Hardest Yessong to play?

[Angkor WHO??]

Has anyone ever played a yessong out live before? How did it go over? Did the singer have to grab himself to hit the high notes? Which Yessong do you think would be the hardest to pull off?

My opinion-- even though I haven't heard the whole catalog yet.

Soundchaser-- just about every instrument is lightning fast.

Easiest song would have to be "Walls"

[Plastic Man]

roundabout has to be the hardest to sing.

[haroldthebarrel]

I'd say 'The Ancient' is the hardest to sing, because I can't sing very well, but Roundabout is easy compared to that one IMO. The hardest songs to sing are the ones with weird cues and odd timing. Becaue if you can hit the notes the hardest thing is out of the way for almost every song ever written. Songs I find hard are songs like Keep it Dark or Turn it on again by Genesis becaue of the weird placements of the lyrics according to the melodies behind them. The hardest thing once you can hit the notes is remembering the lyrics. It's harder when youalso have to worry about coming in at the right time. Yes songs that would be tough to sing would be Soundchaser, Southside of the Sky, The Remembering, Awaken, and songs like that. But really, to 99.9% of all singers, ANY yes song would be considered hard, because to really do it right you have to be born with a certain sort of falsetto-like voice as Jon was.

[Plastic Man]

i mean NO ONE can sing roundabout except jon...have you ever tried singing that? i have, its way too hard to do the "we'll spend the day your waaaaay!" part. of course, i only try it when im sure no one is around :D.

[grasshopper]

I agree abour Soundchaser being hard but I was in total awe everytime I saw the band pull off The Gates of Delerium flawlessly. It just amazes me that they can still pull it off and not mess anything up.

Would totally have to agree with Soundchaser...
As far as difficult vox...I think Going For The One is the toughest ~ I've even seen Jon have trouble with that one!

Peace!
~DL.

[Squireaholic]

I've been in bands that have played Roundabout (I've been playing Bass and singing for 30years+), and I've even done Tempis Fugit a few times.Generally, the vocals are the hardest to do justice to; not just Jon (that's hard by itsdelf), but all the layers of harmonies (those closed chord Chris/Steve things are songs by themselves!)
As for hardest technically, I'd go along with Soundchaser simply from a bass/drums standpoint (5/4 and changing speeds?!)
Don't underestimate the technical/musical difficulty of any Yesmusic; even sometyhing as simple sounding as Time and a Word has it's surprises!

[Angkor WHO??]

You are absolutely right, Squireaholic, even the most simple Yes song has hard qualities to it....
I'm between bands right now...
We both live in the same State....
Hmm...
Yes tribute band?

----------
If I put on 50 pounds and aged a few years, I could look like Alan White. I could have plastic surgery on my lips and look like Bruford....

[charl8e]

Used to play the drums, in a punk band, but with loads of time changes! Never tried playing Yes live, but let's not forget the complexities and most of all the subtleties of Awaken... that must be quite something to pull off live... i certainly wouldn't want to try it!

[fish62858]

hi all, new to the system here, and this is the first subject i went to on the list....

I'm a bass player for 30 years, and we have a band (actually "had" would be more accurate, keyboard player went to nashville) called "ECHOPARK" and we did several Yes tunes. Starship Trooper, Hold On, Roundabout, Long Distance/Fish, and worked out AYAI but never performed it in public. All of them are difficult. Of those I just listed, Starship is probably easiest, although our guitarist might disagree. Gates and Soundchaser would be killers, to be sure. AYAI is tough, not because its difficult to get the parts, but because parts is not enough, the feel is key to that one as well as Hold On. Most of them actually. To learn the riffs is one thing, to put it all together as a whole, with dynamics and subtlety (sp?) is what make them work or not when played live. The thing I find most difficult with Yes music is playing the intricate parts while singing. Both the music and the vocals tend to be all over the place and trying to get both to come together is always a challenge. But what fun!
One day, we hope to put together a Yes medley similar to the one the boys did during the Tormato tour... at least I think it was Tormato....?
...<><

[roundabout219]

I've been playing keys in the YES tribute Roundabout (www.roundabout-yes-tribute.com) for about four years now. Heart of the Sunrise was probably the toughest song to pull together, a lot of timing parts that need eye contact. South Side of the Sky was another difficult tune to get right, even YES doesn't do that one live! Yours Is No Disgrace and Starship Trooper were the easiest. A bit of blasphemy, listen to Würm (Starship Trooper), then listen to the solo section from Freebird. Same chord progression. A lot of the classic YES and Trevor's tunes also are three-chord songs, albeit VERY orchestrated. Another poster mentioned singing and playing as the hardest part, and I wholeheartedly agree. In Roundabout, try singing "Along the drifting clouds..." and playing the organ part, or the signature organ riff while singing the chorus. Took me awhile. We're working up Perpetual Change, and the 7/4 part in the middle (band plays the riff, then the main theme comes back in) is not easy because of the syncopations. Very difficult for everyone to stay on the same page. It's well worth the effort, though. Playing these songs live is a treat, the feeling I get during Heart of the Sunrise is incomparable.

[Angkor WHO??]

