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The Syn
www.synmusic.net/
CD Reviews
Armistice Day
Review by Gary Hill
This disc is composed of two new tracks from the Syn along with acoustic versions (recorded live at XM Studios) of some of their earlier tracks. In my estimation this is the strongest disc from the band to date.
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Flowerman – Rare Blooms From The Syn
Review by Gary Hill
This is an interesting release. If you own the 2005 Syn album Original Syn, which is out of print now, you already have these songs.

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Live Rosfest
Review by Greg Olma
The Syn may not be a household name but many prog fans know it as a band that Chris Squire lent his talents to before forming Yes (and again for a while when the band reunited in the twenty first century).  

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Original Syn 1965-2004
Review by Gary Hill
This compilation is a bit of a mixed bag. The first CD is composed of songs from the first era of The Syn, while the second disc are tracks created by the 21st century rendition of the group.
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Syndestructible
Review by Gary Hill
 This is a reunion album from the band called "Syn." Haven't heard of them? Well, you probably will be familiar with their bass guitarist.

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Syndestructible (vinyl release)
Review by Gary Hill
This is a new reissue of The Syn's Syndestructible album on vinyl. I have to say that to me, this is probably the medium on which you should be listening to this set.

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Trustworks
Review by Diane Hill
The latest studio album from The Syn, Trustworks features a collaboration between Syn founder Steve Nardelli and the Swedish progressive rock band Moon Safari.

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DVD Reviews
The Syn - Syndestructible Tour 2006 DVD
Review by Gary Hill
Best known as one of the precursor bands to Yes, The Syn reunited recently and this DVD captures one of the shows on their reunion tour. The lineup here is different than the one on their new CD, most notably with Alan White being added on drums.

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Concert Reviews
The Syn - Live in Milwaukee, January 2006
Review by Josh Turner
When I got to the venue, I was surprised to see Alan White on the marquee. As my friend Adam said when I called him after the show, it would be great to see Chris Squire, but an event with both of them is something special.
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Interviews
The Syn
Interview by Gary Hill
Interview with Steve Nardelli of The Syn From 2006



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The Syn
Interview by Jason Hillenburg

Interview with Steve Nardelli of the Syn from 2015


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Related Articles
Spiraling
Review by Josh Turner
Interview with Tom Brislin of Spiraling From 2005

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Echolyn
Review by Bill Knispel
Interview with Brett Kull of Echolyn From 2008
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Yes - 90125
Review by Gary Hill
After Yes broke up following the Drama tour, Chris Squire and Alan White (first trying to put together a group with Led Zep's Jimmy Page) hooked up with South African Trevor Rabin to begin putting together a band. They recruited original Yes keyboardist Tony Kaye, and started working on material for the debut album of this new band, Cinema.
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Yes - 90125 Remastered and Expanded
Review by Greg Olma
Yes needed to do something new to attract the music buying public. Punk and new Wave were trying their hardest to bury the classic rock sound and the older fans were moving on with their lives.
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Yes - 90125 Vinyl Picture Disc (Record Store Day 2017)
Review by Gary Hill
The break-out album for the Rabin era of Yes has gotten a special release for Record Store Day 2017. 

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Yes - 9012Live DVD
Review by Greg Olma
This is the visual counterpart to the 9012Live album. Even though both share the same title, they are quite different. While the CD focuses on the solo spots of the 90125 show, the DVD contains more of the songs.
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Yes - 9012Live: The Solos
Review by G. W. Hill

I remember when the original version of this came out wondering why a full live album wasn’t done.


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Various Artists - A Life in Yes: The Chris Squire Tribute
Review by Gary Hill
I grew up as a Yes fanatic from the age of 12. As a bass player myself, Chris Squire was a huge part of my own growth as a musician.
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Squackett - A Life Within A Day
Review by Alison Henderson

If ever there was a perfect dream team then it would have to be the bassist with one of the legendary bands joining forces with the guitarist from another of the bands in the prog pantheon, namely Yes and Genesis.


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Squackett - A Life Within a Day - Special Edition
Review by Gary Hill
This new edition of the album created by the collaborative project led by Steve Hackett and Chris Squire includes a bonus Blu-Ray.

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Yes - America (single) (Vinyl)
Review by G. W. Hill

Lately I’ve been breaking our old rule at Music Street Journal.


