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GOING FOR THE ONE

Yes

Symphonic Prog


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Yes Going for the One album cover
4.06 | 2362 ratings | 190 reviews | 36% 5 stars

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Studio Album, released in 1977

Songs / Tracks Listing

1. Going for the One (5:30)
2. Turn of the Century (7:58)
3. Parallels (5:52)
4. Wonderous Stories (3:45)
5. Awaken (15:38)

Total Time 38:43

Bonus tracks on Elektra remaster (2003):
6. Montreux's Theme (2:38)
7. Vevey (revisited) (4:46)
8. Amazing Grace (2:36)
9. Going for the One (rehearsal) (5:10) *
10. Parallels (rehearsal) (6:21) *
11. Turn of the Century (rehearsal) (6:58) *
12. Eastern Numbers (early version of "Awaken") (12:16) *

* Previously unreleased

Line-up / Musicians

- Jon Anderson / lead vocals, guitar (6,12), harp (5,7)
- Steve Howe / acoustic (2,5), electric & pedal steel (1,5) guitars, Portuguese 12-string guitar (3,4,10), backing vocals
- Rick Wakeman / piano, Mellotron (2,4,5), Minimoog, Polymoog (3,4,10), St. Martin's church pipe organ (3,5,7), choral arrangements (5)
- Chris Squire / fretless and 4-, 6- & 8-string basses, backing vocals
- Alan White / drums & percussion, tuned percussion (2,5,12)

With:
- Richard Williams Singers / female chorus (5)
- Ars Laeta of Lausanne / chorus recorded at Eglise des Planches, Montreux (5)

Releases information

Artwork: George Hardie (Hipgnosis) with Roger Dean (logo)

LP Atlantic - K50379 (1977, UK)
LP Atlantic - TP19106 (1977, US)

CD Atlantic ‎- 250 397 (1988, Europe)
CD Atlantic - 7567-82670-2 (1994, Europe) Remastered by George Marino @ Sterling Sound
CD Elektra - R2 73793 (2003, US) Remastered by Bill Inglot and Dan Hersch w/ 7 bonus tracks

Thanks to ProgLucky for the addition
and to projeKct for the last updates
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YES Going for the One ratings distribution


4.06
(2362 ratings)
Essential: a masterpiece of progressive rock music(36%)
36%
Excellent addition to any prog rock music collection(43%)
43%
Good, but non-essential (18%)
18%
Collectors/fans only (3%)
3%
Poor. Only for completionists (1%)
1%

YES Going for the One reviews


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Collaborators/Experts Reviews

Review by corbet
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars The great thing about Yes is that each of their classic releases is bound to be your favorite at one point or another. Going For The One sneaks in on the tail of their most daring and challenging albums only to reveal itself as a spotless, shimmering gem. Following the more instrumentally leaning Relayer, this album abounds with shining vocals and gorgeously spaced-out harmonies, amidst some of the band's most breathtaking atmospheres of gentle beauty ("Turn Of The Century") as well as the requisite guitar-laced madness ("Parallels"). The real kicker, though, is "Awaken", which is the most tapped-in, trance-inducing music Yes ever made, and which despite all odds is unquestionably on par with the scary heights of the previous two albums. The band sounds positively possessed as they rip through one of their finest vocal and instrumental deliveries, and I couldn't imagine a more intense 15 musical minutes. With all this, Going For The One is one of Yes' true best albums, and should never be overlooked in favor of the standard fare -- and oh, Rick is back? If that matters to you, all the more reason to be excited.
Review by Sean Trane
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Prog Folk
3 stars Not reaching for anything

The return of the son of the ghost of Wakeman in an album that strikes immediately with its very different Hipgnosis triple gatefold artwork sleeve, even if many insecure male teenagers (and older progheads) loathed (and still loathe) Anderson's naked buttocks, forgetting the impressive rest of the sleeve. Actually the inner gatefold is just as cool, a shot of the Lake Leman (Geneva). Recorded on that Swiss lakeshore, but strangely enough, their Swiss team-mate had flown the coop.

When younger, I actually found many qualities to GFTO, even if I always disliked that wanker tune Wonderous Stories, but I did quite like the title track back then. But today I find Jon's voice and Steve's guitar parts insufferably painful to my eardrums and my brain lobes. The only track outside the awesome Awaken epic that I can still appreciate (dare I say stand?) a bit on the present album is Turn of The Century, even if it is hardly flawless or riveting you to your seat. Sooooo, I mostly find myself patiently (painfully?) waiting for the closing track as the rest bores me , but what a track Awaken makes. My fave track in almost two decades to come and their last excellent "epic" until the Mind Drive track on Keys to Ascension 2. The middle part with the delicate bells is simply stunning as Wakeman sends in church organ lines that drives shivers down my spine. The rest of the album just fades away in my memory, so that says it all.

I find that this album is all too often highly rated by the fans (despite its buttocks artwork), but personally I beg to differ, finding the triple gatefold rather nice, but its contents very average outside the splendid Awaken. Soooooo, by some kind of miracle, I still have my vinyl copy, but I don't think I'll ever upgrade it either

Review by Marc Baum
PROG REVIEWER
5 stars "Close To The Edge", "Fragile" or "Tales From Topographic Oceans" were better records, but "Going For The One" includes the best song of Yes ever recorded, and that's "Awaken"! A superb and brilliant masterpiece with great keys of Rick Wakeman and the angel-voice of Jon Anderson made this one to something very special. Only for "Awaken" I must give a 'Highly Recommended' ! But all other songs are also very good, as ever on an Yes-album of the 70's !
Review by lor68
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars Almost perfect, except on a few spare weak moments, regarding of the splendid "Awaken" (great job by Rick WAKEMAN at the Cathedral Organ!!), perhaps the best one, along with the creative title track ... but also the ballad "Wonderous stories"; instead "Turn of the Century" is a bit tired in some circumstances. It never minds, this melodic work by YES is essential, especially within their important discography.
Review by greenback
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
4 stars Rick WAKEMAN comes back here! "Going for the One" is the first YES album made of more modern keyboards: the result is fantastic! The sound is really echoed and refined. There are many floating moments. Some tracks are OUTSTANDING, like "Awaken", "Wonderous Stories" and "Turn of the Century". Unfortunately, the 2 remaining tracks, "Going for the One" and "Parallel", are less good: they are more basically rythmic, having a serious lack of progressive elements, and the vocals arrangements do not pass the test: those tracks are not catchy enough.

"Awaken" is the main reason to like this record: a long, complex & progressive track, full of excellent keyboards, like WAKEMAN's famous church organ. Wonderous stories is short, but how catchy and addictive! "Turn of the Century" is absolutely OUTSTANDING, full of crystal clear lead vocals, melodic acoustic guitars and ethereal floating keyboards: delightful!

My rating: 4.5/5

Review by daveconn
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars Following a hiatus during which every member of the band released solo records, YES regrouped with keyboardist RICK WAKEMAN and released the fan favorite, "Going For The One". Although noisy at times, the record is a return to writing magical prog rock that mixes the members' individual contributions to best effect. The album featured two singles, the enthusiastic title track showcasing the uncontainable STEVE HOVE and "Wonderous Stories", an acoustic song that recalls JON ANDERSON's Olias of Sunhillow. Although both "Tales From Topographic Oceans" and "Relayer"had their moments, "Going For The One" consistently recalls the magic and majesty of their best work. The epic "Awaken", for example, belongs on a par with "Fragile"'s "South of the Sky", while "Wonderous Stories" hits the same high points as "And You and I." The record is hampered by chaotic production, notably burying RICK WAKEMAN's contributions on the opening ""Going For The One"", but it benefits from a brilliance of sound aided by ALAN WHITE, whose percussion on the spellbinding "Turn of the Century" is indicative of his lighter touch this time around. And for those who question the paternity of "Drama", CHRIS SQUIRE's "Parallels" serves as a clear precedent.

While "Going For The One" is a return to form in many ways, it also marks a shift from multi- part epics toward more concise, punchy progressive rock. Subsequent albums would contain individual moments of magic, but none would again match this mix of great music and deep mysticism.

Review by richardh
PROG REVIEWER
5 stars Moraz out and Wakeman back in and so the Yes saga trundles on. This represents the last great high that Yes achieved.Five well crafted peices with the jewel 'Awaken' most foremost.Everything you could ever want in a prog track is here.Ethereal and haunting lyrics.Powerfull playing from White and Squire that drives the music into hyper space while Howe and Wakeman do their virtuoso 'thing'.No bad tracks.5 stars easy peasy!
Review by Easy Livin
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator / Retired Admin
4 stars "So I'm thinking should I go and write a punch line? But they're so hard to find in my cosmic mind"

One of Wakeman's many returns to the fold produced this excellent collection of wondrous Yes tracks.

The music throughout is beefy with an almost Phil Spector type wall of sound on "Going for the one" and "Parallels". The title track was something of a change for Yes, being overtly commercial (perhaps with the singles market in mind), and bearing a fine repetitive hook. "Parallels" is a heavy organ driven number, with echoes of Vanilla Fudge or even Uriah Heep. It is interesting to hear on the extended remastered CD, how this track developed from Chris Squire's apparently tuneless demo, to the full blown masterpiece on the album.

There's also a greater than usual leaning towards softer acoustic sounds with "Turn of the century" and "Wonderous stories" basking the listener in washes of smooth, at times almost folk like music. Once again, these tracks are more commercial than much of Yes' pervious work, reflecting the atmosphere of the period and record companies demands for product which was likely to appeal to a wider audience.

The masterpiece track is "Awaken", a very appropriate title in many ways as it's been something of a sleeper over the years. The song has only in comparatively recent times received due recognition as one of Yes' finest ever pieces. Wakeman is very much to the fore on this track, not so much in the form of overt soloing, more in creating an atmosphere upon which the rest of the band build intertwining layers. The piece moves from fragile beauty through eloquent, at times almost ambient, phases to awesome majestic power. The final climb to the crescendo is quite overwhelming, and when played live invariably causes the audience to rise as one, as if uplifted from their seats by an unseen power, before being gently lowered back to earth by the ethereal ending.

"Going for the One" represented a major step forward for Yes, as they developed a more mature yet accessible sound, while retaining their ability to compose "classical" music.

Review by Ivan_Melgar_M
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
3 stars I remember the expectation I had when my parents went to USA in 1977, they were going to bring me the first Yes album released since I was a prog fan and with the extra bonus of the return of Rick Wakeman, one of my idols. I spent the next two weeks counting the hours to receive my LP, until the "D" day came.

After a first listen I was absolutely disappointed (that's why I call it the "D" day), it sounded too light, the keyboards weren't as powerful as the ones Rick used in the previous albums but even worst Jon's voice was more acute and annoying than ever...... not even a Roger Dean's art cover. The result was that I hated "Going for the One" for the next 26 years, even when I gave the album a few more listens, my opinion wouldn't change until this year.

A few weeks ago and only to complete the upgrade of my Yes collection, bought the CD. Sincerely I don't love it yet (and I'm sure will never be among my favorites), but it sounds much more better than two decades ago, especially when compared with 90125 or Big Generator.

Still sounds as a light version of Yes but must accept some songs are pretty interesting even though IMHO it has a only one masterpiece and another very good track mixed with one cute tune, a mediocre rock song and a hit single.

The album starts with the title song which sounds as an attempt of the members to begin the album with a powerful song, but I don't believe they achieved what they pretended. It's true that Going for the One has many changes and strong guitar by Steve but that isn't enough to make a great track, lacks of the magic Yes had in their previous albums and the keyboards sound terrible. Only a mediocre rock track with almost no trace of Progressive Rock.

"Turn of the Century" is a pretty ballad ideal for Steve's acoustic guitar and Jon's voice, it's precisely the cute song I mentioned before but nothing more, 8.58 minutes is too much ends boring me after the fourth minute or so, the middle section keyboards and piano are pretty decent, much better than in the previous track, but again not enough.

"Parallels" is the first song that reminds me of the earlier Yes, Rick sounds almost as good as he used to and the guitar has that classic sound that was one of Yes trademarks. Also important to mention that before this track Chris Squire's bass was almost unnoticed as if he was in the lineup only to make his classic backing vocals. At last a very good song.

"Wonderous Stories" is another cute ballad, if you compare Yes Career with Genesis, this track would be the "Your Own Special Way" inside Going for the one, their first real hit single since Roundabout (without the class of the first one) but absolutely nothing else, Rick keyboards sound cheesier than ever and Jon's voice is too sweat for my taste.

The band reserved the best track to close the album (just before the listener falls asleep), comes a 15 minutes epic that deserves to be in a better album, at last Chris shows us what he's capable of, Jon doesn't sound too acute, percussion is precise, Steve is really great and Rick sounds very close to what he did in Criminal Record (well, both were released the same year). The middle section is simply perfect after the almost Baroque keyboards, Jon's voice melts gently, extremely beautiful touch with the soft bells and the spectacular keyboards solo. By large the best of the album and probably the last masterpiece Yes ever released.

How can I rate this album if I really love Awaken and find Parallels very good, but the rest of the album works as a sleeping pill? Well I'll have to give "Going for the One" three stars because the only essential track is the 15 minutes epic but if it wasn't for Awaken, I wouldn't rate this album with more than one star.

Review by Guillermo
PROG REVIEWER
5 stars "Yes" and "Fragile" were the first albums that I have listened from Yes in the early seventies. Their first album was briefly in my house because it was lent by some friend to one of my brothers. "Fragile" was played almost endlessly by my brothers, so I was tired of it. But in 1976 I heard "Relayer" which was better than "Fragile", and in late 1977 I heard "Going for the One", which I bought in 1978. I took me some years to really like "Going for the One" but in the end it became my favourite Yes`album. So, I consider it Yes`best album, the peak of their work. The song "Going for the one" has very good keyboards by Rick Wakeman. Chris Squire and Alan White play the structure of the song, while Steve Howe and Rick Wakeman play melodies. "Turn of the Century" has a very complicated acoustic guitar part (which a bit of it can be seen in the video "Yesyears" while Steve Howe was playing it in the studio). Rick Wakeman`s keyboards in this song make atmospheres, with also a very good piano arrangement. Alan White plays tuned percussion, which also contributed to the atmospheres with the keyboards. "Parallels" has a very good bass part played along with the drums like a metronome. Howe plays two lead guitars in this song. Wakeman plays a Church organ, even doing a solo in this instrument."Wonderous Stories" has fantasy,created by the keyboards and the vachalia and the percussion instruments."Awaken" is Yes` best song, in my opinion. Again, great atmospheres, very good keyboards by Wakeman, powerful drums and percussion by White, powerful bass by Squire, inspired guitars by Howe, and very good lead vocals and harp by Anderson. I really like the recording and mixing of this album,which I better heard in the remastered version from 1994. The new remastering with bonus tracks should be better (I still don`t have it).

Update (August 27th, 2007): I finally bought the Rhino Remastered version of the album which includes the Bonus Tracks. I can say that this is the best version of this album released on CD, mostly for the quality of the sound of the tracks and also for the booklet design and new booklet notes written by Tim Jones. From the Bonus Tracks, the best are "Vevey (Revisited)" (which is not the same as the tracks released with the same name in the "Yesyears" Box Set, as the new booklet notes say), "Montreux Theme" (previously released in "Yesyears"), "Amazing Grace" (also previously released in "Yesyears") and "Eastern Number (Early Version of "Awaken"). The other bonus tracks are not so good, being rehearsals of the songs "Going for the One" (played only by Howe, White and Squire), "Parallels" (without the Church Organ parts and arranged in a different way and mostly sung by Squire) and "Turn of the Century" (also played with a different arrangement, with electric guitar, drums, bass and a bit of keyboards). In all the rehearsals tracks and in "Eastern Nurmbers" Anderson and Squire sound like still to be looking for the right lyrics for the songs. I think that The Beatles`"Anthology " CDs started this new trend to release rehearsals tracks and alternate versions of songs on albums, so other bands are doing the same since then.The rehearsals tracks are important only to hear how a song was developed and arranged in the studio, but they are nothing more than that, in my opinion.

Review by Chris S
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
5 stars Quite simply Going For The One marked the pinnacle for Yes. This is without doubt their finest 45 minutes. Following hard on the heels of the richly woven Relayer album, Wakeman returned for this masterpiece which was recorded in Montreaux, Switzerland. There is not a dull moment on GFTO. The balance between hard rock and mellow numbers as in ' Wondrous Stories' is perfect. ' Turn Of The Century' is one of the most nostalgic pieces ever written by Yes and ' Awaken' still evokes the finest of progressive rock and more. It was never going to be the same after this release and to prove it no future albums could match it. There were some great follow up albums but this 1977 classic will astound for many more centuries to come.Bow to the masters!!
Review by erik neuteboom
PROG REVIEWER
5 stars When the music press announced that Rick WAKEMAN returned to YES in '76, I was delighted, what a pleasant surprise! 'Could YES handle the very high expectations?' was the ultimate question in those days. Well, very positive!! That was the clear answer after the release of the new album "Going For The One" in '77 and my keyboard hero WAKEMAN, 'the caped crusader', sounded as reborn. His play was so sparkling, varied and inspired on his Grand piano (great intro on the 'magnum opus' "Awaken"), Minimoogs, Hammond organ and the Swiss church organ in the bombastic "Parallels". Mighty close to WAKEMAN's 'number one role' on this album came Steve HOWE with his exciting steel guitar play on the title track, the beautiful and warm acoustic guitars on "Turn Of The Century" and "Wonderous Stories" and all those moving and compelling runs on his wide range of electric guitars in "Parallels" and "Awaken" (the best track since "Close To The Edge"). The rhythm-section Chris SQUIRE and Alan WHITE was superb and singer Jon ANDERSON his contribution reached a very high level though his high-pitched vocals didn't please everybody. I'm eagerly waiting for a DVD release from the "Going For The One tour" so I can enjoy Chris SQUIRE with his amazing triple-neck, Steve HOWE with his 'guitar-museum' and Rick WAKEMAN with his keyboards collection, placed on three levels! YES, it was the era that 'symphonic rock dinosaurs' ruled, .... a few years before their extinction.
Review by frenchie
PROG REVIEWER
2 stars The return of Rick Wakeman... and a disappointment too. This follow up to the amazing relayer is terrible. Yes have gone from produced well structured progressive, built up, multi layered and experimental expansive pieces to these songs which sound rushed, out of place and thrown together with little thought. The guitar, synth and keyboards sound so harsh. Its as if everyone is trying to play their pieces and once and it sounds like a huge melee of squeling instruments. The vocals are dull, squeaky and repetitive. The emotion in jons voice sounds fake and uninspired here.

The wild guitar intro to going for the one is a disgraceful and it sounds like a mess. The repetitive lyrics really get on my nerves and this 5 minute piece was hardly progressive at all. "Turn of the Century" had some ok acoustic guitar work and sounded a lot calmer. The lyrics and vocals were ok. I think it was unneccesarily long and didn't seem to go anywhere but was one of the more tolerable songs on this album. "Parrallels" sounded like classic yes that i am used to at times but mostly sounded like another mass slaughter of instruments like on the first track.

Side two was more promising with "Wonderous Stories" but i still wasn't impressed. the last few minutes of Awaken were ok yet it had a pretty uninspiring climax. Yes really started to lose their way during and after this album and it is a real shame that they couldn't produce anything good after Relayer. Luckily "The Yes Album", "Fragile", "Close to the Edge", "Tales from Topographic Oceans" and "Relayer" are masterpieces of prog and landmark Yes as one of the greatest prog bands of all time. "Going for the One", however is a disasterpiece.

Review by Gatot
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
5 stars This album remarks the return of keyboard maestro Rick Wakeman to the band and reformed one of the finest line-up of Yes. For my personal taste, this is really an excellent album that demonstrates excellent quality of Yes music in terms of songwriting, composition, musicianship, and production. In terms of moods, there are rocking tracks like "Going For The One" and "Parallels" (which later would become an opening track of Yes live replacing the long standing Yes classic opening tune for live act "Siberian Khatru"). It also has classical influence track in the vein of "And You And I" (of "Close To The Edge" album), i.e. "Turn of The Century" and "Wonderous Stories".

Without any intention to demean the quality of other four tracks that, in my view, all of them are wonderful, my all-time favorite track of this album is definitely "Awaken". Yeah man . this is a superb track combining a catchy melody, tight composition with flawless delivery. My ultimate enjoyment happens exactly on segment where Rick plays his solo accompanied by Jon's triangle work. Oh man . this segment is definitely killing!!! The music flows like magic from start (great piano and powerful voice line) to end of track. And, this track is best to conclude this wonderfully crafted album!!!

My overall rating: 4.5 out of 5. Highly recommended!! [In 2003, I purchased RHINO's re-mastered and expanded version of this album that has 7 bonus tracks. Almost all bonus tracks are not worth listening. The only good thing is the sleeve note by Tim Jones and band's photographs]. --

Open Invitation for Yes to Perform "YES for Tsunami in Indonesia"

Dear Jon, Rick, Chris, Alan, and Steve:

One year has passed since you (or Yes management - it does not really matter who) "cancelled" your gig in Jakarta as part of your Asia Second Leg Tour sometime in September 2003. I did purchase the ticket at front row with other 7 colleagues of mine. For me personally it was kind like dream came through and I did prepare a long banner (10 meter) marked with "29 Years in Waiting ." to be shown during your gig in Tennis Indoor Senayan. But, I (and also Yesmania in Indonesia) were very disappointed that you did not make our dream came true due to unrealistic "travel warning" that you care more than our starving to see your band live in my country. Why unrealistic? Because many other foreign bands did successful shows in Indonesia like DEEP PURPLE (3 times already), TOTO (three times), RICK WAKEMAN, AIR SUPPLY, WHITE LION, SCORPIONS, MEGADETH, HELLOWEEN, LINKIN' PARK and many more pop acts "despite" the travel warning. Even, Scorpions did their gigs in many cities of Indonesia around the time when the bomb issues were floating around my country. [Even though finally I attended your gig in Singapore 25 Sept 2003 and had a short chat with Jon before the show, but I still want to see you "live" in Indonesia].