My band could never play Yes, because of the vocals, and not all the members were into Yesmusic period. But we did pull off a fascinating Rush medley. We blended Limelight, Tom Sawyer, and The Trees into one 10 minute opus. The crowd always gave a positive response; and at one New Hampshire show it absolutely brought down the house!
I would like to do the same thing with YES, possibly Roundabout, Heart of the Sunrise, and Long Distance Runaround.

[roundabout219]

The vocals definitely are the toughest part. We do a medley of Long Distance Runaround into The Fish, which becomes an extended bass solo with parts from Sound Chaser and On The Silent Wings Of Freedom ("Yes, yes..."). From there into South Side of the Sky, then finally Heart of the Sunrise. Lots of fun to play, and goes over VERY well. We've all known each other for years, and we're all huge YES fans. I feel privileged to play these songs live.

[Plastic Man]

how is it even possible to do something like roundabout or ldr, i mean do you have to bring the instruments high-pitch down a bit? or do you have someone that can sing falsetto? because it seems impossible to sing those things unless you have a high pitched voice.

[roundabout219]

We have a ceremony before each gig where we all kick him in the nuts. Seriously, everything is in the original key. We were lucky to find a singer who can hit the notes (he does a great Robert Plant). He has to do some falsetto, but most is full voice, and the bassist and I cover some of the high harmonies in falsetto. The only drawback is that it takes a lot out of him, he has to rest the throat for a few days.

[Plastic Man]

Originally posted by roundabout219
We have a ceremony before each gig where we all kick him in the nuts.

lol!

[haroldthebarrel]

how is it even possible to do something like roundabout or ldr, i mean do you have to bring the instruments high-pitch down a bit? or do you have someone that can sing falsetto? because it seems impossible to sing those things unless you have a high pitched voice.

CORRECTION Actually, I find that Jon's voice is not unique because he hits higher notes than anyone else, but in the way he delivers. His voice has that english boy sound to it. Something that he was born with that only those born with similar vocal chords can emulate. But the actual notes he hits are not notes that many other singers with fairly higher voices cannot hit. I am a singer (well... not when you compare me to Jon) and can hit the notes on most Yesongs, and I don't go an octave lower, or anything like that. But my voice does sound totally different than Jon's, so even though I am singing say "Lost in the city" it IS in the right key, pitch, note, octave or whatever, but doesn't SOUND as high because my voice is rasply and not as "soaring" as Jon's. So to sum it all up: no, one doesn't need to tune down to sing certain songs, unless there is a note in the song that out of their range, not that these notes are uncommon or only sung by certain types of singers, but because the notes are just out of their range.



This is something that is really hard to write about, but hopefully you all can understand whay I am trying to say...at least somewhat.

[Squireaholic]

What Harold is referring to (in a Roundaabout way of course!) is that Jon' range is what is called musically a Countertenor. That means that it is natural for Jon (and the other 25,000 or so like him in the world) to sing in a range that most choir singers would call alto, except that Jon is a male doing this. The Ovation cable network (in the US) had a documentray on this recently, interviewing Countertenors from various places (alas, no Jon). Apparantly Handel wrote a number of classical pieces for Countertenors in his time, as did Hayden.

[Plastic Man]

ok, i get it. yeah, his voice is really distinctive, even when hes normally talking.

[roundabout219]

I saw a little bit of that documentary on the Countertenors (sp?). The two guys I heard both sang falsetto and not full voice, like Jon, and I wasn't very impressed. It sounded like your average guy singing falsetto, a little wimpy. Were there any that could do it full voice with some power behind it?

Full agreement on Jon's tone, and not just his range, as to what makes his voice distinctive. Our vocalist has a few similarities in tone in his voice to Jon. A reasonable facsimile.

[Angkor WHO??]

Originally posted by roundabout219 We
[have a ceremony before each gig where we all kick him in the nuts. Serieverything B]ously, is in the original key. We were lucky to find a singer who can hit the notes (he does a great Robert Plant). He has to do some falsetto, but most is full voice, and the bassist and I cover some of the high harmonies in falsetto. The only drawback is that it takes a lot out of him, he has to rest the throat for a few days. [/B]

LMFAOROTF!

[roundabout219]

Originally posted by roundabout219
which becomes an extended bass solo with parts from Sound Chaser and On The Silent Wings Of Freedom ("Yes, yes...").
Oops...it's Tempus Fugit ("Yes, yes..."), not On The Silent Wings Of Freedom. Memory is really affected by...age...

Anybody out there in the L.A. area, we will be playing this Saturday, Feb. 9. Go to www.roundabout-yes-tribute.com/dates for more info.

/

[Squireaholic]

In response to Roundy 219: I think if Jon tried to sing some of the stuff those Countertenors were doing, he'd sound similar; that stuff was high range, even for those people!
I personally think Jon himself was asking for trouble when he sang the "bring me back, bring me back again" line in the last part of Talk. That may be the highest he ever went. I'd be very interested to read or hear Jon discuss the subject of his voice in detail sometime. Anybody want to suggest souce material?

