Although Yes had already released two good albums at this point - this is truly where the greatness begins!!!!

About that album cover. It turns out it was taken like the day after the band had been in a traffic accident & they weren't all in the highest spirits after leaving the hospital. Notice Tony Kaye (sitting, middle) has a cast on his foot due to the accident. Also, they hadn't been a smashing success up to that point, though had some good reviews. It was The Yes Album that got everyone to take notice & the rest is history...

Ah...YESturday. As a young guitarist in 1971 this album completely changed my musical direction. Everything about the Yes Album was so new and brilliant. The fact that Yes released the Fragile album later that same year is unbelievable. Thank you, Lee. Love your reactions and happy to be a sub on this channel. God bless you, my friend.

My very first Yes Album, 1971, aged 15. Couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I promptly went out and bought the first two Albums. I was on my way. 🎶❤️🎶

Definitely a "Wake and Bake" masterpiece! 😉😁💯🔥💥👏

1971 - what a great time to be 13 years old. Hearing these classics reminds me of the older cousins and friends who turned me onto the music I still listen to today. Don't overlook the later Yes album The Ladder. :)

WAIT until you hear the ‘America’ cover. If you know the S&G version, which is beautiful, the Yes version is just, wild. Like everything Yes does. Fantastic. Over the top.

If you listen carefully you will hear "all we are saying is give Peace a chance" repeated several times during the your move section

Hey Lee! The Yes Album!! Banks was out, Howe was in. This is the album that YES brought to America for their first tour of the U.S. The album is a masterpiece and we loved it!! The tour was a success and YES were on their way to stardom! Your Move All Good People shows the direction the band would take going forward. YES were a prog band and the musicianship shines throughout the album. The album Fragile followed. Kaye out and Wakeman in. The rest is history!!! The greatest band on this or any other planet!!🪐🪐🪐🎵🎼🎶🔈🔉🔊👍😎

Their first album with the great Steve Howe! They still play the shorter version of this song on FM radio today! YES!!! The greatest band there ever was or will ever be!🤩

I’ll always remember seeing YES like in 1976, in Philadelphia, I was 16, great band

This and Roundabout, are my two favorite Yes songs.

Saw them in 73. Great concert with Rick Wakeman now.

🎉🎉🎉What a MASTERPIECE!!! My first introduction to Yes was hearing this song on the radio. Loved it and the philosophy of it. So, deep! Of course. "ROUNDABOUT " made me fall in love with the band. 🎉🎉🎉🎉

I love YES-Saturdays.

Hey Lee! Thanks for the reaction! You will enjoy America. The band really expands on the S&G original. Peace and Namaste’ to you my friend.

The album was given to me in 1971 when i was 18 .Still have it.

This is one that in concert Jon would always push the audience to get up and dance. I think Tony plays a Hammond B3 organ on this one, very iconic.

Yes was my first concert. 1973. They played on a circular moving stage. I was 13yo; my big sis took me. It was at the Ft. Worth Coliseum and was an amazing show. It was old people music to me but helped me to become not only a hard rock n roller and metal head but a lover of all great music.

May be my favorite Yes album. (Though Close to the Edge is pretty awesome too.) But as with other great prog bands, you must see the live stuff--and even later live stuff. That Symphonic Yes performance is legendary.

YES! The good days brother! You got that right 🔥🤘✌

The song "America" was not on the original vinyl version of "The Yes Album". I originally found it on "The New Age of Atlantic", which was a sampler/compilation album for artists on the Atlantic record label.

Just a pointer - "America" features Wakeman on keys, and wasn't originally on "The Yes Album." In fact, it was never originally on ANY Yes album until it appeared on the compilation album "Yesterdays." It was recorded for a multi-artist retrospective titled "Age of Atlantic," which spotlighted all the current bands on the Atlantic label.