Now, it's time for YES to perform in Indonesia doing the live aid (or whatever you call it), at least for the people of Banda Aceh and North Sumatra and other countries. You will just do fine to perform here, don't worry. Ask Rick Wakeman who did a wonderful show in February 2002. Rick even agreed to meet us, the Indonesian Progressive Society, got together with us in his hotel. He played his piano while we got together one day after the show. What a memorable event!

It's a perfect time now for Yes (and other progheads) to do a live performance in Indonesia. You might collaborate with other progheads such as Dream Theater, The Flower Kings, Marillion, Arena, Spock's Beard, Neal Morse, etc. and make a "Prog for Humanity" show, down here in Indonesia. Okay? How prog are you man??? And . I'll be your roundabout! We love you .. Jreng!

Progressively Yours,

GW, Indonesia.

Keep on progging!

Review by Muzikman
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars Going For The One marked the return of Rick Wakeman to Yes and a mixture of the prog- rock and pop that prevailed on albums like Fragile. There was a different mindset at work here since the previous release Relayer. The open-ended fusion of pop meets prog-rock was the direction they decided to travel along with a totally out of character album cover. It seemed to mark the modernized sound and image of the band.

While the album originally had only five tracks, this release sports six bonus tracks. The run times were typical of Yes compositions regardless of what direction the music was taking. "Wonderous Stories" was a top-ten hit and "Awaken" came in at a stunning 15:38 making it another classic Yes tour de force.

The bonus tracks are a different matter entirely. I was very disappointed in them. With the exception of "Eastern Numbers (Early Version of 'Awaken')," they certainly all fit the bill of rehearsals and I suppose that needs to be taken into account. The three previous remastered albums offered superlative previously unissued cuts and a wide variety of the studio run through tracks, which spoiled me. Well I guess you cannot have your cake and eat it to all the time. Nevertheless, this is yet another remastered Yes classic worth adding to your collection. After all, what album was not?

Review by Cesar Inca
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
5 stars Yes' comeback album saw Wakeman back into the fold (although during the recording sessions he was officially just a supporting guest): with White solidly established as the basic nucleus of the band's rhythm section, the set was prepared for a new catalogue of energetic symphonic prog numbers. Indeed, the new repertoire feels much more fresh and exciting after the extreme density that had been delivered in their two previous studio efforts "Tales" and "Relayer". This sense of renewed excitement is clearly expressed in the opening title track and the third one, 'Parallels'. The former is an uplifting rocker, featuring Howe's amazing travels in a steel guitar roller coaster; the latter is a funky-based rocker, where Wakeman's pipe organ flows naturally over the dynamically driven rhythm section, in perfect complementation with Howe's guitar expanding leads. On the other side of things, Yes shows the listener that they can also return to the classic and/or folk inspired moments of serenity and introspectiveness with that typical touch of distinction we missed since the late 71-early 73 era. 'Turn of the Century' is a most beautiful, compelling piece, where Howe's acoustic and electric guitar parts find a perfect counterpart in Wakeman's keyboard orchestrations and piano phrases, while Squire acts as a solid partner and White's varied percussions enhance the orchestral feel founded by Wakeman; meanwhile, Anderson sings a tale of love overcoming death and sanity as if he were possessed by the goddess of love and the muses and taken to a state of deep emotional elation toward a realm that lies beyond human understanding. Irresistible! Later on, another tale comes, this time about a story teller precisely: 'Wondrous Stories' is a showcase of how a simple Anderson written musical idea can be turned into a progressive wonder when Howe's vacchalia, Wakeman's Poly Moog layers, and the skilled rhythm duet add their talents to the final arrangements. But the album's apex is the awesome 'Awaken', a musical mystic tour designed to leave the listener moved beyond words. Many yes and prog rock fans regard this piece as the most brilliant in yes' entire repertoire, and arguably they might be absolutely right. This 15+ minute suite is a real treat for our stream of consciousness: the lyrics and successive musical motifs help to ordain and integrate it under a challenging frame, and also help to release it for a free conquest of new ideas and emotions. Not only is the song itself an absolute prog classic, but also there are some specific cornerstone moments in it: the prologue theme later reprised in the epilogue, the almost tribal section cleverly seasoned with exotic chanting and percussives (a heritage from the "Relayer" days), the harp/church organ interlude, the climatic "Master of images" section. each of them a brilliant portion of a brilliant whole. The same thing goes for the album regarded as an entirety: "Going for the One" is a stunning work full of stunning individual items - 5 stars!
Review by chessman
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars The last of the 'great' or 'classic' Yes albums. This one is tremendous throughout. I bought the original vinyl, housed in the classic gatefold cover. Not the best cover they ever had, and only marginally better than the following atrocious Tormato cover. (Housing some equally atrocious music!) Now I have the remastered cd, and still think this is one of their best. The title track starts the album off in an uptempo way, with Steve Howe especially standing out. Lyrically as obscure as ever, one wonders if Jon Anderson is ever really serious with his difficult and untenable words. The music, of course, saves the day. The second track, 'Turn Of The Century' is quite possibly my favourite Yes track of all time, and, for once, is accompanied by understandable lyrics! Yes folks, we can actually tell what this song is about. It is very poignant and moving, and I love it to bits. Superb acoustic playing by Howe, interwoven with excellent keyboards by Wakeman. Third track, and the final one on side one of the old vinyl, is 'Parallels'. I used to rate this track the weakest on the album, but in reality it is on a level with the others, especially in the bold and upfront organ playing of Wakeman. A nice melody too. Side two of the old record began with the minor chart hit, and shortest song on the album, 'Wondrous Stories'. Very tuneful and radio friendly this one, yet still displaying all the classic Yes themes and performances. Excellent. Finally comes, of course, the great epic, 'Awaken'. Superb is the word for this, a meandering yet controlled journey through different soundscapes, with, again, Wakeman and Howe especially magnificent. One musn't forget Squire and White in all this. Their performances are as good as ever, and so consistent, we sometimes tend to forget them. Squire is still probably my favourite bass player, although Jonas Reingold runs him close. All in all, this album is redolent of the 70's and worth all the hype that continues to surround it. I still find it hard to choose my favourite Yes album, but this is surely a contender, along with Fragile, Relayer and Close To The Edge. (Even Keystudio stakes a claim sometimes.) Essential listening for any melodic, complex prog fan. Yes fans who don't possess this should be ashamed of themselves!
Review by soundsweird
PROG REVIEWER
3 stars I gave this CD another spin today, thinking that sooner or later I'd fall into line with all the people here who've given this album such great reviews. Once again, I came away loving "Turn of the Century" and seeing equal amounts of success and failure in the remainder of the album (with the exception of "Parallels", which has very few redeeming qualities). The title track, while catchy, suffers from a poor and noisy arrangement. The similarities to earlier tracks plagues "Wonderous Stories" (most notably "And You & I"). The longest piece, "Awaken", has some nice parts, but loses points due to Rick Wakeman's cheesy choices of keyboard sounds. All of these problems are augmented by Jon Anderson's increasingly vacuous and uplifting lyrics (he was New Age before the term was even coined). I guess part of the reason I became so enamored with Progressive Rock in the 70's was the cynical outlook conveyed by most of the lyricists, and Anderson gradually moved away from that. "Turn of the Century" is so different from anything else Yes had done up to that point. The lyrics are straightforward and tell an actual story! The instrumental break gets bogged down, but doesn't last long enough to ruin the piece. And Howe's acoustic guitar work approaches perfection. I wouldn't bother keeping this album if not for this track.
Review by Eetu Pellonpaa
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
3 stars I didn't like this album as much as I liked "Tormato", but I think it's worth of a three stars still. There's not anything very touching or essential on this record, though some compositions like "Turn Of The Century" are pretty. But the player performances feel sterile, and some songs like "Going For The One" and "Parallels" aren't very good in my opinion. "Wonderous Stories" is a good acoustic hit though.
Review by NJprogfan
PROG REVIEWER
3 stars Boy, oh boy, this is a hard album to digest. I've never been a big fan of this one ever since the first time I spun the record back in the 70's. I know most YES fans pick this as the last classic the band recorded. I'm sorry, but I disagree, (Relayer is my choice). Here are my reasons: Steve Howe's guitar on "Going For The One", "Parallels" and on some parts of "Awaken" just grates! It's so high-pitched and nervous. I understood the reasons during "Gates Of Delirium" but here it's just annoying and drowns out the tunes. "Turn Of The Century" is a fine, but way too long. "Parallels" has that old sound, but seems compressed, like they were trying to throw everything together and make it fit under 6 minutes. I like "Wonderous Stories" for the simple fact that it has space between instruments. "Awaken" should have been the icing on the cake. It has it's moments, especially the break in the middle, but for some reason it just peters out. Also, when listening to the CD, (I have the Rhino re-master), where is Squire's bass? It seems buried under the avalanche of Wakeman's keyboards and Howe's wailing guitar. It's been at least 20 years since I heard this on vinyl so I can't compare it to the re-master, but for the life of me I'm missing that fat bass of Squire's all over the disc. Anderson's voice sounds fine over the course of the album, but I believe "Going For The One", with that crummy cover and songs that don't have the spacing and magic of the previous five showcased a band running out of gas and inspiration, leading to the worse 70's album they did, (you all know which...). It wasn't until "Drama" and some new blood, that they started to do go in a new and more exciting direction. So, 3 stars... good but compared to the last 5, no where near excellent.
Review by Seyo
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
3 stars Slightly better than "Topographic Oceans" if nothing, then because it was a single rather than a double album. "Awaken" is excellent composition, one of the YES best moments, but the rest of the album just faded from my memory. I can still remember thought that I very much disliked the title song so I always used to skip to the B side of the vinyl. For me this is non-essential staff, between 2-3 marks, but closer to 3 since this is the last worthy moment of the YES classic line-up.
Review by NetsNJFan
PROG REVIEWER
5 stars Rating: 4.5 / 5

After a lengthy hiatus since 1974's ultra experimental album, RELAYER, Yes regrouped in 1977 to cut a new studio album. Keyboardist Tony Moraz left the group in 1976, opening the door for the return of the much beloved Rick Wakeman, who exited in 1973. GOING FOR THE ONE is one of Yes's hardest rocking, as well as most underrated albums. These songs are trimmed down and more focused than the groups past albums, and have more of a rock edge. Steve Howe carries the brunt of the soloing, and Rick Wakeman's keyboards play a more textural role here. As always, Chris Squire plays a thunderous bass, while Alan White is competent, (but no Bill Bruford), on the drum set. Jon Anderson's voice maintains its ethereal qualities, but like the compositions present, is more focused and more rock 'n' roll. This is the first time Yes has written conventionally lengthed pieces since 1972's FRAGILE. GOING FOR THE ONE's focus also makes it much more melodic than its solo-ridden predecessors. It opens with the title track, Going for the One, which rocks very hard, and is a great song. It is almost Yes meets Led Zeppelin in composition, but still leans on the progressive side. Turn of the Century is an elegant Yes style ballad, which features beautiful acoustic passages courtesy of Steve Howe. Parallels is an enjoyable track, with better lyrics than most of Yes's work. This song features some of the best features some of the best Yes organ work since the Tony Kaye days. It was later used to open many of their concerts, (See the live album, YESSHOWS). Side two begins with the best piece on the album, Jon Anderson's spacey ballad, Wonderous Stories (note the misspelling of 'wondrous'!). This represented Yes's first real radio hit since FRAGILE's Roundabout in 1972. It is the spaciest song one could fit into a four minute duration, and the multi-layered vocals add greatly to the song. The sixteen minute Awaken is the almost obligatory, long/epic track on this album, and like Yes's other extended songs, it does not disappoint. It is the spaciest song on the album, and is classic Yes. The vocals are especially good here. It also contains some excellent harp work by Rick Wakeman. Sadly, this track does not receive a live treatment until 1996's KEYS TO ASCENSION, VOL. 1.

Most Importantly, Yes returned in 1977 with extreme vitality on this album, making it exciting, energetic and brash. Overall, GOING FOR THE ONE is an extremely good album, and is quite enjoyable. Along with FRAGILE, it marks a good place for the non- Yes fan to enter, as it is much more conventional in song structure than CLOSE TO THE EDGE or TALES FROM TOPOGRAPHIC OCEANS. This album received a 4.5 star rating, only for the reason that I could not bear to give it a 5 star rating, and put it in the class of Yes's other progressive masterpieces like CLOSE TO THE EDGE or THE YES ALBUM.

Review by Fishy
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars In many ways "Going for the one" was a welcome back for Yes. After "Relayer" all band members released solo albums which weren't exactly living up to expectations. In 1976 punk was spotted for the first time and one of the fenomena these young angry people were reacting to was the dinosaur groups of the previous generation and Yes was one of them. Nevertheless Yes released a great album on which they reinvented their sound without compromising to the sound of the late seventies. Wakeman was back on board and this brought a revitalising effect on the band and this is surely noticeable in the music.

Remarkable but true, the title track is the least enjoyable. Clearly penned by Anderson the vocal line is the centre of the song. Although being far from bad, the melody lacks some variety. The arrangement is too chaotic to enjoy every musical part. Wakeman's piano is pure rock and roll and that's also the case for some of Howe's guitars but later on both of the musicians seem to have forgotten they play in a band. Yes is one of the only bands who are able to play their own melodies at the same time while it still sounds good. Well.here it could have been better on some moments. Still not a bad song tough.

"Turn of the century" is one of my all time favourite Yes songs. A delicate song which works the best when listening to it by candlelight. Anderson's angelic vocal lines are carrying the song and the melodies are outstanding. Even if you haven't the foggiest idea what he's singing about, you'll be carried away by his convincing way of putting the words out. The tender acoustic guitar lines and virtuous piano playing are extremely beautiful from start to finish, sometimes taking over the vocal melodies, sometimes accompaniment to it. The second part of the song has more power and several highlighted moments which include some fascinating duels between the piano and stunning electric guitar solo's. Near the end of the song the calm, stylish atmosphere from the beginning is recaptured

I've been told "Parallels" was a leftover from the solo outing of Squire and it may well be, the style matches perfectly the sound of "Fish out of water". The big church organ chords were used as a fundament for this powerful track. Howe's excellent guitar playing, on top of the organ, sounds spectacular. Parallels is a fast song full of vitality which is a proof that the band used the three years hiatus well for regaining inspiration. The band is energetic like hell, it simply rocks ! Once again the arrangements are full of instruments playing at the same time only this time, it is sounding harmonic. The melody of the song is fascinating and catchy. Also the quality of the backing vocals are worth mentioning. Can't believe this didn't make it as a permanent concert classic.

"Wonderous stories" is one of those typical Anderson hippy songs, a beautiful melody with wealthy arrangements which includes some spectacular guitar and harp sounds.

The real magnum opus of this record is "Awaken". An adventurous piece of music with quiet, dreamy sections but bombastic outbursts as well. It starts of with astral tendencies through the angel voice of Anderson and universal sounds provided by Howe and Wakeman. The song goes on with a hypnotic preacher fragment of Anderson with virtuous guitar solo's underneath. This song defintely is Howe's finest moment of the album. The next instrumental break is brilliant, setting the scene for something big to come. When the voice returns it seems ready to rise to heaven. Instead of a climax this is followed by one of the most splendid musical moments Yes ever did. I don't believe anyone has illustrated a sunrise so well. The first sunbeams are just a simple ticking on a triangle but then...every moment sees the birth of some other moving melody or motif provided by keyboards, a harpe, a hypnotic acoustic guitar chord, . This has some trademarks of ambient music avant la lettre. Gradually the sounds are multiplied andl the tension is building up to an overwhelming climax which leaves you breathtaking. This is the best dinosaur track the band ever done. Every second is pure magic ! This track is grabbing the mentality of the seventies perfectly ; evolving from hippy ideals or religious awareness to more personal unfolding like meditation or introspection.

On "Going for the one" Yes finds the perfect balance between musical virtuosity and accessible songs. Most of the tracks are quite short to Yes terms. The sound they are using is fresh like spring, Anderson seems to be in full charge of the song writing. The other members are contributing lots of musicality but little in song writing. The result of this formula is more conventional compositions apart from "Awaken" . I don't mind that as long as it works out fine, maybe on the title tracks someone should have tempered Anderson a bit but all the other tracks are marvellous. The only real weakness of this album is the rather flat sounding production. Most notably the drums aren't coming through like they should. They shouldn't have sacked Orford, the guy knew how to make the band sound. What's the most different when comparing with other Yes albums are the sound of the keyboards ; Wakeman uses lots of church organs and a varied series of new sounds which hasn't occurred before on a Yes record till then. Also the guitars are sounding more elaborate and gentle then before. On a track like "Turn of the century" it's suitable but sometimes there should have been more power. Although I don't consider any Yes album to be perfect, this comes close. The compositions on earlier efforts may be more ambitious, I played this one a lot more than the others. The compositions are easier to get in to, the melodies are inspired, the arrangements are enriched by eastern influences and there's a fully blown symphonic sound present. The joy of playing music is spattered all over this album. I assume it's the return of Wakeman which had this effect on the band. I've been told he wasn't even a full member of the band at the time of recording this wonderful album, he just happened to drop in and was invited to join them for old time sake. Well I guess one thing led to another. 4,5 stars

Review by Zitro
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars Similar to but slightly weaker than Fragile, because it sounds a little messy sometimes, especially the title track

Going For The One 5.5/10 : an ok yessy (weird and complex) rock&roll song. The slide guitar owns the song, and the keyboard flourishes are very pretty, but the vocals and melodies are weak, and the lyrics are so absurd that they seem like a self-parody.

Turn of The Century 8.5/10 : this is just sooooooo gorgeous ... it is basically beautiful melodies + acoustic guitars with accessible lyrics of a story about a man making a statue of his dead wife hoping that it will come to life. The best part is when there is a duet jam of grand piano piano and guitars that sound very uplifting.

Parallels 6/10 : Its a church organ led happy pop song with poppy choruses. the solos are nice but not brilliant.

Wondrous Story 9.5/10 : this is one of the best pop songs I have ever heard. the melodies and singing are nice but the instrumentation is what stands out. The keyboard solo sounds very innocent and pretty, and the guitar solo sounds also like that. This is a song perfect for your young son/daughter and hope that they'll like prog rock :)

Awaken : 10/10 : this is very complex and may sound messy, such as gates of delirium ... but it is another brilliant epic by yes. It needs repeated listenings since sections such as the jam with the chanting of 'awaken gentle mass touch' was cringeworthy for me at first listen .. but it grew in me, and the guitar solos are some of the best Howe has done with Yes, and they are everywhere! The standout section in here is the soft middle part with the bells, harps, and church organ, that starts growing slowly (as great as wurm) until it explodes with singing and bombastic music which for me is the weakest part of the song (especially that disappointing church organ solo). After that, the main theme is back but with harp chords that for some reason gives me goosebumps.

This, is not a very accessible yes album, but if you are experienced with yes, you should try it. It is very good and while not a masterpiece, it is recommended to have it.

My Grade : B

Review by Progbear
PROG REVIEWER
3 stars Yes seem to be trying to be all things to all people on this very varied LP. The title tune and "Parallels" are straight-up rockers. "Turn Of The Century" is a largely acoustic ballad with classical touches. The folky singalong "Wonderous Stories" gave the band their biggest UK hit. But, for proggers, the tune that matters is the 15-minute epic "Awaken". This features some of the band's most impressive keyboard work, and like most of RELAYER, it takes the best moments of TALES and dilutes them to their very essence.

Rick Wakeman makes a welcome return on keys. He adds pipe organ to "Parallels" and "Awaken"; his piano playing on the latter is likewise exquisite. Howe's guitarwork is quite varied: from wailing steel guitar on the title song to some of his finest classical acoustic work on "Turn Of The Century".

Not their most consistently progressive album (some of this is pretty much mainstream rock), but still a good and worthy release. "Awaken" alone justifies its purchase.

Review by Chicapah
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars After the jazzier side of Yes surfaced on "Relayer" fans were wondering just where they would go from there. To the joy of many of us they took a step back to their roots by reacquiring Rick Wakeman and producing the more symphonic type atmospheres that endeared us to them in the first place. While the album gets off to a disturbing rocky start with Howe's grating slide guitar (not his forte although his steel guitar playing is fantastic on "Relayer") one must stay with it to reap the true benefits farther along. (I will go to my grave wondering why they didn't put the amazing "Awaken" first. Rick's stunning piano intro is worthy of that honor and would have set the true tone of the album much more gracefully). Once the strange "Going for the One" finally plays out you get to the beautiful "Turn of the Century" that features their best ensemble work as far as integrating their combined compositional skills into one song. "Parallels" is okay but it really sounds like a solo tune from Chris Squire that was brought in for filler. It ain't bad but it ain't great, either. "Wonderous Stories" is one of their top short tunes featuring one of Jon's better vocal performances. It is flawless and serves as a great lead-in to one of their best efforts ever. "Awaken" may be the perfect example of why Yes was one of the greatest bands that ever existed. I could go on and on and on but I'd soon run out of adjectives to describe it. Trust me, the song is as good as it gets in progressive rock. Steve redeems himself by closing the tune with a gorgeous guitar run that leaves you close to tears. The only other drawback is the cover art. Roger Dean should have provided another masterpiece to compliment the music within. Instead, we got some dude's backside. Thanks a lot, guys. It pains me to give it just 4 stars but it's an A- at least (mostly due to Howe's unforgivable and annoying slide guitar work) and I rank it right behind CTTE. Still one of their best.
Review by fuxi
PROG REVIEWER
2 stars I am amazed this album has received such ecstatic reviews. I first started listening to Yes in 1975, and the first album I discovered was RELAYER, which completely bowled me over, and which has remained one of my all-time favourites. Soon after that (still in '75) I discovered that Yes had released several highly imaginative masterpieces. I also came to love Rick Wakeman's solo-albums, but as soon as I found out that Patrick Moraz had been kicked out of Yes (and that Wakeman had rejoined the band), I was filled with suspicion. What else could this mean, but that Yes was going to sound less experimental and more commercial?

