Yes- Close to the Edge (First Listen)
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- Опубликовано: 15 сен 2024
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Song Link: • Yes - Close To The Edge
Hope you all enjoyed this video! If you're interested, check out my review of the full album! ruclips.net/video/b4mSpE84BpQ/видео.html
Hi grettings from Chile please listen the song tarkus of emerson Lake and palmer
@@wataka8501 here ya go🙂ruclips.net/p/PLk5U1pT6RIR3ndHMi6AIV9S9w-q9Ja7Iw
Rodzilla here. From the future: the &^%$*# pandemic is still going on and 650k people have died from it in the US! Thanks for doing this song. An all-time favorite of mine. And since I know you're a drummer, give a try to isolated drum and bass for this song some time!
ruclips.net/video/OAoy4FjSUzE/видео.html
what a blast from the past I was watching another video of yours and this one cycled in as I was multitasking with some work projects... I guess I missed this one because I hadn't checked off the thumbs up... I didn't realize the pandemic had impacted your revenue stream sorry to not have known that... I hope things have worked out over these last couple years...
Holy church music, Batman!!
You can listen to this song 100 times and each time hear something different.
Thats the beauty of prog
Gates of Delirium as well.
I noticed that too. The song's main verses have different instrumental arrangements every time they come around.
That's because of Chris's Bass playing...!
Every time I hear Close to the Edge, it overwhelms me so far.
Maybe the quintessential prog rock album side. Good choice.
For me, this song is like a portal to another dimension, another world!🎸🎶🎧❤️
Wagner Ribeiro de Santana completely agree
100%.......
100%..
Same feeling here!!
For me too
A couple years after this album came out, I'd purchased a set of Klipsch theater speakers and was putting them through their paces with one of the great prog rock achievements of all time. I lived next door to an older couple, who I thought were away from home, and I was playing it pretty loud. When the second side ended, I was just sitting there, marveling at what I'd just heard. Suddenly there was a knock on my door, and the elderly wife was standing there. I thought sure I was in deep poop for disturbing them. I said hello and waited for the inevitable chewing-out. She said, "That music!" I started apologizing, explaining that I thought they weren't home, etc. Then she said, "NO! It was ... BEAUTIFUL!" She was practically breathless trying to express herself. I've never smiled a bigger smile in my whole life. Perhaps the greatest compliment we can give to this album is recognizing its ability to reach across genres, age groups and personal tastes to deliver such amazing energy and talent to anyone who's willing to listen. The word that comes to mind is MAGNIFICENT.
@David Schlom I see what you did there....
@David Schlom more of a tale, a snippet of which is called a piece
We are one...
That exact thing happened to me on a pair of Klipsch speakers when I was playing Copland
The year was 1972. My friends and I were high school seniors and eager to explore the world. One of my closest friends...still is...Robert, had seen YES in the summer of 1972 when they were still relatively unknown, outdoors at Gaelic Park in the Bronx, NYC. As he sat on the blanketed grass in the summertime, Robert had no idea that his musical life would forever change on that day. Yes was the opening act, but after their set, they became THE MAIN act. Nothing that came after, came close to comparing to the performance he had just witnessed! Even Robert's weed "high" couldn't compete with the Yes "high" that he experienced that day.
Fast forward, soon after, Robert couldn't wait to share his newfound discovery with his friends. Lucky me! In NYC at the time, we had a high school called Aviation High School. Robert somehow commandeered himself a set of airplane seats from the school, that promptly made their way into his living room, straight in front of a high-tech stereo system, complete with state-of-the-art headphones...a must back then, too. We lit up a little doobie, sat in the airplane seats, and then we took off! Robert placed a green album cover on my lap, I opened the book-styled, inside album cover, revealing a beautiful art rendering of what appeared to me to be a flat, primordial Earth with an edge where water overflowed and a mist of clouds surrounded it. I was mesmerized with awe. The doobie definitely added to the intensity of the visual. I too had no idea what to expect. Then, Robert asked me to recline and listen, as he placed the headphones on me. I had never heard music like this before. It was a unique mix of rock, jazz elements, with the structure of a classical piece's movements, combined with a strong spiritual quality and a philosophical bent. From then on, I was hooked. To this day, I can picture that moment in time, as if it were yesterday.
One more fast forward. It was February 1974. Finally getting to see YES live! Never had I ever seen a concert quite like this. They performed the entire album Tales from Topographic Oceans...all four parts. Then, as if that weren't enough, Yes performed the entire album beginning to end, of CLOSE TO THE EDGE! Talk about mindblowing. OMG I can't believe how thrilled and over the moon we were. A pin drop could be heard in the Madison Square Garden crowd during each song, followed by a huge burst of thunderous, long, loud, standing ovations in between. To this day, I can still remember that magical evening.
So (okay I lied) one last fast forward.. Here I am in 2020, many years later, coming full circle to enjoying myself viewing YOUR reaction, Justin, and marveling at how the passage of time has not eroded my love for this music. Your analysis was very insightful and intelligent. My son, who has a Master's Degree in Musicology, probably could not have done a better job than you did in your breakdown and analysis of this iconic progressive rock song. Your tremendous efforts are greatly appreciated by this old Yes fan. Thank you, and here's to at least a couple more fast forwards! 👏👏
Btw, my all-time Yes favorite is Awaken, followed by Gates of Delirium, and then America. Did you notice that in America, Chris Squire referenced the song America (West Side Story) by Leonard Bernstein? So freaking clever, that Chris. Miss him so much! 😢😥🎸🎶 💙
Wow Linda, thank you so much for sharing that with me/us, was a lovely read. And that concert sounds euphoric, I can only imagine how it felt being there. I appreciate your comment and watching/enjoying the video, I hope you have a great week!
