Rating: Summary: Simply a must-have for Yes fans Review: If you like music videos, and more important, you appreciate the musicianship that is YES, get this VHS or DVD. No cutaways to talking heads (done that), and no experiments with "special effects" in the cutting room (done that too). Just wonderfully performed and beautifully filmed concert footage that seems to flow uninterrupted (like you were there). Steve Howe is tremendous and the early songs sound fresh again. Jon's voice is good and strong. The Ladder, and Awaken (especially Awaken) are not to be missed. Perpetual Change really brings back the memories. This is legacy material and well worth the 16 or 17 bucks!
Rating: Summary: A brave set full of new songs Review: "Do not go gentle into that good night/Rage, rage, against the dying of the light." And so Yes does in this concert. They could have taken the route the Moody Blues did, doing oldies sets for PBS backed by 101 strings. But on this concert, with only one additional musician, a guitarist, they boldly feature their new material. For the most part, they look and sound good. My VHS copy has a slight buzz in the soundtrack; judging from the other reviews the DVD release sounds much better. Jon Anderson looks great, hale and woolly. He avoids a few high notes, but only a few; and if his voice has weakened the engineers have compensated well. Chris Squire is disconcertingly Frankenstein-ish, galumphing about in his Doc Martins and ankle length laboratory coat. He plays economical basslines, only occasionally ripping off the massed barrage of notes that used to be his _modus operandi_. Steve Howe is every inch the consumptive, furrowed-brow artiste, as intense and fleet-fingered as ever. Second guitarist Billy Sherwood gets center stage for the instrumental "Cinema". Keyboardist Ivan Khoroshev, wraith-like in his white tunic, seems to be under "no hot-dogging" orders. And Alan White is just having a good old time back there. The songs are mostly extended compositions, with just three or four radio hits included. "Time and a Word" is just a snippet of the original. "Yours Is No Disgrace" and "Your Move/I've Seen All Good People" sound good. The only reasonable quibble I have is against the decision to strip the show-closer "Roundabout" of all its slow parts--sure, it cranks; but now the song has no mystery. If they wanted to finish with a bang, I would have liked to have heard a full-on performance of "Going For The One." This is the best-looking, best-sounding video concert of Yes ever. Sure, they were at the height of their powers on 1973's _Yessongs_, but someone forgot to bring camera lights to that gig. This is as "close to the edge" as we're likely to come nowadays.
Rating: Summary: The best Yes Video I've seen! Review: This video is absolutely breathtaking! I saw the Masterworks Tour at Jones Beach Ampitheatre this summer and will be seeing Steve Howe solo in October. This video is just the example I want to show my friend, who has never seen Yes or Steve Howe, just how good they really are. I am praying that the band will release a video or CD of the Masterworks tour, but this tape will last in my memory for a long time.
Rating: Summary: Close to the edge... Review: This review does not intend to make anyone feel bad about the Yes music. The people on stage make you think they have a good time performing and fans in the audience go along with that. I feel though I must give another point of view, since most (if not all) of the Yes related reviews talk about a band that you might think is conducted by God in person. It would be unrealistic to expect a band in their 50s to perform as they did 30 years ago. Mr Andersons' voice has hit the ceiling, lost its wings and, I consider, is misused within the latest Yes composition. The other musicians well, there's not so much they have lost, from the point of view of the execution. It would be difficult to, since they've been executing the same songs for 20 years or more. I think Yes stopped composing innovative music in the late 70s. The Anderson, Wakeman Bruford, Howe album is a little exception, as some of the solo albums of Mr Anderson. The latest band cds sound like a swan song, a swan in crisis. The dvd looks good, with some moments when the blue behaves strange, bleeding into other areas where it shouldn't be. But for the rest, the image compression was done with knowledge, some big dvd houses have something to learn from this. The sound is not one of the best but its clear; a strange mix added to the music which lacks the dynamics it used to have. Awaken, which is the reason I've bought the dvd, didn't get me high at all. And they even had the nerve to list Ritual and Time and a Word, though Mr Anderson barely hums a couple of verses from the above mentioned songs. The extras are nothing to write home about and the dvd makers still list as extras the fact that you can jump from scene to scene or they give you the Yes website address. I stopped going to a Yes concert some years ago, when I saw Mr Squire getting down on one of his knees, having a problem getting up again. After this concert I think I will stop buying any new Yes material. It's nostalgia on the rocks.
Rating: Summary: YES - it's good - why isn't the sound unbelievable Review: YES you have to own this, if you're a Yes fan. Hope it opens doors to younger crowds/musicians One other critic ask why there is no bass - often true in this DVD, and who did the mix that gets lost at times? Not everyone was on shrooms during production, right? This could have been 5 stars! Does any fan out there know why Yes doesn't have a DTS audio or video release? Very strange for a band that performs/mixes in DTS. If we ever wanted to get close to the "in the round" music concept pioneered at thier concerts, why not 5.1 DTS?
Rating: Summary: House of Yes Review: I've already watched this thing 5 times in 10 days. The digital 5.1 sound quality is excellent after the early rumble and distortion disipates. Good editing for a live show with a nice crisp pace and some handy camera work balancing especially on Jon. Its fun to watch Chris have so much fun, and was amazed at Steve and Alan's performances. Lots of musical integrity for hard core fans. Have fun.......
Rating: Summary: Time and a Word. The time is now and the word is YES! Review: I is so nice to get a music DVD that has positive spirituality at it's center. The performances on this DVD are unbelievable. Jon Anderson is at his spiritual best here. I was totaly involved with the performance. I wish other bands would see this and understand the spirit of joy that YES has been providing for many years. To see and hear "Awaken" on this DVD was wonderful. The only down side to it was that it ended. I would recomend it to anyone who loves music and wants to add a little positve joy to their lives.
Rating: Summary: Great visuals but where's the bass? Review: Some YES fans will worship anything they do. I admit I love yes but I hate it when they put out something that looks great, is of a great performance and someone who didn't know YES mixed it. The bass is lacking on this DVD/Video. In addition, when they are showing Steve Howe play some of his best bits, you can't here him, or at least he is mixed way back. Its about as poor a mix as the DVD of ABWH. Lets hope the CD will sound better. But if you like yes you will like the visuals.
Rating: Summary: Awesome Review: Truly a must for all YES fans worldwide. The audio and video is second to none. Thanks YES for a great performance.
Rating: Summary: A Must Have! Review: This is a "MUST HAVE" DVD if you are a Yes fan. Incredibly fantastic!
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