psychedelic Paul View Drop Down
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Originally posted by rushfan4 rushfan4 wrote:

I remember when The Ladder first came out was around the same time I got my first computer and was definitely one of the first times I went on line.  I seem to recall that I was listening to the Stanley Cup Finals on-line, quite possibly the game that went to triple overtime and ended on a controversial goal by Brett Hull...but I digress.  I was definitely an internet n00b but I remember knowing that they were releasing Homeworld (The Ladder) that night so I was super excited when I was able to find it and listen to it.  I pretty much like everything that Yes has done no matter which line up.  There's is just a sound that I really enjoy. 

P.S. if you want to see a Yes live video that is super fun, you should check out Symphonic Live.  They play with an orchestra and it just looks them and the orchestra are having a blast playing that night.
Thanks. Yes, I have Symphonic Live on DVD and it's a wonderful concert performance. Thumbs Up
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ToANMusic View Drop Down
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Points: 39 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (1) Thanks(1)   Quote ToANMusic Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 17 2020 at 09:27
Fantastic!

I'm trying to remember what lead me to discovering The Ladder, I remember I had a tendency to dig into a band and listen to their discography in release order. Pretty sure that's how I wound up at The Ladder too.
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Psychedelic Paul View Drop Down
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Points: 40091 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Psychedelic Paul Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 17 2020 at 09:53
Originally posted by ToANMusic ToANMusic wrote:

Fantastic!

I'm trying to remember what lead me to discovering The Ladder, I remember I had a tendency to dig into a band and listen to their discography in release order. Pretty sure that's how I wound up at The Ladder too.
 
I only came across The Ladder album purely by chance, because many of the tracks from the album were included in the 2-CD Live Yes compilation shown at the top of this thread. Smile
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dr wu23 View Drop Down
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Great album artwork,,,,,

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Originally posted by AFlowerKingCrimson AFlowerKingCrimson wrote:

Typical Yes fan: "I like the old Yes. The progressive rock version. The prog version. The ladder? No, that's too different and too new agey.It's too different than their older stuff. They took too many chances on that one. I'll take the keys albums. Now that's the old Yes. That's prog!"

Does anyone see the irony here? Tongue


Not for me, I just don't like the album, the songs. As far as I remember (it's been a long while), there wasn't anything particularly wrong with them... but neither was there anything particularly good. I do love, say, Endless Dream, which sounds different from anything else Yes had done, but it was a great song all the same.
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This thread led me to listen again to The Ladder, I hadn't played it for a couple of years. I agree with squonk: with Magnification this album is the better of the later Yes, but it never captured me as much as everything they did before (before, say, 90125, although I also like Talk very much...). Great bass playing from Chris, overall. Some great melodies and songwriting. Maybe a bit too much up-tempo songs for me, but it remains a pleasant listen overall.

@rushfan: I attended one of the two evenings in Amsterdam when they recorded what became the Symphonic Live DVD. The best Yes-concert I have seen (I brought my parents to it, their first rock concert ever, and they loved it too!). Gates of Delirium and Ritual live were awesome!

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Psychedelic Paul View Drop Down
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"Awaken", from Yes Symphonic (2003)
 
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rushfan4 View Drop Down
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Originally posted by suitkees suitkees wrote:

This thread led me to listen again to The Ladder, I hadn't played it for a couple of years. I agree with squonk: with Magnification this album is the better of the later Yes, but it never captured me as much as everything they did before (before, say, 90125, although I also like Talk very much...). Great bass playing from Chris, overall. Some great melodies and songwriting. Maybe a bit too much up-tempo songs for me, but it remains a pleasant listen overall.

@rushfan: I attended one of the two evenings in Amsterdam when they recorded what became the Symphonic Live DVD. The best Yes-concert I have seen (I brought my parents to it, their first rock concert ever, and they loved it too!). Gates of Delirium and Ritual live were awesome!
That is really cool!  I love that video.  I imagine that it would have been so awesome to see live in person.
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Psychedelic Paul View Drop Down
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^ Ideally, I'd like to have posted the entire Yes Symphonic concert right here on this thread, until I discovered it's split into 17 parts on YouTube, so I just picked my favourite song from the concert instead. Smile
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suitkees View Drop Down
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I imagine, but the "Awaken" version you put up here is not from the 2001 Magnification tour which led to the Symphonic live DVD. Rick Wakeman wasn't there in 2001 (Tom Brislin played the keys), and they played with the European Festival Orchestra (hence the "symphonic")...
Nevertheless, a great rendition of Awaken !


Edited by suitkees - July 19 2020 at 10:44

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Psychedelic Paul View Drop Down
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Points: 40091 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Psychedelic Paul Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 19 2020 at 11:50
^ You're right. I have Yes Symphonic on DVD, so I should have realised it doesn't include Rick Wakeman in the line-up. Embarrassed
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Dellinger View Drop Down
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^ Nor does it include the song Awaken.
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Psychedelic Paul View Drop Down
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Originally posted by Dellinger Dellinger wrote:

^ Nor does it include the song Awaken.
 
That'll teach me not to believe every video description I see on YouTube. Wink
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Dellinger View Drop Down
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Oh, but I would have loved to hear Awaken in a Symphonic version. This concert would have been the absolute definitive live album from Yes if only it had included Wakeman too, and the song Awaken (and kept Gates of Delirium, of couse, which Wekamn doesn't seem to have been keen on playing). And then, perhaps, if they had played The Revealing Science of Ritual.
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Psychedelic Paul View Drop Down
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^ The performance of "Awaken" in the video above is the best Live version I've ever seen of "Awaken", even though it's not on the Yes Symphonic DVD. Smile

Edited by Psychedelic Paul - July 22 2020 at 15:36
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