Relayer
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| Relayer | |||||
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| Studio album by Yes | |||||
| Released | December 13, 1974 | ||||
| Recorded | August-October 1974 | ||||
| Genre | Progressive rock | ||||
| Length | 40:31 | ||||
| Label | Atlantic Records | ||||
| Producer | Yes and Eddie Offord | ||||
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Relayer is the seventh studio album by the progressive rock band Yes. Recorded and released in 1974, it is the only Yes studio album to feature Patrick Moraz, who replaced keyboardist Rick Wakeman earlier in the year.
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[edit] History
After the ambitious double-concept album Tales from Topographic Oceans, Rick Wakeman left Yes to resume his solo career. The band auditioned several prospective replacements, the closest contender being the Greek keyboardist Vangelis. He did not become a member of Yes, but these auditions paved the way for several future collaborations between Vangelis and Jon Anderson. The band finally chose Swiss-born Patrick Moraz as a replacement while this album was well into production. The album title comes from the lyrics of "The Remembering (High The Memory)" from Tales from Topographic Oceans.
Relayer has the same song format as 1972's Close to the Edge—a long epic on the first side, and two nine-minute pieces on the second—but employs a radically different musical style. "The Gates of Delirium" is a dense, 22-minute piece that was inspired by Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace. It features lengthy improvisations by each member of the band, sometimes clashing intentionally with one another. Featuring lyrics about the futility of war, it remains one of the most musically aggressive songs ever produced by the band. The final section, in which the aggression of the previous 16 minutes is suddenly replaced by a gentle melody and a lyrical prayer for peace, was released as a U.S. single under the title "Soon" in early 1975. "Sound Chaser" is a jazzy, mostly instrumental piece that echoes King Crimson. "To Be Over" is the gentlest piece on the album, and features complex, melodic arrangements of guitar and electric sitar.
Relayer features artwork by Roger Dean. The CD release features two additional paintings by Dean.
The critical reaction to Relayer, coming after a predecessor that many felt went over the breaking point, was mixed. However, it was still a commercial success with many observers later considering it vastly underrated.[1] No doubt, many were surprised at the sudden departure in terms of sound which Yes had made on this disc. The atmosphere and sonic quality are very different from Close To The Edge or most of Tales From Topographic Oceans (the one track there which could be said to point towards Relayer is The Ancient with its free-form, spinning rhythms, arabic-tinged percussion and its frantic, dramatic guitar work.) The vocals on Relayer are more dramatic, emotionally charged with aggression and even spiteful hostility. And the guitar has stepped up to the front (in consequence of Wakeman's sudden departure) and shows a new hard edge ("Gates of Delirium" is "all Telecaster" according to Howe (The Steve Howe Guitar Collection, 1994, p.43); before he had generally and famously used Gibson); on "To Be Over" and the last parts of "Gates of Delirium" a pedal steel guitar is used (Steve Howe G.C. p.47). Squire's bass lines and White's drumming throughout the album are of amazing dynamic range and complexity. Bill Martin (in his book The Music of Yes) recalls how, as a teenager, he saw the band performing live in Atlanta in late 1974. As they opened with "Sound Chaser," then still-unreleased and very unlike anything they had previously recorded, Martin's first thought was that the band had gone crazy.[2]
Relayer was remastered and reissued on Rhino Records in 2003 with three bonus tracks, including a complete studio run-through of Gates of Delirium with partly different or improvised lyrics. It is interesting to note that while much of the keyboards are not yet present and some of the structure of the song is different, the complex rhythm track for the "battle" section has the same layout as in the finished version.
 Happy Birthday by Roger Dean. Featured inside the CD booklet. |
 Other painting by Roger Dean in the CD booklet. |
[edit] Recording
Recorded at Chris Squire's home in Virginia Water, Surrey, UK, August-October 1974. Mixed at Advision Studios, London, autumn 1974 (some overdubs probably done at Advision). Produced by Yes and Eddie Offord. Recording/mixing engineer (apart from Offord): unknown.
The recording made use of synths and percussive sounds not found on any other Yes album. Patrick Moraz got equipment (from its developers) which was still in prototype stage and which coloured the sound effects on the instrumental/collage section of Gates of Delirium, for example the whooping and wheezing sounds ("electric slinky") suggestive of wraiths or people being torched alive about midway through the track, and Jon Anderson recalls (in the 2003 CD booklet) how he and Alan White would stop by a trashed-car park/replacement shop on the way to Squire's house and buy discarded metal parts (brakes, clutches etc) which were to be used as percussion. This contributes to the dense, concrete music-like sound of Gates. The album also probably has more tape and echo effects than just about any other Yes recording.
[edit] Track listing
All songs written by Jon Anderson, Chris Squire, Steve Howe, Alan White and Patrick Moraz.
[edit] Side one
- "The Gates of Delirium" – 21:50
[edit] Side two
- "Sound Chaser" – 9:26
- "To Be Over" – 9:06
[edit] Bonus tracks (2003 re-issue)
- "Soon (Single version)" – 4:18
- "Sound Chaser (Single version)" – 3:13
- "The Gates of Delirium (Studio run through)" – 21:16
[edit] Personnel
- Jon Anderson - vocals
- Chris Squire - bass and vocals
- Steve Howe - guitar and vocals
- Patrick Moraz - keyboards
- Alan White - drums
[edit] Sources
[edit] Charts
Album
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1975 | Billboard Pop Albums | 5 |
| 1975 | Norway's album chart | 18 |
[edit] Reissues
1988 - Atlantic - CD
1994 - Atlantic - CD (Remastered )
1998 - JPN limited edition (LP-style sleeve)
2003 - Rhino - CD (Remastered with Bonus Tracks )
[edit] External links
In-depth critique of each track (2003 release)
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