[fish62858]

i would be EXTREMELY interested in hearing the yes medly and the rush medly mentioned above....
by any chance would you happen to have them recorded on cassette or other medium? since our band played both yes and rush, the guys who remain would simply flip to hear your approaches to these.

our vocalist has a normally higher pitched voice than most males, but still found it to be quite a stretch to sing certain parts of the yes and rush tunes we did. as was mentioned, myself and the guitarist would cover harmonies falsetto.... and there have been times that the vocalist would actually drop to a lower harmony and i would take the melody in falsetto. that works in multiple parts, but can take some getting used to, all that jumping around part to part. we'd do the same thing with crosby stills and nash stuff we'd do. and while the guitarist and myself (bassist) never really sang lead (we're busy enough as it is) we have been known to double some parts to add some umph to them when our singer alone would not have enough power.

[Alysoun]

Originally posted by Squireaholic
What Harold is referring to (in a Roundaabout way of course!) is that Jon' range is what is called musically a Countertenor. That means that it is natural for Jon (and the other 25,000 or so like him in the world) to sing in a range that most choir singers would call alto, except that Jon is a male doing this. The Ovation cable network (in the US) had a documentray on this recently, interviewing Countertenors from various places (alas, no Jon). Apparantly Handel wrote a number of classical pieces for Countertenors in his time, as did Hayden.

Squireaholic is correct. Counter tenors were all the rage and the best parts went to them. Handel has some very famous counter tenor arias in his oratorios.
Please note that counter tenors are NOT castrati. But castrati were all the rage, especially in the 18th century.

I remember being at a concert of Handel's "Israel in Egypt" oratorio and there is a famous aria in that piece. The couple sitting next to me, well, their jaw almost dropped to floor when they heard him open his mouth. I turned to them in the intermission and told them that his voice was naturally in that range and he trained it to stay that way.
They looked relieved. I had a good laugh.

What is far more remarkabkle about Jon Anderson's voice is that at his age, it has remained as strong as it was 30 years ago. Very rare and very, very wonderful!!!

Allison

[Dave "Jon" Horn]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Originally posted by roundabout219
We have a ceremony before each gig where we all kick him in the nuts.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

That's pretty funny Mr. Roundabout Keyboard Player. This is your fearless "nutless" singer responding to some of the mysteries, questions, and comments on this thread. (Actually, last time the girlfriend checked, the nuts were still there!) ;-)

On a more serious note: I am able to sing almost all of the Yes songs that Roundabout plays in full voice with the exception of certain parts of Heart of the Sunrise, Siberian Khatru, It Can Happen, and a few others high versus/choruses that I can't think of at the moment.

Granted, when singing these songs in full voice I don't sound much like Jon Anderson but more like a Trevor Rabinesque style. I found singing Roundabout, Long Distance Runaround, Yours is no disgrace, Perpetual Change, and South Side of the Sky to be some of the easiest songs to sing.

After singing many different types of music, from Judas Priest, Scorpions, Led Zeppelin, to Yes over the past 20 years I have to say that Yes is by far the hardest to sing, Yet most rewarding....

Hope to see some of you at our show in L.A.

Dave "Jon" Horn

[Angkor WHO??]

Dave (jon), nice to hear from you, straight from the horses nuts...er, I mean mouth.
How are the crowd reactions to these Yes covers?
I wish I could get something together like this in Maine, but Squireaholic doesn't answer my E-mails. I can just tell he is the Squire to my Bruford. To audition singers, we could go around kicking people in the jimmy, and see who can sing the most like Anderson.
What say you, Squireaholic?

Paul

[RobAdams]

I saw a bar band with a female vocalist sing ROUNDABOUT quite well. Too bad her group was incapable of playing the music properly. They played it like they were doing it in edits. People were laughing at them. I at least give em a B for trying to play it. Can't remember the band's name

[Dave "Jon" Horn]

The crowds love us. Especially in L.A. Not very often you get to hear your favorite YES songs live.

[RobAdams]

I am going to the mall tomorrow. While I'm there I will pull out a kazoo and play GATES OF DELIRIUM for everyone at the food court.

[bobalogic]

Wow! Thank God I am not the only one who has spent the last 30 years singing Yes songs in a high voice when no-one else is in the house!! Actually the car is the best place to practise your Jon voice!
LOL and I thought I wasn't too bad at it either!! he he he

[Alysoun]

Originally posted by Angkor WHO??
Dave (jon), nice to hear from you, straight from the horses nuts...er, I mean mouth.
How are the crowd reactions to these Yes covers?
I wish I could get something together like this in Maine, but Squireaholic doesn't answer my E-mails. I can just tell he is the Squire to my Bruford. To audition singers, we could go around kicking people in the jimmy, and see who can sing the most like Anderson.
What say you, Squireaholic?

Paul

Ankgor:

If you and Squireaholic put together a Yes tribute band, a lot of folks in New England would come to see you. I am in Rhode Island but give me some good Yes tapes and I'll hop in the car and drive up to Maine!!!

Make it so number one,

Allison

[Plastic Man]

Originally posted by i-and-i
I am going to the mall tomorrow. While I'm there I will pull out a kazoo and play GATES OF DELIRIUM for everyone at the food court.
lol

[roundabout219]

i and i and his magic kazoo! I love it! Let us know how it goes over. 8^)

I'm glad Dave "Nutless" Horn has joined in the discussion.