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King Crimson - Audio Diary 2014-2018
Review by Gary Hill

This new five-CD collection is pretty amazing. I've said before, and will repeat it here, that this new version of King Crimson might well be the best lineup they've had, particularly in terms of live shows.


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Various Artists - Back Against the Wall
Review by Gary Hill
There are few people who haven't at least heard of Pink Floyd's The Wall. I would hazard to say that those who have never heard the album are in the minority as well.
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Peter Banks - Be Well, Be Safe, Be Lucky... The Anthology
Review by Gary Hill

This double disc set is quite cool. It includes a sampling of songs from several Peter Banks albums, but there are also a number of previously un-released or nearly un-released cuts, too.


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Kompendium - Beneath the Waves
Review by Alison Henderson

Kompendium is a huge musical project masterminded by Rob Reed, main-man of the very classy British prog band Magenta.


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Yes - Big Generator
Review by Gary Hill
Talk about contrasts - for my money, this album opens with the worst piece of drivel the band have ever produced in "Rhythm of Love". I truly despise the song and cringe when I hear it.
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Chris Squire - Chris Squire’s Swiss Choir
Review by Gary Hill

This Christmas disc from Yes bassist Chris Squire came out last year, but I’ve just now gotten my hands on it.


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Billy Sherwood - Citizen
Review by G. W. Hill

A contender for best of the year, this is arguably Sherwood’s best solo album ever.


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Yes - Classic Artists DVD
Review by Gary Hill

Yes seldom do anything in a small way when it can be done in an epic manner. 


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Yes - Classic Yes
Review by Gary Hill
This compilation of Yes material came out at the same time as Yesshows, shortly after the break up of the band following the Drama tour. This truly does feature some classic Yes material and would represent a great first look at the band.
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Yes - Close To The Edge
Review by Gary Hill
This is the first Yes album that I ever heard, and although it took me several listenings to get into it (I actually hated it first time through) it completely won me over. It is truly my favorite Yes album and the disc that got me interested in the band, and in progressive rock.
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Yes - Close to the Edge – Hybrid SACD Special Edition
Review by G. W. Hill

This is a review of the special edition audiophile release of Close to the Edge. This is a great limited edition, numbered CD release.


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Yes - Close to the Edge – Remastered and Expanded
Review by Gary Hill
I absolutely love Yes’ Close to the Edge and I’ve reviewed the main album before.
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Chris Squire and Billy Sherwood - Conspiracy Live CD/DVD
Review by G. W. Hill

I’m a huge fan of all things Yes and Yes related, so I anticipated liking this, and I was right.


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Yes - Don’t Kill the Whale (Single) (Vinyl)
Review by G. W. Hill

Our old rule at Music Street Journal was, if it’s out of print, we don’t review it.


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Yes - Drama
Review by Gary Hill
In 1980 when Yes found themselves without their keyboardist (Rick Wakeman) and vocalist (Jon Anderson), they turned to their manager Brian Lane to see if he had any suggestions. As it was, he was also managing a group called "The Buggles".
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Yes - Drama - Remastered and Expanded
Review by Greg Olma
This is the bastard child of the Yes family. Many Yes purists don't acknowledge its existence with even Jon Anderson refusing to play any of the material live.
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It Bites - Eat Me In St. Louis
Review by John Pierpoint

This was the last studio album from the original line-up of It Bites.


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Ant-Bee - Electronic Church Music
Review by Gary Hill

Ant-Bee is basically the pseudonym for Billy James. 


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World Trade - Euphoria
Review by Gary Hill
There are many who claim that Billy Sherwood is nearly solely responsible for the song writing and arrangements on Yes' Open Your Eyes album. Listening to this album from him with his band World Trade, there are reasons to buy into this argument.
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Yes - Extended Versions - The Encore Collection
Review by Gary Hill
So, you've probably seen this set around and wondered what it is and if you should pick it up. Well, I have saved you the trouble and will reveal what is in store for you here.
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Chris Squire - Fish Out Of Water
Review by Gary Hill
When Yes all took a temporary hiatus to focus on solo works in the early 1970's, Chris Squire put out this masterpiece.

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Yes - Fly From Here
Review by Gary Hill

Only the second album in the history of Yes to be recorded without Jon Anderson, this one, particularly since it’s the only other Yes disc with Geoff Downes on keyboards, is obviously compared to Drama.


