Close To The Edge by Yes

Close To The Edge by Yes, a progressive rock masterpiece released in that magical 1972, a magical year for that very reason.

There are albums, and this is one of them, that can be counted on one hand, that have changed music, that have influenced generations of musicians, that even listening to them a thousand times makes you shudder, that never tire, that are more than an album, that are a reference, an archetype, a model, an original type, a universal symbol.

There are ALBUMS that are works that set standards, that when you listen to an album by a later band, they bring that ALBUM to mind, because an accent, a keyboard riff, a break, a fraction of a second, a single sound, reminds you of it, not because you have a good memory, but because that accent, that keyboard riff, that break, that fraction of a second, that single sound, without that ALBUM, would never have existed.

This, Close to the Edge, is one of those; there's no doubt or debate about it; it's a fact, a historical fact.

All this in just 37 minutes, just three tracks, a long suite and two shorter pieces.

All this miraculously created by five musicians, all of whom, without exception, would go on to do great things in their lives, join other magnificent bands, and participate in the composition or performance of other masterpieces.

But that same alchemy, that same magic, was captured in those 37 minutes alone.

I won't describe it to you, I won't tell you about it.

If you know it, you don't need my tedious explanations.

If you don't know it, that's a huge gap. Go listen to it right away and buy it. It's not just an object to own, it's a work of art. It's like loving painting and not knowing Caravaggio's scenographic use of light that revolutionized art and painting.

We certainly can't have a Caravaggio in our living room, but Yes's Close to the Edge certainly can.

Tracklist

1. Close to the Edge (18:50):
- i. The Solid Time of Change
- ii. Total Mass Retain
- iii. I Get Up I Get Down
- iv. Seasons of Man
2. And You and I (10:09):
- i. Cord of Life
- ii. Eclipse
- iii. The Preacher, the Teacher
- iv. Apocalypse
3. Siberian Khatru (8:57)
Duration 37:56

Line-Up

- Jon Anderson - lead vocals
- Steve Howe - guitar (12-string, electric, acoustic, Portuguese, steel guitar), electric sitar, vocals
- Rick Wakeman - Hammond, Mellotron, Minimoog, grand piano, RMI Electra-Piano, electric harpsichord, pipe organ at St. Giles-without-Cripplegate Church in London (1)
- Chris Squire - bass, vocals
- Bill Bruford - drums and percussion