Yes solo albums S/D

I was just listening to Geoff Downes' The Light Programme last night. Double LP from 1987 with five lengthy synthesizer suites. REALLY like this album.

http://img402.imageshack.us/img402/972/r18157641245185963.jpg

I want to hear more Jon Anderson, what should I look for?

Squire - Fish Out of Water
Anderson - Song of Seven, Olias of Sunhillow

― calstars, Monday, 4 July 2011 12:50 (43 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

These are the key two imo.

There's a Yes-branded 'Friends and Relatives' compilation that might be of use to someone, and there's a thing called 'Affirmative: The Yes Solo Family Album' that branches into Rabin, Moraz etc.

POLL: Best Yes Solo Debut Album

"Fish Out Of Water", "Olias..." And "Six Wives Of Henry VIII" are my three faves. Howes' can be ok until he sings. I like much of the one he recorded with Billie Currie of Ultravox sometime in the (I think) late 80s.

Moraz and Bruford's "Flags" pretty good as well.

Wakeman's "Criminal Record" has some killer playing by Squire and White on a few tracks.

Do the jon & vangelis albums count, because all of the albums I've heard have at least a song or two to totally recommend.

What about mike oldfield albums? Didn't Anderson sing on those?

fish out of water is good

'flag's (bruford . moraz) is really good, certainly a notch above anything else solo related in the musicianship department

every jon anderson solo album i've heard is awful.

Olias Of Sunhillow is a beauty.

jaxon - "Short Stories" is my fave Jon & vangelis project. It was mostly improvised. Vangelis comes up with some huge Bladerunner-esque sonic beds and the entire thing is very loose, except for maybe "I Hear You Now'.

jaxon, jon sang on a couple mike oldfield songs that came out around 90125 -- "in high places" and "shine"

this sounds awesome

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LY9PphF0rAs&feature=share

this is indescribably awful

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOOaEGHNi78

theirs is a disgrace

look at that little tiny guitar hanging off that fat old man

Being at work I've not opened the video, so "look at that little tiny guitar hanging off that fat old man" could describe p much any Yes soloist

OH chris squire, rite

he does look remarkably like something in a comedy sketch, I must say

okay basically that video has ruined the new album for me. never thought I'd say this but steve howe is looking remarkable these days

'olias' is really good, my favorite of the solo albums i've heard

jon sang on a couple mike oldfield songs that came out around 90125 -- "in high places"...

...or "In Tight Trousers" as one shocked Oldfield fan who was previously unaware of Anderson's unique singing voice commented to me at the time. I tried some classic Yes on him but he couldn't get it.

Vocals are absolute shit in that clip Geeta posted.

obv an homage to trevor horn's troubles on the Drama tour

jon's tweest song i can handle
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOHjESnrMt4

and his most gangsta prog
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnnS9spo_3k

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=poYnoB1ovuM&feature=related

conga solo on the 7/4 performance from 3:30-3:40 is not to be missed

Yes (Not Yes)

Who are those jokers in the middle of the stage playing with those guys from Asia?
MallardTDrake 19 hours ago 2

Haha!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQQAUCf6dQU

I've always been told that Fish Out of Water is great but am only listening now. Pretty good.

Has anyone heard Chris Squire's Swiss Choir?

Never knew about this thread.

Was talking recently about how great Fish Out Of Water is, but mostly the first 3 tracks.

I'd go as far to say that Anderson's Olias is one of the really essential prog records. I like Song Of Seven a lot but it isn't nearly as good.

Jon & Vangelis - Friends Of Mr Cairo has some great stuff, some less great. Private Collection is okay, "Italian Song" is lovely.

Wakeman's Six Wives is really great.

That's as far as I've got. Need more!

I'm still in awe of the first half of Fish Out Of Water, such a great album.

Really wish Squire had made more albums back then. Maybe that Swiss Quire album is worth a look.

Squire's album with Steve Hackett from a couple of years (?) back has its moments. Overall certainly better than the awful "Yes" album from this year.

'Swiss Quire' is mainly safe and pedestrian, like 90% of Christmas albums. One or two interesting arrangements plus an OK but unnecessary reboot of "Run With the Fox". Pay no more than $2 / £1.

it's no 'fish out of water' ii but the squackett album isn't horrible. neither is the syn reunion album from a couple years ago

I still get excited when a Fish Out Of Water song pops into my head.

I feel really sorry for Geir that he couldn't get into the solo albums. For a Yes fan, that's tragic.