Lo and behold: GOING FOR THE ONE was released, and it proved to be an awful lot of noise. And strangest of all: Wakeman didn't get to play even one noteworthy solo. (His church organ noodling on AWAKEN failed to convinced me.) In my opinion, the best that can be said about GOING FOR THE ONE is that it contains some interesting BITS. Both the title track and PARALLELS, for example, start out strongly but soon descend into chaos. WONDEROUS STORIES is a totally forgettable ditty, one of the few Yes pieces that make me cringe. (CIRCUS OF HEAVEN is another).

TURN OF THE CENTURY is difficult. As a full-grown man I tend to resist the picture of Anderson, Howe and Wakeman as troubadours in silky robes, but if I am honest, the piece still moves me, each time time I play it. There is something truly soul-searching in the way the players search for the right notes.

AWAKEN is a hodge-podge. In the course of the years I've learnt that CLOSE TO THE EDGE (the song, not the album) was 'stitched together' in the studio, and no doubt THE GATES OF DELIRIUM developed in a similar way (the bonus tracks on the recent re-release of RELAYER also point in that direction) - but on AWAKEN you can HEAR the stitches! I don't want to sound totally negative about this piece. Wakeman's piano intro and Steve Howe's first electric solo are undoubtedly impressive, and on recent live DVDs AWAKEN's grand climaxes are performed with majestic control. Unfortunately, on the original album those climaxes sound tinny and chaotic. Moreover, Jon Anderson's lyrics are a turn-off. On previous Yes albums his words were usually incoherent but intriguing. GOING FOR THE ONE was the first Yes LP where he started preaching: 'Be honest with yourself! There's no doubt, no doubt!' etc. etc. I suppose this was his reaction to punk's then fashionable nihilism...

Review by Raff
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
5 stars Although I like quite a few of the albums Yes released from the early Eighties onwards, as others have said before me "Going for the One" is probably the last really great album from one of the most influential bands in prog. Released in a very difficult year for progressive rock, at the zenith of the 'dinosaur'-bashing punk era, this is a brilliant, in-your-face return to form for Yes, with prodigal son Rick Wakeman newly returned to the fold and drummer Alan White now perfectly integrated in the band's fabric. Only five tracks (nothing new for Yes, anyway), but each one a masterpiece in its own special way - GFTO offers something for every taste, climaxing with one of prog's most celebrated, intriguing epics, the mighty "Awaken".

I remember that, when I first listened to the album (it was quite a long time ago...), the first thing I noticed was its heavy, almost metallic sound. In a certain way, its musical content parallels (no pun intended!) the very un-Yes-like sleeve, with its futuristic landscape contrasted with the figure of a naked man - possibly an image of the conflict between technology and human values. The title-track opens the album with the aggressive, almost strident sound of Steve Howe's slide guitar, developing then into a song with a rather straightforward structure and great vocal harmonies, its dynamism reminiscent of CTTE's "Siberian Khatru". Then, all of a sudden, the hard-rocking, energetic atmosphere changes into the wistful, heartrending strains of the quintessential prog ballad, "Turn of the Century" (arguably one of the band's best-ever tracks), a story of love and loss magnificently interpreted by Jon Anderson (who sings mostly alone) , accompanied by Steve Howe's delicate acoustic guitar, and featuring an extremely beautiful, melancholy piano solo in the middle. A majestic church organ introduces the storming "Parallels", a Chris Squire tune powered by his inimitably chunky bass lines. Jon's graceful vocals get to shine again in the catchy, light-hearted "Wonderous Stories", berated by many for being either childish or too commercial, but in my opinion providing a bit of respite before the onslaught of the 15-minute-plus prog tour de force which is "Awaken".

This track is probably Yes' last great epic, and as Yes epics go it is somewhat more intense, less accessible than, for instance, "Starship Trooper" or "And You And I". Introduced by Wakeman's elegant, lilting piano and Anderson's soaring voice, it then develops into a brooding, almost chant-like theme, underpinned by Squire's dark, solemn bass lines. Midway through the song things calm down, creating a mystical, rarefied atmosphere to which the stately, distant voices of a choir and the gentle tinkling of bells add an intriguing dimension. The song climaxes with triumphant singing by Anderson and his cohorts and a stunning guitar solo by Steve Howe - then quiet comes again, and we can hear Anderson's voice sweetly singing the final lines, as if echoing in the vastness of space. Definitely no easy listening piece, this one - but utterly gorgeus all the same.

The remastered edition contains a further five tracks that, to be perfectly honest, don't add much to the album's value. What you really need is the five original tracks comprising this masterpiece, certainly one of the landmarks of symphonic prog - an imposing, magnificent cathedral of sound which is essential for any serious lover of the genre.

Review by Peter
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
4 stars Yes's eighth studio album, 1977's GOING FOR THE ONE, was their last truly essential work. All serious followers of this first-rank prog band should have this great disc in their collections!

After the meandering excesses of TALES FROM TOPOGRAPHIC OCEANS, and the short stint with Patrick Moraz behind the keyboards for the atypical, harder-rocking RELAYER, GOING FOR THE ONE represented a compelling return to form. Keyboard virtuoso Rick Wakeman, who had left in disgust after TFTO, was back in the band, and the writing approach - in contrast to that of TALES, which had largely been a Jon Anderson project -- was now much more communal. As a replacement for the ousted Moraz (who had simply gotten too big for his britches), Wakeman was originally intended to be a mere well-paid session man, but he was enticed back into the fold fulltime because, quote: "(Yes) were writing songs again." The positive atmosphere was further enhanced by the band's decision to record in scenic Montreux, Switzerland, with their families around them, and the Alps towering majestically in the background.

The welcome presence of Wakeman, the reinvigorated group spirit, and the renewed attention to songwriting together give the grateful listener five of the stronger selections of Yes's classic era. RELAYER's hard rocking sensibility is back on the opening title track, which features some stirring slide from guitarist Howe, and sounds unlike anything else in the Yes catalogue to this point (though it would herald a harder, tighter future sound).

Next up, "Turn of the Century" is a pretty, sentimental piece that tells (in relatively straight-forward fashion -- who says Anderson's lyrics are always obtuse?) the tragic tale of a sculptor and his lady, who dies before he can finish immortalizing her in clay. Still, the power of undying love lifts the artist out of his despair, and he finishes the project both as a tribute, and a means to reconnect with his dear departed. Feeling piano, and some stirring acoustic and electric guitar help to make this one a winner. (If this song doesn't at all move you, perhaps you've never really loved, or mourned a lost loved one - in that case, just play "Going for the One" twice!)

"Parallels" finds Wakeman rocking out on a genuine church organ, in company with some terrific trademark bass runs from Squire, and driving guitar and drums from Howe and White. Anderson's vocals and lyrics, in turn, are hale, hearty and triumphal, and it all comes gloriously together in six tight and truly memorable minutes of vintage Yes. All committed fans are strictly enjoined to TURN IT UP at this juncture! Fabulous!

Beauty returns on the sparkling "Wondrous Stories," which won the band some airplay, and their biggest UK hit to that date. Timeless, uplifting and essential!

Finally, the album closes with the near-sixteen minute "Awaken." This epic is the highpoint of an already excellent album, and gives us all we might want in a longer Yes piece: mystic, yearning lyrics, time changes with alternating sections of delicacy and thunderous power, and some of Howe's most blistering axe work ever. Ladies and gentlemen, this is Yes, and this is Progressive Rock! (You'll have to turn it up again here -- if your speakers are equal to the task!)

(Note: I have the recent Rhino re-issue, which sounds great, has all of the original artwork, lyrics and photos, insightful new liner notes, and seven bonus tracks. Some of this bonus material is pretty good (yet it's not essential, by any means), but the bulk of it is rehearsals and bare-bones working versions of the album's fully-realized songs. These might be of interest to some (musicians, maybe?), but I find them to be mere curiosities that don't merit repeated listening: the album proper is by far the real draw.)

I don't know if I can justifiably label this an absolute "masterpiece," and the equal of the standard-setting CLOSE TO THE EDGE or FRAGILE, but it's darned close! If you consider yourself a real Yes fan, and you don't own a copy of GOING FOR THE ONE, what the heck are you waiting for? This is "wondrous" stuff, and would be "an excellent addition" to any prog lover's library.

Review by Australian
PROG REVIEWER
5 stars "Going For the One" is one of pinnacles of Yes in my opinion, everything about it has a classic Yes flavour. Even after release of several albums Yes was still exploring ways to make effective and moving music and "Going For the One" features styles of music spanning a very large magnitude. All songs have a distinctive progressive flavour, particularly "Awaken" and "Turn of the Century", while others like "Parallels", "Going for the One" and "Wondrous Stories" all explore a different aspect of music.

After the creation of the wonderful 'Relayer', Yes under went another line up change this time one-off keyboardist Patrick Moraz made way for Rick Wakeman who had left the band (not for the last time) for only a year. Patrick Moraz did not depart without making a profound impact on the band's future sound as not only did he help deliver the masterpiece 'Relayer' he also collaborated with Rick Wakeman on the writing of some of "Going For the One." All the members, past and present contributions rendered yet another masterpiece from which many of the bestest (purposely misspelled) and most famous Yes songs arose. Indeed every song on "Going For the One" can be labelled among Yes's best. In particular "Wondrous Stories" reached a very high number 8 on the UK singles chart, which is one of the highest charting singles ever released by the band.

The album its self rendered the band extraordinary success all around the world, particularly in the UK and US where it reached 1 number and 8 on the albums charts respectively. Another major milestone in that "Going For the One" is one of just two Yes albums which reached number in England, the other being the controversial Tales from Topographic Oceans. Progressive bands are lucky to achieve an album in the top 20 let alone top 10 so Yes is a successful band in that respect. Needless to say that Yes deserved more success, along with many other progressive rock bands.

The musicianship in "Going For the One" is of an extraordinary quality and each member of Yes is at high points in their career at this time. "Going For the One" is usually called the last classic Yes album, I don't entirely agree with this statement but the time following this album was defiantly a time of change, for Yes and music in general. So "Going For the One" is the herald, which announces the end of classic progressive rock. but prog by no means died.

The Album opener, "Going For the One" swings into action very quickly with a pedal steel riff played by Steve Howe which is joined by the band. The Pedal Steel is used throughout the entire song for great effect. This song is basically Yes's interpretation of a surf song and it carries some resemblances which blend well with Yes's adaptive style. The song carries some abstract lyrics from Jon Anderson and towards the end of the song the synthesizers make themselves known. Next up is my favourite song from the album "Turn of the Century." The song starts off with some beautifully still and echoing classical guitar and vocals supported by a string mellotron in the background. This opening section is amazing but what follows is spectacular and there is an amazing instrumental section mid-way through the song which leads to the climax and end of the piece. It is hard for me to describe the music but it is the closest thing to perfect around.

"Parallels" features a church organ as the centrepiece of the song, and it was an actual church organ which Rick Wakeman played in Switzerland where the whole album was recorded. "Parallels" is an interesting song in which the band as a whole does a fantastic job, but the organ remains in the limelight for the entire song. Next is the all famous "Wondrous stories" which, as I said earlier is one of the most successful and best Yes singles. It takes influence from 'Jon Anderson's 'Olias of Sunhillow' from which the sound no doubt originated from. The sound has a Jon Anderson feel in the way it sounds, the lyrics and just the general feel of it. There is a wonderful section when Jon Anderson and Chris Squire sing in unison in which their voices blend well. The instrumental portion of the song is the standard Jon Anderson arrangement, acoustic (sometimes electric) guitar rhythm with synths twinkling in the background and some percussion here and there. Last of all is an epic masterpiece "Awaken" which is slightly different to other Yes epics. It sounds different, it has more of an art rock structure and it doesn't have as a great deal of synthesizers, but rather is more focused around Rick Wakeman's organ and piano while Steve Howe plays a pivotal role on guitar. There are still quite a lot of synthesizers, just not as much as other Yes epics (am I contradicting or what?). The percussion in the mid crescendo section is very important as it gives the organ a kind of accent and adds to mystical, driving feel. The whole song is a wonder to listen to and the little tune Steve Howe plays to end of the song and album is so meaningful despite the fact it only lasts for about six seconds.

1.Going For the One (4/5) 2.Turn of the Century (5/5) 3.Parallels (4/5) 4.Wondrous Stories (5/5) 5.Awaken (5/5) Total = 23 divided by 5 = 4.6 = 5 stars

Essential: A Masterpiece of Progressive Music

As far as timeless albums go "Going For the One" is around the top for me, it sounds as fresh now as it ever has. It has a minimalist and at the same time lush beauty which will never fade, even if it goes unseen. As for me, it is one of my favourite albums, it has to be to get five stars. Essential is the first word to come to mind when think of "Going For the One", such an accurate word. I'd recommend "Going For the One" to all progressive fans, as many experienced reviewers have written for many different albums."GET IT."

Review by ClemofNazareth
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Prog Folk Researcher
3 stars So coming off a series of increasingly complex and luminous albums in the early 70s, the members of Yes go their separate ways for a year or so and each release their own solo albums. Most of the ones I’ve heard seemed pretty decent, although I admit I’ve haven’t gotten around to Patrick Moraz’ A Story of I yet, and Howe’s Beginnings is my least favorite of those of his that I’ve heard. In the meantime their label released Yesterdays, the first blatant attempt at commercializing the Yes sound (in this case with its marketing, not its music).

So back comes Rick Wakeman amidst all kinds of rumors about the nature of Moraz’ departure, including the believable one that he did contribute to the album along with Wakeman but was asked to leave over creative differences. Kind of hard to imagine what those differences were, but the resulting Going For the One is certainly a pretty significant departure for the band, and one from which they would never fully return.

It’s probably inevitable that the music of Yes would take on a more moderate, commercially conciliatory tone as the 70s wound to a close and the band (along with so may other progressive dinosaurs) was forced to compete for attention and dollars with disco and punk. I remember jokes at the time that the phrase ‘going for the one’ was actually a tongue-in-cheek attempt by the band to appear critical of their management’s handling of their image, as in – the label was ‘going for’ a #1 album. If you listen to the words of the title track, that isn’t what it’s about of course, but skepticism by fans was understandable, right from the opening notes that almost sound like the band has gone country or something.

Steve Howe plays a much more prominent role here than in any previous album, especially on the title track and the highly acoustic “Turn of The Century”, which has surprisingly candid lyrics along the lines of the earlier “Dear Father”.

Wakeman cranks up an actual pipe organ on “Parallels”, an interesting change in tempo and style for the band. Wakeman aside, the real star on this one is Chris Squire with his customarily unparalleled bass lines. The organ solo gives some meat to this otherwise fairly simple tune, and in all it comes off as one of the better tracks.

For me, “Wonderous Stories” is THE Yes song for the latter half of that decade. While it is almost criminally short, the seamless blending of Wakeman’s keyboards and Squire’s bass with Howe’s delicate guitar is a real treat and one of the few times where all the instruments seem to be as one, rather than separate performances thrown together in the studio. Jon Anderson’s voice here seems subdued compared to much of his previous work, but I don’t think this was meant to be some sort of profound mystic tale of yore or something. It’s just a little ditty about fantasizing about the words of a storyteller, nothing more. The real attraction here is the harmonious way the band all work together, each of them understated but together a really magical sound. Thanks to the highly accessible sound and the fact it was released as a single and performed repeatedly in concert, this has become probably one of the most recognizable Yes tunes in their catalog.

I really don’t know what to say about “Awaken” except that it proves the band had not lost sight of the style of music that drew their following throughout the decade and up to this point. Anderson wanders off with more of his humanistic mysticism in the lyrics, and once again we are treated to an epic length work that covers more ground than most listeners can appreciate without repeated plays and reflection. As part of this each band member steals the limelight at one point of another to showcase their individual talent, and the tempo changes almost make this seem like a multi-track offering instead of a single composition. But in the end the band manages to bring the whole work back together, although for me this happens around the fourteen minute mark, and the rest of the song is just needless winding down. No matter, the track gives hope that Yes has not completely slipped into the commercially-minded mainstream, despite the amount of ‘selling out’ that is going on around them.

This is not one of the best Yes albums, in my opinion, but every track is at least good. “Parallels” is really good, and “Wonderous Stories” and “Awaken” are great. The moving away from Roger Dean art in the packaging is a bit of a disappointment, but considering the times this is an almost understandable change. The shorter songs aren’t in themselves problematic, but the fact that the band chose not to develop “Wonderous Stories” and “Parallels” is a bit concerning, and should have been a sign that the band mess with their core competencies even more in the future (which of course, they did).

In all this is a good album, but not great, and especially not on the scale that Yes albums should be judged against. For that reason I think three stars is the right way to rate this, and it would be some time before the band would offer up anything as good again.

peace

Review by ZowieZiggy
PROG REVIEWER
5 stars I bought this album in 1977 for several reasons : 1. Yes was one my top three favorite prog band at the time (together with Genesis and the Floyd). 2. Three long years had passed since their last release "Relayer". So, I was quite hungry for a new YesAlbum. 3. I was going to see them live for the very first time in November, 1977 (in Antwerp, Belgium). This was quite an adventure : first getting downtown Brussels with a tram (I was living in the subburbs of the town), then a special bus to the "Sportpaleis" then a fabulous YesConcert. Then back again to Brussels which we reached 'round one A.M. What a great experience !

The tracklist of the "Going For The One Tour" was the following : 1. Firebird Suite 2. Parallels 3. I've Seen All Good People 4. Close To The Edge 4. Wonderous Stories 5. Colours Of The Rainbow/Turn Of The Century 6. Tour Song 7. And You And I 8. Going For The One 9. Flight Jam/Awaken 10. Roundabout 11. Yours Is No Disgrace

As you can see, this tour was pretty good.

At that time, I loved this album an awful lot. Not a single weak track. This is one of the most accessible YesAlbum so far. Full of wonderful melodious passages and great musicianship of course. It is very difficult for me to highlight one song from another in this wonderful album. The most rocking one is the title track. The most emotional one is "Turn Of The century" : wonderful Jon vocals and great accoustic guitar from Steve to close the track. "Parallel" i s another f......g great song : great rocking tempo, fabulous guitar, strong vocals of course (but, hell, when did we get weak vocals in a YesSong ?). This first side is really a damned good prog one.

Side two opens with "Wonderful Stories", which is a very candid and naïve song. Very melodious as well. I like it a lot. Then, "Awaken". A glorious YesTrack. Complex as usual. Melodious as well. Intricated as Crimson could be. It is a gigantic number for YesLovers. It will also be their last epic for a very, very long time : we will have to wait 1996 and the studio part of "Keys To Ascension I" to get another one ("That, That Is Togetherness Crossfire").

One only needs to be awaken to listen to this track. One of the YesClassics in their live sets. Just fabulous. One must admit that in those days, prog music was not at his best (punk and new wave were surging). This album being a marvelous exception.

The remastered version contains some unreleased tracks like : "Montreux's Theme" and "Vevey" : short, average instrumental pieces, (I guess they had a special financial love for the Leman lake, since both Vevey and Montreux are situated on the border of this "Geneva Lake" - Huum, this reminds me some Purple song, but which one) ? "Amazing Grace" is just a filler. The other tracks are rehearsals for : "Going For One", "Parallels" and "Turn Of The Century" : the last two are really worth for the secret side of these songs (the B- version of "Parallel" being superior to the final version, IMO). The early version for what will become "Awaken" is also recorded on the remastered CD. The first chosen title for this one was : "Eastern Number" and was just over 12 minutes. It is of course a good prog moment, but it was still far from the final version and only interesting for YesCompletionists (whom I am).

This album was an absolute masterpiece and since it is the most accessible one of their grand era, I would recommend it as an entry for new YesCurious. So, no wonder, I rate it five stars. At the time of release, no one could imagine of course that this was the very last masterpiece. But that is another YesStory.

Review by OpethGuitarist
PROG REVIEWER
2 stars A return to form...

What? No, this album definitely lacks the creativity and musical bliss found on Fragile and CTTE. This is one of those "let's hold on, nostalgia rules!" pieces that people have as this is seen as the last "classic" album recorded by Yes until they fell to commercial songwriting. Unfortunately, much of this is commercial itself. With the exception of Awakening, there's no real solid track here, and most of it comes off as an already done mess.

The presence of Wakeman doesn't make it good in and of itself. Besides, the band had already lost their most creative member (Bruford) earlier. The songwriting is dry, extremely predictable, and rarely entertaining. Most of these tracks one could have easily placed on 90125 and few would have noticed the difference.

Most of this borders very closely to pop-progressive material, which might be great if you are one who enjoys more commercially acceptable music. However, I am at a loss as to how so many see beauty in this album, which I view merely as an album of nostalgia as the last Yes hoorah, and see the music as mostly marginal. To each his own.

Review by Modrigue
PROG REVIEWER
3 stars YES' last really good studio album

3.5 stars

"Going for the One" the return of Rick Wakeman at keyboards. Not as progressive, daring and jazzy-esque as "Relayer", but featuring their most catchy songs and the beautiful "Awaken".

The title song opens with a rocky Zeppelin-ish intro, transporting you into YES' magic forest. "Going for the One" is a very enchanting, happy and fluent tune. On the contrary, "Turn of the Century" is a little lazy and pointless ballad. The listener is "awaken" with "Parallels" and its church organ overture. This song surprisely rocks and delivers a lot of energy! Nonetheless, disappointment arrives again with the light "Wonderous Stories", which sounds like a boring soundtrack. At last comes the highlight of the album: "Awaken". This 15 minutes epic features wonderful melancholic passages in magic places. Knights and sorcerers' tears put in music with great organ and guitar playing. The end of this piece finishes majestically in the sky.

