Billboard, Jan. 22, 1972: Billboard Pick-- Pop YES-- Fragile It would not be too great an assumption to say that Yes will be this year's "supergroup.'' They are musical eclectics taking that which is good from classical and rock and fusing it to form a sound which is uniquely theirs. This album is vibrant, soothing, tumultuous, placid and instrumently [That's what it says!] brilliant. Jon Anderson's plaintive vocals are deliciously ingratiating. Highlights are "Round-about," "Heart of the Sunrise" and "Long Distance Run Around." Billboard, Feb. 12, 1972: Special Yes Pitch New York-- Atlantic Records is sending out disk jockey copies of the new single "Roundabout" by U.K. group, Yes, pressed on gold vinyl in advance of the release date as part of the promotion on this record. Yes will be touring the U.S. during February. The Charts: Billboard, Feb 26, 1972 #4 -- YES Fragile Billboard, March. 11, 1972: YES MARK-ALMOND BAND COMPOST Academy of Music, New York Yes have taken three years to break, and, now that their Atlantic albums are enjoying increasing exposure, they are clearly determined to establish themselves as a strong live act. Translating the richness and complexity of their records, which rely on sophisticated studio techniques for much of their impact, into a live performance has posed problems for them, since they are forced to simplify their music somewhat. They have largely succeeded. Their set began awkwardly, with "Roundabout" suffering from a looseness that undermined the structural intricacy that is so central to their compositions, but they soon recovered to coalesce into a very exciting, much tighter band. They have characteristic English flash and glamor, but they really can play: All are gifted, but Rick Wakeman really stands out on keyboards and mellotron, demonstrating impressive technique without overpowering the rest of the band. The Charts: Melody Maker, April 15, 1972: #1 -- America (Last week #2) #2 -- Harvest- Neil Young (Last week #1) #3 -- Paul Simon (Last week #3) #4 -- Nilsson Schmilsson- Nilsson (Last week #4) #5 -- Eat A Peach- Allman Brothers Band (Last week #13) #6 -- Baby I'm A Want You- Bread (Last week #7) #7 -- Fragile-Yes (Last week #5) WHAT BASE guitar does Chris Squire use on "The Yes Album"? What method should I adopt to play at his standard? What strings does he use? How does he get that distinctive treble sound? What kind of amps and speakers does he use? Has he got the ordinary or stereo Rickenbacker? ´I play a Rickenbacker bass guitar, which I converted myself to stereo. My amplifier is a 160-watt Sunn, made in America. I have two 6x12 cabinets. I use a Cry Baby wah-wah pedal, a Marshall fuzz-box and a set of Hammond organ bass pedals, which go through a separate Fender Dual Showman amplifier, with heavy-duty JBL speakers. My strings are Rotosound roundwound. Sometimes on stage, but more often in the studio, I play a Fender Telecaster, and I've also got a Guild fretless bass which I'm hoping to use in the near future. Copying another player is a difficult achievement, as his sound is obviously the result of personal ability and choice of equipment. But my advice would be to use the same strings as I do and concentrate on having a lot of treble and half the amount of bass on your amplifier and guitar and not to play too loudly. --- CHRIS SQUIRE, Yes Melody Maker, April 15, 1972: Yes and King Crimson strolled in after their Boston concert at the Aquarius Theatre, the last stop of a long American tour. Edgar Winter, whose band supported Joe Cocker at the Boston Garden that evening entered with his group and their retinue. Ostinsibly the gala affair honoured Yes, who received a gold record award [f]or their million selling "Fragile", but no sooner did they receive it than they disappeared to their hotel. Yes is decidedly more "pop" in their approach [though] the two groups share a similar musical foundation. A casual comparison between Yes' "Heart of the Sunrise" and Crimson's "21st Century Schizoid Man" is revealing. The repeated staccato figure of the former is uncomfortably close to that of the latter. Although Yes' Rick Wakeman didn't write "Sunrise," he sincerely believes that Jon Anderson and Chris Squire wrote it fresh. In any case the suggestion concerned him and he promised to examine it further. When asked his opinion, Fripp just smiled knowingly out of the top of his wire rim spectacles and said, "What do you think?" "As you know," he continued, "Yes started their band, their original