YES - Classic Yes (1981) (2024)

This album is a compilation of among the best early YES songs, from "The YesAlbum", "Fragile", "Close to the Edge" and "Going for the One". I find the choice of thesongs very well made: "Heart Of The Sunrise", "Wonderous Stories", "Yours Is NoDisgrace", "Starship Trooper", "Long Distance Runaround", "Fish", "And You AndI", "Roundabout" and "I've Seen All Good People". All those tracks are excellent. The tracksmostly come from "The Yes Album" and "Fragile". It definitely gives the listener an excellentoverview of what YES made during the early 70's! The 2 last tracks, "Roundabout"and "I've Seen All Good People" were recorded live.

My rating: 4.5/5

A compilation of the most representative songs of the band until then, selected by ChrisSquire, from YES`s most praised albums ("The YES album", "Fragile" "Close to the Edge"),with also one song from the "Going for the One" album. It also includes previouslyunreleased live recordings of "Roundabout" and "I`ve seen all good people", recordedduring the "Tormatour" in late 1978, which were released as a bonus single included insidethe L.P. cover. The C.D. also includes these two live recordings, added at the end of theC.D. tracks listing. The 1994 remastered C.D. also includes additional artwork by RogerDean.

This is a very comprehensive compilation of the classic YES era. There's not much anything special here for the collectors who are know with the band, except that there are two live songs on it ("Roundabout" and "I've Seen All Good People"), and if you have the original albums as precious vinyl ablums, this might be a good CD to your car for example. The longest epics are not here, if you miss them you should check out "Yesyears" boxed set. Also the material from the two first albums are presented on the "Yesterdays" compilation. By the way, Roger Dean's covers are once more quite nice!

This compilation is a great introduction to the band's career in music industry, spanningfrom "The Yes Album" (1971) until "Going For The One" (1977) album. Or it can be saidsince the band hired Steve Howe as guitar player. "Heart Of The Sunrise" (10:32) is agreat track with inventive bass lines and soaring keyboard sounds - taken from "Fragile"album. "Wonderous Stories" (3:45) is an acoustic guitar based music featuring nice vocal byJon Anderson - taken from "Going For The One" album. This compilation also featuresgreat tracks from The Yes Album: "Yours Is No Disgrace" (9:41) and "Starship Trooper"(9:26) plus two live tracks.

As I said, it's a great compilation but I would suggest you to purchase each individual albumas Yes music is much better enjoyed on album by album basis - not in the form ofcompilation. But if you never heard Yes music, this represents a good feature of theirmusic. Keep on proggin' ..!

Yours progressively, GW

"Classic Yes "was among my first progressive albums and I purchased it along with '90125'and The Ladder' with some of my Birthday money long ago. The three of these albumsbrought along a great era of music for me and it inspired by to get 'Close to the Edge','Relayer' and the rest from the 70's. I personally think this album would be better if it had asong from' Drama', maybe 'Tempus Fugit' to give the listener a taste of everything. Sadly"Classic Yes" has fallen into shadows as I'd just rather listen to the original studio albums.There is a collector's incentive to "Classic Yes" as it includes live version of "Roundabout" and"I've Seen all Good People." There is an interesting section at the end of "I've Seen all GoodPeople" where each member has a short solo. In the End "Classic Yes" is good for a beginnerto Yes and for potential collectors of Yes. I find it interesting that only eigth albums in all ofYes's history haven't charted in the UK. Yes's 'Ultimate Yes: 35th Anniversary Collection'ranked a very high number 10 in the UK which is a testament to the bands ongoingpopularity.Good, but non-essential

Yes probably best exemplify the impact of the 80s on the rock-god dinosaurs of thegeneration that preceded the 80s vidiot phase of music. The members ofthe band changed partners like dancers in a square dance in the wake of Jon Andersonand Rick Wakeman’s departures during the recording of 1980’s Drama release. SteveHowe and Geoff Downes took their newly-acquired collaboration skills off to form Asia;Alan White and Rick Wakeman hooked up with Jimmy Page to kick off thelatest supergroup flop XYZ; Jon Anderson put out his family-and-friends collection Songof Seven; and Trevor Horn returned to his MTV ‘roots’ as a songwriter and producer forsuch forgettable acts as Frankie Goes to Hollywood and The Art of Noise. You prettymuch needed a scorecard to keep track of who ended up where.