Concerning the Elektra remastered version, except the single version of "Going for the One" and an alternative version of "Awaken", the bonus tracks are not that interesting. Jon's vocals on "Parallels" sound false and other tracks are average short instrumental pieces.

"Going for the One" is an irregular release alternating very good ("Going for the One", "Parallels" and the little wonder "Awaken") and boring songs. With other tracks than "Turn of the Century" and "Wonderful Stories", it could have been a fantastic album, maybe YES' best...

Review by memowakeman
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
4 stars Going for the one!

Well, seems that today i was inspired to write some reviews after a long gap of more than a month, i reviewed some lesser known albums, but today`s morning i listened to this magnific Yes record and wanted to review it. There is nothing to be said about it that hasnt been said before, anyway i want to share you a couple of words.

Yes was one of the first bands of prog that i knew, something very natural i assume that many of us have been introduced to this world because of monsters like Yes, Crimson or Floyd, and when i had the luck of seeing yes in concert, they openend with the self titled song "Going for the One" i loved that performance as well as the song included here.

After 3 years of that magnific Relayer, Yes came to studio and recorded a 5 song albums, but that wasnt all, also Keyboard Wizard Rick Wakeman returned to the band, and added his personal touch to this album, though is not his best, but it is noticeabl anyway.

We all know the way that Yes worked in the 70`s, their masterpieces, controversial albums and weaker ones, some people say that Going for the One is one of those weak albums, and i strongly disagree.

They returned to a less experimental album, something more catchy and attractive to the ears of prog lovers, without losing their standards as a prog rock band, Anderson, Howe, Squire, Wakemand and White gathered together to create great music.

"Going for the One" is the first track and a song that i really love, the guitar of Howe is excellent, lyrics great and bass lines lovely, powerful and great song. "Turn of the century" is a mini epic but this is not the best song of the album, actually is not that complex and also i find it a bit, just a bit boring. "Parallels", dont you recognize those keyboards?, well yes, it is Mr. Wakeman, great song full of excellent arrangements and i love the bass playing of Squire, excellent. "Wondrus Stories" is the hit or single whatever you want to call it,and it has become a classic song, not my favorite, but still good. "Awaken" is by far the best song of this album, a true epic, what we Yes lovers appreciate and are happy with, not as long as Gates of Delirium or CttE, but it is excellent, here they say we are back, and we have still much more to offer, the prog rock of Yes is not dead at all.

Well i just wanted to give a few words about it, i have nothing more to said because i would sound repetitive. I really enjoy this album, i would give it 3.8 stars that i will round to 4, recommendable to any prog fan and Yes followers.

Review by Finnforest
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
3 stars "As Autumn calls we'll both remember, All those many years ago."

I saw Steve Howe at a small club in the early/mid 90s doing a solo gig. Just him on a stool with his guitars, no band. After sitting through a few painful Asia numbers delivered with Steve's less than ideal vocal skills (that's being generous), he strummed the first gorgeous moment of "Turn of the Century" and the small crowd just went NUTS. He proceeded to play the whole thing by himself with great care and it was very moving, even with the painful vocals.

I relay that story because "Turn of the Century" is really the highlight of GFTO for me. A lush and beautiful song that is right up there with Yes' very best work, definitely a 5-star track. Unfortunately the rest of GFTO doesn't hold up as well for me although like most Yes albums from the classic era they come with high nostalgia value for me. While I normally like Anderson's voice I just find it strained and grating on the title track as well as on "Parallels", both tracks which find Yes sounding musically lost. "Wondrous Stories" is a rare Yes throwaway albeit a pleasant one.

The other epic track on this album is the 15 minute "Awaken" which features a very nice Wakeman opening and typically high-minded Anderson lyrics. This is a piece that has a bit of the Relayer feel to me musically, the same aggressive drive and mood. This piece almost sounds like it was written in the Topographic/Relayer era.

So with "Turn" and "Awaken" we have one half of a great Yes album. Too bad they couldn't have taken those two tracks along the best ones from Tormato to create another classic. But even as it is GFTO is essential for Yes fans and mildly recommended for all fans of 70s progressive, although it is clearly less important than their previous works. Unfortunately on this album and the next Tormato, they chose to trade Roger Dean's fabulous album covers for two of decidedly lower quality. 3.5 stars. Quite good but no masterpiece.

Review by b_olariu
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars I do not list Yes as one of my favourites bands from prog, but I do however enjoy some of their works, and certain albums appeal more than others. Going for the one, I find it still good, one of their best, but for sure the magic of the early '70 is gone. To me the best Yes albums are from the second period this one, Drama, and from the first Yes album and Fragile. There are 3 years between this one and Relayer and musicaly speaking is some changes on sound and in composition. First, Wakeman is back, but still continue in parallel to do albums under his name, and thats a good come back for Yes and for older fans, Patrick Moraz was a super key player (check Refugee) but not fit very well in the Yes sound, I prefer Moraz in Refugee, my opinion, and second the pieces are less longer than on previous albums. So what do we expect from this album, maybe nothind special, just a Yes album, but I find it more cohesive, more solid in matter of compositions, they sound tight, than on previous 2 albums. Some tracks that I enjoy most are Going for the one and Parallels. In the end I give to this album 4 stars,. I recommended Going for the one to all fans of prog. Still a classic
Review by febus
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator / In Memoriam
4 stars WELCOME BACK, RICK WAKEMAN, WHAT HAPPENED TO ROGER DEAN?

We are now in 1977 well removed from the last YES album, the 1974 Relayer.But 3 years in rock music is a long as a 100year old medieval war between the English and the French crown: A lot of things have changed. The once prominebt prog movement was on its last leg, ready to get buried under the explosion of punk music, not to forget disco and all these ''goodies; Johny Rotten was taking over the music magazines covers as the faces Ian and Jon anderson no longer appear '' cool'' to market!

So after realeasing each one a solo album during the 3 year hiatus to various success, the 5 YES members reunite with a good surprise for the fans: Rick Wakeman is back to the mold. Does it mean we are going to have another CTTE or TFTO on the way? Not eaxctly! If the basics of YES music are well present, you can sense the band has decided in some ways to adapt to the reality of the times.

First of all, Roger DEAN artwork is not cool anymore, i guess Jon Anderson (who else?) thought it was time for a more ''modern '' look; so hello Hypgnosis and thanks, Roger, was nice working with you, but your services are no longer needed.

Second, what you can notice is the shift of the music to a more ''rock'' feel than in previous recordings. We even have for the first time an attempt (more to come in the future) to have a hit with the title track, a relatively hard-rock edged tune with a STEVE HOWE on adrenaline; the guy doesn't stop with his slide guitar from beginning to end and Jon Anderson trying to reach the top 40 with a chorus repeated ad nauseam. This aspect of ''modern'' YESmusic can be found also on the SQUIRE penned ''Parallels'' with again a demoniac S. HOWE. Who said Steve Howe can't rock. Listen to him again on the masterpiece of the album ''Awaken'' . He doesn't stop. The 15mn long ''Awaken'' is what remind us the most of classic YES music, with beautiful ANDERSON melodies and a great work of WAKEMAN throughout the song classic YES, real good old prog!!!The last YES epic until...1996!

Other highlights of this album are the short ANDERSONERIE ''Wonderous stories'' , just a beautiful and sweet song, what makes YES so unique and TURN OF THE CENTURY, a beautiful collaboration between the acoustic guitar of HOWE and the always angelic vocals of JON ANDERSON who is on top of his game on this album.

To resume,this is a departure in some ways of what YES released before, but still can be considered a great album and one of the highlights of YES music, not a 5 star album but still should be in any respectable prog collection. Close to 4 stars, so let's give it 4 stars!

Review by progaardvark
COLLABORATOR Crossover/Symphonic/RPI Teams
4 stars Going for the One saw a slight change in direction for the group. Instead of three or four long extended pieces like on their last three albums, we now have just one timing in at more than 10 minutes with four songs ranging from 3:45 to 8:58. Either the group was growing tired of making long epics or they felt a need to shorten their material to get more radio play. I haven't read enough books to know why they did this. It was a trend among prog groups in the late 1970s. Going for the One also saw the return of Rick Wakeman. This of course wasn't the last time Wakeman would come and go.

Even though there are shorter songs on here, they are still very enjoyable, with the fast-paced, rocking title track and the beautiful Wonderous Stories. Even so, the best track is the 15+ minute Awaken, a track as exceptional as the group's previous epics. Musically the band are still at their prime and each of their individual talents shines brightly on Going for the One.

Not as good as their previous masterpieces, but clearly much better than Tales from Topographic Oceans, and one of the best prog releases from the latter half of the 1970s. An excellent addition to any prog collection. If you're new to Yes, start with The Yes Album, Fragile, Close to the Edge, and Relayer before picking up Going for the One. Four stars.

Review by Dim
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars After Relayer, what kind of album can you make? Well, Yes made a very good album called going for the one one, which is also the most underated album on this site. After Relayer the band decided to tale a year off and concentrate on solo projects, which led to the some people discovering hidden talents that they were not able to tap on inside the band. Chris Squire found that he could wright a descent song or two, and Alan found out that in order to become a bad drummer, dont do any fills, which he proceeds to do on this album and the rest until the nineties. Songs like Awaken, and Turn of the century are some of the best songs classic Yes has to offer, but are unlike any other song Yes has done before that, which means something must have happened.

The music of this album still retains the typical Yes vibe, very lush keyboards, no overly overdone guitars, and Jon Andersons amazing flowing voice. On the title song though, the music is much more overtly rock and roll, but still very Yes like with a slide guitar as the lead instrument. With these changes though, there are some set backs. The lyrics are much more straight forward, which I do not like very much, I actually like it when Anderson is singing the weird spacey stuff that makes no sense, because you know it has to mean something, you just cant tell though, but on this album everything is very direct, lacking that mystery that always shrouded itself around Yes. Otherwise, the whole album is great, except parralells, the song is weird lyrically, and musicaly not much better. The best track on this album is obviously Awaken.

Awaken is what Jon Anderson says is the best single song that Yes ever put out, and I think it's up there with Close to the edge and the gates of delirium as well. Why? Because it's just so different from anything your ears have ever heard, and it also holds the weird and amazing lyrics that I have already bragged about. With the awesome piano intro to the crazy "awaken gentle mass touch" part and arguably Howe's greatest solo to ever be recorded with Yes. Even the strange percussion part after the workings of man section is awesomely mystical, and I cant get enough of it. But it's the last part that really brings me to my knees, with Jon Anderson just wailing his heart out to just a very soft keyboard patch, I dont care what anybody says about Jon, he is the greates pog singer ever!

After Going for the one, Yes would go on to make make the pretty good Tormato, then backstab themselves with Drama.As for this album, it spelt the begginning of the end of the classic Yes period. This album will always be very special to me as all Yes albums from the Yes album to Tormato. Anyone who is a true Yes fan will love this album, and I cant say you are a major Yes fan if you havent heard it yet anyways. Overall impression...

4****

Review by Tarcisio Moura
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars A very fine album that came out at one of progīs worst times (1977). Rick Wakemanīs return to the fold was big news in 76, but things changed a lot in the music scene in the space of an year. Nevertheless, it was a great return to form after some rather over the top works (Tales From Topographic Oceans and Relayer). Yes somehow found a balance between their sheer musicanship and some more accessible melodies, something they seemed to have lost after Close To The Edge.

The album as a whole is nearly flawless, and having only 5 tracks, it has something for everyone. At the time I liked the shorter songs a lot more than the long ones, like Awaken, but now I think Going For The One is an excellent prog album and it stood well the test of time. Although not as inspired as the classic albums of the early 70īs (which, by the way, would be asking too much), this is classic Yes and a must have for any prog fan.

Review by Queen By-Tor
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
5 stars Going for a comeback.

One of the most controversial ''classic'' Yes albums, Going For The One's unique style of play has won over the ears of many prog-listeners while turning off others. This album definitely has a heavier edge than it's predecessors; this is likely due to the punk bombardment and the subsequent ''Death'' of the progressive genre in the mid to late 70s. Wakeman is back along with the band after a 3-year hiatus since Relayer and they're ready to make some very new stuff. New and familiar tones are abundant as the YesMen make their comeback album, even featuring their first No. 1 [UK] hit single, WONDEROUS STORIES. However, the world was a very different place from when they'd made their last album, and it's very clear that they were about to adapt.

Starting off the album is the heavy-blues inspired riff from Mr. Howe that gives way to the title track, GOING FOR THE ONE. A catchy, rough edged song that often takes flak for those exact reasons; this is the less polished side of the band. Where as a riff off something like ''Close To The Edge'' was buffered and cleaned to the point of perfection, here Howe actually uses the grungy sound to his advantage. Jon Anderson's vocals hit new heights as he screams out the chorus at the top of his lungs as Yes prove to the punks that even the ''Dinosaur'' bands can still rock.

Toning it down several notches is the emotional TURN OF THE CENTURY. Quiet and low-key this is certainly a change in pace from the opener. A sad love story that's both lovely and depressing at the same time this is a track that makes great use of emotion in all the instruments and especially in the vocal department. Long and pretty, this is one of Yes's better compositions, and excellent when performed live.

Between this point and the looming epic that is the album's coda are a few more tracks. There's often mixed opinions about each of them, so what exactly do they sound like? Well. Wakeman is clearly back, of that there's no doubt - PARRALLELS opens with a synthesizer blast and starts on it's way. Often seen as one of the weaker compositions on the album, I've always found that it's on the same plane as the title track. Heavy and straightforward, this is a prog-rock track to be remembered (even if it's rock side is more clear than it's prog side). Then there's the track that made this comeback a comeback. WONDEROUS STORIES is a nice little ditty that's very pleasing and accessible. In my opinion, however, for the average prog goer: This is the weakest track on the album. It's quiet, short and has nothing spectacular in the way of musicianship. However, as stated before, there's nothing unenjoyable about it.

But of course, Yes wouldn't be Yes without making a long track to blow some minds. On this particular outing that track is AWAKEN. Starting with some quick keys and a brief a-cappella bit by Jon the song quickly starts to suit the style that the rest of the album has taken. This stuff is rough, heavy and rebellious. A driving drum and bassline coupled with some excellent riffs by Howe make this song one of the most interesting in the Yes catalog. Perfect changes in pace and tone over the course of the song make for some interesting pieces of work, especially for ''rough'' Yes. True, this song does have more polish on it than some of the previous songs, as evident in the soloing, but this song is still one of the more aggressive songs that Yes has done. Granted, the song does slow down tremendously, if only to let the audience take a break, as White gently taps the bells and cymbals nearing the center of the song. This song is truly a Yes classic, and there are some wonderful live renditions of it later on in the band's career. Don't miss it!

AWAKEN finally comes to a close with the album leaving the listener with only a chill in their spine. This is one of Yes's best works, and their last great effort for about a decade afterwards. Recommended for all, just so long as they don't expect the exact same band that was so present on Close To The Edge. 5 stars, they earned it.

Review by ghost_of_morphy
PROG REVIEWER
5 stars Yes had a magnificent run in the early '70's, releasing some of the best albums ever to fly the symphonic prog flag. Yet the quality of the work had dipped and personnel problems had cropped up. Going for the One was intended to restart their career. With Wakeman back in the fold, the Dean covers ditched and with a less experimental but more grand sound, Yes did exactly that. Who knew back in 1977 that we would have to wait TWENTY YEARS for a work of comparable quality? (Keys to Ascension 2.) Of course this album isn't perfect. I find the title track to be as ugly as the cover, while Wondrous Stories is a bit too twee for my tastes. However, in Awaken we have what may be the best epic outside of CTTE that Yes ever composed, while Turn of the Century has all of the grandeur of that song in about half the running time. Parallels is a great song that shows that Yes still remembers how to rock as well as how to prog. Anyhow, enjoy the last masterpiece from the '70's Yes.

5 stars all the way.

Review by Prog Leviathan
PROG REVIEWER
3 stars Without a doubt the last good album of Yes' classic library, featuring one or two outstanding moments and songs but in general lacking in almost every quality which made their previous work so amazing.

The first thing to acknowledge is the modern, approachable sound these songs have-- they are not nearly as complex or challenging as what's come before... musically or lyrically. The opener is a treble-filled exercise in classic-rock masochism featuring the non-stop chaos of Howe's slide guitar and very shrill, repetitive singing from Anderson-- not to mention the return of Wakeman's cartoonish keyboards (boo!).

This attempt at a grand, powerful start utterly fails, but is redeemed by the classy performance of the aforementioned offenders in the beautifully articulated ballad, Turn of the Century, which in my opinion is one of the band's best soft songs. Parallels is merely OK, sabotaged by the church organ, and Wondrous Stories is inexcusably silly.

Fortunately the mediocrity of the early album is almost forgotten about when Awaken gets going... the final Yes epic. Well composed and passionately performed, this one makes it into the band's highlight reel; it's almost worth the price of the album alone. Howe's soloing shines, as do Anderson's pure vocals, which pass through the song's many dynamic changes beautifully.

Recommended for Yes fans, but certainly among the final purchases of their classic library.

Songwriting: 3 Instrumental Performances: 3 Lyrics/Vocals: 3 Style/Emotion/Replay: 2

Review by SouthSideoftheSky
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Symphonic Team
3 stars Not the one!

Many Yes fans consider this something of a come back album or a return to form for the band. This is mainly because it was Rick Wakeman's return to the band after a couple of years of absence, during which he was replaced with Patrick Moraz. As much as I love Rick, this is not my view.

While most people seem to be in agreement over the greatness of The Yes Album, Fragile and Close To The Edge, there is some considerable controversy over the merits of Tales From Topographic Oceans, Relayer, Going For The One, Tormato and Drama. Personally, I love all of these albums, but Going For The One is the one I like the least of all of the mentioned albums. Hence, in my opinion Going For The One was, at the time of its release, the least good Yes album since Time And A Word.

Compared to Tales From Topographic Oceans and Relayer, Going For The One is certainly less experimental and more conventional in nature. The title track is almost something of a straightforward rock 'n' roll number and has never been one of my favourites. Awaken is the only truly progressive piece on this album, and while it is a great piece of music it is not up to par with Close To The Edge or Gates Of Delirium.

Overall, this album is more serious and has a colder, more bombastic, baroque kind of feeling compared to earlier ones. Rick is indeed back in the fold, but the synthesisers take a backseat in favour of grand piano and church organ. And Steve often plays acoustic guitars. All this gives the album a more classical sound and feeling.

Had this album been by another band I would probably have given it four stars, but perhaps I just demand more of my favourite band. For me this is just a three and a half star album.

Still, a very good album that is surrounded by greater ones!

Review by Mellotron Storm
PROG REVIEWER
3 stars 3.5 stars. Unfortunately i'm reviewing this after spending a lot of time with "Tales From Topographic Oceans" and i'm still feeling the hangover effects from that one. In fact the bad taste all came back with the song "Turn Of The Century" which would have fit well on "Tales From Topographic Oceans" if they'd just stretched it out even more than they did here. I do also think that when compared to the previous album "Relayer" it pales big time. On it's own I like it but these guys could have done so much better. Rick Wakeman is back in the fold after they gave Moraz the boot, although he's the first person they thank in the liner notes.

"Going For The One" is a difficult tune not to like. Anderson seems so confident as he sings with passion. I don't know if i've heard Howe sound quite like he does on this track. Squire is prominant as usual. This song doesn't let up from start to finish. "Turn Of The Century" i've already commented on, I just have a hard time getting into this almost 9 minute track.

"Parallels" features some great organ and guitar work. "Wonderous Stories" is a very positive and uplifting song. "Awaken" is of course what everyone is waiting for. Some nice piano to open as vocals follow. A full sound before 2 minutes,and it sounds amazing. Check out Howe before 3 1/2 minutes. Vocals return 5 1/2 minutes in. A cool soundscape comes in before Anderson returns 11 minutes in. An uplifting section 11 1/2 minutes with guitar helping out a lot in that department. Wakeman then takes over briefly.

I think this is worth having but I also think they have several albums that are much better.

Review by The T
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
4 stars "Going for the One" is a good successor to "Relayer", which in my view shares, with "Close to the Edge", the spot as YES' best album ever. While it doesn't reach the same peaks of excellence overall, there are a few moments when it actually towers over all the rest of the band's records.

The return of Rick Wakeman of course is a welcome event, even if Moraz was a fantastic replacement. It just feels as if Wakeman is the right keyboardist for YES. His return, though, it's of course helped by the fact that the band tried to write better songs this time around. In contrast with the three-song "Relayer" (molded after "Close to the Edge"), and even more with the fatally flawed "Tales from Topographic Oceans", "Going for the One" features 5 songs, 4 of them of rather average length (if by "average" we can also mean 8 minutes). All but the last track are quite accessible at first listen, and they aim for simplicity (if not total) and effect (even if they fail).

"Going for the One" opens the album in pure rock-fashion. More complex than the average radio track but much easier than the traditional YES puzzle. "Turn of the Century" is almost beautiful, even though Anderson's vocals never let any song reach total beauty (in YES, instrumental music has to do it all by itself, not that Anderson is a bad vocalist but his voice doesn't fit the "musical beauty" definition). "Parallels" is simple yet entertaining. "Woundrous Story" closes the first half of the album in good fashion.

Of course, the until-now better-than-mediocre disc is suddenly lifted to another level with the majestic closer, "Awaken", the first half of which, in my opinion, reaches the levels of "Close to the Edge in terms of musical excellence, and maybe even surpasses them in energy and power. The beginning and first half of the song are just magnificent, with the recurrent downward-figure adding drama and tension the likes of which YES never achieved again (or before). It feels like hard- rock. It feels like energy trapped and ready to explode. The second half is much more quiet, but the resolution is satisfying. I have to confess that this may be now my favorite YES' song.

And thanks to the amazing closer, "Going for the One" leaves 3-star territory to reach a higher status. Better than "The Yes Album" or the very bad "Tales from Topographic Oceans", it sits on the same level as "Fragile": right next to the best YES ever offered, but not quite there.