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Yes - Fly From Here – Deluxe Edition
Review by Gary Hill
This review addresses the Deluxe Edition of Yes’ latest album, Fly From Here.
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Yes - Fly From Here (Vinyl)
Review by G. W. Hill
I’m a huge Yes fan and Yes collector. For that reason I tend to buy various configurations of Yes albums.
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Yes - Fly from Here: Return Trip
Review by Gary Hill
This is an unusual release. In 2011 Yes released the album Fly From Here.

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Yes - Fragile - Remastered And Expanded
Review by Gary Hill
Rhino has begun a series of remasters of Yes albums, restoring the original artwork and adding bonus cuts to the discs. This is their version of one of the more classic Yes recordings, Fragile.
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Sundogs - Freedom (music video)
Review by Gary Hill
When I reviewed this song on the album from which it came, I mentioned that it was a proggy song. Well, taken outside of the context of that album, like in this music video, that prog nature really shines.

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Yes - Friends and Relatives
Review by Gary Hill
Friends and Relatives is a two CD set that is a compilation of two Yes tracks from the KTA albums with solo works from the various artists. Other than the two stellar group performances, the Rick Wakeman pieces and Steve Howe`s take on Tales From Topographic Oceans stand out the most.
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Yes - Going For The One
Review by Gary Hill
Being an album that had Rick Wakeman rejoining the fold, this one was looked upon as a very strong and welcome release to Yes fans. Indeed, it still ranks among the favorites of many of them.
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Various Artists - Got Prog? - Sampler 1
Review by Greg Olma
Sampler compilations are always sketchy endeavors. I for one would not want to compile one myself. My tastes are far too wide and I would be thinking of what I like and not what I thought fits best.
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Yes - Greatest Hits
Review by Gary Hill
With this Yes compilation recently reissued, it seems a good time to have a look at it. It always seems a bit odd when you get a “Greatest Hits” compilation from a band that isn’t known for hit singles, but such is the case here.
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Yes - Greatest Video Hits DVD
Review by Gary Hill
Originally released on VHS, this collection was put out on DVD in 2005. This video is a collection of videos (many of which have not often been seen) interspersed with interview clips from band members (recorded during the Union tour).
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Yes - Heaven and Earth
Review by G. W. Hill

Where do I begin on this review? I guess I should start by saying that I’m a Yes fanatic and I have been since I was twelve years old – and for those keeping track, that’s a long time ago.


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King Crimson - Heroes EP
Review by Gary Hill
This new EP from King Crimson is intriguing. It's bookended by their take on a David Bowie classic (the full version and a single edit). 

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Yes - House of Yes Live DVD
Review by Gary Hill
This DVD is a pretty darn good live show collection. The picture and sound quality are awesome and it includes lots of great bonuses.
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Yes - House of Yes-Live From The House of Blues
Review by Gary Hill
This two-disc set is the companion soundtrack to the new DVD of this live show recorded on Yes' The Ladder tour. There are a lot of really good performances here, but also a few complaints.
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Various Artists - Howe White Squire - The More Drama Tour Limited Edition CD
Review by Gary Hill
This is a compilation album that was made to promote the Yes related More Drama Tour that wound up not happening. While it's not available for sale, any time you purchase a CD from Syn's official site, they include this puppy for free - now that makes it a great value.
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Echolyn - I Heard You Listening
Review by G. W. Hill

I’ve always liked Echolyn.


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Yes - In A Word: Yes 1969-
Review by Gary Hill

This box set is a class act. The whole thing comes in something that resembles a book. 


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Yes - In the Present: Live from Lyon
Review by G. W. Hill

While any Yes album is better than the music of a lot of other bands, this is probably the group’s weakest live album.


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Flash - In the USA
Review by Gary Hill
I am a Yes fanatic. I don't ever try to deny that 

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Peter Banks - Instinct
Review by Gary Hill

I've always loved Peter Banks' guitar work. This album has a lot of great guitar work, but it doesn't stop there.


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Anderson/Stolt - Invention of Knowledge
Review by G. W. Hill
The “Anderson” in the name is Yes co-founder Jon Anderson. The “Stolt” is Flower Kings leader Roine Stolt.
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Yes - It Can Happen (Single) Vinyl
Review by G. W. Hill

Lately we’ve been moving away from our long-held rule that in order to reviewed an item had to be in print.