P.S.- I didn't notice the West Side Story connection until after this video, sneaky sneaky :D
Their best album and song IMHO. The " I Get Up , I Get Down" section is one of the brightest highlights in Prog rock history.
Absolutely
Fragile and Relayer were up there too
Never saw Yes live, but I discovered them as a teenager in the 70s when life was pretty crap - parent dying of cancer, car accident, isolated and bullied at school. And then there was music like this, pure, transformative and spiritual, which could take me to another realm. Likewise Jon Anderson's Olias of Sunhillow album (which I bought for its cover!), a stunning narrative journey you should listen to from start to finish in a sitting to appreciate. Thanks for sharing - this song in particular really evokes the joy I found in music when all else seemed bleak.
You're missing out. Yes is just as good live as they are on their recordings. Amazing.
"Olias all surrounding the storm" - yep one of my favs too 😊
@@minnyh Jon Anderson - "Olias of Sunhillow".... I was 18. ;-)
Seen em a couple of times but I was introduced in the 70s as well .
I could do a perfect 'YES' on my rough book
It never fails but the moment that Anderson starts with the "I get up, I get down" gives me goosebumps.
Yup! :D
Cool reading this right as the get up part starts ...
@@jowlorenz9555 okay that was weird, it just happened to me!
When I was a lot younger, this was my Granma's favorite song to play as we'd be driving up the slippery roads up a mountain to go skiing. Good memories with this one
One of the happiest moments of my life was seeing them play this live.
I can imagine!
We CRIED when we heard on the part "I get Up....I get down" I was in tears like I was lifted up in Heaven.....I looked around to a sea of guys and girls were in tears....people were crying like me!!!! I will NEVER EVER forget that part of the concert!!!!
They went next level here and really owned their classical side. The song is almost sonata form. I never get tired of listening to this. Once I'd heard Awaken and this song I was hooked. That was 42 years ago. Still hooked.
Same for me with CTTE, 49 years ago completely hooked for life. Isn’t it great we still get to hear YES music played live even now! ... cannot wait for the UK Relayer tour next year !!
Ok , not the incredible line up of old, but still brilliant musicians led by Steve.
Great commentary on this masterpiece, JP. I really liked listening to it with you. I was lucky enough to see Yes concerts in the mid-70s. The fact that they could play this stuff live practically note for note for note was stunning. Jon Anderson deserves credit for being the leader of this group. He was a musician himself, could play some guitar, keys, percussion, but nowhere near to the level of the other guys in the band. Still, he was the main arranger and "conductor" of Yes. He was the songwriter, together with Howe. Somehow, he had all of this music in his head, then marshaled the talents needed to realize it. I find that extraordinary. Jon is the one who provides the hooks and melodies needed to convey the positive message of Yes.
This song is truly next level.
Agreed Brian….
Wow, before reading this comment section, I had no idea Jon Anderson was the main composer. I would never have thought so. Then I also learned that when JP listened to Awaken. That's very interesting.
I can't even fathom seeing this played live in the 70s.
I think Bruford's drumming keeps the whole thing flowing along. He carefully inserts fills and creative beats, and masterfully handles the transitions from section to section, as well as all of the time changes.
@@nickj5451 I've seen every Yes concert that came to town since 1976. It's always fabulous!! I just saw them on their 50-year tour with my 21 year-old daughter.
Uhh....Jon Anderson did not "write" Close To The Edge. Yes, he wrote the lyrics and was probably responsible for several of the melodic passages, but the idea that he basically composed this masterpiece is an obvious exaggeration. It could just as easily be said that Chris Squire wrote it. The fact is all those musicians contributed mightily to the final product and there seems to have been a lot of collaboration between them in the overall arrangement and mixing...thus, the reported heated/tense atmosphere that Welch observed. I loved Jon's contributions to the band, but I think it's also quite obvious that Jon and Chris were both co-leaders of the band of equal stature.
This song. THIS SONG. This song changed my life.
“Come to the edge.
We might fall.
Come to the edge.
It's too high!
COME TO THE EDGE!
And they came
And he pushed
And they flew.” ~ Christopher Logue
This was probably the most transformational album for me that I've ever heard. I was 13 at the time, and had already immersed myself in The Yes Album and Fragile, and had decided that Yes was my new favorite band, knocking off the Moody Blues (tough thing to accomplish!) from the top spot. Then I bought Close To The Edge. I didn't have headphones at the time, so I would move the high end stereo speakers off the low table they sat on in the den, placed them on the floor facing each other and laid my head in between. This title track took me to a completely different dimension! It is mind bending and mind blowing in it's depth of touching my heart and soul. Music is very emotional for me. It always has been. But this... this was transcendent. This was so far beyond anything else in it's ability to be powerful and majestic and beautiful all at the same time. I cried during and after for a while. I still cry when I listen to it. It effects me that deeply. I consider it not only one of the greatest progressive songs ever created, but one the *greatest songs ever* created.
Wonderfully expressed. Same way this album hit me from the first time hearing it to the present day. Marvelous indeed. Blessings to all!!
Yes is the only group i've ever seen live where the audience just sat listening while the music was created. only going crazy when things finished
That happens at other Prog bands too. King Crimson being a prime example.
