Classic Album Review - Mirror to the Sky Track by Track

[cesar44]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ss8daLQ7cv8

[Gilly Goodness]

Barry does good. Cheeky to wear a Genesis t-shirt?

Rates CftS, AC, MttS. Not so much L. LotD. UP. CoT. OSiE.MP.




SNOWFLOWER ELDER SAY TIMELESS NIGHT

[soundchaser09]

a 10 for Cut from the Stars?? A 10?

I like the track a lot, but a 10?

[cesar44]

Apparently Mirror to the Sky will unanimously settle as the best track. Apart from it, Unknow Place is the one that is getting the most positive comments among the unreleased ones.

[Ceasar’s Palace]

a 10 for Cut from the Stars?? A 10?

I like the track a lot, but a 10?

And 9 for All Connected… Then those 3s must be bad beyond belief… I’m going to forget this review.
Or try to…

[Enlighten]

And 9 for All Connected… Then those 3s must be bad beyond belief… I’m going to forget this review.
Or try to…

Yup, if All Connected is a 9, it might be another snoozer. I like Cut from the Stars but it’s not a 10. And I wish people would stop using phrases like “extraordinary musical prowess” when they refer to this current version of Yes.

[michelle johnston]

An interesting review because it dances around this issue of faithfulness to the legacy both in terms of style and quality. Throughout out there is an implicit comparison. The other seventies band is part of the conversation.

As artists does that translate into we are going to do something fresh and new and disregard the past or are we going to have that other music in the rear view mirror when we create.

My sense is Davison, Sherwood and Schellen (who is a White like drummer as opposed to a Bruford like one) are trying to be themselves. In Billy's case thats very clear, we have a bunch of his own music to compare his compositional input to this project. All Connected has lots of his solo work in the rear view mirror. He is not aping Chris its just harmony and bass have the same function.

The complication is Steve wrote the seventies and now, and it maybe no coincidence he wrote the title track, Davison the lyrics, which everyone feels adheres best of all as a piece of music and a Yes piece of music.

I did not with the Quest and will not with this new album view them in the context of Yes music from the 70's but Steve and Billy's own work and Davison as an emerging artist. Steve can be variable as a solo artist Billy repetitive and Davison does not work for me in his own right (singing classic yes was fine).

From both Henry's review and this one there is a lot of symmetry if a different calibration of worthiness.

For those people who feel Yes is certain people its obviously over, then we move on to whether this new band does it for us (given Geoff is awol that feeling of it being a new band is strengthened).

Lyrics Jon and Billy seem to have this Kool Aid latter day Anderson feel rather than early Anderson asking questions offering sign posts. I am not intrigued by the words sung more amused. I think as I have got older Trevor Horns humanist lyrics suit me better.

Whether a group of musicians playing Yes music from the seventies live "works" has been an argument since 2004. We now have Jon working with the Geeks.

The question on new music is more straight forward is it any good whatever is on the label.

Put simply I am not dancing around the legacy issue with these albums I am just trying to decide whether I like it and want to keep on listening to it for many years. The Quest, no, maybe the title track on this one ,Yes, based on these two reviews.

[yamishogun]

He says MttS is a very, very good album:

Cut to the Stars 10/10
All Connected 8.5/10
Luminosity 5/10
Living Out Their Dream 6/10
Mirror to the Sky 10/10
Circle of Time 3/10

Unknown Place 7.5/10
One Second is Enough 3/10
Magic Potion 3/10

[Mr. Holland]

He says MttS is a very, very good album:

Cut to the Stars 10/10
All Connected 8.5/10
Luminosity 5/10
Mirror to the Sky 10/10
Circle of Time 3/10

Unknown Place 7.5/10
One Second is Enough 3/10
Magic Potion 3/10

Living Out Their Dream?

[Frumious B]

You give out tens like that, you lose credibility. To me a song worthy of a ten is “Close To The Edge”, “God Only Knows”, “A Day In The Life” etc.. There is no way “Cut From The Stars” belongs in that company. It ain’t bad, but it’s no classic.

[bondegezou]

You give out tens like that, you lose credibility. To me a song worthy of a ten is “Close To The Edge”, “God Only Knows”, “A Day In The Life” etc.

But then you are only very occasionally using 10s.

[Frumious B]

But then you are only very occasionally using 10s.

If ten is the highest possible rating then tens should be rare and reserved for the absolute best of the best. How can two songs both be a ten, but you think one is better than the other?

[yamishogun]

Living Out Their Dream?

6/10 I just added it to the list

[bondegezou]

If ten is the highest possible rating then tens should be rare and reserved for the absolute best of the best. How can two songs both be a ten, but you think one is better than the other?

How can two songs both be a seven, but you think one is better than the other? There are 11 scores out of 10 (0-10). There are tens of thousands of songs. There are always going to be hundreds of songs, at least, with the same score.

I don't understand Barry's scoring system and nor did I pay that much attention to his numbers, but I don't see an inherent problem with a scoring system where more than a tiny handful get the maximum score.

[Ceasar’s Palace]

Could it be he means 10 as the best song on the album?
So he doesn’t compare it with songs from other albums. It’s the only way I can make sense of it.