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Thread: Essentially Yes collects four studio albums and a live performance at Montreaux.

  1. #1

    Essentially Yes collects four studio albums and a live performance at Montreaux.

    The following text and picture is from burning shed.com

    I have a question at the end.

    Packaged in a slim box containing 5CDs in card sleeves, Essentially Yes collects four studio albums and a live performance at Montreaux.

    A budget-priced means of sampling the myriad delights of Open Your Eyes, The Ladder, Magnification, Talk (with bonus track) and Live at Montreux, 2003.
    Complete albums!



    These are about the only yes studio albums I don't have. Except, Big Generator and ABWH.

    Yes fans,

    I was hoping you would rate these albums which ever way you want. I am not sure I would listen to them very much, but at 13.99 the deal is enticing.
    Thanks in advance.
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  2. #2
    Well worth it if you're trying to fill out your Yes collection. The Ladder is widely regarded as one of their better albums in recent years, while opinions vary on Talk and Magnification (though they're my two personal favorites from the post-Drama era). You also get treated to quite a diversity of styles. The Ladder sort of mixed progressive rock with a poppy, adult-contemporary vibe, while Magnification is a beautiful mixture of band plus orchestra, with some of the most gorgeous melodies I've heard on a Yes album in many years, and Talk is the best of the Trevor Rabin era, blending the harder rock edge of '80s Yes with the expansive atmospherics of the '70s material -- with the 15-minute suite "Endless Dream" being the capstone.

    Open Your Eyes is a fairly weak effort, and I think most Yes fans share that opinion. It was thrown together hastily, with minimal input from Steve Howe, as the music was initially intended to be for a side project by Chris Squire and Billy Sherwood. It comes off sounding like it's trying to be an '80s Yes album without Trevor Rabin.

    I picked up the box to get the live Montreux disc. The version of "Awaken" on there is especially good.

  3. #3
    Member Wounded Land's Avatar
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    Magnification is quite strong, IMHO. There are moments that rival the high points of their career ("In the Presence of," the title track) and although it's not as strong overall as their glory days, there's nothing on it that's bad. It's good stuff that fans of the band will appreciate without any effort. Plus, the orchestra is a neat idea, and it helps the album to achieve some sort of identity.

    The rest of those albums, however...

  4. #4
    Magnification should not be listened to while operating heavy machinery - I would have named it Sominex. Yes, Open Your Eyes is lousy but it has three really strong (to me) tracks on it. The Ladder only has ONE. Talk is more than half really good.

  5. #5
    I wouldnt buy that box set even if it's a 'bargain'. TALK is generally now regarded as their last classic & the only one worth owning. Just buy that one disc, it's cheaper. You don't need the rest!

  6. #6
    Insect Overlord Progatron's Avatar
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    $13.99 is a pretty solid deal for five discs, particularly if you are looking to fill in the holes in your collection. Personally, I can find something to like on every Yes album, although Open Your Eyes and The Ladder both have some stinkers to put it mildly. Talk and Magnification are both quite good 'later' Yes albums IMO. I'd easily pay $13.99 to get both of those plus the live disc. Get it!
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    I paid less for mine as they were second hand, but certainly this is good value.

    I wouldn't say any of them are 'essential' if we're being literal about it, but some have their moments. 'Talk' and 'Open Your Eyes' are too heavily produced and 'lite' for what I like about Yes. 'The Ladder' is at least 75% strong stuff, the other 25% is again very 'Yes lite', but is worth it for the good bits. 'Magnification' has some quite good material but again, some awful stuff like 'Don't Go' and 'Soft As A Dove', and I think the orchestration robbed it of any kind of power.

    I know the Montreux DVD which I think is something special. It's great to see that line-up on fine form and getting a great response at an internationally-famous festival. 'Awaken' gets an effusive reaction and is indeed a strong version. This performance and the success of the 'Ultimate Yes' compilation in that time, suggests to me that not doing a new album in that period was a real missed opportunity.