Review by russellk
PROG REVIEWER
3 stars There was an all-too-brief period when YES was the best band in the world. They created wonderful music, each musician excelling but the music still crystal-clear and compelling, underlined by CHRIS SQUIRE's thunderous bass. That period may have ended with 'Tales' or 'Relayer', depending on your taste, but most would agree it was well and truly over by 1977 when 'Going For The One' was released.

'Going For The One' is regressive. It returns to the pre-'Yes Album' days, evoking 'Time and a Word'. Retreating from the complex, multi-part epic, YES present us here with four unconnected songs and one epic of sorts. The themes in each of these four songs are not without merit, but instead of doing the extra work to weave them together, they merely send them marching towards us, one after the other. We get the title track, a sort of Zeppelinesque guitar job, HOWE masquerading as a rock'n'roll axeman rather than the sweeping sound technician he is. After that's over we get an acoustic number, 'Turn of the Century', a pleasant workout in search of something memorable. WAKEMAN shows us his organ in 'Parallels', which really does sound like a part from an epic taken out of context. This is followed by 'Wondrous Stories', a beautiful vignette that would have made a glorious centrepiece to what YES do best, extended multi-layered compositions.

Why would they take this step backwards? After all, they didn't after the critically lambasted 'Tales From Topographic Oceans'. No, it was the relative commercial failure of 'Relayer' (it sold well, to be fair, but commercial success is measured by the percentage of the print run sold, and in this area 'Relayer' failed) that prompted an extended hiatus, followed by this rather average rock album.

Something was clearly going on behind the scenes. The awesome power of SQUIRE's bass is deliberately repressed: had he done something to offend HOWE and ANDERSON? Had the band become tired of their trademark powerful sound? Or were they frightened of repeating themselves, of becoming irrelevant? I doubt it, or they wouldn't have come up with 'Awaken' which, although a pale facsimile of their earlier epics, at least contained more than one idea. Enjoy it, because it's the last one you'll be getting for many long, cold years.

Review by Sinusoid
PROG REVIEWER
3 stars I wonder what exactly ''the One'' Yes was ''Going for'', but in my mind, it is the epic ''Awaken''. It's like the 15+ minute wonder that Yes rewarded their fans with after three years of waiting for RELAYER's follow-up. ''Awaken'' has everything that should keep progsters fulfilled for a good long time; a soft, emotional intro, beautiful guitar work, abstract lyrics, loads of church organ and a gorgeous middle that builds to a cathartic climax.

Beyond that, there isn't much substance to the album. The title track is one of the worst things Yes ever produced; the slide guitar tone and vocals are simply ear-murdering. Most of the rest of the songs are either too corny or too twee. ''Parallels'' uses the church organ well, but I find that it lasts too long. One great epic a great prog album does not make.

Review by poslednijat_colobar
PROG REVIEWER
5 stars Greatness and completeness!Probably the most completed album by Yes in terms of songwriting.The album was made after a little hiatus for the band,because of the beginnings of the solo careers of the musicians.But this is not obstacle about the synchronism between them.It contains a special moment for music history - the composition Awaken!The sound is devided by a few flows with extremely successful echoes effects.The other songs are divided by two groups with two songs each.The first group is two fast songs - Going for the One and Parallels - the first one with little country influence and maybe the weakest on the album (if you can talk about any waekness on the album);Parallels is catchy from the first listenning with its attractive melody and technique.Its bass work from Chris Squire is just perfect and one of the most memorable bass works of all time for me.The is typical example for a song with everything on the right place.The others - Turn of the Century and Wonderous Stories are the group of the power ballads with extreme progressive sound.At the end I with say Awaken,the song every collection can't live without.It's a magic!It is alone in its own group.All of the instruments walk on different way,but they gathered on the crossing;just the echoes stay aside from the crossing.Just amazing!
Review by ProgBagel
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars Yes - 'Going for the One' 4 stars

The last truly progressive effort by Yes was not in vein. This album was pretty damn good.

This album might get a little too much credit for the return of Rick Wakeman. In my honest opinion, I think he didn't do anything on this album that is comparable with his first stint. This is mostly a guitar driven album and Steve Howe dwells into some standard rock rhythms that sometimes give the album a bad vibe, but it only really shines through in the opening track which I find terrible. Everything is great though.

Other then the first trick which was a disappointment due to a constant standard rock riff that draws a bridge between Yes and Led Zeppelin, a connection that simply doesn't work, I find all the pieces to be awesome. The second track 'Turn of the Century' has an excellent acoustic intro and eventually becomes a band oriented song. I love the rhythm section and vocal lines. 'Parallels' was another song with a strong sense of a rock format, but was done much more wisely then 'Going for the One'. 'Wonderous Stories' is by far the best song that ever featured Jon Anderson's voice. The singing on this track is absolutely breathtaking with Steve Howe's steel guitar to provide some backing. 'Awaken' is regarded as one of Yes's true masterworks. I am quite fond of it myself, but I don't think that makes top 10 Yes material. It is a nice piece, but there was nothing truly memorable about it to cherish it forever.

With four of the five songs ranging from great to excellent, I find it just natural to give this album a solid 4 stars.

Review by Epignosis
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
4 stars Every single song on this album I disliked initially. The first time I heard the title track, I thought, "Who are these guys?" The second song sounded boring. The third was okay, but uninteresting. The fourth song had been the only one I'd known from this album for a long time, and I thought it was a mere recreation of "Your Move." The fifth song was weird, grating, and monotonous in the middle. How does one overcome these hurdles with Yes? By listening.

"Going for the One" The steel guitar is difficult to get over at first. But I must confess: My first experience with this song was on the Keys to Ascension DVD, which frankly sounds terrible. After a few listens to the studio version here, my prejudice gave way, and I really began to enjoy the song for what it was- not the best of Yes, but a very good, rollicking tune indeed.

"Turn of the Century" This, I cannot listen to as I review it. Over the years, it has brought tears to my eyes for reasons that may be too personal to go on about here. The lyrics describe a reversal, then re-reversal, of the mythological story of Pygmalion and Galatea. Roan would always tell his wife, who danced about and was a free spirit, to sit still so he could sculpt her. Soon, she died, and Roan only had a statue of his wife- precisely what he wanted of her. But suddenly his statue came to life, and his wife was in his arms again. The song ends with a nostalgic feeling. The instrumental section, featuring Wakeman's best piano work while with Yes, Chris Squire's bass, and some great electric guitar work from Steve Howe, make this one of the highlights of the album. The key changes are flawless. This has to be some of Howe's best acoustic guitar work ever.

"Parallels" Wakeman's church organ and Squire's bass dominate this Squire-penned number. Hearing the rehearsals from the bonus material, it sounds like something that could have been a part of his solo album, but as the rest of Yes gets their hands fully on it, it becomes something more like them. It's an exciting track, even if Howe's guitar work tends to be a little sloppy and out of place throughout.

"Wonderous Stories" This one is like "Your Move," as I mentioned in the introductory paragraph, but it really has its own style, and is very different from everything else here.

"Awaken" The epic of the album, "Awaken" contains fabulous piano work, wild guitar runs, and some of the most esoteric lyrics Jon Anderson has ever put through a microphone. The middle section is a drawn out, quiet instrumental part, with Wakeman's church organ, playing ever so majestically. Anderson's vocals are wonderful in this work. The end and the beginning are amazing bookends.

Review by lazland
PROG REVIEWER
5 stars The maestro returns! Wakeman came back to the fold with this album, recorded in Switzerland. This was my first ever Yes album, and not only do I retain a great deal of affection for it for that reason, but I also regard it as being their finest album.

The opener, and title track, is untypical Yes, and moves along at a rate of knots. I do especially enjoy the Howe guitar at the end accompanying Anderson Talk about sending love sequence.

What follows, though, is a track of such breathtaking beauty that it is the single piece of music I want to be played at my funeral. Turn of the Century tells a simple story wonderfully - it is a tale of a love that is so intense and important that it transcends our ultimate test, that of death. You feel for Roan when his love passes away, following much suffering. Then Roan moulds a clay statue of his love which comes to life in a fantastic burst, dancing and singing in a celebration of life and love. Steve Howe's guitar solo in the interim still makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up, it is that beautiful. This song is not a mere track, it is a whole experience, and I especially like the fact that Anderson is able to tell a story that we can all relate to and understand. Sheer perfection in music.

Parallels is a great track, and is the first to feature the Wakeman church organ. The maestro is on top form on this album, playing as if his life depended upon it.

Wondrous Stories, of course, attracts a fair bit of criticism because it's commercial and a pop song. As with much of the Collins era Genesis, this doesn't bother me at all - I think its a great pop song, and the best testimony you can write about it is the fact that it became a huge UK hit at a time when punk was raging across the country in a flurry of snot and filth.

The original album ends with what I regard as being the ultimate Yes epic, Awaken. The passage of church organ by Wakeman is his finest moment with the band, utterly majestic and alive. The track also contains some excellent Howe guitar bursts and Anderson is on great form. An incredible track, it is even better live in my opinion. Deservedly one of the greats in the band's extensive cannon.

I rate this LP as five stars without hesitation. For those people visiting this site who are looking to start purchasing Yes, I would recommend this as the ideal place to start your journey, before progressing to the earlier stuff. An incredible album and utterly indispensible as part of any prog collection.

Review by BrufordFreak
COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
4 stars Perhaps the last LP with the consistent high compositional quality of the The Yes Album through Relayer, Going for the One does have some trouble drawing people into its rather diverse moods and styles. The musicianship is without a doubt outstanding and "Awaken" [12/10] is, IMO, the greatest prog song ever written, but on the whole accessibility is somewhat lacking, even from the "pretty" songs, "Turn of the Century" [6/10: a bit too long] and "Wonderous Stories" [7/10]. While "Parallels" [3/10] is breathtaking to see live for Steve Howe's energy and emotion, the song itself is almost overwhelming in its in-your-face organ loudness, annoying snare, discordant, 'pushed' vocal harmonies. It just has too much going on. "Going for the One" [2/10] is the oddest and poorest opening song of any Yes album. It sounds more like a song from Steve Howe's first solo album: great technique, annoying, almost grating sound. I don't care if I ever hear it again. But then, there is "Awaken." Masterful from opening notes of the piano to Jon's sensitive opening vocals, to the guitar riff that sucks you in, to the Alan White drums that are so strong, so steady, and all over the soundscape, to the greatest Steve Howe solo ever, to the entrance and dominance of the St. Martin's Church organ, to the quiet interlude with Jon's harp which keeps building with Rick's organ and Steve's guitar work to the amazing "master of . . ." vocal section which culminates in the pinnacle of organ and pedal steel sound before crashing into the blissful bath of Jon's nostalgic vocals and Steve's pedal steel washes. Wow. Probably my favorite Jon Anderson vocals of all-time.

Hard to rate this one when there are such highs (the highest) and such lows. Still, don't miss this if just for "Awaken."

Review by Kazuhiro
PROG REVIEWER
3 stars Yes in the 70's does some groping and conversions of the direction for the music of the band. "The Yes Alubum" and "Relayer", etc. might be works of the result of the conversion and grope remarkably appearing. How the member who had joined newly whenever the work is announced sent a new wind to the history of Yes can be discovered through the work.

If the respect is considered, this album might be a work at the time of a certain kind of conversion as the band. It might be one of the elements that the point that each member is announcing Solo Album as passage from "Relayer" to this album is big. However, the activity of Patrick Moraz might already have conceived danger especially away from the distance and the band to Yes in those activities.

After the activity with Solo, each member begins the production of this album. However, work that the work of the recording that seemingly looks gone also in haste rearranges arrangements by the secession of the band of Patrick Moraz is done through necessity. Yes was known with the amount of the practice considerably to attempt the improvement of the technology of the performance and the improvement of knowledge. They in haste looked for the player of the keyboard because Moraz had abandoned coexisting by own place of activity and the activity of Yes. It was Rick Wakeman.

Steve Howe is answered in the interview at this time. 「I thought that I became a chance where we returned to the sound like the first stage again in this album. It came to understand whether the band returned to original shape and what directionality you had. 」 The temporary title that was called "The New Yes Album" existed in this album. It is possible to visit signs where the member tries to watch the music that they till then did again and it tried to create the music of new Yes with fresh new ideas.

It is possible to visit some new elements by developing the composition of the tune of the masterpiece principle that they till then were performing further for this made album. The band that seemed to establish a new route by "Relayer" guesses the album with the element of the music diffused to former shape further by this album though the music character, that is, installing the past is followed.

Review by The Quiet One
PROG REVIEWER
3 stars Going for the One Star? Not quite, but neither going for the 5 stars

Going for the One for me and for many other Yes fanatics is the return of Yes to it's classic Symphonic sound, leaving the new ideas Tales From Topographic Oceans and Relayer offered behind. Rick Wakeman once again on board may seem to be a bonus, however he features a few changes on the keyboards, leading to some un-substancial synths and some over-dose of the church organ, unlike his stunning moog runs featured on Tales From Topographic Oceans or majestic organ on Fragile and Close to the Edge. The rest of the band is still in good shape, though not extraordinary as it was in Relayer or Close to the Edge, for example Chris Squire doesn't feature any jaw-dropping bass lines neither does Steve Howe shine on his electric guitar, both have the exception on the song Parallels, though not that's it's a great song either.

When it comes to the song-writing from Going for the One, just like the band's delivery on this album, it's nothing beyond Yes standards and it can be questioned if it's even on Yes standards. Songs like Parallels and the title track are simple structured rock songs featuring prog-used keyboards like the already mentioned synths and church organ, though for me both sound pretty unbearable on here. Then there's Wonderous Stories, as very well Robert(Epignosis) stated, it's very much alike Your Move from The Yes Album, the acoustic guitar, the keyboards, the vocals, all sounds way too familiar, while not necessary being bad per se.

Then there are the two supposedely highlights, Turn of the Century and Awaken. The former being a long, gentle acoustic-driven song, with Steve doing some nice guitar passages while Jon delivering some angelical vocals. Though got to admit I frequently get asleep while listening through the middle of it, it's just so soft, gentle, all perfect for the quietness, that there's nothing that obtains very much my attention. On the other hand there's Awaken, the last highly acclaimed epic from Yes. It introduces itself very epic-like with the elegant piano from Rick, though it's just a brief illusion of the perfection created on Close to the Edge. The main problem for me of the epic is that half of it is plain boring, with a floating non-entertaining church organ leading most of the second boring half, with few energy and deliverance from the band members. However, the first half of it is certainly worthy of mention with Steve delivering some inspired, powerful and engaging guitar lines which are able to obtain my attention and make me raise the volume.

As a whole Going for the One is on the boderline of not being up to Yes classic Prog standards, while not having bad tracks as Tormato will have, the material from here while sounding as if the Yes who made Close to the Edge is here, because it really is here, still doesn't get anywhere near that perfection neither at least a status of greatness without considering Close to the Edge or any other previous album.

Overall, a good, consistent album in decent material, yet with the line-up it features much more is expected than this IMO. Recomended after having heard all the albums that are before this one, yes that includes their debut and Time and a Word.

Review by Bonnek
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
3 stars 1977. That strangest year in prog history.

In my book, prog had been on steady decline since 73/74. Of course there were good albums in '75 and '76. VDGG was even at their highpoint, but the first generation was mostly on hiatus and wouldn't return to form ever again. Even second generation acts like Camel and Oldfield were on the decline already. But especially the popular bands of yore were in serious trouble:

Genesis had managed to survive Gabriel's departure but none of the albums since could bring back the glory days of old. ELP had, as far as I'm concerned, not released of note of interest since Trilogy. King Crimson was dead and buried. Pink Floyd disappointed me a bit with the hollow pathos of Wish You Were Here. Kraut rock had had its best years and Jethro Tull had become exactly what their album titles suggested: too old to rock 'n' roll and a minstrel in the doorway of a decaying department store.

However, 1977 turned out to be the last spasm of a dying breed. Right before punk and new wave would give prog the final blow, the old school went out with style. OK, ELP had become a really sad self-parody but Pink Floyd would release an absolute fan favourite with Animals. Jethro Tull sounded reborn on Songs From the Wood, Genesis made the classics come fully alive again on Second's Out, Tangerine Dream ended their golden years with the powerful Encore and Schulze managed to release 3 gold platters with Mirage as one of the most beautiful pieces of music ever.

And Yes? Oh yes, we were reviewing Yes here. Getting there in minute.

Yes was exactly where everybody else was: releasing their last prog statement with Going for the One, while at the same time foreboding the horror of things to come. Of course it's a very nostalgic album. Completely oblivious of its era, but even so, how on earth could the very title track end up on this album? And as an album opener for that matter! It's a guitar riff driven song but with the most inane riff in rock history. The sound balance is awful and the vocal lines are atrocious. I guess only Yes could come up with kitsch like this. This would be the kind of stuff they would fill Tormato and Drama with.

Luckily, things go steadily upwards from here on. Turn of The Century is a charming merge of Howe's excellent acoustic guitar work and the out-worldly beauty of Anderson's singing. Not prog enough for some, pure splendour for me.

Parallels is one of those few tracks were Wakeman really amazes me. The sheer pomposity of this organ-loaded track, in a year when the Sex Pistols had established themselves as the future of rock, is one of the most striking discrepancies in pop music and an overwhelming proof of the power of rock and its freedom of expression. Unbelievable, to attempt something like this in that year and to pull it off so convincingly. But the prog beast of interest is Awaken of course. I've come to understand that not all of us here are equally impressed by it but for me it has always been one of the more enjoyable Yes suites. And the reason is Howe and Wakeman. They both shine and overwhelm me here like they never did before. I mean, Wakeman used to be an annoying jerk that liked the sound of his own playing too much and Howe's neurotic playing usually got on my nerves easily. But here, they deliver the goods. Amazing solos, excellent background sounds, whatever the song needed.

Overal this album is an amazing statement and one of the last great prog albums from first generation.

Review by TheGazzardian
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars After a three years, Yes record Going for the One. This would be, in my opinion, the last of the stretch of 'essential' records they released, starting with The Yes Album. If one paid close attention, they might notice that this was the beginning of the end, yet the music was so good it was easy to convince oneself that that wasn't the case.

The biggest thing that heralded in the change in Yes' direction was the departure of keyman Patrick Moraz to be replaced by Rick Wakeman. This would be the first time Yes would replace a current member with a former member. This was a band that seemed to grow stronger and more adventurous with each new member they added, starting with Steve Howe, then Rick Wakeman the first time he joined the band, then Alan White, then Patrick Moraz. So booting out a new member in favour of a 'classic' member could perhaps have been the red flag that indicated to Yes fans that perhaps the Yes machine was running out of steam. They didn't know where they wanted to go, and wanted to repeat the success of their previous records.

Despite this, Going for the One was an excellent record. It may not have been as far reaching as their previous three records, but it demonstrates that Yes has learned a lot in the meantime, and know how to craft excellent songs. It also included the most delicate music they had released to date.

Despite that, it also included one of their most propulsive rockers to date, in the title track 'Going for the One'. It was a nice, short song that hasn't yet got boring to me.

But it was the second track where Yes revealed their more tender side. This was with the track 'Turn of the Century', one of the most sad songs I have ever heard. The truth is that Jon has the perfect voice to sing sad lyrics, and works perfectly on this song. It also includes some beautiful guitar work from Steve. Really, this song demonstrates why those two were so great together, while still giving the rest of the band ample room to strut their stuff. Nonetheless, this song is a perfect example of why Steve and Jon are my favorite members of Yes.

The next track, Parallels, is my least favorite on the album, as the keys just feel too overpowering to me. The vocals are catchy at least, but I've never been able to love this one.

Side 2 starts with Wondrous Stories, another nice, quiet track. This one is quite short, clocking in at under 4 minutes. This is the shortest band track since Long Distance Runaround, and it managed to receive a decent amount of airplay. It is a nice little track, if not particularly amazing.

What makes this album stellar is the last track, Awaken. This is the last of Yes' 'classic' epics. It starts with some nice piano from Rick, followed by some more proof that Jon is singing music perfectly suited for his voice. While the lyrics are still oblique and ethereal ("High Vibration Go On...Past a mortal as me, where can I be?"), Jon's voice makes them feel both like they have deep meaning and somehow, resonate deeply within me. The song builds excellently, before it's slower middle section. Truthfully, I was not a fan of the middle section, which seems long and repetitive, for a long time, but the first recording I heard of this song was the Live at Montreux 2003 version. The studio version is much better. After that, the song recaps the main themes, ending on the touching lyric of "Like the time I ran away and turned around and you were standing close to me", which is sad and optimistic at the same time.

It has been argued that Awaken is Yes' best epic, and while I don't agree, it alone makes this album worth owning. Overall, this album is not as experimental or adventurous as Yes' previous work, yet it is very solid and definitely worth owning.

On the note of the bonus tracks, there is some interesting stuff, but for me, the most interesting is the very early version of 'Turn of the Century'. In this cut, it sounds more like a rocker than the acoustic piece it became. While I think that what it became suits the feeling of the song much more, I wonder what kind of song they could have come up with that used this music (especially Steve's guitar riff).

Review by UMUR
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
4 stars "Going for the One" is the 8th full-length studio album by UK progressive rock act Yes. The album was released through Atlantic Records in July 1977. "Going for the One" was a return after a three year long recording break since the release of "Relayer (1974)" and it also marked the return of keyboard player Rick Wakeman to the fold. Patrick Moraz only got to show his skills on one album. Itīs been quite a few years since I listened to "Going for the One" the last time. My old scratched LP (bought second hand for what corresponds to $1) has never been much of a pleasure to listen to and itīs only recently that Iīve purchased the 2003 Elektra remaster CD version which has a much better sound quality compared to that old LP of mine. The Elektra remaster CD version features seven bonus tracks. The first three, "Montreux's Theme", "Vevey (Revisited)" and "Amazing Grace", are worth investigating while I donīt find the rehearsal versions of "Going For The One", "Parallels", "Turn Of The Century" and the early version of "Awaken" called "Eastern Numbers" very exciting. Those last mentioned tracks are mostly for the hardcore fans IMO.

