DRAMA

Hugely underrated album. The Buggles boys do a good job in impossible circumstances. Who was ever going to win trying to follow Jon Anderson? Good prog stuff here and recaptured a bit of the very early sound of Yes.

Yes from the Buggles era. Great production, very good compositions - heavier than usual. Lacking Anderson's lyrics and voice, but the sound is still Yes to my mind. Best tracks: Tempus Fugit, Into the Lens and Machine Messiah.

I can imagine the fact Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman are absent on this album that people just decided they weren't going to like it, it'd be interesting to wonder if that'd be the same had it been released under the name "The Buggles". Steve Howes guitar is distorted and lot more hard edged throughout and the drums are more upfront. This is how i wished Yes had been throughout the eighties, its a natural progression, this album is great, tons better than Tormato.

Forget everything you've heard, and forget who you think "is Yes" and whether or not you think Yes can still "be Yes" without Jon Anderson. The answer to such questions, of course, is that CHRIS SQUIRE is Yes and that as long as he is in the band, it sure as hell is still Yes! This is not simply "a good album considering the circumstances" (Jon's absence), this is one of the best albums they ever made, and that's not something this die-hard Yes fan would say lightly. After Tormato, the boys seem almost unchained by Jon's absence (to say nothing of Rick), and proceed to unleash one of the most bone-crunchingly progressive albums in their catalog, and without a doubt the best album of 1980. MACHINE MESSIAH manages to redeem "tunes" like Circus of Heaven (Tormato) by being as shamelessly aggressive as Circus was twee, and Chris and Steve's instrumental display throughout the whole album is simply mindblowing. Chris's amped-up basslines dominate the music to a degree not seen since the FRAGILE days (we even get a bass solo!), and Steve's guitars sweep and soar with a metallic edge that is unique unto this album only. In fact, this album gets my vote along with RELAYER for being the most splendorous showcase for Steve Howe's incomparable talent. If you have any doubts as to the progressive nature of this album (1980 remember), just throw on "Into The Lense" and listen to the hyper-rhythmic accuracy of the opening arrangement, and doubt no more. One of my favorite Yes albums.

This must have coem as a real suprise to people - In both a good and bad way. However, Yes hadn't sounded this fresh and tight since the Yes album. It's a great thumping, rocking record. For those who morn the loss of Anderson, perhaps seek out the 'ungodly' Yes Paris recording of 1979, and ask yourself what would you rather have?!

I used to hear this album belting out of my brothers bedroom when I was a kid and never realised that Trevor Horn (who is one of my main musical hero's) was behind it. I recently discovered it again the other day after my brother asked me to download some old Yes tracks.. In 2004 this album still sounds fresh and kicks ass. I'm not a guitar lover, but really admire how these tracks were put together. They have and will stand the test of time.

Not as bad as most Yes purist would have you believe (as for those purist Yes without Jon is No ) . But the Buggles was quite a shock too for me, and the videos as MTV was starting, but this album is now remindiing me of some of those albums in the 90's and is certasinly better than Talk or Eyes. It is clear that the delicate harmonies that Anderson has acustomed us to were notthere anymore andthe group was more technical. This will never be my fave but thjey have made a lot worse from 81 until 95.

This was Chris Squire's unique opportunity to step up and be the band's frontsman. I had never heard an album built around a bass player, well this is it!. Music made around great bass lines, riffs, distortions, not heard since "The Fish". Absotlutly a must have. This album is also a proof that great bands are made by their individual talents. There's no way Yes will decline due to the absence of one or two members.

This is one of my favorite Yes albums. The bass line to Tempus Fugit is killer. Machine Messiah is a highlight as well. Steve Howe played some brilliant parts and Alan White's Drumming is powerful. The new approach on keyboards by Geoffery Downes brought Yes into new uncharted territory.

Many people I know don't like this one, but I think Is a really good album, specially if we remember that on those days all you cold hear was Disco music, and Rock bands turning pop. There's Genesis as an example (and the later Yes do).

Machine Messiah is the piece I like best since Relayer and is a good mix of symphonic and metal prog. I remember reading an interview with Steve, where he tells us that he, Chris and Allan wanted to do something far from the honey dripping ideas Jon had in mind, and that's why they came with this and I really thank them for the change. It's a shame that during the 80's they couldn't repeat, 90125, Big Generator and of course Tormato are rubish.

The one without Jon Anderson!

For me "Drama" is one of the stronger Yes albums. The sound is very sharp, with Chris Squire very much to the fore. The Buggles influence is not that apparent, in fact it is interesting to hear the Buggles track "I am a camera" and compare it to "Into the lens", the Yes interpretation of that track. While the two are recognisable as being the same song, the electro-pop of the Buggles is transformed into a decent slice of prog.

"Tempus Fugit" is superb, the song would have fitted in well on "Fragile" or "The Yes album". This track could almost be described as the Yes theme tune (in a "hey hey we're the Monkees" sort of way!), with the anthem chorus lyrics ". . .answers to YES". The long "Machine Messiah" is an excellent piece of prog, in the true traditions of the band. Had Anderson and Wakeman appeared on tracks such as this, I am convinced those songs would have had a much higher profile in the band's history.

Indeed, If this version of the band made a couple more albums, they could well have gelled into an excellent unit. That said, it was good to see Anderson and Wakeman (the latter eventually!) return.

The expanded remaster includes no less than 10 extra tracks, 8 of which are "previously unissued".

Absence of Jon Anderson didn't influence bad, this album is very good high quality prog rock. Machine Messiah and Does It Really Happen? are excellent, just have to listen to this stuff , it's amazing how band appears to remember early 70's feeling.

Jon-less Yes!!! Oh no!!! But DRAMA works! Despite being very much of its time, this album is strong throughout, and Chris Squire contributes some of his best-ever work to a Yes LP. Trevor Horn's Anderson impersonation is good without being overly-obvious, fellow Buggle Geoff Downes may not be a Wakeman, but he's certainly very good; Mr White's drums are, as always, exemplary; and the great Mr Howe is on top form. Amazing that, in 1980, Yes were still producing lengthy songs like MACHINE MESSIAH and INTO THE LENS, but good as well. An unusual mixture of the commercial and the eccentric, and tragically-underrated.

If you listen to the album without prejudice, you'll have to admit Drama is a very good progressive rock album even without the distinctive voice of Jon Anderson. Jon and Rick Wakeman left in 1979. Chris Squire, Steve Howe and Alan White recruited Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes as a permanent replacement. This duo was formerly known as The Buggles who entered the charts in 1979 with the massive hit "Video killed the radio star". Fans were worried when the message came in this was the new Yes. They proved to be wrong. I consider Drama as one of the better Yes records, I like it a lot more than Tormato, which lacks the power of this album. From the first sounds of album opener " Machine Messiah" it is clear that the music on this album has a lot more rhythm and heavy guitar chords. The whole album is dominated by the excellent melodic guitar parts of Steve Howe, who shines like a star like he never did on any other Yes album. Maybe some bits refer to the Yes album which can't be a coincidence as it was the first album where Howe played on. But it wouldn't be fair to make comparisons to other Yes releases cause the album really is one of a kind. Maybe it's too bad Yes didn't do another album with this line-up. There's also some pop-influence, especially on "run through the light" which reminds me a bit of the sound of the Police (!). One can hear that most of the songs are based on the bass lines of Chris Squire, being the only founding member of Yes in 1980. But this is no bad thing, it works ands gives the album more power. The keyboards of Geoff Downes seems to fit Yes perfectly, he even enriches the Yes sound with a great atmosphere and new sounds which Wakeman wouldn't use. Trevor Horn tries carefully to imitate Jon Anderson, assisted by the voices of Chris and Steve, sometimes it sounds as Jon, sometimes it doesn't but it isn't a problem as it is still quite enjoyable if you consider this as being a different band. The tracklisting doesn't have a weak spot with most of the songs being quite long. Listening to Drama you can hear the signs of the future of some of the members as it refers to Asia, the next band of Downes and Howe and the next (90125) version of Yes.

The remaster version contains a lot of information, photo's and 10 extra tracks. You'll find two single versions of "Into the lens" and "Run through the light". The first, being a shorter version of the original, the second being an interesting accessible version of the original with different sounds and mixing. Then we have some leftovers of 1979 with Anderson and Wakeman still in the band. Songs which I will not play very often as you can hear it's not nearly finished and uninspired. Most interesting is a Yes version of "Some are born", this would end up later on Jon's second solo album "Song of Seven". You'll also find 3 unfinished tracks with only Steve, Chris and Alan in the line-up. This must have been recorded in the period of time before the Buggles showed up. It's just some instrumental jamming, not worthwhile of checking out.

With Geoff Downes on keyboards and Steve Howe on guitars, one may think this record of the early 80's must sound like the early ASIA albums. Actually, not very much, partly because of the presence of other musicians: Chris Squire on bass & vocals, Alan White on drums and Trevorn horn on vocals. Actually, the tracks are much more progressive than the ones on the ASIA albums. Plus, Downes' keyboards are quite more melodic & rythmic and less floating than his parts made with Asia. Plus, Squire's bass is much more complex and elaborated than Wetton with Asia. The absence of Jon Anderson here is not a negative point, because Squire and Horn produce EXCELLENT lead & backing vocals. After the little convincing "Tormato", it was the time for a change to be made: Wakeman and Anderson's departure allowed to give a completely different sound to Yes, more progressive, and usually it is appreciated in the prog community. The tender & sentimental "Man in a White Car" track is very cute, rather having a symphonic New Age style, your girlfriend should like it! The epic & progressive "Machine Messiah" is very impressive too with its miscellaneous themes involved. Actually all the tracks are at least very good.

My raing: 4.5/5

The loss of RICK WAKEMAN was sustainable, but could YES survive without founding vocalist JON ANDERSON? The decision to replace the veterans with then-minor leaguers GEOFF DOWNES and TREVOR HORN (aka THE BUGGLES) hardly boded well, but "Drama" turned out to be a better album than "Tormato". (Okay, so that was a pretty low bar to clear.) The quintet returns to the aggressive sound of "Going For The One", with CHRIS SQUIRE and ALAN WHITE in particular providing driving rhythms that were not coincidentally conducive to filling spacious arenas. STEVE HOVE, audibly absent on YES' last album, conjurs up enough of his patented guitar magic to please his supporters, while GEOFF DOWNES does a remarkably good job of filling in the arrangements with an array of sounds. TREVOR HORN, asked to fill the biggest shoes of all, does a pretty fair job of emulating Anderson's airiness (albeit by way of Sting). The arrangements don't always support the epic running times, but there are some fine moments on here: "Run Through the Light", "Into the Lens" and "Does It Really Happen?" would have felt at home on "Going For The One". The material does sound affected on occasion (usually when HORN is allowed to take the spotlight), and "Machine Messiah" reveals some confusion over which direction to take: to embrace the portentous rock exemplified by PINK FLOYD's "The Wall" or incorporate new wave and hard rock elements like THE WHO? Critics are likely to note the concessions to contemporary music that "Drama" makes, but it stays true to the band's history, whether it's the self-referential plug in "Tempus Fugit" or the decision to continue with ANDERSON's imagist lyrics. Though it can be viewed as a last gasp or a last hurrah, "Drama" gives the remaining trio a chance to flash their chops one more time. It effectively ends one chapter, and marks the beginning of another... ASIA.

Right I am a huge Yes fan and also a big Anderson fan so when this came out excluding JO I was immediately sceptical. I have to say though that it is a formidable contribution to the Yes catalogue and rocks from Machine Messiah right through to Tempus Fugit. Trevor Horn's vocals are perfect and I only wish they had more time for a couple more studio albums before JO realized the error of his ways and humbly returned to the Yes fold. Into the Lens for me being the highpoint, and to think Trevor Horn went on from here to produce some excellent work with Seal and Frankie Goes to Hollywood.A greay piece of work and best played very loud in the car or at home with no interruptions. I also want to say it is very difficult for most of us to give zero ratings in a genre of music that stands well above other music themes. 4 stars is an accurate assessment!

The first time I listen to this album, I didn't really care much for it. But now, after listening to it again, I think it is one of their best albums ever! It's refreshing to hear someone other than Anderson sing the lead vocals. Most people do not care for this album. It should not be overlooked.

The best track is "Does It Really Happen?". I love Downes' keyboard work and Squire's bass solo at the end. The feeling of the song makes you want to dance.

Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman were kicked out of Yes for being unable to come up with ostentatious parts for more outlandish and pompous Yes suites. This sounds rather unbelievable as Anderson was a key figure and an important member of Yes, and Wakeman had seen the band enter a new era and saw them through their, by that point at least, most successful period, broadening their sound which made Fragile and Closer To The Edge classic Yes albums. Geoff Downes and Trevor Horn, (the man with the big goggles) from Buggles were drafted in as replacements oddly enough. Buggles had a massive hit with their futuristic sound, at least futuristic where the late seventies was concerned I should add. They had a huge hit with a track called "Video Killed The Radio Star" which is actually one of my earliest musically memories oddly enough. I have never actually liked the song but have a rather odd fascination with it to some extent.

Drama was the album that emerged from that short lived collaboration. Maybe it would have been better to have released it under a different name rather than the Yes moniker. Yeggles perhaps. At first listening to Horns vocals I thought he sounded just like Anderson, but after a while there is very little comparison but that high pitch was enough and I guess I was looking for that certain squeal made famous by Anderson. Vocally Horn is not as acrobatic and lyrically not as vivid. Though the songs are interesting. "Machine Messiah" has a big riff from Howe and it's not a bad song, but it takes some patience from the passive Yes fan-like myself-to tolerate. Horn's vocals and lyrics have an insular quality to me and while I can float around while listening to Jon Anderson era Yes much of the songs of Drama are very lyrically odd and an obtuse quality while dark and edge ridden. "Man In A White Car" musically sounds like an '80's late at night low budget [&*!#]ty cop show feel about it which is only made interesting by the vocal and lyric, though it is a very short song and I'm unsure if this is a good thing. "Into The Lens" is a ridged affair with a mantra of "... I am a camera, camera camera..." what ever the [%*!#] that means and to be honest I'm not too concerned as from this point on the album tends to dip for me and all concentration fades and fails. But I have to single out Squire's bass playing which is arguably the strongest and most cohesive part of Drama and kept me alert throughout the duller parts.

And while not a complete disaster of an album I feel that Drama is definitely an album for the hardcore fans. It's a diversion from the previous Yes work but maybe an indicator and platform for future work and the addition of Trevor Rabin and the more focused if again experimental 90125 album of 1983. Was it a mistake to exclude Anderson and Wakeman from what would have been a more Yes ish album? While musically this album is more experimental and more heavy guitar wise I fail to see what Anderson and Wakeman did that so poor as not have been involved in this one. The songs are good to an extent but not all together incredible and certainly not as strong of memorable as earlier Yes work, yet more time would have been helpful as I sense a distractive element in the recording and little cohesion in the music of the five musicians. White's drumming is almost invisible to me. Like dumping your longtime girlfriend, meeting someone else but your heart is not quite in it and you know it's inevitable that you will go back regardless is a way to describe this departure from more "traditional" sounding Yes. A curious album.

The greatest thing on this record is that Trevor Horn's voice has a little similarity with Jon's one...Just imagine Geddy Lee singing Yes' music (ugh). So it would be assumed that Anderson was ever present though he was on his Vangelis adventure by those years. The record has some looses like the obvious not presence of Anderson and Wakeman, but it has some strenghts like the bass work made by Squire, it's maybe his best bass work by that time, something that you reviewers had noticed and praised in your comments. I don't feel is an excellent album as some of you guys wrote, but is a pretty good production, and for me the stuff is 50-50. Machine Messiah, Does It Really Happen? and Tempus Fugit their best songs

No. I'm sorry to all the people who like this album, this to me is not Yes. Trevor Horn is a brutal vocalist as a follow up to Jon Anderson. Some interesting recorded experiments here and that is all. The only songs I could listen to completely were "Does it really happen?" and "Tempus Fugit". They still sound too popped up for my liking. And what the hell is this "I am a camera, camera, camera" crap. Horn needs vocal support from the other band members when singing in order to sound good. All of his solo vocal leads are weak. The rest of the musicians cannot save this one for me unfortunately (I like Geoff Downes actually). I would pass on this one if you are an "Anderson Yes fan". I have enjoyed all of Yes's recordings over the years with the exception of this album and Magnification (they need Wakeman or Kaye back). Go listen to something else ;-)

WHY THE HELL SUCH A MIX OF MUSICIANS ??? It's Un-understandable ... I'm not especially a fan of Jon Anderson, the musical parts are often my favorite ones in a song, but after listening, I understand how Anderson is the most important guy of the band! The worst is to imagine the band on stage with the clear limits of the vocalist. Inimaginable for a YES fan, no??? I could hear several bootlegs from Drama Tour recently, and I was sadly right. No song was correctly sung for me, Horn always forcing to imit Anderson, the band singing to sustain him, te result is a disaster, even on Drama's song. I just vane one song, And you and I, correctly sung. So maybe there are good moments, Does it really happen or Tempus Fugit (a resurrecting song from Tormato's demos), but I will easier consider that AWBH is a YES album than Drama.

What's not to like about this strong album? Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes fill in admirably for Anderson and Wakeman. Highlights are the powerful "Machine Messiah" and the vastly underrated "Into the Lens" (or as my daughter calls it, "I Am a Camera.") Steve Howe is a wizard on Messiah, while the powerful Chris Squire and Alan White are firmly at the controls throughout the ride on this LP/CD/whatever. My first-ever show of any kind was the Yes "Drama" tour in 1980, and as I recall, the gig opened with the kick-ass "Does It Really Happen." Of course it's not "Fragile," "Close to the Edge" or "Tales," but I consider Drama a must have for any Yes fan. As long as Howe, Squire and White are present, Yes will dominate.

I thought that YES would die without a unique voice quality of Jon ANDERSON and punchy keys style of Rick WAKEMAN. But when I remember that Wakeman was out during The Relayer album, my next question was: "Would YES be able to create another seminal work without Anderson?". GHuszzhh .. I was wrong! This album was indeed an excellent one! Yes, it was much more rocking with upbeat tempo if we compare to "Close to the Edge" even. This album had made my adrenalin exploding when I first listened to "Machine Messiah" as opening track. What a great track this one is! It has all requirements of a rock tune plus heavy prog elements: dazzling bass guitar play, stunning guitar work, fascinating keys by Geoff Downes and excellent vocal line by Trevor Horn. Listening to this track reminds me to old album of YES such as "Fragile". Even thoug this track is really different with any other classic Yes stuff, but I can smell the nuances of classic YES music. It has a dynamic and changing tempos in a well structured composition. I don't see any problem with Trevor Horn's voice at all. He's a great vocalist!

"White Car" is not an interesting track if it is listened to as a stand alone track. But, when it's combined with the next track "Does It Really Happen", I can see a perfect blend. I think this these two tracks must be enjoyed as one. It's like listening to Genesis "Horizon" - "Supper's Ready" whereby it's unusual to split these two united songs. But, don't get me wrong . "Does It Really Happen" is not an epic track like "Supper's Ready". It is an uplifting track in a rock scene, with some poppy beat. But it's interesting as at that time I had never found YES played this kind of music. Remember, this was the time long before "90125" when Trevor Rabin replaced Steve Howe.

"Into the Lens" is probably a good track to introduce someone new to prog or new to YES music. It has a relatively simple structure, nice melody and close proximity with typical pop music. I observe that the bass playing is great by Squire. It seems not only this track that Squire an important bass line: almost all tracks in this album have a dominant bass. It continues to 5th track with "Run Through the Light" with Trevor Horn voice is close to Anderson. I remember my colleague commented "this must be Jon Anderson" when I spin this CD. He was amazed that there is a singer that has a vocal style is similar with Anderson.

The concluding track " Tempus Fugit" is really uplifting and rocking! It has a high energy in term of melody as well as tempo. Observe the dazzling bass guitar play! Ouughhh ... wonderful man! I really like this relatively short track (by YES standard): "Run like an athlete and die like a dead beaten speed-freak / An answer to all of your answers to- YESSSS!!!".

Friends, don't ever believe your neighbor telling you that without ANDERSON and WAKEMAN, Yes is meaningless. This album proves it! Never hesitate to buy this album! Rating 4.25/5. Too naïve? Nope man, I mean it. GW, Indonesia.

Many fans of Yes have a problem with "Drama", because the man with the "golden-angel- voice" Jon Anderson, who made all 70's records from Yes to something very special, isn't on the phone. But Trevor Horn made a good job, the opening "Machine Messiah" is another classic track from Yes, which don't need to stay behind some Yes over-top epics from the 70's (well, it must stay behind, because Wakeman isn't on the keys). The other tracks can't hold this high level, but there are still some great moments to listen to and enjoy. Not really a must-have, but a good additon in the Yes-classic collection.

In mid 1980 I bought a Rock magazine, and among other things, it had a review of The Buggles` "The Age of Plastic" album. In the Radio I have listened to this song, and I liked it a bit. In the magazine I read that The Buggles were Geoff Downes and Trevor Horn. By late 1980, one friend told me that he had listened to the new Yes`s album called "Drama" and that Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman were not in the line-up. I saw the album in a record shop, I bought it and when I read the credits in the gatefold cover I was surprised that The Buggles were the new members of Yes. "Machine Messiah" is the best song of this album, with an inspired Steve Howe, one of the heaviest songs of the band. The band sounds very solid in all the songs, but for me the White/Howe/Squire trio is in very good shape, and they shine on this album. Geoff Downes`keyboards are simpler and more "modern" than Wakeman`s in those years, but Downes did a good job. Horn`s vocals are good, and in 1980 for me it wasn`t very important that Jon Anderson had left. It is a shame that Horn couldn`t reach in the following tour the high notes in songs sung by Anderson. He forced his voice in that tour, and by the end of that tour he was hoarse (as some concert reviews from that tour said, in the website "Forgotten Yesterdays"). It was until the year 2000 that I have listened to some live recordings from that tour, and it was clear for me that Horn couldn`t survive as Yes`lead singer. But in 1980 I considered him a good replacement. All the songs in this album are good, and Yes did a good job.

Update (11-June-2009): The new version of this album on CD released by Elektra / Rhino in 2004 has 10 Bonus Tracks, 8 of which were previously unissued. The 1994 remastered version sounds good, but this 2004 version sounds much better, with only one change in the song "Does It Really Happen?": there is a section of this song were the keyboards originally had a fade-in. In this 2004 version the fade in wasn`t included. The keyboards don`t start with a fade-in.

In the Bonus Tracks, they included the single versions of "Into the Lens (I am a Camera)" and "Run Through the Light". Both versions are a bit different from the original versions, not only in lenght. Also, there are some instrumental Demos recorded only by Squire, White and Howe which I think demonstrate how the band was trying to find a new style after Wakeman and Anderson left them. Both instrumental songs are simple and tending to a New Wave style. There are two "Tracking Session" versions of "Tempus Fugit" and "White Car", both a bit different than the released versions on the original album. And finally, the 2004 CD version includes songs recorded during the Paris Sessions done in late 1979 with Roy Thomas Baker as producer. Most of this songs are unfinished recordings, lacking in most cases the full line-up`s input, with Wakeman, Anderson and White being the only members full-time present. These songs really show why the "Tormato" line-up finally split after the Paris sessions. While the songs in "Drama" are heavier and more "modern Pop" in style, the songs from the Paris Sessions were more influenced by Anderson and Wakeman, tending more to a New Age / Prog / Pop style than to the New Wave style that the rest of the members of the band were searching as a more updated commercial sound for the eighties. The only exception is "Dancing Through the Light" which sounds like an earlier version of "Run Through the Light" but with a different structure and with a Dance / Pop style and with Anderson`s vocals sounding like sung using a vocoder.

Bottom Line: This is a heavier, somewhat darker, modernized version of the "more Rock/less Classical" compositional formula that the band used for much of THE YES ALBUM.

The softer folk leanings of Jon Anderson and the Baroque appoach of Rick Wakeman are replaced by in-your-face Squire bass and aggressive Howe lead guitar...with a touch of New Wave focus by virtue of the Buggles addition to the mix.

Don't compare this to CLOSE TO THE EDGE, though... because it's really not the same band. If this wasn't labelled as YES, it would probably be hailed as one of the greatest one-shot Prog Rock albums ever (with emphasis on the "Rock" part) !

4 stars on the Prog-ometer

5 stars on the Personal Taste Meter

I am compelled to write this review becase it suprised me so much when it came out sans Jon Anderson. It seemed to me the band was doomed an this was truly the beginning of the end. I loyally paid my hard earned seven dollars and twenty nine cents almost secure in the knowlege that it was going to turn out to be a dud like so many prog albums were in the late seventies and early eieghties. Horn and Downs had produced the disasterous Tormato which had truly began to convince me that Yes was a sinking ship. As everyone will know Downs and Horn were the musical components of the one hit wonder band The Buggles. However, Roger Dean was back in full form with his excellent cover art which seemed to alievieate some of my worries and soothe my doubts. When I threw this record on to the turntable I saw light. I heard Yes tighter and crisper than ever. Chris Squire was at the top of his game on bass . Listen to his underlying riff on Does It Really Happen and compare it to the almost identical riff on Ozzy Osbourne's No More Tears! One of the more powerful Yes albums. The playing is fast and precise. Put the two previous albums Toromato & Going For The One out of your mind while you listen to this work of art. I am not afraid to give this album five stars because it demonstrates how a band can bounce back with a controversial new lineup after two previous weak efforts.

Forget the line-up, forget Close to the edge, just listen : very good music, brilliant musicians that cuts through, (mixing is much better on this one than on most of the YES recordings of the 70es). Is it YES Music ? Steve HOWE is at his best, Squire is much involved than in previous records, Downes is efficient anf discreet (not absent). Maybe Horn is a little weak on stage ? Who cares today ? Not a masterpiece (Relayer...) but a very good one.

I think people who don't like this album are not really like progressive music. They try to argue about this album because of the lead vocalist but the progressive rock is much more than that. Drama has everything for progressive fans-best creative, future sound, excellent instrumental performance particularly Steve and Chris and the thing that most of the other Yes album don't have, best recorded. Machine Messiah is one of my favorite Yes song and Drama is easily among the top three album. I beg every Yes or progressive fans who don't like (or don't want to try) this album listen to it again without biased. If you spend enough time, you will agree with me.

This is a good album. It's a good album because it HAD to be a good album. With their two most famous members gone, and replaced by Geoff Downes and Trevor Horn from the much different musical world of The Buggles, the critics were preparing to give the band a mauling. Yes's backs were against the wall, but they came out fighting and it brought out the best in them. Chris Squire is on particularly good form, especially on "Tempus Fugit", and Geoff Downes shines on the metallic "Machine Messiah", whilst the closing section of "Does It Really Happen" is one of the best pieces of music Yes ever made. "White Car" however sounds like a bit of a filler, and Horn is simply not Anderson. Incidentally, the new re-release shows how the band fascinatingly carved the Prog epic "Into The Lens" into a credible pop single. It still went nowhere in the charts, though!

True Jon Anderson is not on the album, but all the things that make Yes what they are, are here! Steve Howes Powerful guitar playing the Keyboard wizardry(from Yes Newcomer Geff Downs) and Chris Squires powerful bass and background vocals! People tend to say the album is bad strictly due to the fact that Andersons Voice is absent and A new voice is on it. I still say it has the potency of Yes because of the musicianship and the other aspects that make YES the band they were. You can't accuse them of being not the band because of the lead vocalist!!! Case in point, Machine Messiah, That is a very Powrful song, ditto Can it Really happen. Don't know about anyone else, but I like this album. It's no Fragile or Close to the Edge, but I like it. At one point I thought it was better than Relayer!!!

I am perfectly capable of listening to this album without being prejudiced by the absence of Anderson and Wakemen. Just as I was able to give a fair shake to Genesis minus Peter Gabriel (although I much prefer the Gabriel era), I am also able to listen without bias to "DRAMA." Here's the real deal: this is better than "Tormato" which is the blackest mark on the career of YES (with the possible exception of "Union" and "Talk), but nowhere near the quality of "Close to The Edge," "Relayer," or the better moments of "Going For The One" (e.g., "Awaken"). There is a spiritual, sublime quality to YES's music that is missing on this album. The musicianship is efficient, but it never rises to the celestial plane of other YES releases. This is more along the lines of Kansas and Rush than YES, and, to my ears, that is not good enough from the band that gave us "Topographic Oceans" and other classics that took us on an adventure into the unknown. A laudable attempt...yes. Superior to the previous release...yes. A great YES album...no. I would prefer to give this album three stars but the designation "Collectors/fans only" is entirely appropriate for DRAMA. If you haven't got "The Yes Album, "Fragile," "Close to the Edge," "Topographic Oceans", "Relayer," or "Going for the One" buy those and don't get this until you've heard them. "Machine Messiah" and "Tempus Fugit" (a moderate radio hit at the time) are the best moments, here.

This is an album that produced some of the most stunningly beatiful music to ever come out of the Yes camp. They seemed to be on a creative rampage, aided by fresh ideas from two new members, who made important contributions to the album. The songs "Machine Messiah", "Tempus Fugit" and "Camera Camera" are some of the best tracks Yes ever recorded, and are superb specimens of symphonic progressive rock, showcasing incredible imagination, compositional skills and dazzling instrumental acrobatics. There is a certain freshness and a sharpness that Yes has already lost on some of the past releases, and have fully recovered on this one. It's their best album since Going For The One, and they've never been able to match its inspiration since then, although 90125 came close. It's probably the most underrated Yes album, and certainly one of the most overlooked progressive albums.

1980 was not only the turn of a new decade for YES but it also started on a new note with Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman leaving the band to pursue a different direction. Enter new wave, punk and Geoff Downes and Trevor Horn of the BUGGLES and by most critics YES were all but dried up. However they did the unthinkable with "Drama" and that is put out a very good lively album with a certain 80's kick and yet 100% YES all the way thru. So without going into the story of YES (many other have documented this better than I) lets chat a bit about "Drama". Horn does a great pseudo-anderson -like interpretation with Squire and Howe helping with background harmonies which for many might actually fake you really into believing Jon Anderson is actually singing. As you would expect the bass and drum interplay are clever a deep sounding with great flare. Howe's guitar work is choice as is Downes keyboard work. The songs are very memorable with TEMPUS FUGIT rising I suppose to the tops (Machine Messiah also for me). Overall perhaps not quite at the level of "Close To The Edge" but still a very solid album and one I think too many people discount.

Drama shows one more time some personnel changes: out is Rick Wakeman (again) and, most dramatic, out is Jon Anderson!!, the newcomers are Geoff Downes (keys) and Trevor Horn (vocals), both from the band The Buggles. But most important, there were changes of sound and direction for the band, and those changes were for the better. The epic Machine Messiah is one of the strongest and most progressive tracks the band has ever made. Other standout tracks are Does it really happen and Into the Lens. The overall sound is incredibly fresh (for 1980) and stands far away from the previous album (the dodgy Tormato). The result is nothing like the band has ever done before but it remains very progressive and most of all very "Yes". Highly recommended!

Admittadly it's not a bad album, in fact I enjoy it, but do we really need music on the Yes moniker without Jon on vocals I don't think so. In a different name I might regard the music as 3 star quality, but it's within Yes's discography so I will leave it at two,

Some very good moments are alternated with really unYeslike music, and for me the good moments aren't good enough to keep attention, I think this album could have been something if only. For fans this is still very good and worth the listening, but for people unaware of Yes-music, steer clear and listen to their good albums first.

Nice, but start with earlier material.

I love this one. vocalist trevor horn and keyboardist geoff downes made a great job, they really got into the level of the other musicians ( howe, white and squire). This album may sound different, but it keeps the yes style. A great record, great songs, as a yes fan you don´t have to miss this one.

I found this actually as a quite pleasing album! When I first heard this record as a teenager, I was unaware of the events in the band's history, and I must admit that I didn't even first notice that JON ANDERSON had been replaced with TREVORN HORN on this one. (!)Also though I like YES, I don't have any strong emotions towards it's cult members, so Jon's nor Rick's absence isn't a blasphemy to me.

The opener "Machine Messiah" is one of my most favorite YES songs. It has quite heavy riffs (at lest by YES standards), and it's interesting to hear some proggy tunes being done with the aestethics of 80's sound. The following "White Car" is also funny, as it's so short (under two minutes). Rest of the four songs are not so imaginative, but I think they are still OK and hold some fine moments and feelings in them.

I managed to listen through a remastered CD of this album with some bonus tracks, but none of them sounded very interesting. I recommend this album for those interested of YES or alternative 80's music, but this album (or it's line-up) divides the views strongly, so I think it would be wise to give it a listen before spending your hard earned money for it. After this album YES renewed their style with the album "90125", and sadly they moved to a direction that didn't create nearly anything that would please my tastes.

Most controversial of Yes albums - for obvious reasons. I mail-ordered this on vinyl in 1987, in the midst of hearing the whole Yes catalogue little by little. Was I aware of it being Anderson-less, I don't even remember. But I liked it the way it is. I came to like much more many classic Yes songs such as And You And I or Heart of the Sunrise, but Drama has survived as one of my most important vinyls. All songs are quite strong - especially I like 'Run To The Light' and 'Into The Lens'. They have that lovely eerie feeling! It gets pretty close to sounding ridiculous as Trevor Horn sings "I asked my love to give me she-e- e-e-elter" but with the interesting rhythm arrangement and Downes' tasty keyboard texture it's just grrreat. The sound of the album is one-of-a-kind in the whole prog history. __________ I borrowed the CD with 10 bonus tracks and also they showed me a brand new side of Yes. There are tracks with Jon and Rick still around that may not be any gems, but quite OK compared to Tormato anyway. But the most interesting thing were instrumental tracks by Chris, Alan and Steve. Hey, it sounds almost like The Police! And remember it was 1980, why should they close their ears completely and try to sound the same as in the old days? The booklet gives a nice historical view. When Jon had returned to Yes he understandably was against playing any Drama material in concerts, but when they did include bits of it, the audience responded very warmly. There is no reason for any Yes fan to hate Drama. Just ENJOY it!

I think Drama is a very underrated album; people say Trevor Horn and Geoffrey Downes didn't really fit in, but I beg to differ. I think Horn's vocals lend very well to the material, and Downes' keyboards sound excellent throughout. Sure, he's no Rick Wakeman, but he still is an excellent player. The songs are well structured and well performed, with 'Machine Messiah' being the highlight. I think this album really gives Chris Squire his chance to shine; in tracks like 'Tempus Fugit' and 'Does It Really Happen?' he has some excellent bass work. On 'DITRH?' Squire really takes centre stage; the last section of the song is pretty much a bass solo. Also, Howe does very well on this album, especially on 'Machine Messiah'. I think this album is different from earlier Yes but will still be enjoyed by fans of Fragile, Relayer et al. It did represent a transition period for Yes, but I think they pulled it off with aplomb. There isn't a weak track on this album (only 'White Car' is a little below the high standard you would expect) and overall all the members give excellent performances throughout. I think this isn't as good as Fragile, but it is still worth buying.

4 Stars.

Well, I do think this is an excellent recording. I hate when prog gets dull and surely this is not the case. Prog rock NEEDS some power: Drama certainly has it...and if Jon is there or not, who cares???(I love him...but let's talk about music), much less Wakeman. Drama works, and does it very well. Machine Messiah is powerful, Tempus Fugit is refreshingly uplifting...and a lost jewel:Run Trhough The Light. The old "Jon's- not- here-it's- not- YES" commentary sounds just like prejudice to me.

People tend to hate this recording but there's really no reason. Sure there's no Jon Anderson but it has some very memorable tracks: Tempus Fugit, Does it Really Happen, Run Through the Ligh and Machine Messiah are great songs and are my favorites and they make up most of the album! I don't care for White Car but some people really like it and Into the Lens is fairly bad but every album has a track or two that aren't any good. It would be a horrable intro to Yes but if you already know and love the band this is a must have. The album has that great 90125 era 80's pop feel but at the same time it's not just crappy 80's pop rock, the album has plenty of prog elements. It's no competition to the better Yes stuff (CTTE, Relayer, Going for the One, Yes Album and even TFTO) but it's better than some of Yes' lesser recordings and every Yes fan should pick this album up. It's definatly in the "wroth listening to" pile of Yes albums and it's a great listen when you want to listen to some Yes that's not so prog and has a groove and you don't care for 90125. Overall I'd recommend that you pick up this album and expand your Yes collection but stay away if you're new to Yes.

