March 28, 2022

1971 - February: Yes “The Yes Album” Episode 200!

47 minutes

It's our 200th episode! And to celebrate, we are going to cover a group we reference frequently in other episodes - “all roads lead to Yes.” The third studio album by Yes was simply entitled The Yes Album, and it was both a critical success, and a much-needed commercial breakthrough, hitting number 40 on the US album charts. It was the first album not to contain any cover songs, and was also the first album to feature guitarist Steve Howe in the group.

This iteration of Yes consisted of Jon Anderson on vocals, Chris Squire on bass and vocals, Steve Howe on guitars and vocals, Tony Kaye on keyboards, and Bill Bruford on percussion. This album would be the last with Kaye on keyboards until the 90125 album in the 80's.

We're also spending some time talking about the podcast, our experiences over 200 episodes, fans from different places, and more What The Riff trivia. We hope you enjoy this milestone podcast!

Yours Is No Disgrace

The opening track was written by all five members of the band. It is a song about the Vietnam War, telling the returning soldier that the war wasn't his fault, and that he had no choice but to fight.

Starship Trooper

Robert Heinlein's novel of the same name inspired the name of this song. The epic consists of three movements, "Life Seeker," primarily written by Jon Anderson, "Disillusion" mostly written by Squire, and "Würm," largely written by Howe.

I've Seen All Good People

This is another lengthy epic of a song, not uncommon for Yes with it's prog rock sensibilities. Jon Anderson and Chris Squire wrote this song and it's two movements. The first movement, "Your Move," uses chess as a metaphor for relationships, and was released as a single which became a top 40 hit. The second movement, "All Good People," would be re-incorporated into the song when played on FM rock stations at the time. It references John Lennon in several places.

ENTERTAINMENT TRACK:

The theme from the motion picture “Love Story”

This romantic tragedy starred Ali MacGraw and Ryan O'Neil. It was released in December 1970 and was a big grossing film in February.

STAFF PICKS:

Temptation Eyes by The Grass Roots

Wayne's staff pick is a California group which charted frequently in the early 70's, including this song which went to number 15. The band originally was founded by Lou Adler and the songwriting duo of P.F. Sloan and Steve Barri.

If You Could Read My Mind by Gordon Lightfoot

Brian's staff pick is the well-known Canadian singer-songwriter. This song was inspired by Lightfoot's divorce. It has been recorded over 100 times since Lightfoot wrote it by artists like Liza Minnelli, Barbara Streisand, Glen Campbell, and Johnny Mathis.

Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is? by Chicago

Bruce brings us the first song the band recorded together on their first album in 1969. It wasn't released as a single until late 1970 after "Make Me Smile" became a hit. This encouraged the group to go back to this song and cut it down to single length. Robert Lamm wrote and sang lead on this song, inspired by a quip he received from a Brooklyn movie theater usher.

What Is Life by George Harrison

Rob's finishes the staff picks with the “quiet” Beatle. It is off his triple album "All Things Must Pass," and this second single from the album went into the top 10 on the U.S. charts. Eric Clapton played on this album, and it was produced by Phil Spector. It is a love song that appears to be directed both at a woman and a deity.

INSTRUMENTALTRACK:

The Clap by Yes

This live instrumental piece was brought to the group by Steve Howe, and appears on The Yes Album. It was written in celebration of the birth of Howe's son, Dylan.

Thanks for listening to “What the Riff?!?”

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**NOTE: What the Riff?!? does not own the rights to any of these songs and we neither sell, nor profit from them. We share them so you can learn about them and purchase them for your own collections.

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By Rob Marbury, Wayne Rowan, Bruce Fricks, John Lynch

4.9

4747 ratings