band with Pete Banks and Tony Kaye, just as Crimson had established itself. Yes attended our first gig at the Speakeasy in '68. When they saw that we were playing exactly what they had set out to accomplish it blew their heads and they never actually recovered you see. Yes is a very good band, mind you. We had Jon Anderson sing on our "Lizard" album and they asked me to perform on one of theirs but I declined." The internecine rivalry is actually good natured since both bands are "firm friends" and are quick to pick up the cudgels for the other. "That was a really fine set by King Crimson, wasn't it?" exclaimed Jon Anderson suddenly when Yes followed them on stage. "They are truly a great band." Melody Maker, April 15, 1972: IN NEXT WEEK'S MM... WERE the primative tribes of South America more civilised [That's what it says!] than current dwellers in Las Vegas? Listen to the deliberations on this and other topics of Yes singer Jon Anderson. The band is just back from an ecology study-cum-tour of the US of A, so Jon is well qualified to issue forth. Billboard, April. 29, 1972: GOLD AWARDS "Fragile," the Yes album on Atlantic, has been certified as gold by the RIAA. Melody Maker, May 27, 1972: Pupil Power-- RICK WAKEMAN (Yes): I support pupil power to a certain extent. For instance I consider long hair to be a matter entirely up to the individual. School uniform I think is a must since many parents cannot afford decent clothes for their children. With a school uniform, everyone is on equal terms. There is only one thing I rebelled against at school and that was the dreaded dinners! So I used to break the rules and leave at dinner time, and go to a nearby cafe. Whatever my son decides to do when he eventually goes to school is his business and I will trust in his judgement and only interfere if he was to come to any harm. Jon Anderson victem of an attack of gazumping last week. And he was only trying to buy a house... Among the casualties Pete Banks, Jon Anderson, and Tony Kaye. The Charts: Melody Maker, May 27, 1972: #1 -- First Take- Roberta Flack (Last week #1) #2 -- Harvest- Neil Young (Last week #2) #3 -- America (Last week #3) #4 -- Thick As A Brick- Jethro Tull (Last week #25) #5 -- Paul Simon (Last week #4) #6 -- Graham Nash and David Cassidy (Last week #5) #7 -- Fragile (Last week #6) Billboard, Sept. 2, 1972: YES EDGAR WINTER EAGLES Long Beach Arena, Long Beach, California Far removed from the mainstream of contemporaneous rock lies a musical oasis so unlike anything preceding it as to be termed revolutionary. The group is Yes and they put on a show that is an overwhelming affirmation of the potentialities of rock as an art form. Each member of the group is a virtuose performer and the fusion of their unique talents is indeed a rare and beautiful thing. From the moment they ascended the stage bathed in the mini-glow of thousands of matches, until their departure an hour later, there was not a moment that was not filled to overflowing with the glorious texture of their melodies. Jon Anderson's small boy's voice is winsomely plaintive, weaving enchanting harmonic patterns that weave into a rare oneness with the instrumental passages. Bassist Chris Squire (cloaked in an amazing multi-tiered cape) leads a magnificently flamboyant visual note, while guitarist Steve Howe plays in an irresistibly meticulous fashion. Rick Wakeman's extended moog introduction to "Roundabout" provided the audience with a glimpse of that rare edge of excellence that so distinguishes the group as a whole. Special note should be made of the more than capable percussion work of Alan White who has been with the group barely two weeks. The set includes flashes from the "Fragile" and "Yes" albums and two songs from the soon to be released "Close To The Edge" LP. Billboard, Oct. 7, 1972: Billboard Pick-- Pop YES-- Close To The Edge With this, their fifth LP, Yes have progressed to the point where they are light years beyond their emmulators, proving to be no mere flash in the pan. The sound tapestries they weave are dainty fragments, glimpses of destinies yet to be formed, times that fade like dew drops in the bluriness of desires half-remembered. All involved desrve praise and thanks, this being not a mere audio experience, transcending the medium it brings all senses into play. The Charts: Billboard, Oct. 7, 1972: #79 Close to the Edge- Yes [First entered this chart] Billboard, Dec. 23, 1972: ...Yes has re-signed with Atlantic Records for five years with annual options.