Was quite excited to see a new edition of Jon Anderson's Animation in shops recently. The last CD version was said to be a bad vinyl rip and it was becoming rare.

It's really good so far, great bonus tracks. Can't believe "The Spell" was sitting on a shelf for 4 decades! Anderson said the label didn't care for it but it was a strange obsession for him, it's a beauty! It's one of those long storytelling tracks that he did solo or with Vangelis like "Friends Of Mr Cairo" and even "Animation".

Cherry Red/Esoteric have been reissuing Anderson's solo albums, so am I to assume that 3 Ships is coming in a matter of months? Please! (I haven't heard it yet)

As many have said above, Olias of Sunhillow rules. Fish Out of Water is really good, too.

Anderson did an album with Roine Stolt, Invention of Knowledge, in 2016 that I liked a lot.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scVF-gF3pIM

yeah the Anderson/Stolt album is terrific, kind of a sequel to Olias moreso than any of his other solo material

I have the Jon & Vangelis Friends of Mr. Cairo LP - it's a fairly common one - the way both sides start you almost feel like you got the wrong record. I had no idea that Donna Summer covered a Jon & Vangelis song and would not have believed you had you told me

kind of interested in Howe's stuff - I liked Beginnings a lot, minus the singing of course. seems like a rabbit hole I don't necessarily want to go down. I also own like 6 Wakeman LPs, they're so cheap and plentiful, but outside of Six Wives I don't know if any of them are any good

Journey To The Centre Of The Earth is great, that "save me"/"praise god" bit is just walloping great

Yeah that Donna Summer cover really surprised me. I seen Brian Eno really praise it and I was wondering if he just thought that particular version was genius

Really enjoying Wakeman's King Arthur. "Merlin" is a delight, hope he has more stuff like this.

Glad to see some love for that Anderson/Stolt album, I was really surprised by how much I liked it.

As far as Howe, I just picked up both of his Anthology collections which is probably more Steve than I need.

"Hold Out Your Hand" from Fish Out of Water is a standout for me

I'm not sure I'll like King Arthur as much as the previous two but the parts where it all starts sprinting are so exciting

Didn't realize that King Arthur and Journey To The Centre both have two vocalists, I thought it was all Ashley Holt, but the other guy is Gary Pickford-Hopkins. One of them seems like an odd fit to me, like maybe too traditionally hard rock or something? Seems like Holt stuck with Wakeman for longer.

Was pleased to find today there is a new version of Lisztomania soundtrack from original masters which were long thought to be lost, with unheard tracks. I didn't realize the 70s album release had a lot of music Wakeman wasn't involved with and didn't approve. Nice surprise.

Notes say that the record company hated his early albums and were very reluctant to release them. Demanded vocals on Six Wives.

I love what Anderson does with his voice when it sort of darts around in Animation. I'd strongly recommend getting this new reissue with the bonus tracks, because they're as good as anything else on it. Only 2 songs I don't have much enthusiasm for.
Going to wait a while and see if Esoteric reissues 3 Ships.

I've really grown to love King Arthur, lots of fun. I do think Wakeman could have done wonders with a more conventional combination of a singer like Annie Haslam than the hard rock styled vocalists he uses but I still dig it.

steve howe and rick wakeman have a ton of solo stuff i am sure is good and the rest i would not bother with!

I've had only good experiences so far but I'm still on the early days. Still haven't got around to Howe, Bruford, Moraz and White

I picked up Bruford's Feels Good To Me today, and there was something like 8 to 10 of his albums so I guess they've been reissued recently?

I believe he owns the rights to his solo/group albums and has re-released them himself?
Feels Good to Me must be the entry point for a lot of people who listen to Annette Peacock. I find it a lot more listenable than a lot of fusion from the era, partly because of her occasional singing, but also the dynamics and eclecticism of the tunes. Oddly, the opener "Beelzebub" is probably the weakest song.

He's got a new channel
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKwocCGTt-Q
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ieR2JKShT_A

Wakeman's No Earthly Connection is really lovely

Feels like a more personal album than anything previous but I'm not sure what it's about and apparently he couldn't explain the album either.

Can't believe how much he did in the 90s. And there's an Ayreon guest appearance!

The centerfold with all of his guitars is pretty classic on the "Steve Howe Album". I'm sure it has inspired quite a bit of guitar gear lust over the decades.