  8. #8
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    If I did not have these albums I would buy this. Personally I love "The Ladder". "Magnification" and "Talk" both have their moments. "Open Your Eyes" is my least favorite Yes release, but I don't hate it. Live Yes is always good.

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    I fell off the Yes bandwagon after Union (great) and Magnification (good) until FFH. I might actually buy this to fill a big hole in my Yes collection. (where are the Cinema outtakes ? Cinema Sessions on Highland was a big disappointment..)

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    Go fill your collection. The Ladder is quite good. I'm a big fan of Magnification. I pulled out Talk for the first time a long time recently and I was quite surprised. It was much better than I remembered it. Can't help OYE. The Monteaux disc is also very good. For that price, gotta go for it.

  11. #11
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    $13.99 is a pretty good price even if you only end up liking and listening to ONE of those discs. Just saying.

    Yes basically dropped off my radar after 90125, but even I am tempted by this package. I think there might be a lot of people like me who passed on these albums at the time but will snap them up at this price - I expect this box set to sell like hot cakes.
    Last edited by bob_32_116; 06-22-2014 at 02:05 PM.

  12. #12
    Quote Originally Posted by Adrian View Post
    Well worth it if you're trying to fill out your Yes collection. The Ladder is widely regarded as one of their better albums in recent years, while opinions vary on Talk and Magnification (though they're my two personal favorites from the post-Drama era). You also get treated to quite a diversity of styles. The Ladder sort of mixed progressive rock with a poppy, adult-contemporary vibe, while Magnification is a beautiful mixture of band plus orchestra, with some of the most gorgeous melodies I've heard on a Yes album in many years, and Talk is the best of the Trevor Rabin era, blending the harder rock edge of '80s Yes with the expansive atmospherics of the '70s material -- with the 15-minute suite "Endless Dream" being the capstone.

    Open Your Eyes is a fairly weak effort, and I think most Yes fans share that opinion. It was thrown together hastily, with minimal input from Steve Howe, as the music was initially intended to be for a side project by Chris Squire and Billy Sherwood. It comes off sounding like it's trying to be an '80s Yes album without Trevor Rabin.

    I picked up the box to get the live Montreux disc. The version of "Awaken" on there is especially good.
    Except this is just an excerpt...the full, two-disc Montreux set was subsequently released with the full performance.

    And fyi, some seem to think this is a new release; it's not. It was first released in 2007 and I reviewed it then. Here's the review. Only thing is the price has dropped.
    Last edited by jkelman; 06-22-2014 at 06:48 PM.

  13. #13
    Quote Originally Posted by JJ88 View Post
    I paid less for mine as they were second hand, but certainly this is good value.

    I wouldn't say any of them are 'essential' if we're being literal about it, but some have their moments. 'Talk' and 'Open Your Eyes' are too heavily produced and 'lite' for what I like about Yes. 'The Ladder' is at least 75% strong stuff, the other 25% is again very 'Yes lite', but is worth it for the good bits. 'Magnification' has some quite good material but again, some awful stuff like 'Don't Go' and 'Soft As A Dove', and I think the orchestration robbed it of any kind of power.

    I know the Montreux DVD which I think is something special. It's great to see that line-up on fine form and getting a great response at an internationally-famous festival. 'Awaken' gets an effusive reaction and is indeed a strong version. This performance and the success of the 'Ultimate Yes' compilation in that time, suggests to me that not doing a new album in that period was a real missed opportunity.
    It's not a DVD. It' same single disc excerpt of the later-released two-cd set. At initial release it was a carrot; now it's superfluous.

  14. #14
    Quote Originally Posted by jkelman View Post
    Except this is just an excerpt...the full, two-disc Montreux set was subsequently released with the full performance.
    Ah, thanks for that. I didn't know there was a later release with more music.

  15. #15
    Quote Originally Posted by Adrian View Post
    Ah, thanks for that. I didn't know there was a later release with more music.
    Well waddaya know? I forgot that I reviewed that too!

