Long-running bands ambitious adventurous debuts

"Beyond and Before" was written by Squire and Clive Bailey, former singer and guitarist in Mabel Greer's Toyshop, the rock band that was a precursor to Yes. The band would open their live shows with this tune, which features three-part harmonies. Years later, Banks was still unsure as to what the lyrics meant yet suggested they were "drug induced".^[7] Squire described it as "one of those acid rock kind of songs" with its psychedelic lyrics.^[11] "I See You" is a cover version of the original performed by American rock band the Byrds. Banks was disappointed with the version recorded for the album as he later recognized the mistakes on it. The instrumental section with the guitar solo was often stretched for several minutes when performed live, sometimes ending in Banks throwing his guitar in the air and banging it on stage.^[11] "Yesterday and Today" was one of the tracks recorded at Trident Studios and features Bruford playing the vibraphone, despite telling the band he can play the instrument and Banks remembering the drummer getting nervous when it came to recording.^[3][11] "Looking Around" remained one of Squire's favourite tracks on the album. When it came to recording it, the band had some difficulties with its pitching as they were unsure on what key the song was in.^[12]

"Harold Land" got its title from Bruford, who recalled someone asking out loud what the track should be called. "I remember somebody saying ... 'I want to write a song about a man called...' and I said, 'Harold Land' as I walked through the room".^[3] The song is named after Harold Land, an American tenor saxophonist, yet the song's lyrics deal with the effects of war on the named character.^[3] The album's second cover version is "Every Little Thing" by the Beatles. Squire did not realise how much he liked the band's version until he turned on the radio after performing at Madison Square Garden in New York City in 1984 and liked the instrumentation, failing to recognise it was the band's version being played until Anderson's voice was heard.^[12] "Sweetness" was the first song that Anderson and Squire collaborated on following their initial meeting. It is featured in the comedy drama film Buffalo '66 (1998), the first film with Vincent Gallo as director. "Survival" was a song that had contributions from the whole band, but it was not worked on fully due to the limited time they had to finish the album. It later became bothersome for Bruford due to its ecology-inspired lyrics and "drippy" melody.^[13]