OK, I’ve turned my PC into a jukebox (only cost me 180 g in HD space) and YES, I’M RUNNING was followed by NATALIE MERCHANT, WHEN THEY RING THE GOLDEN BELLS. Is it just me? Or is Big Generator a huge RED LIGHT for Yes when they basically suck next to a N.M gospel revival song? What happened to Yes? 90125 was OK, did someone in the band sign a deal with a crazy uncle? Why do they suck so bad? (Understanding that B.G> was released in the late 80’s)
What?
I have no idea… I thought Big Generator was ok, 90125 was pretty good. after that I have no idea. I do know Tervor Rabin put out a solo album or two (best of the bunch is “can’t look away” (trevor is the guitarist who repaced Steve Howe)
Then there was a split of some kind… so some members and former members Anderson Wakeman err someone and Howe put out and albumn I did not care for.
then the last Albumn I remember of Yes is when All the old and new members decided not to do seperate things and collaberate on an albumn.
ben a long while, but is what I vaugely remember.
BTW Trevor Rabin does a great deal of Movie soundtracks.
I can’t understand the OP at all. It’s all pops and buzzes.
I have no idea what this thread is about, but in my world a Natalie Merchant beats a Yes any time.
You need to listen to Close to the Edge, it’s Yes back before they started really sucking. The title track is great. I also really like Heart of the Sunrise. If you hate both of those songs, well, then I guess you just hate YES.
Yoko Ono falling down five flights of stairs while carrying an armload of silverware beats Yes any time.
I can only think of one Yes song.
I can think of about ten Natalie Merchant (10,000 Maniacs) songs off the top of my head.
I have played and in some cases worn out copies of *Fragile, Close to the Edge, YesSongs, Going for the One, Gates of Delirium, Keys to Ascension, Tales from Topographic Oceans, and Yesterdays.
I do remember 90125. Hasn’t exactly withstood the test of time, has it? “Leave it” is still worth a listen.
I don’t have Big Generator or Tormato or lots of other Yes albums. I’m still in the process of discovering them.
I don’t think I could tell you who Natalie Merchant is. If there’s a reason why someone who likes Yes quite a bit should care about Natalie Merchant, direct me to some of her better discs or tracks.
Not to mention being damned fine entertainment.
I like some Yes songs alot, I hate some Yes songs alot. I hate all of the Natalie Merchant songs I’ve heard. Given that you have all the above listed albums, I’d say the chances you’d be a Natalie Merchant fan are quite slim. Stranger things happen all the time though. I, for instance, like flamboyant 80’s pop and evil Swedish black metal. Go figure.
I think that’s the first and last time I’ll ever utter those performers’ names in the same sentence. Next we’ll be comparing Ronnie James Dio to Shakira.
Miller wrote
Just promise me she’ll be fully clothed this time.
I don’t know what a Yes fan would like. Do you just want to listen to groups that sound like Yes, or are you willing to branch out a little?
As an album, 10,000 Maniacs MTV Unplugged is one of my favorites. If you have access to Napster or something like it, I recommend downloading “Stockon Gala Days”, for a nice sample. Better yet, download the entire album. True, this isn’t her solo stuff, but it’s still Natalie Merchant through and through.
I’m a fan of lots of different kinds of songs. I wouldn’t write off Natalie Merchant or anyone else off just because I have a prefence for a certain genre. Good music is good music.
I’m actually fairly eclectic. Neither Gloria Estefan nor Tori Amos sound a whole hell of a lot like Yes and I like both of them.
Yes…they did what, “Owner of a Lonely Heart”?
(And the only reason I remember THAT one is because they did a skit based around it on MST3K)
Well, and Roundabout, and I’ve Seen All Good People, and Yours Is No Disgrace, and Relayer, and Going For The One (playing now), and Wonderous Stories, and Homeworld, and Magnification, plus the ones that were already mentioned.
I couldn’t mention a single song by Natalie Merchant :). I’ll have to make up for that.
Seriously, shouldn’t this go in Cafe Society?
Whoops, big big mistake. For some reason I thought this was in another forum. Apologies…
:o
I’ll start by saying that Yes is my favorite band, and has been for decades. So, there’s some prejudice.
There has always been a sense with the band that the music comes before the personalities. Members come and go, the line-ups sometimes suffer huge losses or alterations in dynamic. Rick Wakeman has his style, Tony Kaye has his. Trevor Rabin is the stereotypical 80’s guitar god with the tight pants and the Big Hair- and yet he’s got some serious chops, bringing Yes its biggest commercial hit with Owner Of A Lonely Heart.
I saw them on the tour that’s still in progress this year. The second half was mostly acoustic. Some of the more “classic” Yes tunes were worked over, given a fresh look. Roundabout as a jazz tune? Yep, it worked.
If you have a group of musicians who have the skills as individuals to make real music, and build upon each other’s offerings, then you have a group with legs. This is their 35 year. I will agree that some of the newer offerings have been a bit dry. The work that Billy Sherwood did was to me largely a waste. The Open Your Eyes CD was disappointing, whereas The Ladder had some very inventive work on it. Whether or not you think Yes music is crap or gold, it’s indisputable that the members have firm musical training and all have since childhood. It shows.
This really is an IMHO Thread, because it’s all opinion- as any artistic discussion should be. Yes, I can prove absolutely that Rick Wakeman was a child prodigy and is still prodigious in his skills. Yes, I can show without doubt that Alan White grew up in a family of all musicians, and trained as a child on more than one instrument, though his main one was not percussion but piano.
But can I prove that Yes music is better or nicer or anything-er? Of course not. I understand enough about the approaches that the members take in bringing their material together, because I’ve got a few documentaries on the band and have read some interviews. It is an approach identical to that of a string quartet. ( I married into a family of world-famous string players, so yes I know of whence I speak here. I’ve sat in on dozens of rehearsals and family room discussions on composition, style and approach ). The thing that seems to allow the band Yes to thrive and…breathe?..after 35 years is that the music takes center stage. The compositions are treated as living things, just as any classical pieces are. You may or may not follow what has been done before. The goal is always to breathe oxygen into a living thing.
I’ve seen Yes when they were going through the paces. This last tour reminded me that they - at least the line-up currently touring, which is Jon Anderson, Rick Wakeman, Alan White, Steve How and Chris Squire- all approach the material with thought, not blind rote or note on note reverence. I was actually more excited to hear variations on some of my old faves, than I would have been to hear them played as they were in 1973 on the Close To The Edge/ Yessongs Tour.
Music is alive when it’s re-examined and given new energy. Rare is the group that can do that.
I’ve listened to Ms. Merchant. Nice pipes. Who writes those lyrics?? :eek:
See? I’m glad that she has a following, but I don’t have a problem not being included in it.
AHunter3, we gotta talk. 
Cartooniverse
Yes, I know his name is Steve Howe- didn’t even catch that on preview !!!
Am I the only one thinking that 180 Gigabytes is one hell of a music collection? At ~1 megabytes per minute, that’s 3,000 CDs’ worth! Four months’ of non-stop music. Time for a spring clean, surely?