Atlantic Records managed to recoup a pound of flesh through all these changes bypatching together various concert tracks for the Yesshows live album, and shortly afterreleased Classic Yes with the help of Chris Squire.

The first thing to note about this album is the name: these is not necessarily the ‘Bestof’ Yes, nor is it really an anthology, but considering the selection of songs includedhere ‘Classic’ is an apt title. Clearly the label had a challenge on its hands in selectingthe playlist – with Yesshows still on record store shelves, it was unlikely fans wouldstomach another double album, so including many of the epics like “Gates of Delirium”,“Close to the Edge”, or anything from Tales From Topographic Oceans was probably outof the question. Despite the modest commercial success of Tormato and, to a lesserextent Drama, nothing from those albums could really be considered ‘classic’. And theYesterdays compilation from the band’s early work was still available, so none of thosesongs made much sense either. Actually, in that light, the songs that ended up herewere probably about the only ones that could have logically been included.

I have the original vinyl version, which shipped with a plainly-labeled 7” single containingthe live versions of “Roundabout” and “I’ve Seen All Good People”. I’m not sure exactlywhich tour these came from, but both are pretty faithful renditions, although the bandactually seems to have been in a hurry to play “Roundabout”, as it’s execution borderson perfunctory.

The rest of the album is made up of original studio recordings, so the quality is quitegood. These songs are all from The Yes Album and Fragile, except for “And You And I”from Close To The Edge and “Wonderous Stories”, which was still in light rotation onmany FM radio stations coming off the Going For The One release a couple years prior.I really can’t think of too many other songs that would have made any more sense thanthese, with the possible exception of the single edit of “Soon” from “Gates of Delirium”that was added to the re-mastered release of Relayer several years later. That wouldhave sounded nice here.

This is a decent collection of the band’s more accessible and better known works, and inthat respect is a very good entry point for those wanting to get into Yes. Combine thiswith Yesterdays and you have a very decent sampling of the band. If those bothappeal to you, then you can start walking through the back catalog and relive the Yesstory yourself. If not, at least you’ll have mostly experienced the magic of Yes withouthaving to break the bank or work too hard to find all those other albums. Three starsonly because compilations are rarely essential.

peace

If you need to buy a compilation that has these songs on it, shame on you. This entirecollection is culled from the four best albums that Yes has ever released and which youshould already own and cherish. That said, this is the CD I'd give to somebody who'dnever heard of Yes (or who only heard Owner of a Lonely Heart.) All of the songs on herelive up to the word "Classic" and the two live tracks are great (especially I've Seen All GoodPeople.) In a perfect world, I suppose that Wondrous Stories and Heart of the Sunrisewould be replaced by Close to the Edge and/or Awaken, so we'll give this one four stars.

I originally purchased this as an LP when I first started listening to music. Back then, the last two tracks were on a 7-inch single that came with the album. Although I no longer have this album, I still remember it fondly and gave it quite a few spins. I ended up selling it when I had acquired all the earlier albums that the songs on this compilation came from.

This is a decent selection of some of Yes' best material from the early 1970s, but it's main problem is so much was left out. My guess is the record company (or whoever had the power) decided it only wanted one LP and not some multiple-LP set. You can only fit so much on one LP, so to put as many songs on it as possible, the shorter items were chosen. So no Close to the Edge, no Starship Trooper, nothing from Tales from Topographic Oceans, etc.

I guess it served its purpose back in 1981 as an introduction to the classic Yes. Nowadays, if you can find it real cheap you might want to consider it as a good purchase for an introduction to 1970s Yes. I personally would recommend getting The Yes Album or Close to the Edge instead. If you don't like those, there's no sense in buying anything else. If you do, chances are you'll be getting a lot more from Yes. I don't think this compilation is essential at all, but it's got a good selection of songs. Three stars.

