ANDERSON BRUFORD WAKEMAN HOWE

Singer Jon Anderson left the band in 1988, tired of tension with co-founder bassist Chris Squire, and power moves by guitarist Trevor Rabin. Rabin, while the newest member of Yes, was determined to seize control of the band, intent on spending the "political capital" he earned being the main writer of the 1983 #1 comeback hit, "Owner of a Lonely Heart."

Anderson then recruited three former Yes cohorts to join him, reuniting 4/5 of the classic Yes line-up that recorded such early 70s milestones as "Fragile" and "Close to the Edge." He even tried to take back the Yes name, but this was blocked by Squire, the hold-out 1/5 of the classic line-up.

Thus Anderson's rival Yes was forced to trade under the band members' names, "Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe." Their first and only album, a Yes album in all but name, is a very good, but not perfect, return to Yes' early 70s glory years.

On the plus side, while 80s Yes produced music with standard pop structure and length, ABWH returns to the template of 70s Yessongs. A number of tracks are mini-epics, up to 10 minutes in length. Further, they're adventurous and divided into different movements - you never know what's going to happen next.

Anderson's lyrics are once again mystical and spiritual. Finally, the expert guitar work of Steve Howe and prodigal keywords of Rick Wakeman bring back expert musicianship with a force.

On the downside, Squire's presence is sorely lacking. Many consider him the greatest and most innovative bassist ever, and while Tony Levin is an excellent replacement, he's no Chris Squire. Also, Anderson's vocals are sometimes shrill without Squire's great backing vocals to anchor them. Finally, Squire is a determined perfectionist, sort of a quality control expert; he could have focused the album into a classic.

There are five great songs on the album: three groups efforts and two quasi- duets. "Quartet" is the best of the group songs, a magical, serendipitous journey, which opens with acoustic guitar and climaxes in a heavenly orchestral swirl. Reminiscent of the Yes classic "And You and I," it easily sits along the band's all-time best.

"Brother of Mine" is a solid, muscular prog excursion, with expert musicianship and multiple segments. The opening track "Themes" is exciting and adventurous; the four Yes men are having fun experimenting with musical variations.

The piano-drive "The Meeting" is delightful and etheral, while the acoustic guitar/vocal "Let's Pretend" is pure brief, magic, floating like a butterfly in summer.

The remaining four tracks are mixed. Certainly the worst track on the album is heavy- handed, ugly "Fist of Fire." Thankfully it's short. "Birthright" is a leftover from Howe's mediocre GTR band, and should have stayed as such. "Teakbois" is ok, but do we really need calypso from Yes?

It's a shame Squire wasn't part of ABWH. ABWH could have been called Yes, and with his input, the album could have joined the all -time Yes classics of the '71-'77 era. Nonetheless, it's a very solid album of progressive rock, and well worth adding to your collection.

Share this ANDERSON - BRUFORD - WAKEMAN - HOWE review

Social review comments () BETA

---

---

Review related links

• Send comments to
• Report this review (#26613)
• Buy ANDERSON - BRUFORD - WAKEMAN - HOWE music online with PA partners
• Show all ANDERSON - BRUFORD - WAKEMAN - HOWE MP3/Stream
• Go to ANDERSON - BRUFORD - WAKEMAN - HOWE page for videos, full discography with ratings, reviews and much more
• Go to Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe page for more details, where to buy and ratings/reviews
• Search the Forum for ANDERSON - BRUFORD - WAKEMAN - HOWE related discussions