Olias of Sunhillow's reputation as Anco-prescient seems to have really picked up in recent years I feel

On another thread, I was pondering listening to Ramshackled in honour of Alan White despite my expectations that it really couldn't be that great. I mostly wanted to have heard all five solo albums from the 1975-1976 "hiatus". Here's how I'd rank them:

Olias of Sunhillow - I'm so glad we got one album of unfiltered and unfettered Jon Anderson
Fish Out of Water - very good, but it loses me in the middle of the last, very long track
Ramshackled - better a competent R&B/fusion record than the overambitious efforts of Howe and Moraz below
Beginnings - appropriate title, because Howe always seems to be about to start doing something amazing before he takes a left turn into something frustrating. He can't project vocally, but the songs don't help either. Who would have thought that the most memorable bit on a Steve Howe solo record would be a sax section?!?
The Story of i - I bought this LP for a dollar and was still disappointed. Lots of stuff (prog, fusion, Brazilian music, AOR, dumb concept) blended into an unlistenable mess. Relayer is my favourite Yes album but this made me wonder whether Moraz has any musical taste at all

I just ordered Beginnings. I bought Story Of i not long ago so I should stick it on soon. I liked what I've heard so far from Bruford's Feels Good To Me.

There is actually some love for No Earthly Connection on the Wakeman thread, so it hasn't been ignored here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93T58NlLiEk

Absolutely love No Earthly Connection, might be my favorite Wakeman of the first 4, but the high points of King Arthur and Journey are so strong. I haven't heard Six Wives in a long time.

No Earthly Connection gets so funky

Digging Howe's debut, it sounds more Yes-like than any of the other solo albums I've heard. I think he has a basically pleasant voice that needed a bit of training, odd that he wasn't as perfectionist about his voice, did he keep on singing throughout his solo career?

Totally love the Patrick Moraz debut, great nutty keyboard sprints and the ballads are lovely, it ends similarly to Olias: with serene space music. So I'm really excited to hear more Moraz, the reviews for the following albums don't look great but I disagree with most Yes fans about so many things.

Opening track to Wakeman's White Rock is awesomely silly sounding, the ideal shopping soundtrack.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3hhMO_u4Siw

I don't know if the Steve Howe Album would appeal to anyone who isn't very interested in guitar playing, but it's much more balanced than Beginnings; there's a few winsome, good-humoured instrumentals, Howe isn't trying so hard to impress (or sing) and the overall effect is quite welcoming. Claire Hamill sings one of Steve's songs, and I'd like to hear some more of her work.

yeah The Story of i is a pretty wild one, much different than what I was expecting. I also have his 1978 album simply called Patrick Moraz, it's kind of in the same vein but feels a bit more sterile. definitely has some good tracks though. no idea what any of his other stuff sounds like. if you haven't heard the Refugee album it's a real treat. unfortunately I don't think he ever quite did anything else like it.

The Refugee album is also reissued by Esoteric/Cherry Red, it's nice that they have such a chunk of his discography. I'm really impressed that Cherry Red is still putting out all kinds of buried treasure in genres I like.

How excitable Moraz is in the start of that video interview is going to be in my head a long time.

I have just learned that in 2012 Chris Squire and Steve Hackett made an album under the name Squackett. It's being reissued in May, and I will not be buying it or listening to it.

https://www.cherryred.co.uk/squackett-a-life-within-a-day-cd-and-blu-ray-edition

The album was a collaborative project between two legends of Progressive Rock, Chris Squire and Steve Hackett. The two musicians met when Squire was working on a solo album and needed some guitar parts. Chris was put in touch with Steve and through these sessions the idea for Squackett was born. Over four years in the making, the album ‘A Life Within a Day’ was very much more than the sum of its parts. “It was very much about a bunch of pals swapping notes and anecdotes,” Hackett later recalled.

Chris Squire would later remark, “The album has a flavour to it that is reminiscent of a few things from different artists. There is some clever Prog Rock stuff, some jazzy bits, but there are parts that have vocal harmonies like Crosby, Stills And Nash.”

Mentioned a few times upthread. It's not great.

Do jazz fans rate Bruford's Earthworks records?

i myself am a fan of jazz and of bruford and i dont like them very much

Story Of I is so energizing, right now it's my second favorite solo album after Olias.

Story Of I is one of my favorite albums in the last few years and I think John McBurnie is really great on it too, sounds like he could have been a love ballad singer in the singles charts of the time.

Seen this youtube comment from billfowler645

"why does no-one ever mention the great John McBurnie on vocals, who also wrote the lyrics (as he did for the follow up Out in the Sun LP)? If you like the vocals, check out his brilliant album Vapour Trails, produced by legendary guitarist Larry Carlton."