@@HerbalistGuybrush Seen Crimson quite a few times, and you're absolutely right. You have to sit there and listen or you miss what they're about.
ELP live was also like that. Walked out after third encore drained, shellshocked. Nobody said a word til we all loaded up back in the car.
In the organ section of this song, Wakeman was on the ‘church’ organ at the back of the hall. His cape and long blond hair flowing he looked like something from ‘Phantom of the Opera’. A great memory from my teen years..
Here's the organ:
ruclips.net/video/n6AbKeGBp-o/видео.html
Perfect description
Their next album is Tales from Topographic Oceans. A double album with four songs. The Revealing Science of God is outrageous.
Seeing Jon Anderson sing live is a spiritual experience. Best way I can explain it. I've seen them from the 70's to the 2000's.
Tales is one of my favorite albums of all time. The four tracks are brilliant.
My favorite Yes album!
So many awesome moments on Tales! A truly epic work.
¨Tales¨ is underrated because mainstream popcritics did not have
the ears for pieces of that magnitude.
@@karelvandervelden8819 I agree with you pop critics panning it - I had low regard for Rolling Stone magazine back when Tales was released -- they audaciously gave a Two Star Album Review of Tales, with a bitter rant against anyone who used the ancient Indian Sanskrit writings as source material. I think the writer who wrote that review would rather have given a Five Star Album Review of the New York Dolls' latest album featuring their hit single "Trash" - and unjustifiably so, considering the nature of a throwaway pop culture.
Genius work by one of the most talented groups ever azzembled!👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻❤️☮️✌🏻🎹🎸🎤
At 20 years old, saw Yes at Winterland in San Francisco play Close to the Edge...while i was on LSD.
It was not only my connection with the music, it was the common consciousness of the audience sharing the music together that remains, time after time in the dozens of times I've seen Yes since.
Be sure to listen to Yes' epic cover of Simon & Garfunkel's "America" (10min version), which was recorded at the same time as Close to the Edge.
Lwize Absolutely - one of the very best Yes songs that hardly ever gets mentioned - perhaps of some silly bias because it’s a ‘ cover ‘. Really a shame because it’s very moving , fun and musically brilliant ( and it has nothing to do with the fact that I lived right next to the ‘ New Jersey Turnpike ‘ ).
Not the 4 minutes single version , though!
As long as he listens to the original Simon and Garfunkel version first, cool. He may not know it. Yes did an interesting cover but I still prefer the original. I saw Paul Simon with and without Art Garfunkel over the years, and Paul Simon opened his last tour with “America,” and it sounded as beautiful and powerful as ever.
Thank you. The most intelligent analysis of this song I have ever heard. I get emotional every time I hear Rick come in with the organ.
Ok Man. You are a legend in your understanding of this masterpiece.I first heard Yes when I was 18. Let me tell you a little story. A friend told me " you have to listen to the new album by Yes. I had never heard of them, and because I was wandering around town, I ducked into a record( yes record) store to listen to it on headphones. Since that day of revelation, I became the ultimate Yes fan. I bought all their early catalogue. I am 65 now, and still the ultimate fan. So many great bass players in the world...McCartney, entwistle, john bruce, flea, etc, but I've got to say squire is no. 1. The 3 Yes albums to listen to are Close to the Edge, The Yes Album (listen to Starship Trooper), and Fragile. Nothing better than these 3. I'm amazed by your understanding of this music. Your reactions were exactly like mine first time hearing it. They were just 47 years apart! That speaks to the music doesn't it.
Thanks so much Tim! I'm hearing a lot of stories about people like yourself listening to the record in the shop and being enamored!
One of the real true masterpieces of music to come out of the progressive rock of the 70's.
Eddie Offord is a major force behind this epic. It was separate short compositions originally (the sections). He literally lived in the studio during the crafting of this. Endless sleepless nights splicing together this hodge-podge of a song, using the sections and numerous glue bridges the band composed. Few engineers in this world can brag about splicing multi-track tape. Staggered ends had to match perfectly, and no 2nd chance. You can hear many of them when you listen very closely. When the recording was complete, the band had to "learn" and rehearse the song for live because they've never performed in its entirety before.
Their next project would be orders of magnitude more complex. You're welcome to attack Tales any time! Wakeman is wasted 100% of the time on Tales (he hated it, and left unhappily after the album), but still manages to shine anyway...
Thanks for this special!
Are you ready Eddy, ready to rock and roll...:)...He did killer work with ELP too...:) ruclips.net/video/7MjBJAe7Zmg/видео.html
@@godbluffvdgg Oh! Yes he sure did!
Thank you, ArsenalEcho, for this information.
Im glad you did a discussion at the ends. Liked your analysis of close to the edge.
September 22 1972 was my first concert and it was YES. Close to the edge was played live to Chicago for the first time.
No one knew what it was because the album would not be released till that December. It was an incredible mind blowing experience to watch them perform this music and a few months later learn what they played and examine the music on vinyl with what we heard before. A special time that will be with me forever
A definite desert island disc. Our go-to album when we don't know what we want to listen to.
This is my favorite piece of music made by man or woman. I've listened to it more times then I can guess, but every time, EVERY TIME it makes me emotional. The first time I heard this I couldn't believe what I was hearing. How can five guys make something like this, I asked myself. The more I listened to their total body of work, be it in YES, or in another band, or solo, I think this is the pinnacle of their individual musical historical work. The top of their game! It will always be my favorite piece of music and I'm happy you finally heard this masterpiece. Bravo!
