Yes - The Yes Album in 5.1 Surround DVD-A/BluRay in 2014

[Larry Geller]

What they were 'coming back' from in 1977 was not having released a band album since 1974. In the interim they explored solo careers, which at the time was (not generally known, though it's hinted at in Dan Hedges' old Yes biography) a possible departure point for a few of them. It was soon apparent to the three big egos in Yes that none of them would be as successful 'solo' as they were as a band. So Yes continued, and then Brian Lane engineered the ouster of Moraz and the re-insertion of Wakeman, to make it even more of a 'comeback'. By 1978-1979 they were barely talking to each other.

Going for the One, to many fans, was a comedown and the end of an era, notwithstanding the lavish praise some heap on 'Awaken' ....for me, 'Turn of the Century' is the real gem.

And I would not agree that Tales or Relayer are particularly more 'mystic speaking' than the previous three albums. On those two as (with varying success) on all of their albums from the 70s onwards, there are moments of directness -- 'What happened to this song we once knew so well?' "Listen, should we fight forever, knowing as we do know, fear destroys?" emerging from a sea of ambiguity (Jon Anderson may know what was meant, but we're left to suggest our own) and use of syllables and words for their sound, rather than their meaning. The early-mid seventies was the pinnacle for that too...so, what you call a 'problem', I call a feature.

The comeback was also from the solo LPs, true, and they were as incomprehensible as the previous 2 Yes LPs (I also don't know what the hell Olias Of Sunhillow means, either). And The Yes Album & Fragile's lyrics are at least 90% understandable (I still don't get the "sharp.....distance" thing), whereas, by Tales, it's down to about 10%. As I am probably the least spiritual person you will ever meet, it is not a feature for me. But, I STILL love Yes, regardless of my problems with some of their output. And why is the Khatru outspoken?

 

[kap'n krunch]

What they were 'coming back' from in 1977 was not having released a band album since 1974. In the interim they explored solo careers, which at the time was (not generally known, though it's hinted at in Dan Hedges' old Yes biography) a possible departure point for a few of them. It was soon apparent to the three big egos in Yes that none of them would be as successful 'solo' as they were as a band. So Yes continued, and then Brian Lane engineered the ouster of Moraz and the re-insertion of Wakeman, to make it even more of a 'comeback'. By 1978-1979 they were barely talking to each other.

Going for the One, to many fans, was a comedown and the end of an era, notwithstanding the lavish praise some heap on 'Awaken' ....for me, 'Turn of the Century' is the real gem.

And I would not agree that Tales or Relayer are particularly more 'mystic speaking' than the previous three albums. On those two as (with varying success) on all of their albums from the 70s onwards, there are moments of directness -- 'What happened to this song we once knew so well?' "Listen, should we fight forever, knowing as we do know, fear destroys?" emerging from a sea of ambiguity (Jon Anderson may know what was meant, but we're left to suggest our own) and use of syllables and words for their sound, rather than their meaning. The early-mid seventies was the pinnacle for that too...so, what you call a 'problem', I call a feature.

Well I disagree about "Awaken"..I consider it the PINNACLE of post CTTE/TFTO ..spine tingling...but hey, to each their own!!!!

 

[DennisMoore Jr.]

Is this true DMJ? You don't have it? I agree, at the very least you'll appreciate the SW mix. If not, give it to one of your neighbors :banana:

@PK: No my friend. No XTC for me. I'm not sure what I find more appalling. Loud rap music or an overly produced snare drum(mixed WAY too loud) in 4/4 time beating my head into the ground. The death of prog of the 1970s actually spawned one true evil that almost every 80s artist chose to embrace. "Bang on the snare as loud as you can and some stupid git engineer will bury it in reverb and mix it +12db more than it should be..."

:howl


No gracias!



....give it to one of my neighbors? @: You've mistaken me for the handsome & very rich FredBlue! The stuff my wife allows me to buy, I play all the time.