Intelligent listeners will have listened to the Buggles first singles and heard beyond the flawless bugglegum pop through to the prog keyboard layers and inventive recording techniques. Yes + Buggles: surprising, maybe, but not a horrendous prospect (remember that listeners as well as performers were trying to reconcile the zeitgeist of New Wave with the tradition of prog). I'd already bought Buggles excellent (sic!) album The Age of Plastic and felt comfortable with it sitting alongside my 70's prog collection on the shelf - tracks like Clean Clean and Elstree defined an art-rock band hiding behind a sparkling commercial sheen (bet many of you recognize this element in Abba, but are not always comfortable admitting it...). So I guess I was more open-minded than most putting this on the turntable. I'd enjoyed Tormato enough to buy this without hesitation when it came out. Rule one - if the band has changed radically, do something special in the first 3 minutes to reassure diehard fans. Genesis managed it with Dance on a Volcano - Machine Messiah does it with knobs on!!! What a fabulous track - heavy (but not mindless metal), intricate and prog. Definitely back on Fragile territory here. The keyboards sound like GOOD 80's keyboards (no thin, insipid Polymoog, but thick, convincing Fairlights) and organ and mellotron are not eschewed. And the vocals... ok, we heard Fish Out of Water and understood how important Squire's vocal harmony was to the Yes sound - now we know it's VITAL. Anderson - wonderful vocalist for sure, but if he ain't around, choose a half-decent singer (Horn) and stick Squire & Howe either side of him: = next best thing. So the album remains interesting & convincing throughout. Tempus Fugit & Does it Really Happen - Yes classics for sure. Man in a White Car & Into the Lens - nearer Buggles in style but that's no bad thing in my book. Great tracks. Run Through the Light - becomes a little irritating on too many listens, but not the weakest Yes track to date by a long chalk. Can't give it 5 stars really, but a GREAT Yes album. Listen without predjudice.

One of those albums I was taken by surprise. This album has been often maligned thanks to the absence of Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman. In their place was both guys from the BUGGLES (as in the hit "Video Killed the Radio Star", which became the very first video MTV ever played, by the way), Geoff Downes and Trevor Horn. To be honest, I thought this album was better than "Tormato". They were no longer inflicting me with such infantile crap as "Circus of Heaven" here, and the band was going for a harder-edge approach. Plus it's nice to see Roger Dean return and give us some artwork, as he did here. Also I much preferred Geoff Downes synth sound to the crap synth sounds Wakeman was using on "Tormato" (definately not Wakeman as he was earlier on). Downes tended to use a lot of Minimoog and Solina, as well as polyphonic synths, which were starting to be commonly used at this point. It's nice to see the band in 1980 not abandoning progressive rock here.

The opening cut, "Machine Messiah" is a perfect example of what I'm talking about, a song that goes through different changes and moods, with Moog solos and atmospheric passages. There's no doubt that Horn was trying to imitate Anderson here, and the vocal harmonies are still unmistakable YES, despite the absence of Anderson. "Man in a White Car" is a short interlude that leads us to "Does it Really Happen". This is a prime example of the band exploring more '80s sounds, but reluctant to leave the '70s behind. Many of the vocal harmonies remind me of the dreaded ASIA (which I have never been keen on, and unfortunately the group Downes moved on to after YES, as well as Steve Howe), but I still prefer this over ASIA. There's this driving beat, courtesy of Alan White. I still have problems with "Into the Lens", especially the enunciation of the word "cam-e-ra" over and over. The last song, "Tempus Fugit" is without a doubt the high point of the album, showing YES was still able to deliver the goods when so much was going against them: it was 1980 and Jon Anderson was absent.

I notice some AOR tendencies in this album, but that's not 100% surprising. In my opinion, this is a lot better than what many other prog rock bands were giving us by 1980. It also brought a temporary end to YES. Trevor Horn would later go on producing (including with the reunited YES, this time with Trevor Rabin, and the far more mainstream "90125"), and of course there was the formation of a group called CINEMA with Trevor Rabin, but once Jon Anderson and Tony Kaye stepped in, they had to call themselves YES once again, and well, all was history. Downes and Steve Howe teamed up with Carl Palmer and John Wetton to form ASIA, which I have never been too keen on ('80s nostalgia buffs often go for this band, but for me I thought they were simply overly-commercial). There was even an aborted project called XYZ (standing for ex-YES and ZEPPELIN), I believe involving Alan White and Jimmy Page.

"Drama" really isn't that bad of an album. You'd obviously want to try the albums they did from 1971-77 first before you come here, but there's still excellent stuff here.

I was surprised at this album - of all the things I'd read about it, it didn't sound like it was that good, but what a shock it was. In fact, I love this album so much, that it's joined the greats in my top 5 Yes albums (my top 5 are CTTE, GFTO, Drama, Fragile and Big Generator, so make of that what you will). Right from the off, you can tell that this is different from the previous album Tormato (average in my opinion) - the opener Machine Messiah is much heavier than anything Yes had done before, and it is incredibly hard-hitting; it grabs your attention straight away. It's also about as progressive as this album gets, so don't go into this expecting any Solid Time of Change malarchy. The whole album really shows off Squire's skill on the bass - here, his basslines rival those on CTTE, although Howe's guitar is not as noticeable since I found myself concentrating on the bass more than anything. Geoff Downes does an excellent job on the keyboards; although there are no majestic Rick Wakeman solos, he does provide a lot of very well-done 'chordage', which fits in with the music very well. Trevor Horn does a brilliant job of filling Jon Andersons shoes - I don't really want to compare the two, but I feel a comparison is necessary here; Anderson still has a beautiful voice, but I think Horn's is brilliant in its own way. It's different from Jon's - more harsh, less gentle, but it still does the job. Alan White, as always, is truly excellent on the drums. There isn't a weak track here (maybe White Car, but that's not really intended as a stand-alone piece), with Machine Messiah and Tempus Fugit being the best, but all the tracks are great.

On the whole, while it is different from previous Yes outings, it's a refreshing change, especially after the rather average Tormato. This is well worth getting, so although I don't like throwing 5 stars around like confetti, it's got to be given to a classic like this.

Take away the driving forces of Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman away from Yes and what do you get? Well, a better album than Tormato. This album is agressive and very electric, like Squire and White were fed energy drinks. This sounds almost like a completely different band. Of course, all of the material here is subpar, but yet an oddly intriguing blend considering how this album was made. Machine Messiah and Tempus Fugit are keepable songs from the Yes repertoire making this album good, but nothing essential as it's nothing entirely grasping or impressive.

I dont' know why many people hate this album. In fact, is one of my favourites... not a classic but very good...

The absence of Andreson/Wakeman superb duo cleaned the way to Howe, Squire and White and they did it very good. "Machine Messiah" and "Tempus Fugit" are two essencial songs in Yes history. Very powerful riffs and an excellent work of Chris on bass. Really good and for real Yes fanatics. Sounds different and refreshing. A great opportunity to know one different face of the classic and immortal Yes discography...

I had the great luck to listen Drama without the perjudice of the old Yes Fans who are extremely fanatics of the Anderson/Howe/Wakeman/Squire sort of brotherhood. I listened this album clear and sober and still surprises me. Maybe the voice of Trevor Horn trying to emulate Anderson it's the most annoying part of the album but musically is almost a masterpiece. And I still don't understand those people who hates this release.

Starting with Machine Messiah the epic track of the album with heavy guitar riffs and excellent arrangements of Mr. Geoff Downes on keyboards.One of the Yes songs that you always remember and one of the best songs that Yes composed ever. White Car attmepts to be a short song "a la Anderson" and doesn't work so well but Does It Really Happen? works excellent as a mid-pop-song with repetive parts but keeping the Yes concept even with those 80's synthesizers sounds. Another highlight: Into the Lens, great song with awsome arrangements for guitar and keys. Run Through the Light seems to be another "intermezzo" but suddenly turns into a really good prog song. And what I have to say about Tempus Fugit a great ending for the album, prog and powerful, full of the Howe/Squire talent...

Seriously, I really don't know why some people hate this album. I like Tormato too and I don't dare to compare both albums but I think Dramat was the best example of the end of a decade and a brilliant start of the 80's (even when most of the people hates 80's Yes)... Really 3.9*

I once despised this album, so much so that I went nearly two decades without even listening to it. Then last year I bought the Rhino remaster, just to add it to my collection, and listened to it again. It hadn't changed in 25 years, but I sure had. Years of maturity on my part, and putting "Drama" in a historical context, completely changed my opinion of it. It sounded FRESH. It was as if Yes had put out a new album. I couldn't stop playing it.

I like this better than "90125." I like the heavy sound (thank you, Chris and Alan). The aborted Paris session tracks from the Anderson/Wakeman Yes, available on the Rhino release, really show a band that was exhausted and out of ideas. Anderson and Wakeman were right to split, but Squire/White/Howe were right to take the band in a different direction. The "Drama" tracks are infused with the creativity and energy that was missing in Paris. I'm like Wakeman on the "Yesyears" video, when he said that he once was highly critical of Chris for doing "Drama" and thought it was a mistake, but that he has since changed his opinion 180 degrees and has apologized to Squire.

One of the most controversial items in the Yes catalogue: the Yes album without Jon Anderson. The Yes album that doesn't sound like a Yes album.

When Wakeman and Anderson both left the band in quick succession, I'm certain few could have predicted that their replacements would have been Geoff Downes and Trevor Horn, who had previously recorded as the futuristic art-pop duo the Buggles ("Video Killed The Radio Star" was their big hit).

Surprisingly, the duo are more than up to the task. Downes seemed to own one of every keyboard available circa 1979 and knew how to use them, so he more than holds his own when compared to Wakeman or Moraz. Horn, while certainly no Anderson, has a pleasing vocal timbre and fits the music well.

It's Howe and Squire who are the real show here. Unfettered by Anderson's airy conceptualism or Wakeman's classical leanings, the two are given free rein to fill the album with wall to wall guitar and bass riffs. "Machine Messiah" and "Tempus Fugit" are probably the finest examples, both brimming with some of Howe and Squire's most over-the-top (in the best sense of the term) playing.

Most of the lyrics have a futuristic, sci-fi feel to them, which is quite different from Anderson's mix of Eastern spiritualism and folksy English whimsy. As a result, the album has the feel, not so much of a Yes album, but a progressive rock project that just happens to feature Howe and Squire. If you go in with these expectations, you will not only not be disappointed, but even quite pleased with what you hear.

Rick Wakeman gone!? Jon Andersone gone !??!?!? Two Members of a pop band joining Yes!?!?!?!?!?!?!? This album then must be a disaster then!!

WRONG

This is an excellent album in which Steve Howe, and especially Chris Squire are at their best, and have plenty of space to show how great musicians they are. Alan White also plays drums efficiently. What about the buggles? Well, Horn is a good singer who can make a good Anderson impression, and Geoff Downes is an excellent keyboardist whose keyboard playing is better Than what Wakeman did in Tormato.

This album is even more accessible than The Yes Album in my opinion. The tracks fuse pop with prog, making the music complex while being melodic and easy to ears. "Tempus Fugit" for example is a Great rocker song with a very memorable bass line that I liked at first listen. Other highlights of the album are:

_Machine Messiah : A mindblowing mini-epic that sounds similar to Dream Theater! Yes experimented with heavy metal in parts of the song, like the dark distorted introduction of the song. Other sections are more poppy in sound, and one section is just Good ol' Yes playing an energetic riff in the keyboard and later in the bass which makes you rewind to listen to it again! This song sounds very much like The FLower Kings

_In Through The Lens: This is a pop song melded with prog instrumentation. The melodies are what's poppy here, but sometimes the instrumentation can be complex and highly interesting.

This line-up presented such refreshing, and strong music that it is a shame they disbanded shortly after the album was complete. In this album, you have the chance to hear how great Yes would have been without the singer. With these accessible and solid songs, the band could have been more popular in the world.

My Grade : B

This was the album where Yes lost the plot!! I know because I was there and saw the band on this tour (oh dear). The Buggles, and video ,may have killed the radio star but Yes surely did'nt have to recruit The Buggles to replace the vocalist and the keyboards player. Trevor Horn was never really going to be a replacement for Jon Anderson and whoever dreamed this up made a monumental error in my opinion.None of the tracks are particularly memorable and the only good thing about it is the album cover.Give it a miss.

It appears that this album is starting to get more recognition, and I certainly think that this is due, considering how stale some other Yes releases have been in the past ("Tormato" or "Union" anyone?). To many fans, a Yes with no Jon Anderson (or even one without Rick Wakeman) is no Yes at all, and I can certainly understand this, but it is "Drama" as an album that really reveals how capable the band were without Jon's lyrics or vision, instrumental as they may have been in the past.

In addition to Chris Squire, Steve Howe and Alan White, Yes has a new keyboardist and a chap to fill Jon's shoes. Enter The Buggles - sheer syrup they may be, but if Yes was to hang on to its Prog mantle (and indeed, "Drama" is the last outpost really) it needed to update its sound. Geoff Downes' keyboard is fresh, energized and restrained: he compliments the rest of the band, adding flourishes when necessary. What makes him stand out I believe is his ability to be strikingly modern and new wave, without being too indulgent in it, which is some skill. Trevor Horn however, even though he sounds like Jon, doesn't hit the high notes (and apparently was worse in concert), and at times his voice sounds a little forced and flat. Still, like I said, he DOES sound like Jon, especially when backed up by Steve and Chris, and we really HAVE to give him some credit for giving it a shot, because it's admirable.

The album kicks off with the 10-minute epic "Machine Messiah", which opens with some heavy guitar from Steve Howe and some slow but well paced rhythming from Chris Squire and Alan White. After some heavy noodling as such (with some great guitar from Steve), it segues into a faster tempo with some cute 80s keyboarding from Geoff Downes, and Trevor Horn makes his entrance - like I said, his vocals are ok, but nothing special. What IS important is that Steve & Chris are there to back him up. About halfway through, the tempo drops down to a slower pace with some gorgeous acoustic guitar and singing, with some ethereal keyboard in the background, until of course, the song lapses back into its main theme. The acoustic section is reprised later on, as the song ends with a return to its harder edged beginning.

In general, this is Yes at one of their hardest moments I feel. Certainly a very good way to open the album as it sets the stage for what is to come. Steve Howe's guitar steals the show, especially in the soloing before the first acoustic section, and Chris Squire and Alan White prove yet again what a dynamic and fantastic rhythm section they are. It is also in "Machine Messiah" that one hears Geoff Downes' keyboards and can fully understand how, as I said before, they manage to fill the sonic space without dominating them. Trevor Horn's vocals are ok, and nothing more. Not bad, but nothing exciting either - in my opinion he doesn't steal or ruin the show, which is a good thing.

"White Car" is so unbelievably tiny and cute (it must be Yes' shortest song, clocking in at 1:21) that it's almost not worth mentioning. To be honest, I find it rather charming in a "New Wave Prog" sort of way. In a strange sort of paradox, it may be small but it has a rather large sound - epic orchestral percussion and keyboards to match, with Trevor Horn's voice squeezing in vocals. The song, like Genesis' "I Know What I Like", serves as an excellent buffer between two larger pieces whilst still remaining true to the spirit of the album. Nice!

Next we have "Does it Really Happen?", which is probably my favourite song on the album - quite an upbeat dance-ish song which serves as an excellent showcase for both Squire's bass and Downes' keyboards. In my opinion, Downes MAKES the song. His playing early on, coupled with his stunning flourishes later on make for some really pleasant listening. Steve Howe, for once it seems, steps back slightly to allow Geoff Downes his spot in the limelight (it seems that way, and yet I doubt it was a concious decision of the band!). Chris Squire and Alan White propel the song at a fast and fun pace, and Trevor Horn's vocals seem to be better here than say "Machine Messiah". It's a thoroughly enjoyable listen, but it's not entirely representative of the Yes sound in general - it's perhaps too bouncy for that.

"Into the Lens" follows, and is a fairly pleasant 8 minute piece, which has some very capable vocals from Trevor Horn, and yet the lyrics are rather atrocious ("I am a camera"...ouch)! The song isn't bad, as it has some rather nice keyboard and guitar, but its structure is relatively simple and may leave Yes fanatics running for "Delirium" or "CTTE". Particularly of note is Chris Squire's bass, which some reviewers have mentioned - his playing here is subtle, but still strong. I tend to look at "Into the Lens" as a sort of drawn-out pop song by Yes - 8 minutes of solid playing set in a basic structure.

"Run through the Light" is Drama's equivalent of GFTO's "Wondrous Stories" I feel - it's very pleasant, quite short and highly enjoyable. Some genuinely beautiful acoustic guitar and keyboard parts here, with some nice vocal melodies. Again, the song is quite obviously powered by Chris Squire's bass playing which is, characteristically, some of the best one can find. Like "White Car", it bridges the gap between two bigger pieces, and does it well.

"Tempus Fugit" is a sort of mini-epic: the last song on the album, and in my opinion, the perfect way to end it. The song is fast paced, powered along by Squire & White's pounding rhythm section, with some stunning guitar flashes by Steve Howe. Trevor Horn's vocals are not too bad, and of particular note is his harmonising with Steve & Chris. Geoff Downes, once again, contributes subdued but solid keyboard parts which have real presence. I feel that the song is a tad more complex than others on the album, and in some ways it feels as if the song could be part of a larger epic, and not just its 5 minutes.

So to conclude, it's definitely worth an open-minded listen from Yes fans - a much more modern Yes which still displays some of its old tricks, but the way towards destinations such as Asia and "90125" is clear. It has some AOR flourishes, but don't let that put you off as it is worthy of consideration. How do I class it then? I'd say it's good, but not really essential (certainly not as essential as "Relayer" or "CTTE") as it's hardly indicative of the overall Yes sound. 3.5 stars is fair!

Drama is a criminally underrated Yes album. Just because it doesn't feature the 'classic' line up, many automatically dismiss it as a bad record, mostly without ever giving it the time of day. The songs on it are some of the strongest Yes ever recorded. My own perception of it is that Yes had tried to go 'pop' with Tormato and it was a pretty hideous failure. The songwriting constraints the band put on themselves, plus the obvious internal divisions that were developing couldn't possibly result in anything other than a curate's egg of a project, although this particular egg had very few good parts. Fast forward to Drama and you have a band reinvigorated by the arrival of two new members, both enthusiastic fans of the band who appreciated and understood Yes' modus operandi. However, both new boys brought with them a pop sensibility which Yes had struggled to find on Tormato. The result is a 'proper' Yes album feasturing all the elements they did so well, with the added bonus of some strong hooks which nevertheless were in keeping with the creative thrust of 'classic' Yes. Machine Messiah, Does it Really Happen, Run Through the Light and Tempus Fugit are all superb songs, far better than any composition on Tormato. Just listen to the way the band attacks material like the coda of Does it Really Happen with energy and aggression. It was something sadly lacking on the uninspired and uninspring Tormato. Here the enthusiasm is palpalble. Yes, there is something slightly cynical in the band's use of Horn the Yes fanboy and his own studied pastiche of Anderson, right down to inflection and his attempts at writing in the style of Anderson. But any annoyance caused by this calculation pales when that huge church organ kicks in backed by electric and bass guitars and the assembled members sing 'cables that carry the light to the satanic mills'. It rocks. Drama also benefits from the Trevor Horn production ethic. It's lush, many-layered and very cleverly done. It really enhances enjoyment of one of Yes' more 'lost' gems. People are way too snobby and puritanical about the merits of Trevor Horn's Yes (as they are about 90125 era Yes). Both bands made some excellent music. Drama deserves a less prejudicial listen than most are willing to give to it. It deserves to be considered up there with the best of the first 10 years of Yes and is certainly a more complete album than either of their first two efforts, which don't seem to suffer from any 'not the classic line-up' concerns. Give Drama a chance and it will reward bountifully.

Drama is surprisingly good considering much of Yes's creative force isn't present. Of course, it is a disappointment that Anderson isn't present on Drama, but in spite of this, Yes manages to pull off a great record. Trevor Horn, by incident or on purpose, sounds eerily similar to Anderson, yet his voice isn't distracting. So in this respect, Drama essentially feels like a normal Yes album.

But the more important thing is that Drama sounds vibrant and fresh. In fact-and I'm just realizing this a bit now-it sounds quite similar to many Neo-Prog albums I've heard. The entrance of Geoff Downes as the keyboardist is a main factor, as his style appears to be more of a more supportive, ethereal quality than Rick Wakeman's show-stealing pompousness. But I suppose all the band members contribute to this new sound. In any case, making Drama was a good career choice for Yes, and it seemed to revive the band to a degree.

Yes is still making prog music on Drama, but with the addition of Horn and Downes, the pop aspect of the band begins to see more light. One could consider this to be a bad thing, I suppose, but while it may be different from what we expect of Yes, it seems to fit the album well, giving it a bit of a brighter feel than many of the burdened Yes albums of the past.

"Machine Messiah" is a brilliant way to begin Drama, transposing a gloomy, metal- inspired riff with a bright and sunny verse with flourishes of pure melodic shredding. An excellent vocal and synthesizer line supported by exotic acoustic strumming ends the epic song on an eerie and ominous note.

"White Car" is a nice, short way of ushering in the next song. It's well orchestrated and pleasing.

"Does it Really Happen?" is basically an overlong pop song and a good one at that. It begins with a simple, driving bass line and has plenty of hooks. There is even a bass solo! It's nothing incredibly special or impressive, but it's still enjoyable anyway.

"Into the Lens" is better than many people would have you believe. Yes, this song does indeed contain the infamous "I am a camera.camera, camera" chorus, but it's not really bad overall. The chorus doesn't even bother me. I kind of enjoy it in fact. The soft, mellow parts and the staccato notes throughout the song grab my attention in particular.

As a whole, "Run into the Light" isn't all that impressive. But the vocal melody and airy, keyboard ending are enough to save it from being mindless filler.

Now, "Tempus Fugit" is the only other track on Drama that can really compete with "Machine Messiah." It packs a big punch in only 5:21 with catchy musicianship all around. The bass work leading into the chorus stands out as does the chorus itself. This is one of the best yes songs ever put out. If Yes could spread the creativity touched on in "Tempus Fugit" throughout their entire career, I have no doubt they'd be considered THE top prog band of all time. Many people already consider them this, but I believe that would seal the deal.

Drama can be good album to cool down to after listening to some of Yes's weightier and conceptual albums. It's pretty light-hearted and has a personality separate from all of Yes's albums before or since. By the way, the 2004 Remastered version has a great number of bonus tracks, many of which are not studio run-throughs and all are well worth hearing.

Don't see what the fuss is about. It's just another Yes album to me..Trevor Horn's voice suits their music very well and in a similar way that Anderson's does/did/do. Surely the true Yes purist should only want Peter Banks and Tony Kaye on guitar and keyboards? Not a statement of complete sincerity...but perhaps you get my point. Yes have changed their line-up so many times...its best not to worry.

It`s an excellent album, its vocal arrangements are excellent, colourful and pleasant. It has really dynamic riffs and melodies coming from Steve's guitar and Chris's bass, and excellent keyboard arrangements by Geoff Downes. It's really one of Yes' best albums, even if you can't hear neither Jon with his powerful voice nor Rick's awesome fingers.It really has 6 shining jewels of the progressive career of Yes.

This album gets a really bad rap. Yes purists condemn it for being post original line up and consider anything past Going for the One a waste of time.

I own all Yes albums save for a few later ones (Open your Eyes and The Ladder). Drama is easily my favorite Yes. Geoff Downes brought a great sound to the band. Very dark and futuristic, and the song titles bear the appropriate names 'Machine Messiah and Into the Lens'.

The dark and barren melodies on this album are very unique compared to any other Yes release and are absolutey beautiful at times. The arrangements are complex and powerful. Trevor Horn's voice sounds very close to Anderson's at times and he delivers perfectly. I highly reccomend this album to anyone wanting top notch Progressive Rock.

I'm even going to jump on the Drama bandwagon for a bit. At the urging of a friend, I picked up Drama a few weeks ago and I think it's a brilliant disc! I think purists have a hard time getting passed the fact that Anderson isn't singing lead (Wakeman wasn't a big deal because this was...what...his second time exiting the band?); however, if one can look past that, Drama is a great Yes disc.

If anything, I think the biggest change is the sound of Steve Howe on Drama--especially at the very beginning of "Machine Messiah". I had to double check the liner notes to see if that was, indeed, Howe.

It might be easier for a purist to now give it a listen, given that Anderson has come back and remained with Yes (even with that classic lineup) subsequent to Drama. Just for me personally, I'm really glad to have it in my collection. My only complaint is how short it is.

Honestly, I was expecting much less prior.

This one took me completely by surprise. I had only been exposed to all albums which came before this one, and due to my love for the sound of the band with Jon and Rick, I was expecting something grossly mediocre in comparison.

In some respects, that album is that, but it depends on your perspective.

The vocals on this one aren't all that bad, but they're nothing to hoo and hah about. It IS Trevor Horn (Mr. Siren himself, as I call him). However...

...the music is excellent. If the voacals aren't all that great, the music makes up for it ten-fold. his album has the edge missing from earlier Yes albums, and not only that, displays the true talent of Chris SQUIRE and Steve HOWE.

In my opinion, one's opinion of the album should only be determined by them and no other review, same goes for TFTO.

4/5

I started Yes in reverse, first i heard 90125 a year after it came out then, Drama. Even trough i'm a huge fan of the 71' to 77' area of Yes, i really like Drama, in fact it's one of the album i tend to listen the most from Yes. I think what i really like about this album is the fact that Chris Squire is very present on all the songs, i'm a big fan of the baas sound of Squire :) He really shine on "Does it Really Happen?" and my favorite of the album "Tempus Fugit". "Machine Messiah" starts off the album in a very strong way, Howe is really a master in this track. Travor Horn may not be the strongest vocalist or Jon Anderson but, with the help of Squire on vocals he did a very good job in here, his tone is not too far from the voice of Anderson. I have to specify that i like the "I am a camera..." part in "Into the Lens" even trough it's not the best parts of the album. Like i said, for me "Tempus Fugit" is the highlight of the album with Squire playing one of is best bass parts in his carrer and the famous parts when Travor Horn says "YES!"

Yes is a major band and this album deserves 4 Stars, not a masterpiece but a fine addition to your progressive collection.

Probably the most controversial Yes album. No Anderson or Wakeman/Banks/Moraz. But this album is still huge. I gotta believe that Squire was so intent on making this particular ensemble work that he had to be obsessed. His bass just rages through the whole album and White is in good form too. And if anyone was going to be a replacement for Anderson, Trevor Horn would be about as good as you are going to get. This is a powerful record and a huge step forward in quality and bombasm from the subdued Tormato. Howe's guitar is as in your face as you will see on a Yes album.

The choice is yours. You can be a Yes purist/snob and dismiss this one at your own loss. Or you can take it for what it is and that is a fine album that I have no problem putting next to the other classics by the band. I won't give it a five, but it is pretty darn close.

This is a very weak album indeed - I rate it below at the very bottom of their cataloge, along with Big Generator.

It's well played and it sounds fine. However, the synths tend to drench the more interesting things that go on - especially the fine interplay between Howe, Squire and Alan White. That trio actually does very well here.

The main weakness of the album is lack of good material. We get lots of chords and riffs but very little melody and the pompous arrangements only highlight the emptiness. The lyrics - always a weak spot with Yes - are a laugh.

The individual voice of Jon is really missed but even that would not have saved this piece of cheap bombast.

Yes meets Video Killed the Radio Star? You might have thought that if you only saw the lineup of this album, which featured two members of The Bugles. This album, titled Drama, is also the only Yes album to not feature vocalist and frontman Jon Anderson, although Trevor Horn does a nice job trying to sound like Jon (and for the most part succeeds). Throughout the 36 minute of the original album (the Rhino remaster has around 10 bonus tracks), the listener is taken through a variety of different moods and for the most part this album is a huge success with many of the tracks being brilliant. In the end, though, this album is really divided amongst Yes fans because some fans can't fathom a Yes album without Jon Anderson and yet some like this album because it was daring and was a major improvement over Tormato.

The album opens with one of my absolute favorite Yes songs (in my top 3 easily) in Machine Messiah. The song that showed Yes dabbling in heavy, almost metal like atmospheres is also the best on the album. The 10 minute epic goes through a range of emotions, but the most memorable sections are those that involve the opening riff (which is reminicent of a Pink Floyd riff from The Wall). Geoff Downes is spectacular on this piece with some nice dynamic soloing that is complimented greatly by Howe's spectacular noodling and ascending runs up the fret board. Squire and White also are superb in the rhythm section and Trevor Horn has some nice vocal parts in the song as well. White Car is a short but sweet track that has some nice epic keyboard work with a nice acoustic guitar in the background as well as an interesting lyric and vocal part. Does It Really Happen? has some great bass work from Squirel, but fails to truly captivate me in the end, it seems too much like filler and it could have been a condensed piece.

Into the Lens is a quirky piece that goes through a range of atmospheres and in the end it comes off quite well. The chorus is a bit silly but the band seem to play well and really show off their cohesiveness and their overall talents. Run Through the Light has Trevor Horn playing the bass role (and he does a rather simplistic job) and Chris Squire gets a shot on lead vocals and piano for the piece. It's the weakest piece on the album easily and I'm not too impressed by it. But fortunately, the next piece would redeem all the downfalls of the piece. Tempus Fugit ends the album with some spectacular riffing that reminds me a bit of the frenetic runs in the middle instrumental sections of Rush's Xanadu. Add some great harmony vocals and some nice lyrics that are really upbeat and reminicent of Jon Anderson lyrics and you have yourself the closer of the original album. The bonus tracks are really ok at best, but they're not really important to me as I want to really talk about the original album itself. Most of the songs, though, are from sessions with Anderson and Wakeman before they both went AWOL.

In the end, Drama would bring the most drama to Yes fans. An album without Jon Anderson? Could it be done? Well it was and for the most part it was largely successful although Run through the Light hurts the overall score, the rest of the pieces are really good and if you're a fan of Yes I recommend this album highly. Yes in the 80s is something that everyone wants to forget (mainly for 90125 and Big Generator) but everyone must remember that before Rabin entered the group, they had one last strike at gold in Drama. 4/5.

It really seems that the absence of Jon Anderson turned a lot of people off from this record. It is undoubtedly Yes' strongest album since 'Close To The Edge'. The first track 'Machine Messiah' must have been a godsend for Yes fans of the '70s, same with 'Into The Lens'. Both of the aforementioned tracks are pure progressive rock greatness that really shows a return to form by our beloved Yes. Our new friends 'The Buggles' did not at all influence Yes to stray from their signature sound yet they do present some new elements to the formula. 'Run Through The Light' is definately an example of such new elements, what with its fretless bass and its sing-a-long ability, surely compliments of the newcomers.

This album, while not Yes' best (of course that honor is reserved for 'Close To The Edge') is certainly Yes at their most accessible while remaining faithful to their progressive nature. I really, really wish we could have witnessed more albums from this superb Yes lineup but regardless, I am very glad 'Drama' exists to document that rare and exciting (albeit brief) period of Yes' legendary history.

When I got hold of this album in a tape back in 1981, I had no idea that Anderson was not in it. When I started hearing it, it sounded so unlike Yes that I got puzzled. The sound is tough, the vocals sounded like Anderson-- yet its not Anderson. By the time I heard it once, I realised its a new vocalist who copied not only the tonal character of Anderson-- but also his accent and style-- fused with his own style. the result of this fusion is an unique Yes album. But its not the vocals alone that is so different here. Guitar wise, this is the heaviest sounding yes ever. True that Howe played much more complicated and louder guitar in Relayer-- but the level of thickness of the sound of guitar distortion is like that of Death Metal (if that existed in 1980, that is). Especially in Machine Messiah. Then structure-wise, all the songs are again different from the earlier direction of Yes. Its clear that Squire, Howe et al were trying out the style they followed in Fragile: break the song at an unlikely phase and then rebuild the music. This technic makes the song not so attractive at first, but gradually as your ears become used to the structure-- you'll start liking it. For instance, take In to the Lens. Whenever the chorus seem to reach its peak-- the music takes a different turn. In this manner, a simple 3 minute song can turn into an off-beat 8.31 minute adventure. Lyrics wise, this is the most 'existentialist' album ever made by Yes. Yes albums are mostly spiritual. I like those. But sometimes they are too spiritual. This album brings materialism and metaphors and match those with appropriate sounds and music. I think the credit goes to Horn-- who had been a Yes fan long before this album. All the lyrics make clear and interesting sense. I must say the band did a great job with lyrics in this album. Overall this is a great album; Machine Messiah being the best, Does it Really happen being the weakest (but not bad). I believe they could have tightened some parts of the songs like Tempus Fugit and Run through the Light. Its a must have for prog-rock fans.

First time I heard “Machine Messiah” I thought – dang, is this some sort of collaboration with Black Sabbath or what? And why is Jon Anderson leaning on Chris Squire so much for vocal support? Boy, little did I know…..

1980 was such a screwy year for music that I’m not sure how many people were even completely up-to-date on which bands were still around, who had joined or been kicked out of what, and what was still worth listening to. Even the old guard progressive bands that were still churning out music were making concessions to the tastes of the listening public to one degree or another (by the way, I don’t recall ever using the term ‘progressive’ back then, but I digress). More still were the bands that just seemed to either fade away or go into hibernation (ELP, Pink Floyd, Argent, Supertramp). I can say having been there that style was hugely important to many of the people who made decisions about music and which of it got recorded and which didn’t. And old codgers who made lengthy, radio-unfriendly dope-smoking music back in the early 70s (and whose members couldn’t be cleaned up and made presentable for MTV videos) were not considered stylish.

So in today’s more ‘enlightened’ era we could be more understanding that some of musicians were willing to go to rather extraordinary lengths in order to keep their bands’ banners sailing. Some were more extreme than others (again though, I digress). Yes wasn’t as bad as some, and as I sit here today and listen to Drama more than a quarter- century later, I am rather surprised to find that it has held up across the years far better than most of its contemporaries, and even better than Tormato and possibly Going For the One. Go figure…..

So – Anderson and Wakeman get fed up in France or wherever while the band is recording their next album and quit. Considering the state of affairs of the band and of the music industry (and the fact that all of the remaining members had other options), you kind of have to give them credit for sticking it out and moving forward with the record. While the addition of Geoff Downes and Trevor Horn from the Buggles probably caused many old fans to lapse into apoplectic fits, both of them were long-time fans of the band and I think in the end they both acquitted themselves well and showed respect for the band’s legacy in their contributions. It’s just – “Video Killed the Radio Star” is a pretty huge steaming pile of s-… “baggage” for them to have brought with them, especially considering its role in MTV and new-wave history. Water under the bridge now I suppose…

So the faux-metal “Machine Messiah” turns out to be a decent enough tune, particularly Howe’s guitar work and Squire on bass (Squire seems to recognize the importance of his role in retaining the ‘classic’ Yes sound here, and really outdoes himself throughout the whole album).

“White Car” doesn’t sound anything like Yes, but it’s only a minute long so no worries.

Squire and Alan White kick off “Does It Really Happen?” over the top of Howe with another rhythm that’s quite a bit heavier than most of the stuff Yes had done prior. Also, Horn brings his vocal register back down to mortal range, giving the band an overall sound that is creepily similar to what Asia would sound like about a year later. I really don’t feel strongly either way about this one – it’s an okay tune, sounds sort of like Yes, but probably a bit closer to Tormato than most of the rest of the album.

On the other hand, “Run Through the Light” would have fit right in on 90125. This is the sound the band would have in concert for at least the next several years, even after Anderson returned. It’s a well-produced track, nice keyboard arrangements with plenty of variety and very little wasted motion; very complementary vocal tracks, and Howe’s guitar solo is really pleasant (hopefully ‘pleasant’ is what the band was going for). The one thing about this track is that it sounds incredibly stuck in 1980 – there were a couple dozen other bands at the time that could have done this song and it would have sounded almost identical. I suspect this is mostly due to the keyboards, but am unfortunately not a musician myself so wiser folks than I will have to figure that one out.

“Into the Lens” is just stupid. I guess this is Horn trying to be cute, singing about being transformed into a camera and viewing the world through the lens. Whatever. This was a Buggles tune to begin with, and it would appear in an even more cheesed-up format on the Buggles’ Adventures in Modern Recording album a while later under a different title. There’s yet another version on the re-mastered Drama CD that came out in 2004.

This leaves “Tempus Fugit”, kicking off with keyboards instead of guitar for about the only time on the album, although Howe and Squire make their presence known almost immediately. This is probably my favorite on the album. The staccato vocal stylings of Horn are as close to the sound Anderson made famous as possible, without actually being accused of plagiarism (Squire helps quite a bit as well). The keyboards here are not particularly complex, and they aren’t on most of the rest f the album either. But as I said before, there’s little wasted motion, and Downes can maybe be forgiven a little new-wave cheesiness in exchange for not engaging in self-indulgent pompousness like Wakeman was prone to do. I think it would have been cool if the band had taken the time to break down some portion of this song and explore it further, but it’s still a good listen, energetic and well-played.

