Tormato

[sherriff_johnbrown]

I just got Tormato on vinyl. I had never listened to the album before, and somehow I got the impression it was as bad as big generator. But it's not.

Despite the really lame photo of the band in the jackets and the sunglasses, this album really isn't that sell-outy. It's kind of sell-out, I mean, it's not progressive like TFTO is. But its got some great music on it. Some of Howe's best playing, period. Sure there's some lame songs, but as the music is somewhere between commercial and counter culture, it's almost just right for me.

Is there a high or low impression of Tormato around here?

JB

[yesyadda]

I bought Tormato when it first came out, then saw Yes on that tour. I just picked up the CD (lost my other copy) and it has bonus tracks which is a nice surprise. I listened to it today start to finish. Release Release and Silent Wings of Freedom are two of the best songs they ever did. I always thought that this album had a feel of individuality to it. Each members' contributions really stand out at different points. It was a chance to cut loose and cut up. Very entertaining and enjoyable music to say the least.

[Timmo]

Of all the YesAlbums, I think "Tormato" most of all benefits from being played live.

Aside from the truly awful "Circus of Heaven," that was, I think, their best tour before the current one.

[Scooty]

Of all the YesAlbums, I think "Tormato" most of all benefits from being played live.

Aside from the truly awful "Circus of Heaven," that was, I think, their best tour before the current one.


Agreed.
Even though I was all of 8 years old at the time..(sigh)

My favorite era live for YES is absolutely the 78-79 tour..
They were playing incredibly well!!

Scoot

[Earl Grey]

...Aside from the truly awful "Circus of Heaven," that was, I think, their best tour before the current one.

Absolutely!

I tend to 'collect' heavily in the Tormato period, as far as 'weeds' go. My favorite shows of all time, excluding the present.

When Tormato appeared, I was underwhelmed... I felt it should have been this, it should have been that.

There it was. Tormato.

Time forgives a multitude of bad mixes, and while I'll go along with Wakey in my opinion, agreeing that Tormato could've been one of the finest YES albums of all time, if only it hadn't been so rushed...

The album stands, it dances, raves and spins against the cloudy backdrop of a confused time...

In retrospect, a much stronger album than I ever gave it credit for. No, it didn't save rock and roll. No, it didn't deliver us from disco...

We must save ourselves from KC and The Sunshine Band, as well as The Sex Pistols.

A fine album. It could have been great, I love the thing. If YES recorded such an album right now, I would embrace it as a classic.

Future Times indeed.

:yesbird:

[Jonah]

Awaken was such a hard album to follow. Tormato was not quite up to the job. But, in view of some of the albums that followed it, I would say that it is half a Yes classic.
Some of it is a bit daft, some of it is the best music they produced.

A whole hotch potch of Tormato stew really IMO.

Now - where's that KC album...?

[PO]

Don't forget about Future Times/Rejoice. An excellent tune that I liked right away (it's the first song on the album/CD). They played this on the Tormato tour. It was excellent live, too.

[Earl Grey]

Don't forget about Future Times/Rejoice. An excellent tune that I liked right away (it's the first song on the album/CD). They played this on the Tormato tour. It was excellent live, too.

'Future Times' and 'OTSWOF' stand as the 2 songs I would most love to hear YES revisit in the future...

So far, so good. Everything I've asked for has eventually happened...

A Symphonic tour...

An unplugged set...

A new Roger Dean stage set...

And now (SCOOP SCOOP! You heard it here, in this silly little post, first!), I have it, 'from the horse's mouth', (Attested to, from no less than Roger Dean, Chris Squire, and Alan White on three seperate occassions last week) that YES and Roger Dean are going to produce an animated feature, with YES providing the soundtrack.

A 'YES-Fantasia' was how Alan White described it.

...Seeing that I've gotten my share of cookies so-far, I wont be surprised to eventually hear both Future Times and OTSWOF live in 2005!

It's an amazing day to be a Yesfan.

We Have Heaven.

EG:yesbird:

[Around_About]

'

And now (SCOOP SCOOP! You heard it here, in this silly little post, first!), I have it, 'from the horse's mouth', (Attested to, from no less than Roger Dean, Chris Squire, and Alan White on three seperate occassions last week) that YES and Roger Dean are going to produce an animated feature, with YES providing the soundtrack.