 

[ssully]

The comeback was also from the solo LPs, true, and they were as incomprehensible as the previous 2 Yes LPs (I also don't know what the hell Olias Of Sunhillow means, either).

It's a fantasy story, and the 'plot' is laid out in the liner notes. It doesn't 'mean' anything more than Lord of the Rings does.

And The Yes Album & Fragile's lyrics are at least 90% understandable (I still don't get the "sharp.....distance" thing), whereas, by Tales, it's down to about 10%. As I am probably the least spiritual person you will ever meet, it is not a feature for me. But, I STILL love Yes, regardless of my problems with some of their output. And why is the Khatru outspoken?

I think 90% is rather high. You understand what 'Roundabout's lyrics 'mean'?

I'm an atheist, and it's not the 'spiritual' aspect that interests me at all...for me, the *more* explicit Yes lyrics are in that regard, the less interesting they are. Instead it's the use of words as sounds to evoke meanings indirectly, rather than explicitly. (Btw, it's 'heart-spoken' not 'outspoken'. And according to JA , 'khatru' is a Middle Eastern word for 'as you will'. So now you know.)

 

[ssully]

@PK: No my friend. No XTC for me. I'm not sure what I find more appalling. Loud rap music or an overly produced snare drum(mixed WAY too loud) in 4/4 time beating my head into the ground. The death of prog of the 1970s actually spawned one true evil that almost every 80s artist chose to embrace. "Bang on the snare as loud as you can and some stupid git engineer will bury it in reverb and mix it +12db more than it should be..."

Your loss. Late period XTC especially (Oranges & Lemons, Nonsuch , and rather later, Apple Venus...) will be a sonic treat in surround. The music and lyrics are rather clever too.

 

[Larry Geller]

It's a fantasy story, and the 'plot' is laid out in the liner notes. It doesn't 'mean' anything more than Lord of the Rings does.



I think 90% is rather high. You understand what 'Roundabout's lyrics 'mean'?

I'm an atheist, and it's not the 'spiritual' aspect that interests me at all...for me, the *more* explicit Yes lyrics are in that regard, the less interesting they are. Instead it's the use of words as sounds to evoke meanings indirectly, rather than explicitly. (Btw, it's 'heart-spoken' not 'outspoken'. And according to JA , 'khatru' is a Middle Eastern word for 'as you will'. So now you know.)

The "heart spoken as you will"? Makes perfect sense now. OK, 70% (I at least know what the WORD Roundabout means, so that's a start). And I can't stand The Lord Of The Rings, either.

 

[Robert van Diggele]

Your loss. Late period XTC especially (Oranges & Lemons, Nonsuch , and rather later, Apple Venus...) will be a sonic treat in surround. The music and lyrics are rather clever too.

Totally agree with that. Before the rerelease of nonsuch I only knew Ballad of.. And the Disappointed, due to much radio play radio my schooldays. With the rerelease I hear the rst of the album and what a fine selection of songs it is.

But some will not listen

 

[DennisMoore Jr.]

Totally agree with that. Before the rerelease of nonsuch I only knew Ballad of.. And the Disappointed, due to much radio play radio my schooldays. With the rerelease I hear the rst of the album and what a fine selection of songs it is.

But some will not listen

Crap, even our resident scientist, Sully likes XTC. @: And now I'm getting lectured by a Tulip farmer from Holland??? This is intolerable. I guess I must give it another listen just like that fine gentleman who promised to give Tales a new spin...

I will let you all know. I guess it is too late to ask Steven Wilson to mix the snare down a bit???

Maybe if I call young FredBlue "very handsome" about 50 more times he will buy the XTC 5.1 mix for me!

 

[PK]

Crap, even our resident scientist, Sully likes XTC. @: And now I'm getting lectured by a Tulip farmer from Holland??? This is intolerable. I guess I must give it another listen just like that fine gentleman who promised to give Tales a new spin...

This is cause for celebration and brings a smile to the faces of all your fans!