I heard this (as a 12-year-old) soon after it came out, and I was hooked. I'm now 60 and I still play it regularly (perhaps more so now with Wilson's recent 5.1 mix). When I later read Hesse's book (as an 18-year-old) the lyrical message made sense. The opening with the peaceful sounds of nature, followed by the chaos of individual life in human society, the search for spiritual enlightenment, the notion that it cannot be found in human society ("Then according to the man who showed his outstretched arm to space, He turned around and pointed, revealing all the human race, I shook my head and smiled a whisper, knowing all about the place"), and ending with the sounds of nature one again (the Buddhist idea of enlightenment as being one with nature). That was heavy philosophical shit for a 12-year-old, but the music captured me then and it still does now.
Yo I dig the Kropotkin pfp even though I'm ML. Props man :)
In 1973 I gave my 72 year old aunt from South Dakota a tour of San Francisco (I was 14 at the time) and as a way of saying thank you she went into a record store and asked the 18 year old girl behind the counter what album she should buy for me. When the young lady returned to the counter she handed my aunt Close To The Edge by Yes. My aunt looked at the album, then at the girl, and said "well...O.K." It changed my life. Maybe you can give And You And I another spin now that you have a better understanding of what Yes is all about? Just a thought.
Starship Troopers is the next one I recommend. For something a little different? I Robot by The Alan Parsons Project. A good choice for an entire album reaction. Have a nice day!
Particuarly since Alan Parsons was the engineer to Dark Side of the Moon
Thats awesome! Thank you for the story Gene.
That 18 year old girl would have been labeled as “future wife material”.
@@randysmith4331 It's always a shame when you miss out by a few years.
This song is like canoeing on a river. First, everything is serene. The sun is out and the birds are chirping.
Then you come upon white water rapids and chaos. Your boat is sporadically shifting all over and you're being tossed around.
Finally, it passes and you find yourself in some biblical like serenity on the otherside.
The sun is shining through the clouds, the water is calm again and you are in a blissful place.
Anyway, if you're looking for a change or just a real groove tune, try Yours is no Disgrace or I've Seen all Good People.
Well put, I agree.
Love it, sounds about right to me!
Yes, this was their fifth album, but it was only Steve Howe's third album and Rick Wakeman's second album with Yes. But all the while they were building up to this masterpiece. (The following is plagiarized from an earlier comment I submitted from another reactor's channel). Bill Bruford described composing Close to the Edge as every member of the band "horse trading" to get their particular parts included and where to put them. He also said that he was completely exhausted at the end of the recording of this album. He left the band as soon as it was finished (to "recharge his musical batteries") and joined King Crimson which had a much darker/jazzy tone musically that he was much more comfortable with. They immediately went on tour to promote "Close to the Edge" with new drummer, Alan White (who had played on John Lennon's "Imagine" album). You can a imagine what a challenge that must have been with only three days of rehearsals to prepare for their first gig in Dallas! Rick Wakeman is also on record as saying that Chris Squire's unique bass sound came from taking out all of the bass and mid-range and cranking up the treble. A wonderful reaction. Thank you and stay well!
This comment reminded me of something Bill said about the differences between Yes and KC: "In Yes, there was an endless debate about 'should it be F natural in the bass with G sharp on top by the organ, or should it be the other way around?'". In King Crimson, almost nothing was said ... you were just supposed to know."
There's an interview with Bill as to why he lest YES when he did and he said that the only thing he thought that could come after this album was "Son of Close To The Edge".
Chris tone was not produced by pulling all the bass out. Not sure where that quote came from but it's wrong.
My first experience listening to Alan White was in Toronto Sept.1969 when he played with John Lennon, Yoko Ono, Eric Clapton and Klaus Voormann..as The Plastic Ono Band one-off at The Toronto Rock and Roll Revival.
Seeing them live in the 70s was like I was in church. Both "Close to the Edge"and "And You and I" have a hymn like quality. Rick Wakeman said that his dad told him to learn as many genres of music as possible. He said that his dad always said "an author is only as good as the words he knows".
It really was...Anderson in all white on an all white stage...We really loved them here in philly.
In 76 they played here at night. There were over 300,000 people there...I was 16 and it was practically in my neighborhood...Man, that was a party! Never lunched with so many Jersey girls...:)...Jersey girls were great prog heads.
Speaking of. ..Anderson Bruford Wakeman and Howe... The meeting. One of the most hauntingly beautiful songs I've ever heard.
One of the best compositions and performances of the 20th century, for sure, and side 2 is just about as good. Every person in this iteration of Yes is at the top of their game. All geniuses.
The middle section where it gets quiet and ambient is my favorite Yes moment. And then that huge organ sound gives me chills. The pipe organ when used in a rock context can be very powerful.
Yes has all the sensibilities of an informed jazz band in how they construct tension and release.
It's truly masterful how this is laid down...themes are briefly shown then surpassed then once again reignited in all their glory within the grand finale.
Justin so happy you finally heard their first masterpiece CTTE Next you must listen to Relayer especially the Gates of Delirium another masterpiece
Justin, to 'Relayer', to all Three of its Songs, if you can and if you so wish.
Yes agree!
Gates would be a bit much for him. Surprised he tackled CTTE.
I think The Yes Album and Fragile are also masterpieces. + CTTE and Relayer they all are must haves in every Prog Collection
There will always be prog rock haters, or at least dislikers. But every once in awhile, one of them will finally hear that prog rock masterpiece that takes them on an inner freakin' journey, and will know our lament that no one will ever create a true work of prog rock ever again. But what a reserve we have.