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Yes - Keys To Ascension
Review by Gary Hill
The majority of this 2 disc set is a series of live recordings from the three SLO concerts that Yes did in 1996. The live material is augmented by two new studio cuts.
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Yes - Keys to Ascension 2
Review by Gary Hill
Keys to Ascension 2 contains live tracks from the San Luis Obispo concerts, recorded March of 1996(disc one), and 5 new studio songs(disc two). The lineup for the album is Jon Anderson, Steve Howe, Chris Squire, Rick Wakeman and Alan White.
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Yes - Keys To Ascension DVD
Review by Gary Hill
Recorded in 1996, this one is the one that almost makes it in the quest for ultimate live Yesshow video. Those who were there say that the video includes a lot of overdubs, but for the uninitiated, you really can't tell.
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Yes - Keystudio
Review by Gary Hill
Talking about the album that should have been! When these songs were originally released it was as bonus new studio recordings at the end of the two Keys to Ascension sets.
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Yes - Leave It – 12-inch Single (Vinyl)
Review by G. W. Hill

Although this is out of print, I’ve decided to review it at Music Street Journal.


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Various Artists - Legends Play The Beatles
Review by Gary Hill
This new album showcases a lot of cool Beatles covers from a number of artists. It's actually compiled of tracks previously released on a number of albums.

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Yes - Like It Is - Yes At the Bristol Hippodrome
Review by G. W. Hill

This new live album from Yes is quite good.


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Yes - Like It Is: Live at the Mesa Arts Center
Review by G. W. Hill

Yes recently did a couple of tours where they performed some of their studio albums in their entirety. This live recording comes from one of those shows.


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Yes - Live at Montreux 2003
Review by Gary Hill
Yes is a band that has no shortage of live albums. For this reason, the next statement I’m going to make is all the more profound. This may well be the best live CD they have ever released.
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Yes - Live At Montreux 2003 DVD
Review by Gary Hill
Another in the Live at Montreux series, this DVD is one of the best of the bunch. Mind you, a good deal of that is about the performance that was captured here.
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Yes - Live at Taste of Chicago, July 8th, 2000
Review by Gary Hill
A true dream come true for Yes fans, the Masterworks Yes tour featured three, count 'em, three epics. They included two seldom played gems.
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Yes - Live at the World Music Theater-July 9th, 1998
Review by Gary Hill
The magic is back. There is seemingly a growing underground progressive rock movement.
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Yes - Live in Birmingham, England, November, 2011
Review by Alison Henderson

There was something ominous about the date of this concert -11.11.11 so it was very much a case of going for the one on the night.


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King Crimson - Live in Chicago
Review by Gary Hill

King Crimson has one of the most interesting and complicated histories in all of progressive rock. The lineup is one of the most dynamic, too.


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Yes - Live In Chicago, 2002
Review by Gary Hill
First things first, a warning since the tour is still underway, if you are one of the people who is going to see one of the shows, and if you like to be surprised, don't read this review until after you see them - because there are spoilers in the review.


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Yes - Live in Chicago, Illinois, March, 2011
Review by Greg Olma

This is my first time seeing Yes with the Benoit David and Oliver Wakeman line-up.


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Yes - Live in Chicago, November 21, 2002
Review by Steve Alspach
Only four months after previously playing in Chicago, Yes returned and put on an superb show that showcased some of the highlights of the band's 33-year career. With Rick Wakeman back into the fold, the band showed that it still hasn't lost any of its chops.


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Yes - Live In Milwaukee, November 13, 1999
Review by Gary Hill
This band just keeps getting better. Yes gave a wonderful performance on a Saturday night in Milwaukee. The stage show, featuring a screen behind the band that most of the night featured computer graphics, rivaled the light shows of Hawkwind.
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Yes - Live in Milwaukee-November 15th, 1997
Review by Gary Hill
For me, this Yes tour was the best that I have ever seen. I should explain that statement by saying that, although I have been an avid Yes fan since 1975, I did not get the opportunity to see them until the 90125 tour. Therefore, I did miss many of what diehard Yes fans consider to be their best outings.
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Yes - Live In Nottingham, England, June 6, 2003
Review by Bruce Stringer
Firebird Suite / Siberian Khatru was not the smashing introduction to the set that I had hoped, but none-the-less quite strong. The crowd had been stamping and yelling and were quite worked up over the 65 minute wait for Yes to arrive on stage.
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Yes - Live In Philadelphia 1979 DVD
Review by Gary Hill
This DVD really seems to be an official release of a bootleg video. For one thing the audio is in mono, rather than stereo.
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Yes - Live in Rosemont, IL, May 4th, 2004
Review by Gary Hill
The last couple Yes shows it seemed that the band was just getting better and better live. Probably a lot of this was due to heightened excitement and energy from the return of Rick Wakeman.
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Yes - Live in Toronto, August, 2001
Review by G. W. Hill
Yes brought its symphonic show to Toronto on the 28th of August.
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King Crimson - Live in Vienna
Review by Gary Hill