Another "Classic ---" compilation came to my mind after writing about "Classic [Wishbone] Ash". While I'm a bit embarassed to havequite many compilations in my reviews list as I try to pick items with less reviews, I allow myself to add this beauty (which, in fact,must be one of the most rated compilations in PA). Not only does it contain a fantastic selection of YES from The Yes Album to GoingFor The One, it has also one of my dearest cover art. Could be the best of Roger Dean's fantasy landscapes with Relayer andDrama.

Chris Squire was the architect of this selection, and I think he did a great job in the limited space of a single LP (the last 2 live trackswere added on a separate 7"). The only way to get something from Topographic Oceans and Relayer too, would have been cruelexcerpts of epic works. It rightfully excludes also Tormato and Drama. Could it be titled CLASSIC Yes if it didn't so? As for my findingof 70's YES, I'm not sure how many of the classic albums I found AFTER buying this compilation, but anyway this includes almostexactly my favourite tracks: 'Yours Is No Disgrace' and 'Starship Trooper' from The Yes Album, 'Heart of the Sunrise' fromFragile, 'And You And I' from Close To The Edge. 'Long Distance Runaround' and 'Fish' from Fragile are nice additions to bring morevariety. Pretty little 'Wonderous Stories' naturally pales in comparison if you think of 'Awaken' or 'Turn of the Century' from Going ForThe One, but thank god it's not 'Parallels' or the title track.

To whom this is recommendable is a tougher question. Well, to anybody who doesn't own the studio albums and who will besatisfied to just a narrow selection of some of the best prog music in the universe. ;)

Oh, well, Yes first ´best of´ package. I can´t say I like it, although all songs are excellent. Yes is one fothose groups you can´t really understand their work without hearing the whole piece. I mean, at least fromThe Yes Album until Going For The One. I must confess I had this album for a short time, when a friendgave me in the early 90´s. At the time I still had no Yes album in CD. But the moment I heard thosesongs I knew I had to have the original albums. Those classics have no meaning for me without the othertracks.

Ok, if you´re new to Yes, this is a good starting point. It has some of their best known numbers, but it isalso missing many others. Being cheap is the only reason I can recommend this album. Other than that,go get their classics 70´s stuff. It may be more expensive, but you´ll get much more satisfaction also.

A Classic compillation album, from one of the dinosaurs of prog rock!

Well, this review will actually be short compared with the ones i use to write, since it's always easier toreview a compillation album than a studio album, and even easier when you know from head to feet andviceversa the music featured.

And yes that is the case, several years listening to Yes' music have not passed along, since i first listenedto them i knew that would be a band i will like.

This compillation of a kind of best of, features 9 extraordinary pieces of Yes music in their 70s era, thatis why the name of Classic Yes. Here what we will find are 9 songs that any Yes fan know perfectly,songs that describe their music and what they have done to progressive rock, so in my opinion this is astrong compilation album, which is worth listening and recommendable for both a Yes fan or a Yes newbiewho is looking for increasing it's love for the band.

Just for mentioning some tracks here, Heart of the Sunrise, Starship Trooper, And You And I and acouple of live versions of the classics Roundabout and I've Seen All Good People.

As i said previously, a strong compilation, and recommendable.4 stars!

Enjoy it!

Yes - Classic YES review

By Progkidjoel

Classic YES is possibly the best starting point for a new listener to the band which held the benchmark for Prog throughout the 70's - What you get it some of their most solid tracks from three of their best albums, for a great price and remastered lovingly. Although not one for the YES fan of years, as I said before, this is the best starting point for a begginer. It includes what many people consider to be YES' most iconic tracks (Other than Close To The Edge) and includes a kickarse live version of ROUNDABOUT, which challenges the original for musicianship.

I consider this to be the easiest to reccomed prog compilation for any listener - Any listener new to YES, that is.

If you're trying out prog, or YES, grab this one and don't think twice.

Keep proggin'!

