Where to begin?

[JakeK]

I've been wanting to discover YES for a good while now, and I don't know which album to begin at. I know the songs "Roundabout", "I've Seen All Good People" and "Fish Out Of Water". Thazzit.

I want to start at The Ultimate Yes, but I know there are a few YES heads here, who could point me in the right direction.

[deaconblues]

Fragile.

[jps]

The Yes Album. Then work backwards (both Time And A Word, and Yes) to gain a bit of historical perspective, then on to Close To The Edge, for starters.

Homework paper due in one week!

[woodyng]

Or you could just dive into the deep end of the pool with Relayer!

But seriously,The Yes Album is indeed a great place to start!

[johnallg]

I agree with the posts so far. At some point before the earlier albums though, listen to the song Awaken, from Going For The One.

Also, and I might be alone on this, Talk is well worth the time. Good headphones a must with Yes.

Okay, I couldn't wait for you.....

[aceonbass]

Awaken is one of my top 5 favorite YES songs, right up there with Close To the Edge. I look forward to seeing Yes playing this along with the rest of the Going For the One album next month when they come to Kansas City. Being a fan of the energy inherent in live recordings, I think Yessongs would also be a good place to start also. It was also the second Yes album I ever heard right after The Yes Album. Jake, if you like this band at all, you've got to see them on this tour as they're playing The Yes Album, Close To the Edge, and Going for the One in their entirety. As old as these guys are getting, you may never get a chance to see them again, certainly not some of the excellent material on these albums.

[jps]

This is one of my favorite Yes pieces.



A few years ago I started learning this song, Steve's acoustic guitar part. I really need to get back to working on it.

This is the first video I recall seeing where Chris plays his extended range Tobias.

[johnallg]

That is 30 years after first releasing it!

[kiramdear]

Every album up to and including Relayer, starting with Fragile.

[ajish4]

+1 Kira,

Don't miss CLOSE TO THE EDGE.

MY personal favorites are Tales From Topographic Oceans & Relayer.

[ram]

I think I'd start with Yes Songs... then expand backwards and forwards (time in a word, relayer, Yes (not The Yes Album), Going for the One, Tales of Topographical Oceans).... then while digesting these you can fill in the blanks... youtube has hundreds if not thousands of Yes offerings... get a Discography and you can sample some tunes from the different albums. This would be a good start.

whoops almost forgot - don't forget the solo projects - Olias of Sunhilo and Fish Out of Water come to mind....

[ajish4]

whoops almost forgot - don't forget the solo projects - Olias of Sunhilo and Fish Out of Water come to mind....

I was thinking along the same line Tom, but didn't want to overload him. In that case I will throw in my 2 cents. As for Solo's, don't forget Rick Wakeman's CRIMINAL RECORD. Side 1 will send chills down your back!
Chris, IMHO, does some of his best work with Alan on this recording.

I can't recommend this one enough!

[DriftSpace]

Every album up to and including Relayer, starting with Fragile.

This is right on the money; it's the only proper introduction to Yes, and these albums are them at their best and most creative.

Don't miss CLOSE TO THE EDGE.

MY personal favorites are Tales From Topographic Oceans & Relayer.

Close to the Edge is my personal favorite Yes album, with Relayer and Fragile tied for second. I'm partial to the Bruford incarnation of most projects, but Relayer is pretty damn awesome; I like it so much I've got a Roger Dean signed print of the album cover hanging in my living room.

[johnallg]

+1 Kira,

Don't miss CLOSE TO THE EDGE.

MY personal favorites are Tales From Topographic Oceans & Relayer.

OOooooooo! Yeah! I just listened to The Ancient on my walk today. Full sun and full pleasure.

Jake, let us know what you think of Gates of Delirium (GOD) when you get to it.

[jps]

...Relayer is pretty damn awesome; I like it so much I've got a Roger Dean signed print of the album cover hanging in my living room.

My LP cover of Relayer has some special signatures on it.