It seems that there is quite a bit of live material being released from this version of King Crimson. That's a great thing because this line-up might be the best ever.


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Yes - Love Will Find a Way / Holy Lamb (Song for Harmonic Convergence) (vinyl single)
Review by G. W. Hill
If you are looking for a sampling of flavors of Yes' Big Generator album in a vinyl single, you can't do much better than this. 

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Yes - Magnification
Review by Gary Hill
Yes' brand of progressive rock has often been dubbed "symphonic rock." The term refers to the group producing arrangements in the vein of a symphony using typical rock instrumentation.
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Yes - Magnification (Vinyl)
Review by G. W. Hill
I’ve always liked the Magnification album quite a bit, and since the recent reissue of Open Your Eyes on vinyl was amazing, I was really looking forward to this.
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King Crimson - Meltdown - Live in Mexico
Review by Gary Hill

This is truly an amazing set. Looking at just the product itself, without even considering the performances will tell you that.


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King Crimson - Music Is Our Friend: Live In Washington D.C. and Albany 2021
Review by Gary Hill
I have to say that for my money, the modern incarnation of King Crimson really is probably the best. The reason I say that is that there are distinct periods of the band throughout their history.

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Yes - Musikladen Live DVD
Review by Gary Hill
This DVD is rather a mixed bag. I t does contain some considerably rare footage of the group, and therefore scores points on that basis.
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It Bites - Once Around the World
Review by John Pierpoint
Are It Bites a pop band or a progressive rock band?
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Yes - Open Your Eyes
Review by Gary Hill
Yes fans are pretty well divided on this album, many find it to be a sell out of Yes` musical principles, while many others find it good, but not great. There are still others who find it to be a very fine effort.
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Yes - Open Your Eyes (Surround Sound Version)
Review by Gary Hill
This is in many ways a reprint of my earlier review of Open Your Eyes. As reviewed here, it does, however, reflect the changes made when the CD was remastered as the first album ever mixed for Surround Sound systems.
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Steve Hackett - Out of the Tunnel's Mouth
Review by Gary Hill

This is the two CD edition of Steve Hackett’s Out of the Tunnel’s Mouth.


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Yes - Owner of a Lonely Heart – 12-inch Single (Vinyl)
Review by G. W. Hill

It used to be that at Music Street Journal we didn’t cover things that were out of print.


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Yes - Owner of a Lonely Heart (7 inch Vinyl Single)
Review by G. W. Hill

Going back and catching up on some vinyl releases, this one should be pretty easy to find online.


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Various Artists - Poetry of the Air: A Collection of Love Letters to Music from Musicians written by Gary Hill
Review by Greg Olma
I have known Gary Hill for a while now and the one thing that I can say with complete certainty about him is that he takes his music seriously. 


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Various Artists - Prog Box
Review by Gary Hill

I've been looking to do a retro review of this box set for a while. I finally had the opportunity this time around.


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Yes - Progeny: Seven Shows from Seventy-Two
Review by G. W. Hill

This is a new, massive box set from Yes. It includes seven complete concerts from 1972.


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Clint Bahr - Puzzlebox
Review by Gary Hill
Clint Bahr has been covered at Music Street Journal previously as part of the group Tripod. This is his new solo album.

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Yes - Re (Union)
Review by Gary Hill
When Yes released Union it was a hodgepodge sort of album.
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Peter Banks - Reduction
Review by Gary Hill

This is the third (and final) album included in the new box set from Peter Banks titled "The Self-Contained Trilogy." This instrumental album is classy.