Angkor, if you can put a tribute together, do it. It will be one of the most frustrating AND rewarding projects you'll ever do.

[Angkor WHO??]

That's beautiful, I-and-I. I hear Debbie Gibson and Tiffany really got noticed in the malls...

[RobAdams]

Mall security kicked me out of the mall right in the middle of the GATES 'battle' sequence. That's really hard to play on a kazoo. Before leaving the mall I bought a really cool CD.

[Kaytou]

I used to own a portugeese 12 string mandolin like steve's (your move)....until a large friend accidently stumbled and fell on it...turning it to toothpicks. That was 20 years ago....I've still never seen another one, much less one for sale. Any ideas where I might find another?

[Ahkin]

I had a strange dream last night. I was talking to a friend via IRC and I told I had band that would play the whole Tales album in his living room.

It was a funny dream, but sure as hell I want to be able to play some difficult Yes songs some day.

[Kaytou]

I used to go to High school with a guy who played guitar very well,...but took acid almost every day......he borrowed my "Tales" album and came to school the next day.....and played the whole album on a classical guitar.....I swear...note for note!
He went on to get a mathmatics degree,....still plays and is living healthy and happily ever after.

[Ahkin]

That's pretty amazing, if it's true. I guess he liked what he heard?

[Kaytou]

He likes the music just fine.....although,quite indeferent to it all .......to my amazement. he still appecieates yes music , but hardly thinks it's that" great." go figure.

[jpirard]

When my old band did our YES tribute, it was specifically because we had a singer who could naturally sing that way. My friend has done sounfd with YES, and told me that Jon simply sings in his natural voice. He actually has a bit of an odd speaking voice, but singing is obviously amazing. He asked Jon what he attributes to the longevity and quality of his voice, and Jon said that it was from a variety of reasons, but one main thing, is that throughout his career, Jon has NEVER 'pushed' with screams etc, in the way of a Daltrey, or what ever. He sings naturally, with power, but never shouts or screams, except when he does it using 'proper' technique, from the diaphragm, not from the throat. i mean he belts out 'Gates', but doesn't 'push' it.

I believe what i said, even if you don't....

[bataisflow]

What was the name of your band JP?

[Jackaranda]

Many years ago, I played in a band with a guy who went on to play with some of Nashville's finest. He loved Yes and could play everything except----The Clap. He said that song was impossible for him to play.

I wish I'd kept playing. A large regret...Jack...

[Earl Grey]

I was telling a few people about you guys... asking if anyone had heard you. I saw ROUNDABOUT advertised in the LA Weekly Magazine...
Anyhow, welcome to our site! I've e-mailed your mailing list & will try and catch you next time at Paladinos! Later Yesdudes.

Hardest YES?

The guitar solo from Sound Chaser seems nearly impossible to me to play... And I do studio work at times! I'm not a slouch, but though some of it is easily learned at 1/4 speed... the feeling that went into the notes is inimitable.

I would think that's at least the hardest guitar-bit in the YESICON...

Earl Grey :yesbird:

[Ahkin]

Earl, I think you're right. Sound Chaser in entiety is pretty damn crazy thing to play too. It's propably between Gates and Sound Chaser this difficulty thing.

[Earl Grey]

Other than Steve Howe that is? Steve: you are welcome to respond here! Come on big guy, don't be shy!

I'd be interested in knowing if any of you guitarists out there can do a reasonable facimile of the thing... Seems pretty daunting to me myself... Howe pulled it off without a hitch live and if anything with even more notes in the mix.
My hero.

Greyness :what4:

[bataisflow]

The Bass is pretty out there as well - I haven't tried it in years but I think I'll give it a listen again and try and relearn it.

[Dave "Jon" Horn]

Earl,

Thanks for the welcome. We don't have another gig lined up as of yet for Paladino's but will be playing in our home town San Diego on April 19th at a quaint little club called "Brick by Brick". We will be opening up for our own local tribute to Pink Floyd, "Pink Froyd". Should be a great show!

Dave Horn, Singer for Roundabout

[Earl Grey]

as being the hardest song to play on bass.
But then again, it seems like it's just Chris doing his 'thang' and the rest of the guys playing along for the ride...
Some of the ensemble stuff might be harder: add in the comlex BGV's that Chris sings at the same time and it sounds nearly impossible to do.

We take these guys for granted at times. Beyond belief, some of those angular rythems and time signatures. And unlike so many jazz fusion outfits out there there's melody in the mix! Grand sweeping melodies.

...Why I waste all my time posting on YESFANS I guess...

The same reason why I kept circling around this one particularly beautiful Degas sculpture in the museum the other day: great art appears to have simply always existed. Complex organic creationism, like the perfect whispering cottonwood tree found in an arid land.
I don't know how to better describe it: great art is divine, and YES would fall under that category for me!

Earl Grey :yesbird:

[Ahkin]

This is not quite on the main subject, but me and my bass player friend just found a great guitar player to play with us. What a great thing, I've been missing good band playing since one friend decided not to practice guitar anymore and focus on making films.