But of course itīs the five tracks that make up the original album thatīs of real interest here. All five tracks are high quality compositions which sound unmistakably like Yes. Jon Andersonīs distinct vocals lead the way, but the outstanding instrumental performances and interplay between the musicians are also a great asset on the album as well as the many great harmony vocals by bassist Chris Squire. The title track starts the album off in a great fashion with an unusual bluesy slide guitar part, but soon it turns into a great progressive rock song. Itīs on the lighter side compared to the epics of the three preceeding albums but itīs a great song. "Turn Of The Century" is a cleverly build song that starts subtle but ends with layers upon layer of instruments and sounds. A very symphonic track that one. "Parallels" is the second rock track on the album but itīs a rather unusual one with the omnipresent and quite dominating church organ. A rather strange choice of instrument for a song like this but itīs certainly innovative. Iīve always had a weak spot for "Wonderous Stories" which is a very melodic and ballad type track. Itīs by far the most simple song on the album but itīs still a wonderful song. The album ends with the 15:38 minute long and epic track "Awaken". An excellent example of how good Yes are at making multi- section epics. This oneīs got it all. Wonderful vocal parts, great instrumental parts and an intriguing structure.

The production is very clean on the Elektra remaster CD version that I have and I remember the LP version as more bass heavy and generally darker in sound. I enjoy the more clinical sound on the CD version though.

"Going for the One" is one of those unique albums that doesnīt sound like anything else. Itīs somewhat removed from the sound of the earlier releases by the band and it doesnīt really sound like anything they released after it either. Itīs safe to say that Iīve been blown away by the unique nature of "Going for the One" and I canīt tell enough times how glad I am that I purchased the Elektra remaster CD version which really re-ignited my interest in the album. A 4 - 4.5 star (85%) rating is fully deserved. This one is close to a masterpiece in my book.

Review by ProgressiveAttic
COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
4 stars One more classic after three Yes masterpieces!

During the timespan of five years (1971-1976) Yes released five classic albums (or at least considered classics in prog circles) and now they complete this long chain of impressive albums. The expectations for "Going for the One" where really high, especially after the spectacular Relayer (considered a masterpiece by many, including myself), which was also preceded by two other masterpieces (in my not so humble opinion): "Close to the Edge" and "Tales from Topographic Oceans".

The Yes phenomena is characterized by a constant change of sound product of the frequent lineup changes and their "classic" symphonic 70s era is no exception. The first of this changes was Steve Howe's arrival as Peter Banks' replacement on the guitar (The Yes Album), followed by Rick Wakeman replacing Tony Kaye on keys (Fragile and Close to the Edge), the substitution of Bill Bruford by Alan White on drums (Tales from Topographic Oceans) and Wakeman leaving his position on Patrick Moraz' hands (Relayer). Now Rick Wakeman returns after a very successful solo career with the release of albums such as "The Six Wives of Henry the VIII", "Journey to the Center of the Earth" and "No Earthly Connection", among others.

This time the "Tales from Topographic Oceans" lineup returns to produce more accessible, but still progressive, music. So don't expect double albums, concept or 20 minute epics (although Awaken has some epic attributes and is fairly long: 15+ minutes), but do expect very pleasant and well delivered symphonic classics. Nonetheless, the atmosphere of some of the tracks is reminiscent to "Tales...", both in lyrical and musical content (specially the ballads).

The feeling that I get from this album, trying to find a wider and more mainstream audience while being truth to their symphonic prog style, is embodied by the variety of styles represented by each different piece. In first place we have the title and opening track which presents a "radio-friendly" dynamic hard rock (but not too hard) style dominated by Howe's riffs (nothing really interesting) and Anderson/Squire vocalizations (always pleasant to listen to), very aptly backed by White's dynamic drumming and Squire's characteristic bass with the sporadic accompaniment of a piano provided by Wakeman.

Turn of the Century is an outstanding ballad, one of the most beautiful love songs ever written by Jon Anderson, with Anderson's lyrics and Steve Howe's acoustic guitar in the spotlight, with some vocal mellotron participation in the background. After the first half of the song, new instrumentation is introduced without disrupting or modifying the atmosphere and quality of the song. This new section of the piece includes electric guitars added to the original acoustic and various keyboards (including piano, floating synths and harpsichord).

Parallels, together with the title track, is one of the low points of the album. This doesn't mean that it is a bad song, on the contrary it is very enjoyable and has a certain symphonic feeling to it that most Yes fans would appreciate, but it isn't really progressive. The main melody is a very simple chord progression played by Wakeman on a church organ, which gives sort of a grand sound to the song. The most interesting (but not too interesting... if you know what I mean) elements of the song are Steve Howe's electric guitar soloing and some nice church organ lines present in some sections. On the other hand, the rhythm section provides a very exciting upbeat rhythm while the typical Yes vocalizations complete the band's characteristic sound.

Wonderous Stories is the shortest song of the album and one of the loveliest. Another ballad dominated by Jon Anderson's voice but this time the main accompaniment is provided by Wakeman's keys with some brief but relevant guitar participation courtesy of Mr. Howe.

Awaken, considered by many (including myself) one of the most relevant Yes compositions, is the longest and best accomplished song in the album and the only true team collaboration between the members of the band. The atmosphere of the song is very grand, and it's filled with excellent guitar lines and keyboard runs (Wakeman's trademark), the vocals are completely magnificent and the rhythm section shines and is as tight as on the last three albums. Here the keyboards play a very important part since they provide the unique atmosphere that supports the sound and in many sections represent the lead instrument. This is a must for Wakeman fans like myself.

Total: 4.25

A very enjoyable album but not a masterpiece, nonetheless a must for Yes fans. This is the last great 70s Yes album since Tormato wasn't very well accomplished (although it had lots of potential and shines every now and then). Don't expect bombastic and over the top prog, what you'll get is a more calmed and easy to digest Yes.

4 stars for one of the many classics produced by one of my all time favorite bands.

Review by thehallway
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars AWAKEN GENTLE MASS TOUCHING

'Going for the One' marks the end of a Yes era, but also the start of the next one. It is a transitional album (not a bad thing!) and this is reflected in the tracks. There's a mixture of quality and "cringe-worthy" material, a blend of proggresiveness and commerciallity. And the sound is busier than ever (again, not a bad thing on this record). The enthusiastic overdubbing is what gives this album it's trademark sound; every song sounds bright and full, sometimes processed, but with a smart continuity that effectively seperates it from the past baggage of the apparently unpopular 'Tales from Topographic Oceans'. 'GFTO' was Yes opening up to new audiences without forgetting that they are a symphonic prog band.

So the title track is commercial, but no one can deny that it IS catchy. And due to it's boogie woogie sections and fantastically busy climax, it's one of my favourite songs on the album. 'Turn of the Century' is beautiful all over (second only to 'And You And I' in terms of soundscapes). 'Parallels' sounds to me like a left-over from Squire's 'Fish Out of Water' album, but the church organ work rescues it from the depths of boring riff-rock. I'm not sure about the way this tune is produced though, there's something fishy about it (and I'm not reffering to Chris himself!). The frequently mispelled 'Wonderous Stories' is the single from 'GFTO'. I like it but I don't love it. And then there is Awaken.

This song has been universally praised, not only by fans, but by the band themselves, who describe it as their best masterwork. I thoroughly agree. This song is a journey. A 15-minute adventure into the land of "Eastern Yes". The main riff is breathtaking, as are Howe's spiralling guitar scales that warp around it. His soloing is the best demonstration of combining frantic frenzy with melodic beauty I have ever seen. Speed and divinity have never gone hand-in-hand so well. And when the church organ comes in the listener is once again swept away into lofty, angelic passages of virtuosity and speed. The calmer middle section showcases Rick's (did I mention he was back?!) improvisational skills, where organs, guitars, and percussion instruments are overdubbed, and slowly build into a heavenly ostinato. Then comes the climactic moment when the enormous chord progression of the verses returns (it cycles through the circle of fifths with steady rhythm, ensuring every major chord makes an appearance). And before you know it, the etheral intro/outro theme is fading out to one last guitar phrase, and 'Going for the One' is over. My only complaint with 'Awaken' is that the overdubbing is essential to the pace of the song, and so it sounds rather empty and unenthusiastic when played live.

Buy this album! -Especially if you are more of a 'Starship Trooper' than a 'Sound Chaser'.

Review by snobb
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
3 stars I don't care about tasteless cover art, but album's music isn't good enough as well, that is a bigger problem...

After excellent Relayer and some years of silence, new album (with Rick Wakeman again) was kind of searching on new ways (or return back to highest class music they played before). Unhappily, their time is gone...

Wakeman being great keyboard player on early Yes albums (and his very few first solo releases) demonstrates there his "other" side - album is full of bombastic simple and "cheap" passages. Anderson sings in a manner he will sing on myriad of his solo albums later - obviously his specific timber, but voice is just a audio-signal, filling the space around. Band, being still in classic line-up, sound too often as back-up team for Wakeman passages and Anderson uninspired singing.

Composition are all simplistic, without jazz-rock feel of previous work, but with some standard tricks, compositions are long and unmemorable. You can easy recognize that it's Yes is playing, but at the same time you are all album-long wonder why music is so flat and tasteless.

Not really jazzy symphonic prog or more heavy variation of some their previous works, but faceless soft polished bombastic music, which happily is still (prog) rock, but obviously shows, what the direction will chosen by band very soon. "Awaken" is still great song on this album though...

First below average release after their stardom, happily great "Drama" still will be released after few years.

My rating is 2,5, rounded to 3.

Review by Rune2000
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
3 stars After the amazing Relayer, Rick Wakeman returned to the band and so Patrick Moraz got the boot. That was, in my opinion, a huge loss since Moraz brought new and fresh ideas, such as jazz influences, that disappeared immediately after his departure. But I guess this fact only makes Relayer seem like an even better record, which is not a bad thing! The main concern is that Yes wouldn't be able to regain their past glories with Going For The One or Tormato and instead only made them seem more like the prog dinosaurs that they were at this point.

Once again, Jon Anderson and Steve Howe wrote most of the material in advance, just as they did on Tales From Topographic Oceans, leaving not much for the other members to contribute. This is something I despise since it totally contradicted everything that this band had accomplished by that point. What made things even worse was the fact that Going For The One actually achieved what its title implied and became a hit thanks to its sole hit Wonderous Stories. This only strengthened the band's ego and so all of the members stuck around for the next release only to disband a year later.

The sound that Anderson and Howe were going for with this release comes off sounding very dated to my ears and the only instances that work are entirely comprised of low key ballad moments like those on Turn Of The Century and Wonderous Stories. Awaken is a good track but, in my opinion, it doesn't come close to such classics as Gates of Delirium, Sound Chaser, South Side Of The Sky or Yours Is No Disgrace, just to name a few.

Overall, this album is not a favorite of mine and I even happen to prefer Tales From Topographic Oceans over it! Tormato might have been criticized for its dated sound, average performances and the general lack of ideas, but all this is clearly foreshadowed on Going For The One.

**** star songs: Turn Of The Century (7:55) Wonderous Stories (3:50) Awaken (15:38)

*** star songs: Going For The One (5:32) Parallels (5:58)

Review by Evolver
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Crossover & JR/F/Canterbury Teams
4 stars This was the first Yes album that I bought on the day it was released. Rick Wakeman was back! It must be a great album. -- Initially I was disappointed with it, the songs sounding somewhat more contrived than the previous albums.

After many listens, I began to appreciate the album. Now I love it.

None of the songs are bad. Wonderous Stories, the song used as a single, is the lightest piece. The worst I can say about it is that it sounds too much like And You And I. Parallels is just okay. It's saved by a good bass line, and a strong keyboard sound. Going For The One is the song that I've change my mind the most about. On the surface, it sounds like a slightly country-flavored rock song. But it develops into a fairly complex work.

Turn Of The Century is one of the most beautiful pieces Yes ever produced. With the most coherent lyrics from Yes to date, the song is a poignant work about love and death. It begins with light guitar, and builds to a crescendo perfectly.

Awaken, the best song on the album, is a tour de force, mostly for Wakeman. It's no Close To The Edge, but it's still one of the top epics from a band that made many great epic songs.

Review by octopus-4
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR RIO/Avant/Zeuhl,Neo & Post/Math Teams
5 stars The title track with its "rock and roll" kick-off seems to indicate that the YES are becoming more pop-oriented. This is easy to say today, of course now that we can see the (few) similarities with 90125. However Going For The One is a great song and even if easier than the previous masterpieces it's still progressive.

The album flows very well. There are less virtuosisms than usual, end this makes the music less pretentious and more approachable.

The guitar-and-voice on "Turn Of The Century" is one of the most melodic things of this band. "Parallels" with its church organ and the uptime tempo is a rock track, one of those the new musical style of Yes is coming from.

"Wonderous Stories" seems to be built for Jon's voice. An echo of this song can be heard in the whole "Short Stories" the first album from Jon and Vangelis.

"Turn Of The Century", "Parallels" and "Wonderous Stories" are great songs, but it's with "Awaken" that the album reaches its peak: One of the best performances ever of Rick Wakeman, a great ensemble work and the voice of Jon not always in foreground contribute in creating a dreamy environment.

So, not a masterpiece like Close to the Edge, or Fragile. Just a different kind of masterpiece.

Review by zravkapt
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
3 stars Moraz out, Wakeman back in; Dean out, Hipgnosis now in. The TFTO line-up returns after one excellent album and a bunch of solo albums. I can never understand how Tormato gets such trashing but GFTO gets high praise. Same line-up, both recorded within two years of each other. I actually prefer Tormato. This album is the most mainstream sounding thing Yes had done since Time And A Word. Basically two good rockers which are not very proggy at all; two ballads that are neither very good nor very proggy; and one proggy epic that is good but not great.

The title track is good and catchy but not too proggy. Easily the best song on the album for me. Nice slide guitar from Howe. I don't really like the synth sounds in this song. Love the harmony vocals at the end. Anderson's vocal melody in "Turn Of The Century" is nice enough but nothing special. This song is way too New Age/Adult Contemporary for my tastes. Howe's electric guitar in the middle is the best part of the song. I like the pipe organ in "Parallels," another good catchy rocker but not as good as the title track. This is the only song where Squire's bass playing sticks out.

I absolutely hate "Wondrous Stories." I can't believe this song was a hit. An automatic 'skip' song to me. It's like the cheesy, wimpy younger brother of "Turn Of The Century." The final "Awaken" features some of the best moments on the album but is not as enjoyable as most of Yes' previous songs over 10 minutes long. Never liked the introduction. Gets really good during the "awaken, gentle, mass, touch" section. Stays good until the music stops around 6 1/2 minutes. Never really cared for the instrumental middle section. The last two minutes are just boring and lame, IMO.

This would have been better if the most Yes-like songs from the solo albums of Jon, Chris and Steve were used, along with the best parts of Wakeman's No Earthly Connection. The production isn't horrible but it isn't anything great either. Squire and White generally don't stand out too much. Don't understand all the love for this album. Good but not great. 3 stars.

Review by colorofmoney91
PROG REVIEWER
2 stars "Going for the One" marks the end of a string of classic Yes albums that most people consider to be their absolute best, and I consider this album to be an exclusion from that string.

The music on this album comes of as sounding strange to me, and mostly boring. The title track is fun, wild, and very accessible, though the southern twang present on Howe's guitar is a bit off-putting. The vocals in the title track are also very memorable and it's easy to sing along.

Unfortunately, no other track really stands out to me. "Turn of the Century" at first listen sounds like a beautiful ballad, and it is, but I kept waiting for development in the song and it never happens. It's very monotonous and extremely forgettable, in my opinion. "Parallels" brings back the punch from the first track, but seems to be not thought out very well and not one second of this track stands out, nor does it progress any. "Wondrous Stories" is mostly an acoustic song accentuated by keys, but is short, bland, and entirely uninteresting.

After the previous three tracks, all highly forgettable, I had high hopes for the epic track. "Awaken" is a decent track within the context of this album, but is insignificant in the Yes catalog. There are a few nice guitar lines in the first half of the track but becomes boring and over stays the track's +15 minute duration. Apparently this track is a classic in the Yes catalog. Weird.

Though I couldn't find much to love about this album, it is highly regarded among some Yes fans as an overlooked gem. Since fans are divided between the conclusion of masterpiece and insignificant, this is either a love it or hate it kind of album.

Review by tarkus1980
PROG REVIEWER
5 stars The music world changed substantially from 1974 to 1977, to say the least. As prog-rock groups lost their favor with critics for whatever reasons (running out of truly creative ideas, becoming more absurdly pompous all the time), groups like Yes suddenly found themselves needing to change to survive. With the Relayer tour, Yes had probably reached their "seriousness" peak - not only did lengthy epics dominate the setlist (interspersed with complex "shorter" numbers like "Sound Chaser"), but the band reached a point where its relationship to "rock" music had basically become tangential at best. Indeed, some of the earlier songs remained in their setlists, but even they were tightened up drastically with fusion interplay a la The Mahavishnu Orchestra (well, sort of) so as to impress the hell out of the listener but not really get any blood pumping. The band had progressed light-years in a very short time, but at the cost of basically removing the spark of youthful enthusiam that had made Yessongs so contagious.

So the band adapted. After the Relayer tour, the members of the band went on to each cut solo albums, the most successful and renowned of which are Jon's and Chris'. In turn, they toured these albums as a group, not forgetting to include such (by-now) standbys as "Gates" and "Ritual." By this time, however, for whatever reason, Moraz had worn out his welcome and parted ways with the band. Fortunately, the band was able to pick up somebody who had been off busily making incredibly pompous albums of his own - good ole Rick Wakeman. And so the band got back to work.

One gets the feeling, though, that in patching up various hurt feelings, the band had sat down and had a long serious discussion about its musical direction. Oh, don't get me wrong - nobody wanted the band to give up prog rock all together. But that was just the thing - if the band wished to keep getting seriouser and seriouser, it would soon have to abandon rock all together and turn to fusion or something like that. And nobody wanted that (well, I guess some fans today lament that they didn't keep getting more complex, but sheez people, just because some seriousness and complexity is fine doesn't necessarily mean that MORE complexity and seriousness is always better). And so, the band gave up trying to prove how progressive they could be and did the most important thing they could possibly do - they brought the FUN back.

Indeed, the band finally remembered that at its heart it was essentially a "trumped-up pop group," taking solid riffs and strong hooks and embellishing them with exciting and moving arrangements. As a result, the band produced an album of incredible quality that they might not have been able to do otherwise. It's a slight step down from the glory of Relayer, and I suppose it's regrettable in the long run that the band gave up on endless progression in favor of just making a good album for then and there, but man what an album! All five tracks (ok, that doesn't seem like a lot of songs for most groups, but go back and count how many tracks were on the previous three albums and it'll all be placed in perspective) are absolute winners, and only a very slight feeling of "retreading" mars the album at all.

You want rock songs? Turn to the title track and the wonderful "Parallels." Of course, neither of these songs are in the least bit "normal" - this is still Yes we're talking about, after all. The title track, whose main feature is incredibly entertaining pedal steel work from Steve, also benefits from one of the weirdest chord progressions known to man - in other words, the initial "ack! This could be from Hee-Haw!" reaction will quickly be supressed by the proggy bits. And the lyrics, man, these are actually down-to-earth and even funny. Anderson sings (by the way, he blows through all sane limits of male upper vocal range in this song) self-mocking lines about the inpentetrability of his lyrics ("Now the verses I've sung don't add much weight to the story in my head, so I'm thinking I should go and write a punchline. But it's so hard to find in my cosmic mind, I think I'll take a look out of the window. When I think about you, I don't feel low!"), and it quickly becomes obvious that the band is no longer taking itself 100% seriously.

And "Parallels," oy, "Parallels." Apparently a reject from Squire's solo album, I think it finds a nice home with the band here. For one thing, it's driven forward by a friggin' CHURCH ORGAN (with a great main riff for it, by the way), and it has so much oomph in the sound that suddenly you find yourself in the Swiss church where Rick recorded the parts, groovin' away. And the guitar on this song, man. Man. I doubt there's any real inventivness from Howe on this part, but all I know is that the lightning-fast solos on here find a way to be jaw- dropping and entertaining simultaneously, not to mention that I REALLY like the tone he has here. VERY rich, with a healthy amount of reverb put on it to hook in your ears.

Want pop ballads? Go to "Turn of the Century" and "Wonderous Stories." The former has actually established itself as my favorite of the album (not a trivial statement, as it took me a long time to decide), and with good cause. The melody is very pretty, the lyrics are quite moving (based around the story of Pygmalion and Galatea, if my memory serves me correctly), and the middle portion ... oy. Rick's piano is beautifully rich in a way that words cannot do justice to, and its interaction with the guitars is nothing short of phenomenal. I struggle to find ways to describe the effect this mid-section (and the way it builds into the ending) holds on me; I can say, however, that if such a thing as newfound joy can be properly expressed in a musical medium, THIS is that medium. It's very difficult to not want to relive the reunion Roan has with his once-deceased beloved again and again.

As for Wonderous Stories, brace yourself, but this is a 4-minute pop song. Yeah, it's slightly derivative of earlier efforts (ie "Your Move"), but how can I help it if the melody is so enjoyable? Plus, Anderson gives a cheery vocal performance of a type we haven't heard since, yup, "Time and a Word" - the lightweight hippie has re-entered his element, and seems perfectly happy to be back. Don't think the rest of the band just sulks around, though - Wakeman, you can tell, is having lots of fun on the track, even if he's not technically really doing anything THAT complex.

