Fave song poll [Archive] - Yesfans.com: Founded 4/01

Flo

01-25-2002, 03:21 AM

To me Big Generator is not a memorable Yes album but there is a couple of good tracks on ti. I really like Final Eyes and I'm running : good sounds and rhythm on both, and the latter made me look for the word Jacaranda in my encyclopedia. So now I know more about this plant which apparently grows in Latin America.

brismike

01-25-2002, 08:10 AM

Jacaranda Trees are also very famous here in Brisbane. Every year in about December they bloom with fantastic red flowers that cover the whole tree. Brisbane is covered with them, you just have to see it to believe it. I think they are an introduced species to Queensland though.

Mike

ycantibu

01-26-2002, 05:31 AM

Trevor Rabin has said that the street he grew up on was lined with Jacaranda trees, which is why he named his studio the Jacaranda Room and threw that in the song, for all you trainspotters out there. They also grow in some parts of Florida, apparently.

vad

01-27-2002, 05:46 AM

I'm Running and Shoot High, Aim Low are the high points for me. I love the vocal interplay on the latter. Most of this album isn't very memorable for me either, but the Big Generator tour was the first tour I ever went to, and boy was I glad they still existed in 1987.

RobAdams

02-02-2002, 11:19 AM

I actually like this album. I went through some very difficult times when I first heard this album, and some of the lyrics really seemed relevent to the crisis I was going through, which included losing my fiance to subacute bacterial endocarditis. SHOOT HIGH AIM LOW, FINAL EYES and HOLY LAMB are classics to me. All of my friends hated this album. I think it's a 7 on a scale of 1 - 10.

Neverthirst

02-13-2002, 01:14 AM

Tough choice. when i was younger i'd have picked 'rhythm' or 'love will find a way.' now i'm torn between 'shoot high aim low' and 'final eyes.' i would have to pick 'final eyes' as my favorite song on the album. it really touches the soul.

Neverthirst

02-13-2002, 01:20 AM

Does anyone know the motivation for 'big generator' being the title track? the album does not seem oriented around a theme, as many of the others were, and it is certainly not a 'typical' Yes album title.

ANTIOCH

02-13-2002, 07:38 AM

I don't know how right or wrong this is ; but at the beginning of the "9012-LIVE" video , there's a scene from an old 50's movie about young love , and the young lady says how much she likes music ( referring to rock n' roll ) while the young man puts on a symphony record and tells of the power in the music. The father refers to this as being like a ' big generator' ?
Maybe that was the inspiration for the tune and album title ??
And ; maybe not !

Neverthirst

02-13-2002, 08:04 AM

Yes, Antioch. my brother showed that to me many years ago. it was great. it does make one wonder....

Neverthirst

02-14-2002, 08:08 AM

Yes, Genevive ....

Shoot High, Aim Low is incredible. the rythm really demands one's focus.

and Holy Lamb has always been a favorite of mine. i don't mention it much, because it doesn't seem to catch many Yes fans attention. but i love it. the progressive, building, strength of the song ... it has a very exhilarating effect.

02-14-2002, 08:32 AM

Neverthirst

02-14-2002, 09:15 AM

i see your point, Q. i never did understand the reference to harmonic convergence in a song designed far more for dynamics than harmonies.

still i do love the song. for me its the dynamics. the way it starts so soft and slow ... and builds so carefully ... adding instruments one at a time ... the energy building rythmically ... passionatley untill a powerful, climatic moment ... and then ... wait ... i'm in the wrong thread.

Neverthirst

02-14-2002, 03:46 PM

i'm glad you liked it.

Westmont272

03-27-2002, 11:14 AM

i like bG, but final eyes is awesome. I also liked love will find away when im driving because i beat that part on my stearing wheel when Jon says..Love will find a way...love will find...a way. (fav part) Holy lamb rocks, running is cool. Almost like love ( my fav) it sounds like something you can hear live, when the band quiets down for moment when says Its almost .....its almost.. its almost..and the band picks it up..awesome!

It just that it took so long for it to come out to keep that 90125 momentom going...1year and a 1/2..come on guys. Yes still rocks!

illusion

06-20-2002, 04:32 PM

I voted for:

SHOOT HIGH AIM LOW
LOVE WILL FIND A WAY
and the best Yeswest song...
HOLY LAMB

And I'm not being nasty here, but I have one question...

Could you please justify your comments about Jon, Quantum?