We are going to learn Siberian Khatru and possibly other Yessongs. How difficult would you rate this great song? We're going to make it an instrumental, so singing is not an issue. The bassist said that he is quite comfortable with the bass lines, but I think I got to rehearse this one quite a lot to find a solid groove á lá Bill. A keyboard player would be nice of course but we don't know any...

[yesmandroc]

i recently got together with some guys and played close to the edge. It was kinda hard, but i'd have to think that revealing science of god would be the hardest to put together. The orchestration is so intricate, it would be hard to keep together

[Earl Grey]

Siberian Khatru has one of the easier guitar-riffs, but playing the notes is one thing: making it fly (Whatever a Khatru is: does it fly... guess so!) is another. I love the octave slides Steve does each time at the end of the main riff: adds that bit of edge to the thing... And the solos are amazing.

This is one of those songs that I'll play for fun, but I find it's a hell of a lot easier to write my own stuff than to painstakingly work out YESSONGS any more. When I was a young turk I had more time to figure things out.

Starship Trooper was easy for me, but it was written in the manner that I tend to play naturally for some reason... Not all of Steve's work is.

Heart Of The Sunrise is easy to play if you can double-pick: no problem here... but I know I've got some of the chords wrong...

The easiest song is Wonderous Stories: ...tuned to an open D chord for the acoustic guitar: just do jazz octaves again for the electric bits...

I still think Sound Chaser might be the toughest of them all.

And yesmandroc: you guys played CTTE? Hats off to you! I never even bothered to try that one!

...Taught my pre-teen how to play most of And You And I. Clearly a Jon composition! And amazing, yet simple.

Earl Grey :yesbird:

[yesmandroc]

hello everyone! it's a glorious day in western connecticut. There's a park ive been going to with a great western view...beautiful sunsets. It always makes me think of " In the Presence of..."
( So if we choose to realize all existence is a dream...) I don't know why
Anyway, what about sound chaser would make it the hardest song to play? That never occurred to me.
Also, a little non sequitur: The CTTE link on www.jonanderson.com notes that CTTE is based on the book Siddhartha. Any ideas about that?

[Earl Grey]

The keyboard bits at the onset: and Steve's solo. And the natural segues from madcap to calm throughout the song: the ease of projecting such tactile distinct wild stonethrown notes, yet bringing them to the quiet conclusion of "From the moment I reached out to hold I felt a sound."

And touch rebounds... Not the implied conclusion. The whole affair ends finally in controlled mayhem.

A lot of varied moods in this bi-polar work. Difficult to play in sections: try doing the whole thing in sequence. Formidable!

If your band figures out how to execute SoundChaser without executing it with a lethal injecton, I'm hopping a plane to hear it in person!!!

Earl Grey :ele:

[Ahkin]

Sound Chaser shouldn't be underestimated in challenge, I'm with Earl on that one. I'd like to add that this song also includes maybe the best work Alan has ever done with Yes. It's not that ordinary stuff, not at all. The way he phrases in 5/4 is very musical and when tempos change he can either explode with his drumset or soften the whole mood of the song.

[therifferoo]

...for one thing, as Ahkin pointed out, just listen to Alan White on this piece...and Chris..."immaculate" as Jon once said, and then we move on to Steve and Patrick ~ WOW!!...as Earl stated, the Fender Rhodes bit from Moraz to start the tune; the Howe solo; (and I might add Patrick's solo to that list)...and the complex "puzzle-piece" arrangement of the tune ~ the segues are difficult yet absolutely seamless........and this is just the beginning of the reasons Soundchaser may be the most difficult Yes song to play...lots of synth sounds in that one, too...Patrick's soundscape in addition to his obvious standout parts...the list goes on and on!!!

I think Gates Of Delirium would be difficult, also...by many of the same tokens as Soundchaser...

And I still think Going For The One is the most difficult Yes song for a lead singer...I can't sat "vocally", because that would preclude Leave It...which, as a group, would be the most vocally difficult.

Anyway...just my two cents!

Peace all,
~Rifferooooo!!

[Earl Grey]

It's as if his Fender Rhodes is taking flight: those 'twinkling' notes far up in the upper register (Does the keyboard stretch that far? Guess so!) just hover there defying gravity, flashing silvery light.
YES really rocks on this: some of their most dichotomous moods captured together in one song that though weighty, flies like a monarch.

Earl Grey :yesbird:

[grasshopper]

After a long time not playing Siberian Khatru I found it difficuly at times to keep up. But it is coming back. I haven't attempted Silent wings of Freedom in quite awhile, but I think it would be up there in trying to get that sound they get so easily.

[pshow99]

Wow! What a question! I guess the easiest moment in a song would be one my band used to play a while back in the day as part of another song. Since we didn't dare try a whole Yes song, we found a song in D that we did, then broke it down, and added "Nous Sommes De Soleil" (sp?!?) before bailing out again. We also tinkered with "Time and A Word". It's not that we were wankers, since when we were in Pittsburgh, we were generally regarded to be "too difficult" for most folk used to three chords and a cloud of dust, but Yes was just damn frightening. All time hardest? I gotta agree with the forum here. Soundchaser...hell, that whole album, Relayer, gotta be the bomb.

