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FRAGILE
Yes
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DVD Audio DTS 5.1 Dolby Digital 5.1 |
Review by Mark Wiechman
If there was ever an all-star rock virtuoso band, it was
this Yes lineup. This album was one
of their most ambitious: each
member of the band composed and arranged one song
to showcase their particular talent, and four songs featured the
group’s collective sound. An
excellent choice for DVD Audio, even if it is just a 1970’s analog recording.
The music of Yes has special meaning to me because it
inspired me to study music full-time in college so that I could absorb the
obvious classical influences of these fine players. These were craftsmen, not bad boys out for a good time.
And this was one of their masterpieces.
The disc opens with the band’s best known early single,
“Roundabout”, a standard on
FM radio to this day, and tough instrumental parts which separate the pros from
the amateurs. The DTS Audio
arrangement will make you fall in love with the tune all over again.
Rick Wakeman’s arrangement of Brahms’ 4th
symphony would be no big deal today, a few minutes on a synthesizer.
But there was no MIDI back then, he actually had to play each part in
perfect synchronization! It is much easier to hear each track in the surround, I
did not care for the arrangement much until this version. “We Have Heaven”
is also stunning, now that we can hear all of Anderson’s great harmonies
clearly.
“South Side of
the Sky” was a track I always enjoyed, mainly because of the
challenging bass line and the stunning Rick Wakeman solo, which leaps out at you
in this mix. “Long Distance Runaround” and “The Fish” shimmer with a livequality like they were recorded by
humans, instead of the plastic sound they have on vinyl or older CDs.
The two most breathtaking tracks come last:
Steve Howe’s original guitar piece “Mood
for a Day”, sounding as though he were right there in the room with
you, and “Heart of the Sunrise”, cited by Chris Squire as being the one
tune which encapsulates everything that Yes is about. The channel selections are excellent, with some of the
stranger keyboard strains coming through the rear channels and Bill Bruford’s
drum motifs penetrating even more clearly in the front channels.
The first thing I noticed about this DTS track was that the
recording sounded very “live.” I
can actually hear the sounds bounce around as if I were right there in a concert
hall. DVD Audio and Dolby Digital
tracks are also included.
Extras:
The Yes arrangement of Simon & Garfunkel’s “America”
was never one of my favorites, though the sound quality is excellent. There are many photos in the booklet which I have never seen
(many with their families---wow, did they have families? You mean they were human?). An animated Yes timeline, a brief interview with the band,
and lyrics are also included.
HINT TO RHINO: I
can only hope that the band’s other masterpieces such as Close to the Edge, The Yes Album and 90125 are issued in this format.
Since fans of the band tend to be on the cutting edge of technology, they
are bound to be snatched up.