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Yes - Relayer
Review by Gary Hill
At first glance, Relayer resembles Close To The Edge in that it is composed of three cuts, one in the twenty-minute range, and the other two taking up about the same length of time between them. However, while there are some strong moments here, this is arguably Yes at their most self-indulgent and least cohesive.
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Yes - Revolution: The Music Roots Of Yes (vinyl)
Review by Gary Hill
This gets placed under progressive rock strictly because of the Yes connections.

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Yes - Rhythm of Love (Maxi Single) (Vinyl)
Review by G. W. Hill

The old rule at Music Street Journal was that we didn’t cover items that weren’t in print.


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Yes - Rhythm of Love / City of Love (live) (vinyl single)
Review by G. W. Hill

If you want to get this song on vinyl and have a cool B-side, this might be the answer.


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Rick Wakeman - Rick Wakeman's Criminal Record
Review by G. W. Hill
I remember that when I first heard this album years ago I wasn't all that impressed. Listening to it now, I'm not sure why I didn't love it. 

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Various Artists - Riding the Rock Machine - British Seventies Classic Rock
Review by Gary Hill
I have heard arguments that say that the 1970s were the decade with the best music. Like any decade, they had a lot of garbage music

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Various Artists - Rockin' the City of Angels written by Douglas Harr
Review by G. W. Hill
This book is something very special. A good tag-line for this would be "come for the pictures, stay for the stories."

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Peter Banks - Self-Contained
Review by Gary Hill

This album from Peter Banks is perhaps not his strongest solo set. That said, it has some very strong material. At times it seems to lack direction and get a bit on the wandering side.


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Kurt Michaels - Soaring Back to Earth
Review by Gary Hill

The new disc from Kurt Michaels combines progressive rock with pop rock ala The Beatles.


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Yes - Something`s Coming
Review by Gary Hill
This album is actually a compilation of Yes performances on various television and radio programs from the 1969-1970 era. The personnel on this album are Jon Anderson, Chris Squire, Peter Banks, Bill Bruford and Tony Kaye.
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Yes - Songs from Tsongas 35th Anniversary Concert BluRay
Review by G. W. Hill

This is just getting released on BluRay and with an extra concert.


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Yes - Songs From Tsongas DVD
Review by Gary Hill

This DVD is one of the best from Yes.


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Various Artists - Songs of the Century: An All-Star Tribute To Supertramp
Review by G. W. Hill

I am a big fan of pretty much anything Billy Sherwood is involved with and I love Supertramp, so when I heard Sherwood was in charge of assembling an all star tribute to Supertramp, I was excited.


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Yes - Symphonic Live
Review by Gary Hill
This was released on DVD before, but they have just now chosen to let it lose in CD format.
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Yes - Symphonic Live BluRay
Review by Gary Hill

Since we’ve already reviewed the DVD version of this set, this review will focus on the difference between this new BluRay release and that original one.


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Yes - Symphonic Live DVD
Review by Gary Hill
Alright, alright, so Yes seems to be coming out with a live album or video (or both) every time they tour these days. This one is a bit special in some ways, though.
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Nolan & Wakeman - Tales by Gaslight
Review by Gary Hill
This new set collects three albums by Clive Nolan and Oliver Wakeman into one impressive box set.

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Yes - Tales From Topographic Oceans
Review by Gary Hill
This is quite possibly the most derisive Yes album of the entire catalog. Certainly many critics panned it, but that wasn't all that unusual.
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Various Artists - Tales From Yesterday
Review by Gary Hill
A tribute to the music of Yes, Tales From Yesterday, features some very fine renditions of Yessongs performed by a variety of artists (including several past and present members of Yes). This is a mixed bag. Some of the tracks are quite faithful to the original, while others represent major reworkings.
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Yes - Talk
Review by Gary Hill
After the Union tour, the Rabin (or Yes West as many dubbed it) incarnation of the band reformed to record Talk. The promo hype at the time said that it was proof positive that this lineup was capable of the more complex and powerful progressive rock creations that had been the meat and potatoes of the earlier band.
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Yes - Talk (30th Anniversary Edition)
Review by Gary Hill
With the 30th anniversary of this release. Spirit Unicorn Music has issued several versions in celebration. This review is for the single CD release.

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Peter Banks's Harmony in Diversity - The Complete Recordings
Review by Gary Hill

You might be familiar with Peter Banks from his time in the early incarnation of Yes or perhaps from his work in Flash. This was an improvisational band that he played with in the early parts of the 21st Century.


