Union

Artist: Yes
Label: Bmg Int'l
Category: Music

Average customer rating:

Format: Import
Media: Audio CD
Number Of Discs: 1
EAN: 4007192615582
ASIN: B00000766J

Release Date: 1991-04-25

Union

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Tracks:

I Would Have Waited Forever
Shock to the System
Masquerade
Lift Me Up
Without Hope You Cannot Start the Day
Saving My Heart
Miracle of Life
Silent Talking
More We Live/Let Go
Angkor Wat
Dangerous (Look in the Light of What You're Searching For)
Holding On
Evensong
Take the Water to the Mountain
Give & Take [*]

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Customer Reviews:

It Works.......2006-08-13

A lot of people hate this album, pretty much because they pay attention to the managerial and behind the scenes politics that gave birth to it.

I must admit, though, that it is one of the Yes CDs that I listen the most.

Of course I believe that some stuff should not have been included. For instance, I do not share the enthusiasm with "Miracle of Life", since I believe it to be a great musical "intro" followed by an 80's Maddona Christmas song.

But I bleed tears everytime I listen to "I Would Have Waited Forever", "Shock to the System" and "The More We Live--Let Go", three amazing pure Yes songs.

The sound in "Take the Water to the Mountain" is eerie and gives me goose bumps everytime.

"Silent Talking" is a hidden jem. Just sit down and listen to the complexity of this short exploration.

Maybe most Yes members "hate" this recording. Let them deal with that. They are wrong. This is a great collection. This is a great Yes collection.

Enjoy it.

Shock To The System!!!!.......2006-01-20

This one will surprise you and be a Shock To The System!!! This is one of my favorite albums from Yes. I have owned almost all of them at one time. The set opens with I Would Have Waited Forever...this is one of the best Yes songs ever. Lift Me Up is another good song. Songs like the More We Live/Let Go really make me think. This whole CD has the classic sounds of Yes with the pop appeal that many of the more recent fans of Yes enjoy. The price is a bit steep, but worth it!

Journey to Center of the World.......2006-01-03

Rick Wakeman calls this album "Onion". From his point of view it`s a kind of fake-Yes. 11 songs were composed by Anderson, Bruford, Wakeman, Howe and 4 songs by Rabin-Squire`s Yes. 2 albums by 2 different bands. I like Rick, but Do Not belive it! Sound producer Jonathan Elias made his work so perfectly, that album sonunds more authentic Yes than, say, "Tormato", "Open Your Eyes" or "Magnification".
By the way, it was the first album by Yes, that I ever heard back in 1991 and since that time I`m still charmed by this music. Feelings of that time - the end of the Cold War, hopes for peace and friendship between different nations and religions (yeah, between Russia and the USA) - are perfectlty reflected in the songs. It seems to me, that these songs contained a kind of good light energy:)
You would hear the best of 2 Yes line-ups: hits by Trevor Rabin (Lift Me Up) mixed with crystal clear philosophic production by Wakeman, Anderson, Howe. They recorded 2 hits: "I Would Have Waited Forever" and "Shock to the System" with hard rock sound, wonderful acoustic ballad by Howe "Masquerade", beautiful short song "Angkor Wat" in the style of "Tales from Topographic Oceans" with magical playing by Rick and with the reading of Cambodian poetry. Bonus track - "Give and Take" is a hit pop song.
The quality of sound recording is very high (work by Elias and Eddie Offord). In sessions participated Tony Levin and Steve Porcaro (Toto). Cover art by Roger Dean. Well, I need more of this Yes!!!

Curioso, curioso.......2004-08-17

Sí, es curioso. A la vista de las valoraciones globales, éste disco, en el momento en que hago esta reseña, tiene cuatro estrellas y media. Las mismas que Close to the Edge y que Relayer y más que Yes album, Tales o Drama. ¿De verdad alguien se cree que este Unión está a la altura de Close o Relayer?. Por favor. Entiendo que sea un disco que pueda tolerarse, que tenga algún que otro (pocos por cierto) buenos momentos, pero, de ahí a decir que es superior a Yes Album. Es casi obsceno hacer tal afirmación.
Unión es un disco que nació ya abortado. Fué un intento desesperado y apresurado de unir las dos facciones de Yes, la americana y la que representaban ABWH, pero en ningún momento se intuye la forma de grupo, es más una amalgama de canciones de ambos bandos, en un momento en el que la calidad no era precisamente el sello del grupo. Algún temita de Howe y poco más en un disco que pasa por ser el peor de Yes.

