TIME AND A WORD

With "Time And A Word" and maintaining the same line-up as on their debut album, Yes added to their incipient but novel musical proposal, orchestral arrangements and an important presence of keyboards, whose varied and innovative range of sonorities acquired a greater prominence, distancing themselves from the classic rock sound of the time, which had the almighty electric guitar and its thousands of distorted volts as the fundamental reference for many bands.

Tracks like "No Opportunity Needed, No Experience Needed", a cover of the iconic Woodstock symbol Richie Havens, the relaxed "Sweet Dreams", the elaborate and celestial "The Prophet", or the atmospheric and watery "Astral Traveller", feature Tony Kaye's keyboards in an important exploratory role, supported by Chris Squire's aggressive bass, Bill Bruford's persevering jazz-oriented percussion and Tony Cox's orchestration.

On the other hand, Jon Anderson supports another of the band's future pillars, the melodies charged with deep poetic content, as with the crystalline "Clear Days", but above all with one of Yes' most accomplished acoustic pieces, the beautiful "Time And A Word". A gem, and one of the few surviving pieces from Yes' formative period, included with some frequency by the band during their tours in the following years.

After the release of "Time And A Word" and due to disagreements about the musical direction they should follow, the band fires guitarist Peter Banks and begins the search for his replacement, someone who is more aligned with the projects Squire and Anderson had planned for the creation of their own musical universe.

3/3.5 Stars