-Joel

This was my introduction to Yes. Apart from "Owner Of A Lonely Heart" and to a lesserextent "Roundabout", I had never heard any of their music. The first time I listened tothis, "Heart Of The Sunrise" blew me away and "Wondrous Stories" bored me to tears. The twolive songs here("Roundabout", "All Good People") didn't really sound good for somethingrecorded in the late 1970s. Overall it was a good introduction to the band.

This collection made me want to get into the band's 3 most popular albums(TYA, Fragile,CTTE), but made me skeptical of anything that came after(and to a certain extent before). If Iwere to change anything it would be to replace the live songs with the studio versions; andswitch "And You And I" and "Wondrous Stories" with "Siberian Khatru" and "Don't Kill TheWhale", respectively. "Wondrous Stories" is such a wimpy, unmemorable song. I can't believethis was a hit. I thought everyone was listening to punk at the time. Apparently not. The mostpopular song of 1977 was Debbie Boone's "You Light Up My Life", so "Wondrous Stories" isn'tfar off.

This would be 5 star stuff if the changes I wanted were made. But as it is, it's still a goodcompilation and a great place to start for a newbie. Although, once you get all the 1970salbums you will rarely listen to this again. Nothing essential, great introduction. 3 stars.

Classic Yes was one of my first, if not the first, recollections of hearing Yes. I remember being completely fascinated by the artwork of Roger Dean which was a great companion to the music featured on this compilation. All these first experiences really bring a feeling of nostalgia whenever I revisit this album, which is why it's now an important part of my album collection.

You really cannot go wrong when compiling a collection from the classic Yes years of 1971-72. I think that whoever compiled this album made a decent job and even if the addition of Wonderous Stories makes no sense in the great scheme of things, it adds charm to the already well-balanced compilation. One might question the addition of Chris Squire's Fish (Schindleria Praematurus), but just listen to the combo track of Long Distance Runaround / The Fish off Yessongs and it will hopefully make a bit more sense.

I like the idea of hearing Heart Of The Sunrise as an album-opener and not its conclusion, as it's positioned on Fragile, and it makes me wonder why it wasn't placed as such on the original studio release? Maybe it has to do with Yes being a commercial act that always put their hit material in the beginning of the album, but now I digress. I miss a few tracks like South Side Of The Sky, Sound Chaser and the live version of Perpetual Change. Even though I love both Close To The Edge and Gates Of Delirium, I can clearly see why those tracks wouldn't make much sense on a compilation album and therefore have no problem with their absence.

I could start a discussion on how this and that track could have easily substituted some of the material on this record, but this type of talk only strengths the argument against all type of compilation albums. If you want to hear what Yes were all about, then I suggest you listen to their original studio albums. This compilation gives a solid first bite for anyone who has previously never heard Yes, but remember that you're only seeing a very biased retrospective of their music. Luckily it's not a bad thing in the grand scheme of things, especially since the music here is so good!

***** star songs: Heart Of The Sunrise (10:32) Yours Is No Disgrace (9:41) Starship Trooper (9:26)

**** star songs: Wonderous Stories (3:45) Long Distance Runaround (3:33) Fish (Schindleria Praematurus) (2:35) And You And I (10:07) Roundabout (live) (7:23) I've Seen All Good People (live) (7:00)

Great songs but can't recommend it

Still remember that afternoon back in 1981, when I was walking in front of a record store in my native Lima,immediately a strange but at the same time familiar art cover caught my eyes, it was a YES album that I didn'thad. In those days you could only find disco music in Lima, so without listening or even checking the song list,bought the LP.

I was alone in the car, so threw the record to the passenger's seat and didn't checked it until I reached myhome, where I placed it in my old Dual turntable and started to listen...Let's be honest, the music was great, butthere was a problem, I had all the tracks in other albums and even in a couple of homemade cassettesprepared to be listened in my old Pioneer KP-500.

God, I felt robbed?Why should I pay for songs I already had. To make it worst, the only interesting songswhich are two never released before live versions of Roundabout and I've Seen All GoodPeople were mentioned as sold in a separate record that wasn't available in Perú.