I Would Have Waited Forever.......2004-06-27

Music is such a personal thing to many of us, and we can be very critical of our favorite groups. In this case the CD cover states that the CD "features" the talents of eight members of yes. The reality is that not all eight members are very prominent and they do not all appear simultaneously. So the statement that the album "features" the talents of Jon Anderson, Bill Bruford, Steve Howe, Tony Kay, Trevor Rabin, Chris Squire, Rick Wakeman and Alan White is misleading because some of these artists make what I would consider guest appearances on this CD rather than being "featured." Okay, now that I have established the reason for all the criticism and have talked about it, let's talk about the music.

This music is the kind of complex, interesting music that Yes has been known for making. While I have a lot of Yes's music from many different eras, the consistency is bumpy and the amount of creativity varies substantially. However, when it all comes together the results are excellent.

This CD opens with two rockers, "I Would Have Waited Forever" and "Shock to the System," that have a flavor of the over-the-top music of "90125." The music is enthusiastic and up-beat and well harmonized. There may be a touch of bombast in these two songs, but these two songs are exceeded in the bombast department by the fourth track, "Lift Me Up," and the seventh track, "Miracle of Life." I enjoy all four of these songs with my favorite being "Lift Me Up," which is the most bombastic song on this CD.

"Masquerade," the third track, is a Steve Howe acoustic guitar solo that is beautiful, and it is too short. You may make an argument that Steve Howe could have developed the piece further, but at what point has a theme been exploited without being overlong? I suspect that given that the original CD was only 65 minutes long that had Steve wanted or needed more time he would have been given more time.

"Without Hope You Can Start the Day" also has some more wonderfully bombastic moments and is very enthusiastic and again reminds me of "90125." "Saving My Heart" is a bit more pop-flavored and is also a good song. The harmony is sumptuous and enthusiastic.

I enjoy the introduction to "Silent Talking." The keyboards provide a wonderful flavor that I wish had been explored in more depth. I think this is one of the tracks where Rick Wakeman shines, though I wish he would have been allowed to cut lose with the keyboards. Lyrically the song is not strong, but the words and their sounds were chosen to match the music.

The next two songs actually match each other in sequence well. "The More We Live - Let Go" and "Angkor Wat" have a similar flavor musically. Both songs are beautiful, the kind of music that Yes can make when they are being creative. While the former song does end prior to the start of the following song, the tempos and styles are so related that it sounds as though there was a natural transition from one to the next. A unique feature of "Angkor Wat" is the Cambodian poetry spoken by Pauline Cheng. This song is also heavily reminiscent of some of the more experimental music made in the very early days of Yes; a treasure.

"Dangerous" is an acceptable song. It is one of the most pure rockers on the album versus being full of bombast. However, while it is a good listen, for Yes the song is a bit of a throw-away. While there are some musically interesting elements, this song is not one of my favorites on this album. "Holding On" is another fast-paced song, and I like it, but it just seems to me to be less than inspired than many other songs on this CD.

"Evensong" feels as though it would have belonged better in company with "The More We Live" and "Angkor Wat," along with "Take the Water to the Mountain." These four songs could have formed the core of a separate Yes album altogether, one which would have been unique and had a theme all its own. What could have been, and what will never be. "Evensong" is a way too short instrumental that ends up being the introduction to "Take the Water to the Mountain."

"Take the Water to the Mountain" I really like, another of my favorite songs. The song begins slow and quiet, with simple lyrics. As the song progresses instruments are added, and the song slowly speeds up. Jon Anderson increases the volume and at two minutes into the song the tempo and vocals break out before finishing quietly, closing out the album.

Music Album:

Music Album

Music Album

Music CD

Midnight ~ Jeff Lorber

Donna Sings Dinah ~ Donna Drake

Gettin' Together! ~ Art Pepper

Opus de Bop ~ Stan Getz

Scattered: The Album ~ Sam Gunz

Patrick Fiori ~ Patrick Fiori

Roland Cazimero - Waikiki's Greatest Hits. NOW! ~ The Brothers Cazimero

Home Music with Spirits ~ Savoy-Doucet Cajun Band

Lohas Melodies ~ Various Artists

Se Ativa ~ Se Ativa