Another really great song, one of my favorites that even a lot of fans of Yes don't know about is "America" by Paul Simon. Absolutely amazing arrangement. Definitely worth a listen!
If you really want to enjoy this amazing beautiful piece of music, listen to it lying down, in the dark, eyes closed, with headphones.
When the green faerie in white lace comes out of the water, tell her I said hi : )
By the way, this is the best review of this masterpiece I've ever heard. Great job man.
I'll take the suggestion , and thank you for watching and your words Light
@@JustJP you're welcome. Love that you've also reacted to U.K.. I don't believe anyone else has, so let me give you another obscure group. Dixie Dregs, 'I'm Freaking Out'. Steve Morse is the guitar player. He's one of the best.
Every time I hear this I'm instantly 4 years old sitting in front of my dad's reel to reel stereo system listening to this record while my parents are making dinner. Such a visceral experience all around.
Love the memory! Ty Vel
Squire was the architect for the vocal harmonies in Yes
What a perfect time to play this JP. Thank you.. The Human race is under the biggest mind attack ever. The fear and anxiety out there is crazy. The EGO grows stronger. Let’s al use this down time to get back up. Listen to and use music like CTTE, Awaken an the many many more spiritually awakening gold nuggets that Yes perform to look within and just be the light of consciousness we are all part of . It’s a beautiful an d wonderful place. It was so uplifting to watch you actually get what YES is all about. Using music and sounds to make you really FEEL. Thank you JP.
Keep those chakras spinning......
The first time I heard *Close To The Edge* was at my first YES concert, right after graduating from high school. I had heard Starship Trooper on the radio a few times & was blown away with what I was hearing. So I had to go see them when the came to town, which was in Tampa, FL, during their CTTE tour. That's when I heard CTTE & had to promptly go out and buy the album. YES remained my favorite band for the next two decades. I ended up seeing them in concert 7 times.
And yes, to me, YES was the band *Chris Squire* had put together to showcase his unique talent. All the other guys were great, but the smartest thing about them was their realization of how crucial it was for them to build their compositions around Chris' powerful bass lines. It worked to perfection for a long, long time...
I love Bruford too- in Yes and also
beautiful King Crimson stuff- tightly tuned snare, inimitable sound-also good insight with Squire using a pick.
JP - I went to many Yes concerts over the decades from small venues to open air stadia and the biggest arenas. The swirling Yes sound fills every corner of the concert hall and reaches into your heart. It is an experience never forgotten. Genesis and Pink Floyd came very close but Yes' symphonic progressive rock evoked an emotional experience that remained well beyond the finale. I still cannot listen to Stravinsky's Firebird Suite without the feeling an overwhelming sense of anticipation - Yes clearly wanted to engender this in the audience as the lights dimmed.
Rick tells the story of how he came to use the church organ and his negotiations wit the vicar. The wise and canny old clergyman made clear that if Rick 'wished' to provide a sizeable donation to his church, it would be gratefully received.
In the early 70's, Fragile seemed perfect to most of us Yes fans. Very apt that Close to the Edge was an almost religious experience. I still close my eyes in sections of CTTE and imagine a swirling, ever changing murmuration of thousands of starlings. Only 5 musicians, not thousands of birds, but so intricate and together in perfect harmony.
I am amazed at how much you pick up in one listen and how eloquently you put into words your interpretation of what you have just heard.
Wonderful. Thank you.
That's what I'm talking about! Thank you so much Stefan, it's truly amazing
The most emotional rock song I ever heard. Each time I hear it, I drift off ro times gone by. It is truly amazing to see some one as young as you JP have a true appreciation of ehst was put together long before you wete born.
When we heard this on our home system with floor standing speakers and a real amp we were moved to tears and filled with life....Live it hit even harder.
This piece is the definition of prog rock and thankyou young man for your critique, I really enjoyed this
Thanks!
I saw them do this at the De Montfort Hall in Leicester, which has an actual church organ. To see Rick Wakeman, cloak and all, race up to the organ keyboard to do this bit was always fantastic.
I was 14 when this album was released and I played it relentlessly. It holds a sacred spot in my collection and easily is my favourite Yes album. Even to this day I still marvel at how a band can come together, write, play and arrange something of this ambitious complexity. Only two more tracks to review and you have completed the album. You and I on side 2 is another slice of Yes perfection, and so fused it it with Siberian Khatru, I can't listed to one without the other: just like Horizons belongs with Super's Ready.
Siberian Katru was the first song of the first Yes concert I attended. Yes in the Round, at the Philadelphia Spectrum. I adore that song!
"Then according to the man who showed his outstretched arms to space, he turned around and pointed, revealing all the Human Race. I shook my head and smiled a whisper, knowing all about the place."
Do those who claim to know - the "Fool on the Hill" vibe - Do they know more than us? Or is it the other way around? Who knows what? Relative to "Who?"
The song also asks questions. That's worth a lot.
This song is a masterpiece
No mater how many times I hear this song and I have been listening to it since 1977, it never gets old, a sure masterpiece.
I saw Buford with King Crimson back in the 70's. I never saw a drummer hit a snare so hard. And yeah, Squire used a pick. It helped make his unique Rickenbacher crunchy distorted tone.
You've covered several of my top ten albums. Subscribed.
Ty Eddie!
His snare , no one else sounds like him . I saw his band UK as well . Such a great drummer.