So I think the band is really trying to pull something off here, although only they know exactly what. The Buggles boys breathe some new life into the band’s sound, although fans have to decide for themselves if the tradeoff of new-wave inspired keyboards, shorter radio-friendly songs, and sometimes vapid lyrics were worth the cost.

In 1980 I dismissed this album pretty quickly, but mostly I’ll admit because of the reputation of the Buggles, not because I actually spent much time listening to Drama. Today, I think this is a good album. Just barely, maybe even just okay. But it’s a little better than just a collector’s item, so I’m inclined to say it’s a three-star album, but on a less sun-shiny day I may revisit this down a notch.

peace

I agree with all the reviewers who heaped praise on this album; I really enjoy it much more than TORMATO or even GOING FOR THE ONE. The only thing I find disappointing is the absence of any great or truly symphonic guitar solos by Steve Howe. Many people appreciate Steve's contributions to the album, but why didn't he grab this opportunity to play another epic solo just like that wonderful guitar 'cadenza' from 'Sound Chaser'? It seems that, after RELAYER, Steve's visionary days were long gone. If there's anything visionary about DRAMA, it probably stems from Chris Squire. But, most of all, this is simply a fun, radio-friendly album.

For this album Rick Wakeman and Jon Anderson didn't want to work, but missing Rick Wakeman was something that had already happened before and was answered with the great album (relayer). So without him Yes could manage, but being without Jon Anderson, that had never gone through before. However, Yes managed to put out a great album with the help of the Buggles.

Machine Messiah is a great 10 min track that has a more hard rock feel to it than anything Yes had ever done before. Into the Lens is an updated version from the "I am a camera" new wave/pop song made by the buggles.

For anyone who has the CD version with bonus track, listen tot the "Have we really got to go through this" track, a spacey instrumental that is usually looked over!

OK, early days as I've only just received the CD and listened to it a couple of times but...

Unlike many reviewers, for me Yes lost it with Relayer. It was the album that totally turned me off them and I never bought anything by them again until 90210 (a mistake) and the odd compilation.

When I heard the MP3 on PA of Machine Messiah I thought I really had to give this a go. I'd never heard the "Yuggles" lineup.

And to tell the truth it's not bad at all! For me Machine Messiah is the closest they come to recreating the classic Yes sound.

What it lacks for me is not the Jon Anderson/Rick Wakeman factor but just the thrill that albums like CTTE gave me; that that here were a bunch of musicians playing apparently different parts that somehow blended into something greater than the sum of those parts. It's slightly too homogenous, each musician's part somehow too similar to the other.

Nevertheless I've got to say I've heard a lot worse. Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes seem to slot in pretty comfortably. No regrets about buying it at all. 3/5 from me

Much better than the previous one. In fact it has little to do with the previous ones. But when you look at it carefully, you shoul enjoy it. The sound has changed. A new decade has come and so the old sound has gone. Is it bad? It's different. Keyboards are different, more artificial, but Downes manages to play them quite interesting and with verry progressive touch like in Does it really happen. Mashine messiah is great, big track, a verry good opener, maybe even an epic. Into the lens (camera camera, hehe) is quite funny track. I remember a little part of it was one of the signals in the Polish Radio some years ago, but I did'n know where did it came from. Now I know. Run through the light starts absolutely fantastic! This mood, spacey keyboards and echo aded to the vocal are brilliant. It's a shame that later it becomes more poppy. Finally we have Tempus fugit. Great, fast track with good old Squire and Howe showing their best.

I really like this album and consider very simmilar to the King Crimson Color Trilogy, which is also very good in my opinion. It's different than older Yes, but very fresh and very entertaining.

What a drama ! Jon is gone (but hopefully will come back). Rick is gone (but hopefully will come back). Howe / Squire / White ensure that the YesFoundation is still defended. It was quite a challenge for the Buggles (specially in the live sets) to enter the YesWorld. Incidently, I was quite a fan of the Buggles in the late seventies (their first album "The Age Of Plastic" being a great electro-pop album), but I only discovered they were part of Yes ages after the release of "Drama" (in 1999 to be precise). I was quite curious to discover the mix of styles. I have to recognize that this is not such a bad effort as one could have expected. The opener "Machine Messiah" is a very good YesSong (like they will not produce for a very long time). Great guitar and bass playing. The highlight of the album and a true YesGem. I am not sure about the 1'21" of "White Car" : Yes has always been effective on long tracks, so really they could have skipped this one. "Does It Really Happen" shows where Yes is going to head to : FM rock oriented music. Although this one is not as bad as what they will release later on. Still, a very average YesMoment. The influence of the Buggles is obvious with "Into The Lens" : an extended rendition for "I Am A Camera" from the second Buggles album "Adventures In Modern Recording". It is not as poppy as the original, but still quite outside the YesRepertoire. This "cover" is quite good and is my second best here (after "Messiah"). In the next track "Run Through the Light" Horn sounds at times as Jon : it is absolutely stunning ! This song has a catchy chorus, good rythm and great guitar. Another good song. "Tempus Fugit" is another Buggles orientated song : a good rocking tune with, again, a great guitar work from Steve (he will definitely raise the level of this work).

The original album is quite short, but the remastered CD edition will almost double that lenght. None of the tracks though sound as they are achieved and should only be considered for what they are : essays for most of them.

Four of these bonus tracks were recorded in 1979 with the tradtional lineup (including Anderson and Wakeman). Bizarrely enough "Dancing Through The Light" sounds quite poppy and electronic as if the Buggles were waiting around the corner...The sound is quite poor. "Have We Really Got To Go Through This" being the poorest one (an uninspired rocking instrumental) together with "Song No 4" (another instrumental, quite jamming track - where are you Jon) ? An interesting bonus is "Golden Age" : although FM oriented and poppy at times, some orphans can discover what Yes should have been with Jon during that period (actually nothing better than what we can get on "Drama"). The very Wakemanesque "In The Tower" is my favorite bonus here : Jon is (as usual) great and very emotional, keys are superb. A great melody. Definitely, if extended to a normal YesLenght it could have been a great track. "Friend Of A Friend" has a good rocking chorus and is not bad at all.

The other bonus tracks consist of the single versions for "Into The Lens - I Am A Camera", and "Run Through The Light", one unreleased track from the "Drama" sessions : "Have We Really Got To Go Through This" (as usual, you will understand why it remained unreleased when you will listen to it). Alternate versions for "Tempus Fugit" and "White Car " won't enrich your YesCollection either. As some reviewers have mentioned, the core of the future Asia sound is there. Still, this YesAlbum (not The YesAlbum), is a quite decent one. Try and get hold of the remastered version for ""Golden Age" and "In The Tower". Three stars.

Oh man, Yes witout Jon Anderson!?!?! How can this be of any worth? That's what virtually everybody that hasn't heard this album thinks. "Drama" is a fine effort by Yes, and Trevor Horn adds a bit of a darker twist on the band with darker lyrics and voice, while Chris Squire (the only REAL Yes member) stays as sturdy as ever.

The album starts with the longest track on the album, "Machine Messiah". Excellent vocals and rhytmic interlays make this song one of the broadest songs Yes has released in a while, generally speaking. "White Car" is or is around one of the shortest songs Yes has ever released, and although there is barely any substance in the song (only one verse), you just simply cannot hate it because there is nothing to hate here. Nice touch, but nothing of stand-out value. "Does It Really Happen?" is a fast, loud, upbeat song and one of my favorites. Very nice vocal work again.

The second side is kicked off by "Into The Lens". This is the spot where you can finally start to hear the Buggles influence, and this is carried all the way through this side. The whole "I am a camera" lyric gets a tad annoying after a while, but Steve keeps the song fresh by playing better than he's played in in the last ten years. "Run Through The Light" has one of the WORST intros in Yes's history, what with the keyboard popping and the horrible lyrics, but I must say it really does pick up when Steve kicks it into gear. Seems to be a theme here huh? Well anyways, "Tempus Fugit" is the final song, and this could have easily been performed by the 1971 Yes line-up with it's heavy bass lines and powerful lyrics. One of the top Yes songs in my book.

So all in all, you can obviously tell through this album that Jon Anderson is clearly not the heart and soul of Yes. Chris Squire is and Steve Howe is his wingman, with Squire's powerhouse bass lines on this albums and Howe's metallic riffs. One of Yes's finest releases on their career, and the best studio album from 1980-present.

4 stars, worth your time and money!

This album stands out as being the only album to not include Jon Anderson, and one of the albums not to feature Rick Wakeman. So people immedeatly cry 'This isn't Yes!'. And i wholeheartedly agree with them, much in the same way i agree that post-waters floyd aren't the same band. Fine, no problem with that. But this album is incredible nonetheless! If you listen to this album expecting to hear the classic 70's Yes sounds, you may be dissapointed, but only perhaps for a microsecond. DRAMA forges a sound that strikes a perfect balance between 70's prog and 80's commercial polish in a way that i doubt was ever really re-captured after the Buggles split with Yes. Right from the mini-epic opener 'Machine Messiah' through to the album closer 'Temus Fugit', the newly formed quintet never lose momentum, performing tracks so tight that not one second of filler slips in (even though 'White Car' does seem a bit pointless sometimes). The sound of this album is so crisp and timeless; no doubt a result of the award winning production of then singer/songwriter Horn- and Downes, although not really a replacement for Wakeman as their styles vary considerably (Downes has more restraint for one thing), does a teriffic job filling out the sound with new keyboard sounds and effects, bringing a distinct flavour to the groups new sound. Yes, Horns' vocals are very different from Andersons, but he definatly does the album justice, seeming to be able to harmonise with other singers with favourable results. Howe's guitar work takes on a metallic edge- which appears only on this and the subsequent Asia debut and hardly anywhere else- that complements Downes modern keyboards excellently; his solo spots on Machine Messiah alone warrant purchasing of this album. The rythm section of White and Squire are as perfect as ever, with Squires' bass playing very much pushed to the fore and making memorable tracks even better with his agressive tone (the prominence of his bass in the mix may be something to do with Horn being a bass player) and skillful dilivery. All in all, an astounding album (you'll notice i've avoided describing the individual tracks in too much detail, so as not to spoil it), well worth any money, although this reviewer is unable to comment on the bonus tracks on newer CD versions available. As I said before, a balance between 70's and 80's sounds that i have never been able to find anywhere else, and an album that i've even recommended to friends who don't even like prog! Footnote: If they had managed to make another album after this one with the same lineup, and it was more successful, 90125 may never have happened. Food for thought..

Soap Opera Drama

Imaging Yes without Wakeman is fairly possible. After all he wasn't there from the beginning and Moraz replaced him on Relayer, which by all means is true Yes album. Surely Yes could have coped with the loss of the keyboard wizard but when Jon, the mystical front man and visioner of Yes, left the band it is questionable wheter one can call the band Yes anymore. Jon and Rick were replaced by Geoff Downes and Trevor Horn. Trevor Horn is no doubt one of the best producers there is but back then Geoff and Horn had only made their annoying yet popular hit "Video Killed The Radio Star". Surely Yes was far too serious and professional for such pair. We can't change the past but atleast we can review it.

I really didn't have much interest to listen this album trough several times in order to get full picture. I listened it straight trough few times and I think it's enough. The album starts fairly well with Machine Messiah, which is the longest song in the album around progressive 10 minutes. When I heard this first time I was surprised. The heavy metal intro sounds something that Dream Theater could have done (for curiousity they have covered the song and even played it with Steve Howe on MTV). It sounds obvious from the beginning that Yes tried new stuff. The song sounds ok until Mr. Trevor Horn starts singing. Jon Anderson is practically impossible to replace but I think Horn fails nearly completely. I'm not saying that he is a lousy singer. He isn't too good but what most, his style and voice doesn't fit to Yes. Atleast Downes is comparatively better keyboard player, than Trevor in singing.

The style of the album is different. It is maybe slightly more aggressive and fairly more guitar and bass oriented. Chris Squire does very good work on some songs and I can't blame them too much. Playing is fair but the problems is deep in the root: songwriting.

The fair start, Machine Messiah, is one of the best songs on the album. It is no doubt progressive and partly it does remind the former glory of Yes. The disaster starts with the second song. White Car is very short song with nice instrumental playing but Horn manages to rape the song completely. I find it hard to understand how can anyone really enjoy his singing in particulary on this song. Does It Really Happen? is energetic song with good musicianship and it isn't completely ruined by Horn, but over all it sounds like a mix of prog and pop, something that Asia did few years later.

Into The Lens is overly long song with more annoying singing from Horn. When I (very rarely) listen to this song I can see a mental image of him singing with annoying smile on his face equipped with his silly looking glasses. Run Through the Light goes even lower. Horn sounds even more annoying and the song sounds mostly lousy adult oriented 80's pop. Horn sounds terrible as he tries to sing high notes and the way he repeats the words sounds even worst. I feel sorry for Steve and Squire that they ever had to play in an album like this. Tempus Fugit is fairly better song. It is mostly a Chris Squire song with some amazing bass playing. Not bad but it doesn't save this weak album.

The bonus version has ten extra song of some of which feature Jon Anderson. Reviewing all of them would be a waste of time from both of us dear reader, so I make it short. Song No.4 (Satellite) is nice jamming song between Howe and Squire. It's a nice song but bit too long. The bonus songs which feature Anderson seem to be songs that would have been released on an album Yes planned to make after Tormato, before Wakeman and Anderson left. I'm happy they never made that album, the bonus songs are enough.

Overall Drama is weak album. There are two main reasons for the this. Compositions are mostly boring 80's pop rock and they are even worst when Horn sings them. I wouldn't give it one star because of Tempus Fugit, Machine Messiah and Song No.4 (Satellite), but three stars would be way too much for an album like this. I simply bought this album becose I want to fill my Yes collection. I see that it is the only reasonalble reason to purchase this album. It is a shame that Yes did music like this. It is also a great shame that after five years of break Yes allowed Roger Dean to create very good cover art for a weak album. He should have made it for Going For The One.

This album in the YES canon is like a breath of fresh air. After the over-hyped and praised 'Going For The One' and the unbalanced and ugly 'Tormato', the band was running out of steam and ideas. Out went two beloved members and in came a couple of young turks. Right from the get-go we get the most ominous beginning of a YES album ever. "Machine Messiah' starts the album just right for me, dark and menacing, the newbies aquaint themselves well inside the YES 'machine'. Fast pace with fine vocals by Trevor it has an 80's sheen akin to RUSH's polished prog, but with better guitar. From this super beginning we delve into a too short for my take but beautiful nevertheless song, 'White Car. It' could have been a superior track if stretched out to a full length, it's the only gripe I have with the album. Now, if you have the remastered RHINO edition, go to tracks 13-16 which are done by the band with Anderson and Wakeman. What cracks me up is how they sound like 90's YES as oppose to late 70's YES. It kinda re-enforces my tired, old YES equation. The balance of the album just has a lode of energy, it's infecteous and renewed. I'll take this line-up over any that comes after, even though I enjoy 90125. 4 fresh stars!

After the train wreck travesty that was "Tormato" there was nowhere for Yes to go but up, even if it meant shaking up the esteemed board of directors. The potent magic spells they had once cast like sorcerers were long gone and to have kept the same boys in the band at that point would have been counter productive to say the least. Exit stage left co-founder Jon Anderson and the extraordinary keyboard virtuoso Rick Wakeman. I have to confess that I surprised myself recently when I listened to "Drama" for the first time in probably ten years. Maybe it was because I had felt so badly betrayed by their aforementioned previous fiasco or because Jon and Rick had hit the road but, for whatever reason, I had developed a rotten attitude towards this album that, frankly, was unfair. Don't get me wrong now, it's no "Fragile" or even "Tales from Topographical Oceans" by a country mile but it is so much better than "Tormento" that, in comparison, it's a freakin' masterpiece of progressive rock.

They really weren't doing themselves any huge favor by starting things off with what sounds like the soundtrack for a cheap monster movie on "Machine Messiah." It might be right for Black Sabbath but it's just not Yes music. Fortunately they get past that and take you into some very clean vocal harmonies on the verses and things get better in a hurry. The instrumental segment is exciting and even includes the sound of a cathedral organ, a Yes trademark. Geoff Downes is no Wakeman but his performance throughout the proceedings is better than average and he never overplays his hand. And, as far as the subject matter goes, if they were worried about HAL taking over in 1980 they would have been terrified to know that by the end of the century there would be a PC in almost every home. So much for warnings. "White Car" is one of the shortest songs in the history of this group at 1:21 and it passes by so quickly that it's hard to form an opinion about it one way or another. I do get the impression that it's about Jon Anderson because of the lyric "I see a man in a white car/Move like a ghost on the skyline/Take all your dreams/And you throw them away." Evidently they weren't ready to make nice just yet. "Does It Really Happen?" is next up and it features a very solid thematic idea built on top of Chris Squire's galloping bass riff. There's a tasteful vocal break in the middle and Chris shines in the spotlight on the way out. I never have figured out what "It" is that they're singing about. "Into the Lens" is the best song on here. With a staccato beginning grabbing you by the lapels it flows directly into an excellent melody and a round of high quality vocalizations. It's an incredibly tight track and drummer Alan White is his usual exemplary self. The creative arrangement and state of the art production (from Eddie Offord) are a welcome throwback to much better Yes days. Singer Trevor Horn's not a bad vocalist but his ridiculous phrasing on "Run Through the Light" marks the first instance where I truly miss Jon Anderson on this album. The chorus is decent and Steve Howe's guitar comes riding in like the cavalry to attempt to save the tune but for me it remains the low point. "Tempus Fugit" is an uptempo rocker that literally sizzles. Howe and Squire set the pace for the band to follow and the harmony work is spot on. It even has some interesting lyrics with "If you could see all the roads I have traveled/Towards some unusable last equilibrium/Run like an athlete/And die like a dead beaten speed freak/An answer to all of the answers to - Yes." Speed freak? Those aren't your normal Yes lines at all.

Okay, so it's not in the same universe as their best but it was definitely a step forward. I avoided listening to "Drama" because of preconceived notions but when I take it in without bias I find that it certainly doesn't deserve the horrible rap it often receives. With the return of Roger Dean's fantastic cover art, more group focus and renewed enthusiasm for their work Yes went a long way towards redemption with this project. I give it 3.5 stars.

This was a very gutsy album for Yes. They move on right away after Jon's departure and leap right into the eighties. You know what I'm talking about if you ever seen the promo videos and their appearance. You hear a different sound on this album. At times, it is darker and metal-like at times as in Machine Messiah. Dream Theater loves this song as they have covered it about 4800 times, including some with Steve Howe and Alan White on different occasions. At other times, it is upbeat and poppy as in "Into the lens" and "Run Through the Light". The reason of course is influence from the Buggles, Trevor Horn, and Geoff Downesm, who as everyone knows, joined the to replace Jon and Rick.

All six songs are great. My favorite is "Machine Messiah". The repeating 9/8 line by in the middle is addicting and the guitar is a very nice touch. It builds up and the tension is released in a more dramatic reprise of the intro. There is no weak song on the album. "Tempus Fugit", or "Time Flies" is a strong, strong closer. It's a shame Jon Anderson is too egotistical for them to play these songs live. Everyone but Squire (him being on every album (to my knowledge)) has had to learn parts and play parts that they did'nt create. But, that's fine, everyone has a bit of an ego whether it's really small (Steve Hackett) or really big (Roger Waters and everyone in ELP).

Final analysis: Jon and Rick really miss out on this fine album. The Buggles prove to be worthy replacements and hold their own next to these prog giants. Not at all a disappointment, definately give it a try as there wasn't a Yes album of this caliber for a while.

I don't know why this album gets slammed, ok the line "I am a Camera" is a bit silly (not in a good way), but to me I think Trevor Horn did a decent job and I quite like Geoff Downes on keys. If you listen to the bonus tracks that were penned by Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman, you'll relise they were on their way to making a real dud of an album, its no wonder the other guys had no enthusiasm for the material. This album has a harder edge especially compared to Tormato and the best tracks are Machine Messiah, Into the Lens and Tempu Fugit.If Tormato was the Jon Anderson-Wakeman album of Yes, then Drama is the Howe-Squire-White album; and quite frankly I prefer their vision of the band at this point. This album could have been a new beginning and direction for Yes, I would've been interested if they kept this line-up for a couple more albums. This is how prog shoul have sounded like in the 1980s!

Yes remembers how to rock.

Machine Messiah! The heavy opening sounds like the Star Wars Imperial Walkers heading towards you from the horizon! This song is an example of where Yes could have headed instead of the Rabin schlock albums of the 1980s.

Is Yes without Jon really Yes? Who cares? If they can pull off an album like Drama without him it was a worthy avenue to head down for at least a spell.

I don't know the band inner dynamics, but if I were guessing I'd say that Chris, Steve, and Alan saw the chance to have some fun with Anderson and Wakeman out of the picture. And they decided to ROCK out for a change. Drama rocks and you can hear the evidence most directly in Chris Squire. The bass comes right outta your speaker and takes a swing at you. I sense a collective sigh of relief by these guys at the chance to make a less "Cosmic Jon" and "Ego Rick" kind of record.

All of the songs work well for me. While "Machine Messiah" and "Into the Lens" are my favorites there isn't a bad song here. Even the much maligned "White Car" is fine for what it is, just a brief musical daydream. Not every idea must be taken to the standard rock length or the standard prog epic length.

And the new guys? I'm not saying they are better than those they replaced but for the kind of record Drama is they worked perfectly. They are musicians who were capable of balancing the equally important needs of bringing in freshness and spontaneity while respecting the Yes sound and audience. That's a damn tall order when you think about it and they did an admirable job in my opinion.

The Dean cover art is back thankfully and while this line-up could not last it was an awfully fun one-off. Thus, 3.5 affectionate stars for the last good Yes album.

Yes had suffered personnel losses before (Banks, Bruford, Kaye, Wakeman) but this time, not only did Wakeman leave again, but original singer and one of the main creative forces behind Yes's music and sound left- Jon Anderson. The remaining band members then hired the pop-duo Buggles, Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes, to fill the remaining positions. Even though the album sported Roger Dean cover art, a 10 minute opening song and Eddie Offord back producing, would things collapse under too much change?

Surprisingly, no, they wouldn't. Things would actually get worse later as the lineup stabilized throughout the 80s, but that's a different story. The album isn't as commercial as you might think and things actually stay very Yes-like, even now into the 1980s. "Machine Messiah" opens the album, a classic progressive tour-de-force. Easily the best song on the album, it features the dynamics, melodies and Horn even sounds almost exactly like Anderson (I wouldn't have detected a difference if I didn't know Anderson left). The only thing that might be a letdown for some listeners is that the rest of the album isn't actually in the same vein as the opening song. Oh well.

The rest of the album is overall very upbeat, almost pop-like at times. "Does It Really Happen?" has an interesting groove considering this is Yes and "Into The Lens" (despite how annoying the lyrics are), have some nice atmospheric parts and great vocal harmonies. "Run Through The Light" sounds like something leftover from "Tormato", but overall isn't terribly interesting. Closing the album, "Tempus Fugit" is a very driven and rocking song. Whereas "Machine Messiah" looked to the past for inspiration, "Tempus Fugit" has a much more contemporary feel and structure. It's still a great song, though.

So overall, "Drama" is really an underrated Yes album. It's not one of their best, but certainly better than albums they put out in the 80s and 90s. "Drama" sees Yes incorporating a more commercial and accessible elements to their music, but at this point, it hasn't completely taken over. If you are already a Yes fan, you might want to get this one. If you are a newer fan, become more familiar with their earlier works before checking this one out.

On the 2004 remaster edition, some tracks from the 1979 Paris Sessions (with Anderson and Wakeman) are included here. There are some who hate this album and blame Horn and Downes for screwing with Yes's sound, but from the likes of these songs, it sounds like the band was headed in that direction anyway.

Standout songs: "Machine Messiah", "Tempus Fugit"

After Tormato, considered by all Yes members a weak album, Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman left Yes. Without Rick again, and for the first (and only) time without the singer that was the trademark of Yes together with Squire's powerful bass, the remaining members had the idea of calling The Buggles, a new pop duo that was recording on the same studio and the same record company as them, to join the band. They accepted instantly, being Trevor Horn (the singer) a fan of the band. Considering The Buggles' single "Video Killed the Radio Star", a ridiculous pop song full of irritating clichés (like the calm section coming back to the chorus, the steady beat, etc), I would never say they were an ideal replacement for Rick and Jon. However, they were, giving the band a new approach, slightly closer to pop music (but not so much) and sometimes to Heavy Metal. I'm amazed at how the band managed to change their sound and still keep the distinctive Yes-sound. This is not easy to do (see 90125, when they became a laughable pop band with almost no characteristic of Yes at all). So I really appreciate this album. It's not a masterpiece at all, actually it has very good and very bad moments. In the good ones, I'm glad Jon left the band, giving them the possibility to experiment new things that would never take form with Jon's angelic voice. Steve, Chris and Alan really rock here!

First, the Good moments: Machine Messiah is awesome! Steve's guitars are a little distorted, but not enough to be unpleasant (Steve's opinions about guitar timbres and styles are exactly the same as mine, so he would never do something that could hurt a ear). This epic is a real rock'n'roll masterpiece, mixing prog, heavy metal and a small pop tendency. Tempus Fugit is amazing as well. Chris Squire's bass is perfect all through the disc, very loud, but here it reaches a climax! He's my favourite bassist, and here he achieves one of his peaks, with great melodies played with energy and so much feeling! I can't even describe it. The song is pop-rock, with chorus, yes it is, but I love it anyway.

So-so and bad moments: Does It Really Happen is average. Bass and drums are great, but at the time the voice comes in, it gets much worse. The sung melodies are not original nor catchy. This was probably a Buggles song that got an improvement from the Yes guys. White Car is way too short, but it's not a good bridge in my opinion. It's not bad, but it seems to me like a musical idea they didn't have time to improve, so they put it in the record with just one minute. Run Through The Light is another song with perfect instrumental passages, but very bad vocals. They probably tried to imitate The Police in the use of echoes and in the sing-along chorus. Without success. Do I need to say that Chris Squire did a hell of a job, even in the sung parts? Into the Lens is a strange song... the lyrics make me cry wanting Jon Anderson back. He often used nonsense in Yes lyrics, but always with good taste and well constructed verses. Then comes Trevor Horn and sings "I am a camera, camera camera". Ricidulous. I don't want to be repetitive, but Squire also did a great job here! Steve and Alan (the latter in one of his best moments) too. Some time signature changes in this song seem artificial and I don't like them. For example, the chorus in 6/8 seems forced, as if they had thought "We don't want another 4/4 chorus" and added two times just for that.

Conclusion: I love many aspects of this album, but hate some. At all it's a good addition to any prog collection, and I'm glad these changes were made. But don't expect a masterpiece! P.S: Trevor Horn did a good job here, but live he was a disaster singing former Yes songs. I have a bootleg with a show from this tour, and at Yours Is No Disgrace I can only laugh at how his voice fits the song so weirdly.

Actually, I logged on to PA today to review Chris Squire's Fish Out Of Water. That's going to have to take a back seat though, as I read Evandro Martini's review of Drama on the front page, and I found that I have something to say about this album.

First, a little historical perspective. If you can remember back to when this was released, you will remember two things notable about it. The first was the shock of having the Buggles replacing Jon and Rick. Mr. Martini's review gives a good perspective about how Yes fans received this. They were dissappointed and felt it was a poor mix, but they still hoped against hope for the best. There was a lot of fear that the Buggles would have Yes churining out pop like "Video Killed The Radio Star." Oddly enough, when this was realized on 90125, Yes fans were far more accepting of it.

The other thing you should remember is that songs from this album received significant airplay. Yes was finally getting something besides Roundabout played on stations that weren't album oriented. This album did not break out like 90125, but it did lay the groundwork.

Nowadays, Yes fans give Drama more credibility as a Yes album, after suffering through the YesWest years and things like Union and OYE.

Machine Messiah: An energetic mini-epic where the Steve, Chris, and Alan show their chops and the high point of the album. This is the old Yes that we know and love cranked up on caffeine. The only weird thing here is the lyrics. I can't imagine Jon ever penning anything like this. This is one of the very few songs that I hope Yes plays live again before they dissolve into history.

White Car: This is Downes' feature piece, a bland, slow tempoed keyboard number. Few fans lament Downes' leaving Yes. This piece shows why.

Does It Happen?: A rocker that shows off some great work by White and Squire. Yes usually gets it wrong when they drop into straightforward arena rock, but here they are just dipping their toes in the water and the song works. Not memorable, but not something you'd skip over, either.

Into The Lens: A Horn song given a Yes workover, which in this case means adding a lot of DRAMA. Another good one, with plenty of nifty riffs by Steve and Chris.

Run Through The Light: The album's low point. I usually skip over this song. It's a song that sounds like it doesn't know what it wants to be and ends up being bland, along the lines of It Can Happen on 90125.

Tempus Fugit: As with the opener, Yes puts on another up tempo performance of technical wizardry. Downes' finest moment is here. You won't mistake him for Wakeman, but you might mistake him for Kaye. The difference between this song and the opener is that the vocals and the lyrics are on par with what you would expect from Yes.

I'll give this one three stars. It's good and you'll be happy you heard it, but it's only a must hear for fans of Yes.

BYE BYE, WAKEMAN AND ANDERSON, WELCOME BACK ROGER DEAN!!

I am very amazed by the cult status this album is getting through the ages. Reading some critics, it's like DRAMA is up there in the nirvana of the best YES albums. While there are some good parts on it, it cannot be compared on the same level with the early 70s releases and that has nothing to do with the departure of JON ANDERSON.

The new singer, TREVOR HORN of Buggles fame does a relatively good job at replacing ANDERSON, especially on the track MACHINE MESSIAH as in some parts, you could think that it is the former singer who is on duty. This album is definitely better than TORMATO, it seems the remaining members have refocused on what is YESmusic; no attempt at getting into the top 40, Just trying to play pleasant YESmusic. I guess as soon ANDERSON left, STEVE HOWE called ROGER DEAN and asked him to bring back the YES spirit on the cover artwork. Always (almost)a good sign when you see a ROGER DEAN design on a YES cover!!!!

The main opus is of course, a 10mn epic named MACHINE MESSIAH, a kind of hard rocking HOWE showmanship; This is by no means THE GATES, but after TORMATO, believe me it's good!!and it sounds like good old YES, the YES we used to love! Sadly some signs of the future are also present like ''Does it really happen'' which could have found a space on any RABIN-era albums, not bad, great SQUIRE bass, but that's already 80s sounding. Actually my second fave of the album is the one where HORN thinks he is a camera ''Into the lens'', good hooks, good melody,not overcomplicated, but pleasant. STEVE HOWE plays old STEVE HOWE again not like on TORMATO where he is trying too hard to sound like STEVE HOWE. He is himself again on this album, i guess the tensions with ANDERSON and WAKEMAN on Tormato were gone at this time.

The album ends with 2 decent tunes ''Run through the light'' and the fast ''Tempus fugit'' with a great HOWE again. I am not mentionning CHRIS SQUIRE as he is superb as usual. GEOFFREY DOWNES (of future ASIA fame) is doing a good job as well, definitely more discreet than WAKEMAN, but he plays some tasty parts throughout the album . But STEVE HOWE is defintely the man here!

A nice decent album; not a masterpiece but a definitely great improvement over TORMATO! 3 stars means a good album, right??? so let's go with 3 stars.

Not only did Rick Wakeman leave Yes in 1979, but so did their lead singer Jon Anderson. Chris Squire recruited vocalist Trevor Horn and keyboardist Geoff Downes from the new wave band The Buggles to replace them. The Buggles? Yep, that's right. And what is so surprising about it, is that this new lineup's 1980 release of Drama was the most progressive output the band had made since Relayer. But it's not as surprising as one might think. True, the Buggles were into making that synthesized new wave music that became popular in the early 1980s, but both Downes and Horn were long-standing fans of Yes.

Drama is vastly underrated. I repeat, VASTLY underrated. Going for the One saw Yes move away from their three-songs-an-album days, and Tormato saw their transformation into mediocrity. Yes, there was some good material on those two albums, but much of it was uninspired. Drama is more or less a mix of the best of those two albums and their classic period. Clearly Downes and Horn breathed some fresh new air into a group that was deep in the doldrums.

Squire's bass playing on this album is phenomenal, on par with his work on Relayer. Steve Howe's guitar work on this is also fantastic and complements Geoff Downes on the keys. The production on this album is also significantly better than the previous two and that may have been a result of bringing Eddie Offord back as a co-producer.

Trevor Horn's voice takes a little getting used to, especially after hearing Jon Anderson's voice since the band's first album in 1969. Horn can't compare to Anderson. But if you let his voice sink in after awhile, you'll find he's quite competent at singing this style of music. His voice is actually quite similar in tone to Chris Squire's voice.

Unfortunately, this was the last incarnation of this new lineup and Yes would split up in 1981 with Downes and Howe joining Asia, Horn pursuing music production, and Squire and White pursuing other projects (like the XYZ project with Jimmy Page). As I said before, this one is often overlooked and is a vastly underrated gem. A masterpiece to my ears and the last real prog rock we would hear from Yes for quite some time. Five stars.

It's 1980 and a young smalltown Canadian boy is just starting to explore the world of progressive rock. He stumbles upon an album called Yes Drama at the local department store and spins it on his little molded black and white plastic dorchester stereo. Magic prevails. It becomes a seminal moment in my life as a lover of music and all things creative and uninhibited in music. At the time I had no idea who Jon Anderson was and I'm glad I didn't because it never discolored the brilliance of this album with comparisons and relativistic conventions we all use in judging the quality of music. Frankly, this album soars in every way and Howe and Squire put on a clinic that made me want to both pitch my guitar in the Niagara river and lock myself in my closet with it for months. The intensity, freshness and earnesty the band conveys throughout this album is undeniable. Whether it is an outcome of the collaboration with Horn and Downes and Olfords production again, I dont know, but it screams progressive by nature and signals a healthy turning point for the band that for me defines what progessive rock music is all about; absorbing life day to day, interpreting and redefining the art. 1980 was a fertive year for progressive music and it spawned another of my all time favourites, Rush's Permant waves, which I believe was a similar turning point for them and came out of a point in time when much optimism existed in the direction things were going. The range of tools at a musicians disposal were widening and progressive musicians were widening their scope to include many genre influences; essentially becoming less incestuous and more outreaching. Squire winds up creating what for me is the archetypal Rickenbacker sound ( sorry Geddy!) subsequently defining the albums overall feel. His basswork at times snarls and growls through flanged up effects ala Tempus Fugit and othertimes it stuns with precision ala I am a Camera. Its hard to discount what Steve Howe has done for progressive rock music when you fire up Drama and get swept away. This guys an albatross; he does it all and draws from so many sources and speaks in so many tongues that his playing on this album for me is complete. In fact everyones work on this album is stellar and nobody can be blamed for fluff or filler here. Its all there for a reason; 'to navigate waters and finally answer to-yes'. The only conceivable weakness here may be the penmanship behind the music; but listening to the opus Machine Messiah 27 years later,it now has a much starker, sobering and revealing message than it ever did. The singular eye spoken of in the last orgasmic explosion of this song almost made me jump out of my chair with thoughts of 'illuminati'. Drama is a great lesson on the subjectivity of music and futile nature of expectation. People have vastly different opinions regarding it and many are linked to how the music moved you and changed your perceptions at that point in time. Wow, I see 1 star ratings here, but thats the beauty of it all isnt it! For me this album is like some kind of electrical gronk juice(ha,whatever that is) tapped straight into my cortex that transports me back and far away. Its sound is also timeless and is as current today as it was in 1980. Thats great music. Yes could have stood at the top of the mountain with this one like the Police did with Syncronicity and called it a day, capping a great run ,but thats not Yes' style. Its not Close to the Edge or Tales from Topograghic Oceans but those albums(5 stars) laid the foundation for this avant garde masterpiece(off the rating system)

No wakeman no Anderson, insted we get 2 guys from a band called "The Buggles" probobly yust what this band needed some new band mebers with some new ideas, what we get is a very strong album, and a step up from Tormato. This is very 80s sounding but its still has some prog feel, its a good mix of prog and 80s pop i whuld say. Starting of with "Machine messiah" is a great opening song and the longest and most complex on the album and the most prog one too and the first song i heard and what made me wana get the album in the first place, Howe play a cool riff heavier then ever before and good melody and nice tempo changes. The next song is a short litle number "White car" but pretty good. "Does it realy hapen" comes next and now it starting to sound like 80s pop but it has some cool keyboard riffs and its a very catchy and good song and preety heavy. "In to the lens(i am a camera)" very good this song sound like a hit and it was i think in a edited version, typical 80s feeling song but a good one, "Run trough the light" is my least favoirte on the album and the softest almost ballad its still not bad, the album ends with the cool Tempus fugit and yes it has an incredibly good bass riff probobly the hardes rocking song on the album and a great way to end. The new 2004 remaster got 10 bonus tracks and i whuld recomend you get this version since it has great sound and the bonus tracks are very nice and if you dont like em yust skip it. With this album Yes entered the 80s on a high note, its a strong album when you consider they yust lost thiere key member, to bad this line up dident record any more albums.

