THE YES ALBUM

Ah, The Yes Album, my wonderful first encounter with the world of Yes, is fittingly the first of my yes reviews. This album had an almost magical effect on me the first time I heard it, with fantastic ideas and lyrics, musical textures, and overall production. It still "grabs me" every time I listen...

"Yours Is No Disgrace" - A solid intro piece. Has fairly disjointed yet interesting lyrics, and until I read them, I had absolutely no idea that it was in fact about Vietnam.

"Clap" - What a wonderful acoustic solo! This was played live, and I much prefer it to the studio-version bonus track. It's definitely a difficult song, to say the least, and stands as one of the most impressive guitar pieces I have heard.

"Starship Trooper" - Cool bass line hook and entertaining segments throughout the song. Another classic.

"I've Seen All Good People" - An astonishing song with excellent lyrics that metaphorically relate life to a game of chess (in the first half, "Your Move"). The second half of the song "All Good People" has great instrumentation. Overall this stands among the best songs in Yes' catologue.

"A Venture" - Typically considered the "lost" gem of The Yes Album, a nice little song with an interesting story.

"Perpetual Change" - it seems like this song is very much overlooked, and is just as good as Yours is No Disgrace or Starship Trooper. Possibly my favorite song from this album (but just by a little) - A perfect closer to a masterpiece.