Next up, Gates of Delirium. Great reaction JP!
Agreed. "The Gates of Delirium," in my opinion, is their other most notable masterpiece (talk about a brutal, but frickin' beautiful, journey...)
Justin would LOVE Gates of Delirium (if he can survive the chaotic/dissonant part in the middle). One of my top ten Yes songs - I prefer the live version from Yesshows.
If I had to use only one word to describe my life it would be YES!
That little sigh you gave at 14:47 expresses the way we all felt upon hearing this song for the first time.
Along with Supper’s Ready by Genesis, and Thick as a Brick by Jethro Tull, this is one of the all time great prog rock epics.
Wow, what ride. Not just the amazing song but, the Yes analysis. This channel has brought me to appreciate the band more and I listen more intently cuz I know you’re going to go over it in the test. Yes, npi, I feel like my college music appreciation class has morphed into a progressive rock appreciation class, sweet. Really enjoyable.
You didn’t really yell into the mic but, I could hear Manny say” Could you PLEASE not yell into the mic!” Funny. Thank you for moving this up in the schedule. It hadn’t really occurred to me but, I really did need this. Pleasant intricate analysis of beautifully arranged music. What’s not to like.
I feel the song has a least two edges... the first, the chaotic beginning, the broken self, gradually working to the softly enveloping serene portion... the higher self. Meanwhile, the repeated verse and chorus, done in its variations could symbolize your normal life, with different lessons to be learned daily. If I live my life with the financially needed structure, work, come home, work, come home... but, add the variation similar to verse and chorus, wow.
Blessings to you and your family, health and spiritually.
Take care everyone,
Peace and Music
I clicked like as soon as I saw the title. My favorite song off my favorite Yes album! You spoke about Chris using a pick. In an interview I watched, Chris explains his picking style in which his thumb hits the string right after the pick hits it. Different and unique.
5 incredible musicians in tune with their muse. Late 1972 , I was hooked.....solid on prog, having then seen it live a year later. Beyond the Edge.
In the 70's,....the Ecstacies, literally started with Tens of Thousands of us, months earlier, waiting to purchase Tickets of 'Yes', at that Venue where 'Yes' was to play, months later. Those Evenings of wait, stretched into Early Mornings, then into Mornings of Daylight, 12 or 14 hours later, we then, exhausted, purchased Tickets at 10am. Our fuel then, was of Swiss Scientist, Albert Hofmann's Creation. By the Dates of the Concerts, everyone was readied for 'High Mass'. Tears of Joy and Awe, at a 'Yes' Concert, were automatic,...by Mid-Concert, Jaws dropped, en masse ( Such a phenomenon occurs, when the Sublime incurs), Everyone Stunned and Aglow, at its Finale.
This video has three fantastic things. In ascending order: your reaction/comments, the song itself, and your introductory comments. Your heart wins. Bless you, Justin.
I really like Jon Anderson's vocals and especially in the part between "Two million people barely satisfy..." and "...How old will I be before I come of age for you?". That section also contains some very clear and meaningful lyrics. It really speaks to me.
Some more info about the vocals of Yes: Chris Squire sang vocal harmonies in many Yes songs. His vocals blended very well together with Jon Anderson's voice. The vocals sounded the same on live concerts.
You really must watch some of their live videos. To watch how the recreate these difficult songs live to audiences will blow you away. This song on the Yessongs live video is truly awesome. I have seen them live over 20 times and saw people crying during and at the end of this song, Also listen Chris Squires solo album Fish out of water. It is one of those rare albums where every song is just bad ass. I could listen to it non stop.
Close to the edge -- look at the album cover design - the inlay - where Roger Dean has designed the meaning of the song.
I recommend RELAYER / GATES OF DELIRIUM as your next full-blown eoic 25 mn long track.
I really love your reactions videos. ranks amongst highest.
Genius.An other Masterpiece.This is why I am back to classical and Jazz music today.When you got used to this quality of music ,year after year,in the 70's golden era ,today,i.m.o.,a part of some exceptions,the only music that satisfies me is classical and jazz.Maybe I am just getting old.
Their vocal harmonies are underrated.
Saw them many times, each member was a virtuoso. and together they were magic, I wish you could have experienced this track live.
I bought this album when it came out. Why is it that the hair stands up on the back of my neck when Wakeman comes in with the organ? Still gets me after all these years.
My sister turned me on to this band when I was 11 years old around 1974 . Possibly the greatest song ever. What an absolute masterpiece.....
Your sister has great taste!
Wow!!! You finally did it! Good for you...this is the piece that got me into progressive rock, back in 1999
With out a doubt the best YES album.
CTTE Awaken GATES- some of the greatest musial pieces EVER recorded in any Genre. No band was like YES. I mmaculate-innovative -polarizing- musical aliens
One night in 1972 after playing a house gig in Charlotte (I play keyboards), my girlfriend said we had to go to her house and hear this new album she just bought. We'd never heard of Yes before. The ceiling was painted in dayglo images, only the black lights were on, and as we lay down on the floor looking up, Close To The Edge came on. MIND BLOWN! I've been listening to this since 1972 and it never gets old. Truly great music is timeless. After listening to it all these years, I have to say I think your analysis is spot on. The first time the I heard the start of "I get up, I get down" come on, I felt like I was in a cave with that water dripping.