If there is one band that has had as many highs and lows, it must be Yes. Prog fans usually refer to Close to the Edge, Fragile and Relayer as their Golden Age, but often disagree as to their appreciation of other albums. Some consider Tales from Topographic Oceans a masterpiece while others think they went over the top with it. Tormato and Going for the One are usually looked upon in puzzlement, whereas Big Generator, Union and Open your Eyes are laughed at.

Which brings us to Drama.

An oddity in the Yes discography, the line-up that recorded it only recorded this one (like the line-up for Relayer which included Patrick Moraz). So here we have Trevor Horn handling vocals and Geoff Downes playing keyboards instead of Anderson and Wakeman. But the Yes sound is still very much intact. If one thing, the album has a heavier sound than anything previously recorded by the band, and to my ears, this is definitely not a bad thing.

Opener Machine Messiah is among my favorite Yes songs (and the only one on which I will elaborate a bit). It has an energy to it rarely heard in previous Yes recordings. Howe's guitar work is very diverse from beginning to end, boasting heavy riffing at times as well as moody acoustic passages. Downes proves himself to be a very suitable and competent replacement for Wakeman with nice textures and beautiful melodies. And had I not know Horn sang on the album, I would have EASILY mistaken him for Anderson. Not only does he sound like him, but with Squire's support vocals to carry him it sounds as if the vocal duet that recorded all previous Yes offerings is still intact. I suppose Squire wrote most of the vocal melodies and harmonies.

As for the rest of the album, a few words can be used to summarize it : consistent, modern (for the times), interesting and a good load of fun to listen to. Those who snobbed this album because Wakeman and Anderson were no longer in the fold truly missed out on something ; Yes' best album since Relayer, and, also, the best before a long time. Probably the last great prog album Yes recorded. It would have been really interesting to hear what they could have done given another album or two. Instead, Downes went on to form Asia, and Yes went on to record 90125.

Though not a masterpiece, it definitely deserves four stars.

With Tormato, Yes had turned up a blind alley - as much as Going for the One was a rebirth, really. I remember reading about Anderson and Wakeman leaving/being thrown out (whichever), and the very strange move of Squire to recruit Horn and Downes. 'Video killed the radio star' had been on TOTP a bit not that long before, and I thought 'OK. Let's see what happens now'.

Oh boy, was it a disaster. Yes, and I seem to be in a minority for this. The bottom line is that Anderson's vocals and voice have always been a major part of the Yes sound. As much as Squire's bass. That's what kills this offering for me. Horn just does not cut it at all. Don't get me wrong on the guy - his production on 90125 is excellent - but I remember the concert reviews after Drama, where he simply couldn't hit the notes, and his voice tired.

You can always listen to this for a prelude of what Downes would do for Asia, but this is really not a 'Yes' album.

3.5 Much better than I anticipated. I remember hearing the thought of an Andersonless album was preposterous. On my first listen, I could barely even make out the different vocalist. The vocals are certainly not what is weak on this album. In general, this album suffers from a lack of fluidity and inconsistency. They produced Machine Messiah, Yes' best work since Tales from Topographic oceans. White Car is despicable. And Temups fugit is a really sweet way to end the problem. It would be easy to knock this album for lacking anderson, but trust me, it is not the case. Though it's not necessary for a prog collection, it would be very nice to have as a yes fan.

This album was like a shock for the purist Yes fans, not only because the unthinkable absence of Jon Anderson but the inclusion of the pioneers of technopop "The Buggles". Beyond all prejudgments this was (still probably is) the last jewel of studio albums of Yes (check ratings in this site and you will not find any other better rated studio album until Magnification in 2001). Geoff Downes and Trevor Horn insert fresh ideas and an innovative sound to the band while Squire and Howe keep the reverberation and background effects good enough to maintain the Yes sound intact. "Does It Really Happen?" Is a clear example of this effort adding some of the "Siberian Khatru" combined with "The Fish", while Machine Messiah looked to me more experimental work for the Yes style. I am afraid this album has been underrated by the comparison of other great Yes albums and highly penalized by the inclusion of two members who apparently got nothing to do with prog music, but they were excellent musicians (Yes fans for years), and innovators in someway in another music trends. I do not have any fear to assign 5 stars to this album as a real masterpiece of the progressive world.

Machine messiah and Tempus fugit are fantastic, and worth the album price on their own. Machine messiah seems to preempt prog metal, and is the best song Yes did post-Relayer. Yes still sound like Yes even without Anderson, mainly because he was only ever the lead of five voices. Tempus fugit is not quite as good, but is still a return to early 70's form. Also worth mention is Into the lens, which despite some of the goofiest lyrics you will ever hear, grows past the fifth listen. The rest of the album doesn't reach the same standard.

I can't help but think it was this record that brought Jon Anderson back to the band. C'mon Jon, admit it, the boys did an amazing job and popped out one of the best things in Yes' catalog. The fact that it was not as musically intricate as previous Yes outings didn't mean it wasn't a kick-ass release, and one of the best things to emerge from the comatose progressive rock scene in 1980. The group had revitalized itself with a fresh attitude and new take on their style of symphonic rock, even forecasting the bubblegum pop of 90125 but with much stronger material, heavier arrangements, a brighter studio sound and less high school romance than that album, making Drama an exceptional work that was far more consistent than anything they had done going as far back as 1974's Relayer.

This new energy is heard immediately on 'Machine Messiah', shining power-prog with a near-perfect arrangement and studio timbre. Steve Howe is brilliant, liberated from his usually restrained style with a welcome rock bravado. Chris Squire, clearly the leader here, turns in perhaps his best single performance on record, Alan White sounds like Heaven, keyboardist Geoff Downes and vocalist Trevor Horn fine replacements for former members. Squire's baby 'Does it Really Happen?' is great fun with a kickin' bass line, reverberating vocals and nifty guitar work, and love song 'Into the Lens' charms, has Howe's blistering lead and Downes' fine keyboards. The mix and fidelity again impress on the striking 'Run Through the Light', White's drums never sounding fuller, a solitary mandolin underneath holding it all together, followed by the spectacular 'Tempus Fugit' of which not enough good things can be said.

The fact is that Drama holds more power and resolve in one track than most records have in ten, and with more great moments than many seem willing to admit, it is a must for any respectable collection.

This is probably my favorite Yes album, though I'm not a big Yes fan. The majority of the songs a pretty solid and a good change from the more classic Yes sound. The album starts out very strong with the best song of the album, Machine Massiah. I love the heavier sound and I wish that more of the songs were like this. The heavy guitar drivin sound is great. White Car doesn't add to the album but i certainly doesn't make it any worse, being only 1:21 and mostly spoken words. Deos it Really Happen is a great midpoint for the album. Another great song on the album. Here's where the album takes a quite turn for the worse. Inot the Lens is by far the weakest song on the album. While the musicianship on the song is great the lyrics bother me almost to the point where I just skip it. The insesent repeating on I am a camera bothers me to no end. Once again the album gets great. Run Through the Light is another strong song. The album ends almost as strong as it began with Tempus Fugit. The second best song on the album. Over all I would have to but this between 4 and five stars. I'll say 4.75 rounding up to 5.

I think it's quite perfect work of 1980 Yes line-up. Such melodies and arrangements as in other great works, Trevor Horn is a respectable singer realy.

Mashine Messiah - long and sometimes melodic half-prog song, such a good disanounce. 4,5/5

White Car - great keyboard song, exclusive style. 5/5

Does it really happen - melodic prog rules here, yeah! 5/5

Into the Lens - boring at the first time, but has such rather good melodies. 4/5

Run Through the Light - sometimes space-rock i think, masterpiece! 5/5

Tempus Fugit - one speedy song in this album. Also not bad. 5/5

4,75 but it has made all 5 stars!

Dramatically excellent!

Drama has slightly more of an 80's sound compared to earlier albums, but it is still far, far away from the more commercial 90125 or Big Generator. Indeed, this album is much more in line with earlier Yes albums than what might be expected given the radical changes in the line up. Such vital members as Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman were here replaced by Geoffrey Downes and Trevor Horn of The Buggles of all people! Geoff and Steve Howe would later form Asia. But Drama - thankfully! - does not sound anything like The Buggles or Asia. Drama is still very much a classic Yes album and, in my opinion, an improvement over Tormato, Going For The One, Relayer and Tales From Topographic Oceans.

In many ways Drama is similar to the Relayer album. For both of these albums Rick was replaced by a new keyboard player that only stayed for one album. For Relayer it was Patrick Moraz and here it is, as already mentioned, Geoff Downes. This circumstances left the stable members of the band more space on these albums. Steve in particular takes the opportunity to give his guitars a more prominent place on these two albums. There is a more aggressive sound to both Relayer and Drama with Machine Messiah almost having a Metal sound. This is an absolutely faboulos song!

Just as Steve's guitars take up some of the space left by Rick, the backing vocals of Chris and Steve fill in where Trevor Horn cannot quite fill the shoes of Jon. Trevor Horn has a similar voice to Jon's, so the change is not as dramatic as might be expected. Thanks to the unique and distinctive sounds of Steve's and Chris' guitar and bass sound as well as their backing vocals ensure that the typical Yes sound is still very much here. This proves that Yes is an entity that does not depend on one or two specific individuals. Yes is not just a band, but a type of music!

I didn't always rate this album as high as this, but over time I have grown to love this album a lot. It is another Yes masterpiece!

By 1980 it was clear that YES had, for one reason or another, abandoned their trademark sound. No longer did they paint on a vast canvas; no longer did they indulge CHRIS SQUIRE's brilliance with the bass, letting him take the lead; no longer did they have the confidence to take rock in new directions. After the mixed efforts that were 'Going for the One' and 'Tormato', I wondered if YES had had their day.

Well, YES may have abandoned their sound, but TREVOR HORN and GEOFF DOWNES hadn't forgotten it. In fact, they'd written some material they thought the band might like. All this while having extraordinary international success as THE BUGGLES with 'The Age of Plastic' and its ubiquitous single 'Video Killed the Radio Star'. Despite what some elitists believe pop and prog aren't actually diametrically opposed, and there's nothing at all odd in pop artists being able to write prog material.

What was odd was ANDERSON and WAKEMAN's decision to leave the band. 'Musical differences' were cited - ANDERSON wrote material, but the other band members didn't like it - but it was really about money. Despite their success the band were skint, and there were rumours that some members had helped themselves to the petty cash. So HORN and DOWNES were invited to take their place.

The result - and everyone makes the obligatory pun, so I will follow - is pure drama. From the Roger Dean cover to the solidity and grandeur of the material, this is not only a return to form, it is the first consistently excellent album the band had produced since their golden period. The music has bite, it rumbles and roars, it is funky when required, and, with the largest egos missing, is a true group effort.

The fun begins with 'Machine Messiah', a BUGGLES composition given the STEVE HOWE treatment. An appropriate mechanical rumble fades in, heralding a splendid riff. Yes, we get to hear this riff a lot in this epic track, but they do use it well. HOWE surrounds the riff with squeals, slides and snarls, hovering on the edge of discord, the sound echoing the lyrics in true epic style. WHITE thumps the tubs with more vigour than at any point in his YES career, and then it's vocals time. Ah. HORN does a credible job, but I would have been more impressed had he tried to sound like himself rather than JON ANDERSON. Of course, part of the resemblance comes from SQUIRE's backing vocals. There is some nice interplay between DOWNES, SQUIRE and HOWE in the middle of the track, building up for the genius moment at 5 minutes when they bring back the main theme in staccato version, slowed down - ah, majestic. Listen to HOWE's guitar snarl like a cat. There are so many great things about this I could fill up a page: I love HOWE's slightly flat notes on the third run through of the theme, suggesting the machine struggling for birth. Classic stuff. Nothing ANDERSON could have supplied would have had the compelling intensity of this material. A great finish rounds off this essential track.

'White Car' gets ignored, but I think it's a wonderful track. DOWNES sets us up for a single vocal phrase, the titular white car at 1:01 - possibly the cleverest song fragment on record. Then it's on to 'Does it Really Happen', a SQUIRE/HOWE/WHITE composition markedly better than any of the material we'd seen from them for a long time. A great bass lead brings us into a series of chord stabs and it's away into a track strongly reminiscent of 'Siberian Khatru', especially the funky riff at 0:54. DOWNES does a fair job on the keyboards (check out his work at 3:30, for example) as the track rocks on, and HORN's nascent production values are clear in the excellent balance between the drums and other instruments, heralding the 80s sound. The final treat is the coda following the hard stop. Impossible to fault, and greatly enjoyable, this track succeeds where tracks like 'Going For The One'. 'Release Release' and 'On the Silent Wings of Freedom' don't.

'Into the Lens' is a BUGGLES number owing more, perhaps, to SUPERTRAMP than YES: the line 'I am a camera' with its two-note keyboard accompaniment sounds like ROGER HODGSON. For all that, this is an excellent track, if perhaps a minute or two too long. 'Run Through the Light' is more of a song fragment, slightly underdeveloped compared to the rest of the album. 'Tempus Fugit' rounds off the album in self-referential style: 'Yes!' they sing. Respect for a band able to extract the urine from themselves.

An essential listen for those who thought prog had died by 1980, and for those who argue prog and pop go together like oil and water. Drama succeeded beyond my fondest hopes, and despite the improbability of it all, stands up well against the band's catalogue. 'An answer to Yes' indeed.

Review 67, Drama, Yes, 1980

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For 1980's Drama (my only post-GFTO Yes album, and probably going to stay that way for a while...), Yes has an odd line-up. The Yes nucleus has been reduced to the virtuostic Howe and Squire, and the excellent White, and added to that are The Buggles - a pop duo responsible for Video Killed The Radio Star -, comprising Geoff Downes and Trevor Horn. The obvious, but unfair, question is whether they can replace two of the golden era Yes-men, Wakeman and Anderson.

In a stroke of genius, they don't even try. Geoff Downes' keys are not a Wakeman imitation. The atmospheres of Wakeman are left behind in favour of slightly harder and more blunt work. While the man isn't an obvious choice for favourite keyboardist, he holds up his side well. Trevor Horn's vocals, similarly, are more than just aping Anderson, they change much more unexpectedly than Anderson did, and handle the harmonies with grace. Nonetheless, both fit in very well with the core parts of Yes, and the resulting album is well-balanced, surprisingly strong and at times mindblowing.

Machine Messiah dispels all fears of a weak effort. Led in by an astounding guitar-bass riff, with Howe splintering away savagely, and then moving onto various sorts of soulful backing for the harmony vocals, acoustics, synths, organs, guitar, but always with a feral edge from Howe lurking underneath. A solo section, including a superb bass solo, leads back to a return of the bass riff with awe-inspiring choral mellotron and a completely gritty guitar part. This somehow turns to a mellotron and acoustic atmosphere, with Horn's vocals again taking an oddly reverent spot, and then it jumps up into a hugely positive section, with an uplifting burst like classic Yes, and a positive solo, which then again leads down to the acoustic and keys echoing the bass riff in an ambiguous manner. More chaotic guitar-work leads us out. An absolutely phenomenal, spiritual track, complimented by a suitably Yes-ish spiritual lyrics, and, most importantly, making full use of a range of dynamics. Classic Yes, and I don't say that lightly.

White Car, lasting less than a minute and a half, is a somewhat odd track. Focused very much on a keyboard riff, with all sorts of small percussiony and acoustic things appearing. Trevor Horn provides a brief vocal, which is suitably interesting, and Downes concludes it with a moog solo. Nice.

Does It Really Happen opens with a kicking bass rhythm and White on top form, as well as some keyboards foreshadowing later vocal melodies. Howe's guitar leaps introduce the vocals, which have an absolutely killer chorus. The second, two words at a time, vocal section works well, with Downes stabbing brilliantly on the hammond behind it. The band manages to convincingly take an unbacked rendition of the chorus with a clever use of the harmonies to prevent it feeling redundant. The conclusion echoes the opening with a phenomenal bass performance from Squire, who is essentially guitar-heroing with a bass.

The eight and a half minute Into The Lens finds it slightly harder to really click than the preceding numbers, though it probably has the strongest vocal performance so far. Downes takes a pretty strong initial piano-synth lead, which he later relinquishes to Howe's parallel-to-the-vocal swirls, and the entire band takes their turns at leading and backing. There's another showcase for the soloing talents of the band-members, as well as their ability to move back to something which initially seems like the previous chorus/verse part, but musically isn't. Though I have no objections to any of the individual performances, with Howe in particular blistering away quite neatly, but the song as a whole somehow seems a bit too trite for a bit too long, with too much random movement. Very indicative of the direction Howe and Downes would take on Asia, and overall a good song, but not quite reaching the heights of the previous pieces.

Run Through The Light is another damning indiction of my love for pop songs. After a moody keyboard opening, the vocals come in with the brilliant 'I asked my love to give me she-e-elter/But all she offered me were dreams/Of all the moments spent together/That move like never-ending streams', and everything simply takes off, with a surprisingly strong performance by Horn (especially since he was competing with Squire's riveting work elsewhere) on bass and as all sorts of manic depravity and brilliant stuff turns up unexpectedly without a moment's notice. Howe is again superb, and the vocals and lyrics... and the whole song... it's just too catchy. Great song.

The closer Tempus Fugit is widely regarded as a highlight of the album, but I don't really agree. Aside from the slightly too silly 'Yes', it is simply jumpy and uplifting consistently. Not a note of ambiguity, not much variation of the tempo. The bass riff is pretty much run into the ground, and the piece just feels like it's a kid who's had a bit too much helium. This griping aside, the lyrics are brilliant, and every individual part is solid, it just lacks the soul-wrenching use of tempos and dynamics that made classic Yes to me.

Now, we hit the bonus material. The single edits are passable material, with Run Through The Light emphasising the piano a little more, and adding in a couple of odd variations. Have We Really Got To Go Through This features a lot of Howe's soloing, and is pretty good from that angle, but otherwise not that interesting. Satellite is another meandering instrumental, and, while a good example of the players reconciling their prowess with the style, it's simply not inspiring. Yes aren't, in my eyes, cut for pure instrumentals. A Tempus Fugit tracking session is a bit pointless, even if it sounds a little less excessive than the end return. The one of White Car is slightly more interesting and lyrically extended.

Dancing Through The Light is an amusing dance version of Run Through The Light, but predictably far less catchy and compelling. Golden Age is rather better, with a decent Anderson Vocal, as well as an unintrusive backing that works some of the time, even if Wakeman's tone feels a bit out of place. Not a lost gem, but not terrible, either. Into The Tower opens with a rather good duet between Wakeman's organ and Anderson's vocals, before White adds himself in to add some rock elements. Far better than most of the other bonus we get on here, actually an album-quality track. Friend Of A Friend is also quite strong, with good performances from Squire and White, it's a shame that the synth tones again feel slightly odd, especially on the longer notes. So, as a set of bonuses, pretty mediocre, but there's some good stuff in there, and the album's ending isn't so absorbing that the bonuses will break the mood.

So, overall, this is a very good and distinctly progressive album. The gut-wrenching Machine Messiah is unmissable for anyone who is even slightly interested in Yes, and I feel that Jon Anderson's presence isn't much missed. In addition, it's pretty consistent, with only the last couple of tracks letting down at all for basically undefinable reasons, and Squire is on full throttle throughout. Four stars, essential listening, matching up to a couple of the classic era albums in quality, in my opinion.

Rating: Four Stars Favourite Song: Machine Messiah or Run Through The Light. Should be the former, definitely, but I have no taste :p

Edit: slipped to a three... not a fan of Tempus Fugit, really, and there are only two real stone-cold classics here... so on the ratios with the current economic climate, I'm dropping it to three.

The last great work by Yes so far!The 80s had been started,but Yes is still amazing band.One of Yes' most remembered work for me.It is full of hits and pleasant songs.This is the first and only album without Jon Anderson and I think this is crucial for the lack of acceptance fro this album.Despite the missing Jon and the missing progressive rock at that time this album still has some success and I can tell you why...Because this album is a superb one!With this two men from the Buggles,Yes change its sound with little new wave elements and it works.Here is one of the greatest Yes' songs - Machine Messiah.The last things I want to tell about this album are the mixture between new wave and hard rock,instead of solely progressive rock.Moreover,the experience,routine and skills which make Drama one of the best Yes' albums and last great of them,instead of missing Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman!

It's very sad to see how this excellent album is misunderstood and underrated by the Jon Anderson fans, yes it's true that Trevor Horn is not Jon...But what about that?

I always believed that the weakest link in YES was Jon's voice, well in Drama we have the chance to listen the band after the infamous Tormato and with a new vocalist, the results couldn't had been better, Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes gave YES another life after almost every reasonable fan believed the band was dead and buried, sadly this new breeze lasted only one album.

Drama begins with the outstanding Machine Messiah, in my opinion the best track the band released since the last classic era album (Relayer). It has everything, solid vocals, fresh keyboards. excellent guitar, impeccable rhythm section and dramatic changes. For more than 10 minutes, the bands proves that they can play fantastic music without Anderson and Wakeman.

From the powerful introduction we can notice this guys are giving a fantastic performance, everything is in it's place and when they reach the first climax, a sudden change makes the song flow with a natural sound, enhanced by Horn and perfectly backed by Chris Squire, at last we are in front of a solid band and not only a group of talented musicians with huge egos trying to prove how great they are in comparison with the rest.

At this point the changes happen almost every minute, from fantastic guitar sections to an unexpected Baroque keyboard passage, don't need to say more, an underrated gem.

White Car is a very short but pompous filler between two powerful tracks, despite this fact, not bad either.

Does it Really Happen is another highlight, again from the vibrant start, the band proves they are better than ever, despite the Popish vocal sections, the song presents almost every element required for a good Prog track, not as strong as the opener, but good enough.

Into the Lens (I Am a Camera) is another excellent track that received harsh comments because it had airplay and even an MTV video, and something an average Proghead doesn't forgive is commercial success. I won't say it's a masterpiece, but it's an excellent track that has a much more complex structure than expected for a song in the 80's.

The interplay between White, Squire, White and Downes is perfectly natural, as if they were playing together for decades, what really surprised me because I thought they wouldn't survive Tormato, but here they are, giving an excellent performance.

No YES album would be complete without a softer track, and Run Through the Light provides this necessary relax, even in the faster sections, this soft atmosphere and paused tempo is prevalent, nice track even when a bit too simple in comparison with most of the material in Drama.

Tempus Fugit is simply brilliant, Geoff Downes does an amazing organ intro and carries the weight of the song, while an unusually strong Alan White makes the perfect companion. Even when the track is frantic from start to end, there's time for every member of the band to give it's best.

Even when my CD has several bonus tracks, my review will be limited to the original material, because that's how the band released the album to be listened, and they did such great job, that I don't feel necessary to change it.

The only thing I regret is that this project was so short, this lineup should had released more albums, probably would had save us from the Rabin years, but that's just guessing.

Four stars without any doubt.

I avoided this album for months because of the Anderson-lessness that was told to me repeatedly. Being the huge Jon Anderson fan I was at the time (and still am), I was therefore really afraid to hear what it would sound like without the angelic voice of Jon. Still, I gave it a shot. I am so glad I did.

1. Machine Messiah- Right away, the band shows you that they still have it, with or without Mr. Anderson. Downes does a wonderful and unique job on keyboards, often too overlooked, and Horn's vocals are spectacular. Howe, Squire, and White are no slacks either. This track is one of the most powerful tracks Yes have ever recorded, and it is extremely enjoyable. Perfectly crafted. 10/10

2. White Car- Overlooked interlude. Horn's voices are good. It's definitely not a typical Yes song, but it's not skip-worthy either. It's actually good, despite it being very short. 7/10

3. Does It Really Happen?- Squire's bass on this song. That's all I have to say. Especially at the part when he goes all Bass Hero is absolutely stunning and very enjoyable. This track is crafted extremely well, great overall performances from everyone. This has to be another underrated Yes song that hardly gets the mention it deserves. 9/10

4. Into the Lens- I AM A CAMERA! Despite the repetition of that line, this song actually works. Downes and Horn really fit in well to create another unique and well-crafted composition. The keys are of particular note on this one. Squire shines once again. 9/10

5. Run Through The Light- This is an alright ballad... but it never hit me too much. It really brings down the album a bit for me. There's nothing particularly wrong with it, it's just a bit too on the sappy/soft side and lacks the punch of the songs that preceded it. I sometimes skip it. 5/10

6. Tempus Fugit- Pretty good song. Again, Horn and Downes fit well here, Squire's usual awesomeness, Howe and White both keep us as well. The musicianship is a given. This song tends to be a fan favorite, but I can't really see THAT much of the appeal, as I prefer Machine, Lens, and Does It Really Happen. However, this is still a pretty good song. 7/10

Much better than I expected and a uniquely good album in the Yes discography. Don't go for this first, but it is a pretty good addition after you're acquainted with Yes's masterpieces and other better works.

Yes - 'Drama' 4 stars

I just can't consider calling a band without Jon Anderson Yes..So coming into this album I took an approach of this album being a band that had members of Yes and the Buggles.and man, was I impressed!

The absence of Rick Wakeman has been experienced before, and the band pulled out one of their best works as a response. This album also is leaps and bounds over their last work with Wakeman, maybe they just ride on a higher mental level without him.

The replacements were vocalist Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes on the keyboards. Although Anderson's and Wakeman's are impossible shoes to fill, they shed some new and needed light into the band. The songs got considerably catchier and had a few short accessible numbers. The opener however, has been a staple of Yes 'Machine Messiah', which serves as one of their most innovative pieces, encapsulated by some really heavy, nearly metal guitar parts by Steve Howe.

Yes did have some collateral before this album was made. Eddie Offord returned to the producer position and the ever important Roger Dean was back doing the artwork, and one it is one of his best works.

Putting the poppish lyrics and vocal melodies aside, the compositional structure ranks up there with some of the top Yes albums. The ending 'Tempus Fugit' features Alan Whites and Chris Squire's defining moments.

A criminally under rated album due to just the mere absence of Jon Anderson. There is a factor of his reluctance to play these songs live also that affects its hindrance. One of the best Yes albums one can come across.

Not a total disaster, but certainly also not one of Yes best effords. In fact, I can hardly see this album as an Yes album at all. Although I must admit that Trevor Horn´s voice does remind me of Jon Anderson a bit and the vocal arrangements were similar to the trademark Yes sound, the rest is not. It seems that Drama was kind of a transtitional album, or experimental, like so many reviewrs here wrote. An experiment towards pop market maybe? I could barely stand this album at the time: to me Yes without Jon Anderson was not really Yes. I could see Yes without Rick Wakeman (even though the band is much better when he is around).

Geoff Downess keyboards are just annoying here. Please don´t get me wrong, I don´t have any prejudice against Buggles. I didn´t even know about them at the time (though I might have heard their music on the radio around that period). to me they were two unknown faces and I was certain the other members of the band wouldn´t chose second rate musicians to join them. But certainly they were no match for Anderson and Wakeman. The Roger Dean cover was great.

Having said that I must say I heard this album again these days to give it a proper review. I still think it is well below their best 70´s effords (including the much underrated Tormato). It is not bad. It is just very uncharactheristic. It looks more like some band trying to sound like Yes than Yes itself. The opener Machine Messiah is the best track. It is strong, powerful, creative and convincing. I really like it and I think if the whole album would follow this quality I could give Drama at least a four star rating. Unfortunalty things go downhill from then on. You could almost feel the band a bit lost at the beginning of the new decade. Certainly Drama kind of paved the way to the more commercial Yes of 90125 and Big Generator.

Conclusion: a good album, in parts. And not really a Yes CD for me. If they changed their name it would be a lot easier to take it and appreciate it. As it is, 2,5 stars is the most I can give it.

Out of all of the Yes albums, I feel compelled to review this one in particular, as I am intrigued by what makes it so different from other Yes albums, yet at the same time, so similar, and so extremely good.

It is worth noting, as someone who first experienced this album on vinyl, that the sequence of songs on this album have a symmetrical relation between the two album sides - each side is three songs, with the first and last songs being longer, more substantial pieces, and the middle songs on each side being very short, almost more like interludes than complete songs.

Of course, the most controversial aspect of this album is the absence of Jon Anderson. While some of Trevor Horn's vocals are slightly reminiscent of Jon Anderson's melodic and lyrical approach, his voice is in no way similar in character. There is a little to compare between Horn's work in the Buggles and his work on Drama, but his performace is sincere and original throughout. Geoff Downes sounds at all times tobe quite comfortable in the prog element of Yes, fully embracing the excess of being surrounded by a music-store's inventory of lovely instruments at all times, with obvious classical influences conveyed on the usual gamut of Moogs, ARPs and Hammonds, but with the added variety of the Fairlights and Rolands, which were very new sounds for rock at that point in time.

At the start of the album, Machine Messiah, we are a bit woken up by something uncharacteristic for Yes -- a heavy power riff, in minor key, driving in a plodding rhythm. But that is offset by a smooth synth-string glissando which informs our ears that this is not merely heavy metal, and the furious descending unison between electric guitar and Moog synth hints at the virtuosity expected from musicians of this caliber. We know we are in for something inspired and different. A searing electric lead from Steve Howe segues into a more familiar bed of uplifting 12-string strums, switching to major key, with a delightfully uplifting string synth and lead vocal, made all the more glorious by its contrast to the dark intro that preceded it. And so Machine Messiah continues on its journey between dark, brooding and heavy passages, set against the contrast of joyful melodies. Impressionist lyrics confound us in typical Jon Anderson fashion throughout, despite being sung by Trevor Horn - I get the impression that it is about being in blissful ignorance of the figurative machines of industry, corporatism, and politics...But it is not often that one expects lyrical clarity from Yes lyrics, any more than we expect them to play a 12-bar blues.

White Car seems but an interlude to the album as a whole...consider it an anti-epic, in that it succeeds in providing us with a mere glimpse of a story which we are left to imagine, over an elegant orchestration, poetic in its simplicity. Is this prog that Andy Warhol could relate to?

Does it Really Happen hints at the bright-sounding melodies and power chords that would soon follow on Howe and Downes' next collaboration on the first Asia album. A superb Chiris Squire bass line lays down the canvas for potent guitars, and an exhilarating vocal. Many catchy melodies abound, and the fadeout is a lovely instrumental with gorgeous synth work by Downes, featuring a classic Chris Squire bass solo. I've always wished that this ending were much longer, much like the ending of the studio version of Starship Tropper after one has grown accustomed to the wicked soloing added by Rick Wakeman in the live rendition.

Into The Lens takes on a longer format as the first song on the second side, but with a more cubist approach to the song structure. Sections of this piece, when viewed individually, are full of intriguing melodies, and one could get the impression that an effort was being made to experiment and broaden their sound even further. In my opinion, it is not an experiment that succeeded nearly as well as the brilliant Machine Messiah. This is my least favorite song on this album, but is not undeserving of praise for its originality.

Run Through the Light explores a different contrast, this time between the elements of the arrangement rather than between moments of the song. An interesting mix of soft synth pads accented with delicate mandolin is superimposed over a hard-hitting, sparse drum beat, and terse, punctuated guitar leads. The vocal is alternately abrupt and melodic...like White Car, this song's symmetrical sibling being the short middle song on this album side, this piece seems more like a deconstruction of the concept of an epic, exploring how abstraction can allow a complex story to be told in a short space of time.

The finale, Tempus Fugit, is a favorite of many fans with good reason. The opening anthem played in unison between the Hammond and Howe's slightly overdriven Stratocaster create a unique sound that feels more like one instrument. Interspersed with quick legato organ arpeggios, there is definitely an energetic, adrenalin-fueling feeling that takes us into a rocking main riff. The flanger effect on the bass creates another unique texture that adds a certain liquid complexity to the overall sound of the track. Downes' portrayal of the word 'Yes' through a vocoder seems to give the word itself a sonic treatment equivalent to Roger Deans' colorful airbrush gradients in the band's logo itself...For the first time, we hear the word 'Yes' the way we have seen it all these years -- the finish pairs this hi-tech interpretation of the band's name with Steve Howe recollecting the echoing major scale runs from 'Long Distance Runaround' - telling us at once that this is not your dad's Yes, but that this is, unmistakably, Yes.

Even with the shocking (though thankfully brief) departure of lead vocalist Jon Anderson (and keyboardist Rick Wakeman, again), Yes continues being Yes- but this is decidedly Chris Squire's venture more than anyone else's. He tosses in bass riff after bass riff over the top of the rest of the music, and even does quite a bit more lead vocal work. I consider both of those things to be a very good change, but it's sad it took Anderson's absence to make that happen. One major consolation also is that Squire gets his punchy bass tone back after the abysmal sound he employed on the previous album. For once, the guitar and keyboards take a real back seat to the rhythm section. Of course the biggest change comes in the form of two Yes fans, Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes of The Buggles. The former steps into Anderson's big shoes, and the latter.into Wakeman's sequined cape. Neither are as good as the ones they replaced, but they do an adequate job, making this album a great acquisition.

"Machine Messiah" The flange-fueled introduction fades in to bring in a dark progressive structure, full of minor chords that ascend up two keys before giving way to an upbeat verse that, yes, sounds like Yes. Geoff Downes is lackluster compared to Wakeman (or Moraz, for that matter), but it seems he doesn't try to be nearly as flashy. Twice, Horn sings over some dark acoustic guitar music after which the introduction in some form returns. Then it's right back to the happy verse music. Now it's no secret that Horn does not have Anderson's range, but it really shows on this track; he reaches for notes and has a clearly tough time getting there. The second acoustic section is far more moving than the one before, leading to the sinister conclusion of the song.

"White Car" For such a short piece, this one is not a throwaway track, even if the vocal melody and the instrumentation are a bit strange. The lyrics actually refer to English musician Gary Numan, who used to tear through London in a white Chevrolet Corvette.

"Does it Really Happen?" This song, in various incarnations, had apparently been around for a while before it finally saw its ultimate place in a Yes studio album. This is, more so than any place else, Squire's moment. Not only does he kick off the song with a killer bass riff, he handles the lead vocal duties as well. I've always enjoyed his voice, and relish each chance he takes that role. Speaking of the vocals, the harmonies are well done, even if a bit unrestrained. While the song is nearly seven minutes long, the fantastic and funky riffs they used throughout begged to be toyed with as the basis for some additional instrumental work.

"Into the Lens" Again, Squire's bass is right up front. This song is very similar to good Supertramp, combining accessible elements with an interesting arrangement. I love Howe's subtle guitar work throughout, even if it's easy to miss on the first few listens. This song does drag on a bit unnecessarily, I think, but it's downright enjoyable. An alternative version appears on an album from The Buggles.

"Run Through the Light" This soft song was always a guilty pleasure of mine, with fanciful keyboard work and a fretless bass courtesy of Horn. This song shows plainly that, while Horn is a capable singer, he doesn't have a wonderful voice. I actually like Squire's vocals on the chorus much more; incidentally the chorus makes me think of The Police. Howe provides a decent guitar solo toward the end.

"Tempus Fugit" Despite being relatively short on the album, this is the second highlight. Squire's bass flies through the music, and the guitar riffs are exciting. The band's name plays a big role in the lyrics, and I've always thought they could do worse than using this song to begin a concert; it's almost like their own anthem, with that repeated line in all its variations, "an answer to yes."

NOT a Drama

Drama is one of those albums which have been hated in the time of it's release, but with the transition of the years it's been getting a quite big ''fanbase'', which it really deserved it from the moment it was released. There may be no Jon Anderson nor Wakeman, but have you heard their previous, Tormato? There's nothing good of them in that album, so for me(and many others) it's the same if they aren't here, we have as replacements members from a New Wave band from the time, The Buggles, these members are Trevor Horn(vocals) and Geoffrey Downes(keyboards).

Drama is much of a change for Yes, bringing New Wave ideas set by the new members, plus some Heaviness never heard from Steve. Lead members on this album are definitely Steve and Chris, also notably on Relayer that leadership, in which makes the album guitar/bass-driven, rather than a equilibrated band which every member had time to shine, but you couldn't define which was the dominating instrument in it.