Originally posted by Quantum
Holy Lamb is a pretty tune, but the lyrics are gobbledy-gook.

Yes, the lyrics are gobbledegook. If you want lyrics that make sense, try pop, rap or metal. You cannot listen to Yes expecting words to make sense...

Originally posted by Quantum
Jon doesn't understand Harmonic Convergence any more than he understands the Shastric Scriptures ...

On what evidence is this based?

As I say, I'm not being hostile, but I would like to know why these comments have been made.

06-20-2002, 10:59 PM

I don't mean to imply a judgment on my part on this point, illusion. Critics have said that the Tales undertaking was pretentious from a literary standpoint, and with justification: but that's okay, the point of Tales is that it is a musical feast and lyrically fascinating. The content was driven (as was Holy Lamb) by Jon's excursions into these concepts - but his investigation, according to the observations of his bandmates (quoted in the biographies CLOSE TO THE EDGE and YESSTORIES), was shallow. He would, in essence, latch onto some literature, give it a cursory reading, and become enamored. And this is how Tales and Holy Lamb came to be.

These criticisms by his Yes mates (Rick, Bill and Chris specifically) are matters of opinion, to be sure. Whether or not they are valid, Jon nevertheless used his inspiration to generate great Yes music, and that's what matters in the long run.

I hope this offers some clarity!

Q

1yesfan

06-20-2002, 11:01 PM

Never cared for the Studio ver of SHoot High, but when I heard it live on the BG tour I was wow'd by it!

illusion

06-22-2002, 07:56 AM

Originally posted by Quantum
I don't mean to imply a judgment on my part on this point, illusion. Critics have said that the Tales undertaking was pretentious from a literary standpoint, and with justification: but that's okay, the point of Tales is that it is a musical feast and lyrically fascinating. The content was driven (as was Holy Lamb) by Jon's excursions into these concepts - but his investigation, according to the observations of his bandmates (quoted in the biographies CLOSE TO THE EDGE and YESSTORIES), was shallow. He would, in essence, latch onto some literature, give it a cursory reading, and become enamored. And this is how Tales and Holy Lamb came to be.

These criticisms by his Yes mates (Rick, Bill and Chris specifically) are matters of opinion, to be sure. Whether or not they are valid, Jon nevertheless used his inspiration to generate great Yes music, and that's what matters in the long run.

I hope this offers some clarity!

Q

Thanks for the clarification, Q. I thought that Jon would have known, being spiritual.

Tim: I'm hoping for a live Shoot High Aim Low on the 3CD live set. I'd also love to hear Chris + Jon sing Shoot High Aim Low on the tour.

Psycho fan

07-24-2002, 12:35 PM

arrel

11-19-2002, 10:23 AM

I was tempted to say that the whole album does suffer more than any other Yes album I've heard from a lack of modulation. There's just an incessant loud sameness about it for me.

Then I realized that "Shoot High", "Final Eyes", "I'm Running" and "Holy Lamb", representing half of the album, aren't really like that at all. I guess it's just that none of those four songs are really that strong, as far as I'm concerned.

I picked "I'm Running" by a nose over "Shoot High". If I were making a compilation of Yes songs, they are probably the only two I'd pick off of this album.

TNyesfan

04-28-2003, 01:02 PM

I have always loved Shoot High/Aim Low. I love the drama of the orchestra warming up then Alan's drums punctuating the flow.The juxtaposition of the lovers in the car and the pilot at war fascinates me. I think the comparison lends power to both scenes.

When it first came out, I was so young and innocent of war. I remember thinking and trying to imagine the horror.
Now the song seems weirdly prophetic.

seescape

07-01-2003, 02:24 PM

Have to say I've always liked BG. It's funny, I'm the only member of our family who's really into Yes and similar music, but there's always been a mutual liking between a few of us for this album. Production-wise and everything I know its terribly 80s, so I suppose it has a dated feel (although I always think this whole "dated" thing is a bit subjective), but I think it's a strong collection of tunes all the same. I voted for Shoot High... in the poll, which may well be in my top ten of Yes tunes.

BTW I'm new here, so hi everyone. :new87:

TrevorHowe

08-05-2003, 12:10 AM

Big Generator is by far my favorite Yes album which is odd because it doesnt seem to be anyone elses favorite everyone else seems to look at it as another "Drama". My favorite song on the album is my favorite Yes song "Shoot High Aim Low", yes from the 80's was shoved down my throat by my parents when I was a toddler and I am glad. I listen to all the other yes and love it just as much but I don't think you can get any better than Big Generator.

