Yes Union Live

Union Live is a live release by progressive rock band Yes. It documents their “Union” tour of 1991, supporting the Union (1991) album…

Union Live is a live album and video by English progressive rock band Yes, released in January 2011 on Voiceprint Records…

With the exception of Peter Banks and Trevor Horn, virtually all the major contributors to Yes in its various incarnations over the previous 23 years, including both of its drummers, threw their hands into the making of Union, which was supported by a massive tour that filled arenas with at least two generations of fans. So even if Union had been as good as one hoped, this was an album that couldn't possibly have met the expectations inherent in the array of talent involved…

With the exception of Peter Banks and Trevor Horn, virtually all the major contributors to Yes in its various incarnations over the previous 23 years, including both of its drummers, threw their hands into the making of Union, which was supported by a massive tour that filled arenas with at least two generations of fans. So even if Union had been as good as one hoped, this was an album that couldn't possibly have met the expectations inherent in the array of talent involved. The material is reasonably solid, and under ordinary circumstances this album would have been considered just fine, if not exceptional. "I Would Have Waited Forever" shows off the group's vocalizing (by Chris Squire and Jon Anderson) at its most melodic and Steve Howe has one of the most beautiful classical guitar showcases of his Yes career on "Masquerade"…

For fans waiting for a follow-up to the massive success of 90125, 9012Live: The Solos proved to be a disappointment. This brief album consists of solo turns by each bandmember, along with two 90125 tracks scarcely changed from the studio versions. "Solly's Beard" provides a pleasant, if somewhat incoherent showcase for Trevor Rabin's guitar work, and Jon Anderson takes an uneventful walk down memory lane with "Soon." The highlight of the album is the duet "Whitefish," and with Chris Squire and Alan White galloping through a spirited medley of "The Fish," "Sound Chaser," and "Tempus Fugit." While it's an okay tour souvenir, 9012Live: The Solos can hardly claim to be a proper album.

For fans waiting for a follow-up to the massive success of 90125, 9012Live: The Solos proved to be a disappointment. This brief album consists of solo turns by each bandmember, along with two 90125 tracks scarcely changed from the studio versions. "Solly's Beard" provides a pleasant, if somewhat incoherent showcase for Trevor Rabin's guitar work, and Jon Anderson takes an uneventful walk down memory lane with "Soon." The highlight of the album is the duet "Whitefish," and with Chris Squire and Alan White galloping through a spirited medley of "The Fish," "Sound Chaser," and "Tempus Fugit." While it's an okay tour souvenir, 9012Live: The Solos can hardly claim to be a proper album.

For fans waiting for a follow-up to the massive success of 90125, 9012Live: The Solos proved to be a disappointment. This brief album consists of solo turns by each bandmember, along with two 90125 tracks scarcely changed from the studio versions. "Solly's Beard" provides a pleasant, if somewhat incoherent showcase for Trevor Rabin's guitar work, and Jon Anderson takes an uneventful walk down memory lane with "Soon." The highlight of the album is the duet "Whitefish," and with Chris Squire and Alan White galloping through a spirited medley of "The Fish," "Sound Chaser," and "Tempus Fugit." While it's an okay tour souvenir, 9012Live: The Solos can hardly claim to be a proper album.

Recorded live on the final night of the 1989 Anderson/Bruford/Wakeman/Howe tour, this two-CD set offers both oldies and improvements upon their new material. You'll probably find yourself listening only to the second CD, as the first CD largely consists of shaky solo medleys. Howe fares the best with delicate renditions of "Mood for a Day" and "The Clap." Anderson's guitar and vocal turn comes off like a coffeehouse gig - not bad, especially when he samples "Teakbois," but not riveting. Wakeman's "Merlin" and "Catherine Parr" solo trades speed for precision, and the crowd is unaccountably thrilled when he wrenches unimpressive blow-bottle sounds out of a keyboard. Bruford blows his solo yet again, just as in Yessongs; infatuated with electronic percussion, he produces a grating assortment of clanks and conks…

The second official concert package from Yes contains tunes recorded over a span of two years (1976-1978) and two different incarnations of the band. Like its live predecessor Yessongs (1973), Yesshows finds the combo during one of their states of perpetual change. Jon Anderson (vocals), Steve Howe (guitar), Chris Squire (bass/vocals), and Alan White (drums) are joined by Rick Wakeman (keyboards) on a majority of the selections. The exceptions being "Gates of Delirium" from Relayer (1974) and the Tales from Topographic Oceans' (1973) epic "Ritual" - which is presented in two parts - and has Patrick Moraz (keyboards) in Wakeman's stead. The original concept contained a few features that would have been akin to Yessongs…