    My only question is: I suggest this comes close to supplanting Yessongs. Wtf was I thinking?

    Forgive me, one and all.
    Last edited by jkelman; 06-22-2014 at 10:56 PM.

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    Quote Originally Posted by jkelman View Post
    It's not a DVD. It' same single disc excerpt of the later-released two-cd set. At initial release it was a carrot; now it's superfluous.
    I didn't say it was a DVD. I said 'I know the Montreux DVD', in other words that's where I know this performance from.

  17. #17
    Quote Originally Posted by JJ88 View Post
    I didn't say it was a DVD. I said 'I know the Montreux DVD', in other words that's where I know this performance from.
    Ah, my bad. Sorry!

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    ^As long as 'Awaken' is on the CD, that's the highlight for me. I don't know how well the Montreux audience knew the track, but the bit near the end of 'Awaken' (*before* the coda) where the sizeable crowd breaks into effusive applause is very moving, a definite marker of just how powerful this music is when it connects.

    I have to say, John, we had a disagreement on how well the current line-up is handling the classic material, but when I compare them now to performances like that from just ten years ago...well, you might have had a point.

  19. #19
    Quote Originally Posted by JJ88 View Post
    ^As long as 'Awaken' is on the CD, that's the highlight for me. I don't know how well the Montreux audience knew the track, but the bit near the end of 'Awaken' (*before* the coda) where the sizeable crowd breaks into effusive applause is very moving, a definite marker of just how powerful this music is when it connects.
    Yup, "Awaken" is on the single disc included in the box.

    Quote Originally Posted by JJ88 View Post
    I have to say, John, we had a disagreement on how well the current line-up is handling the classic material, but when I compare them now to performances like that from just ten years ago...well, you might have had a point.
    Thanks for that. It takes a big guy to acknowledge when they're perhaps incorrect. I try to be one, too (but don't always succeed )....

  20. #20
    Insect Overlord Progatron's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by JJ88 View Post
    ^As long as 'Awaken' is on the CD, that's the highlight for me. I don't know how well the Montreux audience knew the track, but the bit near the end of 'Awaken' (*before* the coda) where the sizeable crowd breaks into effusive applause is very moving, a definite marker of just how powerful this music is when it connects.
    "Awaken" live in 2002 was one of the most powerful moments of my concert-going life. Moving beyond words... only Marillion's "Brave" and Peter Gabriel's "Father, Son" can rival it.
    Interviewer of reprobate ne'er-do-well musicians of the long-haired rock n' roll persuasion at: www.velvetthunder.co.uk and former scribe at Classic Rock Society. Only vaguely aware of anything other than music.

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  21. #21
    I'd pay 5 bucks for this.
    You say Mega Ultra Deluxe Special Limited Edition Extended Autographed 5-LP, 3-CD, 4-DVD, 2-BlueRay, 4-Cassette, five 8-Track, MP4 Download plus Demos, Outtakes, Booklet, T-Shirt and Guitar Pick Gold-Leafed Box Set Version like it's a bad thing...

  22. #22
    The Ladder is very worthwhile. Magnification has some nice moments, but not essential. Talk has The Calling, which is a great track, but the rest of the album is meh. Open Your Eyes is ironically, a sleeper.

  23. #23
    Member Mikhael's Avatar
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    The Ladder is interesting; a few standout cuts on that one. Magnification was pleasant, sleep-inducing Yes-lite; not what it could have been, if Jon had let Steve Yessize it. Talk has a couple of great cuts; I rate it as easily the best of the Rabin years, and up there just under the classic Yes albums. Open Your Eyes? Okay for a Sherwood album. If you're expecting Yes, it's not here.

    Were one to take this box set, and compile one's favourite cuts into one CDR, it could be a really slammin' set.
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    'Magnification' had some perfectly acceptable songs but it was let down by a rather wimpy and soft execution. It's arguably the least 'rock' album they've ever recorded.

  25. #25
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