CLOSE TO THE EDGE

I know it's all been said before, but this really is the pinnacle. The title track in particular is pure prog perfection. Wakeman especially never sounded better, but the whole band excels both in terms of composition and performance.

I have heard it said that it was Eddie Offord who took the various pieces Yes were working on, and spliced them together to form the track we all now know so well as "Close to the edge". If that is true, it is time his vision was recognised properly. The structure of the track stand as an example, followed by many but never surpassed, of how to put together the ultimate prog epic.

"And you and I" is the only track worthy of following CTTE. The power here can be almost overwhelming. By the way, if you have yet to hear the Yessymphonic version, you should do so without delay.

"Siberian Khatru" rounds off the album superbly, being a slightly simpler up tempo number, but with a sting in the tail(fly?).

Anderson is at his most lyrically obscure here, the words being selected because of their sound rather than their meaning. In most cases, this might point to a potential lack of coherence, but in this case more simplistic lyrics would somehow seem trite and unworthy.

The expanded remaster includes the single version of Yes' interpretation of Simon and Garfunkel's "America", an alternative version of AYAI, a single(!) version of Total Mass retain (which sounds completely out of place on its own), and a studio run through of "Siberian Khatru".

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