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.

This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2018  Volume 1 at  garyhillauthor.com/Music-Street-Journal-2018.

I've always been a big fan of this song, so getting a live rendition is a great thing. They work this with style, but there are some flavor differences on this live take from the studio. That's particularly true of some of the sounds on the intro. Some later parts of the cut almost feel more closely tied to the classic Yes sound than they did on the studio version. This is a great live version of an often overlooked Yes epic.

This feels slower as it starts and gradually builds. This is a fairly faithful take on a song that hasn't been performed live all that often in the band's history. I like the way the vocals work together on this rendition. The instruments manage to find the groove of the piece a lot of the time. They make all the changes with style and make it work. I love the keyboard section around the 18 minute mark. That whole movement just really gels like crazy.