ANDERSON BRUFORD WAKEMAN HOWE

This album is superb. I'm sure there must be some reason why they did'nt just call themselves 'Yes' on this outing - whatever the reason its far more interesting than some Yes-product (mainly Drama and Big Generator). The opening track 'Themes' is complex and interesting and leads into 'Fist of Fire' which has an excellent bass and drum backbeat and some excellent synth-work. Anderson's vocals are strong and as good as at any time in the Yes-years. 'Birthright' has touches of Led Zep and Dire Straits about it,bizarre I know,but check it for yourself. Its a fantastic song. Throughout the album, the quality of the instrumentation is second to none. 'Teakbois' is the only weak effort in my opinion, it could be the song of the next Caribbean bid for the Olympic Games (skip this track!!). The last song 'Let's Pretend' is a touching Anderson-ballad and acceptable for all that.