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Yes - The Definitive Rock Collection
Review by Gary Hill

Here is another compilation of Yes music. It is the first two CDs from The Ultimate Yes, repackaged.


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Yes - The Extraordinary World of Yes written by Alan Farley
Review by Gary Hill
On the one hand you have to ask, "do we really need another book about Yes?" Still, one of the charms/downsides to books is that they represent a static point in time.
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Yes - The Ladder
Review by Gary Hill
For some bands, the music industry seems to cause a paradox. In order to survive as an artist, one must have a certain degree of commercial success, but to the hardcore fans, doing so can bring forth cries of "too poppy".
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Yes - The Lost Broadcasts DVD
Review by Gary Hill

For hardcore Yes fans, this is a real treasure.


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Yes - The Music Roots of Yes
Review by Gary Hill
Let me say that I'm a Yes fanatic. I collect everything from the band, and in various formats.

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Yes - The New Director’s Cut DVD
Review by Gary Hill
In some ways you can say, “we’ve seen it before.” Of course, isn’t that par for the course whenever you see “Director’s Cut” anywhere in the title or subtitle of a DVD?
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Yes - The Royal Affair Tour: Live From Las Vegas
Review by Gary Hill
This live album from Yes is a couple years old. It has some interesting songs that aren't often performed by the band.

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Peter Banks - The Self-Contained Trilogy
Review by Gary Hill

This new three-CD set is a classy thing. It includes three full albums from Peter Banks (arguably best known for his time in both Yes and Flash).


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Rick Wakeman - The Six Wives of Henry VIII
Review by G. W. Hill

There are many who would consider this Rick Wakeman's strongest solo album. That argument has merit.


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Yes - The Ultimate Yes
Review by Gary Hill

This 35th Anniversary collection of Yes shares a lot of material with other compilations of theirs.


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Yes - The Yes Album
Review by Josh Turner
This marks the third album from this first class group. Its recording predates the membership of the legendary Rick Wakeman, who ultimately joined late in the tour of this album. While this might appear to be a huge drawback in the studio, the album is quite strong.
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Yes - The Yes Album (Expanded and Remastered)
Review by Gary Hill

The third album from Yes, The Yes Album was a transitional disc. 


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Yes - Time and A Word
Review by Gary Hill
When Yes went into the studio to record their second album, the producer decided that they could benefit from an orchestral string arrangement on much of the material. This works extremely well on some of the songs here, while falling rather flat in other places
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Yes - Time And A Word: The Yes Story written by Martin Popoff
Review by Greg Olma

There have been a few books written about the band, Yes but this one really includes the involvement of many of the members of the group through extensive interviews. 


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Various Artists - To Cry You A Song: A Collection of Tull Tales
Review by Gary Hill
One of the first tribute albums ever done by Magna Carta, this one includes some intriguing arrangements of Jethro Tull songs. There are some definite winners here (witness Aqualung, To Cry You a Song, and Locomotive Breath) and no real losers.
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Yes - Topographic Drama: Live Across America
Review by Gary Hill

This brand new live album from Yes is cool stuff. For one thing, it's great to get live recordings of all the Drama songs. There are also two epics from Tales from Topographic Oceans and the "Leaves of Green" part from "The Ancient" on that album. They round the section out with a few other Yes classics. The live sound is great.

 

I've seen Yes close to twenty times (more times than I've seen any other band), and I can tell you that despite the technicality of their music and instrumental prowess, no two Yes shows are the same. That's true even when you see them on multiple nights in a row. Each performance is a little different because the music tends to take on a life of its own in live gigs. So, don't expect to hear the studio versions exactly covered here. For one thing, the line-up is different. For another thing, I don't think I've ever heard a live Yes song sound exactly like the studio version. I mean, why would you want that? You can listen to the studio version any time. I think these renditions are very faithful, and bring a new life to the songs at times. I highly recommend this, especially for those (like myself) who really love Drama.


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Yes - Tormato
Review by Gary Hill
An album that is rather maligned in fan circles, Tormato is a bit pop oriented, but really has some wonderous moments. The bass sound on this one is a bit experimental, having a very processed approach, and although the majority of the songs are more accessible, there is a spirit of prog rock jamming that creates an openness and spirit of virtuosity throughout.