The album blasts off with the well-recognised Machine Messiah, embracing most of the characteristics mentioned before: the unexpected heaviness from Steve's guitar, and the powerful drumming from Alan, and the guitar/bass leading characteristic. The song also features a very dark climax created by Steve's heavy guitar and Geoffrey's keyboards. For those who don't know Trevor's voice, compared to Jon's, well Trevor is lacking of uniqueness, but that's it, he sings fine and suits well for the songs.

White Car is a short, semi-dramatic, gentle tune. Featuring some positive aspects of Trevor's voice, and some well suited keyboards by Mr. Downes. I generally skip it, for lack of strength, could have been better suited in Going for the One, still White Car makes a good song of itself, if only it had been longer...

Does it Really Happen breaks the semi-dramatic tension of the previous track with a killer bass line. The song is a bass-driven rock song with Prog and New Wave encounters. It has a catchy rythm and chorus, but still has a very sophisticated composition, with some instrumental passages, and musicianship, with some classic Yes keyboards(Organ ala Fragile; Moog ala Yes Album) and a bass solo at the end of the song, which definitely shows that Yes' 70's skill is still here.

Into the Lens moves the album into a melancholic mood in it's first 2 minutes which then moves forward to a more powerful rythm and at the same time catchy with it's chorus, which was intended to be a Buggles song called I'm a Camera, so you also got the New Wave influence here, but it's quite subtle. Into the Lens still shows the 70's strong musicianship characteristic as in Machine Messiah and Does It Really Happen: Geof's organ and piano playing, Chris' unpredictable bass playing, and Steve's fierceful guitar playing, reminds me of Awaken.

Run Through the Light is where the new members' ideas come in their entirety, making a sloppy Pop song, with a quite annoying drum sound, yet has some good standpoints as Chris' bass and Steve's few guitar appearances which saves the song from complete slopiness tag.

The album finishes as great as it started with Tempus Fugit, all the characteristics of Into the Lens, Machine Messiah and Does it Really Happen are here making one single song. Fabolous bass work(as always), Wakeman-ish style of playing, powerful guitar riffs and classic Steve solos. Classic 70's Yes, is once again here.

Drama all in all, is as unique as Relayer, maybe not as strong, but the unique points of these albums are there and can't be beaten by any other Yes album. Also these 2 albums, Drama and Relayer, have something in common which I already mentioned at the begining, which is the Guitar and Bass leadership on all the songs, which makes it quite different from the rest of Yes albums. All the musicians here make it feel as if the album was a classic Yes album, from the musicianship point of view, while from the compositions and style of the songs are slightly different because of the New Wave influence; this is just another point in which makes Drama so unique and great.

4 stars because all of the mentioned previously.

Is Yes the same without Rick Wakeman ? Almost ! Yes is better with him, but without him it is also great. But... Is Yes the same without Jon Anderson ? No, unfortunately. Anderson is the head of the group. Without him, Yes is lost. So, why did I give 4 stars ? Because Steve Howe, Chris Squire and Alan White managed to do a good work. Let's see it:

White Car: cool, well played, but nothing special. It's a simple Buggles song that was left out of their album and came to this one. 3,6 stars.

Run Through the Light: this song proves how Trevor's voice is similar to Jon's, at least for me. Good song, it has a good rhythm. The guitar appears in it with a good solo, 'cause on the others we hardly hear it. 4,15 stars.

Tempus Fugit: the intro is very good, exciting. In it, we hear a fast and melodic bass. The part from 1:49 to 2:00 is exciting also. But the rest is very repetitive, it just keeps this rhythm... 4,35 stars.

Does It Really Happen ?: very cool song. It has nice drumming, great bass, melodic keyboards and a good rhythm. Contagious. 4,5 stars.

Into the Lens: one more great intro. Through the song, we hear great melodies, rhythms and vocals. A very well planned song. Mr. Alan White shows us his great abilities with the drumsticks once again. 4,5 stars.

Machine Messiah: the epic of the album. Great riffs and melodies. It reminds me of Jon Anderson, mainly by the similar vocals. The band played really well in it and was very inspired. It contains a good solo by Downes, reminds me of Wakeman. Well... a really progressive song, although it was made in 1980. 5 stars.

So... is it a great album ? Yes, surely ! But is it a masterpiece ? No, it doesn't deserve 5 stars. But 4 it surely deserves. Congratulations to Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes and the veterans of the band !

Unexpected!

Here is a purchase that I'd put off for a good long time. Even being an incredibly big fan of Yes this album was a completely terrifying one to even consider putting the money in for. Luckily I eventually found it for a good, cheap price at a used record store and finally decided to take the plunge and see what Yes would be like without two of my favorite members, Wakeman and more uncommonly - Jon Anderson. Let's get one thing out of the way right off the bat. If you're concerned about Jon Anderson's voice being absent on the album them take your worries out behind the shed and make sure you bring your rifle with you. Most people call Trevor Horn the ultimate ''Anderson sound-alike'' and the album has been slagged many times because of that. But let's face it - if they had a wildly different singer they would get even more flack. Of course, one of the biggest factors contributing to the similar voice is the now much more pronounced backing vocals by Chris Squire, which are deadly familiar.

If you're annoyed by some of the more 'sugar coated' Yes that would come after their classic period then this is probably the album for you. With Howe and Squire left solely at the helm of the project things have taken a turn for the darker. Yes still has that 'beatarific hippy heart' that many journalists have talked about over the years, but on this album there's more cynicism and shadows than ever before. Things can get rather moody on the record, and although it is still a rather feel good and 'upbeat' record, this is probably Yes's darkest to date - and being sandwiched between Tormato and 90125 that will likely come as a surprise to some. Still, right off the top of the pseudo-epic Machine Messiah we're greeted with a riff that could have come from Black Sabbath in the early 70s before moving into more familiar Yes territories. A rip-roaring bass riff from Squire also makes this one a huge standout, not only on the album, but in Yes's discography in general.

The other songs on the album are much in the same vein, but they're all excellent. Somehow this album maintains the classic era pomp but while lending from some of the accessibility that lurks in the shadows of the 80s. The result is actually quite fantastic. White Car is a brief, but incredibly emotional number that opens like a Moody Blues tune with an orchestral backing before Horn almost rips tears from your face with his vocals. I don't know how they're so powerful, they just are. More darker songs also lurk on the album, the next best being the amazing Into The Lens, which is actually slightly annoying the first time you hear it thanks to the repetition of ''camera, camera'', but as soon as the subtleties of the song really sink in it becomes nothing short of amazing. Run Through The Light is short and sweet, but no less punchy - this one is a little more low-key, but still impressive.

And they just wouldn't be Yes without doing some more upbeat stuff, now would they. Sure enough, there's a couple of songs that would have felt more at home in the band's pre-Close To The Edge days that still has a more 'modern' twist on it. Does It Really Happen? is a prime example of this, upbeat and catchy, yet still technically impressive. The other song is the closer of the album, the blistering Tempus Fugit, which is probably one of the fastest things that Yes ever did. Sounds a lot like On The Silent Wings Of Freedom, although more tight. Somehow a combination between Yes's classic sound and their 80s sound doesn't sound too attractive to some, but seriously, give it a chance, it's well worth it.

Somehow this album turned out really incredible, and it's likely the most hideously overlooked in their discography. The reasons are obvious, but proggers really should make a second consideration and hold their breath and buy this album - it is so well worth it. Probably the best thing that they did between Going For The One in '77 and Keystudio in '99. Highly recommended.

Absolutely one for the people (like me) who simply have to have every Yes album and associated solo works, but only, I'm afraid, for that reason.

Previous reviewers of the album have, probably rightly, asked us to listen to this without prejudice. Well, I'm sorry, and I have tried and tried, but I find it impossible. Yes can, and have, survived without Wakeman, but without Anderson? No, absolutely not. To me, he is the heart and soul of the band, and it is simply nowhere near the same without him - it would have been better had they called themselves by a different name. I will also never forget the abuse that was heaped upon Horn (the one with the big glasses from Buggles) when I saw the band live on the resultant tour.

Machine Messiah is a very good piece of music, but the rest simply fades into very average, Floydian passages for me, and not even the great musicianship of Howe, White, Squire, and Downes can save it. It is, to me, altogether far too dark and cynical to succeed as a Yes album. I love Pink Floyd, but leave the Floydian cynicism to the masters - I listen to Yes precisely because of Anderson's cheery, hippy, afterlife view of the world.

Regretfully, only one star, because it is only for completionists and is not even particularly important to the history and understanding of the band, given that it was a one album lineup only.

The first time I heard DRAMA was in a cd´s store and I was poor in progressive school... I did know that JON ANDERSON was the YES singer so I hear this album whit this idea in that store unknowing that JON obviously wasn´t there... In the 1,37 minute of Machine Messiah when TREVOR HORN starts singing and the GEOFF DOWNES keyboards does that symphonic quavers after a heavy session with HOWE´s style... I said wow!!! This album is very heavy and soft prog at the same time... Wow JON, how wonderful you sing... jaja...

When I hear White Car I think the same thing... that it was JON singing so I bought the album... but in my home, when I saw who was singing and that there was the same guy of THE BUGGLES hit Video Killed The Radio Star I said wow... but is the same JON´s tone... in some parts and in some songs because there´s parts of the album that you really known that is somebody else singing, in this case TREVOR HORN... But there was titles of the album that doesn´t figure with the YES style like the song INTO THE LENS... that song is good but it seems like a pop group... I am a camera symply doesn´t seems YES... even when HOWE and SQUIRE where in this album...

But even the lyrics this is a good YES album, I could say the last really prog YES album before 90125 that is prog pop, very comercial, when many people listened to YES for the first time unknowing the progressive past they had...

After the disaster that was "Tormato" both Wakeman and Anderson left the band to pursue solo careers. So naturally you would think this album would be a complete failure. Well something strange happened along the way. First of all Squire, White and Howe went into the recording studio working on songs as a trio when over came the duo known as the BUGGLES who had a big hit with "Video Killed The Radio Star". Interesting that both groups were in the same studio at that time and under the same management. Downes and Horn (BUGGLES) were huge YES fans and soon found themselves actually jamming with the band that were their heroes. It gets really strange when they are eventually asked to join the band. Horn on vocals sounds a lot like Anderson, and I must say that Downes does not disappoint at all on the keyboards, in fact he's very impressive, even playing mellotron on the first track. I just think these two guys brought a renewed energy to the band and freshness. Both Squire and Howe offer up incredible performances here.

"Machine Messiah" is surprisingly heavy when it gets going, even on the dark side. Gasp ! Howe really lights it up here. It settles 1 1/2 minutes in and vocals join in. Often when Horn is singing both Squire and Howe back him up vocally. The tempo picks up a minute later. Nice bass ! I like the instrumental section, especially before 5 minutes. It then settles with acoustic guitar, spoken words and mellotron before kicking back in around 7 minutes. It calms down with melancholic Floyd-like synths after 9 minutes and spoken words. "White Car" is a short but beautiful track.

"Does It Really Happen" opens with some killer bass before drums and a full sound arrive.This is catchy with vocals and synths leading at times. A good vocal section after 4 minutes and I love the bass late. "Into The Lens" is another catchy track, I like the uptempo section with guitar after 4 minutes.The chorus sounds a little too eighties for me though. "Run Through The Light" is another good track, I like the vocals and energy. "Tempus Fugit" opens with guitar with some prominant bass and synths to follow. It's funny but the guitar at times reminds of the style that Lifeson (RUSH) would employ in the mid-eighties.

If your into great bass playing you should own this album,but regardless, I feel it's an excellent addition and worth 4 stars.

Machine, Machine Messiah, Walk in to the fire.

This ones without one of the greatest vocalists of all time, Jon "Hobbit" Anderson. Well is it good? It fells almost like the first track is all that Squire and co. from the old yes wanted to put in this album, and just jammed out the rest. The vocals on Machine Messiah are almost identical to that of Jons. Squire sings backups to Trevor Horn and the result is very very close to the angel voice of Anderson, and on this track the fatique from Jons departure is almost gone completely. The problem is the rest of the album, except for "Tempus Fuguit" which is a very Yessy tune, so to say. Don't get me wrong, the middle section of the album is not Tormato stuff, much better, but if we compare this Yes with the golden age Yes we see big differences, still Machine Messiah remains a testament to those years.

I somehow feel that Machine Messiah could be the best 80s prog tune made, still it gets hard competition from bands who had fantastic albums back then, like Rush. Still this track shows that Squire wanted to show whose in charge of Yes, and YES it worked. I first decided to give this album 3 stars, because of the inconsistency. But now counting how many times i have spinned this album to hear Machine Messiah and the last track i feel compelled to give it 4 stars. Think of it like 3 and a half stars if you can, i just hate doing that.

After the disaster that was named "Tormato," two vital Yes members had left the band in 1979, recruiting Geoff Downes and Trevor Horn to take the place of Rick Wakeman and Jon Anderson, who helped structure the overall sound of Yes over the years, but they had left, only to come back in 1983 to release their biggest pop hit ever. Some people might dismiss it because of Jon not singing on the album, but it sounds very much the other Yes songs from the early-mid 1970's Yes. There are very few lemons that are in the album, but most of it is a masterpiece, with some of the best songs in the Yes catolouge.

"Machine Messiah" is the best song on the album. It's a mini-epic on the Yes scale but this is definatly an excellent ten minute song. It's very heavy metal-type of sound that they are going for here, with some of the best riffs that Steve Howe has ever put out, and some of the fastest playing by Chris Squire that I have ever heard. Geoff plays some good keyboards here, adding some very nice texture with the synthesizers. Trevor is actually a very good singer, and he does some very nice harmonies with Chris and Steve, and it honestly sounds like the original Yes, even though Trevor barely has the above-tenor voice of Jon. "White Car" is way too short for my taste, and a little too poppy, though not bad. Sometimes I skip because I'm not in the mood for it sometimes, but it sounds very good with some nice acoustic guitar. The vocals on this track are terribly excellent from the sounds of it. The lyrics are nice too. "Does it Really Happen?" is time for one of the best bassists to show off. Chris has some nice distorted riff that he plays for the opening and in most of the song. The keyboards are also extremely excellent on this song, and the guitar just works perfectly with it, Steve is just playing some really nice chords throughout. The vocals are nice, though not so much of the Yes sounds, or Jon in a few octaves lower I would describe it. "Into the Lens" is another mini-epic type of track, more on the length of other releases of "Roundabout" "South Side of the Sky" or "Perpetual Change" though its excellent. The guitar is excellent throughout the whole song, as is the charming and strong basslines. The piano is nice and soft, excellent. Trevor does some nice vocals, but I don't like the lyrics for this song too much. Alan White, the drummer, does some excellent beats here, and it just makes me feel really good when I hear him play this track. "Run throught the Light" is okay, decent lyrics, and some nice keyboards and guitar, but the vocals are slightly annoying on this track, to me at least. Its a nice ballad type of song, very 1980's and more of the power ballands that we would hear in the mid-1980s. It kinds of sounds like Chris is playing a fretless bass here, but I am not sure. "Tempus Fugit" is an excellent closer to an excellent album. It features some of the best by Alan White, crazy and rhythmic drumming, and some of the craziest basslines ever by Chris. It sounds alot like Rush, but Geddy Lee using more pedals on his bass. Its an excellent track with great vocals.

This is an awesome album, I enjoy it. Its a much more Yes-like album than Tormato, actually, its that good. You have to get it for a few choice songs, but you just have to listen to it and love it for what it is, a reinvented Yes.

After disastrous LP "Tormato" Anderson and Wakeman left the group and guess what! - YES recorded the new album without them called "Drama". At first largely ignored by critics and followers, this LP in retrospective stands firmly and represents one of the best YES works in my opinion.

THE BUGGLES duo (Horn and Downes) brought some new wave blood to the old skeleton made of "topographic oceans", so YES sometimes sounds like THE POLICE with keyboards (even Horn's vocal resembles the Sting's in "Run Through the Light"). But the best compositions are again lengthy tracks. The opening 10-minute "Machine Messiah", with dark and heavy "Sabbath meets Crimson" riff is an excellent example how to make a typical multi-part "progressive" rock track in the old sense and not to sound ridiculous in the early 1980s.

Squire and Howe are brilliant with their instruments and backing vocals, showing that Anderson was not the only key member of the group. Particularly efficient on "Drama" is Squire's bass guitar (famous yellow-white Rickenbacker) which is often a leading instrument. Amazing odd time signatures in excellent "Into the Lens" and leading melodic riff in "Tempus Fugit" are stunning. The latter track is one of the strongest YES ever recorded and it even contains symbolic lyrics - "An answer to all of the answers to-Yes", making it somehow a sort of artistic statement of the group. Unfortunately, the future re-grouping with Anderson (who allegedly refused to sing Drama songs on stage) pushed this album somewhere behind the scene.

It is time now to re-evaluate it and I can freely recommend "Drama" to the non-fans of YES (like myself) who might have been rejected by the inflation of not always successful Anderson's "cosmic" ideas of the 1970s.

PERSONAL RATING: 3,5/5

P.A. RATING: 4/5

Wheeeeeee!!! Listen to those bass lines go!

Yes must have known they were in a big predicament in the wake of this record. And I sort of use the word ''wake'' as an accidental pun because Wakeman is who Yes lost...again between TORMATO and DRAMA. While Yes have and could survive without Wakeman, losing Jon Anderson had to have been a low blow to Yes fans circa 1980, as the voice and creative mind was cospicuously absent for DRAMA. But, lo and behold, the Buggles are here to save the day and give Yes one last prog hurrah!

There are plenty of progheads who don't like the idea of an MTV pop band merging with Yes, or for that matter, any Yes album without Jon. And I'll be honest, it has lost a bit of luster over time, but the sound here is very fresh compared to what TORMATO spewed out. Downes's keyboards don't sound too strange or out-of-place, and the bass has this great phased(?) sound that is brought to the forefront; I'm not an acoustics expert, but I like the DRAMA bass under phase(?) as opposed to the TORMATO swamp water bass.

''Machine Messiah'' is the track of which Yes are trying to win prog fans back with; a heavy guitar thing in the beginning leads to spirals of grandiose keyboard-led passages, sombre acoustic moments, jumpy basslines and the great vocal harmonies Yes is well known for. I must say Trevor Horn does a good job of fitting in, but meshing with Squire's voice so well is something I didn't expect but am glad happened. At ten plus minutes, it should already whet your prog appetite.

The other songs aren't too shabby either, particularly showcasing Downes and Squire. Bass lines are the name of the game on ''Tempus Fugit'' and ''Does It Really Happen'' as both are propelled by them and everything on top is just bonus to me. ''Into the Lens'' has a very theatrical type of sound if ''theatrical'' can be used to describe music. Even as short of a track as ''White Car'' has a little magic to it (courtesy of Steve Howe guitars). Only ''Run Through the Light'' sounds weak as I hear the limitations of Trevor Horn's voice; Horn also plays bass here and it's noticeable as it sounds more like a trombone rather than a typical Squire bass.

Eddie Offord taking engineering range is a huge benefit for Yes as I have recently come to realise how important he was into bringing out the best in the instrumentation, especially the bass guitar. And hey, Roger Dean does the cover for this album, so there's plenty of Yes elements here. The lineup might not be classic, but the sound is; a rare example of how new wave and prog rock can go side by side effectively.

If you were to follow Yes' career, you might expect this album to really blow. Going for the One was good, but it was a step down from the reach that Yes had had with the three albums beforehand. Tormato was a clear step in the wrong direction for most fans.

So when they learned that Wakeman had left the band again - and that this time, Jon Anderson had left with him - could any fans be faulted for expecting that the next album would not be so good? Furthermore, would not the addition of the Buggles (Trevor Horn and Geoffrey Downes, famous for the track "Video Killed the Radio Star") not imply that this album would go further down the direction that Tormato had gone?

One would think so, yet if one were to still put the vinyl on the turntable, or the cd in the player, or double click on the mp3, one would be very pleasantly surprised. For, from the very first minute of the opening track, Machine Messiah, it is clear that Yes has moved back towards their more 'progressive' sounds. The guitars and bass and drums just sound excellent. And they rock nice and hard.

Having Geoffrey Downes instead of Rick Wakeman probably caused fans some concern, but he was the bands fourth keyboardist (with Tony Kaye and Patrick Moraz each having left their stamp on the band in its past), and Yes had proven by this point that they were somewhat keyboardist-agnostic. No, the biggest concern was the absence of Jon Anderson, who, with Chris Squire, was one of only two remaining band members left. By this album, Chris was the only member of Yes who had been around since the beginning.

As such, Trevor Horn had high expectations to meet. He meets them in the same way that every new member of Yes has done so so far - by integrating his own take into the bands music. For sure, he does attempt to sing on a higher register, like Jon Anderson did (and I have a hard time imagining what Yes would sound like with a singer who didn't), but there is something distinctly Trevor about his vocals, and in the context of this album, it works.

So, line-up changes aside, how does the album play? This is, in my mind, the most successful marriage of Yes' classic sound and New Wave. It was inevitable, given the time period and the inclusion of the Buggles, that some New Wave sound would creep into this album, but it does so with much success. Songs like "Run Through the Light" and "Into the Lens" both sound distinctly Yes-like, despite the fact that they also fit well in the '80s time period. The band succeeded in this department more than they would in their other '80s albums.

Unfortunately, the songs here are not quite as strong as on Yes' prior albums. Tempus Fugit and Machine Messiah are definitely the standouts here. Honourable mention must be given to Does it Really Happen?, which has some funky stuff going on and is perhaps the catchiest track of the album.

I consider myself lucky that I was able to hear this album before I knew anything about Yes' lineup. It was actually the third Yes album I heard, after 90125 and Relayer, and it fit nicely between the two. For my non-proggified ears, it was much easier to digest than Relayer had been, but so much more than 90125 had been, so I spent a lot of time spinning this disc.

Overall, this album is better than Tormato but worse than anything else Yes had done since The Yes Album. It would also be the best thing they would release for 15 years.

On Drama, Yes has recovered from their Tormato. However I find this to be an album that is difficult to enjoy, mostly because of the inadequate singing. I don't particularly miss Jon Anderson, but Trevor Horn's and specifically Squire's less remarkable voices are distracting. They also show a limited talent for creating really memorable melodies and harmonies. The sound of the band is slightly modernized, a bit darker and tighter then usual and marks a move to the sound of 90125, but the music is decidedly more traditionally progressive.

Machine Messiah opens with a warlike march, heavy on bass and guitars and keyboards in typical Yes fashion. Geoff Downes proves himself to be an adequate keyboard man for Yes, certainly compared to how Wakeman butchered Tormato. Machine Messiah is an interesting song but suffers from a number of poor vocal lines.

White Car is a nice little ditty that opens up for the next prog epic Does It Really Happen. That man Squire sure knows how to spin a bass guitar riff, the main theme is simply brilliant, catchy and groovy. The vocal lines are awkward again, while the chorus grooves and the middle part is anthemic, the verses are grating at best.

Into the Lense is another song that tempts us with lots of potential, but apart from some splendid instrumental sections, the vocals remain too predictable. After the disappointing track Run Through the Light, the album ends in style with Tempus Fugit. I think this song would have been very suited for Sting's voice. Yes meets Police.

With a bit more feel for vocal melodies and harmonies, material like Machine Messiah, Does It Really Happen and Into the Lens could have turned out to be classic Yes, and this album could certainly have become a general favourite amongst prog audiences. 3.5 stars.

"Drama" is the 10th full-length studio album by UK progressive rock act Yes. The album was released through Atlantic Records in August 1980.

A couple of major lineup changes had taken place since the ill-received "Tormato (1978)" album as both lead vocalist Jon Anderson and keyboard player Rick Wakeman left the band in 1979 after some not so successful sessions that were meant to have become Yes next album. New faces in the lineup are ex-The Buggles members Trevor Horn on lead vocals and Geoff Downes on keyboards. I´m sure the fans must have been in shock when they heard of this new constellation but any fears of how the impact of the inclusion of two pop musicians in the lineup would have on Yes music turned out unfounded as "Drama" is widely considered a great Yes album with the "right" trademark Yes sound.

The album opens with the impressive "Machine Messiah". Now that´s what I call a progressive rock song. Great technical playing, multible parts and innovative songwriting. For fans of an act like Dream Theater this is simply mandatory listening. This is what your heroes listened to when they were kids. The same can be said about both "Does It Really Happen?" and especially "Into the Lens". "Tempus Fugit" is also an excellent technical and progressive rock track. The short "White Car" track works well as an atmospheric variation. The only song I´m not too fond of is "Run Through the Light". It´s by no means a bad song or anything like that but it´s just the least interesting track here with it´s more easily accessible sound.

The musicianship is as always outstanding. Great performances all around. New vocalist Trevor Horn has a pretty strong voice not too far removed from the distinct vocal style of Jon Anderson, so Jon Anderson´s absence from the album isn´t a problem. The rythm section which consists of bassist Chris Squire and drummer Alan White needs a special mention here as they are on fire. Simply outstanding playing and great innovative ideas. Guitarist Steve Howe plays much more structured on "Drama" compared to his more loose style of playing on earlier albums. I think it suits the music well on this album. New keyboard player Geoff Downes does a great job. I enjoy Rick Wakeman´s playing on earlier albums by Yes but he isn´t missed here.

The tight and dark production on the album suits the music perfectly.

"Drama" is an excellent progressive rock album by Yes and considering that it was released in 1980 which was generally not a friendly year for progressive rock it´s actually quite the achivement IMO. A 4 star (80%) rating is fully deserved.

Is it true that the bands, songs, albums that you liked as a teenager end up being the ones that stick with you as faves for the rest of your life? My answer is YES. And Yes made a monster record with Drama. I love all the phases of Yes's work from their venerable troika of "The Yes Album", "Fragile", and "Close to the Edge", to their later work with Trevor Rabin on guitar. Drama remains my favorite album in the catalogue. Why?

In two words, Chris Squire. The bass lines and bass sound dominate this recording, and it's a beautiful/rare thing. In addition, this may be Yes's heaviest album, especially from the guitar sound standpoint. Steve Howe uses a bit more distortion, and a lot more precision in his playing throughout the tracks. On other records (much like Jimmy Page), Howe's playing verges on sloppy in my opinion, though his unique style and compositional ability are to be much admired. Here, he seems a bit more solid, as if the parts have been practiced and honed with more tenacity than in other cases. I also love Alan White's tasty drumming on this disc. Don't get me wrong- Bill Bruford is awesome- but Alan White has a way of setting down a relaxed groovy drum part even in crazy prog sections where time signatures are odd and/or changing constantly. The vocals and keys are much discussed in other reviews since those are the new members in the band in this record. Not only do I not have a problem with the new guys- I think their creative energy is probably what sparked the excellent writing and performances of the more longstanding members.

If you are a prog fan, you should have this disc. If you are a metalhead, you might find this is the window that leads you into Yes's music.

Five stars without a hint of reservation.

As much as I hate to admit it (especially in light of recent Yes events), Jon Anderson's departure during this era of the band's career was shockingly the best thing for the band. While Anderson had continued to become more and more pretentious and out of his mind when it came to song composition, lyrics and concepts, the rest of the band began to break away. After the slight disappointment that was Tormato, Anderson, along with keyboardist Rick Wakeman, decided to leave the band. For Wakeman, this was not his first (or even his last) time departing from the dysfunctional monster that is Yes, however nobody thought that the band could survive without their mastermind. Make no mistake . . . in many ways, Jon Anderson IS Yes, and I certainly have great disrespect for the band for how they are currently treating him (the year is 2010 as of this writing), but despite all of that, I cannot deny that Drama, Anderson-less or not, is one of Yes' most magical albums.

For some reason, everything that led to this record's inception happened at the right time, and it worked out. Chris Squire had this batty idea to bring in the Pop group called 'Buggles' to fill the musical and creative void left by the departure of two of the band's key figures. Surely this was madness. The only thing these new guys had been successful at in terms of their own music prior to this experiment was getting their song to be the first video played on MTV. ''Video Killed the Radio Star'' is a far cry from ''Gates of Delerium'', I think you'll agree. And yet, what resulted from this extremely odd pairing turned out to be a bright light in the hazy darkness that was the band's output around this time. The previous album hadn't been all that well received, and the Rabin-era records to follow would make some of the most drastic changes Yes ever saw. So how can it be that this album, caught in between these two lesser- enjoyed eras, is so amazing? And without the band's original frontman and songwriter to boot? I have no idea, but believe me . . . it is.

''Machine Messiah'' is one of Yes' darkest and most mature works, in my opinion. Apart from the majority of content on Relayer, I don't know of any other material the band has done that matches the intensity of this. The opening riff is distorted, heavy and borders on Metal, not kidding. However, the lighter, more melodic sound Yes got famous for is also mixed in here and there. The changes between the dreary and the hopeful attitudes are pulled off very successfully, and I'm telling you, this is one of the most Progressive songs in the band's catalogue. It goes in every direction, is full of technically impressive musical changes that keeps the listener on their toes. Trevor Horn and Chris Squire harmonize incredibly well, and the moments when Horn is heard singing solo for the first time, it is clear that he has what it takes to take on this type of music vocally. No, he's not quite as good at it as Jon Anderson, but he's a damn good mimic, and considering how Anderson's style isn't all that easy to replicate, my hat goes off to Trevor Horn for even attempting it. The fact that he goes beyond merely attempting and actually succeeds as the vocalist is even better.

At 5:46, the song takes a dramatic turn, featuring some truly stirring guitar chords that are much more in line with Pink Floyd than anything on the Yes front up until this point, but again, the guys truly left no stone unturned when it came to musical style, and yet never once does this album lose direction, and this song in particular shows just how good the band was at writing and performing darker music. It actually makes their catalogue all the more diverse and interesting for it. And when the vocal harmonies come in at this point, it moves me every time. I honestly am baffled by it, but this song is one of my favorite Yes pieces, and I'm one of the biggest Jon Anderson fans you're likely to find. His absence isn't felt at all, and I blow my own mind in saying that, but that's just how it is. Some nice recapitulation of the earlier moments and a final reprise of the song's strongest section, and it ends, very much holding my attention and wetting my appetite for what may come next.

''White Car'', not even a minute-and-a-half long, is the first to truly showcase Trevor Horn's vocal ability, and despite its insanely short length, is not a bad track in the least. It's just the right length and serves the music well.

''Does It Really Happen?''. Wow, what a dynamic bass line from Chris Squire! The rest of the ensemble breaks in soon enough, and after a small breakdown, the first truly memorable riff comes in around forty seconds in. By a minute in, however, this track pulls back the veil and reveals what it really is: an eighties pop song wrapped heavily in Prog trappings. Nothing at all wrong with that, but it is the most metallic-sounding song on the record. For some, that might be too wide of a departure from the classic Yes sound, but for people who only like good music, trademark style be damned, then you'll still like this one. However, it IS probably one of the lesser tracks on Drama, all things considered.

''Into the Lens''. Originally a track that Geoff Downes had lying around called ''I Am A Camera'' it doesn't really take off until a little over a minute in, but it surely does shine once given a chance to develop a bit. This is really not traditional Yes at all, but it is still very progressive and ever-changing. I think I haven't really mentioned Geoff Downes' abilites yet. Let me just say, the man is brilliant. Probably my second-favorite 'alternate' keys man the band had, just behind Patrick Moraz. Downes is an amazing player, and he brought a lot of new technology and he really steals the show so often on this record, it's mind-blowing. This song in particular, though. benefits greatly from the synthesized soundscapes and melody lines from Mr. Downes. 3:20 brings some truly remarkable vocal melodies into the picture, and then only twenty seconds later, the band is frantically chugging forward into borderline Metal territory again. As I mentioned earlier, despite this constant weaving in and out of various musical territory, the songs never lose their way, and are always brilliantly written and concisely performed. This is another great song, and is the second-longest song on Drama. Much like the album's opener, it's got everything-- time signature switch-ups, amazingly well-executed merging of genres and a whole lot of impressive playing.

''Run Through the Light'' starts things off wonderfully again. Nice synth-y atmosphere, clean guitar melodies and Trevor Horn singing what is quite possibly the most beautiful melody on the whole record. This album as a whole is just as top-notch as the two largest tracks, and in some ways, I find myself anxiously awaiting this song to arrive whenever I spin this album. It is certainly a more modern song, but is probably the best example of 70s-meets-80s Drama has to offer. It just also happens to be really damn good.

''Tempus Fugit'' is most likely the most well-known track off of this record. It's quite aggressive and effects-heavy, especially for Yes music, but oh wow, how catchy and fun! Chris Squire is playing his Bass through a flanger, and it gives his bass lines a very unique, spacey quality. As far as I know, he still incorporates his bass lines from this song into his live version of ''The Fish'', but I could be wrong. Anyway, it's a great, punchy way to end an amazing (if more than a little unlikely) Yes recording. This is probably my second-favorite song, with ''Machine Messiah'' being my first.

A truly remarkable effort that is just as enjoyable to listen to as anything out of the classic Yes era, at least to my ears. Even though Jon Anderson is Yes to me in so many ways, it's undeniable that Dram, for whatever reason, is one the band's best studio efforts. And I mean, this thing impresses on all fronts; lyrics, melody, composition, performance, and Roger Dean even came back to paint yet another gorgeous album cover. So even though this is a bit of a controversial release for the Jon Anderson diehards (of which I consider myself to be one of them), I still hold it as one of the strongest Yes works. By all accounts, it shouldn't be; the ingredients are all wrong. And yet, here I sit, giving Drama a four star review. What a surprising world we live in, aye?

Surprisingly happy listening.

'Pleasantly surprised' is 90% of people's response to this album. And when you play the opening epic 'Machine Messiah' for the first time, it's easy to see why. The introduction would have been suitably shocking for Yes in 1980. Howe and Squire deliver some heavy riffing that initially sounds more Floyd or Zeppelin than Yes. Then, making the audience's jaws drop even further, the vocals come in. After the first sentence, a rewind is required to make sure it isn't Jon Anderson singing, because Trevor Horn voice sounds incredibly close to his. The track then launches itself into a fast-paced progressive workout that becomes increasingly Yes-like. After 10 minutes, you feel guilty that you dismissed the line-up before hearing the album. It delivers everything a prog-head could want, something that Yes fans definately wouldn't have anticipated after their favourite two members have left the band and been replaced by a pair of electro pop noodlers.

Unfortunately, the rest of the album fails to match or maintain the 'pleasant surprise' of it's opening track. For the remainder of side 1, the influence of The Buggles becomes more apparent, resulting in two throw-away tracks. 'Into the Lens' is better (probably more input from the Yes-men, although I don't want to make assumptions) but occasionally lacks energy and is structurally unsure of itself; the frequent pauses and changes in direction make for a sloppy progressiveness that unlike 'Machine Messiah', DOESN'T bring back memories of 'Fragile' et al. After some more 80's Buggle-filler, the album ends with another 'pleasant surprise'. 'Tempus Fugit' is energetic and catchy, yet interesting and almost written like a "mini prog epic". The self-referential cries of "Yes!" add to the fun.

So Drama isn't as 'dramatic' as some Anderson purists make out. It is nice, certainly better than people expected it to be (perhaps in awareness of this, the band called back Roger Dean to paint the cover), but only the first song manages to wow me. Wisely, Howe's guitar and Squire's bass are punched to the forefront a bit (I don't care much for the keyboard work of Geoff Downes; he delivers what is required of him but never goes beyond this) and the sometimes struggling vocals of Horn are backed up with Chris' harmonies. If you were expecting [&*!#], then as I said, this album is a 'pleasant surprise'. But if you were expecting 'Drama', then it's a bit of an anticlimax.

I honestly love Drama. There you go, I said it.

The Buggles meant nothing to me. I cared nothing for their music at all. I care nothing for about 85% of the artists that Trevor Horn has produced, and I care nothing for Asia. But, as Yes members, on this record., Horn and Downs had a lot to give.

To be honest, and I'm sure I'll be shot for this treason later, I don't care that much for Jon Anderson. Love the guys voice, love the guys lyrics, but he seems like a bit of a pillock. And a pillock that is evidently difficult to work with.

I used to worship Wakeman, but towards the end of the 70's he began using some suspect sounds (culminating over 30 years later with the atrocities he unleashed on his own rehash of six wives... but thats another story), and that got gradually worse until the utterly dreadful solo that climaxed the partially excellent last cut on Tormato (Silent Wings Of Freedom). And then, as now, Wakeman thought that Jon was Yes and no Jon meant no Yes.

Boy did he back the wrong horse.

