Yes 50 Live is a double live album by English progressive rock band Yes, released on 2 August 2019 by Rhino Records.[1]
| Yes 50 Live | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Live album by | ||||
| Released | 2 August 2019[1] | |||
| Recorded | 20–21 July 2018 | |||
| Venue | The Fillmore Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA | |||
| Genre | Progressive rock | |||
| Length | 112:24 | |||
| Label | Rhino[1] | |||
| Producer | Yes | |||
| Yes chronology | ||||
| ||||
Background
editYes reached their fiftieth anniversary year in 2018. To commemorate the milestone, the band—consisting of guitarist Steve Howe, drummer Alan White, bassist Billy Sherwood, keyboardist Geoff Downes, and lead vocalist Jon Davison—completed the 50th Anniversary Tour across Europe and the United States between March and July 2018.[2][3][4] The five were joined by American drummer Jay Schellen, who performed the majority of Yes's live sets since 2016 while White recovered from surgery and a bacterial infection that affected his playing.[5] The tour's set list included songs that spanned most of the group's history, from Time and a Word (1970), their second album, to Fly from Here (2011), their twentieth album.
Recording
editYes 50 Live was recorded on 20 and 21 July 2018 at The Fillmore Philadelphia in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania during the North American leg of the tour. It features the majority of the set list performed on the two nights.[6] This particular leg featured guest performances from former keyboardists Tony Kaye and Patrick Moraz; Kaye joined the group for the encores ("Yours Is No Disgrace", "Roundabout", and "Starship Trooper") and Moraz plays on "Soon", the closing section to "The Gates of Delirium".
Sherwood, who has produced and mixed several Yes albums, reprises his role as the mixer on this album.
Release
editThe album was available as a 2-CD and 4-LP set, along with a colored vinyl pressing limited to 1,200 copies.
Critical reception
edit| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [7] |
Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic gave the album three out of five stars and noted that it "adheres most closely to the prog rock that made their name in the early '70s" and that the current incarnation of the band "does this sound justice, which makes the album precisely what it's intended to be: a celebration of a particular time and sound, delivered with affection and skill".[7]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Close to the Edge"
| Jon Anderson, Steve Howe | 19:06 |
| 2. | "Nine Voices (Longwalker)" | Anderson, Howe, Billy Sherwood, Chris Squire, Alan White, Igor Khoroshev | 3:52 |
| 3. | "Sweet Dreams" | Anderson, David Foster | 5:26 |
| 4. | "Madrigal" | Anderson, Rick Wakeman | 2:53 |
| 5. | "We Can Fly from Here, Pt. 1" | Trevor Horn, Geoff Downes, Squire | 5:58 |
| 6. | "Soon" | Anderson, Squire, Howe, White, Patrick Moraz | 8:00 |
| 7. | "Awaken" | Anderson, Howe | 18:19 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Parallels" | Squire | 6:17 |
| 2. | "Excerpt from 'The Ancient'" | Anderson, Howe, Squire, Wakeman, White | 5:18 |
| 3. | "Yours Is No Disgrace" | Anderson, Squire, Howe, Tony Kaye, Bill Bruford | 12:07 |
| 4. | "Excerpt from 'Georgia's Song' and 'Mood for a Day'" | Howe | 4:01 |
| 5. | "Roundabout" | Anderson, Howe | 9:25 |
| 6. | "Starship Trooper"
| Anderson, Squire, Howe | 11:42 |
Personnel
editYes
- Steve Howe – guitars, backing vocals, production
- Alan White – drums, percussion, production
- Geoff Downes – keyboards, production
- Billy Sherwood – bass guitar, backing vocals, production, mixing
- Jon Davison – lead vocals, acoustic guitar, percussion, production
with
- Jay Schellen – additional drums, percussion
- Tony Kaye – keyboards on "Yours Is No Disgrace", "Roundabout", and "Starship Trooper"
- Patrick Moraz – keyboards on "Soon"
Production
- Dean Mattson – recording
- Maor Appelbaum – mastering
- Roger Dean – painting, design, cover
- Douglas Gottlieb – photography, design
- Glenn Gottlieb – photography, design
- Daniel Earnshaw – product manager
Charts
editThe album made #34 in the UK midweek album chart.[8]
| Chart (2019) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[9] | 75 |
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[10] | 62 |
| Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ)[11] | 19 |
| Italian Albums (FIMI)[12] | 83 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon)[13] | 91 |
| Scottish Albums (OCC)[14] | 19 |
| Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[15] | 80 |
| Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[16] | 84 |
References
edit- ^ a b c "Yes 50 Live". yesworld.com. June 2019. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
- ^ Munro, Scott (5 September 2017). "Yes announce 50th anniversary UK and European tour". Team Rock. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
- ^ Munro, Scott (7 December 2017). "Yes announce weekend of London events to celebrate 50th anniversary". Team Rock. Retrieved 8 December 2017.
- ^ "YES: 50th-Anniversary Tour To Feature TONY KAYE As 'Special Guest'". Blabbermouth.net.
- ^ "MESSAGE FROM ALAN WHITE". Yes' official facebook. 2 January 2018. Retrieved 2 January 2018.
- ^ Munro, Scott (20 May 2019). "Yes celebrate their half century with new live release". Louder Sound. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
- ^ a b Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "50 Live -Yes". AllMusic. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
- ^ "Official Albums Chart Update Top 100, 05 August 2019 - 11 August 2019", Official Charts Company, 5 Aug 2019
- ^ "Ultratop.be – Yes – 50 Live" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Yes – 50 Live" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ^ "Album Top 40 slágerlista – 2019. 32. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
- ^ "Italiancharts.com – Yes – 50 Live". Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ^ "イエス～50周年記念ライヴ～". Oricon.co.jp. Retrieved 15 April 2021.
- ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ^ "Spanishcharts.com – Yes – 50 Live". Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ^ "Swisscharts.com – Yes – 50 Live". Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 October 2021.