Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I loved Relayer from the get-go, but Tales took me a little longer. I agree with Wakeman, that Tales was a great concept, but it just needed to be one album. I have a book about them in which Wakeman says that when they recorded Tales, it was too long for one LP album, but too short for two, so they lengthened some of the tunes. He said that if they'd done the album in the 1990s (when Wakeman was interviewed) they would've easily fit what they had on to one CD and that he thought that would've been better than what was actually released as a double LP. My two favorite Yes albums are The Yes Album and Relayer. That is, if I had to pick just two...

Ronn, the CD version of Fish Out of Water is pretty darn good too. South Side of the Sky is the first YES tune I heard that I really liked. And that was only because I had not heard the earlier stuff. In some ways the pre Yes Album stuff is better that post. The beginning of a musical style that IMHO rocks the foundation! One of the first Yes tunes I ever covered was Beyond and Before. It blew folks away. Two years ago for Christmas my kids got me The World is Live CD there are quite a few of the early days tunes on it. The only thing better than old Yes is old Yes live! As for Sound Chaser what can one say other than WOW – the whole thing is so in your face that the cha cha’s seem to fit.

CS seems to use chords quite bit. I have noticed that over the years of seeing them live, that bunches of his runs are chords being picked up and down the neck – the right hand doing most of the work.

I’m kind of in between on the effect on Steve and the RIC. CS definitely had his own thing going before hooking up with SH. But you can’t say the years together didn’t have some influence. I think a lot of his early sound was edged on by the RIC. But least we not forget – he put the round wounds on it… there was something being sought there and the 4001 seemed to be the vessel that provided it.

Wow... interesting about 'Tales...' I thought there were a lot of great themes on that album, but a lot of filler, too. I actually took it upon myself to make a project of editing the 'Tales...' songs into much shorter pieces. In particular 'The Remembering - High The Memory' contained so many themes that seemed like it could have been separated into two different songs - so that's what I did. I edited the themes into two songs, one 8 & 1/2 minutes long, and the other one about 6 minutes. Also, I shortened 'The Revealing Science Of God - Dance Of The Dawn' from 20 minutes down to 14. WOW! I must have had a lot of spare time back when I took on that project! Anyway, I did that for my own listening catharsis, but anyone else interested in hearing these butchered versions is welcome to hit me up.

Hi Mark consider me hitting - in a nice way...

The Gates of Delirium is pure magic IMHO – that was the first Yes show I saw live. The bass is just so amazing there. I feel it drives the piece – hovering between the background and foreground – it is the command of the musical image being painted – the drive to war, battle and the aftermath. And good ole Mr. Squire is there whacking us and stroking us as needed. I actually like the live versions I have heard of it being played. Anyone who has attempted to play this understands what pulling that off live means –

Cool, Tom. Pop me an address at my email and I'll send you a CD.

Yeah, I'm with you on 'TGOD' (T-GOD... how ironic!) My favorite version is off the 'Yesshows' album. They really hit an amazing peak in the writing of that piece AND the ability to pull it off live. Jon Anderson's delivery is particularly hard-hitting, too. He achieves some seldom heard grit in his voice.

I was pretty proud of myself for figuring out how to play 'Close To The Edge' in it's entirety, but 'TGOD' - haven't tried that yet. It would take some SERIOUS homework for me to get the count down in some of those passages, particularly the intro where he & Alan White match on the punches.

I remember when TFTO came out on vinyl and I listened to it for weeks. Blew me away. I have seen all 4 sides done live, The Ritual and The Remembering twice. Yeah, there is probably a little filler in there somewhere, but given the context of the theme they were trying to convey it all works for me.

Then Relayer came out and that live was a real great experience - during Soon, as Jon sang "Soon, oh soon the light", a green laser surrounded him in a cone of light from above, him being all in white, and it looked just so awesome. Gates of Delirium is perhaps my most favorite Yes song - my son and I used to drive around town with it blasting - he was all of 10 or 12 at the time.

SSOTS is a fun tune to play, one of two Yes songs I can actually get through.

Forgot to add in my above post about CS's early days - listen to his playing in Mabel Greer's Toyshop and you will hear him in all his glory. He had his style even back then. Syn is another source of early Chris.

Here's a shot I took last night, shows the FOOW poster I mentioned.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v383/iamthebassman/csnew.jpg

Just sitting back in the 'ole stuffed chair enjoying a couple of old friends -eh?

The poster is cool. Is the bass just for show or do you play it? Is it strung for left or right?, can't tell on my dinky screen.

I've been gigging with that bass since I bought it new in '91. One of only a very few CS lefties made. I play with the E string on the bottom.

HA! That's great, Ronn! I didn't know any lefty CS's were made. That's pretty amazing that you play left handed and upside-down.

I've got 'FOOW' on vinyl also. Some pretty amazing stuff there. Definitely my favorite out of the Yes member solo albums of that year.

Mark, it's an oft-told story here but, when I was in my senior year of high school(1976) I used to sneak out of my bedroom window at midnight, run about a mile down the road to a church, and crawl in a back window. They had a righty Fender Jazz and a Bassman. I used to play that Jazz upside-down(I'm a lefty) till around 4AM, run back home, sneak back into my room, and get a couple hours sleep before I had to get up for school. I did this for about 6 months till I had saved up some $$ from working after school washing dishes in a steak house, to buy my own bass. I was, by then, so used to playing with the E on bottom that I just kept doing it that way.

Now THAT'S a great story!

Ronn, Some old habits never need breaking. Great story! I'm glad that the bass is used. Personally I like instruments to be played. It looks like it's in great shape for being used since 91.

It is in good shape. Considering what I had to go thru to get it(another story I've told here several times)I try to take good care of it, but I do with all my basses. It has some discoloration at the strap button from the strap, and the chrome is worn off of one of the horseshoes, which you can kinda see in this photo.