 

[rontoon]

I guess I must give it another listen just like that fine gentleman who promised to give Tales a new spin...

A fine gentleman. Thanks for the props.

I did give Tales a spin today. I bought the album in the late 70's, getting turned on to Yes for the first time around 1974-75. I never really got into Tales because I felt that it meandered and lacked passion. Even though I appreciated what the band was trying to do I felt that the song cycles were too long. I never ended up listening to it again. But I have picked up several Yes compilations over the years and several live albums, legit releases like Yesyears as well as many bootlegs. That's why several songs and passages seemed familiar today when I listened to Tales all the way throguh for the first time in decades. Although I was working on my computer at the time and couldn't focus 100% on the album, especially not the lyrics. I was still surprised how much of it I recognized and liked. I still find it uneven but I will no longer write it off. In fact it would only be fair to give it a few more listens. And the prospect of hearing this album remixed and remastered by Steven Wilson, warts and all, now makes this reasonably priced release all the more interesting.

The lesson is to always keep an open mind. Listen to new music and give old albums another try. I never used to like broccoli as a kid either.

 

[drphibes]

I guess I must give it another listen just like that fine gentleman who promised to give Tales a new spin...

When you're done with re-listening to XTC, perhaps we can get you to revisit Talking Heads?

 

[DennisMoore Jr.]

When you're done with re-listening to XTC, perhaps we can get you to revisit Talking Heads?

Don't push it, pal. :howl

 

[PK]

When you're done with re-listening to XTC, perhaps we can get you to revisit Talking Heads?

Baby steps first. Let's go easy on the young man

 

[DennisMoore Jr.]

Baby steps first. Let's go easy on the young man

Well, well... its about time we got something witty out of you! :slap:

:brew

Regardless, my remediation or reclaimation will need to be metered out between my sessions of blasting Quadrophenia 5.1 this weekend.

 

[PK]

Regardless, my remediation or reclaimation will need to be metered out between my sessions of blasting Quadrophenia 5.1 this weekend.

Exactly. My advice would be to approach this recording like a cat, with indifference. In fact I would recommend against sitting in your sweet spot. Just let it play in the background. Let it come at you "sideways" as opposed to Quadrophenia which is a direct full body impact. If something catches your attention, then go in for a closer look see. Make us proud, you 5.1 soldier you

 

[rtbluray]

Alan White is another member of the band who sees the value in a "Tales" 5.1 mix:

What Yes album would you like to hear mixed in surround sound?
Alan White (drummer): Tales from Topographic Oceans (1974). I think that mix will be fantastic, because there’s a lot of interesting percussion on that album, along with quite a few different percussive overdubs — all this kind of crazy stuff Jon Anderson and I dreamed up in the studio. That one’s going to be something to hear.


Read more: http://www.digitaltrends.com/music/...th-get-closer-edge-hi-fi-sound/#ixzz35oI2wSMS
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[DennisMoore Jr.]

A fine gentleman. Thanks for the props.

The lesson is to always keep an open mind. Listen to new music and give old albums another try.

It was my pleasure. It is always a treat to encounter another kindrid spirit here and talk YES.

Aside from my ramblings on paper(or keyboard) I always try to keep an open mind. For my part though, I don't pick music, music picks me. Certain music gives me goosebumps of joy and other music gives me a headache, quite literally.

Hmm, you get to revisit "Tales" and I revisit the punk days of my youth of the late 1970's with XTC... I think in all fairness you are getting the fatter end of the stick. Regardless, a pal is lending me his XTC so I can check it out this weekend.

 

[rontoon]

Well I listened to Tales a few more times. A strong start and finish but the middle meanders. I miss Bruford on this one but King Crimson benefitted from his departure so I'm okay with that. My least favorite album from their classic period, mostly because the others are all so outstanding, but still looking forward to a 5.1 release.

I also listened to XTC's Nonesuch on YouTube yesterday but I guess they're just not my cup of tea. Never really got into them. Still don't.