Geoff Downes used a varied keyboard pallette that for the age sounded good. He had the best hammond sound since tony Kaye got his marching orders, Widdled like Wakeman on a couple of cuts, and his polysynths sounded warm and rich, unlike the incessant quacking of the lamentable polymoog that Wakeman was being paid a fortune to endorse (or something).

The albums success or faliure, in most people's eyes would be Trevor Horn, and how well he could ape the much missed Anderson. And that is where we see results.

The vocals on Drama are as good as the vocals on any Yes album. They're in tune and they sound great. The three-part harmonies are virtually indistinguishable from the Anderson led variant. (For example, compare The Yes Album's "Yesterday, A Morning Came, A Smile Upon Your Face' and Drama's "Cables That Carry The Light to The Cities We Build". The timbre is virtually identical.

Naturally, sound aside, the songs are brilliant. Machine Messiah, is as the name suggests a heavy track that Maganges more variation, musically in the track than most bands do on an album. Squire and Howe are in thrilling form and White plays with as much power and excitement as he did on everything up to this album. It's utterly magnificent. The mood of the track is sinister, eerie in places and unrelentingly jolly (although that doesn't seem, curiously, incongruous) in others.

White Car is little more than an interlude, but taken in it's time, and considering what the Fairlight MEANT to music in 1980, it's remarkable how good some of that track actually sounds.

Does It Really Happen began life with Anderson and Moraz circa Relayer-GFTO and the demo I've heard is unfocussed and messy. This is angular, sharp and the arrangement has the perfect curve. Contemporary for the time, but in no way dated (which is more than can be same for it's successor).

If proof is needed what the classic line up had in store had Drama not erupted in 1979, one only has to compare the Anderson- fronted Dance Through The Light to the Horn-fronted RUN Through The Light. The Anderson demo was excruciating, with little more that the annoying Polymoog to carry the tune. Given breadth, scope and Howe, this track actually takes off and is a favourite. And Horn's lead vocal is quite excellent.

Tempus Fugit is well known to most Yes Fans due to it's turning up on compilations and is, quite frankly, some of the best arranging done by the band since Relayer.

If you haven't heard this album, you have two reasons to do so.

1) Everything on it is absolutely great

2)The Rhino remaster has tacked the aborted Paris sessions with JA and RW on it, so you now have a reason to own it, even if Yes without Anderson is inconcievable.

Bottom line, this album is worth even more now, as it proves Yes can make great music without the much loved Anderson out the front. And given what has happened in the last two years, this record is the only document of what a future Yes may be like.

If thats the case, I say bring on the future.

This is easily one of the best albums Yes has ever come out with. Most people were worried that the absence of Wakeman and Anderson would be detrimental to the album, but honestly, I think that it was what made this album so damn good. This album is shamelessly progressive, however, the pop sensibilities of Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes definitely make this album far more accessable than, say, "Tales From Topographic Oceans" (bad comparison, I know, but bear with me). The high point of this album is doubtlessly "Machine Messiah", quite possibly the best song Yes wrote since "Close to the Edge" 8 years prior. In this song, all the members really strut their prog stuff, giving Downes a chance to strut his stuff. By the instrumental section at the 4 minute mark of this epic, most Yes fans will have forgiven (or even forgotten) the fact that Downes and Horn were also members of the Buggles. You know, the band famous for being the first video on MTV? That's right, before joining Yes, Horn and Downes had the same prog credentials as Michael Jackson. You can easily see why Yes fans were worried. However, the newcomers not only manage to prove themselves, but, as mentioned before, breathe life into a dying "dinosaur" group. Every song on this album is a masterpiece, but I find that you can easily show this album to a non-prog fan and they will enjoy it almost as much as a prog fan will- a quality lacking in most progressive and non-progressive albums. That, I feel, is the biggest strength of this album (as well as a strength that even "Close to the Edge" lacks.

When I listen to Drama I'm always thinking: ' Why is the rest of the album not as good as the first song?' The opening track "Machine Messiah" is one of the best songs from Yes. Of course not as brilliant as "Close To The Edge" or "The Gates Of Delirium" but a masterpiece. The guitar-riff is very hard and dark but also powerful and just awesome. I love it. Unfortunately are the other songs not as good as the first one. It seems for me that the guys from Yes had an brilliant inspiration and wrote a new song (Machine Messiah) and (to made a new album for it) they had to wrote fast some other uninspired songs too. The tracks are not very bad but also not very good. You can listen too it but you will never arrive other spheres while listening.

All in all I think if every song on Drama would be as good as the first, this album could rival to "Close to the Edge". But so it's for me just "Good, but non-essential".

Surprisingly for me, because it is not the "classic line-up", this album is very, very solid.

Machine messiah ranks among the very best of Yes' production, with its close to metal moments, and some other that reminds me of the Gates Of Delirium's rawness. The rest of the album is also top notch. One thing that particularly strikes me through the album is the sound of the drums' toms : awesome!

Highly recommend, just as Relayer or Close to the Edge and even before Going for the one. Also, the expanded & remastered edition is really interesting with its 10 tracks bonuses.

Some people think that Yes without Jon Anderson singing is just not Yes. While I do agree that his voice IS the voice I think of for the band, this album proves that they are still a great band with or without him. And DRAMA is better than TORMATO or 90125 whcih come before and after. (And has a REAL Yes cover, which they don't!) Trevor Horn fills in nicely (although I have read the tour with this album didn't work so well), for Jon Anderson and Squire, White, and Howe are steady and skilled as always. I don't think Downes measures up to Wakeman, but then who does? He still does a fine job. Highlights: "Does it Really Happen", "Into the Lens", Tempus Fugit". Lowlights: "Machine Messiah". Not that it is a bad song, it just has never thrilled me and seems to overplay it's welcome. This is not a masterpiece, but it falls in the Yes pantheon somewhere around GOING FOR THE ONE in my mind. Great, but not perfect. 4 stars.

O Yes!

One of the first albums I bought on cd, back in 1988 or so. I did'nt really like it because at home I found out Anderson was'nt singing on it. But I was very wrong! In later years I started playing it and liking it a lot. It is now the Yes album I play the most. What I really like about it is it agressivnes in some parts like in the opening track. Great guitar riff! Steve Howe was really inspired during the making of this album. Also Alan White is laying down great parts. And than there is the lacking of Wakeman's tweedeldeedee crazy keyboard parts I really appreciate. I am no fan of his playing at all. Downes does is in a much better way accoring to me. And than the singer. Well it's no Anderson, ok. But eventhough I love his voice, I never liked Andersons lyrics. Also a reason I like this album. And I think they covers up Andersons departure by adding even more harmonies of Squire and Howe. No weaker tracks: a prog masterpiece.

Drama from Yes released in 1980 is a very big inprovement over Tormato, who was for me a good album but less intristing then before. This early '80's album is one of the best band ever done, even for some purists the Yes is no Yes without Anderson. They took Geoff Downes from The Buggles, for the vocal duties and to me was a shock in good way, he seams to be almost alike with Anderson in tone of voice. He done a very good prestation here , not to mention that the rest of the musicians are in top form. The album sounds fresh , with very strong ideas, captivating bass lines, excellent guitar parts and above all a solid musicianship and strong arranmgements. To me this is among my fav Yes albums ever, not a single weak moment here as many pretend to be. Every single piece is a winner with catchy and complicated progressive elements, strong vocal, what else a very solid album all the way. Excellent release, better then many of the albums from that period, from progressive rock zone of course. 4 stars easely, among the best they ever done, with a lot to offer, and one of my fav albums aswell.Recommended

This Yes album is really not my favorite but as got some good stuff. It's a good album and it sounds a bit like the old Yes. The bass lines are awesome but some songs like Run in through the light get very long and are at the base not great. My first notice was that Jon Anderson wasn't there to sing. It was hard to notice since Trevor Horn copies his voice very well so that it's hardly noticeable. Steve Howe gets really important in the album and his playing is incredible. Some keyboard sounds are horrible and some are good. The vocoder is not a brilliant idea.

Grosso modo, a fair album but not the best up to me.

Hated this with a passion when I first bought in the mid 80s. A combination of the metal-like heaviness, some misplaced poppiness and the slick and soulless 80s production. Trevor Horn's vocals do not help, but are not the worse offence.

Some Yesheads seem to have a higher opinion than myself, so I have recently tried to listen again putting aside my former prejudice.

SIDE ONE

After the shorter aspirations of Tormato, the opening "machine messiah" is at least ambitious, but the opening is too ponderous for my tastes and the sung part is too poppy to fit with the rest. Not sure what the organ quotation from Widor's toccata is doing there either. But the instrumental development sections are impressive. So this piece is rather schizophrenic.

The 81 seconds of "White car" are rather pointless. The orchestral intro is appealing.

"Does it really happen" was ran through during the Tormato sessions. It is an energetic and memorable song so one wonders why they did not work on it then. Horn makes a good fist of singing but he's no Jon Anderson. The performance is rather plodding.

SIDE TWO

"Into the lens" has an interesting proggy opening but soon moves into an unsatisfactory vocal section with the banal "I am a camera " refrain. Again a very slick arrangement which sadly becomes par for the course from now on. This contains some good instrumental parts among the the blandness, so like the opening it has a musical split personality. Some horrible vocoder effects near the end have dated badly.

"Run through the light" has an ok verse but is let down by a banal chorus. In some ways it is a typical 80s product song.

"Tempus Fugit" starts off like the Nice's America before settling down into a rollicking bassline grove before being undermined by vocoder effects.

VERDICT: I no longer hate this as I used to, but it is far beneath Yes's best work. The elements simply do not gel. The musical ideas and execution are an improvement on Tormato but some questionable decisions have been made. They missed Anderson not so much for his singing but for his ability to create memorable vocal melodies.

3 stars

BONUS

The bonus material here consists of single edits of two songs on the album plus 'tracking sessions' of another two which account for some 15 pointless minutes of music.

Then there's various songs which did not make the final cut.

"Do we really need to go through with this" is, as the name implies, a very ordinary instrumental rocker. "Song 4" at 7 and a half minutes is a lengthy off cut. Another instrumental, it is more promising than the previous, but can hardly justify its length.

"Dancing through the light" is a poppier version of the chorus of "run through the light" repeated over and over. An intensely annoying piece.

So far the bonuses have been half an hour of worthless dregs from Drama. The next "the golden age" takes us back to the sound of Tormato (specifically the instrumental sections of Arriving UFO) before Jon Anderson starts singing! (As he does the remaining tracks) The song is not great.

"In the tower" is an unfinished song, with Anderson singing over organ chords. It has some potential.

"Friend of a friend" is a funkier number but stops short of being memorable.

These last 3 tracks are the only bonus material worth hearing.

I really like just a few Yes albums (mostly from their classic period), so I can't count myself as band's fan. Possibly it helps in case with "Drama" - I don't care too much who is vocalist on this album, and about line-up as well.

More important for me is I really like this music! Opener " Machine Messiah" is one between some Yes best song ever. Compositions are great again, Trevor's vocals are quite similar to Anderson's, and I can't feel problem with that.

Musically (including vocals) this album really continues classic Yes evolution, and some more modern keyboards sound only gave another chance to the band to find their place in musical scene of 80-s. But at the same time band on this album very successfully balances on the ground of progressive rock, almost never crossing the border with synth-pop, etc. And it is serious experience, we all perfectly know how later line-ups will bring band into electronic pop mud very soon.

Even if absolutely different from classic line-up, this band's album is for me still one of the last their great album, and the evidence they could have much better future as well.

Very recommended release for every fans of best Yes works and just lovers of symphonic prog of high quality.

Yes met the new decade with another lineup change and a strong studio album release. I guess that if someone would predict that Yes members would collaborate with a New Wave band, fans would have dismissed that though completely. But here we are 25 years later acknowledging that same fact!

The Buggles, consisting of Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes, had just release their hit record The Age Of Plastic and it only took the new Yes-lineup a few month to assemble and release a new album. The creativity was definitely on top with Drama, even though a few of The Buggles-outtakes did help along the way. Of course, this album can't be discussed without acknowledging the fact of Jon Anderson's absence from the lineup. This and the overall sound of Drama makes it difficult for me to consider it a continuation of the classic Yes sound, but that minor concern doesn't make this album any less enjoyable!

Geoff Downes dominates the sound of this release with his ultra-modern keyboard sound and so Chris Squire and Steve Howe had to take on supporting positions for a change. I always liked Machine Messiah and consider it one of the best compositions ever recorded, even though I hesitate calling it a Yes classic, especially since the composition has not been performed once Anderson rejoined the band. Tempus Fugit is another great show stopper that once again showed that the great skill of Chris Squire's arrangements. Finally we also have Into The Lens, which I previously heard in its original form off The Buggles second record Adventures In Modern Recording. There it was called I Am A Camera and even though it did catch my attention there, I still have to admit the superiority of this symphonic take.

Drama might be considered a side note in the history of this band, but it hardly makes it any less enjoyable. As I previously mentioned, Yes was always a band that managed to successfully recruit new talent to the band and this album only further proves this point. A great record, well worth exploring!

***** star songs: Machine Messiah (10:27) Tempus Fugit (5:14)

**** star songs: White Car (1:21) Does It Really Happen? (6:34) Into The Lens (8:31)

*** star songs: Run Through The Light (4:39)

As everyone else says, "This is probably one of Yes's most underrated albums." The addition of New Waver's THE BUGGLES's Geoffrey Downes and Trevor Horn gives the band a transfusion of new life (as well as a pre-written song in "Into the Lens"). The vocal harmonies have never been better. Steve Howe has never been better. The band's power and pace is present from the album's opening measures of "Machine Messiah". Yes, songs like "Man in a White Car," "Run Through the Light," and the New Wave-y, straightforward "Does It Really Happen?" are oddities for Yes, but they are experiments that prove offsetting for the other heavier songs. Plus, they are previews of the ASIA to come. "Machine Messiah" (9/10), the awesome "Tempus Fugit" (9/10) and "Into the Lens" (9/10) are Yes classics--songs for the ages.

4 stars. Still Yes and still excellent addition to any prog lovers music collection.

After the disappointment of "Tormato", it seemed that Yes was headed in the same direction as their contemporaries, Emerson Lake & Palmer and Genesis (to name the most prominent of the proggers who watered down their sound in a grasp for relevance in an industry that had suddenly turned against artistry). Then came the news that Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman had left, and Yes had filled their posts with The Buggles, a new wave duo with one successful album. I feared for the worst.

But my loyalty to Yes outweighed my horror, and I purchased "Drama" shortly after it's release. What a surprise! It wasn't bad. It was actually much more proggy than new wavy. How did the record company executives allow this?

Chris Squire and Steve Howe sounded rejuvenated. They both played their axes on this album with power and joy. And while Geoff Downes is no Rick Wakeman by any means, he does a fine job of keeping up in some energetic and complex arrangements. Trevor Horn, while having a high pitched enough voice to still make the songs sound like Yes, seems to strain at times. But his voice has a tone more like Squire and Howe's voices, and makes the harmonies blend better than on any previous Yes album.

The only really down point (but not really terrible) is Run Through The Light, where Squire moves to piano, and allows Horn to play fretless bass. While Horn is okay as a bass player, his style is much more mundane than Squire's.

It would have been interesting to hear this group continue, but it wasn't to be.

Another great album Yes.Ok, Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman are not here, but so what? Trevor Horn can not sing like Anderson (although their voices are similar), but Geoff Downes playing much better than Wakeman in "Tormato (there keyboards are a disgrace).

Except for "Run Through the Light" (a terribly commercial strip), all others are excellent. "Machine Messiah" is one of my favorites of all time band.Is almost prog metal! (no teasing). "White car" is short, but reasonable."Does it really hapen" is really cool, its introduction is great."Into the Lens "(which was an original band Buggles) is another piece captivating and somewhat dark.The keyboards of Downes are at their better.I finally have "Tempus Fugit", another great song of band.Her closes the album beautifully, it may seem commercial, but is complex, so to speak.

Thinking to a Yes album without Jon Anderson is very difficult, but I have to admit that Trevor Horn's voice is very similar and being he backed by the familiar voice of Chris Squire, I don't feel Jon's absence as I could have expected.

Wakeman is missing, too, but also in his case Geoff Downes doesn't sound so different, just not so fast.

"The Machine Messiah" is an unusual track. It seems a Genesis song played by Yes, even with Howe playing as usual.

"White Car" is a short song and the one on which the change in the lineup is more evident, as it sounds like a Camel song and the voice seems that of Colin Bass.

The album's highlight is "Does It Really Happen?". It's a pop song from the 80s but at the same time is probably the most progressive moment of the album. This song alone is already a good reason to buy this album.

"Into The Lens" is for me the weakest moment. Not absolutely bad, simply I don't like it. Also this song has some of Genesis. I'm not a Genesis fan, so this is not a good thing for me. Jon Anderson has been often criticized for his lyrics. What's good in "I am a camera, camera camera" ?

"Run Through The Light" is a great song, instead. I'm one of those who liked 90125 and this song is very closer to the style used on that album with the difference in the guitar. Howe and Rabin are not the same guitarist and even if they have played live each other's stuff during the years, they can't be confused.

"Tempus Fugit" is the other pop-rock song of the album. As well as Does it really Happen this is a song that has a great impact when played live.

This is not an essential album, but even with the dramatic lineup change is absolutely not bad and thanks to the two highlights is recognizable as a YES album.

three stars.

So this is the 80s? Welcome!

Well, that decade of the 80s has been criticized by several prog rockers (I can count as one of them) because of the tendency of some extraordinary bands to the pop side of music, however, there are a lot of albums that maintained the same progressive, challenging and interesting line, which should be praised. One of those albums is this great one called "Drama".

Sometimes changes aren't that bad, I say this because after the not so good "Tormato", the great Rick Wakeman left (again) the band, but most important, Jon Anderson decided not to appear here, it was the first and last time he did not sing in a Yes album, which is actually an odd thing. But guess what, I actually did not miss him, in fact, that line-up and the change in the musical direction helped the band to re-gain some of the disappointed fans, and actually to get new ones.

Trevor Horn on vocals and Geoff Downes on keys replaced the previous mentioned, and did a great job. Drama is composed of six great tracks, well maybe "White Car" is the only weak thing here but it only lasts one minute and a half. But the other five songs are pretty memorable, tracks that any Yes fan would appreciate, and maybe love.

After compositions such as "Don't Kill the Whale" or "Madrigal", one can thank the band for giving us awesome pieces such as "Machine Messiah", "Into the Lens" or "Tempus Fugit", this last one is particularly wonderful, and one of my personal top Yes songs ever, I love the bass and all the musical offer.

The complexity, odd time changes and rhythms, the different colors, textures and nuances can be appreciated in this album, so please buy it, pay attention to it and recognize that it is really good, don't pre-judge just for being an 80s album or because Jon is not here, no, better get it and I assure you will not regret.

Drama was a pretty nice surprise, and an album that I truly like. My final grade will be four stars. Recommendable for Yes fans and progressive music lovers.

Enjoy it!

Drama marks the entrance of a new vocalist for Yes, Trevor Horn. The change isn't really all that significant or noticeable though, as the vocals are still in the Jon Anderson style. The music here is roughly the same as on Relayer but with more coherence, but all together better and more interesting than Tormato.

Every time I listen to this album, I am never able to pick out any stand out moments. For Yes, this is bad. Usually on Yes albums there are at least some catchy melodies, but everything here is entirely unmemorable. The music flows well enough, but the writing seems to be trying too hard to appeal to both progressive rock fans and pop fans; something Yes would executer far better on future albums. The only stand out track is "Tempus Fugit" which features some of Chris Squire's most solid bass playing. Other than that, I'd say that this album can be skipped without missing much.

Despite how some Yes fans feel about this album, I think "Drama" is one of the greats of the band's long career. It's a brilliant effort. Trevor Horn turns in some terrific vocals. The soaring harmonies on here are really great! Chris Squire's bass playing is also at its best, Howe and White are pretty awesome as usual too.

There are many gorgeous and exquisite passages to be found, though "Drama" seems to rock heavier than any other Yes album. Probably Horn and keyboardist wizard Geoff Downes' influence. Lyrically, the songs are quite dark, especially on the excellent "Machine Messiah" and the up-tempo "Tempis Fugit", two top Yes songs!

Also, check out the cool rhythm section on "Does It Really Happen?" and the stutter-stepping rhythm on "Into the Lens". You can't go wrong with this classic. Over the years, I've grown to love it more and more. 4 solid stars.

"Is really a DRAMA !", ... but if the band is YES... "The DRAMA is over !"....with the forgiveness of play on words with the title of this albun, I have a question; "What band could be survive to the simultaneous departure of two monsters such as Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman ,( mainly in the early 80's a critical moment to progressive rock) ?" The answer is YES !!! oops... excuse me again...In spite of many fans of YES and the specialized press reject the disk, I consider the music in this albun a precursor of progressive survival in the subsequent years and the responsible to launch some foundations of neo-prog and more specifically for the prog metal style ; a brief audition for the first Track "Machine Messiah" ( the introduction, the guitar/keyboards duo in the middle section of the track, the bass guitar "response" to this duo and the climax of the theme ) corroborate my words ! Besides the albun presents another great moments, the Track 3 "Does It Really Happen?" with a outstanding bass guitar and the Track 6 "Tempus Fugit". Due this considerations, my rate is 4 stars !!!

The common perception of many Yes-heads is that the last really decent Yes album was 1977's 'Going For One', which was the last effort from the group to feature the 'classic' line- up of Jon Anderson(vocals), Steve Howe(guitars), Rick Wakeman(keyboards), Chris Squire(bass) and Alan White(drums). 1978's god-awful 'Tormato' featured the same line-up but, with internal tensions, financial discrepancies, changing commercial fortunes and the advent of punk-rock, the old magic seemed to be sorely missing. What happened next has been oft-documented by fans and music writers alike, as Anderson and Wakeman jumped ship only to replaced by, ahem, the pop group Buggles(of 'Video Killed The Radio Star' fame, if you didn't know). The outrage - and giggles - this move caused has seen much ink expended over the years, most of it negative. However, now the dust has truly settled, the resulting album from this briefly-existing line-up can finally be judged on it's musical merits and not on the reputations of it's protagonists, for 'Drama', which saw the light of day in 1980, is in fact the real last great Yes album, a fact overshadowed by the groups extremely lucrative headlong rush into 1980's-styled pop on their 'Drama' follow-up '90125'. Faced with replacing original vocalist Anderson and star-member Rick Wakeman, Trevor Horn(vocals) and Geoff Downes(keyboards) had one hell of a difficult task. Luckily, though, both men were avid Yes fans(hence their appointment to the group by bassist Chris Squire) and their healthy respect for the group's past glories shines through on a collection of clever, catchy, highly-complex and ever-so-slightly pop-edged compositions that easily out performs most of the glutinous crap found on 'Tormato'('Don't Kill The Whale' excepted). Highlights include the metallic-and-electronic synth-prog of ten-minute opener 'Machine Messiah', the pop- tastic Buggles-penned number 'Does It Really Happen' and the highly-emotive 'Tempus Fugit', a track seen by many Yes fans as the best non-Jon[Anderson] track produced by the group. Obviously, 'Drama' doesn't quite reach the heights scaled by 'Close To The Edge' or 'Fragile', yet it remains a vastly underrated set and a welcome anomaly in the Yes catalogue that saw the group open themselves up to an array of new ideas after a decade of indulgent progressive noodling. The strength of 'Drama' lies in it's mixture of old-and-new Yes elements, with the group blending their trademark symphonic style with newer, fresher ideas - including, briefly on 'Tempus Fugit', a brief reggae lilt reinvigorating a band who were desperately short on both confidence and morale. Of course, Yes would never again create an album to match up to their 1970s output, so it is with 'Drama' that we wave goodbye to one of the genre's foremost innovators, and it is thanks to a couple of pop-crafty young upstarts that we have to thank for this most intriguing of albums. Fans may be divided on the merits of this 1980 release but there is no doubting the fresh spin brought to proceedings by Horn and Downes. In a phrase: surprisingly enjoyable. STEFAN TURNER, LONDON, 2011

Now that Yes have released an album with Benoit David on lead vocals, perhaps it's a good idea to give Drama another look. After all, before Fly From Here it rather stuck out as being the sole Yes album not to feature Jon Anderson - now, it looks like Yes albums without Jon are not going to be quite so unusual.

As a matter of fact, Trevor Horn's singing on this Yes incarnation owes a lot to Jon's delivery, and is a credible replacement for his. And the musical fruits of this brief union with the Buggles are outright intriguing - a very plausible extrapolation of Yes' style into the 1980s, with modern synthesisers and production values adding an intriguing sheen which serves material such as Machine Messiah well.

Whilst some of the songs rely a bit too much on repeating motifs and outstay their welcome a bit at first listen - I'm thinking in particular of Into the Lens and Tempus Fugit - over time I have found that the album grows with repeated listens, with a particular aesthetic and vision excellently developed.

Overall, the album represents a fascinating and potentially new direction for the Yes sound which unfortunately was not followed due to the album's commercial failure. Chris Squire deserves particular credit for his bass work, which is as sophisticated as always, whilst Steve Howe wheels out some of his heaviest and most aggressive guitar playing this time around.

Turns out I don't like Drama as much as I thought I remembered. Most likely the second or third time I heard it, I started to get into some of the music, because there are some good sections in some of the songs, mostly in "Machine Messiah", which sounds more like Nursery Cryme era-Genesis than anything Yes ever did (and hey, it even has a "For Absent Friends"- esque short piece that follows it). Yes doesn't typically do many songs in minor keys, and it's very different than the few other minor key songs they have done, and I think they do the theatrical thing well. Unfortunately, like the rest of the album, the lyrics stink, and while the upbeat, majoy key sections that have Squire singing harmonies do sound like Yes, AND Trevor Horn's voice isn't bad, Jon Anderson is sorely missing. It's interesting, though, and by far, the best thing on the album. Another song that has some good moments is "Into the Lens", whose verses I really enjoy, especially the way White's drum part stands out amidst the pleasantly poppy melody and piano part. The song, though, is plagued by a really annoying and pointless chorus that comes up too often for it being that annoying. There are a lot of people who listen to Yes that like the song Tempus Fugit, and I'm not enough of a fanatic to love the song, but it is okay. The rest of the album fails to move me, and since all songs are credited to the band, it's hard to say if this unexpected drop in quality is due to the new members, but I will at least say that as musicians, Geoff Downes and Trevor Horn are skilled, and do contribute decent parts to these very average to pretty bad songs.

I find that Trevor horn has got the members of the band to really go for it. There's playing with real gusto here. BUT. Do they end up sounding like Yes? Personally, I'd say not...

If the album had been made by a band called' 'Affirmative', then you'd be tempted to say that it's not a bad effort, although it does have a kind of 80's sound to it though...

All the action seems compressed, as opposed to expansive, and of course there are not the angelic tones of Jon Anderson in the sound.

I'll happily hum along to what is driven rhythmic unit, and the band sound like a good collective unit too.

What it lacks though, is refinement. A chance maybe to reflect on the more emotional moments. In this album? No, not a chance. It always seems in a hurry.

So, Yes in a condensed and faster form perhaps? Maybe. Only it wasn't Yes, was it?

I learned very well how to (love to) start musical arguments: Dream Theater/Tool are terrible, how Geddy Lee isn't great or important, Styx/Iron Maiden/Tubes are prog acts, and many others. You can bring out a real snob or loyalist. The "Yes sans Anderson" topic is the real biggie. This is an album that has sparked a thousand snits and rants, more like hollering-with-bad-breath-coming-closer-as-an-inch-from-your-face-attacks (since I came fresh out of one), on how "Yes isn't Yes without Anderson, man! The product is not represented, when you listen to "HotS" or "CthE" how can you NOT have Anderson sing it. Call the band 'No' from now on."

Eat me. The're just a band. They don't pay my bills or cry when family dies.

When I say this is my favorite Yes disc, or any discs without Anderson and/or Wakeman for that matter, may the gods help me that day. Having just come fresh off an argument over Drama (and Fly From Here) stating these are true Yes albums, all I can do is speak peacefully then nod in accordance with them when they go out of control because I don't like to fracture egos.

With knowing that the band became a band after the twin icons of British Prog waddled off drunkenly, belching from the pub, it make me quite happy. They returned to writing well crafted songs (albeit with a semi-rushed feeling), fuller production, more cohesive vibe, and new fuel in the names of Trevor Horn and Geoff Downs. No one else was happy. I think that pre-existing thought doomed it from the runway.

It's easy to mention the songs were all ready done, Anderson worked on them, The Buggles had a few done. People have ideas. They save them. That's how songs are made. The interjection of the whole firing away on, in this case, 5 cylinders, is what studio magic is. The players interpretation and skills.

An almighty ubiquitous 10 minute epic starts the album: "Machine Messiah". Heaviest Yes ever was and has everything. The lead vocal is not high as we would expect. We have Squire handling those parts.

"White Car" is a little vignette like Fragile would have. Tons of Geoff's keys, tympani, Howe playing lightly, and Horn singing about Gary Numan.

"Does It Really Happen?" is a nice and funky stomp with bass soloing at the end.

"Into The Lens" is another long player. As varied as the opener and a bit lighter with more flow, ambiguous stops, and harmonies.

"Run Through The Light" has some great bass playing... it's Horn. It's a cool mellow tune with an sweet odd meter.

"Tempest Fugit" is of the leopard they sing of. Springs out and rocks hard.

This is a heavy Yes album. It also came out when all the other Prog bands kinda stopped being Prog (Genesis, Gentle Giant, Camel). It was the last of a few.

Thank you, Yes! Thank you.

I didn't buy the album at the time... I only had "Fragile" and for a long time that was the only Yes album that I enjoyed. There was a lot of fuzz at the time about Anderson and Wakeman... (Yes without them isn't Yes blablablabla) I have one different big impression... The Yes albums that didn't have the Roger Dean artwork (Going for the one and Tormato) were absolute crap...

I just received an immaculate vinyl copy and have just finished listening... I must agree with a lot of other reviewers on this one: It's a bloody good record!!!!!

Machine Messiah has a heavy intro which then goes into a great joyfull Buggles-like tune. The vocals are great and the track has nice shifting rythms. Chris Squire excells on bass. The second part of the track is much quieter but part three goes full spead ahead again. The organ is brilliant too!

White Car is a little nothing with a very nice orchestral intro. The vocals are a bit forced but it does work.

Does it really happen? Well seemingly it does! Nice synths and excellent bass and drums. The vocals here are again the weaker point though I must say that the song nor the album actually suffer that much from this. Great organ again and a nice reprise at the very end.

Into the Lens has again a nice bass intro and - what does one expect - very fine guitarwork from Steve Howe indeed. There is a tranquil atmosphere, at times a bit uneven. Squire and White prove again to be a very solid rythmsection with again a typical Howe intevention on electric guitar. The end is alas somewhat more conventional rock.

Run through the light has again a very nice intro on keys. The vocals are quite good and Steve Howe delivers yet again some very beautifull things on guitar.

Tempus Fugit... Yes played ska!!! My God!!! Disaster, blasfemy, outraged comments... Indeed it has some ska, so what??? The intro here again is just grand! The vocals are good, the keyboards colour the rest of the canvas beautifully and Squire, White and Howe are all in tip top shape painting the actual details of the artwork.

If there is one album that proves Squires skills on bass, it is - apart from "Fragile" - this one! The three core musicians have delivered one of the finest Yes moments, helped by the "commercial Buggles"... A pity the line-up wasn't better received. But then again, it was the end of an era. Squire and White are one of the most solid rythmsections in rock and Howe... definitely one of the finest guitarists... And a warm applaus for Horn and Downes!!!!!

Wake up and smell the coffee.

I like diddly-like this album, it's entertaining, it's rocking at the right places and the keyboard textures are good. Hey, Trevor Horn fooled me alright with his voice (especially in the track Run through the Light) and Downes is more than qualified to wear Wakeman's shoes. This had to be a great lifting for the late 70's Yes, with the ego wars leading the band to the looney bin. So what's the freaking fuss about then?

Yes suffers of the same syndrome that Kiss, Styx, Genesis or Ultravox suffered: the original line-up desease. Who cares if Anderson is not there? Many do. I would not personnally see Geddy Lee leaving and having Jusin Hawkins singing 2112 (although I'm super interested to hear what it could be!). Benoit David showed the world how it's done with dignity and grace, so why not Horn? I'm sad that the critics drawed me away from this decent record for so long, claiming 'it's not what it used to be' blah blah blah.

Pish Posh. If you like Yes you will find lots of goodies inside Drama, even more than some other Yes attempts! The vocals are top of the line, the keys are great, the songs are catchy. I'm sold.

What is this?! Star Trek? We have people quarelling who's better? Kirk or Picard?! Anderson or Horn?

Why not Bosco or Ovaltine?

Drama is Yes' 10th album and is one of the few albums by this legendary band that doesn't feature iconic vocalist Jon Anderson. For a lot of fans, this is a major flaw, as Anderson was seen as the soul of Yes. I would agree in saying that Jon Anderson contributed greatly to the sound of Yes, but this album is fantastic, so I wouldn't at all say that Yes cannot be Yes without Anderson. Anyway, the vocals of Trevor Horn (the one replacing Anderson) aren't too different from Anderson's iconic sound.

We have a large glimpse on this album of the technicality of the Yes members, as there are several technical riffs that are featured on the songs. The solos are exceptional, especially in the opening track Machine Messiah (which also features one of the heaviest and most metal-sounding riffs that Yes has ever produced). The songwriting is great, with plenty of catchy melodies and beautiful sections that Yes are known for.

This album is unique as it gives an indication of where the style Yes would end up going, while not completely employing the style. There are a few parts in Drama which feature the synth sound that everyone knows from the 80s. But the album is still very much true to Yes' traditional Symphonic Prog sound, just in a more conventional and accessible way.

The lyrics aren't amazing on this album, as one of the main lyricists of Yes (Jon Anderson) left the group. Still, they aren't dreadful enough to make you cringe.

The album is very consistent, with each particular track offering a slightly different sound than the rest. There are no obviously weak tracks; it's up to opinion really to decide which songs are the best. My personal favourites are Machine Messiah and Into the Lens.

The album has quite a happy sound, which is not different to mostly everything else that Yes has done, so there's no real surprises in the mood of the music.

I will sum up the album with a sentence that I used earlier: The album is still very much true to Yes' traditional Symphonic Prog sound, just in a more conventional and accessible way. 4/5

Drama, Yes's first album without Jon Anderson, is an interesting collection of music - not your standard Yes fare. However, my all time favorite Yes song is on this album. Go figure.

I also really love the fact that Chris Squire was able to sing lead for the first time on a Yes album, Does It Really Happen? He does well on it and I wish they gave him more lead opportunities. However, my absolute favorite Yes song (not an epic) is Tempus Fugit, which I would love to hear Anderson do a rendition of, but NO, he refuses to do anything off of that album. What a shame, as I think his vocals would be absolutely perfect on that song.

Other songs are pretty good - Machine Messiah and Into the Lens - but on the whole the album is a fairly lightweight fare for Yes. Though Howe, Squire, and White gel really well, Downs' keyboard work, in my opinion, leaves something to be desired, as does Horn's vocals. It's not that they are bad, they just don't fit in my opinion.

I rate this album at 2.5 stars, rounded to 3.

Absolutely the hardest and one of the most PROGRESSIVE albums in their catalog. Their playing has rarely been sharper or more focused. Simply put this album flat out ROCKS on every single track. Chris Squire's bass playing is completely front and center. I agree that he IS Yes. Alan White's drumming is so perfect and his feel is so right on the mark on every track you will be a convert into his temple. Geoff Downes' synths perfectly complement each song and literally push the song along without ever being overbearing.

I can't say enough about this album and am surprised about the tangential discussion about why Jon Anderson is or is not present on this recording. Holy cow man, just listen to the tunes on this album and you will be on your feet cheering.

Yes, it's that good.

Yes, I WILL give it 5 stars because I seriously feel this is an essential prog ROCK record that should be part of any fan's collection.

Yes, it's "more Yes" than most of Yes' output.

BOOM!

Yes were a different beast with the absence of Jon Anderson but they survived like any great band even without Jon's enigmatic presence. Trevor Horn may not be as accomplished and powerful as Jon but he certainly gives it his all on "Drama". The classy Chris Squire is here on pulsating bass, and then there is indispensable guitar virtuoso Steve Howe. Drummer Alan White is always wonderful and finally the keyboardist is Geoff Downes. The sound is markedly different with all these lineup changes and as a result it occasionally falls flat. There are still some incredible songs on the album that save it, notably the astonishing 'Machine Messiah', a 10 and a half minute romp with triumphant musicianship and infectious melodies. I first heard this on the brilliant compilation "Yes In A Word" and I have loved it ever since. The melodies and guitar motifs are dark and heavy with some colossal drumming patterns. The bass is perfect here and the harmonies are glorious. It is an outstanding track and definitely the main reason to get "Drama".

