The 'Talk' album was predominately South African musician Trevor Rabin who did the writing and production before other members joined in and Jon Anderson came in on the vocals. It's noted for being amongst the first albums to be digitally recorded and edited in its entirety without using traditional audio tape. 

Track two is 'I Am Waiting' below:

The album fell short of commercial expectations upon it's release "It was probably one of the best albums they have ever done ... but of course it was totally at the wrong time." Said long time Yes associate Phil Carson. 

[This is another Jon Anderson production video] 

   

In the summer of 1972 Yes were in the studio composing and recording their soon to be released album 'Close To The Edge'. Over the years since this LP has topped many polls as the Best Prog-Rock album of all time. 

In June of 2015, before the dawn of my music blog, long time Yes bassist Chris Squire sadly died from leukemia, aged 67.  

All this signals the timing of 'My YES Week'. So welcome to 'Close to the Yes'. 

Beginning naturally with a Chris Squire composition from the 1977 'Going For The One' LP. An often-overlooked contributor to Yes’ lyrics, on “Parallels” it's clear that some of the best vocals the band recorded were when Jon Anderson and Chris Squire sang a song as a duet. 

Plus it's one of those classic Yes tracks that starts with the guitar solo (by Steve Howe). And ends with another solo. An all time favourite track of mine, there's even a great story about the recording:

In addition to recording in Switzerland at Mountain Studios, the organ on "Parallels" and "Awaken" were played on the church organ at St. Martin's church in the town of Vevey, some four miles away. The band thought of hiring a mobile recording studio to record on location, but they were advised to rent a telephone line for the day as the quality of the country's lines are of high fidelity and can be fed through directly to the studio in Montreux. With Rick Wakeman in the church and the rest of the band in the studio, Alan White counted the band in and they played the song through. Wakeman described the experience as "absolute magic". 

Some YouTuber has 'mashed' all this together in a video. Not the best pictures but the music is just fantastic. 'Parallels' by Yes 

With many band line-up changes down the years and the various versions of YES, it begs the question 'When is Yes not quite Yes ?

> Coming Soon .... [meaning next week]

 

  

As we relocate over the coming weeks I may need to take a break from the Music Spot for obvious reasons. Be back soon !

Leaving our flat in London got me thinking about the early days there and listening to Margaret's smooth jazz CDs, most of which were all new to me. Earl Klugh, Mindi Abair and Marc Antoine. 

I've picked this track for no other reason than the video: 'Live' from London at Pizza Express Jazz Club, October 2009 - this Marc Antoine track is called 'Latin Quarter'. 😀 

 

An alternative (and occasional) music posting highlighting something out of the ordinary. Perhaps of limited appeal, unconventional, experimental or just far-out ! Call it what you like (or switch it off, if you don't like). 

This is maybe a bit like Marmite !  

Some might say "I totally hate it when somebody takes a classic and desecrates it". While others feel it takes the essence of the original and creates something brand new. 

This is certainly 'Culture Clash' [1966 Counter Culture meets 1998 Hip Hop]. Public Enemy 'He Got Game' featuring Stephen Stills - music that is straight to the point with a message. It was released as the soundtrack to Spike Lee's 1998 film and basketball drama of the same name.

Said to be one of the most respected hip hop songs of all time. I really like it. You judge for yourself ...

> Sampling Buffalo Springfield's 'For What It's Worth'  © 1966

  

Kim, my daughter, told me one of her old favourite bands has a new album out. Called 'Crisis of Faith' - she was saying I should listen to the track 'Hanging Out With All The Wrong People' - not sure that's a good idea 😁[he laughs] - however the track that follows this on the record is 'End of Me'. I really liked this track and the macabre video - somehow the madness struck a note, as in sometimes it feels like everything is 'up in the air' > 

This is Canadian band Billy Talent >  

  

   

How's this for a fun story I recently read: 

The headline was "The Hacienda rises again: The Manchester nightclub raves on after 40 years" - Hundreds of middle-aged ravers attempted to recapture the glory days of the Hacienda at a 40th anniversary party on Saturday - in the car park of the flats that now stand on the site. The venue opened in 1982, and within five years had became the spiritual home of the acid house movement and the ecstasy-fuelled epicentre of British youth culture. Around 1,000 clubbers relived the Hacienda's halcyon days on Saturday, with old-school ravers joined by younger clubbers who were not alive when it shut in 1997. It couldn't be exactly like old times, though. The former yacht warehouse that housed the Hacienda was demolished in 2002, and the Hacienda Apartments built in its place.
So Saturday's event was staged in the block's underground car park, with its concrete pillars painted in the club's trademark yellow and black diagonal stripes.