That was the drop that spilled the cup, placed the album in an empty LP package (which I never listened again)and immediately framed the art cover for my room (The only valuable thing of the album). That day I decided Iwould never buy a compilation without checking the songs first and had some previously unreleased material.

Well, that's more or less what I have to say, the album has seven good songs that I would had never bought,so if you are a YES newbie who wants to become familiar with their stuff, buy YESSONGS and if youare already familiar with the band, get the original albums, where the songs are performed in the order thatmakes sense, don't waste your money in this unnecessary album that only helps the label to make money.

I won't go with one star because the songs are too good, but won't go with more than two, because I don'trecommend anybody to buy this sort of "Best of Yes" that isn't worth it's cost.

'Classic Yes' - Yes (75/100)

What is the problem with best-of compilations in progressive rock? It's certainly not thatprogressive bands aren't deserving of them, or even that there isn't a use for them; after all,a go-to record filled with choice cuts from a vast discography can be perfect for someoneotherwise daunted by the prospect of going in blind. The real problem, I believe at least, isthat record executives (or whoever else is in charge) will often find the songs with the mostimmediate gratification, some sort of expression that manages to convey a facsimile of theband's essence in the most concise way their discography provides. Almost always inprogressive rock, this results in flurries of radio edits, where a gorgeous ten minute epicmight be sliced into some three minute echo of itself - seriously, it's like taking a lion,shearing his mane, pulling out his claws, muzzling him, and forcing him to star on amorning kid's TV show. Yes proved they could circumvent this common issue whenthe eight minute "Roundabout" ate up the radio waves, and Classic Yes is awelcome exception. Perhaps it's become outdated in an age where we can find arecommended song online freely, but Yes' second best-of compilation is stilldeserving of praise for maintaining its integrity, and actually providing an accurate reflectionof Yes' progressive period. While I'd recommend starters The Yes Album orFragile as good places to begin, Classic Yes is an effective guide for the entry-level fan; in that regard, it accomplishes what it set out for.

Where Classic Yes earns the height of its praise is the fact that none of these trackshave been abridged or dumbed down in any way. "And You And I" would make a lovely threeminute track, but there it is in its ten minutes-plus glory. "Heart of the Sunrise" is an epic*nto itself, and here it is opening the album, with only the "We Have Heaven" outro excludedfor flow's sake. The selections have been mostly plucked from The Yes Album andFragile, but they extend as far as 1977's Going for the One. Considering thescope and aim of the compilation, they made some great choices, including ones I wouldn'thave guessed. "Long Distance Runaround" is featured here as a decent, pop-orientedtrack, but it's followed by "The Fish", as it was on Fragile. I think "Going for the One"would have been a more interesting choice than the mellow "Wonderous Stories", but forthe most part, the essence is captured. Of course, no best-of compilation of Yescould have been complete without "Roundabout", but instead of delivering it in its traditionalform, Classic Yes offers a strong 1978 live rendition of the song.

Like I said, this and other best-of compilations have been rendered largely obsolete in theinternet age, but Classic Yes represents one of the few times a prog comp wasmade true to the source material. For that, it's deserving of commendation. Cover art's nottoo shabby either.

Yesterdays II

I don't review compilations unless there is something extra that is not available on a band's regular albums. The presentcompilation is a borderline case in this respect because the only extras that you get here compared to the regular albumsare two previously unreleased live tracks. On the original 1981 vinyl release of Classic Yes, the two live tracks came on aseparate 7" disc that accompanied the LP which held the studio recordings. On later CD editions, the two live tracks weretagged on at the end of the same disc.

The two live tracks are Roundabout and I've Seen All Good People, both recorded in 1978 but on two separate occasionsand in two different locations. These are both good and constitute worthy additions to a Yes fan's collection, but theseparticular versions are not exactly essential. Earlier recordings of both songs were included on Yessongs. Yet, the inclusionof these live tracks together with the nice Roger Dean cover art is what brings Classic Yes it's primary value.

