GOING FOR THE ONE

Moraz out, Wakeman back in; Dean out, Hipgnosis now in. The TFTO line-up returns after one excellent album and a bunch of solo albums. I can never understand how Tormato gets such trashing but GFTO gets high praise. Same line-up, both recorded within two years of each other. I actually prefer Tormato. This album is the most mainstream sounding thing Yes had done since Time And A Word. Basically two good rockers which are not very proggy at all; two ballads that are neither very good nor very proggy; and one proggy epic that is good but not great.

The title track is good and catchy but not too proggy. Easily the best song on the album for me. Nice slide guitar from Howe. I don't really like the synth sounds in this song. Love the harmony vocals at the end. Anderson's vocal melody in "Turn Of The Century" is nice enough but nothing special. This song is way too New Age/Adult Contemporary for my tastes. Howe's electric guitar in the middle is the best part of the song. I like the pipe organ in "Parallels," another good catchy rocker but not as good as the title track. This is the only song where Squire's bass playing sticks out.

I absolutely hate "Wondrous Stories." I can't believe this song was a hit. An automatic 'skip' song to me. It's like the cheesy, wimpy younger brother of "Turn Of The Century." The final "Awaken" features some of the best moments on the album but is not as enjoyable as most of Yes' previous songs over 10 minutes long. Never liked the introduction. Gets really good during the "awaken, gentle, mass, touch" section. Stays good until the music stops around 6 1/2 minutes. Never really cared for the instrumental middle section. The last two minutes are just boring and lame, IMO.

This would have been better if the most Yes-like songs from the solo albums of Jon, Chris and Steve were used, along with the best parts of Wakeman's No Earthly Connection. The production isn't horrible but it isn't anything great either. Squire and White generally don't stand out too much. Don't understand all the love for this album. Good but not great. 3 stars.