Echoes very much the lyrics to the Kinks 'Come Dancing' - "They put a parking lot on a piece of land…." > full lyrics here.   

The Hacienda Club - opened in 1982 with the band New Order performing. 

Moving on from that time and their 'Temptation' and 'Blue Monday' tracks to 1987 and their 'True Faith' - a song about addition that those old-school ravers would relate to, but I've chosen for no better reason than I like this very Silly Video:

(The opening puts me in mind of the 'Fish Slapping Dance' from Monty Python > see this clip link  and for the curious the music is: 'Merrymakers Dance' by Edward German). Fun and Silly   

   

I first came across Evángelos Odysséas Papathanassiou - better known as Vangelis in 1975 with the release of his solo album 'Heaven and Hell' on RCA records, partly because I worked on the press ad. and we had a copy of the LP in the studio.

In fact I'd actually heard him before that, playing with Greek band Aphrodite's Child along side Demis Roussos in the late sixties on a hit single called 'Rain and Tears'.

Described as a "one-man quasi-classical orchestra" in most tributes to him there's mention of his film scores especially 'Chariots of Fire' and 'Blade Runner' without to much said of his various collaborations with Jon Anderson from Yes. 

Indeed Vangelis often seemed resentful that 'Chariots of Fire' risked overshadowing much of the rest of his prolific output of solo albums, ballet scores, a choral symphony as well as soundtracks for many other movies. 

Recorded and released in the same year as that Oscar winning soundtrack for 'Chariots' and on the 'The Friends of Mr. Cairo' LP was the Jon and Vangelis single 'I'll Find My Way Home' > 

My first awareness of his music came with 'Heaven and Hell' as side one closed with 'So Long Ago, So Clear' > click here, if you please. 

Vangelis sadly died last week in Paris. 

   

I was introduced to Lucinda Williams some months ago via a Robert Plant BBC Playlist.

The track I heard was 'Sweet Old World' a 2017 version of her previous 1992 release, part of a full-length reconsideration of her earlier work, Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Lucinda Williams re-recording her 1992 album 'This Sweet Old World'.

Why do this ? Well for starters her voice has changed considerably, it's got more gravely, almost slurring her vowels and a big change from the smooth polish of the original versions. It now has a less clean feel and many tracks are longer. 

Her husband and manager Tom Overby suggested that she re-visit the album. She re-recorded the album in 10 days with her touring and studio band: guitarist Stuart Mathis, bassist David Sutton and drummer Butch Norton and longtime friend and collaborator, legendary steel-guitar player Greg Leisz. 

Opening the record is a track called “Six Blocks Away” about a painful longing for something that, as Tom Petty once put it, is “so close and still so far out of reach.”

“That one really, I was like, ‘Wow, this is a surprise' ” says Williams of the ambling rocker, reinvigorated with a chiming, jangly Rickenbacker guitar line that evokes everyone from Petty to the Byrds to R.E.M. 

I love it ! 'Six Blocks Away' -

Check out other tracks if you wish: 'Pineola', 'Prove My Love', 'Hot Blood' & 'Sweet Old World'. From rockers to ballads - here's the link you'll need. 

 

  

At the end of my 'Rickenbacker Special' a month ago I suggested that was it "...for the time being, anyway". Naturally I had others up my sleeve and having mentioned The Hollies in my introduction >>>

I was recently "riding along in my automobile, my baby beside me at the wheel" when I thought I saw a poster advertising none other than The Hollies on Tour. Sure enough at the end of this month the band are embarking on a 60th Anniversary Tour. And the current line-up contains two original members: drummer Bobby Elliot and guitarist Tony Hicks.

I came across an interesting fact in relation to the band's sound and Tony Hicks playing a British made 12-string that sounded like a Rickenbacker: (see ad below).

Today's video has him playing the Vox Phantom in a performance from 1965 at the London Palladium - complete with that revolving stage. The Hollies 'Look Through Any Window' >

 

+ More pure nostalgia in this clip > www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6ObNLnXs5I 

See a 23 year old Graham Nash providing some background to the recording of 'Look Through Any Window' followed by an acoustic run through of the song plus some 'dodgy dancing' ! 

   

There's this song that has been playing in my head lately. And every time the news comes on, it's there once more. As the songs composer says when she introduces it "there's some songs you wish didn't keep making sense ".

Written nearly 60 years ago by Buffy Sainte Marie, sadly the relevance is still obvious. 

Donovan covered this song in 1965 and I was struck by it at the time and it remains so to this day. 

'Universal Soldier' - this not the way we put the end to war !