When it comes to the seven studio tracks, these are of course all excellent but in every case better heard in their originalalbum contexts. The selection focuses narrowly on the 1971-72 period with all but one of the seven tracks being taken fromthe trio of masterpieces The Yes Album, Fragile, and Close To The Edge. That there is nothing from the two first Yesalbums is easily forgiven as the earlier Yesterdays compilation had already focused on that early period, but the fact thatthere is nothing at all from either Tales From Topographic Oceans, Relayer, Tormato, or Drama, and only one song fromGoing For The One, is somewhat harder to overlook. Of course, there is only so much space on a vinyl LP which is amitigating circ*mstance, but they could perhaps have expanded this into a double disc set.

Moving now from what isn't here to what is here. The Yes Album is well represented by Yours Is No Disgrace and StarshipTrooper, two of that album's best tracks. Close To The Edge is similarly well represented by the wonderful And You And I.Heart Of The Sunrise is a perfect choice from Fragile but I think that Long Distance Runaround and especially Fish(Schindleria Praematurus) are somewhat odd choices for a compilation.

Progressive Rock is not very well suited for compilations and it is strongly recommended to go straight to the originalalbums from which these songs were taken (plus the live Yessongs). As far as compilations go, the four disc set Yesyearsis a better choice than the present one.

Review Nº 174

'Classic Yes' is a compilation of Yes and was released in 1981. Originally it was released as a single LP with a bonus7 inch 33 1/3 RPM disc featuring live versions of 'Roundabout' and 'I've Seen All Good People' from 1978. However,this version was taken out of circulation in 2003. The Atlantic Records cassette tape has bonus tracks 'Roundabout'as the last selection on side one and 'I've Seen All Good People' as the last selection on side two. On theremastered CD version of 2004 everything has been compiled onto to the main disc, as on the original cassetteversion.

'Classic Yes' has nine tracks. The first track 'Heart Of The Sunrise' was released on 'Fragile'. It was written byAnderson, Squire and Bruford. It became as one of the best and most popular tracks played live by them. It's thebest track on that album and it binds together the gentle and bombastic atmosphere and the fiery technicality thatare portrayed on 'Fragile'. It also shows several aspects of Anderson's great vocal abilities. The second track'Wonderous Stories' was released on 'Going For The One'. It was written by Anderson and is a typical Anderson'ssong. It's a beautiful ballad with great vocals and beautiful instrumental parts. It's the smallest song on 'Going ForThe One' and is fascinating how a band can be able to introduce so much complexity into a so short song. The thirdtrack 'Yours Is No Disgrace' was released on 'The Yes Album'. It was written by Anderson, Squire, Howe, Kaye andBruford and is the first long track made by them. The lyrics are simple but musically we can see the progressivity ontheir music, especially due to the guitar and keyboard workings. The fourth track 'Starship Trooper' is a songdivided into three parts, 'Life Seeker', 'Disillusion' and 'Wurm', and was released on 'The Yes Album'. It was writtenby Howe. It's another long composition and is another great song of the band, which became a classic of Yes. This isthe first musical suite composed by them, absolutely fantastic, with great individual musical performances by allband's members. The fifth track 'Long Distance Runaround' was released on 'Fragile'. It was written by Andersonand is the smallest track on 'Fragile'. It's perhaps, the most charming of all 'Fragile' songs, with Anderson singing,while Howe's guitar and Wakeman's keyboards, marry beautifully together in the mix. The sixth track 'The Fish(Schindleria Praematurus)' was released on 'Fragile'. It's the Squire experience on 'Fragile', where he uses thedifferent sounds on his bass guitar. Who read my review of 'Fragile' knows that I don't like very much of theindividual tracks of the band, on that album. The seventh track 'And You And I' is a song divided into four parts'Cord Of Life', 'Eclipse', 'The Preacher The Teacher' and 'The Apocalypse' and was released on 'Close To The Edge'.It was written by Anderson, Howe, Squire and Bruford. It's a melodious track and is probably the most commercialsong on 'Close To The Edge'. It's shorter than the title track of that album, but it still has 10 minutes. It's a differentpiece on 'Close To The Edge' and serves an excellent position as a middle piece, relying less in virtuosity and moreon musical atmosphere. The eighth track 'Roundabout' was released on 'Fragile'. But, the version on thiscompilation is a live version recorded at Oakland's Coliseum, San Francisco, California, USA, in 1978. It was writtenby Anderson and Howe and became as one of the best known tracks of Yes. This is one of the most played livepieces of Yes, with several versions on diverse live albums. An edited version was released as the A side on a single,with 'Long Distance Runaround' as the B side. It represents the new, collective and more inventive sound of thegroup, never heard before, and shows the musical power of Yes. The ninth track 'I've Seen All Good People' is asong divided into two parts 'Your Move' and 'All Good People' and was released on 'The Yes Album'. But, theversion on this compilation is also a live version, but this time, it was recorded at the Empire Pool, Wembley,London, UK, in 1978. It was written by Anderson and Squire. This is also a classic composition of Yes, very wellknown, and it remains a standard of those days. It's another brilliant song that explores a vast musical world withgreat progressivity. It has two distinct musical parts, one more calm and acoustic and the other more rock andaggressive. However, the song shows a perfect balance between both parts of the track.

