ESQUIRE

if 80s hi tech rock is your bag, here's a long forgotten gem ? well, it would be such if people had heard the bloody thing in the first place, which, alas, was not really the case despite the hype that apparently surrounded this release at the time (1987). what a surprisingly good album with some delightful and refreshingly un-dumb songwriting ? not a given at that point in time! ESQUiRE were centered around vocalist nikki squire, who at the time was married to YES bass player chris squire and, indeed, the entire affair sports quite a few YES (1980s version) traits ? hubby chris contributes some deft bass lines and backing vocals in his customary fashion, trevor horn acts as executive producer, there is some drumming by YES stalwart alan white and even nikki comes across as a bearable version of jon anderson minus the space cadet mannerisms... some things may seem a bit overwrought to these ears (nikki's phrasing in "knock twice for heaven" is hilarious) but the songwriting is stellar and the production is as smooth as glass (as expected with trevor horn twiddling the knobs). essential listening if you feel like wearing your shoulder padded blazer of yore and growing a nice mullet again... however, best played before some rough and ready grunge/garage/indie rock to avoid constipation ...

Ear candy prog?

Looking at the name you would guess straight that this band is something to do with Yes' Chris Squire and...you bet! It's basically the band of two: Nikki Squire (now ex wife of Chris Squire) as lead vocal and Nigel McLaren (bass) with collaboration from well known musicians on top of Chris Squire: Alan White (Yes) and Pat Thrall (Asia). The music is quite straightforward and easy to digest. The opening track "To the Rescue" is catchy and reminds me to the voice of Jon Anderson (Yes) especially during the Big Generator album. The music flows nicely from start to end. The second track "Sunshine" is another good follow-up from the opening. The other song that is quite good terms of melody and flow is 'Up Down Turnaround'. I guess most of you like music can enjoy this album quite well. The interlude part features good guitar solo combined nicely with keyboard work. You might say that the way Nikki sings is somewhat similar with the way Jon sings.

The melody of all songs contained here is quite good and makes it easy for everyone to repeat. Look at the example of 'Hourglass' (6th track) that reminds you to the Yes' "Onward". The composition is quite good with managed changes from one piece to another. The overall style of the music for each track is quite uniform and it makes the music is quite cohesive. The sonic quality is excellent. Overall, I think this is a very good album and very enjoyable. Keep on proggin' ..!

Peace on earth and mercy mild - GW

Talent Runs in the Squire Family

In the 80s I became a fan of Esquire before I even knew much about its mothership, Yes. I knew nothing of the involvement of Alan White, Chris Squire or his talented (former) wife, Nikki. All I knew what that the sound of vocal harmonies, rich synthesizers and memorable choruses made me an immediate fan. This music is heavily layered, and a real treat to decrypt when listening.

The lyrics, like most in the Yes family of music, are nonsensical, and even quite silly at times - such that I usually feel ridiculous as I sing them to myself. But the lyrics aren't what makes this a good album.

While Nikki Squire takes credit for most of what's on the album, Chris Squire's influence (as well as his backing vocals) is prominent and indisputable. What's also significant is that this is surprisingly much less progressive than the Yes music of just a few years earlier. Songs fall within the 3-5 minute range, solo performances are all but absent and there's never any sort of story to be told here. Dynamically, each song carries a distinct individual melody and arrangement, but all songs are closely aligned with one another and don't deviate much from the established sound.

So from a prog perspective, this album falls a little flat. But that doesn't diminish the solid sound and performances of all involved.

Highlights include the rousing "To the Rescue," "Up, Down, Turnaround" and "Hourglass."

Given that this rock isn't all that progressive, I penalize it by one star. But it's good enough to be given at least three of them.

Up, down, turnaround

Esquire is a band led by Chris Squire's wife (at the time) Nikki Squire and is of some interest to fans of Yes because of the contributions of Chris Squire on backing vocals and bass. Chris is also credited as co-producer of the opening track To The Rescue while Trevor Horn is credited for the mix. Also, Alan White is one of several drummers credited on the album (though unclear on which tracks he plays). Yet, any similarities with the music of Yes are superficial as Esquire is primarily a Pop group and not a progressive Rock band. However, imagine an emasculated version of 90125-era Yes or Asia without any muscular guitars and you might get an idea. Perhaps The Buggles is a better comparison.

There is some merit to some of these songs, but in the end each song sounds too similar to the previous one and it is hard to maintain interest to the end of the album. Ultimately, Esquire is just a curiosity for devoted Yes fans.

I can see why it's hard for many prog fans to consider this group's debut to qualify as "progressive rock." The songs are relatively short and are structured like late-80s pop/rock; there's a fair amount of programming (including some stuttering samples), and the band and LP seems to have been aimed more at the MTV / singles market than the album market. It's more like prog-pop.

However, I will say, without hyperbole, that this is prog-pop at its finest. Lots of hooks, an odd time signature here and there, good guitar playing and very inventive (and blatantly Squire-influenced) bass playing and composition. I like Nikki Squire's voice, but it was quite different from the norm in 1987, and I suppose that must have been part of the reason that the singles never charted (in the US anyway).

The strongest tracks are the poppy "Moving Together" and "To the Rescue," and the more introspective "Blossomtime," which at 6:43 is easily the longest song here. The Yes influences are clear but in no way pervasive. The middle section of "Up Down Turnaround" would've fit well on Big Generator - - in fact, the melody and guitar playing are positively Rabinesque. Trevor Horn and Alan White participated on one or two songs, and Chris Squire sings backup here and there - - to great effect, imho. Only at the very end of the album, on the coda of "What You've Been Saying," does he sing without his wife.

In all, a great pop album with progressive influences. I consider it part of a complete collection of prog albums insofar as it is an exemplar of a sub-subgenre (i.e., progressive pop) - - even if it's a less popular sub-subgenre.