Yes, Rick came in on next album. Kaye and Waksman actually both played the most iconic organ for roadies, the amazing Hammond B3. The super base notes you hear with the organ here, and in many other songs, is actually Chris playing a separate set of organ base peddles (played with his feet). At the front end of Awaken there is a section where Chris is playing one line on the base peddles, another riff on his base guitar, and some amazing backing vocals - that are a harmony and different from everything else that he is doing. What is unfathomable about yes is, there was so much talent, and so much ability and individual genius… but there is something about how they could fit it all together, highlighting each other, and supporting each other, while still allowing the SONG to be a statement. That’s, I think genius at another level. That said, Yes lineups came and went, creating different flavors for different times. But Yes without Chris…. Sadly, it is like putting the engine of a compact car in a muscle car. I’m a keyboard guy. I really enjoy and admire many bass players. Nobody will fully fill the void in Yes with Chris’ passing. We are all so fortunate that he left us so much. A genius among geniuses.

That iconic organ sound is from the meaty classic Hammond organ which was to keyboards what a Les Paul and Marshall stack was to electric guitar. The other ingredient was the 'Leslie', which was a cabinet containing s rotating speaker which worked beautifully with the Hammond organ and gave it that oscillating tonal depth. With that kind of sound, many thought that electric guitar might become secondary to the rockin potential of the new beast called The Hammond, and guys like Kieth Emerson and Jon Lord were the proof that keyboards could be just as hard assed as electric guitar.

The America cover is insanely rad.

I was lucky enough to see Yes in 1974. Stood fron row right in front of Steve Howe. Stunningly great musicians. Jon Anderson had maybe the most amazing voice I ever heard live. The clarity and pitch when he hit the high notes in the vocals was almost other-worldly. What an amazing band.

One of the most beautiful descriptions of a chess match!

I actually remember listening to this on a AM radio in my car the first time I heard it. Even through that crappy medium, I could tell it was a sonic masterpiece. Of course the radio was about as loud as it could be played (very typical) so the intro hit hard.

Didit didit didit didit didit didit didit didda All we are saying Didit didit didit didit didit didit didit didda Is give peace a chance Sorry, I'm a little late to the party. I was out for a walk when you premiered this live, L33 but I enjoyed it immensely. Happy Yesaturday! And I'm really looking forward to "America" next week! ☮

All we are saying is give Peace a chance....

What a classic... don't think anyone mentioned in the comments yet about the Give Peace A Chance quote. Figured you probably picked up on it with those new headphones but thought it worth mentioning just in case. Great start to my Saturday, Lee - thanks!

What a fun and thoughtful reaction. That was really enjoyable. And I hadn't really listened to that closely and so long but cranked it up in the headphones and as a musician just sunk back down into it and it's amazing. Of course. Bill bruford is one of my favorite drummers. I mean of course we always think of Neil Peart and Bonzo who by the way will always be at the top of the list for me I don't care. But there are so many, Stewart Copeland of the police it just goes on and on and on. Even from the older days Carmen Appice. And of course jazz and blues is a whole other universe including some fantastic drummers. But I love Bill Bruford. Check out a lot of his work with King Crimson but in particular the cut Indiscipline from the so-called Red Album, Discipline. It's a slow triplet 5 pattern which gives him tons of room to do all kinds of riffing and running all over it, including giving you the feel of a straight 2/4 pattern over it until suddenly concluding with crazy fills and smashing down back into the beginning of the slow triplet 5 pattern. It's so fun. And the song itself is hilarious, it all came about from fan mail sent to Adrian Belew that his wife read and passed along to him about a student that was obsessed with his art and wanting to show it to the world and get immediate recognition. It's a total banger.

This song is about Chess and love.

So I saw Yes on their Big Generator album tour, and we had heard that they were having trouble with their sound system on tour. But they made it to Milwaukee, and we're at the show, and everything is great for the whole concert, great show. They get to the last piece which was I've Seen All Good People... and they get to the end part, and the sound system dies... and so the crowd sang them off the stage. Epic memory. :) Rock on, Lee!

L33: Ive been eagerly waiting for this reaction and it's well worth it. Now I can eagerly await you hearing what Rick and Alan added to it on Yessongs (and how Chris's parts evolved). I know Jon's lyrics are sound chess strategy BUT I can't tell you how many times the line "Don't surround yourself with yourself" got me out of my head and steered me to reach out to others. America or Yessongs All Good People, either (or both?) would be awesome. Thanks for reliably letting the power fall.