JudysTrevor

08-26-2003, 06:37 PM

I voted for Love Will Find Away. The song was put together so well. Great vocals, guitars. Oh, and the video isn't too bad either!!!

Judy

SonicDeath10

09-08-2003, 12:10 AM

shoot high aim low.

Rational Punk

09-09-2003, 07:50 AM

Call me shallow, LOL, but my enduring favorites from BG are still "Rhythm of Love" and "Love Will Find a Way." They showcase Trevor Rabin doing what I think he did best then - creating a propulsive, rocking track that's straightforward enough for mainstream radio but still manages to incorporate enough of the band's progressive idiosyncracies to make for a more satisfying listen than the majority of other singles on the radio at the time.

I do enjoy the extended tracks on BG...there are a lot of good moments in them...but overall they seem a little fragmented and not entirely cohesive to me. I don't think Rabin had quite caught his stride in regard to doing long-form pieces yet the way (I think) he finally did with "Endless Dream."

JaneEyre

02-06-2004, 09:24 PM

JaneEyre

02-06-2004, 09:29 PM

My fav is "Love Will Find A Way." I just think it's irresistable, and the video propelled me into an explosive teenage crush on Trevor......which is still going strong, apparently. On a slightly more seriouse note (no pun intended), I love the orchestration at the song's beginning. A preview of things to come from TR.

Jackaranda

04-21-2004, 12:13 PM

Rick called Owner the Roundabout of the 1980's.

To me, I'm Running is the Sound Chaser of the 80's.

WOLFman

05-11-2004, 07:31 AM

'the Sound Chaser of the 80s'...

Good point! I'd never thought of that before.

Anyway, I found it really tough to pick my favourite track from BG - as with all the TR Yes albums, there's ne'er a skippable track on it - but in the end I went for Final Eyes. It's the chord change, about 1 minute from the end ('whenever I needed...',) that does it for me - makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up every time (a bit like the part in AYAI before 'coming quickly to terms...' - sorry Troopers, I know you'll consider that blasphemous!)

Have a copy of the tour opener, where FE was played superbly (great extended intro), but to be honest they didn't get this bit quite right - anyone know if they fared better in the (sadly) few subsequent performances?

SonicDeath10

05-12-2004, 08:17 PM

i love rhytmn of love. it shows what yeswest was good at. faintly arty, well harmonized and complex hard rock. good stuff.

Gabriel

05-13-2004, 08:13 AM

Without a doubt my favourites are Shoot High, Aim Low [one of the best songs Yes EVER did IMHO, its simply stunning!] Final Eyes and I'm Running. These tracks somwhat go back to their proggy past while the other songs, like Rhythm Of Love are equally good, if simple rocks songs.

BigGenerator

06-19-2004, 08:25 AM

Big Generator sucks!!! It should not even be a yes album they should have kept the name Cinema even if Jon was back. They aren't really yes on 90125, big generator and Union. I never will own Big Generator because those 80s albums are not Yes to me. I have seen Big Generator used more then any other yes album. The cheapest I have seen that cd for was around $4. Too bad I can't get a deal like that with Close to the Edge. A real Yes album.
I talked to Jon Anderson a few years ago about his favourite albums;he told me that his favourite is 90125,then Talk..
90125 and Big Generator are 100 % pure yes music;apparently you haven't understood Yes music,and I still don't understand why you post here to insult their music.how sad you only dare to post as a guest,hence the cheap insults..

SonicDeath10

06-19-2004, 01:40 PM

don't worry about somebody who's a self described "psycho fan". he probably is part of kiss's "psycho circus."

cinderella

06-19-2004, 03:15 PM

:hearts: I'm a hopeless romantic, and my favorite song from Big Generator is Love Will Find A Way.

(But then you probably already guessed that.) :valintine

JaneEyre

06-23-2004, 02:29 PM

Me, too!

SonicDeath10

06-24-2004, 12:50 PM

and the aye's have it!

Amy

07-22-2004, 11:45 PM

This album stinks.
But I can still choose a favorite!
Shoot High Aim Low

umgekehrt

07-27-2004, 07:50 PM

Well "Love Will Find A Way" is a good song. But when they put that intro in front of it, it became a great song!

BigGenerator

08-11-2004, 11:14 AM

This album stinks.
But I can still choose a favorite!
Shoot High Aim Low
Then you are not a real Yes fan.
Big Generator is the true sound of Yes.

leqin

08-11-2004, 11:55 AM

I love the whole album, but I especially like 'I'm Learning' off the Rhino remaster version.

