What is your rating of The Word is Live?

[BrianD]

well - youhave had itlong enough to rate it - what do you think of this live compilation?

[allpurechance]

Marvellous!

Steve Howe playing Astral Traveller...Rick Wakeman concluding Gates Of Delirium from The Big Medley...

A live Shoot High,Aim Low...

Chris' remarkable It's Love...

Disc 1 is a magnificent document of the early band,culminating in something I have always wished to hear...THE The Yes Album band...

Disc 2 is vintage stuff,the Tormato material is really,really fine.The Sweet Dreams w/Patrick Moraz(I have come to love this song so much more than ever,since Tsongas,this release and last year's tour)is amazing...

And,that Sound Chaser!No words I can summon do it justice.I also really like the spacy Apocalypse which commences the festivities,here...

Disc 3 proves irrevocably that the 90125/Big Generator era band was every bit the force it's predecessors were.Rhythm of Love live is so much finer a song than it's studio version.

Great performances everywhere all over this collection,the 21st Century equivalent to Yessongs,except with several eras represented.

Most happy with the drummers,myself.Bruford and White,just simply masterful throughout.

[allpurechance]

And,uh Brian!?Not sure the poll is working correctly...it surely didn't register my vote accurately...

(could be me,though!lol)

[gitsy]

I gave 7 a mixed bag but some wonderful gems.

[BrianD]

And,uh Brian!?Not sure the poll is working correctly...it surely didn't register my vote accurately...

(could be me,though!lol)

What did you vote Frank?

[allpurechance]

What did you vote Frank?

Weeeelllllll,thought I had given it a '9',but...see now that this was not the case...woulda given it a '10'!...but,that option wasn't available...

Probably was me,Brian - LOL! -

None too sharp this a.m.(or ever,at all for that matter...!)

[Albedo]

I'm getting it for Christmas *sign* so I have to wait. But I expect to give it a 10.

[Store Hadji]

I gave this one an 8.

The performances are (mostly) awesome, with a few great surprises (like Chris's wonderful solo on 'It's Love.')

The sound quality is not very hi-fi. I was disappointed. It should have been billed as 'archival' or 'historical' recordings - especially the ones from the Drama tour.

I was not blown away by the Big Generator tour stuff - that line-up rarely impressed me live, They sounded great on the 9012Live video, but less good in this collection.

I dunno. I'd say go for any other live set before this one, starting with Yessongs and Keys to Ascension.

But as one who buys every Yes (and related) album he sees, I'm happy to own this and enjoy listening to it.

Actually, a lot of our weeds sound better than these recordings do. Odd, that.

[neilius]

I gave it a 7.

Some great rarities and perfomances(as ever) from the Maestro's. Nice album design and booklet. Just a little expensive i thought, but these box set type formats always are expensive.

I would wager that there is a lot more material in the archives that havent seen the light of day, for example, the album that Rick Wakeman and Jon Anderson recorded together in 1990 that was never released(as far as i know).

Worth the money imho.

[Store Hadji]

Was that the ABWH 2 album?

At least I thought it was ABWH. Steve appears on some of those tracks as well (if you speak of the same ones I'm thinking of.)

I agree they should be released. Everything!

[Roan's Lady]

Disc One is among the best of Yes I have ever heard. Tony Kaye blows me away - the most underrated player in Yes in fine, fine form.

[True Believer]

I love it but gave it a 7 cos there's nothing from Tales there ...

Mind you, Shoot High, Aim Low deserves a 10 on its own.

[Timmo]

I gave it an 8...which may seem low, except that Yessongs gets a 10, and it ain't no Yessongs.

Nor should it be. Yessongs documented a single tour, this set documents a career.

Although uneven, I think there's something in it for everyone...and since it's supposed to be an inclusive retrospective, I think it succeeded on that front.

[relayeire]

8... there's very little on it that I didn't already have, though It's Love was new to me... they need to cover the different band eras better (including Banks) or have a second edition (I polled this a while back)

[Store Hadji]

Actually, my biggest gripe has been the sound quality.

I just listened to Yessongs and then put this on.

It sounds just as good as Yessongs, and Yesshows for that matter.