[yesmandroc]

in the previous page you asked if any guitarists besides steve could play "the thing." What is "the thing?"

[gt76yesman]

I think the Relayer album has several challenges, but I think any of them are almost impossible if you don't have 5 people that can do there individual part, and that is what has frustrated me. Trying to find 5 excellent musicians that love YES. Still searching in NoCal.

Also as a keyboardist I find Awaken is a real challenge, but the real challenge comes from songs with several patches, several different keyboard sounds and trying to change between them.

Glendo

[Earl Grey]

Originally posted by yesmandroc
in the previous page you asked if any guitarists besides steve could play "the thing." What is "the thing?"

Oh! Had to go back to page 2 to see what you were asking about!!! All those poor short-term memory braincells.........:bonghitte
Haha!

The guitar solo from 'Soundchaser' was the thing in question... I'm sure that some of us could patch together a reasonable facimile therof with most of the notes played, well: intact.
But I think it would take Steve Howe to play the solo perfectly, or even better than perfectly. With all the right mistakes, as he did live in concert (You can here this on the Queen's Whatsit Concert DVD: the one with the marred audio. Still worth the price of the ticket for that guitar solo...).
Howe I wonder...

Earl Grey

[yesmandroc]

I'll take you up on that challenge.I can't put together a group right now, but I'll try to pull of the solo.

[Earl Grey]

Haha! Ok..... maybe there are guitarists better than I am out there who can play the 'thing' as well...
What most impresses me about the SC guitar solo is the drama of the notes... And the way it fits into the context of the song like perfecton .
Written like a 'cadenza' in classical music, the solo utilizes many of the signature melody lines already heard in Soundchaser, but drives them to extremities... sends the notes cascading, thrown like thunderbolts. Then floating gentle as a thistledown to land in your open hand.

Some amazing composition there in that solo, which is what impresses me most about Steve Howe: he's a composer as well as an ace guitarist.

Now go and write your own Soundchaser, and I'll be even more impressed!

Earl Grey :yesbird:

[yesmandroc]

I totally agree with you Earl Grey.I always thought of that section as being a cadenza. I admire Yes for their composition more than anything else.That song takes you on such a trip. The whole album does, really. Someday I'll write my Soundchaser( It'll probably be atonal, though. Probably sound more like Berg than Yes. Although, hopefuly it will sound like me.)

[Ahkin]

The Ancient have some atonality feel on it, if you think about Steve's solos. And I love them!

My biggest musical idols are always composers, I think composing is the most interesting process in music. Maybe that's why I can't make myself practice drumming 6 hours a day, I like writing songs and lyrics more! I've been studying music theory for few years, but being "just a drummer", I really need some experience with chords and harmony etc. That's why I'm going to start piano lessons.

[yesmandroc]

I agree with Ahkin. I'm attracted to composition. Maybe that's why I like Yes better than Dream Theater (this a common arguement between my friends and I: who's better, Yes or Dream Theater?)

[fish62858]

amazingly enough, the bass part in soundchaser that happens when there are no vocals is relatively easy, in that it is the same pattern played on different strings and different tempos...
the part that i have problems with is during the vocal/verses. at that point its hard to hear exactly what is happening. and the less than hi-fi production in the studio makes it more difficult.
but the repeating line is not too tough, i use it as a warm up, as well as the opening riff from I'm Running.

[grasshopper]

As far as all the good stuff goes there is nothing less than everything very difficult to play. To master any one of their masterpieces is a never ending battle that will always make you practice till you've decided to move on to another and hope to get it in fairly acceptable order.
I've finally decided to just go with playing whatever pleases me the most and give me some satisfaction of gaining whatever experience I gather from playing(or trying to) them.
I don't beleive anyone has gotten as refined as Howe is yet so just go with whatever you can keep up with and keep on growing and expanding as you gather what you can from each and every one of their extremely talented performers.
As Steve Howe has said, You don't want to sound like anyone else, but create you own defining sound that people can readily recognize as you. This is why I steal a few chops here and there but really try to put it all into my own perspective and try to add some flavor to their music rather than try to copy note for note.

[Earl Grey]

You are SO correct about finding your own defined sound!
Steve would be proud of you...

There's a fine line between 'influenced by' and 'copied from'.

The finest musicians are those who forge their expression in their own image: this is exciting to me!

As much as I love Howe, I try not to emulate him too much: a greater compliment to him is to cop to my influences, but to sound as myself! Harder to do too... Although might just be an excuse for not spending the hours it would take to learn the cadenza from Soundchaser! Haha!

yesmandroc: I'm glad that your recital went so well! Your teacher sounds like the bomb! Familiar with Mood For A Day: you are lucky to have such an eclectic teacher! You must be quite the guitarist, as I'm familiar with all the compositions you played: some difficult stuff there, and I know they want you to play it with heart as well. Would love to hear you some time (You should put out an indi cd someday).

This has become quite a fun thread huh?!