You right bout album cover... their neutral attitude, no hype, posture is completely fascinating in green hue.

Yes usd to fancy themselves as a vocal band first and foremost. This really captures that attitude.

BTW Jon Will be playing at the Great South Bay Music Festival in Patchogue Long Island on July 21st!

Following okay(ish) sales of the (First) "Yes LP" and then "Time And A Word", there were strong rumours that if their Third album didn't do better (sales wise) They might be dropped by Atlantic. They went to a remote farm house / cottage in Devon in South England to work on this album and the rest as they say is history. I had an old battered nylon string guitar which I sold to a school friend so that I could afford to buy this (The Yes Album), they were magic times and it truly is such a delight to see you experience the same music & magic I did back in the day. Peace out! It would be amazing if you could do a couple of the tracks / songs from their"Magnification" album which they recorded with a Full Orchestra; then took it on Tour... A-Mazing. Peace Out! ❤

Are you ready for another long epic Lee! Give 'Mind Drive' or 'That, That Is' a reaction, you will be blown away by both!🤩

Long live YES saturdays🎉🎉🎉🎉, blessings to you and family, brother.

Purely epic, original, superb musicianship, genius writing=YES

I've got a suggestion: at some point, if you've listened to all the longer songs on The Yes Album, there are two shorter songs that you are absolutely going to want to hear: *A Venture* which was only about 3 minutes long & absolutely beautiful, & *The Clap* which was a Steve Howe live recording of him dazzling with an acoustic guitar, also excellent & delightful to listen to. The band knew they had someone special in Steve & this was their way of introducing him & his talents to YES fans. I suggest that you listen to them both in the same reaction video, because they are both rather short. You won't be disappointed...

So many talk about Chris Squire and his bass playing, but he was a great vocalist as well. I'm glad you hear it too.

Lee, "Yes" is Geddy Lee's favorite band. Geddy played with Yes at the Rock Roll Hall of Fame in 2017 the song "Roundabout" "You and I" my favorite Yes song. It's amazing. 🤘

Chris Squire had been to see Steve Howe's previous (unsigned) band. He said, "I'd never seen a guitarist play so many notes, and all of them were good!". That's why he ended up playing with Yes shortly afterwards.

“The YES Album” was their third album, but for me it was my first, and the one that made me a lifelong fan. I’m 68 and I’ve been a fan since the first time I heard Roundabout on the radio!! Pre 5/20/14 stroke this done was on my Karoake list. Pre stroke I had a Sinatra quality baritone. In the 07-09 years my daughter used to come hang while I sang, and she’d bring her girls along. Every time one of the girls would remark to her, “your dad’s really good”. I used to be able to sing any style music, rock, blues, jazz, show tunes, even some country. I’m not much of a country fan.

Don't surround yourself with yourself..... maybe the best lyric ever!!!

Steve Howe technically beyond most people’s capabilities 🤩

Nice tribute to John Lennon in this song. 'Send an Instant Karma to me' and 'Give Peace a Chance" They generously acknowledged their debt to the Beatles in their early albums.

Yes were founded on excellent vocals paired with excellent instrumental playing. It definitely all comes together here. This song became an instant crowd pleaser, and pretty much never left Yes' set lists ever. So for long time fans it's a sort of 'don't need to ever hear it again' thing. But it helped Yes immensely in the early days, especially with American crowds where they only had a 45 minute support slot or something. It got people at first singing along and then boogie-ing their rear ends off. And the live 'Yessongs' version blows the doors off.

I've seen yes four times. The first time was at Brown University in Providence RI. I was 17 and had no idea what to expect. They were amazing and the audience, 90% hippies. Was so cool,people were passing out joints.Everyone shared. John Anderson said, "it smells really good out there. Everyone loved them. The other times span throughout the 70s. When YES played in arenas they had a hot air balloon multi colored with YES on it as well. I'm sure there are pics of it online.