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Yes - Tormato (Expanded and Remastered)
Review by Greg Olma
Back in the late 1970's, Yes must have been a bit scared of the changing musical landscape. Punk was trying it's hardest to kill off bands like Yes; calling them dinosaurs.
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Yes - Tormato Vinyl Picture Disc (Record Store Day 2018)
Review by Gary Hill

Like last year, there is a new Yes picture disc released for Record Store Day. Last year it was 90125. This year they turned their attention to Tormato.


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Spiraling - Transmitter
Review by Josh Turner
You may be wondering how Spiraling fits into the music scene. That's simple.



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Various Artists - Trevor Horn and Friends – Slave to the Rhythm DVD
Review by Gary Hill
This is an interesting DVD.
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Yes - Union
Review by Gary Hill
The great experiment - at the time of this album's recording there were essentially two versions of Yes out and making music. The first was the Trevor Rabin "Yes West" lineup (consisting of Rabin, Chris Squire, Alan White and Tony Kaye - Jon Anderson had left the group, but been working his way back into the fold) and Anderson, Bruford, Wakeman and Howe (the splinter group of one of the most classic lineups).
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Yes - Union: Live
Review by G. W. Hill

I remember seeing Yes on the Union tour. It was an amazing show.


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Yes - Wonderous Stories: The Best of Yes
Review by G. W. Hill

I’m sure some would make the argument that we don’t need another Yes compilation album.


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The Prog Collective - Worlds on Hold
Review by Gary Hill
The Prog Collective always puts out interesting music. It's a project that has Billy Sherwood at its core.

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Yes - Yes
Review by Gary Hill
The self-titled debut by Yes, this 1969 album was full of psychedelic wandering and experimentation. It had some definite strong points, and did, in fact show off signs of the band that would later develop.
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Yes - Yes (Expanded and Remastered)
Review by Gary Hill
One of the releases in the series of discs that showcase remastered Yes albums with additional material added, this one focuses on the first album.
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Yes - Yesshows
Review by Gary Hill
When Yes broke up after the aborted Drama tour, their label released two "new" albums, Classic Yes (a compilation) and Yesshows (a live album recorded before Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman chose to take their leave of the band).
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Yes - Yessongs
Review by Gary Hill
At the time that Yessongs was released, the critics were calling Yes a studio phenomenon, and saying that they could not reproduce their complex arrangements live. This release, at least partially, was meant to dispel that rumour -- and it worked.
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Yes - Yessongs BluRay
Review by Gary Hill

This is a new reissue of the original Yes concert film. While the main film remains unchanged from older editions, there is quite a bit of added material here.


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Yes - Yessongs DVD
Review by Gary Hill
The only true Yes concert film (as in it was shown in theaters as a motion picture) this movie suffers a lot from the time period in which it was made. Granted, this classic performance from December of 1972 is a great time capsule, but filmmaking has come a long way since then.
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Yes - Yesspeak DVD
Review by Gary Hill
This DVD is documentary (remember when these things were called "rockumentaries") on Yes. It focuses on interview segments with each of the current members of the band (Jon Anderson, Steve Howe, Chris Squire, Rick Wakeman and Alan White) but focuses on the entire history of the band.
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Yes - Yesstories-Yes In Their Own Words written by Tim Morse
Review by Gary Hill
Tim Morse created an intriguing book with this one. There is nothing unique about conducting interviews with artists when doing a book about them.
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Various Artists - Yesterday and Today: 50th Anniversary Tribute To Yes
Review by Gary Hill

This new various artists collection, as you would imagine, pays tribute to the music of Yes. It's an intriguing set.


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Yes - Yesterdays
Review by Gary Hill
This compilation is composed almost entirely of material from the first two Yes releases (Yes and Time and a Word) - the majority from the second album. As such the lineup consists of Jon Anderson, Peter Banks, Bill Bruford, Tony Kaye and Chris Squire.
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Yes - Yesyears Box Set
Review by Gary Hill
Released during the flurry of activity surrounding the Union tour, this four CD set is a pricey, but fairly solid addition to the Yes catalog. While any compilation will undoubtedly bring up complaints as to what was included and what was not, this album presents a fairly accurate representation of the chronology of the band.
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Yes - Yesyears DVD
Review by Gary Hill
Before there was Yesspeak, there was Yesyears. In some ways this documentary is superior to the more recent one.
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