All this said, however, it would be unreasonable to expect a 70's Yes album at this point to lack a bonafide epic. "Awaken" apparently splits fans right down the middle - many fans adore it fanatically (and in fact, Anderson himself considers it the quintessential representation of what Yes is all about), while other fans deride it as a horridly derivative mess with no true sense or purpose. Guess which camp I belong to. No, I would never rate this above "Gates" or "CTTE" or "The Revealing Science of God." But it's a great epic piece nonetheless, one which I always look forward to at album's end and always listen to from start to finish.

Indeed, quite a few things jump out at me here every time. The piano introduction and first section, all very pretty. The main instrumental themes, not based in traditional tonal ideology, but insanely captivating nonetheless. The way it seems the instrumental themes are running every possible course while Anderson every so often pops up with lyrics that apparently reference back to Siddartha again (in fact, last I checked, Siddartha means "awakened one.") THE GUITAR SOLOS here - yeah, I know that they're based in basic chromatics and scales yadda-yadda, I don't friggin' care, it's the most spirit awakening guitar tone and playing I've probably ever heard. Seriously.

And then we have the quiet harp/organ probe, where everything suddenly stops and we have a slight cymbal call before it begins. This bores many to death, but every single person who dislikes this is WRONG, I TELL YOU, WRONG. I'm always a fan of slow builds of tension into release, especially when executed properly, and this is done incredibly well. It builds and builds and builds until it just EXPLODES after Anderson's "shall we now bid farewell! Farewell!" leads us into the triumphant organ climax. Oh, and you'd never know that simple high-pitched pedal steel pluckings here would move me so, but hey, we learn something new every day. And then, as following any good explosion, there is a brief denoument so as to allow us to catch our breath at album's end.

And that's your album. And to an extent, that's the end of 70's Yes as we know and love them. Indeed, from the first time I heard Anderson's "bid farewell" line, I felt it was more than just a capstone to the song or even to the album. I've always suspected that somehow, if only subconsciously, he knew that the magic and creative flame of 70's Yes was about to be lost forever. This is Yes as we knew them, going away in a whisp of ethereal smoke, saying goodbye in their own way. It brings a measure of sadness to me, sure, but it could only go on so long, I suppose.

Damn good run, though. Damn good album too. It hit #1 for two weeks, and deserved it for sure.

Review by baz91
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars Another Yes album, another story...

Those who know their Yes history will know that this album was released after Yes took a three year hiatus, following the marvel that was Relayer. Each band member wrote a solo record, and some even wrote two, to varying degrees of success. Now was the time for Yes to reform and show the world that prog rock was still alive and kicking. Rick Wakeman was summoned, and thus the classic line-up was reformed. However, much had changed in three years, and this can especially be seen in the music.

The album begins with Going For The One, which I believe is one of the strangest Yes tracks after The Ancient. It's strange, because it is a very atypical Yes song. You put it on, and it sounds like a straightforward rock song. Then Jon's vocals come in with the usual spray of bizarre lyrics, and everything is changed. The most notable thing about this song is Howe's steel guitar twanging for the entire song, turning the ordinary rock song into a surreal experience. Personally, I don't quite understand what Yes were trying to achieve with this song, as it is rather simple in structure but not quite commercial. Still, after many listens I have come to enjoy it, and with hilarious lyrics like 'Would you like to go and shoot the mountain masses?', Yes somehow get through to me on this track.

Turn Of The Century is an entirely different matter. This time, I can see what they are trying to do, and I don't think it works. This song is essentially a ballad about a sculptor called Roan whose partner dies. The lyrics mainly deal with the emotion that he feels. I know what you are thinking: 'A Yes song with lyrics that actually mean something?' That's right. It's been called one of Yes's most beautiful and intimate tracks, but I think it is the opposite of this. Yes were only ever intimate on their first few records, and through all the echoey sound effects, I don't hear them reaching out to the listener on this track. At eight minutes, this track is unnecessarily complicated, and the music can be quite jarring and unpredictable, which I think ruins the ballad aspect of the song. If they had kept it at around four minutes, I think this song would have fared better. Whenever I've listened to this song, I've never been pulled in, and I always feel at a distance from the music. Sorry guys, but I really cannot appreciate this track.

Parallels is an extremely tedious song. For one thing, the organ riff that is heard in the intro is repeated throughout most of the track, making this an overly repetitive song. The instrumental does not grip me at all, and I just think Yes are at a low point on this track. The echoey effect is back, and I really dislike hearing Jon like this. Sadly, this is one of Yes's most annoying tracks (at least from their 70s period).

Wonderous Stories is the sound of Yes quite literally 'going for the one'. The #1 position in the charts that is. Whilst this was not quite achieved, they managed to reach a commendable #7. I don't really understand how this happened though, because on the first listen, this sounds too whimsical to be taken seriously. However, I've gotten used to it, and when I heard a cover of this track by neo-prog group Magenta, it made me appreciate the song more. Whilst I don't think Yes should have recorded this song, it's still very listenable, and in a way pleasant.

So far, this hasn't been a great review. Every track on the record has had it's fare share of flaws. Therefore, it almost feels like Yes are trying to make up for these flaws when they present us with the masterwork that is Awaken. Initially, I was very skeptical about this track, as I found it too confusing to listen to. Then something clicked, and I've enjoyed it entirely ever since. At over 15 minutes, this is Yes saying goodbye to epic tracks until the 90s. At the very beginning, there is a brief piano solo by Wakeman, followed by an ambient section with Anderson singing. After this there is an aggressive section in 11/8 with Jon chanting mystical lyrics, with an absolutely phenomenal instrumental included. This is the classic Yes that you all know and love. There is a relaxing 4 minute instrumental in the middle with a keyboard solo and guitar solo, which links the two main sections of the song. Afterwards, there is a triumphant section which is climaxed by a soaring guitar solo followed by a choir, which brings the song to a dramatic close. There is then an epilogue, if you will, that is similar to the ambient section heard at the beginning, making Awaken an extremely coherent epic. One of Yes's best pieces, there is no doubt that the inclusion of this song on the record more than makes up for the flaws heard in the other songs.

The original record came in a trifold sleeve, which showed a picture of a nude man staring at some oddly positioned buildings, with bizarre effects going away from his body. The artwork, done by art legends Hipgnosis, sadly does not match the brilliance of Roger Dean.

Before writing this review, I was contemplating giving this five stars, because Awaken really is that good. However, the flaws of the other songs must not be overlooked, and this is certainly not a perfect album. I highly recommend 'Going For The One' as it is worth buying just for Awaken.

Review by Conor Fynes
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars 'Going For The One' - Yes (76/100)

Going for the One marked the end of an era for Yes, what I outline in this and other reviews as the band's 'golden era'. Spanning from The Yes Albumto Going for the One, Yes released gem after gem, and every album within that six year space warrants attentive listening from anyone who dares mention a passing interest in progressive rock. With Going for the One, it was clear that the proggy fervour was cooling off- punk was famously being said to have killed off prog, and a zeitgeist of once-progressive bands giving up their mellotrons and moogs for three minute pop songs was right around the corner. Going for the One was a final bold statement before Yes' quality of output began to dip; it may not have the firm sense of identity or consistency as the five records prior, but the fifteen minute titan "Awaken" alone is more than worth the price of admission.

Going for the One opens with its hyperactive title track, a high-energy rock tune that signifies the album's general approach. Although it's got a twinge of the chaotic wall-of-sound from Relayer, Going for the One tries to express that scope and bombast with a more concise style of songwriting. As far as the title track is concerned, Yes manage to make this backscaling of their sound really work. For all of its twelve bar bluesy straightforwardness, "Going for the One" (the song) is incredibly dense sonically and initially struck me as being too cluttered for its own good. The vocals may still seem a bit drowned out in the sonic chaos, but the infectious catchiness and energy was more than enough to win me over. "Turn of the Century" was a much easier track to get into. A more tender acoustic piece in the style of "And You And I" or "To Be Over", it's one of the most beautiful things Yes have ever done. The instrumentation is soft and gentle, but it's Jon Anderson's vocals that really stand out. In a long career of beautiful performances, this might be my favourite of his. The stark contrast between this and the title track feels a little odd in terms of album flow, but both stand out individually.

"Parallels" sounds like what J.S Bach may have come up with if he set out to write a rock song, although that might be giving it too much credit. To be honest, the triumphantly organ-fuelled third track has never failed to underwhelm me, each time I've revisited the album. Wakeman's organ intro sounds massive and starts the song off on a note of potential, but it fires blanks. The melody feels rushed and forced, and any dynamic is drowned out by the ubiquitous organ roar. "Parallels" represents a rough patch in Yes' transition back to more accessible territory. Like the title track, "Parallels" tries to marry the wall-of-sound instrumental chaos of Relayer with more accessible song lengths. Unlike the title track, "Parallels" fails; counting everything in the band's golden period from "The Yes Album" to Going for the One, this might be my least favourite song of theirs. It's not terrible, but it's surprisingly underwhelming, a sentiment that carries over to "Wonderous Stories". I guess it makes sense to have had this as the single, but the breezy acoustic tune never feels anything more than merely pleasant. I've never really understood why this song was chosen to represent the album on the Classic Yes best-of compilation over this album's title track. Some things are best left as mysteries, I guess.

Prior to the fifteen minute "Awaken", Going for the One has been a pretty rough and inconsistent ride, with two hits and two misses. Even if "Turn of the Century" is one of the most beautiful and heartstopping songs they ever wrote, such a low batting rate is more than enough to jeopardize the album's repute. I'm sure the album would have been one for the dogs too, if it weren't for "Awaken". The band were generally quite vocal about their love and pride in this epic, with Jon Anderson calling it the best composition Yes had, or have ever made. Bold words to be sure, but "Awaken" lives up to it. By this point, Yes had had plenty of experience and success with epics; "Close to the Edge", "The Gates of Delirium" and the full extent of Tales from Topographic Oceans were ample training enough for them to knock this one out of the ballpark. While "The Gates of Delirium" still stands a head above the others as my own favourite, "Awaken" sounds lively and as perfect as anything Yes have ever done. Beginning quite slowly as Yes epics often do, the suite's initial dynamic surge is one of the coolest passages I've ever heard in progressive rock. Compared to the tranquility of the first two minutes, "Awaken" erupts with vitesse and intense beauty. Howe's psychedelic twang sounds equal parts aggressive and welcoming, and the building vocal line has an incredible sense of immediacy to it. As the dust settles after the first surge, Yes pair off the rich classical organ music with space synthesizers, creating a blend of music I might expect to hear in an astral cathedral. By the epic's latter third, "Awaken" has lost some of its momentum, and though there isn't a moment here that falls short of excellence, it is a little disappointing that the way it ends isn't as impressive as the way it begins. If that slight dip hadn't been there, "Awaken" would stand as being one of my favourite progressive epics. Even as it is, it's an incredible piece of work, and its reputation does not go unfounded.

In no small way, "Awaken" saves Going for the One. There is plenty of creative inspiration here, but two mediocre songs and an indistinct personality keep the album from keeping up with the real masterpieces. All the same, I could think of worse ways for a band to say goodbye to their golden era. When it's all evened out and averages are tallied, Going for the One stands as a solid record, and though I don't think I'll ever have the same emotional connection with it that I hold with some of Yes' earlier works, some of the band's most gorgeous material is here, just don't be surprised if a few duds come along for the ride.

Review by AtomicCrimsonRush
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
3 stars The excellent standard of Yes is finally dimished.

"Going For the One" stands alone as the first album to turn aside from the classic Yes style and of course there were so many band lineups to follow with the disgruntled Wakeman off on his solo lonesome making a mark. He had been disillusioned with the bizarre infamous "Topographic" album. Yes eventually released him to be replaced by the less extraordinary but accomplished keyboardist Patrick Moraz for "Relayer", and then Wakeman returned after his solo hiatus. It is nice to hear Wakeman on this album though and he is as good as ever, though not as inventive due to the structural changes in Yes' direction.

There was only one classic epic this time around, and it was a good song but not up to the standard of anything on "The Yes Album", "Close to the Edge", "Fragile" or "Relayer". Jon Anderson is in fine voice on each song, but the lyrics are less surreal and therefore not as endearing. They were losing that magic that had been created by the strange imagery of previous albums. Even the album cover was at a low standard; instead of surreal dream imagery of genius artist Roger Dean, it is replaced by a naked man gazing at skyscrapers. Perhaps the cover typified the new direction for Yes. Anderson has a stint on guitar and harp on the bonus tracks which are more of a curiosity than anything to celebrate. Alan White has proven himself time and again as a professional drummer extraodinaire and Yes is his career high point. Squire is fabulous as always on bass, and the final piece of the band is Steve Howe, a marvel on guitars. It should have been a masterpeice with this talent on hand but it is at best worthy of recognition with perhaps 3 outstanding tracks.

The most memorable and best loved tracks are undoubtedly Going For The One, which has an infectious hook, and very acccessible style, made for radio and live performances. Turn Of The Century is certainly a beautiful song with Anderson making his presence known on accustomed high falsetto. Wonderous Stories is definitive Yes due to the inventiveness of the melodies and an unforgettable chorus phrase. It has been a live staple over the years for this reason. Parallells has its moments though never resonated with me as much, and Awaken is a 15 minute epic that does its job to appease the prog afficionados who love to revel in lengthy multi part prog epics, though it never reaches that point of ultimate satisfaction in the same way that perhaps Close to the Edge or The Gates of Delirium does.

All in all this is not the best or worst that Yes would produce but sits somewhere in the middle for me. After a swag of excellent, or even brilliant albums, Yes had finally settled into a rather pedestrian style that had mixed reactions at the time and continues to do so. Subsequent albums would continue to be as ignored or forgettable, except from Yes addicts who would put up with anything that Yes would churn out including the abysmal "Union" and "Big Generator". Not everything that Yes released was gold and this album proves it. A decent album overshadowed by slow moments and mediocrity.

Review by Warthur
PROG REVIEWER
5 stars After taking a well-earned sabbatical, Yes returned with Wakeman in tow to produce Going For the One - which, despite the myths about punk "destroying" prog, did remarkably well right at the height of the punk insurgency.

After producing increasingly complex albums from Close to the Edge to Relayer, Going For the One sees Yes take a more balanced approach. From the title track to Wondrous stories, the band produce a diverse set of tracks that represent their most accessible material since The Yes Album - though in this case "accessible" doesn't mean poppy. These songs are on a par with anything the band produced in the Yes Album/Fragile era, whilst the closing epic Awaken is on a par with anything from CTTE, Topographic Oceans or Relayer in terms of ambition and complexity. A perfect blend of the accessible and the experimental, Going For the One deserves to rank amongst the best of its predecessors.

Review by TCat
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator / Retired Admin
4 stars For the longest time, I had a hard time appreciating this album. I thought it was too dense and it never really left an impression on me after I would listen to it. But I kept at it because I love Yes so much and I wanted so bad to love this album. I would listen to other people talk about how great of an album it was, and I just couldn't agree. To me, it didn't have the greatness of Fragile, Close to the Edge, Relayer and even Tales...I even grew to love some of their later albums like The Ladder and Gates of Ascension before I actually grew to understand this album. Somewhere along the way, I can't quite pinpoint where, I fell in love with this album. Now, I don't understand why I didn't love it like I do now. It is true that it is very dense. It is almost like the amazingness of the album is buried a little deeper on this one. But now I rate it up there as being almost (not quite) as good as the other albums I've mentioned. There is only one track on here that bothers me and that is "Parallels". I still can't get that one to leave any impression on me.

So, I think the understanding of this album came when I really listened to the title track, the one that starts of the album. It starts with a very straightforward rock and roll guitar hook with a boogie bass. The first time I realized this, I thought, wow, I've never realized this before. It was like the little bit of light that had to shine through the density of the album that admitted me into it's embrace. It is a heavy song and the straightforward rock sound is quickly replaced with the true progressive sound of the band. I just love the pedal steel guitar that drives the song throughout. At first that sound was annoying to me, before my ears were opened to the album, but now I can't imagine the song done any other way. Anderson says the song is about sport, mostly inspired by horse racing and also by a trek down the Grand Canyon in "a rubber dinghy" as he puts it. Next comes the emotional and exquisite "Turn of the Century". I really don't know how this song slipped past me for so many years as being one of the most beautiful tracks sung by Anderson. It has suddenly become one of my most favorite Yes tracks, of which there are many, but it's amazing how it just seemed to spring out of nowhere when I was let in to the understanding of this album. The 3rd track is "Parallels" and for some reason, this one just refuses to pierce my soul like the other songs on the album have been able to. It was written by Chris Squire for his solo album "Fish Out of Water" but it was left off because of time constraints. Yes performed it for this album and so it was included here. But, unfortunately, for me it weakens the album and is the reason why the album only garners 4 stars from me. No matter how I try, I just can't find the love for this track.

The 4th track is "Wonderous Stories" which, even though it was written as a single, still manages to carry the magic of the great Yes songs. It is the least dense of the songs here being mostly acoustic and also a testament to Jon Anderson's vocals. Short and sweet. The final track on the original album is "Awaken" which is the epic song of the album at over 15 minutes. The band had decided to make shorter tracks for this album to make it somewhat more accessible, which I don't really consider it accessible any more than any of their other masterpieces. I don't know if the production made this album more dense, but it was still a big seller despite this, but to me, and also in my personal experience, it was very inaccessible for the longest time. Anyway, back to the last track....This one is more similar to the epic works that came before this album. There is time on here for each member to shine through, but the person that shines through the most here is Rick Wakeman, who, Thank the Gods, came back to the band for this album. Wakeman plays the keyboards, specifically the organ, from a remote location and it was recorded over high definition telephone lines. It is simply amazing that they were able to get the sound they did from this recording technique, because the sound is excellent. The Wakeman solo here is beautiful as you would come to expect from him. He also leads the choir that was put together for that part of the song. How in the world did I miss this before?

Wakeman was originally only going to be a session musician for this album, but, after firing Moraz because, according to Anderson, he just wasn't "playing like he was involved". When Wakeman returned to record with the band, he was amazed that the band had lightened up so much, that he felt that he had more in common with them than before and that they were easier to work with, plus the fact that they had moved past the health food kick they were on previously. He said that they all had done some growing up to do, probably even himself more than any. Anyway, it was good, at least for a short time, to have him back again.

The other complaint I have about this album is one that also made it hard for me to understand the album and that is Chris Squire's amazing base is underplayed in the album, it's not pushed to the front with the other instruments as it had been in the past. I miss that a lot. I think it's interesting that the reason for one less star here is both because of Squire, one from the track that he wrote (too much involvement) and the other because there isn't enough of him in the mix (not enough involvement). Be that as it may, I at least now consider this an excellent album not where before, I even had a hard time calling it good. There are some excellent tracks here that, despite the flaws, make this close to being essential, but not quite. But at least now I appreciate the album and even love hearing it where before I could barely tolerate it and only listened to it because it was Yes and I only wanted to understand it. Now I do. At least I can give it the 4 stars it really deserves, but there are places where it is 5 star material, just not consistently enough.

By the way, the bonus tracks on the reissue do not really add to the album as far as making it better or worse. The tracks are interesting however because you can hear the development of the music and they can be fun to listen to once in a while, but only once you are more familiar with the official versions that they represent.

Review by siLLy puPPy
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR PSIKE, JRF/Canterbury, P Metal, Eclectic
4 stars After "Relayer" was released in 1974, YES had gone through five years of progressive rock superstardom and were completely burned out from all the recording, all the touring and most of all each other. They decided to recharge their batteries and take a lengthy break from each other so they could all focus on solo albums, thus during the time span between "Relayer" and this eighth studio album GOING FOR THE ONE, there were many solo albums released and a 1976 Solos Tour Of North America. Once again YES changed their musical vision and after the two super complex and challenging albums that preceded they decided to simplify a bit with shorter songs more akin to the earlier days of "Fragile" and "The Yes Album." The only exception is the monstrous "Awaken" that runs well over fifteen minutes.

After only one album with Patrick Moraz it was decided that his contributions no longer gelled with the band's overall sound and he was asked to leave. Originally asked to be a sit in session musician, Rick Wakeman returned only to find he and the band had come full circle and reached common grounds again allowing him to regain his seat as progressive rock's number one symphonic prog keyboardist. So the reunion of Jon Anderson, Chris Squire, Steve Howe, Alan White and Wakeman was complete and they headed off to Switzerland to record this wonderful album.

"Relayer" took me a long time to get into because of its complexities but GOING FOR THE ONE took me a while to get into for the opposite reason. I found this album to be too simple. It has much more accessible song structures compared to pretty much every that came before except maybe the very first two albums but somehow these melodic rockers managed to weasel their way into my head and wouldn't let me be, so i succumbed to their charm over time and now i find this to be a very satisfying album although this is truly the beginning of a decline because it doesn't come close to the magical era lasting from 1970-74. I now love every song on here except "Wonderous Stories" which is one that no matter how hard i try it makes me cringe!

Beginning with the raucous rocking title track that sounds a little country with all the slide-guitar action, the album starts off on a good note by keeping the tracks somewhat accessible while not jettisoning the progressive tendencies. This is a trend they would continue from hereon as the band adapted to the changing musical realities the world was experiencing, however this is still very much progressive rock and held its own against the new explosion of punk, pop, arena rock and disco that was conquering the world by this time. The album still sailed up the charts and loyal fans consumed it with glee.

While the first three tracks: the title track, "Turn Of The Century" and "Parallels" are somewhat catchy and poppified progressive rock songs that are guitar heavy with Wakeman eschewing his classical keyboards for more complimentary hard rock embellishments, "Wonderous Stories" is a whiney little ballad that totally rubs me the wrong way and is the first sign that the glory days of YES have waned. The highlight is the extraordinary "Awaken" that very much is a blast from the past with its long drawn out melodic developments showing the band doing what it does best, that is create blissful extended instrumental behemoths that segue into different styles and sections and that always work in tandem with the vocals. This track shows Wakeman conjuring some of the most beautiful church organ runs behind Squire's unique bass line walks up and down the scales. The song has an addicting chord and rhythmic structure and the lyrics are sublime. If the rest of the album was like "Awaken" this would be yet another masterpiece.