Gonna make me get up at 7 am on a Saturday? TWO of my favorites in one morning? Classic Yes AND early Doobies for breakfast? I'll be there bro. Gotta hear my Doobs. I can hear this one playing in my head already.

I bought this album as a kid. My introduction to YES. ❤ Happy day!! ❤

Hey Lee! Great reaction!! Definitely America next. The only way to do it properly is S&G version first followed by the live Keys to Ascension version by YES. I had several other reactors do it this way. Nobody was disappointed! Thanks!!!👍🎵🎼🎶🔈🔉🔊😎

BTW - America wasn't on the original Yes Album and I wasn't aware of an edition that has it. It originally came out on their compilation album, Yesterdays. It was also on later deluxe (recent) editions of Fragile.

My favorite Yes album. The first Yes album I purchased.

Hey brother, love Yes Saturday. The band that never turns up empty......wow. 🎼🎵🎶🎹🎸

This song was played on the underground radio station when I was in high school, and started my love affair with Yes. The karma reference was an homage to the Beatles, as well as the insertion of 'give peace a chance' in the background of the final chorus, if you listen carefully.

Keys to Ascension is a fantastic album. Live versions of "Siberian Khatru", "America", "Onward", The Revealing Science of God" and "Awaken". That's only the first side of the album.

Great album. Great opener with Yours is No Disgrace but the killer track is Starship Trooper with the amazing outro with Howe, Squire and Bruford in perfect unison.

I think one of Yes' most overlooked albums is "The Ladder". Outstanding!

I've been listening to this album since it first came out in 1971 I was 16 then 69 now sounds just as good now as then

Excellent. Enough said…

Happy saturday…nothing like a shot of yes for a little motivation…gonna be listening to some yessongs as I rake leaves in my yard today…👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

Yes! Let’s have a party! I’ll bring the weed! I’m rocking 3 Saints kush cookies, and it’s gooood

Yes's America is very bluesy as well. You'll see = it rocks!

"Don't surround yourself with yourself" ~

Love Kaye's keys on this.

Yes Saturdays Rule!!

I'm pretty sure it is a Hammond B3 Organ being played. They were tube (valve) based. They have a growl to them.

Amazing Yes! I still have this album. This band changed my musical life. They’re the ultimate musicians! Thank you! I’ve been truly enjoying watching you react to my favorite band … ever!! Much love ❤

I know I’m not the only one who feels this way when I say this is my favorite Yes album.

I commented before the end of this video, it’s interesting what you said about Jon’s pure voice, there was a time when he smoked heavily trying to roughen up his voice, Yes covered the Beatles and one song that is available is I’m Down, which always amazed he how he vocally pulled that off, it’s not what you’re used to, it’s rough, he is channeling Paul McCartney.

I was turned onto YES with this album in 1972. Starship Trooper was my favorite for years. I bought the albums as they came out after TYA, FRAGILE, CTTE, TFTO, RELAYER...MTTS.

It was a great Saturday night party song during high school!

You'll notice them singing the John Lennon. Song give piece a chance in the backgroundas fate would have it. The drummer on the original recording with the plastic ono band was Alan white, who later joined. Yes, as you well know.

did you know that robert downey jr covered 'your move', with jon on backing vocals? it's on the album 'the futurist' and available to listen to on YT. it shocked me to my socks to find this. and it's actually not horrible.

Absolutely one of Yes’ best numbers. Very good taste in sharing your reaction with us of this particular song. One of the sweetest Yes tours I ever saw (I’ve seen them several times) was the “Union” tour. Took two different Yes line-ups on the road together, and we got to hear a LOT of their catalog, played by the original performers. Believe they played this song for us. And very cool you picked up on this album’s line-up. I don’t think Yes ever released two albums back-to-back with the same line-up. Their boxed set had a diagram of where each album’s players came to Yes from, and where they went when they left the band. I think it was a 3-page fold-out.

Starship Trooper will make you groove.

Yet another brilliant album. Such memories.

Well, here's to your "hankering"! Great choice, and so many unbelievable songs in their catalog. I have seen them twice live, in the late 70s...always spell binding, and somewhat of a spiritual vibe, for most of us!