SonicDeath10

08-11-2004, 10:45 PM

harsh! but it's her choice to not like it.

Ryan

08-12-2004, 11:44 AM

Then you are not a real Yes fan.
Big Generator is the true sound of Yes.

hey, easy. You've gotta respect other peoples opinions. And i disagree about big generater being the true sound of YES.

Amy

08-12-2004, 12:45 PM

Then you are not a real Yes fan.
Big Generator is the true sound of Yes.
I am going to be real nice and not answer you.

SonicDeath10

08-12-2004, 02:21 PM

i always thought that the best part about yes is that they had no "true" sound and they always changed. that's why so many people like them! their true sound is beauty itself. :)

Scooty

08-26-2004, 03:56 AM

Then you are not a real Yes fan.
Big Generator is the true sound of Yes.

:dog:

Oh dear Gawd.......ooh......oooooohhhh

Im dyin' here.......LMAO!!

AHHHHHHHHHH!!

Heeee heeeee......hooooooooo...oh.....e'hem

anyway...

Scoot

Unregistered

08-26-2004, 05:22 PM

:dog:

Oh dear Gawd.......ooh......oooooohhhh

Im dyin' here.......LMAO!!

AHHHHHHHHHH!!

Heeee heeeee......hooooooooo...oh.....e'hem

anyway...

Scoot
oh be nice. at least he's passionate about it. :-)

but i am still of the opinion that Yes has no true sound and yet has a sound (?!) and that's what makes them great!

RABARKS

04-17-2005, 04:50 PM

When Love Will Find A Way came out as a single I was terrified. Was this the best song of the new album, as Owner had been of 90125?
Thankfully it wasn't. It's actually the weakest one. (That's not to bash Rabin, I really like Something To Hold On To, of that same period)
After the dissapointment of 90125, Big Generator was really surprizingly good.
I felt that on 90125 Trevor was trying to turn Yes into a hardrockband. But on BG Yes was turning Trevor into a symphonic guitar player. Culminating on I'm Running, easily the best Rabin-era Yes track. Multiple varied themes and moodswings just the way we like it.
Even the commercial tracks like Rhythm Of Love are well written and performed by all involved.
Biggest surprize: Tony's emergence as (co)writer! Where did that come from, and more importantly, why haven't we seen it since?
:headset:

lrs

04-21-2005, 11:47 PM

I am not very fond of this album, maybe that will change altho i don't think so. however, Shoot High is an amazing song that makes the whole sheebang worth it. One of their most powerful songs

Amy

04-21-2005, 11:54 PM

Wow, I was pretty serious back in August. I'll have to listen to BG again just to make up for it.

allpurechance

04-22-2005, 05:25 AM

Wow, I was pretty serious back in August. I'll have to listen to BG again just to make up for it.

Ah,Ame...lol...this album has withstood the test of time remarkably well...now if only they'd remaster it!lmaoOOOOoo(greedy,aren't I?!)

Frank

heishere

04-21-2006, 06:47 PM

final eyes is exquisite. coulda come from any yesalbum, any yesperiod, it's what i call a mini-epic. i think i even like it more than holy lamb, which is an anthem for all time.

big generator is definitely machine-like, pistons pumping, but not the best on the album, i almost feel like i've been at work (pant, pant)... shoot high aim low goes on too long (but the reference to bluefields (nicaragua?) always intrigued me)... the lyrics of almost like love are too scattered for me... like buckshot sprayed everywhere... rhythm of love starts out like beachboys' harmony, then thumpitythump we're into a men-at-work style 80s tune... love will find a way has enough modulation to make it interesting, but "i eat at chez nous"??? whatthe? i'm running, no digo nada.

this is my second attempt at judging this album. its a fun album. deserves more play, especially when ya start gettin scared ya might be wearing out the classic albums...

SonicDeath10

04-22-2006, 12:40 PM

I always thought this album was underrated. There are weak spots, but really great spots too. :band:

J. Rocket Squirrel

04-26-2006, 07:40 PM

Holy Lamb is a pretty tune, but the lyrics are gobbledy-gook. Jon doesn't understand Harmonic Convergence any more than he understands the Shastric Scriptures ...

... but I saw the Big Generator tour, and it was cool to see the tune performed live. Trevor sat on the edge of platform, playing an acoustic guitar. The whole thing had a nice, almost campfire feel ...