Conclusion: 'Classic Yes' is a very different compilation of 'Yesterdays', their debut compilation. While 'Yesterdays'has only songs from their first two albums, 'Yes' and 'Time And A Word', 'Classic Yes' has songs from 'Fragile','Going For The One', 'The Yes Album' and 'Close To The Edge'. So, while 'Yesterdays' represents the sound of aband giving their first steps, 'Classic Yes' represents the sound of a mature band, with tracks from their four bestalbums at that time. It has some of the best tracks ever composed by them with the exception of 'The Fish(Schindleria Praematurus)'. So, as I rated 'Yesterdays' with 3 stars, it would be fair that I rated 'Classic Yes' withfour stars. However, this is a compilation album and despite 'Classic Yes' be an excellent compilation, perfectlyrepresentative of the music of Yes in those times, a compilation never can substitute the original albums. So, it'sgood but non essential.

Prog is my Ferrari. Jem Godfrey (Frost*)

If you want an officially-licensed, one-disc Yes greatest-hits collection, there are two primary options: Classic Yes (1981/1994)and Highlights: The Very Best of Yes (1993). Both have good sound, and each is over an hour long. (Please see my separatemini-review of Highlights: The Very Best if you want to read my opinions of that CD.)

Classic Yes, originally released immediately after the band's breakup, is your choice if you are interested in the band's "classic"period. The Yes Album is represented by two songs, Fragile by three, and Close to the Edge and Going for theOne by one each. Finally, we have very good live versions of "Roundabout" (originally from Fragile) and "Your Move/AllGood People" (originally from The Yes Album).

I think Classic Yes is a good starting point for people who are potentially interested in Yes, and are already fans of progressiverock. It does seem very odd that "Roundabout" and "Your Move," which were Yes's biggest hit US singles of the 70s (reaching #13and #40 respectively) would be represented by live versions. But setting aside 14:32 of a 65-minute deep dive for live music seemsto make sense.

So what is sacrificed to arrive at just 65 minutes of Yes? (I'm not going to address song selection, which has been covered by otherreviewers here, and which seems to be controversial whenever we're discussing the compilation of a "best of" or "greatest hits"album.) Most obviously, Classic Yes entirely skips over six of the ten studio LPs Yes had recorded prior to 1981, including theirfirst two albums, which means that several lineups and several group members are excluded.

The bottom line is that this CD unabashedly celebrates the "classic" version of Yes as Atlantic Records wanted the band to beremembered after their breakup. All but one of the songs originate from three albums released between February 1971 andSeptember 1972 (the exception is "Wonderous Stories" (3:45), from 1977, which had been their biggest hit in the UK.). Listeners newto Yes will only get one piece of the picture.

But that piece is the band's best period. As "best of" compilations go, Classic Yes is actually pretty good, andrecommended listening for those considering the purchase of more from this band.