Earl Grey :ele:

[yesmandroc]

Thanks Earl Grey! I would like to have a nice recording of myself, but I've yet to have a recorded performances that's as flaw-free as I'd like. Not that I expect to be PERFECT, but there some things that I won't allow a CD to represent my doing.

[Earl Grey]

A live disc can be exciting, but if you hire a simple studio (you are playing 'live in the studio here, right?) it will do. You can find a nice digital studio for $75.00 an hour: easily. Cheaper, if you work odd hours.
If you mess up once, do it again. The wonders of technology!
I wonder Howe many takes it took Steve to record Mood For A DAY? Maybe one take. Maybe 10.

You could do it, and if you sell the CDs at simple coffeehouse-style shows you can do pretty darn well for yourself!
I know one guy who does classical guitar in such venues: he usually sells 10 CDs per show: which comes to $100.00 if you sell then cheaply. Not bad, eh?

Of course when you play the Carnegie Hall a couple of years later you can remember who originally gave you the advise: I could use a little Porsche or something! Hehee! ;)

Whatever you do, Have Fun! That's what matters.

Earl

[zoran]

I like this thread!
I think: You can play or you cannot play Yes music!
When I feel that some music is hard to play/sing, I like go home and practice!

[CybrKhatru]

Hardest to play?

For keys---I'd wager it's probably Sound Chaser. Then again, Gates of Delirium was no picnic.

Hardest for a BAND to play? Oh geeze....Siberian Khatru was quite a challenge, because of all the syncopation.....and trying to sing over those syncopations! "Sing bird of prey,"...etc...

whew!

The Ancient is probably really tough too.

[BillGuitar]

I copy Howe.
Because I've wanted to, my entire life.
And I've written over a hundred songs, solo, and with bands.

"Copying" Howe has done the exact thing I hoped it would. It puts me so strongly in Steve's fingering/phrasing/inventing style, that I stop analyzing, and begin feeling. Because that's all that music is...

I can't possibly be a musician :sneaky:

[zoran]

that I stop analyzing, and begin feeling. Because that's all that music is...


:thumbup:
:appl[1]:

[neilius]

Interesting thread; a piece of Yesfanstory!

[CybrKhatru]

I know what you mean Bill.

I used to copy Lyle Mays for the same reason. I wanted to get inside his style of playing. Now I only do that every so often.

[BillGuitar]

I know what you mean Bill.

I used to copy Lyle Mays for the same reason. I wanted to get inside his style of playing. Now I only do that every so often.

Matt, I know exactly what you mean. For me, it's opened up a whole new vocabulary of musical "words." Knowing how many times Steve plays an arbitrary whatever has given me the courage to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly -

Sorry. I ain't leaving Earth. I'll play right here. :sneaky:

[zoran]

I know what you mean Bill.

I used to copy Lyle Mays for the same reason. I wanted to get inside his style of playing. Now I only do that every so often.

Lyle Mays!:appl[1]:
One of my favorite!

[RockFreak1013]

hmmm... hardest Yes song(s) to play? I'd say majoirty of them only because i don't play any instrument exceptionally well. The songs on the top of the list would be:
-'sound chaser'
-'OTSWOF'
-'Going for the one"
-'Long Distance Runaround'
-'HOTS'
-'Siberian Khatru'
-probably 'Roundabout' too

hardest song(s) to sing? I honestly don't find any of them to be extremely hard coming from a female vocalist such as myself. Rhythm and range definitely cause vocalists to sh*t their pants, but if you persistently work on it, everything starts to fall into place. Not to sound cocky, but I could sing 'Roundabout' and 'Long Distance Runaround' upon request only cuz I sing it practically everyday since I love the songs so much! :D

I'm not quite sure of the other ones tho. 'Going for the One' is definitely a very pitchy song. Starting off on such a high note can really kill ya over :P And 'Siberian Khatru' can really strain your voice if ya don't sing correctly. If ya ever listen to the "Siberia" recording, you can tell that Jon was reeeeeally struggling through it. He must have been sick with the cold of something when he recorded cuz he doesn't sound like himself. Sounds all congested and very dry. That could be why they added harmonies and changed the name...

hmm... that makes we wonder...

Bottom line, as long as you have the high range and an exceptional sense of rhythm, you can have any Yes song in the bag.

Ok, I'm gonna keep on rambling if I don't stop now :P

~Dana

[yes_angel]

I play them all just fine Thankyou very Much ; )

[zoran]

One of the hardest song for singing is CTTE!
Jon's lines is hard because of note e2 on the end and after that is 3 times repetition I get up I get down.
So much energy needed and no much place to take enough breath to sing all stuff as studio version.

Same situation is on the end of Goin' for the one (AaaaaH!)
and Roundabout.

Circus of heaven ( No time for rest beetwen long high position phrases)

Realese, Realese (high interval jumping on e2)

And some short 1/16 phrases in AYAI, Awaken ....etc.

And on the end. From TFTO:
All singers, male and female, try to sing that one:
And all..............................., and all......................,
And all............................,and all........................,
and all.............,and all..... etc. etc etc
In realtime.
Without practice?! No chance!

[allen toth]

Gates, CTTE, Sound Chaser, Awaken, TOTC.