GOING FOR THE ONE was the beginning of a new era for YES. They would never return to the glory of their past and instead follow in the path of what is going on with the simplified song structures found here with mixed results. While this album blows away the gazillions of lesser bands of any era, it still comes up short as being one of the greats of the YES discography in my world, but for what it is and compared to what would come down the road in the 80s and 90s, it still ranks high in their discography but just shy from peaking into the classic era. Still though GOING FOR THE ONE is a unique little listen as it has a distinct sound from any other YES album and is one that can easily seduce you into its magical universe.

Review by VianaProghead
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars Review Nš 74

"Going For The One" is the eighth studio album of Yes and was released in 1977, after a break for solo activity of their band's members. It's very interesting to note that this album marks the return of their previous and best keyboardist Rick Wakeman, who had departed in 1974, in the aftermath of the controversy of their sixth studio album "Tales From Topographic Oceans" released in 1973, which was the most controversial album of the group and which was also one of the most controversial progressive albums ever. This was only possible because of the departure of Patrick Moraz, their last keyboardist who only participated on their previous seventh studio album "Relayer" released in 1974, which made a terrific work on that album. This made that this album comes up, in my humble opinion, with their best line up, with the exception of their drummer Alan White. Despite I love very much of the working of White, I prefer Bill Bruford, which is for me, one of the best drummer of the 70's, and which he is also one of the best progressive drummers ever.

After working with Roger Dean on almost all of the covers of their albums, Yes have chosen to this time, Hipgnosis, to create the artwork for "Going For The One". The album's cover features the Century Plaza Towers in Los Angeles, also known locally as the Twin Towers. Unlike the Twin Towers in New York, fortunately, these twin towers still exist today.

"Going For The One" has five tracks. The first track is the title track "Going For The One". It was written by Jon Anderson and is one of the two hardest songs on the album. It shows a typical truly classic's Yes song, completely overwhelming with a terrible guitar and keyboard workings, very well accompanied by a very dynamic bass and drumming works with the continued presence of the Anderson's voice. This is a great opening for this magnificent album. The second track "Turn Of The Century" written by Anderson, Steve Howe and White is a very beautiful ballad, and is also, one of the most beautiful songs ever made by Yes. It's a typical calm and very emotional song released by the group with a fantastic acoustic guitar work by Howe. It represents one of the greatest musical moments on the album. The third track "Parallels" written by Chris Squire, is with the title track, the other hardest song on the album. It's also another typical Yes' song, where we can clearly see the Squire's hand. This is a song with a very powerful rhythm and with great individual guitar and keyboard works, once more very well accompanied by the Anderson's voice. Usually it's considered the Achilles heel's of the album, but I don't think so. For me, this is also another great Yes' song. The fourth track "Wonderous Stories" written by Anderson is a typical Anderson's song. It's a very beautiful ballad with great vocals and also with beautiful instrumental parts. It's the smallest song on the album and is quite fascinating that a band with such musical complexity, like Yes, can be able to introduce so much complexity into in such shortest song. This is typically a song made to be released as a single. The fifth track "Awaken" written by Anderson and Howe is one of their greatest masterpieces and is also the great jewel of the album. This is my third favourite song of Yes, behind "Close To The Edge" and "The Gates Of Delirium". Curiously, both Anderson and Wakeman said that this is their favourite Yes' musical piece of music ever. It's even more curious the fact that despite Wakeman doesn't have written the song, he mentions that he believes that this is the Yes' most paradigmatic piece of music ever. Anyway, this is a perfect Yes' song, completely overwhelming with the individual and fantastic musical workings by all band's members. I think that it's perfectly fair to detach the fabulous keyboard work of Wakeman on this track. Sincerely, I believe that it represents their best musical performance on the band, which is even more fantastic because, as I said before, he isn't one of the composers of this unforgettable musical piece of music.

Conclusion: "Going For The One" is one of my four favourite studio albums of the band, behind "Close To The Edge", "Tales From Topographic Oceans" and "Relayer". This album is perhaps the most overlooked item in the Yes' catalogue and is unfortunately with "Tales From Topographic Oceans" one of the two most underrated masterpieces released by them. "Going For The One" is, in my humble opinion, the last greatest studio album released by Yes. However, there's no doubt that the most part of the Yes' fans adore this album. The final result were classic songs like the epic "Awaken", the majestic "Turn Of The Century", the gorgeous and melodic "Wonderous Stories", the heavy prog rock "Parallels" and the driving rock ability of the title track. "Awaken" still remains as one of the favourite songs of the band and the fans, until today, and remains as one of the best and most spectacular epic lengthy progressive songs ever recorded. "Going For The One" is one of Yes' defining musical moments and the last of the albums of their golden era. With this album, Yes wrote one of the finest and most glorious musical pages of the progressive rock.

Prog is my Ferrari. Jem Godfrey (Frost*)

Review by patrickq
PROG REVIEWER
3 stars As far as I'm concerned, Yes could be forgiven for failing to top their 1974 fusion-rock masterpiece Relayer. After their 1974-1975 tour, the members of the band worked on solo projects rather than immediately regrouping for another Yes album. Singer Jon Anderson's Olias of Sunhillow, keyboardist Patrick Moraz's The Story of i, and guitarist Steve Howe's Beginnings each were decent solo debut albums, while Fish Out of Water, by bassist Chris Squire, was as good as many Yes albums, both before and after its 1975 release. The band reconvened in 1976 for another tour before focusing on the follow-up to Relayer. Others know the history better than I, but at some point after the tour Moraz was fired from the band and replaced by former Yes keyboardist - - and successful solo artist - - Rick Wakeman.

In hindsight this seems like a poor decision, as Relayer, the only Yes album with Moraz, was so much better than Tales from Topographic Oceans (1973), Going for the One (1977), and Tormato (1978) - - the three 1970s albums by the Yes lineup of Wakeman, Anderson, Howe, Squire, and drummer Alan White. But at the time it was announced, the re-hiring of Wakeman probably sounded like a good idea. There's also been a strong implication that the band was going to fire Moraz regardless of whether they could get Wakeman back.

But they did get him back, and the result was Going for the One, which was as different from Relayer as Relayer was from Tales. The five-song Going for the One replaced much of its predecessor's jazziness and experimentation with more radio-friendly rock and pop. "Going for the One," "Wonderous Stories," and "Parallels" range from 3:45 to 5:52, and, along with the eight-minute "Turn of the Century," represent an attempt to return to a level of accessibility along the lines of The Yes Album and Fragile. Unfortunately, these more accessible songs aren't of the same quality as the average song on either of those albums. "Going for the One" and "Parallels" are pleasantly melodious but unnecessarily long; "Turn of the Century" is a bit more progressive, but it fits the progressive-rock stereotype of gratuitous and self-important solemnity. And by Yes standards, "Wonderous Stories" is pretty flimsy.

But the underwhelming first 25 minutes of Going for the One is substantially mitigated by "Awaken," The fifteen-and-a-half-minute track which closes the album. "Awaken" has been called the band's final epic, the Last Great Yes song, and so on. I'd argue that this is incorrect, citing "Machine Messiah" (1980), "I'm Running" (1987), "Mind Drive" (1997), and the "Fly From Here" suite (2011). But it is a great song. Among Yes songs, "Close to the Edge" is probably closest in terms of structure, although "Awaken" also has some similarities with "Mind Drive." While "Awaken" doesn't achieve the heights of "Close to the Edge" or "The Gates of Delirium," both its crescendo and its coda rank among Yes's very best.

On the whole, Going for the One is a fair Yes album. Its pieces don't hang together the way the songs on Tales or Relayer do, but the songs on the first side ("Going for the One," "Turn of the Century," and "Parallels") aren't bad, And "Awaken" is a Yes classic. A good, but not essential album.

Review by Menswear
PROG REVIEWER
5 stars Summit.

They reached a summit, and how. Yes is about illumination, epiphany, divinity, ecstasy, awekening, glory and lots of pretty things shining in kaleidoscopic dances. They want to blow your mind, to expand it. They want to bring you to space and navigate through giant nebulas and quasars, showing you the colours of an universe so big.

Everything here falls into place, making the same recipe even more effective, if a thing is possible. It's big, it's glorious, it's millions of dopamine particles slowly landing on your cortex, bringing tears in my eyes on a few occasions.

It's the same as Close to the Edge but with even more galactic grandeur, more gazing from the tallest mountain on Earth, more of cryptical concepts of ultimate Awekening. If I may add, they injected more finger-snapping moments as I may categorize this album as the most accessible (read 'girl-friendly') album of the first phase.

If you can tell your woman how much you love her in a Jon-Anderson-style (Turn of the Century), she'll be yours forever....or think you're joking. It's that impressive.

It's enough 'Divine' for me, my brain needs a flippin' break.

Review by Hector Enrique
PROG REVIEWER
5 stars Rick Wakeman's presence was always very important to me in defining the group's musical proposal. After his departure after the extensive Tales From Topographic Oceans (1973), he returns 4 years later, and gives him an influence and nuances from the keyboards that have contributed to Yes being considered one of the standards of the progressive. Although he does not sign the compositions, generally in the hands of Anderson, Howe and Squire, his contribution gives them a unique solidity and textures.

And so Going For The One brings us the extraordinary Awaken, with its splendid 15 minutes, a surreal and mystical composition, in my opinion it is one of his best songs of all time. From the start with Wakeman's piano, the intermission with Wakeman and Squire himself on bass in an endless trance, accompanied later by Howe's mastery of guitars, giving way to epic instrumentation and a quiet ending to the Anderson's hand. Turn Of The Century, for its part, evokes lags in the Tales From Topographic Oceans, a beautiful work that tells us of a sculptor who makes a statue to honor his beloved, deceased, who later comes to life. Both Howe on guitars (acoustic and electric) and Wakeman on keyboards, both are superb. Parallels, with those church organs, The Wonderous Stories, a short, upbeat and very typical Anderson song in its most positive way, and Going for The One with that Howe hardrock riff, complete this album, the latest one of the most representative works of Yes in its progressive symphonic facet. Indispensable work for any fan of the group.

Review by The Crow
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars "Going for the One" marked the return of the great Rick Wakeman to the Yes line-up after a few years of absence, where he was longed for despite managing to release a good album like "Relayer".

Back in 1977 symphonic rock was facing a time of change after the genre's heyday had passed, and Yes decided to release a short, more song-oriented album.

The style is more rock and less convoluted than in "Relayer" or "Tales from Topographic Oceans", which although it denotes a lack of depth, makes listening quite pleasant.

Special mention deserves the work of Rick Wakeman, my favorite in his entire career with the band.

Best Tracks: Turn of the Century (beautiful Howe guitars for a delicate and well-done song) and Awaken (the best instrumental work on the album, with special mention again for Wakeman's grandiloquent keyboards, which bring to mind the best moments from "Close to the Edge")

My Rating: ****

Review by Dapper~Blueberries
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars I don't do much classic album reviews due to how I wanna look towards the future of progressive rock and see what it's all about rather than dwell on the past. However right now I do feel like going back in time a bit. Yes' discography is a wild ride, especially in the 70s. They are a very complex band that has a long and complicated history. In fact, out of any classic progressive rock band, they got it pretty rough, especially in the 80s and 90s. It's a complex world for Yes, both in their history and their music. The reason why I wanted to do this review is mostly cause I wanted to, and also because I relistened to Awaken which made me wanna relisten to this album again. It's just to have a little fun and re-experience a pretty good album.

The album starts with its title track, Going For The One. This song mixes the interesting complex musicianship of the band's other works back in the 70s while also shifting towards a more accessible sound. Obviously this accessibility would later lead to the band's fall from grace, but here it does sound rather good, if not a little cheesy, especially with Rick's piano playing. I'd say this is a perfectly acceptable title track for Yes standards, since everything is on point, with a little mix of something new in the mix. Overall pretty good stuff.

Turn of the Century is up next. Opposite from the title track, this is a spacey, acoustic ballad with little to no drumming or percussion. It takes a more laid back approach, going for a more spacious mix, almost like building an empty room. Everything doesn't go too complex in the song, but it does lead to the more symphonic side of Yes that many Prog heads like myself really appreciate. However I feel like this song simply goes a little too long for comfort. I do like the little solo near the 5 minute mark, but after that I feel as though it is merely stalling to where the song starts to feel boring near the end point. Not a bad song, just can get a little tedious.

Parallels combines the more pop rock feel of Going For The One and combines it with the symphonic stylization of Turn of the Century. It has a very fun sound filled with virtuosity and a fun attitude all around it, to create a great song. However this song has one thing that kinda gets on my nerves, and that is the organ playing. It is a very loud church organ that makes itself apparent in the first second. It's so loud, and as someone who likes the organ, this just feels excessive. Rick Wakeman is definitely notable for how almost excessive he is in Prog rock, as noted by some of his shows having ice skaters and thousand dollar props and sets, but he definitely isn't the type of guy to show off how good of a keyboardist he is, but I guess Parallels was the exception. I guess if you don't mind that loud organ, then this song isn't half bad, but when you absolutely hear it every second, it does get a little grating.

The next song is Wondrous Stories. What if The Beatles and Yes had a baby? Well this'll be the result, and dang is it pretty good. It's super bubbly and happy, yet showcases technical and melodic soundscapes. Basically put, this song is like you take the best of both worlds of the early 60s with the late 70s, you'll get this. It is a happy go lucky song, and I'd be hard pressed if this wasn't one of the songs that inspired the creation of the band Moon Safari, since this and that band's sound is pretty similar.

Now for the big one. Awaken is a 15 minute epic, and probably what this album is most known for. Every segment and minute are filled to the brim with virtuosity, complexity, and a compassionate feel throughout. This is definitely the band's last hooray before slowly, but surely, shifting away from their progressive roots into more pop driven (sometimes better or worse) tunes. I definitely love this track all the same, it has a ton of interesting tempo changes, moods, and an overall feeling of intrigue. This song was definitely made with love in a time where this style of music wasn't necessarily dying, but certainly losing its niche touch with the mainstream, to the point where some felt that it burnt itself out and withered into nothing. It is an awakening of the band that the times were changing, and either for the better, or for the worse.

I would not call this album a masterpiece, but I do see it as an important album from the band because it marked the tail end for the band's more complex sound that'd shift around to different styles and moods throughout the coming decades. It isn't perfect, but it does have great value.

Latest members reviews

4 stars Yes' 1977 album "Going for the One" is a stunning work of progressive rock that in the latter half of the 1970's. It showcases the band's instrumental prowess and songwriting skills. With a lineup that includes Jon Anderson on vocals, Steve Howe on guitar, Chris Squire on bass, Rick Wakeman on keybo ... (read more)

Report this review (#2906126) | Posted by VanDerProg | Monday, April 10, 2023 | Review Permanlink

5 stars After the bloated white elephant and the somewhat rather abrasive Relayer, Yes well and truly returned to form with Going For The One. With the return of Rick Wajkeman in the fold , fans would have expected a great album especially now that Jon Anderson was coming up with more straightforward songs ... (read more)

Report this review (#2883119) | Posted by Lupton | Saturday, February 18, 2023 | Review Permanlink

4 stars "Going for the One" is the eighth studio album coming from the prog titan Yes, released in 1977 on the Atlantic label. The album sees the return of the much beloved keyboardist Rick Wakeman and the departure of Patrick Moraz who played the keyboard on the previous album, "Relayer", in 1974. W ... (read more)

Report this review (#2869555) | Posted by Henroriro_XIV | Wednesday, December 21, 2022 | Review Permanlink

5 stars This album is another example of the notion that you shouldn't simply follow the bandwagon. Yes didn't cease to make great records after Close to the Edge, as I was made to believe. Relayer and Going for the One are prime examples of Yes at its best. I can imagine not everyone likes the apparently ... (read more)

Report this review (#2675962) | Posted by WJA-K | Monday, January 24, 2022 | Review Permanlink

4 stars What an incredible array of good albums were released in 1977, my god! Title track and opener Going for the one kicks off with a powerful classic rock and roll vibe, slide guitars include?until the symphonic prog inevitably takes over and remind us that in fact we are listening to YES and all ... (read more)

Report this review (#2606253) | Posted by ElChanclas | Thursday, October 21, 2021 | Review Permanlink

4 stars Review - #10 (Yes - Going For The One) Yes was going for the one, but did they reach it? Following a brief hiatus, Yes was reformed in 1977 for their next album, Going For The One. The band's lineup of Jon Anderson on vocals, Steve Howe on guitars, Chris Squire on bass, and Alan White on drum ... (read more)

Report this review (#2537085) | Posted by Prog Zone | Wednesday, April 21, 2021 | Review Permanlink

3 stars (Male) bare-ass! I have no problem with it at all, actually, butt I don't think I got down with it as much when I first became aware of this record, and prog in general, which is now over six years ago(!) Pushing that asside, I may have also grown to like the rest of the cover art a bit more a ... (read more)

Report this review (#2522380) | Posted by HO9OGOHO | Monday, March 8, 2021 | Review Permanlink

5 stars I think it's appropriate to say this album is real milestone in their history. I followed them until early 1980's, got the vinyls and collected those in CD thinking "I'll listen those songs with zero scratches"... now I miss those noises with much more sound fidelity! But I was astounded thes ... (read more)

Report this review (#2493400) | Posted by cloviskoba | Wednesday, January 13, 2021 | Review Permanlink

4 stars Eighth studio album by YES, with Rick Wakeman rejoined the band replacing Patrick Moraz, and therefore the band returned to the 'Tales from Topographic Ocean' line up. The band change the concept towards a bit more accessible music, compared to preceding albums. But wait .. it does not mean th ... (read more)

Report this review (#2487719) | Posted by Mark-P | Saturday, December 26, 2020 | Review Permanlink

5 stars It was July of 1977 and a group of us recent high school -graduate and college-bound students anxiously waited for the new Yes album. It seems silly now, but the almost three year hiatus between Relayer and its successor was interminable. In December of 1976, we learned, what at the time seem ... (read more)

Report this review (#2486736) | Posted by ken_scrbrgh | Monday, December 21, 2020 | Review Permanlink

2 stars Review #50 I've heard this album several times since I started listening to Progressive Rock (back in 2009) and I've tried really hard to appreciate it but the result is always the same: I got more and more disappointed; yes, Rick WAKEMAN came back, but that didn't give anything special to th ... (read more)

Report this review (#2481958) | Posted by Uruk_hai | Wednesday, December 2, 2020 | Review Permanlink

4 stars YES or how to start again 3 years after strong discussions in the group, how to give a strong signal to your audience? 1. Going for the One starts rock boogie, as if it were another band; a few moments and the Yes sound comes back, Rick is present again, that reassures the fan section; the eponymou ... (read more)

Report this review (#2312268) | Posted by alainPP | Sunday, February 2, 2020 | Review Permanlink

5 stars I like to think of this beautiful record as a celebration of a coming- of-age era for Yes. It marks the return of Rick Wakeman. I acknowledge the complex musicianship found on 1974's Relayer with Patrick Moraz! The jazz fusion influence was just great! Whether it saw confused fans or not, I d ... (read more)

Report this review (#2302800) | Posted by progman02 | Tuesday, December 31, 2019 | Review Permanlink

5 stars I'm having no luck at retrieving my former Cylli Kat account. So, I'm posting a few of my old reviews, Hope this is okay with everyone. Originally posted 2011-11-16 with considerable, necessary editing 8-22-2018. To me, this is the ONE... For whatever reason, this album has, and continues t ... (read more)

Report this review (#1999166) | Posted by Cylli Kat (0fficial) | Thursday, August 23, 2018 | Review Permanlink

5 stars What a glorious return of the 'glitter-caped-vintage-keyboard-wizard' Rick Wakeman! No more jokes about chicken- curry snacks, no more cardboard cows in the studio, no, only happy faces, room for everybody. So wonderful Swiss city Montreux welcomed an inspired Yes that went into the studio and ma ... (read more)

Report this review (#1890671) | Posted by TenYearsAfter | Sunday, March 4, 2018 | Review Permanlink

2 stars This review was written because Going for the One is my most unloved album from early-middle period of Yes. But to my surprise it has high ratings on PA. I will try objectively explain my indignation. I apologize in advance for my bad English. This album completely destroying Yes magic aura that ... (read more)

Report this review (#1726040) | Posted by grom63 | Wednesday, May 24, 2017 | Review Permanlink

4 stars Awaken! Signalling a clear intent to shift back toward the mainstream (and thus radio play) while maintaining a foothold in complex progressive music, GFTO comes across as lighter but also somewhat fresher than the albums they had released beforehand. Whereas Tales and Relayer took effort and ded ... (read more)

Report this review (#1696013) | Posted by Walkscore | Wednesday, February 22, 2017 | Review Permanlink

2 stars I was at college, when this one came out I have been enjoying "Fragile", "Close To The Edge", "Tales" and "Relayer" for years. And then came "Going for the One": the first thing I say (by seeing the artwork) was "Where is Roger Dean?" and then I listen to it and it began that terribly simp ... (read more)

Report this review (#1459090) | Posted by chiang | Thursday, September 3, 2015 | Review Permanlink

4 stars After the heretofore-uncharted musical waters of Relayer, Yes proceeded to tour behind the album for almost two years, with a break in between so all five members could record their own solo albums. At the end of 1976, Yes decided to pack their bags for Montreux, Switzerland (ostensibly on a tax hol ... (read more)

Report this review (#1450060) | Posted by cfergmusic1 | Friday, August 7, 2015 | Review Permanlink

4 stars The return of Rick Wakeman, and the three year hiatus was over. After two far out albums, Tales from Topographic Oceans and Relayer, Yes scaled back the ambitions a notch or two with Going For The One. GFTO is a mixed bag and it seems to be a the last of the great Yes albums of the classic era. I ... (read more)

Report this review (#1312086) | Posted by ster | Tuesday, November 18, 2014 | Review Permanlink

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