You mentioned that this was their fifth album so they had a lot of time to practice, but it was actually only their second album with Rick Wakeman. Fragile was their first, and that was actually a practice album, because now they were a completely different band with Rick. If you listen to Yes albums pre-Wakeman and with Wakeman, they are nothing alike. Replacing Tony Kaye with Rick Wakeman allowed them to venture into realms of music and sound they never could before. They were always superb musicians, but the addition of Rick Wakeman allowed for a new level of creativity and imagination. I like what you said about Bill Bruford. To me, Alan White's drumming is about energy, while Bill Bruford's drumming is about precision. When you watch them live, Alan plays with his whole body, while Bill plays with just his wrists. It looks like he's not even trying wile playing all this amazing stuff. He looks completely relaxed. Now, about how Chris Squire got those sounds out of his Rickenbacker bass, watch this video:
How I get my Chris Squire Bass Sound
ruclips.net/video/k5qdWuEQauM/видео.html
Then watch this to be amazed (Richiey Castellano on bass, his wife Ann Marie on lead vocals, Chris Clark (of Brand-X) on keyboards, modern musical and production equipment, better overall sound quality):
Close To The Edge - A Band Geek Yes Cover with Chris Clark
ruclips.net/video/aG-x1VbHRFg/видео.html
Enjoy!
Bravo! Very glad you enjoyed this so much. Not everybody can appreciate that on first listen, even if they eventually come to love it. You did a good job of picking up on so much of what I love about this song. They put the Art in Art Rock on this one in that they really followed the lead of what classical composers, Beethoven, Bach, Mozart, and Brahms did: they introduced themes then would move on to a new section, but reintroduce the theme in a new way. It's what ties the different sections together so well. You picked up on this pretty well, but just described it differently. It's something to listen for when you listen again. In classical music you may hear a theme first played by the violins, then later on oboe or bassoon, then later on french horn, then finally all the instruments playing it in the final movement. Also, glad you love the vocals, this is some of my favorite vocal work they've done. If you had your headphones on correctly, you heard Steve in your left ear, Chris in the right and Jon in the middle in 'I Get Up, I Get Down'. Chris often sings harmony or doubles Jon's vocals, but here he and Steve sing a beautiful counterpoint to Jon's lead which is just sublime. You mentioned the Beach Boys but Jon and Chris have mentioned several times early on that they were inspired by the vocals of Simon and Garfunkel, and in fact on the deluxe digital version of Close to the Edge, they include one of Yes's few covers and it's S&G's America. Also, I think the lyrics of this section are some of their most evocative. I could go on for a very long time about Rick's work in this song, but I'm just going to say I think it is some of his very best - that organ solo!! Also, glad you appreciate Bill's drumming. I think he's one of the best drummers ever. As for bass, the picking is part of the story of Chris's trebly bass sound, but I actually read recently that he had another jack put on his bass and sent each pickup out separately: the bridge to a normal bass amp and the neck pickup out to a guitar amp where he added some distortion too, in addition to a bunch of compression on both. Also, for a real treat, check the live version from 1972 ruclips.net/video/BcDU-vilgic/видео.html
Do yourself a favor and do the other song from CttE: 'And You and I'
Thank you so much for this. Be well.
Peace from SF
JP this was the very first song I heard from YES back in the mid seventies and I was truly mesmerized by this song and became a YES freak ever since! And just imagine seeing them in concert in the round at Madison Square Garden and having them play this song live and also Awaken in the same concert! Truly mind blowing experience! Now your next journey will have to be Gates of Delirium off the Relayer album. Thanks again for doing this it was a pleasure listening!
Psycadelicious
I was about to go to sleep when i saw this. Love it, every bit. I saw Yes when they came to Argentina in 2013. Jon was no longer with them and that was a shame. But when I heard Squire and Howe playing this song, I lost my head haha. Was magical, an experience I'll never forget. The build up with the organ (the second time) was played by the whole band. The P.A. was about to explode haha. Really nice memories of that concert. Thank you as ussual JP!
Lol, glad to keep you up! I cam imagine how it must've felt...ty Lauta
Justin, Thank you. I had held off hearing your reaction until the right moment. Needed 45 minutes of no interruptions. Tonight was the night. You did just great. Hard to believe that every human being in the world hasn't heard this song. It would sure be nice. Might just change the outlook of our brothers and sisters. Humanity can create this kind of music? It can do ANYTHING.
These lyrics mean a lot to me:
"Then according to the man who showed his outstretched arm to space
He turned around and pointed, revealing all the human race
I shook my head and smiled a whisper, knowing all about the place"
To me, Close To the Edge is a celebration of human kind - and all the good it has the potential to do.
My two cents,
Ken
Much needed...best escape from reality is great music 🎶
@MrBrenman21 I have alot of family and friends in N.Y. where I'm originally from.
Happy to escape with all of you
My favorite YES song and one of my favs of all time, what a great song!
For my money, the best part of this is 16:25 or so in this video, where they reprise that chaotic bit at the beginning, right after the massive organ climax, and it's less chaotic, less cacophanous, because it's in a musical context. It's a great example of how the same music can have totally different feel depending on what's around it.
Wow, a JP analysis of Close to the Edge! Awesome.
I really enjoyed what you said, about the song, about Yes, about the lyrics, about songwriting and musical expression. How can we ever be grateful enough for music?
If you liked This You`ll DEFINITELY like Emerson Lake and Palmer - Tarkus
honestly im a huuuuge fan of this but not big on tarkus at all. i think im in the minority though lol
TheFloydios Nah, I’m with you there. Something about the mixing of this song I liked better than Tarkus.