A 'YES-Fantasia' was how Alan White described it.

...
EG:yesbird:

Whoa - toooo cool. I saw a ABWH video that had some Dean animation in bits.. . What was that thing titled..? It escapes me? I'll be holding my breath for THIS project, oh yes another dream coming true. Next , a Willowater in everytown , and then the world transformed . It can happen!!

you snuck ths little tidbit in a thread as if to hide it - sure glad i spotted it!
thanks!!




Willowater / Roger Dean (http://www.rogerdean.com/architecture/willowater.htm)

[pauli]

There are some real highs and lows on Tormato, but I don't think it deserved all of the bad press and reviews it received. Coming after GFTO it was a bit of a let-down, for sure, and Rick's birotron could get mighty annoying, but I still prefer "Tormato" over "Drama" (but that's another thread...)

People have already mentioned greats songs like "Future Times" and OTSWOF, and "Release Release" (which unfortunately contains the cringe-worthy "Rock is the medium of our generation"). But "Tormato" also contains "Onward" and "Madrigal", two beautiful songs, and Don't Kill The Whale has become a great live tune. Which only leaves two remaining songs from the original track-list.
The re-mastered "Tormato" CD also contains some of the best bonus tracks of any of the Rhino re-masters.

Regarding the "really lame photo of the band in the jackets and the sunglasses", I think you have to put that in context of when it was first released. It was 1978, "new wave" and punk were hip, and so here's the world's greatest prog-rock band wearing leather jackets and shades. I always thought it was a big joke, especially with the tomato splattered all over it (although not necessarily a joke that I ever "got" completely...)

[Nut]

A Dean toon. Too cool.
As for Tormato I have already said before on this site somewhere, I used Onward at my wedding. The Church organist had a hard time with the music so she had to get a younger replacement to play it. I love this album. My first concert to. I love Circus of Heaven so I guess there are all kinds.
Then again, as I have said before, if Yes made a bad album I would probably be the last to know as I am a bit of a Yes Nut.

[custom55]

Onward is great but the rest of the album is 'garbage'. I never bought this album until the Rhino version came out. I really enjoy the extended tracks.

[Silent_wings]

I love Tormato!
It's one of the reasons for my login name. I wanted a song from this poor unloved album for my name. I'd fall down in a dead swoon if they played OTSWOF live. I did mention to Chris at dinner that I would love to hear it played after Scotty told Chris what my login was. He didn't comment on that one.
I do love that song!

[Jackaranda]

[QUOTE=muscla_1]Of all the YesAlbums, I think "Tormato" most of all benefits from being played live.

Yep, my feelings exactly. I really don't like the album very much, but I think that has to do more with the production and the way it sounded rather than the songs. Live it was completely different, for me anyway.

[Andy56]

I never really liked Tormato back when it was released, but I recently bought the Rhino version, stuck it in the car and I've been playing it to death. The more I play it the more I found to like about it.

"Onward" is just beautiful and I want it played at my funeral when the time comes.. "Silent Wings" is just the best thing since the fish, and "Release, Release" and "Future Times /Rejoice" are great songs. "Arriving UFO" sounds almost 'Relayer-ish' in parts and I happen to like "Don't Kill The Whale" as a good pop-tune with a tremendous closing section. The only turkey is the unfortunate "Circus of Heaven", but even that sounds o.k. if you skip the sugar coated second half and ending.

Sound wise I'd take Wakeman's synthesizer keyboards down an octave (if that were possible) but other than that its one of the better Yes albums, and i.m.h.o certainly head and shoulders above the likes of Big Generator and Open Your Eyes.

[Nut]

I just don't get the Onward and Funeral connection. I belive it to be a love song. But I must be alone cause this is not the first time I have heard? saw? whatev, someone say this.

And So It Goes

[Andy56]

I just don't get the Onward and Funeral connection. I belive it to be a love song. But I must be alone cause this is not the first time I have heard? saw? whatev, someone say this.

And So It Goes
I suppose it is a love song, but for me its funerial, primarily because of the nature of the music and the lines:
"Onward through the night
Onward through the night
Onward through the night of my life" i.e. night = death

I've read that someone had it played at their wedding so all we need is a Christening and we'll have the full set :-)