I've been so spoiled by the live recordings the last ten years that, well, my gripes are out of place - I mean, on those grounds, I may as well gripe about Yessongs.

Can I change my vote to a 9?

-1 for the audio quality on the 80s stuff.

Fabulous performances all around.

Next time I have too much free time, I'll listen to Something's Coming, followed by Disc 1 of this set, followed by Yessongs, then Yesshows, then discs 2 and 3 of this set (stopping to watch 9012Live after the 1980 tracks,) then the live 80s tracks from Yesyears, and , good lord, this could take awhile if I want to get into KTA after that.

[Store Hadji]

I should make an audio CD of my VHS tape of 9012Live - and insert within it The Solos, at points which seem appropriate.

And I should listen to ABWH Live before KTA.

Oh, way too many live recordings. My brain just overloaded. Please give us even more!

[BrianD]

I gave it an 8...which may seem low, except that Yessongs gets a 10, and it ain't no Yessongs.

Nor should it be. Yessongs documented a single tour, this set documents a career.

Although uneven, I think there's something in it for everyone...and since it's supposed to be an inclusive retrospective, I think it succeeded on that front.


Being a bit of an historian, just have to correct Timmo on one point - Yessongs actually covered two tours - Fragile & CTTE - thats how the Bruford tracks got on there.

[Store Hadji]

Forgive me for wandering off topic.........

I just copied my 9012Live VHS to my computer and my audio cassette of 9012Live The Solos and found the original setlists for the Edmonton and Dortmund shows online. I couldn't come up with a complete playlist from those two tapes, so I added a couple tracks from Yesyears.

Here's the set list I put together:

Cinema
Leave It
Hold On
Your Move/All Good People
Si
Solly's Beard
Changes
And You and I
Soon
Make It Easy
Owner of a Lonely Heart
It Can Happen
Amazing Grace
Whitefish
City of Love
Starship Trooper
Heart of the Sunrise

I only had to use a couple fade in/outs. For most of the edits, I just spliced the audience roar from one track straight on to the next, which works pretty well, and then burned it to 2 discs using no gap between the songs.

What surprised me is how well the set works - I liked 9012Live the video, but never ever cared for The Solos - they just don't work on their own. But once back in their original places in the set list, my god, they sound fantastic! And the show as a whole is much richer because of them. And splicing in the two tracks from the Big Generator tour works great too - it's not the big change in sound I thought it would be.

Hey! Anybody with a few free hours to kill, try putting this set together - you'll be pleasantly surprised.

[Faceintheplace]

I liked the Crystal Palace material at the end of disc one the most. This release wound up being like The Doors' Boot Yer Butt bootleg box. I wish they had added a fourth disc and maybe had put on one of the Tales BBC session tracks or something from MSG '74 and material from the Going for the One tour. I do appreciate that the Drama non album songs are on this but the whole thing left me wanting alot more.

[CybrKhatru]

I gave it a *10*...more for its actual existence than anything else. Beat the bootleggers indeed!

But, I do love it...I hope it sells well enough to justify more archival releases!

Matt

[ToBeOver]

I gave it a solid 8, bordering on a 9... It's Love is sublime.

:keyboard:

[BrianD]

On January 7 2006 after 33 votes The Word is Live rates 7.64

[illusion]

I never even knew this existed!!!!

[Jackaranda]

I give it a 7.

[allen toth]

I gave it an 8, although I don't understand why "To be Over" was not included, (as well as side 2, or 3 from Tales). The Drama stuff was nice, but who doesn't have that Show already?

[BrianD]

On July 1 2008 after 38 votes, average 7.74

[RobAdams]

I still can't deal with the snap crackle pop of the Drama material. Other than that, it's great. Especially the first disc with Tony & Bill, and the "Big Medley" on disc 2. This set really needed "OTSWOF" and "To Be Over".

[Steve Mahoney]

I gave it a 7.
I was a little disappointed with some of the song choices to be honest,the lack of Tales but also,I just felt it needed something more.I could never put my finger on it.
I did feel how it was packaged was stunning,as was Rogers artwork.

[90125yes]

could be so much better

no wembley 78

no union material

sound quality could be better


5/10