The other track on the comp from "Drama" is 'Tempus Fugit' and to be honest they are really the only masterful tracks on offer. Admittedly the album was better than I expected with the absence of the classic members Jon and Rick, so it was a delightful experience to hear this finally after all these years. I had put off getting this for all these reasons. The unknown seldom heard songs on this were the real concern for me so here we go; listening to 'new' Yes.

'White Car' is just a 1:21 running time of music sounding like some classical music fanfare. A genuine throwaway and feels more like a transition. 'Does It Really Happen?' has a fabulous bassline driving it, and I can enjoy the unusual time sig that seems to come in too soon. This one has a proggy rock beat and the vocals are very good, especially the harmonies.

'Into the Lens' is the one that sounds like The Buggles 'I am a Camera' and in fact is virtually the same. It is okay but is a product of the 80s, in the melodies and commercial sound. The instrumental break is excellent, especially Howe's guitar licks, and makes this a worthwhile track to indulge in. 'Run Through the Light' is one I had not heard anywhere but I enjoyed 'new' Yes as I have heard just about everything else Yes have done. The synths in the opening are nice, the reverberated vocals work well, and this is actually an endearing song. Howe has a field day on guitar and the keys are well executed. It is not the greatest song but this still held my interest.

'Tempus Fugit; I always loved from the compilation so it was great to hear this again. It has a really good keyboard soaked intro and such a massive bassline. The musicianship is A class on this track. So that is the original album out of the way and it is not even half as bad as I had heard it was by the Yes aficionados.

Other tracks on the deluxe version include Into The Lens (I am a camera) (single version), Run Through The Light (single version), Have We Really Got To Go Through This, Song No.4 (Satellite), Tempus Fugit (tracking session), White Car (tracking session). These are all decent songs though obvious outtakes and curios as most bonus tracks tend to be. No complaint as its always great t hear these rarities. However the next few songs are of more interest with the lineup of Jon Anderson, Chris Squire, Rick Wakeman, Alan White and Steve Howe. The songs include Dancing Through The Light, Golden Age, In The Tower, and Friend Of A Friend. Dancing Through The Light has a ton of keyboard plink plonks and some really terrible production on the vocals that repeat themselves ad infinitum. Golden Age is trumpeting keys and a pumping rhythm and again thin production on the vox, though it;s nice to hear Jon Anderson. In The Tower has a cool Wakeman opening, beautiful vocals of Anderson, but not very memorable. Friend Of A Friend is Anderson and a lot of squiggly keyboard on a straight 4/4 beat in the verses. Not a bad track but needs more oomph in the production as all these tracks do.

Overall "Drama" is actually a decent album, not brilliant by any standards, but nevertheless worth pursuing. It could have been better but this is proggier than some of the other Yes albums to follow. It is much better than "Big Generator", "Tormato" or "Union", and worth a listen to the deluxe version for sure.

'Drama" - Yes (51/100)

I hate Drama. I mean, I've just never been able to understand the praise around it. It's not even necessarily because Yes' longtime frontman Jon Anderson was in absentia for this one, though I suspect it may have something to do with it. Even if 'hate' might be a tad too strong of a word to describe my disdain towards their tenth album, it's been made clear to me many times that my view is a rare one, with some of Yes' fans going as far as to call it one of their brightest moments. Indeed, Drama may have corrected many of the issues suffered on the tumultuous Tormato and even spawned a pair of great tunes in the process, but so much of the magic I loved up to this point from Yes (Yes, even including Tormato) seems to be lost here. What we're left with is the semblance of a potentially great record; "Machine Messiah" and "Tempus Fugit" have rightfully gone down in history as two of Yes' better pieces, but everything in between falls miles short of expectations. For all of the things that the band does right on Drama, so much more gets lost along the way.

Especially in the months prior to the album's release, the band and fans were left with a question: could Yes exist without the immortal voice of Jon Anderson? The band had been through a number of lineup changes in the past, but so much of the band's atmosphere and personality came through in his voice, equal parts angelic, innocent and lively. Bringing in a little known New Wave pair called the Buggles (who enjoyed a bit of success with their 1980 debut The Age of Plastic) seems like a big risk to have taken, even now. Regardless, the replacement for Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman (Trevor Horn and Geoffrey Downes, respectively) made for a decent fit. Horn manages to fill the void left by Anderson well enough; his performance here falls short in virtually every respect when compared to Anderson, but he goes through the motions well enough and without a personality of his own, very much like a stand-in. I've never cared much for Rick Wakeman to begin with, so it's understandable I'd feel more warmly towards Geoff Downes' performance here, who takes a decidedly less egotistical approach than Wakeman did on albums past. It's a nice change of pace, and works well with the album's new style.

It's not the lineup changes or musicianship that's made Drama a failure in my eyes; it's ultimately the songwriting that kills it for me. After Tormato, it was clear there was no going back for Yes to the formula of the glory days. As if Yes were having a crisis of identity, Drama seems to split off down two roads, one echoing their sophisticated prog rock legacy, the other bowing to prevalent New Wave and AOR pop trends. Sure enough, it's the former approach ("Machine Messiah" and "Tempus Fugit") that hopes to save the album. The two tracks have been much talked about, and they always seem to be the pieces lovers of the album point to when attesting to its greatness. Sure enough, I cannot deny that both are great, and both better than anything heard on Tormato- an album I enjoyed more on the whole. "Machine Messiah" feels cinematic in its epic scope and atmosphere, introducing the album and new members on the best foot. I like "Tempus Fugit" even more, which- while not an epic in length- certainly rivals "Machine Messiah" in ambition and sophistication. Chris Squire's bass lines on "Tempus Fugit" are some of the most energetic he's ever played, and Trevor Horn's straight- laced vocal approach even seems to work here.

On the other hand, there are the other four tracks which take the other road, and it's in the area between the start and finish where Drama really suffers. Make no mistake, I have no problem with a more pop-oriented sound, and I even think it could have been great for Yes to turn their style on its side. The pitiful afterthought "White Car" sounds like it's the quirky theme song to a bad 90's shot-on-studio sitcom. "Does It Really Happen?" is sublimely dull, and "Run Through the Light" is equally so, depending almost entirely on melodies and soft, bland instrumentation to get their points across. Only "Into the Lens" feels engaging musically, and even then it's squandered by its sterile sense of style and weak lyrics (more on that later). As great as "Machine Messiah" and "Tempus Fugit" undoubtedly are, two hits and four misses doesn't add up to being a good album, much less a great one. I feel like the dull, kitschy 80's aesthetic they picked up here is a grim foreshadowing for generally weak career Yes would have as a pop act following 90125.

Although Jon Anderson's most shining contribution to Yes was his incredible and distinctive voice, on Drama I'm also left feeling the absence of his lyrics. Though I usually got the feeling Jon was a little too stuck in his own head when writing lyrics, his best stuff could never be criticized for lacking poetic depth or an interpretive nature. While most times it's easy to disregard mediocre lyric writing in the face of the music itself, the lyrics on Drama are so shallow and hokey that it becomes impossible to ignore them. "Run Through the Light" has a promising first verse, but the chorus resorts to heavy-handed rhymes that would make Dr. Seuss groan and choke: "Run through the light / everything is alright . . . run through the light of night." Even worse is "Into the Lens", where Trevor Horn proudly attests to his identity as a creator of photographs: "I am a camera, camera camera. I am a camera [ad nauseam]." One friend defended this stale cheese with the argument that it was all metaphorical. No doubt it is intended as such, but I'd almost prefer Yes to have been writing these lyrics literally. "Into the Lens" doesn't fare so well as a poetic reflection on memory, and would have undoubtedly been more enjoyable had it been about a lovesick sentient camera. Not surprisingly, "Machine Messiah" and "Tempus Fugit" are both spared from the worst of the lyrical nonsense, as both pieces get too involved in the instrumentation to get bogged down by the lyrics. Admittedly, lyrics are rarely a highlighted quality in progressive rock, but with so much of the album's style riding on vocal melodies, the lyrical weakness is impossible to ignore.

On a more positive note, the quality of recording and production here has been vastly improved from the compressed Tormato, and just might be the thickest and brightest-sounding package Yes ever had in their progressive rock period. Most likely due to the induction of the New-Wavey Buggles and their modern, concise approach to recording, Yes really sound like they were brought into the next decade on Drama; the basslines are thicker, the drums fuller-sounding, the guitars and vocals everclearer. At the end of the day, I still think I prefer the more organic or 'vintage' style of production heard in the band's classic repertoire, but the way they recorded Drama goes a long way to set it apart as a 'new' era for the band. As fans of the band should know, this so-called era wouldn't last a year before they finally broke up (regrouping the year after that with "90215"). For better or worse, in the context of the band's career and discography, Drama seems to exist in a transitory period all its own.

Rewind back two years before Drama to 1978: Tormato wasn't a great album; it had issues aplenty, including a faded chemistry amongst band members. By all means, it was the beginning of the end for Yes, but even then, there were plenty of interesting, surprising moments on the album; in a word, it felt spontaneous, wild even! Drama certainly solved many of the more objective issues its predecessor was faced with, but it's somehow resulted in an album that's far less consistently engaging and interesting than before. In smoothing out the rough areas, Yes have created something sterile, occasionally incredible but bland on the whole. I'm only left to wonder what sort of album Yes would have made had Wakeman and Anderson stayed with them for this one. "Machine Messiah" and "Tempus Fugit" aside, Yes' attempt to renovate themselves feels empty.

I love Drama; I think it's one of Yes's best efforts. The greatest controversy surrounding this album seems to be the absence of Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman. I think the rest of the band get along just fine without him, and I think Drama deserves 4 stars. I'll start with the newbies. I think Trevor Horn does just fine on this album. Granted, Jon Anderson 's voice is remarkable, and almost no one on Earth can sing like him. It seems apparent to me, at least, that Horn was hired because his voice bears a resemblance to Anderson's. However, Trevor Horn can sing. Yes definitely DOES NOT depend on Anderson. As for lyrics, Anderson's words, like those of most progressive rock bands, are fairly ridiculous. So, lyrics are not an issue here. Like my fellow reviewer Conor Fynes, I too think that Wakeman is overrated. Conor's review prompted me to listen to Drama again and post this review. I don't miss Wakeman; Geoff Downes does just fine. There isn't a bad song on Drama IMO. Like most fans, I love "Machine Messiah" and "Tempus Fugit". I also love the rhythms of "Does It Really Happen?", and "White Car" is a beautiful interlude. Howe and Squire continued writing great music without Anderson and Wakeman. I'm glad that Yes stopped recording songs that are 15 or 20 minutes long. I've never been able to sit through Tales of Topographic Oceans anyways. I'm glad that Yes changed things up with Drama. It's fully worthy of a 4 star rating.

"YES CANNOT BE YES WITHOUT JON ANDERSON!"

No. If you think that, you can just leave.

Jon Anderson, the main vocalist (and percussionist), left the band antecedent to the release of YES' 1978 release Tormato. This left many, MANY people stunned at this, and it was a collective idea that YES was finished. "After all," people said, "no one could replace the great vocalist who had been the soul head of the band during his age."

So after Anderson resigned, the producer of many previous YES albums, Trevor Horn, took his place as lead vocalist. The band, being under ever increasing stress to make a YES album for the ages had to fair without him.

And In my opinion, they did it. Although perhaps not as "progressive" as say Fragile or Close to the Edge, Horn took YES in a brief direction of progressive hard rock.

The album, starting out with the ten and a half minute epic 'Machine Messiah', comes in with very traditional - heavy metal edge. This song has been voted on boards across the internet as the heaviest YES song there is. The metal shouldn't scare you away from the aspect of the epic not being good old progressive rock. Having a ten minute recording, there has to be fluctuation from sound to sound in order to not bore the listener., and they do it very well. You'd have to listen to the track itself to know what I'm talking about. But TL;DR, this song is my favorite from the album. The album bridges with the slightly unnecessary 'White Car' into 'Into the Lens'. The latter is extremely reminiscent of RUSH's older material, and I think it would be enjoyed by anyone who likes them.

The album does retain, as I said before, fluctuations between prog rock and harder, RUSH-y rock. The prog is, however, undoubtedly YES. The tracks (although they are few), will keep you pretty interested throughout. It is true that Horn may not be able to hit some of the high notes that Anderson could, but to me, this is kind of a relief. High-pitched vocalists have always been a pet peeve of mine.

From a jazz point of view, you will not find much on here. This is less the old jazz-fusion-Anderson era and more, as said before, a progressive hard rock album. I would pick it up though for an interesting listen.

But overall, pick up the album. It is interesting, and important to any fans' YES collection.

Go give it a listen.

I can't believe I haven't reviewed this yet.

Okay, so all the Yes fans know that this is Yes without Jon Anderson. Is that even possible? Damn right it is. I am a huge Yes fan and love and appreciate all of their masterpieces. Yet it astounds me that most people don't consider this a masterpiece, even without Jon Anderson. Honestly, I hardly miss him in this album (though I do miss him now, big time, on the last two albums that were released....ugh!). Drama, however, is amazing and to me it always will be. The band was just as tight as ever, the music is still very progressive and inventive. It's true that a harder edge exists in various places, but that is okay because this album does not demean or insult anything about Yes that had been released earlier. That could not be said about "Tormato" and that was when Jon was still singing with the band. "Drama" was a return to excellence.

"Machine Messiah" is a hard track, with surprisingly loud guitar passages, but with enough inventiveness to let you know that this line-up meant business and they knew what they were doing. The other spotlighted track is "Into the Lens" which even despite it's repeated "I am a camera" lyrics is progressiveness at it's finest. All the tracks on this album are reminiscent of the Yes of the past, maybe slightly more accessible than "Close to the Edge" or "Relayer", but definitely more progressive than anything else in existence at the time.

I have heard this album millions of times and it never wears out for me. All of the best elements of Yes are still there, dynamics, excellent orchestration, challenging music, sound engineering, the best musicianship with driving and innovative bass, amazing percussion and keyboards, timeless music that doesn't sound dated in the least. If the band had decided on a different name, it wouldn't surprise me if this album would have received better reviews. But I listen to it and consider it 100% Yes and still consider it one of their best. I can accept the changes here because the music did not suffer from it, same thing with King Crimson with all of their changes. They progressed with the band line-up changes.

I can preach to you all day about why I love this incarnation of Yes just as much as previous line- ups, but everyone has their own taste in music, I understand that. But I can't deny that this is a masterpiece of progressive music and that I love it. If you are staying away from this album because of what others have said about the change in the band, I invite you to listen and try to forget about any prejudices you might have formed from other opinions. If it helps, try to think of it as another band. Either way, give it a fair shake. Listen to the many textures, the themes, the progressive elements and see if you agree. If not, then at least you tried. If you do like it, then we are both happy.

Always a masterpiece for me. 5 stars because it is deserving of it.

After 1978's disappointing Tormato, Yes convened once again to record a new album. After a failed attempt at recording the demos with new producer Roy Thomas Baker of Queen fame, Yes pulled the plug. Rick Wakeman and Jon Anderson, allies at this point, were feeling very dejected from the other members lack of enthusiasm for their new material. They both left the band leaving Steve Howe, Alan White and Chris Squire to find replacements. Really? A replacement for Jon Anderson? And for the beloved, charismatic Rick Wakeman?

Yes.

In a strange turn of events and due to Yes's unabashed attempt at relevancy into the new decade, they recruited Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes of the Buggles fresh off a successful album and a major international hit: "Video Killed The Radio Star."

As it turned out not too many fans were keen on Yes having a new singer and the album didn't have the hit the band or record company were looking for. The record wasn't a huge seller and the concerts had their ups and mostly downs. Enough of the semantics, how was the record?

Well since Geoff Downes and Trevor Horn were big Yes fans they went more into a progressive direction which suits this listener just fine and they produced a hell of a record. A record that possesses great progressive rock with immaculate production.

Machine Messiah - (10/10) Man I love this tune. What a way to start this new era. Starts with a heavy guitar that gives way to Downes modern (for the time but held up well) synths and Howe's guitar leads that never sounded so good. Alan Whites drums sound better than ever as does Squire's bass. But the vocals are what we've been waiting for. Not quite Anderson but similar and ultimately agreeable. Machine Messiah is an unheralded Yes classic.

Man In A White Car - (6/10) Not Much of a song here. Very Short. Great synth work though.

Does It Really Happen - (7/10) Very good tune. Not on the same level as Machine Messiah but continues the album in a positive way. Squire even has a little bass solo here at the end.

Into The Lens. - (8/10) Another great song here even if it is a little quirky and goofy with Trevor horn singing " I am a camera." The second half of this song really takes off and Howe's guitar is just incredible.

Run Through The Light - (7/10) Good tune. Trevor Horn on fretless bass and here we get the gated drum sound ala Peter Gabriel and latter day Genesis. Again Howe really augments this tune with his leads.

Tempus Fugit (9/10) The album ends with bang. A tremendous Squire bass line leads this one and here we get the "yes, yes" vocal line which will be heard during Squire's bass solos for years after this. Tempus Fugit is the best representation of the fusion of New Wave and Prog on the album and probably anywhere for that matter.

Drama is an anomaly in the Yes catalog being the first and only album in a long time to not feature Jon Anderson. The great production and the quality of the songs make it a Yes classic. Unfortunately the band breaks up after the Drama tour.

Chris Squire, Alan White and Trevor Horn would leave Yes soon after leaving Steve Howe and Geoff Downes as the remaining members. They would go on to recruit Carl Palmer and John Wetton. Instead of keeping the Yes name they would change it to Asia.

After the ho-hum response that divided YES fans on "Tormato," the pressures of being one of the biggest prog bands of the 70s had clearly taken its toll. The music was becoming more of a chore in keeping up with the current trends instead of making the music that inspired the band in the early 70s, so exit stage left both Jon Anderson AND Rick Wakeman (again). Ironically it was Anderson and Wakeman who were the most enthusiastic about making a new album after "Tormato" but when the creative juices failed to gel they split leaving the continuation of the band in question. I mean really. YES without Jon Anderson? Chris Squire, Steve Howe and Alan White were having none of the band breaking up business and set out to figure out a way to keep it going. The ushering in of the 80s couldn't have been more different than a mere ten years earlier when progressive rock was just beginning to blossom. By this time heavy metal, disco and pop were in and even country was having a comeback.

As the YES destiny would have it, the remaining YES members serendipitously were recording in an adjacent studio of The Buggles members Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes. The Buggles had become the cutting edge band in the new world of music of new wave and MTV and their famous track "Video Killed The Radio Star" was not only the very first video to ever appear on MTV but also hit #1 in the UK. Chris Squire happened to own their album, they all hit it off and the next thing everyone knew was a totally unforeseen new incarnation of YES. Ironically after two albums that eschewed the artistic album cover talents of Roger Dean, the new wave YES actually solicited his return to create an album cover for DRAMA, their 10th studio album. So Trevor Horn took up duties on vocals, a tall order indeed but despite not reaching the heights of the mighty Jon Anderson does a veritable mimicry that keeps the vocal ties to the past while allowing the music to go places no YES fan had ever anticipated.

Wow. What a trippy album this is. No, not trippy like whoa! this is so lysergic man! but trippy like whoa! this sounds like YES but it also sounds like lots of other things. This is one of those YES albums that really divides the fans. Some love it and some hate it. I happen to love it however i wholeheartedly concede that this does not come close to their streak of early 70s masterpieces which progressively rocked the world and changed the very fabric of space-time. This is different in every way. This is a one-shot exploration into a monstrous hybrid of old YES and contemporary influences with a healthy dose of 70s kickbacks as well. YES was humble in that it realized it needed to evolve into some new beast to be relevant. I totally admire this about them. For better or for worse, they were having none of the stuck-in-the-early-70s syndrome and found a new way to let their talents stand out.

The first track "Machine Messiah" actually reminds me of a slightly new wave version of Pink Floyd's "Welcome To The Machine." It has acoustic guitars and lyrics that totally bring that classic to mind, however Geoff Downes keyboards take it to a new level. A great way to start the album. After a 10:27 intro track the contrast slaps you in the face with the 1:21 "White Car," which is a strange little interlude of synth and vocals. "Does It Really Happen" has some classic Squire bass lines going on with some new wave guitar of Steve Howe. While Steve does his best to be modern on the guitar duties, it's actually his excellent lead guitar fills that keep this grounded to the classic YES sound since they are ever so unique and unequivocally YES sounding. This track has a "Blue Collar Man" feel from Styx on the keyboards. "Into The Lens" is another lengthy track that could rightfully qualify as progressive new wave. Nice bass line and staccato backups. For the longest time i only remembered this song under my own invented titled "I Am A Camera." Great instrumentation here and one of my favorite tracks on the album. "Run Through The Light" sounds to me like a Yes meets The Police track. Doesn't quite sound like Sting and company but very much drifts into their territory of the day. "Tempus Fugit" is a Latin phrase that means "time flies." My next favorite track. I love the bass line, the guitar and the lyrics which includes the band's name as an integral part of the chorus.

Another testament to the brilliant members of YES comes alive on DRAMA. While the album cover is a little weak compared to their others, i really dig the music on this one. I get an excellent musical enjoyment experience out of it but because of the fact that they are trying so hard to copy other sounds rather than creating them, it does not deserve the highest of honors that their earlier material does. DRAMA displays a band which was searching for new avenues in musical exploration and despite not taking the lead in coming up with new musical ideas, YES does an EXCELLENT interpretation of current trends while adding just enough classic touches to please the open-minded fan of their glory days. This may not be better than the output from 1970-74 but this is actually better than "Tormato" and almost anything that came out from the 90s on. In short, DRAMA is a delight that will please anyone who loves both YES at its progressive rock heyday and the better prog pop phase of the band.

Yes is one of my favorite bands. At their best the group is incomparable. At their worst, well, they're also incomparable. With that in mind, I held off exploring Drama for years because of two reasons: first, it came out in the '80's, at the tail end of what I consider to be band's weakest albums (Tormato), and second, it doesn't feature Anderson on vocals.

I am very very happy I finally decided listen to Drama. Not only are my assumptions wrong - it's actually one of the band's best albums. It is short, high-energy, precise, creative, and very artistic. There is more feeling and excitement on these all- too-brief 36 minutes of music that can be heard on the band's entire 90's catalog. Every song is a winner and probably belong on the Yes highlight reel. Considering it was made more than 30 years ago, it sounds very polished and modern. It's a great example of Yes blending melodic pop with their ambitious song structures and instrumentals. A lot of this is thanks to the keyboards of Downes, who fills the album with sound and yet somehow manages to feel understated and classy. This is a big change to most albums with Wakeman, whose overwhelming sound came across as comical and contrived.

Trevor Horn's vocals are outstanding. He sings in the same register as Anderson but with a somewhat more mellow feel. I love Anderson but feel that his presence isn't missed on this album. The lyrics may not be as wonderfully cryptic as the band's peak output, but they are still memorable.

Drama is probably one of the best prog albums of the '80's, at least by a "classic" prog-rock group, and definitely belongs in every Yes fans' library.

Songwriting: 4 - Instrumental Performances: 4 - Lyrics/Vocals: 4 - Style/Emotion/Replay: 5

In 1978, Yes embarked on a tour in support of their album, Tormato. Although the album was not well received, the tour was by all accounts Yes' best up to that point, in part because they performed almost every show "in the round." The tour was so successful that Yes decided to stretch it out another year, effectively celebrating their 10th anniversary as a band. After this tour, Yes went to Paris in late 1979, ostensibly to record a new album. The ensuing results, besides being musically very poor, nearly led to the breakup of the band; long story short, Rick Wakeman quit for the second time and Jon Anderson for the first. This could have been the end; but, not wanting to call off future engagements, the remaining three members (Steve Howe, Chris Squire, Alan White) soldiered on regardless and sought out replacements in short order.

The replacements they found for Jon and Rick were, respectively, Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes?yes, the songwriting and performing duo known as the Buggles, best known for their smash hit of '79, "Video Killed the Radio Star" (if memory serves, the very first video ever played on MTV). At the time, you couldn't necessarily think of more unlikely recruits into the Yes sound than a New Wave pop duo; then again, one of the strengths of Yes is that they have always been able to adapt with the times, to a certain point, and with differing results (more on that later). Hindsight being 20/20, the album they ended up making, Drama, was exactly the direction Yes needed to go in at this time. The band basically still sounds like themselves, but with a more modern and slightly darker sensibility.

We begin with "Machine Messiah," which in its first moments sounds rather like a Black Sabbath outtake. The main riff is one of Yes' heaviest ever?although played by Steve Howe's Gibson "The Les Paul," apparently Alan wrote this riff on the piano?and is developed in typical Yes-like fashion, somehow transitioning into the major-key strains of Part I. Yes, even though it's not displayed as such on the album cover, this piece is actually divided into three parts. Here, especially in Part I, one can hear signs of the burgeoning New Wave sound?punchy-sounding drums, guitars with plenty of slap echo and/or chorus effects, and of course that Yamaha CP70. Part II is the "ballad" section, still in the heavy metal mode; synth pads and acoustic guitar outline the title chorus. Horn (whose vocal timbre is actually very similar to that of Sting) sings in a lower vocal range than Anderson, as he does through most of the album, and while it's probably not what the hardcore fans are used to hearing, it makes sense for him and for this album. (It should be noted that Squire double-tracks the vocals and sings more harmony here than on any previous Yes album.) Part III is essentially a recap of themes displayed in the first 7 or so minutes of the piece?also offering the first instance of Horn trying to stretch into Anderson's vocal range (which would prove to be his downfall on tour). After a "reprise" of Part II, the piece ends on the introductory three-note riff, flanged out here and sounding almost like rumblings of doom into the fade-out. Due to its length and the fact that it is a suite, this was probably the best choice of a lead-off track for the album (so as not to completely alienate the fans).

"White Car" (aka "Man In a White Car") is essentially a Downes solo piece, with Trevor Horn singing a bit over it. Supposedly this song was written in reference to Gary Numan (he of the smash hit "Cars," who was said to have owned a white car himself at this time). The only thing I really have to say about it is that apparently, this may have been intended as a suite as well. During the Drama tour, Horn always introduced this song as the "Man in a White Car Suite"; Downes would then proceed to play variations on the tune for about five minutes. So maybe there is something else to this?

A funky, quasi-minimalist Chris Squire bass riff kicks off "Does It Really Happen," which ended up being the show opener throughout the Drama tour (after Britten's "Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra"). An 11-beat phrase and choppy ensemble figures (built on suspended chords) are the hallmarks of this groovy little number, along with the standard Jon-like lyrical ramblings. Even though the lyrics don't make too much sense (what else is new?), the actual tune is good enough that one can listen to it and have a good time anyway. BTW: The Rhino remaster has a hard entry on keyboards at around 5:08, where the vinyl LP had a fade-in at that section. I think the fade-in works a lot better.

"Into the Lens" is the opener for Side Two and starts off with almost the same feel as "Does It Really Happen"; only this time, Squire's bass riff is supported by White's quasi-military drum cadences, doubled by keyboards in 6/4. This is overall one of the more ambitious tunes on the album due to its contrasts of differing elements; the gentle strains of the 4/4 melody in B minor, and the 6/4 "I am a camera" sections in C minor; I believe that the "camera" portions were something that Horn and Downes had left over from the Buggles days. Although a bit heavy on lyrics, the tune is unexpectedly catchy; the impression I get is that it could have appeared as source music on a movie soundtrack of the time. (Assuming of course that Hollywood movie producers had an ear for this kind of music back then, or ever.)

"Run Through the Light" is a bit different in terms of instrumentation; Trevor Horn plays bass and Chris Squire plays piano (in addition to Downes' electric keyboards). Horn gets into the Anderson range again during the verses and, while this isn't so terrible by itself, remember that they were still playing the old stuff on tour?"Starship Trooper," "Yours is No Disgrace," "Parallels"?in other words, real throat-busters for the inexperienced, which may explain why this one was never played live. Not a big loss though, as this one was never really a favorite of mine in spite of Howe's high-end guitar theatrics (he even plays somewhat "bluesy" during the fade-out, which is unusual for him).

The closer, "Tempus Fugit," is understandably most fans' favorite from the album (including myself). An intriguing and unlikely mixture of New Wave, ska, reggae and (according to Squire) punk, this one is more upbeat than anything else on the album, and consequently the band sounds wholly inspired here, which is well communicated to the listener. Horn's rapid-fire lyrics add interest as does Downes' "yes, yes" vocoder in the breakdown sections (which may have led to some calling this Yes' "theme song"). The bass riff and guitar figures rank with the best stuff the band ever did, and Downes has some great moments when he outlines and expounds upon the ascending figures that crop up here and there. And how about that vocal build-up and climax at around 2:45? "From the moment you tell me?YES!!!!!" By far the best track here, and a great way to close out the album.

The bonus tracks on the Rhino remaster are the typical outtake stuff we've come to expect from these kinds of packages. The single edit of "Into the Lens" pretty much reflects my earlier comment about how this song could have worked on a movie soundtrack, while the single edit of "Run Through the Light" seems like a different mix altogether and makes more sense than the album version. "Go Through This," unreleased at the time but played nightly on tour, is presented here as an instrumental take; the full track would later be released on the 2005 triple-album retrospective The Word is Live. (The other "teaser" track from the Drama tour, "We Can Fly From Here," wound up as the focal point and title track of a Yes album released over 30 years later which also involved Horn and Downes.)

Following are a couple of "tracking session takes" for "Tempus Fugit" and "White Car." "Tempus" is nothing special, but this version of "White Car" adds lyrics to the intro section and once again plays out my theory about this piece being intended as a suite. Finally we have four outtakes from the "Paris Sessions" of 1979 (perhaps included here because they wouldn't fit on the Tormato remaster). The only tracks here to feature Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman, these tunes basically live up to their reputation of being horrendously bad and will definitely make you appreciate Tormato!

How does Drama stack up as a closer for Yes Mark I? Quite well, I would say. This album has definitely grown in stature over time, as Yes fans have acclimated themselves well to the "heavier" sound and the idea of a different lead singer for Yes besides Jon Anderson. Honestly, Trevor Horn isn't a bad vocalist, but his real strength would lie in record producing in the very near future (including a Big Hit for a revamped Yes three short years later). It's worth remembering, too, that the album was completed in just five weeks of 16-hour-a-day sessions?possibly under pressure from Atlantic to have a new record out in the first place?which may explain why the album, at 36 minutes, is relatively short compared to others.

Considering all that, Yes stepped up to the plate in a big way here and created a work that they are evidently proud of. I say that because at the time of this writing (2016), Yes are playing the entire album on tour for the first time ever, with Steve Howe, Alan White and Geoff Downes all part of the band's current line-up?and on at least one recent UK show, special guest Trevor Horn sang "Tempus Fugit" live with the band, for the first time since 1980. (Everything old is new again.) Definitely recommended if you want to hear how Yes deals with the burgeoning, although relatively short-lived, musical landscape of a new decade. 4 stars out of 5.

Not as bad as everybody told me

Forget the group You knew, this is a new band and on board we only have the semigod Chris Squire (just try to listen Tempus Fugit without drooling all over). New sounds on the keyboards thanks to our friend Geoff Downes.

This is a different CD, and surely You will miss the clear voice of You know who but this is not as bad as advertised, the songs had a way to your heart if You are listening closely but I am only giving three stars because I can't stand The "camera, camera" song. Too banal.

On the other hand, thanks God Marillion came along to save us all on those bleak years.

I'm a hardcore prog fan. I hardly listen to other kind of music. (New bands I like are "metal progers"). "Yes" is my favorite band ever. (the one I love most is called "The Beatles", but that's another story) I love long songs, polyrythms, polyphony and virtuous executions. My top Yes albums are "Close to the Edge", Fragile" and"Tales from topographic oceans" So . . . I don't like this one. Don't really hate it (I hate "Big generator" and "90125"). I can listen to "Machine Messiah", but after that I push "stop" key, and simply search for another kind of music. "White car", "Does it really happen?", "Into the lens" and even "Tempus fugit", can be part of an "Asia" album. Not bad music, but they said they were "Yes" and that's the problem. So, IMHO this is only for completionists.

Well it's the first time I post a review, but this is also a special album to review. First of all I must explain that i have all yes albums up to the Ladder (most of them on vinyl, as I am 50 years old) and I once travelled from Greece to Bulgaria to see my at that time most favourite band, so that makes my a Yes fan i suppose.

Now what makes this album so special? The fact that it is the album that ages better with time than any other they have made.

Don't get me wrong, I don't say that it is their best, but it is the one that stands the best way the test of time. It is in the same time classic, rock, modern and vintage. Nowadays, 36 years after listening to Yes, it is the album that I can listen to easier than any other album they ever made. And i enjoy all versions of Yes.

When it comes to the singer, even though it was Anderson's singing that was the first thing that attracted me to Yes (lies it was actually the album covers) today i find Horn's signing easier to listen to because it's more ... down to earth, and in general Drama is the most down to earth classic album they have made.

Actually I wish Horn would have shared lead vocals with Rabin and Squire in the three Rabin-era albums the same way Chicago were doing with their 3 main singers till the album Hot Streets in 1978. I believe that would have made Yes-West or Cinema or whatever they called it, a different and more exciting band. Didn't Deep Purple continue to be a great band when Coverdale and Hughes replaced the classic but monotonous vocals of Gillan?

And then would come Union and after that Anderson could join again the "classic" version of the band.

Just think about it, would that not be something? And Horn might even not have to tour with Yes if he was too busy with producing as Rabin and Squire could do his parts live..

Anyway that's what i would have liked to have happened, just felt like sharing my opinion with you guys.

Drama rating: 8.5/10

Before you listen to "Drama", it is important that you lower your expectations: this is a good album, but DO NOT expect a "Yes" album. There can't be "Yes" without Jon Anderson. For those who love "Yes" as much as I do, remember this when approaching this album.

Half the songs ("Machine Messiah", "Into the Lens", "Tempus Fugit") are great and are fun, but they're no masterpieces, with the possible exception of the first one (depending on your standarts). The others are entertaining at best - fortunately, those are exactly the shorter ones.

I want to make it clear that you are likely to enjoy this album even if, like me, you're mostly only moved by the very classics (you can say I'm a perfectionist). Just remember - if you're a "Yes" lover like me, then consider this album to be made by the band "Drama" and NOT "Yes". If you don't know "Yes" well enough yet, it is ESSENTIAL that you give their "golden era" (1969-1977 or 1971-1974, depending on the person you're asking) albums a listening through and through (I suggest starting with Close to the Edge, Fragile, and The Yes Album - that is, their albums in 1971-1972). Enjoy :)

Review Nº 76

"Drama" is the tenth studio album of Yes and was released in 1980. It's a unique and special album because it's the only studio album released by the group, until then, without their front man Jon Anderson. After "Tormato", while the group was working to release a new studio album, Anderson left the band due to creative and financial differences. Soon he was followed by Rick Wakeman who believed that Yes couldn't continue without the Anderson's voice. It seems that the really creative differences were because Steve Howe, Chris Squire and Alan White didn't like the music composed by Anderson for the band. They thought that it was very light and soft for the Yes' standards. So, some of these songs appear on the Anderson's second solo studio album "Song of Seven" released in 1980. The fourth last bonus tracks on my 2004 remastered and expanded CD version belong to these songs. It seems that they were right.

The remaining band's members, Howe, Squire and White, had to "carry the piano alone". While working in the studio, they met Geoff Downes and Trevor Horn of The Buggles, who worked in a next door studio. The duo had recently released their first studio album "The Age Of Plastic", and they were having great commercial success because of their single "Video Killed The Radio Star". As they were great fans of Yes, the duo was invited to participate in some sessions to help them on vocals and keyboards, and soon they were invited to join them as band's members.

After the previous collaboration, partially failed, with Hipgnosis, Yes invited again Roger Dean to design the art cover for the album. Moreover, they invited again Eddie Offord who had co-produced the band in the early 70's. Eddie was one of the most famous producers of the time. However, the major part of the production work was handled by Horn.