Mr K brought it on the keys. You are supposed to play Perpetual Change after this!

Yes! Great musicians obviously - and just thoroughly enjoying themselves, nearly as much as we enjoy listening to them, even after all this time. Thanks for the uploads L33 - keep safe my man!

Love this tune!

I remember hearing ‘Your Move’ on the school bus when the single was getting a lot of am radio play, even in El Paso, Texas. I was hooked; and on fm radio at night both parts were played. Different world, different time. Check their cover of Paul Simon’s ‘America’.

Heart of the Sunrise..my favorite

As some folk have offered about how to approach ‘America’, I thought I’d pitch in with a bit of history as well. The original Paul Simon song was released in 1968 on the Bookends album (which I bought soon after it came out). But the first public performance of song was at The Marquee in London, by a virtually unknown band. Simon had recorded the demo, and somehow the tape got unto the hands of that band. It wasn’t Yes, although Jon Anderson saw them play it, as they had a ‘residency’. They influenced most of the artists who saw them, including Kieth Emerson and David Bowie. Their version of America was innovative to say the least. You can hear both Tony Kaye and Emerson in the way the Hammond is played, especially the latter. And the opening really influenced the early Yes (pre-Wakeman) version. That band was called 1-2-3 Clouds, and a live recording at The Marquee appeared on their first album. And is on KZfaq. Well worth a listen. I think it’s worth hearing the Simon & Garfunkel version first, then review the studio version. After that, for own pleasure, look up the last live performance in 1971 with Tony Kaye (audio only). I think you will like it.

I think that it was this album that created the template for future Yes... Jon and his weird lyrics, Steve and his great and inventive guitar, Chris and his idiosyncratic and distinctive bass. the harmonies between Jon and Chris, even the keyboard grandiosity... and of course Bill on drums.... it's crazy that this is the third album from them and it was Steve's first with them...!! Keep on Rocking young sir.

Beautiful pair - "Your Move" is a very comforting or uplifting song with that driving guitar/drum rhythm, like walking along a path through a landscape, and their superb harmony singing! The lyrics are very human too, this is a song of compassion and about not letting yourself be caught up by greed or the lust to control others... I love the way he uses the chess imagery to illustrate relationships. And "All Good People" is such a driving, honky-tonk boogie track, fun and with great energy...wonderful electric guitar and drums. :) This double piece could easily have become a show-stopper, if it hadn't been because they went along to write even more powerful songs.

This is one a couple of " YES songs I have memory of hearing being played on the radio in the 70's. Born in 72, so 90125 was where they became anything to me as a group. Probably just a bit younger than you when I really got into them and their 70's catalog. I didn't realize you hadn't reacted on this one yet. When you can, go back to their first two earlier albums. Shorter Beatlesesque songs mostly. Covers mixed with original compositions. Their cover of Stephen Stills "Everydays" is so good. Bill's jazz drumming made the track. Some of my favorite early YES tunes would be "Harold Land," "Sweetness," "Survival," "Then," "The Prophet," & "Asteral Traveller." I'm partial to the origial Simon & Garfunkle, but their cover of "America" is a fun listen. Look forward to your reaction.

One of the first songs I’ve listened to and became a fan of!One of their top 4 or 5 albums!Wait till you react to America. It will flip your lid!

In Yes's version of 'America, Steve nails the consummate British boogie...it'll be a blast to see your reactions....

That organ sound is a Hammond B3. I suspect he was driving it through a Leslie cabinet. It was a great sound especially if you kicked on the rotating horns during a long sustained note. Dreamy. Those were the days boys.

So glad you got to this, Superb Yes track & album. Perhaps my top Yes track.

Sooo good at what they do!! Synthesizing something new out of familiar elements: classical, jazz, blues, country and rock stylings coalesce into their progressive future. Fantasting should be a word, a verb describing something just like this. 😊🤙🏼🎶❤️✨️🕊

I think more of a rockabilly song than blues

Thanks Lee! Excellent reaction! Can't wait for you to do America! (best Guitar solo EVER!) Bright Blessings, my friend~

Keep going Beyond and Before. It's worth it.