Yes new album Fly From Here

Saw in the classic rock forum a few people liked the band Yes so I figured I'd post a new topic about their new album Fly From here




Fly from Here (47:28 duration)

1. "Fly From Here - Overture" [Horn/Downes] (1:53)
2. "Fly From Here Pt I - We Can Fly" [Horn/Downes/Squire] (6:00)
3. "Fly From Here Pt II - Sad Night at the Airfield" [Horn/Downes] (6:41)
4. "Fly From Here Pt III - Madman at the Screens" [Horn/Downes] (5:16)
5. "Fly From Here Pt IV - Bumpy Ride" [Howe] (2:15)
6. "Fly From Here Pt V - We Can Fly Reprise" [Horn/Downes/Squire] (1:44)
7. "The Man You Always Wanted Me to Be" [Squire/Johnson/Sessler] (5:07)
8. "Life on a Film Set" [Horn/Downes] (5:01)
9. "Hour of Need" [Howe] (3:07)
10. "Solitaire" [Howe] (3:30)
11. "Into the Storm" [Squire/Wakeman/Howe/Horn/David/White] (6:54)

Japanese bonus track:

12. "Hour of Need (full-length version)"


Chris Squire: bass, vocals, lead vocals on (7)
Steve Howe: guitars, vocals
Alan White: drums
Geoff Downes: keyboards
Benoît David: lead vocals

Oliver Wakeman: additional keyboards (2, 6, 9)
Trevor Horn: additional backing vocals & keyboards
Luís Jardim: percussion
Gerard Johnson: piano (7)

Produced by Trevor Horn

Engineered & mixed by Tim Weidner

except (10) engineered by Curtis Schwartz/Steve Howe

Mastered by John Davis

Sleeve design: Roger Dean

Management: Trudy Green, Danielle Friedman

Recording sessions Oct/Nov 2010 & Jan/Feb 2011 at Sarm West Coast, Los Angeles. Mixing Apr 2011 at Sarm West, London
(10) recorded at Langley Studios, Devon & Schwartz Studios, Sussex

Release: 22 Jun (Japan), 1 Jul (Europe), 12 Jul (US).

Frontiers Records in Europe/US; Avalon in Japan

CD (FR CD 520); limited edition CD + DVD Digipak (FR CDVD 520); LP (FR LP 520); box set with CD, DVD, LP, T-shirt (L size), poster and lithograph of cover art (FR BS 520)

DVD content: making-of documentary (25 minutes); "We Can Fly" video


My thoughts

First Batman was rebooted with Batman Begins then We were introduced to a legendary spy Bond James bond in Casino Royale and let me introduce you to a band called Yes with Fly From here.


Fly from Here is Yes rebooted. I asked Yes to do sound fresh and reinvent itself and I prayed and hoped for it and guess what My wish came true! And before fans say "rebooted you know fly from here and Life on a film set are both from 1980" yeah well the orignal novel Casino Royale is from 1953 but it felt fresh in 2006 just like those parts of the album oh and paertsd of batman begins script come from a story from 1939 so again yeah where the material comes from doesn't matter as much as what you do with it. But lets get right into the review song by song standard format


Fly from Here Overture gorgeous I love Geoff and Steve interplay
Fly From here part 1 We can Fly Classic song nicely redone Benoit feels at home here.
Fly From here part 2 Sad night at the airfield Better then the buggles song and Steve's Steel solo best steel guitar solo ever ! I waited 10 years for a guitar solo as emotionally charged and beautiful as i got on sad night at the airfields and It was well worth the the wait!
fly From Here madman at the screens: Did tony Kaye rejoin the band lol on a serious note the Hammond sound returns to yes it a proper form the first time since talk. It sounds pretty and classic
Fly From here Bumpy Ride What else can I say Except I love the guitar work on this piece. People often wonder Can Steve Howe be both awesome and catchy Bumpy ride proves yes he can such a happy riff that goes back into the madman sound then back to a faster version of the riff Pretty pretty pretty!
Fly from Here We Can Fly reprise the synthesizer from Geoffrey Downes sounds so pretty and again it's an uplifting songs plus Steve at the end is so nice

As an Epic does it work HECK YEAH. I love the song Fly From Here as much as i love the individual parts that make it up.


Now we move on to Side B

The Man You Always Wanted Me To Be proves Chris Squire is the MAN period! some call it a sappy pop song which while that might be true it's not a bad song. It's a great song and it speaks a lot to me (maybe because in every fight me and Katy have i usually use the phrase "the man you always wanted me to be") the piano and guitar work is great (Chris if your reading this while Steve and Geoffrey are off doing Asia I won't complain if you White and David brought in Gerald Johnson to start creating rough songs ideas that Downes and Howe Will add to later on) I love the ending and imagine live the potential trade offs between Chris Steve and Geoff Live so cool

Life on a Film Set Moody atmospheric and gorgous then it builds into this faster paced bit that is so cool. and BTW I love the lyrics "riding a Tiger" is it silly no sillier then "dig it" at the end of don't kill the whale (oh wait sorry jon was in the band then there forth it was brilliant amazing and not silly sorry my bad I keep forgetting lol ) the first half is dark and moody the second half is happy and juvial just so WOW. I can't say anything else but BUY THIS ALBUM! It's so fresh and amazing I'm on my 9th listen (using a tube based website) and it's still brilliant and fresh as If I haven't heard it at all!

Hour of Need a pretty song with Benoit and Steve sharing lead vocal duties. I like Oliver on this peice. it's nice (curious how the full song sounds) and really pretty

Solitaire I like Solitaire my first listen I didn't like it that much but after my 10th I realize the prettiness of the piece it's a grower sure but it's not a bad song is it better then Fly From here the man or Into the storm no but it's a good piece

Into The Storm First the flange bass from tormoto returns yet it sounds as fresh and cool as it did in 1979 Into the storm is fast paced catctchy and happy personally I think this should of been the lead of single from fly from here and after listening to it 10 times this has single potential (actually on that topic if i was in charge of marketing 3 singles' Into the Storm Sad Night at the airfields and either The Man or we can fly but I digress) It's a happy song with So much happyness I can see this being a closer that wil get fans on their feet and begging for more



So in close Yes has always listend to what critics and the world says and laughs and says yeah right we can do that and does it well

"Psychedlic bands can't change their sound" yes proved them wrong with time and aword and the yes album

"Yes can't survive in the 80's with new wave and punk" drama 90125 and Big generator all shut those critics up and fast

and there area abunch i could go through but here is the latest

"One a band gets a tribute singer they usually slow down and just do the rock and roll nostalgic thing but they never release a song with a fresh feel let alone an album all the new stuff will sound tired and old" Yeah tired old HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA yes is having a good laugh beating that criticism i'm sure. Yes isn't tired they aren't old and they ain't some washed up 70's band with a tribute singer trying to recapture any former glory no Yes is a hungry band a new band a fresh band and the first band to reboot themselves.


So After Batman Begins came The Dark Knight after Casino royale came Quantum of Solace after Fly From here hopefully will come a "sequel" as amazing as Fly From Here.

Here's to more yes music!