When I saw the BG tour they did Holy Lamb in a slightly different way. Jon stood on a platform with a golden cape, played acoustic guitar and sung it perfectly. It is my favorite from the album because it is so positive. I thought the lyrics were pretty deep, especially, "At the start of every day a child begins to play and all we need to know is that the future is a friend, yours and mine."

I thought that was a funny comment you made about Jon not understanding the Shastric Sciptures. It seems that Jon never approached that study directly but simply let the lyrics come from his own experience.

Purple Wolfhound

05-08-2006, 10:01 PM

I'm Running, followed immediately by Holy Lamb.

emerson_brady

11-21-2006, 09:08 AM

"Shoot High" & "I'm Running" are my faves.

BG is yet another strange YES album. Nearly twenty years on, the production sounds dated (unlike 90125 or Drama) - just listen to those grotesque synth horns on "BG" and "Almost Like Duff". So mid-80s. Overall, the sound is a bit thin and tinny. Still, there's a lot of good energy in their playing and the songwriting's mostly very good too. I like it plenty.

luckeydoug1

11-21-2006, 10:44 AM

I'm Running is not only my favorite song on this album, but is also my overall favorite Yes song.

Scooty

12-22-2006, 04:46 AM

For some quirky reason..I'm Running stands out for me.. I love this track!

flep

12-22-2006, 07:37 AM

I voted Love will find a way.

Yes's most commercial song ever bar none.

Iowa Yes Fan

06-07-2007, 08:57 AM

I'm Running is what I selected, but I do enjoy Holy Lamb and Shoot High as a close second. The songs that were released for the charts, Love Will Find a Way and Big Generator were probably the weakest songs for me.

rememberer

07-18-2007, 10:47 PM

I voted for Holy Lamb now that I finally found this poll. I wish Jon would play it at his solo shows, I think it'd be perfectly suited for that. The way he always sang it with such emotion is just hair-raising.

Glad to see I'm Running scored so well though. I figured it for an underrated song, but I really didn't pay attention myself to what he was singing until the other day. Guess I just thought a Jacaranda was like a jackelope or a chupacabra or something, but I found a really fascinating wiki on Jacaranda trees.

YesCarolinita

07-16-2008, 12:50 PM

"Love Will Find a Way". This time in my life was a little twisted and this song sticks for me. BG is not one of my favorite Yes albums.

SilentTalking

07-19-2008, 08:32 PM

Almost Like Love is an underrated song, if you ask me. Other than that I only really rate I'm Running and Holy Lamb off this album. I think LWFAW has a catchy riff and an impressive intro, but that's it. And I don't get the fuss about the 7 mins of click-track that is Shoot High Aim Low.

oliasdoug

07-22-2008, 03:47 PM

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOoooooooooooooooooooooo, I am SO glad to see that so many people love "I'm Running" as much as I do--I put it in the All-Time Classic Yessongs category! Seeing it performed live on the BG tour of 1987 was nothing short of nearly-heart-stopping! w00t w00t!!!!!

.....and I tried very hard to like "Almost Like Love," but still can't stand it to this day. It just sounds so forced and phony. Just another example of how not everything Yes touches turns to gold. Just MHO.

HOTsunrise

09-25-2008, 06:11 PM

I voted Love Will Find a Way. My favorite song in my freshman year of high school.

BRINGRABINBACK

09-26-2008, 04:04 PM

And, I guess, something of a Rabin thing:

http://www.jacarandaroom.com/

To me Big Generator is not a memorable Yes album but there is a couple of good tracks on ti. I really like Final Eyes and I'm running : good sounds and rhythm on both, and the latter made me look for the word Jacaranda in my encyclopedia. So now I know more about this plant which apparently grows in Latin America.

Soundchaser_413

12-01-2008, 10:16 PM

My faves on this one are:

I'm running
Holy Lamb
Final Eyes
Shoot high aim low

Again I like the others a lot too but maybe not so much "almost like love." It's good but definitely the weakest link in my opinion. I actually even like "love will find a way" a bit. It's a very catchy pop song in the same way "owner of a lonely heart" was.

luna65

12-02-2008, 09:23 PM

My favorites, like many others here, are "Shoot High, Aim Low" and "I'm Running," two of the best songs in the Yes oeuvre entire, but definitely top five for YesWest.

I love the entire album but I could do without "Almost Like Love" if push came to shove.