"Drama" has six tracks. The writing credits of the songs are assigned by all band's members. The first track "Machine Messiah" is the lengthiest track on the album and represents the return of the band to longer songs. The lyrics are similar to Yes' usual style despite they're made by Horn. Still being one of the hardest rocking songs of the band and has sometimes characteristics of hard rock and heavy metal, the song keeps intact the main features of the Yes' sound. In my humble opinion, this is the best track on the album. The second track "White Car" is the smallest track on the album and is also the shortest Yes' song ever. It's a nice song with interesting and good Horn's vocals. The third track "Does It Really Happen?" is a very good track and where we can see more the influences of the two new elements. On this track, the main thing we can hear is the fantastic dynamic bass line from Squire. The end of the song is absolutely wonderful. The fourth track "Into The Lens" was originally written by Downes and Horn, and one year later, it would be part of the new The Buggles' studio album "Adventures In Modern Recording" released in 1981. It was called "I Am A Camera". This is, for me, one of the highest points of the album. It's a song with fantastic individual works of all band's members and is, in my humble opinion, the perfect way to catch a pop song and turn it in a progressive song. The fifth track "Run Through The Light" is also a very good track and is another song where we can see more the influences of the two new elements. It has a more modern musical structure and is probably a clever way of making music in the 80's. The sixth track "Tempus Fugit" is, in my humble opinion, the second best track on the album and is probably the best well known of it. This is the other heavy and aggressive song of the album and it has also a fantastic and dynamic bass line from Squire, which is unmistakable and very unique in the progressive rock.

Conclusion: All we can say is that everything had pointed that "Drama" would be a huge failure. The previous album "Tormato" had partly failed, and so, there was much pressure on the new Yes' album. The exit of Anderson and Wakeman, left the group orphan of two of their most influential members. If the group could survive without Wakeman was obvious, but it seemed to be impossible survive without the Anderson's voice. Finally, the participation of the two new band's members, without great musical experience, mostly POP musicians that coming from the new wave musical movement, it seems to be an impossible thing that can goes well. However, I must say that the test was largely exceeded and that "Drama" doesn't become on a really true drama. In my humble opinion, "Drama" is the best studio album without the classic line up, and I dare even say that "Drama" is somehow a better album than "Fragile", because is a more collective effort and is more uniform and balanced than "Fragile" is. "Drama" has the different but beautiful voice of Horn and has also the new keyboard sound of Downes. Both brought a new sound to Yes. By the other hand, Howe, Squire and White demonstrated fully that Yes could survive without their front man Anderson. They turn it in an essential work of one of the best progressive bands. It represents also one of the best progressive albums of the 80's.

Prog is my Ferrari. Jem Godfrey (Frost*)

Mixed and Disappointing.

No band should remain ever the same, and Yes were always innovators, never sticking to the same formula, which is ideal. However, this album leaves a sour taste in the mouth, not (only) because of the change of singer, but because of the compositions. On the one hand, this album has some positive things going for it - a harder edge, new blood, and Eddie Offord back in the producer seat. There is some vitality here, particularly expressed on "Machine Messiah" and "Tempus Fugit", the two best tracks (the other decent-listenable track is "Into the Lens"). On the other hand, there is something missing. While one might be tempted to say it is simply Jon Anderson (and indeed, Trevor Horn's vocals leave a lot to be desired, even without comparing them to Jon), I think there is something else - one can feel that this album wasn't made for the right reasons - The truth is that the band were broke, and needed to cobble together an album and do a tour to pay back their debt. The songs, as a result, feel both lighter/fluffier (ie meaningless, with concocted lyrics) but also heavier (one can sense the baggage). While the latter adds an edge, it is not enough to make one want to listen to this multiple times. There just doesn't seem to be enough weight or musicality to the tunes. Even Tempus Fugit, which is great musically, is dumbed down by the lyrics. With only half the songs being listenable, and with even those overly light, I would not recommend this album except to true fans (or, those who like Yes but not Jon Anderson). I give this album 4.3 out of 10 on my 10-point scale, which translates to 2 PA stars.

It's true: Yes founder, leader, and lead vocalist Jon Anderson is missing from this album, and yes, he's been replaced by the guy who sang "Video Killed the Radio Star." And yes, they sold concert tickets to fans who didn't know Anderson and keyboardist Rick Wakeman were out of the band. And what emerged when this version of Yes broke up less than a year after they got together? Asia, a corporate, commercial entity which some prog fans view as emblematic of the worst decade of progressive rock - - the 1980s.

But it's also true that Drama dramatically reversed a downward spiral in the quality of Yes albums. Some cracks were evident in Going for the One, but with Tormato, the proverbial wheels came off. Since they didn't progress past the demo stage, it's entirely unfair to judge the next batch of songs - - those which would've been the follow-up to Tormato. (Some of these appear on the 2004 Rhino remaster of Drama.) But there's nary a hint in the "Paris" demos of anything that would've changed the trajectory of the band's material. I'm unaware of any proof of this, but it seems that this material was increasingly coming from Anderson, and to some degree Wakeman.

While both Wakeman and Anderson - - especially Anderson - - would contribute to high-quality Yes material after 1980 (I'm thinking "Mind Drive"), their departure necessarily meant a change in direction, and that change, via vocalist Trevor Horn, wound up impacting the band throughout the 1980s: it's largely due to Horn that 90125 (1983) became their best-selling album.

Anyway, back in 1980, Anderson and Wakeman might've doubted that Yes would survive without them. And while it did, replacing the two best-known members of the band with Horn and keyboardist Geoff Downes really only staved off the inevitable for long enough to complete the 1980 tour. That was apparently the most important task for the band; as I understand it, Yes (the band itself, including Anderson and possibly Wakeman) was in substantial debt at the time. So they rushed out a new album and went on tour.

Except on retrospective box sets where there's too much room to ignore it, Drama is generally not included on Yes "greatest hits" albums. To some extent, this makes sense; the single - - "Into the Lens (I Am a Camera)" - - flopped, and the album sold fewer copies than any Yes album in a decade. Plus, without Anderson's vocals, it is anomalous.

But it's also a very good album, more cohesive than Fragile, with a better sound than any Yes album at least since Tales from Topographic Oceans, and with much, much better arrangements than had been the norm. There's less keyboard virtuosity on display; indeed, Downes simply doesn't possess Wakeman's ability to create and play lead parts. But since he's sticking more to rhythmic and supporting parts, Downes's parts almost never conflict with those of guitarist Steve Howe - - which was a distinct problem on Tormato.

Drama is also the Yes album with the best rhythm-section playing in the entire catalogue (with Relayer a close second). Drummer Alan White and bassist Chris Squire are at the height of their individual powers, but are also in near-perfect synch throughout. Horn, an accomplished bassist himself, plays on one song.

Given the strength of the rhythm section, the relegation of the keyboards to more of a supporting role, and the increased in syncopation, it's not surprising that Drama is among the least melodic Yes albums, at least in terms of performance. But it's also true from a compositional standpoint; after all, melodies, countermelodies, and secondary melodies are the forte of both Anderson and Wakeman, and their replacements did not come with equally strong skills in this area. In any case, on Drama, more of the melody than usual is carried by Howe's inventive guitar parts, Squire's bass lines, and especially the harmony vocals with which Squire supports Horn.

Others have provided song-by-song analyses, and I doubt I really have much to add in that department.

I try to be conservative with five-star ratings, but what can I do in the face of such a great album? Drama isn't perfect, and isn't even the second or third best Yes album, so maybe I'm being too indulgent. Nonetheless, five stars. Highly recommended.

I love this site but never felt compelled to leave a review. I'm listening to Drama and was searching the web to see what people have said over the years. Interesting.

Yes, I was there when it came out and yes, I remember the backlash. This was head and shoulders better than their previous two outings. Me farting would have topped a lot of Tormato (I'm a king farter, really). The band is on fire and it's a nice rejoinder to those who were dismissing all the old dinosaur bands out of hand. The arrival of Geoff and Trevor has released the band from the constraints that were plaguing Yes. Steve and Chris are playing with an energy absent since at least Relayer, possibly longer.

The songs don't get bogged down in the excesses that a lot of prog bands couldn't shake in the transition period of the very late 70s, early 80s. Yes actually took note of and incorporated some of the leaner, tighter, less ornate approach of the day without betraying what they were.

For those that lamented the departure of Jon without listening critically all I can say it's your loss. Tempus Fugit is one of the greatest songs they ever recorded which means one of the greatest prog songs of all time. Machine Messiah and Into The Lens are both excellent.

I saw the Yes Drama tour and remember when the original Yes members left the stage to leave Downes and Horn alone to perform Video Killed The Radio Star and other Buggles hits that half the audience booed. I think those guys that booed didn't realize the history they were witnessing. OK Buggles aren't prog but don't forget that VKTRS was the first video every shown on MTV, signaling a new era in music. But, hey, this isn't some novelty album. Of the neo-symphonic Yes albums it's clearly the best, with homages to Relayer and hints of Progressive Metal yet to come. A bridge between the old and the new that future Yes albums failed to live up to. I think it's second only to Closer to The Edge as a studio album. Yes Album and Fragile are much better as parts of Yessongs. 90125 may have inspired more of the modern prog bands, but some of it's hardly even rock, let alone prog; I don't think I've made it through the whole album in 30+ years. Drama on the other hand stands up just fine and I listen to it on a regular basis. So why is to good? As Jon and Wakeman started to go wishy-washy and left the band, Steve Howe gets to play a major role in the album, and do some of his heaviest work on Machine Messiah, but it's still Yes through and through. If Dream Theater ever decide to do a Yes cover in their bootleg series then Drama is definitely the album for it. Heaven forbid but the Buggles hit I am Camera morphs into a modern prog classic as Into the Lens, with Relayeresque guitars and keyboards, but with lyrics that you can actually understand, plus a heavy dose of classic Squire's classic bass. White's drums are great throughout, and Downes and Horn are eye opening. What a shame this was just a one-off lineup. So it's Yes's forgotten album, but what a great record.

I love Yes and they are one of the truly great pioneers of the whole genre. I know, I'm not kicking any doors down by saying that but there are albums in their discography that are, rightly so, up for debate. The last album of the 70's ("Tormato") is decidedly one of those. The first one of the 80's is another. "Drama" is one of the underdogs of prog. A seemingly one-off event that sometimes gets treated in a less than amiable way. I am happy to say that most of the reviewers on PA seems to share my point of view.

The Yes of 1980 lacks both Jon Anderson and the maestro Rick Wakeman but boasts both Trevor Horne and Geoff Downes. By what might be surmised when listening to "Tormato" the steam seemed to have left the engine of the band and what remained was a more or less foul smelling puddle of only simmering liquid. Messieurs Downes and Horn seemed to gel perfectly with the three remaining members and obviously shared the same view on which path to take. The result is an invigorated and updated version of the mighty Yes. There is no denying this is Yes. A lot of the ingredients that made their albums so fantastic in the first place remains. Squires bass, Howes guitars and Whites drums. Enter new blood and the result is staggering.

It all begins with some of the heaviest pieces recorded by the band, "Machine Messiah". This is ten minutes of progressive bliss that gives homage to everything that came before but still sounds different and more in tune with the new decade. "Into the lens" is absolutely stunning in it's playful and bass heavy arrangement. Absolutely brilliant. As is the spacey "Run through the light" which offers us yet another of what ought to be a Yes classic. I love the vocal lines and the keyboards that adds such a sumptuous and scrumptious texture to the whole affair.

"Drama" falls very easily down the roadside and seems an anonymous affair and still it ranks, for me, as one of their best efforts. No, it might not be "Fragile" or "Close to the edge" but it is something else, which probably was needed in the light of everything. I love it. Hopefully you will too.

Year of transition, decade of opening so as not to remain in the prog which is dying!! A change of musicians and not the least, yes the voice is an instrument for me... and this album arises, like a hare behind a thicket, let's go!

1. Machine Messiah arrives all of a sudden with a rising intro, a heavy, hard, nasty sound, a racing synth, Yes is having a good time in the new decade; Jon... not him, you'd believe it, the other Jon will be even more in his tones, in short, we're not going to criticize the stupid fans who booed him on stage, such is life; but how good is this track, this break with synths, military drums and stereo choirs, I love it; an album where Steve shows his verve on the guitar, a great gentleman who makes the clear hours of Yes whatever the prolific fan can say, often maliciously and stupidly; good these spatial times make my speakers happy, that's the most important; this guitar arpeggio on the synth which squirts, from 6/5 in view of the completely eccentric notes of today, Machine or the musical quintessence; I love the end I put it back 2. White Car entr'acte pompous grandiloquence brilliant or how prog sound can also be summed up in less than 2 minutes, the time to get into the white car 3. Does It Really Happen? starts nervous again, it feels good, the decade will be prog metal without a doubt; Chris prints the rhythm helped by Alan who hits well; yes it took beautiful people to make good songs; Geoff's synth holds up with its spatial passages; Trevor is doing his best and I don't think it's bad at all, Rick and Jon gone but the Yes vehicle continues; orchestral, symphonic, grand, solemn, airy, sunny with just the right amount of energy; the outro or what's left of it to catch the air with Chris as a solo star; who said they had lost their soul? still a curmudgeon 4. Into the Lens...B-side the CD wasn't there yet; jerky intro to put Steve at the top of the bill, yes his guitar playing was awesome; break spleen yes there I thought it was Jon at first, like what... I am a camera that's it, it's on! Whoever saw the Buggles could tell themselves that they had made a planetary tube... the flea in the ear for the next owner and the return of Jon, that's another story; while waiting for that jerk prog sympho rock style with a jazzy touch that suits him well; Geoff's vocoder and Steve's steel guitar lead for a frenetic, buggles-esque track; marshmallow break yes right now it's BBQ and it goes well on the flames; 5. Run Through the Light Vangelis and arpeggio from there? quickly the air arrives and drowns everything; once again the importance of the voice amazed me; Geoff is more new-wave electro than symphonic but they understood that a Close wouldn't work anymore; they had crossed the light like the airy station wagon which takes your breath away; guaranteed sound effects with Asia pointing, I'm writing this, I'm not saying anything; this chopped Japanese tune turns out well; the most a title of less than 5 minutes which holds up and shows that we can with a few variations show the register without sinking into the duration, the end is too short anyway 6. Tempus Fugit ... yes the radio edit in my opinion; tube where everyone has their place, where the rhythm wants to speak, where Geoff shows that he is more than a substitute, just a very good keyboardist who floods the pieces with velvety notes; Chris equal to himself and Steve the project manager, in short Yes a dino

YES touched the heart by offering a new sound.

This album should have garnered more appeal from the Yes fans when the band toured the new songs, despite the handicap of losing their front man in Jon Anderson who most people identify with the sound of Yes. I'm really sorry they didn't because this line-up, unfortunately short lived, deserved more success.

A schism had developed in the recording studio between Wakeman and Anderson and Howe, White and Squire over the direction of the band. This led to Wakeman and Anderson walking out, necessitating quick replacements in Horn and Downes from the Buggles. The remaining members, with Horn and Downes were then constrained by the limited studio time they had left to lay down the tracks for the Drama album, producing a slightly shorter than normal album. The lack of success of Drama led to the inevitable decision to fold the band with Howe and Downes leaving to form Asia, while Chris Squire hung around until he and Jon Anderson reformed the band minus Rick Wakeman, taking the band in an altogether different direction again with Trevor Rabin.

I'm in solidarity with other prog reviewers who rate Drama higher than either Tormato or Going For The One. The decision to utilize the talents of Buggles duo Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes updates the sounding of Yes to a fresh new wave appeal. The departure of Jon Anderson has a downside. Horn doesn't have the upper register of Jon Anderson's voice (who has?) and the vocal harmonies with Chris Squire and Steve Howe don't work as well. However, the bonus with Geoff Downes keyboard playing is that we don't have Rick Wakeman's moog competing against Steve Howe's lead electric guitar. Thus, Howe plays with more energy and a much heavier feeling than on either of the two previous albums.

There are six songs on Drama, all except for Machine Messiah clocking under 10 minutes. The songs are tighter, strong lyrically and blend well together. Chris Squire does an astounding bass line on Tempus Fugit with Steve Howe's guitar ramping up and shooting lightning bolts of sound to the tune. Downes organ navigates the way through the guitars in the song as though Rick Wakeman never left the band and then Downes wraps it all up with synths at the end. Truly one of the great Yes songs. The opener, Machine Messiah almost qualifies in the epics stakes. It has a whiney moog start with heavy electric guitars introducing the main theme, then a drum roll leading into the next section of vocals and chorus. Organ intervenes in the middle as it slows, then the moog picks up with an interesting Chris Squire bass line and a very heavy Howe electric guitar before it slows again with acoustic guitar, mellotron and xylophone. It reprises the main guitar theme and chorus at the end. White car is a short Horn tune with an oriental feel which leads into the base line of the next song, a rhythmic Does It Really Happen? Into The Lens is another great song with more Squire bass and the use of vocoder from the keyboards of Geoff Downes. Howe's guitar doesn't miss out during the chorus of 'I am a camera'. Run Through The Light, has a bit of everything with atypical bass playing, mandolin, synths that go everywhere and a fuller sound from Steve Howe's electric guitars.

Because the recording sessions with the two new Buggles members were hurried, it would have been only fair if this Yes line-up had remained intact for at least one more album, with more time to record. There is so much potential in the Drama album

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Posted Sunday, June 7, 2020 | Review Permalink

Drama is Yes's first album without Jon Anderson, the main creative source and unmistakable seal of Yes sound with his unique vocal range. This event raised many doubts about the future of the band, considering that Rick Wakeman also left the group in the middle of the creative process of the album.

Despite this, you can find in Drama an album of an acceptable quality level. Trevor Horn, the singer of the hit single Video Killed The Radio Star of the Buggles who replace Anderson, and the multi-instrumentalist Geoff Downes on the keyboards, without reaching shine, do their job correctly.

Drama travels between the remains of the progressive, that the surviving trio (Squire, Howe and White) still contributed and the collaboration their new members of new wave and synth-pop orientation brought with them. That fusion gave the interesting Into the Lens and Run Through the Light and the brief and intense White Car. In these songs, Horn manages to get closer to the style of the most personal Anderson.

On the other hand, the dynamic Machine Massiah, of more than 10 minutes, while still having a firm and well-made guitar riffs is related to a heavier sound. It also has few to do with the usual material of Yes in songs of similar duration. Does Really It Happen? and Tempus Fugit, the remaining titles on the album, despite their efforts to maintain their progressive roots at all, give us clear signs of the sound that the band brought back to the eighties.

It is not the best example of the most genuine Yes, but on balance, Drama passes the exam.

Review #52

Jon ANDERSON and Rick WAKEMAN left YES so the band got these two new musicians that were the group THE BUGGLES, well-known for their song "Video killed the radio star" (a song that I'd rather listen to in THE PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA's version), so this new line-up created "Drama" and to be honest, even when I do not like THE BUGGLES what they did with YES was really good.

This album has a very RELAYER-TORMATO essence: great songs that go from soft passages to intense hard- rocky instrumental sections. In "Does it really happen?" Alan WHITE played something that I think was a xylophone and for a couple of seconds that gave the song a resemblance to PIERRE MOERLEN'S GONG. The guitar section in "Into the Lens" is very aggressive: it reminds me a lot of IQ (even when this album is older than IQ's debut album). "Machine Messiah" and "Tempus fugit" are also very strong and original compositions.

In sum, this album is very intense and experimental, highly recommended.

SONG RATING: Machine messiah, 4 White car, 3 Does it really happen? 4 Into the lens, 4 Run through the light, 4 Tempus fugit, 5

AVERAGE: 4

PERCENTAGE: 80

ALBUM RATING: 4 stars

The tenth studio album by YES, released in 1980 with a major change in the line up. This was the first YES album without Jon Anderson, while Rick Wakeman also decided to (again) leave the band. Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes took respectively the vocal and keyboards sections of the band. This marked a newer sound and music of YES, that was rather influenced by the new age ('The Buggles' influence) and hard rock.

I personally like the heavier rock feel in this album, which is pretty much driven by the heavier sound of Steve Howe guitar. Chris Squire's bass work is really great. Almost all tracks have fluid and melodic basslines. Geoff Downes keyboard and Alan White drum works are simpler but go very well with the album's tone. Trevor Horn vocal timbre is off course different, but I think his is what this rock album need it. So in short, this is not quite YES we knew. Perhaps 'Drama' is a real turning point of YES music towards more friendly arrangement and provide a new root for the next few albums to come, even with Jon Anderson returning to the line up.

As a highlight, the opening track 'Machine Messiah' is my favourite and I think should be among YES best songs. It shows the band's surviving capability in writing great composition. Steve Howe's into, and both first and second solos are killers, nicely melodic with strong rock feel. I think this is also his turning point to new style that he will make soon with 'Asia'. Geoff Downes keyboards bring a lot of timbres and can set the mood of each parts of the song. His solo and conversation with Chris Squire bass in the in the middle of the song is awesome. The adaptation from Widor's 'Symphony of Organ No.5' in the keyboard theme is really nice.

Other tracks are generally in upbeat tempo and with simpler arrangement. 'Tempus Fugit' and 'Does it Really Happen' have a complex bassline that shows Chris Squire dominance in the rhythm section. 'Into the Lens' is a vigorous track with complex rhythm. The song was written by Geoff Downes and Trevor Horn originally for The Buggles album. 'Run Through the Light' reminds me a bit to The Police's musical style, and perhaps one of the sign of prominent change in YES music.

This album is not very progressive, but there are good tracks that still representing virtuosity of the band. Too bad the tracks were barely performed live after Jon Anderson returning in the next album. The live album with YES performing tracks from 'Drama' was issued only since 2011 with Benoit David or Jon Davison as vocalist in the line up. Good album in the 80's rock scene, even not among YES' best work.

Review - #12 (Yes - Drama)

Drama is a perfect name that sums up the backstory surrounding this album. It is the tenth studio album by Yes, released in August of 1980. Both Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman had left due to their dissatisfaction with the direction the other members were taking the band. Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman would enter the sessions and write more material together than they had before, but the rest of the band felt the songs were too light and folk- oriented and started writing more aggressive and direct arrangements. This difference would ultimately cause band members to come to sessions late or not arrive at all. Following a break over Christmas, the band resumed sessions in London and tried to save the crumbling situation. However, despite their efforts both Anderson and Wakeman left in March of 1980. Without a singer or keyboardist, the band eventually decided to enroll the help of Trever Horn on vocals and Geoff Downes on keyboards. At first, this seems like a strange combination. Does recruiting two members of the pop-orientated group the Buggles into the progressive rock band Yes seem like a good idea? Despite preconceptions, this match up would ultimately create an iconic Yes album that would prove to be an album that continues to hold the test of time in their vast discography.

Drama opens with the masterpiece track of Machine Messiah which happens to be one of my favorite Yes songs to date. Cover artist Roger Dean even stated that "Machine Messiah" is one of his favorite Yes tracks, while Downes has said it is "the central track on the album, embodying the coming together of his and Horn's style with Howe, Squire and White." The song is divided into three parts and begins with an almost heavy metal guitar riff that sets the atmosphere of the entire song. Combining more conventional Yes choruses, heavy metal styling, and incredibly unique dark yet beautiful sections to make this song a true highlight within the Yes discography. The next track, White Car was reportedly recorded in only afternoon and is meant to imitate the sound of an orchestra. With the track only being around a minute, it is an inoffensive song that is nice addition when listening to the album, but it won't be a song you'll find yourself frequently revisiting by itself. Does It Really Happen is a song that originated in 1979 when both Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman were still in the band. You can actually hear it in its early stages as the song Everybody's Song on the deluxe edition of Tormato. Overall, it is a nice song that grooves throughout with impressive instrumental contributions coming from the entirety of the band. I also must mention the great instrumental at the end of the track right when you think it is over, I only wish it would have gone on for a little bit longer! But I guess if a track leaves you wanting more that's a good thing. However, similar to Tormato this marks a point in which the band seems to try to be more "radio-friendly". But nothing close to what they would do in their next album, 90125. If the band continued the direction Drama was going I would have been very pleased.

After flipping the metaphorical or real vinyl, you are introduced to the track Into the Lens. It was originally written by Horn and Downes before they joined Yes, but Squire liked it and convinced them to re-arrange it as a Yes track, which he did with Downes. I happen to enjoy most of this song, the only part that I am not the biggest fan of is the chorus itself. The constant repeating of "I am a Camera" can get cheesy and somewhat repetitive. Despite that criticism, I still find it to be a great track with a special mention to some of some great solos performed by Steve Howe. The next track, Run Through the Light has always had a soft spot for me and seems to be underappreciated by the majority of the Yes fanbase. I believe this is one of Trevor Horn's best vocal performances on the entire album, not to mention some truly great melodies. Despite it not being as necessarily prog as songs like Machine Messiah or the upcoming Tempus Fugit, it is still a great track on the album that I continue to find myself revisiting. Lastly, we have previously mentioned Tempus Fugit which seems to be the fan-favorite of the album. This song never seems to take a break or slow down, containing a great energy throughout. Speaking of great vocal performances, this is no exception. Chris Squire incorporates a truly excellent bass line continuing through the entire song.

Surprisingly, Yes were able to survive despite the departure of Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman. And not just barely, they did it with style! Drama is a excellent album that takes a new approach to Yes music with the new musicians present. Give it a chance, I'm sure any Yes fan or any fan of progressive rock in general will walk away from this album pleased. "You were keeping your best situation, an answer to Yes!"

Out of the fear of disliking an album without the great contribuitions of Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman, this record actually turned to be pretty good, with the downside of being very short and that this incarnation of the band only lasted for this album.

Geoff Downes replaces Rick Wakeman, and while he is a more minimal player, his playing is far better and more essential to the songs than anything in "Tormato" and Trevor Horn, whose voice at the start sounds just like an Anderson replacement, does a good singing job despite its lack of range, he is still a good singer for Yes. The other members still do a very good job, Steve Howe is not as flashy as he was but contributes more to the structure of the songs, and Chris Squire makes a damn good job singing backing vocals (just to retain the classic Yes sound) and playing at the same time, like in "Tempus Fugit".

The album showcases a consisted but varied tracklist, going from the somber "Machine Messiah" to the MTV like "Into The Lens" to the upbeat "Tempus Fugit". Though one may think that this album is going to be like the 80s prog transition like Yes later in "90125" or Genesis with "Abacab", this album is more of a bridge between prog 70s and new wave 80s, sounding very fresh, not old like the 70s but not to new like the 80s and it's trademark compressed sound.

This album is pretty solid and one of my favourite of them, definitely better than "Tormato" or even "Fragile", an excellent listen, Yes fan or not.

"Drama" is one of the most special albums in the Yes discography since it presented us with a unique and unrepeatable line-up.

The two members of The Buggles, Trevor Horn and Geoffrey Downes, went on bloc to Yes to create a unique album, which although it is somewhat irregular in its quality, it is interesting from beginning to end.

Downes's keyboards are much more pop oriented than those very classical of Rick Wakeman, and Trevor Horn's vocals, although he has a similar tone to Jon Anderson, when it comes to melodies is quite different. Both members help to create this very special atmosphere that 'Drama' has.

And of course, a special mention deserves the bass of Chris Squire, who was very inspired in this record, as well as the always brilliant Steve Howe.

Therefore, despite being far from the best works of the band and being clearly inferior to "Going for the One" and "Tormato", "Drama" manages to remain as a good Yes album, and a very special one within the large band's discography.

Best Tracks: Machine Messiah, Run Through the Light and Tempus Fugit.

My Rating: ***

Machine Messiah Wow. What a way to open up an album. Who would have thought that perhaps one of the best Yes songs of all time- and maybe even one of the best songs period- would have come from a non-Anderson Yes group. The drums on this track are phenomenally theatrical, the guitar playing is masterful, and the soundwalls created by the keyboards really adds a lot of depth to this song. A true masterpiece: 10/10

Man in a White Car Putting this song after Machine Messiah was a smart decision, as it isn't very good. Its lacking in the same dimensionality as Machine Messiah, and somehow the vocals just don't work for me on this track. Not very good, but it doesn't overstay its welcome: 5/10

Does it Really Happen? The first of my two guilty pleasure tracks on this album. I know this song isn't THAT good, but I just cant get enough of it. Perhaps its the guitar playing? A solid 8/10

Into the Lens The second guilty pleasure track on this album. God the lyrics are almost comical at points: "I am a camera, camera camera...". But, oh man, the guitar on this track is probably some of the best on any Yes song. The music overall is very good, and the vocals are as well, its just that the lyrics are... baffling. A solid 8/10

Run Through The Light Following up that pretty great one two punch of Does it Really Happen? and Into the Lens comes Run Through The Light. I am just going to say this: this song is pretty bad! Its riddled with loads of goofy licks and keyboard diddles, and it REAKS of the 80s. Its just a really bad attempt at a radio friendly pop song. This ended up being an excusable 4/10 for me

Tempest Fugit A really interesting song as it resembles more of the previous iterations of Yes (as if The Yes Album was played like Tormato). The music itself was very, very great and the vocals are back to being really strong. This was a terrific song to round out the album. There's something about Yes songs that have the word "yes" in the lyrics, they always seem to be really great songs. A solid 9/10

Overall Thoughts: A really solid album in the wake of Anderson's departure. Machine Messiah was a bonified masterpiece, and Tempest Fugit was a really great call back to prior Yes sounds. Does it Really Happen and Into the Lens, as flawed as they are, do a really terrific job at blending the 80s sounds they were bringing into the band as well as the prog of former years. Man in a White Car and Run Through The Light are a combined 6 minutes which is very forgivable considering how great the rest of the album was.

Weighted song average: 8.09/10, however, this could easily be an 8.5/10 if I cave in and gave Does it Really Happen? and Into the Lens both 9s.

A solid 8/10 in my books, could be a 9/10 depending on my mood.

I agree with almost everyone that Yes with Jon Anderson is the superior band. And Wakeman makes it even better. But there's still enough to latch onto here. This is a great effort from this band when they enter the 80's. It trumps 90125 and what followed by a lot.

Machine Messiah - This track has so many elements that make a great Yes epic. Squire, Howe and White are all on top of their game. The contributions from Downe and Horne are absolutely great too. This song is a journey and is one of the highlights of this album 9/10

Man in a White Care - Very short and rather forgettable 6/10

Does it Really Happen? - Quite catchy. Commercial almost. But the musical twists and turns are interesting and the playing is awesome 7.5/10

Into the Lens - "I am a camera" is a line that will not leave my mind anymore. Another catchy song with interesting elements and layers and a nice build-up and payoff. 8/10

Run Through the Light - It is a clear theme. This is another catchy song with brilliant instrumentation. 7.5/10

Tempus Fugit - This one reminds me of Rush and The Police. Who was first? The song is elevated by the playing. 7/10

I like this album. I hesitated between 3 and 4 stars. Between GOOD and EXCELLENT. In the end, I think 3 stars fit the bill for me. Good, it is.

Review #24!

Yes's Drama is definitely their most controversial LP. How could Yes be Yes without Jon Anderson (or Rick Wakeman, for that matter)?! Without these two core members, it surely couldn't be anything other than Maybe. Right? Yes. No. Wrong. I picked this album up at a local record store for seven dollars on vinyl, not even aware of the absence of Jon and Rick (shame on me), and on the drive home observed the line-up. I remember thinking 'who the hell is Trevor Horn?!' and reluctantly placing that needle on it. I was pleasantly surprised. Even without Anderson and Wakeman, this album refuses to disappoint. 'Machine Messiah', a three-part hard prog track, starts off the album. The perfect blend of experimental and commercial. Jon's voice is missed, but Squire and Horn sure did a good job of trying to hide it wasn't there. This is one of my top Yes tracks of all time. 'Man in a White Car', a one-and-a-half minute song, encapsulates the oncoming decade's musical style quite well for such a short track. I have no idea why it is in this album, but I do not mind its addition. 'Does it Really Happen' could fit nicely into '90125'. I'm glad it's in this album, though. This track is the perfect example of the expansion of Yes into a new sound that fit the current decade. There is an odd one-minute intro to 'Into the Lens', even though it is on the next side. And oh boy, 'Into the Lens'. Do not ask me why Yes decided to cover a song from the people who made 'Video Killed the Radio Star' (it was probably Horn's idea, the bastard). It is definitely better than the original, but I always found the chorus of this track dumb. 'I am a camera' is constantly repeated to the point where you'll wish for a guillotine to cut your head off with. This track is way too repetitive but has some great Squire bass. 'Run Through The Light' is one of the better tracks on this album, but is almost ruined by the vocals ('she-he-he-he-helter'). Fantastic bass, like in the previous track. The final track, 'Tempus Fugit', is as eighties as prog can get. This track is almost flawless. I don't like the robotic 'yes, yes', that's all. This is a great Yes album, paving the way for Yes and other prog bands, like prog-metal acts. And although I have some minor problems with this album, the pros outweigh the cons. Truly an essential addition to every prog music collection.

1980's Drama is a criminally underrated album, and I put at #3 in my personal ranking of Yes's studio output, behind only Close to the Edge and The Yes Album. The desire of Squire, Howe, and White to write and play heavier music is immediately evident. The opening riff of "Machine Messiah" sounds like it could have been written by Black Sabbath.

Along with the relative heaviness, Horn and Downes brought some necessary levity to the band. "Does It Really Happen?" features some new wave-inflected verses and guitar lines, as well as a killer bass solo over some very 1980s synthesizers. "Into the Lens" is another fantastic synthesis of this hybrid group's influences and styles, with piano-heavy verses and dark yet soaring choruses. Even the relative awkwardness of "Run through the Light" can't drag this album down, though it is the one point that ever threatens its standing in my ranking.

The closing "Tempus Fugit" is one of Yes's best non-suites. Played at a blistering pace with harmonized vocals and more new-wave-tinged guitar during the verses, this song highlights all the strengths of this version of the band. There's plenty of speedy, technical soloing from both Howe and Downes, and Squire's bass thunders beneath it all.

Review originally posted here: theeliteextremophile.com/2019/03/24/deep-dive-yes/

Drama alright...... Without Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman this is barely a true Yes album. Over the years this album has gone up in many fans and critics estimations and is now considered a stone cold Classic by some. For me though it somehow sounds like a facsimile of the real thing especially with Trevor Horns vocals similar to Anderson's.It is well produced, well played, quite heavy in places especially on the opening track and does not suffer from the production woes of Tormato. But ultimately for me this is just one of those albums I neither dislike nor like all that much.

3 stars

Can Yes be Yes without Jon Anderson or Rick Wakeman? Well, this album proves it not only can be but "it really happens to" be! To be fair, the band had already lost Wakeman after "Topigraphical Oceans" and Patrick Moraz stepped in and did very well on "Relayer." Yes, Rick is awesome but he can be rivaled by many other excellent keyboardists. Being from the 70's prog times, I had been a little strained when I first heard Tormato, the album that came before this one. Over the years that album has really grown on me. Relations in the band were suffering during that time and only got worse for the next sessions. With Howe, Squire and White wanting some more aggressive songs and Jon and Rick had been moving in a more soft and folksy direction which created a split which eventually meant that the latter 2 split with the band.

Yes had never gone without Anderson and his voice is iconic with the band. In came the Buggles ("Video Killed The Radio Star"). WTH!? At the time of the release of Drama I did not have any idea that Trevor Horn & Geoff Downes were from that band. I am not sure I had even heard that song by that point. I think I only did when they first fired up MTV a short few years later and that music video was the first one ever played on MTV.

I do remember hearing this album after it came out and being impressed with the vocals which are not always spot on with Anderson's but Trevor does a great job on "Run Through The Light" and one cannot tell it isn't Anderson (Eh, eh, eh, eh eh!). That is not my favorite song on the record but it is still very Yesworthy. "Machine Messiah" is amazing and its changes and movements are as Yes as anything. Horn and Downes brought their songwriting into the fold and the result is great. Drama has grown to be one of my favorite Yes albums.

Howe's guitar work is astounding and one can really tell its complexities over a pair of good headphones. Squire's basswork is amazing as usual all the way through as well as White's drumming. I really have no complaints about the album other than in just a few places it seems to drag on a bit. "Into The Lens" is one track where I like it a lot but it repeats itself a bit too much. The Buggles did a similar track "I Am A Camera" on their next album. The song was written by them and rearranged for Yes.

It would be much later that I would sit down and with an open mind listen to the Buggles first album "The Age Of Plastic" and I experienced the genre of progressive pop. The first song "Living In The Plastic Age" is rather progressive and actually doesn't sound all that bad. Downes is a great keyboardist in his own right and it is obvious here. We can hear some Wakeman tendencies but he also has his own signature on it using the Fairlight unit.

The 1980 world tour went real well in North America but in England some fans were booing the 2 new guys who obviously were in love with Jon and Rick to the point they could not just hear the music. I think it is a shame that this lineup called it quits after one album. This album beats "90125" or "Big Generator" hands down as a Yes album. I like it better than "Topigraphical Oceans" or "Going For The One". It is a worthy prog album.