[Andrea YouAndI]

Matt, I know exactly what you mean. For me, it's opened up a whole new vocabulary of musical "words." Knowing how many times Steve plays an arbitrary whatever has given me the courage to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly -

Sorry. I ain't leaving Earth. I'll play right here.:sneaky:

We want you here, so you can keep playing over the phone for 2 hours! :hearts:

Hardest for me to sing? Anything over the phone! :lol: Sorry about that Bill, I have trouble singing over the phone for family members, not just you! When we get the Delirium band together, it will be better.

I have trouble singing CTTE, never could get all the words quite sorted out. Just about anything from Relayer is difficult as well. Zoran mentioned Release Release...I had trouble getting that one at first because of the speed, but I'm working on it!

[Professor Yessor]

steve's solo in Yessongs -- yours is no disgrace -- has to
be among the most challenging just because of all the
fingering challenges and dynamics and the intensity
he brings to it all. i like to play that part of the movie
for talented young guitarists who like metal and think
yngwie malstrom (sp???) is great.

i had a friend in college who could play "The Clap" and
did a very good job at it. there was one note in the piece,
however, that eluded him; he couldn't figure out how Steve
hit it. The note is just too high for where his hands must be
on the fretboard to hit the other notes.

Just recently, I was watching Yessongs and I caught
it: steve hits the note by hitting a muted harmonic right in
the middle of all that ragtime. if you're wondering where it
is, it's in the last part of the song, right before the final
ending riff. have you ever seen anyone else doing a rag
time bass line, holding the bass notes with 2 fingers,
doing little leads with the other 2, and then sneaking in
a muted harmonic all at the same time ???? that's some
serious guitar technique. for any non-guitarists out there,
the fret hand touches the string but does not press the
string down to the fretboard, and the right hand plucks
the string with the fingers ~while~ gently "muting" the
string with the palm. mind you, steve is also busy playing
real notes on the other strings, so he can't afford to
accidently "mute" those...

( on a sad note, this guitarist friend of mine died
young. don't know how. )

i've been keyboard player for forever, and i've played
wakeman's solo from yessongs for about 30 years,
and still don't do it much justice. The part where he
goes into the Jingle Bells ragtime funky blues stuff
is so friggin cool...

wakeman's most difficult is probably the ABWH
evening of music solo, Merlin.

[SouthSideGuy]

Right now SSOTS is just kicking my ass in the center part...No other song by yes does that to me.

[Andrea YouAndI]

Right now SSOTS is just kicking my ass in the center part...No other song by yes does that to me.
Isn't it funny how, some of the easier songs (or parts of songs) for the vocalist are the harder pieces for the musicians? I never had trouble singing any part of SSOTS. :thinking: I love singing Disillusion, but that fast bluegrass bit sounds pretty difficult to nail on guitar, if because of the speed alone.

[zoran]

Right now SSOTS is just kicking my ass in the center part...No other song by yes does that to me.

I believe in you!
You don't ned to be a perfect. Be you!
You can do it!:beerchugr:

[grasshopper]

There are definently harder songs than this one but Perpetual Change(Yessongs version) I spent a good 4 years on learning every little lick I could.
There is much more complicated songs but this has always blown me away.:rightG:

[grasshopper]

Merlin, I remember seeing steve playing in that manner and remember telling myself how brilliant that was. That was over 20 years ago and still keep remembering seeing Steve pulling off that tune that way.
Watching him perform live though I've seen him do it different ways at different times but it still sounds pretty much like he hasn't changed anything that drastically.
I think he's just become more refined now-a-days when during Yessongs he was able to experiment and do things differently and always end up pulling off something amazing.

[BillGuitar]

I'm discovering that after years of wanting low action, that you just can't play Steve that easily with it on the fretboard. The higher action actually helps. I can play the cadenza from Sound Chaser easier on my Martin, than on my Ibanez!

Steve is one of those guitarists that is near impossible to fake, he puts in so many weird little tones, that the average scale just ain't gonna cut it. Seriously, one of the best ways to find Steve is to play every note within reach. Because many of them will be right! :winknudge

Nothing by Steve is really that easy to play.
He just loves to jump all over that danged neck...

[1yesfan]

OOALH is the hardest one. ha ha ha

[neilius]

5% for nothing.

[BillGuitar]

Actually the hardest would be those damned nature sounds at the beginning of CTTE. Because in Yesstories, Eddie Offord recalls making thousands of overdubs just to create that fade-in! Anyone got a howler monkey?

(Oh, and by the way, your toucan is out of tune :winknudge)

[zoran]

Anyone got a howler monkey?



I can sounds like howler monkey, just give me a few beer before.:silly::beer:

[Andrea YouAndI]

Actually the hardest would be those damned nature sounds at the beginning of CTTE. Because in Yesstories, Eddie Offord recalls making thousands of overdubs just to create that fade-in! Anyone got a howler monkey?

(Oh, and by the way, your toucan is out of tune :winknudge)
Toucan play that game... :lmao:

Hey, I can howl like a wolf. Maybe I should do that when (if) you play CTTE at the Gathering!