The Best Yes Album

Between Going for the one and Close to the edge, I go with Going for the one, a more consistent piece of music.

I went with the cliché-but-nonetheless-correct answer of Close to the Edge. It's one where the epic neoclassical grandeur and catchy pop/rock sensibility are not just balanced just right but also come together with the fewest seams.

octopus-4 wrote: It's not better than any of the classicals, but I love this

My favourite! If its the best, I don't know, but its the Yes album I listen to the most.

CTTE, The Yes Album, Relayer, Fragile, Tales

Close to the Edge is definately their best song, but I'd have to say I like the Yes Album best.

I like a lot of the albums here, but I'll choose Close to the Edge.

Roj wrote: As GFTO includes the greatest piece of music ever (Awaken) that gets the vote.

I voted for GFTO, too (though I could just as easily vote for Relayer or Drama. Hearing "Awaken" on the Union tour was a treat.

ghost_of_morphy wrote: Roj wrote: I've never quite understood the raving about Fragile.  The "proper" tracks are largely fabulous but the solo pieces really spoil the flow for me, and the album just feels really bitty and could have been so much better.  Thank God for the skip button .As GFTO includes the greatest piece of music ever (Awaken) that gets the vote.  After that it'd probably be Tales then The Yes Album. What spoils Fragile for me is Heart of the Sunrise.  This has not aged well. Agreed on your assesment of GFTO.

I also think the "proper" tracks on Fragile are fabulous, but I just don't get the hate for the solo pieces. To begin with, they are rather short and don't really hurt the album so much. "We have Heaven" may be somewhat annoying at first listenings, but I have come to enjoy it, and it's a great introduction for "South Side of the Sky". The Bruford one indeed has just about nothing to enjoy, but come on, it's less than half a minute, that doesn't harm at all. The Fish thing I actually think that is great, and I don't quiet feel that "Long Distance Runaround" is complete without being together with it. "Mood for a Day" is also a very beautiful piece of music. And Wakeman's piece, well, that one I actually don't like so much, but it doesn't bother me either, and it's also rather short (though not as short as Bruford's one). Once I read that the song Wakeman had intended for his solo spot on this album was the one that ended up being "Catherine of Aragon", but there was something weird about the contracts with the discographic companies and he couldn't write anything for the band, or something like that... now, if only that had come to happen this album could have been truly flawless in my book.

Handle with care, it's FRAGILE!!!