Not sure I agree with the sentiment but definitely with the suggestion; Tarkus is one of ELP's best works. As commented before: It's a long track, but it's broken into 7 movements. If the whole track is too long for a reaction then react to the last three movements - Manticore, Battlefield, Aquatarkus.
Don't break it up. Tarkus should be heard first the original studio version. Then listen to the "Welcome Back my Friends" live version.
I love how people praise Anderson's lyrical content. He freely admits that he goes for the sound of the words and the phrasing over meaning. But given time everybody invents their own interpretation. It's more of a sound collage then literal meaning. The beauty is... Your way is the right way... You have the authors permission..
"Isn't nature wonderful! Hey hey Yeah yeah yeah yeah!
My first Yes experience was Yessongs. I listened to that album (completely!) in the recordstore in the seventies. Up to then, the closest I knew to Progressive Rock was Queen. The guy behind the counter warned me that "this music is not for everyone", but I have to say it was a profound experience for me. From the first moments I listened to that album I was completely in love with this band. Imagine the guy behind the counter's expression when I asked to turn over the vinyl record and then put on the second and then the third! I was there all afternoon listening to this! In those days there were headphones in the store and you could sample an album before buying it, I was there on a saturday afternoon and sampling wasn't enough, I just had to listen to the whole thing! And then came the moment of side 5... This song live, in my opinion is the best they've ever performed it. And I've been to quite a few shows by now. The listening experience of this song literally brought tears to my eyes. In fact, whenever I'm really listening to this song (not as background music), it still does! Even though Awaken is my favourite Yes song, this song (live from Yessongs) should be on number 1 favourite song together with Awaken. To me, both songs go deep emotionally and have done so from the seventies on. Needless to say, that saturday, late afternoon by then, I returned home as the proud owner of the triple vinyl, amazing Yessongs and played it ever since. ❤️ Oh and by the way, excellent review and reaction of this first listen ;-) And you're right this song does bring you to a different place.
Very nice story.
I was lucky to have an FM radio station that first played the "Close To The Edge" album, and taped it. Aside from announcing their call letters in the middle of "And You And I", they played the whole thing without interruption. It was my first Yes album, and "The Yes Album" came shortly afterwards.
I love reading stories like that. Thank you for that Mario
The opening of the song is a great example of using tension to grab interest. Some people may think it is chaos, but it sets up the tranquil parts of the song, and as always the little themes at the start play a big part of the solos and ending for continuity. Thanks JP, you are awesome.
Thank you Doug!
Tension and release.
Opening of this song is the best section of it imo.
When this came out, I went and saw them for the first time at the Arie Crown theater in Chicago with the Eagles as the opener.. Saw them the week of the release or so. 9/22/72. I have never listened to music the same way again. This band changed the way I see the world.They really did change the world with their compositions.Now it seems like a surreal beautiful dream. I am grateful almost every day that I could witness their creativity as it unfolded.
Well done Justin. I don't understand why some people give this review a 👎🏼. Keep up the good work, man.
As long as some enjoy it, I'm happy with that :)
Built from a mass edit with dozens of pieces of tape, they still managed to play this live as well, if not better than the studio album
Thank you so much for this - it was worth the wait!
This album, and this song particularly, was the thing that opened the door for me. My first dalliances with prog came from Focus, but I picked this up not long after and from the first spin it just floored me. This was the first real step of a journey I'm still on nearly twenty years later.
"Masterpiece" has become a rather devalued term over time, but CTTE is wholly deserving of it, in its truest sense. It will still be changing lives for centuries to come.
I love watching people discover this music for the first time.
Thank you :)
Thanks for putting this one out, it's most welcome. Yes plays this a lot, there are many live versions of it in their catalog. I like the symphonic structure of it, the slow section, the fast section. Also the way it starts with chaotic dissonance (especially that quick dab of vocal Aaaaa) and then congeals into form, like the gas and dust that formed the solar system, cooling down to make planets.
It's a great piece, the only part I'm not sure about is the farting bass at times, it just seems random.
I hope you'll get around to 'I've Seen All Good People' which has some tasty organ in it too. Love that one.
I saw CTTE live in 77 in Philly.
Made the hair on my neck stand up.
The Philly crowd roared for minutes, in joy, at the end.
Never have I clicked so fast...
😁
Let me describe the way I felt every time I saw them play this live.....and mind you I'm an atheist..........I felt like I was having a deeply religious experience. Not in the sense of a god but being at peace and in touch with the universe and a euphoria of feeling that everything is going to be ok.
This song just maybe my favorite by them, just so many tasteful moments. The reaction was top notch as usual. Justin what separates you from every other reaction is "attention to detail". I love the passion, time and effort you bring to every reaction. Another thing is every reaction, complex or not, I find educational. Good Job.
I got turned on to this album in 1982 and used to listen to it every week in the library while studying calculus. It is my all-time favorite album by and un-paralleled set of musicians bringing their talents together and inventing this style of music.
Bill Bruford left the band after this album. He joined King Crimson.
He felt that they reached their peak, and he, Bill Bruford, needed to continue upon his personal ascend. Personally, I would have loved to hear what he would've done with Relayer. That said, Alan White made it the way it is, a true classic.
He preferred the greater freedom and experimentation within Crimson. CTTE is one of the greatest albums ever made, but the composition, arrangement, and production was supposedly a miserably meticulous process.
@Sebastian first he learned the YES catalogue in 2 weeks and then crushed many songs on YESSONGS- the greatest live album in musical history( the playing-not the production!! I know that !)