Album #127: Yes - Fragile

Yes

Fragile (1971)

Prog progenitors Yes have been a guilty pleasure for some time, ever since the music sharing service Audiogalaxy opened my ears to worlds of music that were previously inaccessible. To most people, Yes are the band who did Owner of a Lonely Heart in the 80s, although to the punk rockers of the 70s they were key players in the 'boring dinosaur' set. It's certainly true that Yes did themselves no favours by producing truly fucking wanky efforts (take, as Exhibit A, the bloated, full of itself Tales from Topographic Oceans, its four songs clocking in at an 84 minute running time. 21 minutes PER SONG.)

Yet for all the bloated prog wankery, earlier releases, such as 1971's Fragile, contain songs that are essentially elongated pop tunes and only have hints of the self-indulgent tripe that would plague some of their other 70s work. I haven't listened to the album for ages, and it seemed like a good time to get it back out and give it a spin.

The Album

Fragile's nine tracks consist of four full band efforts, and five tracks written and driven by each of the band members. Various interviews give a number of reasons for this - from a need to reduce studio time and costs, to desiring a chance for each member to put across their musical philosophy - whatever the reason, it does result in Fragile being a slightly disjointed album. The decision to space the four 'full band' tracks throughout the album at least means that there's always something decent around the corner; loading them all up at the start would have made the last five tracks essentially meaningless. There's also the fact that all five band members are virtuosos on their instruments, meaning technical wizardry abounds on the album.

Part of the album's success and appeal stems from the fact that the four 'full band' efforts are among Yes's finest releases. Roundabout is glorious, beginning with a delicate acoustic break from Steve Howe, before the song proper begins. Led by the thunderous dexterity of bassist Chris Squire (who surely is one of the most underrated bassists in rock), and the dual riffwork of Howe and keyboard maestro Rick Wakeman, the song's main section is both hooky and atmospheric; however the song's most interesting part comes in the mid-section, when drummer Bill Bruford gets his chance to shine letting his jazz background come to the fore. There's more solos from Wakeman and Howe, before the song closes with some great vocal harmonies and one more sweet acoustic break. South Side of The Sky is haunting, sparse and, as befitting the lyrics, evokes a wintry feel. Jon Anderson's soaring vocal, Howe's electric riffing and a beautiful piano solo from Wakeman are the standout moments.

Long Distance Runaround is a Yes pop tune at three and a half minutes - simple in composition with Howe and Squire playing a staccato riff (while Bruford plays an extremely unique drum part, moving through each four-bar measure using the snare to accent one extra beat in each bar, before leaving each fifth bar snare free - 1-2-3-4-1-2-3-4-1-2-3-4-1-2-3-4-1-2-3-4). Anderson chimes in with a trademark high vocal, supported by Squire's vocal harmonies. Heart of the Sunrise closes the album with a dynamic, shifting track, that alternates between a rapid-fire riff structure played by Howe, Squire, Wakeman and Bruford, and a quieter, soulful vocal section, highlighted by Anderson's quiet/loud/quiet/loud intensity shift and some gentle licks from Howe. It's a wonderful closer and a great example of the Yes sound.

Then we come to the five 'individual' tunes. Inconsistent is kind - substandard is probably more accurate. Sure, Howe's acoustic solo Mood For A Day is pleasant, while Anderson's multiple vocal looped track We Have Heaven nails the Tibetan mysticism vibe he was probably going for to perfection. Squire's bass solo The Fish (Schindleria Praematurus) is also pretty good considering pretty much all the 'guitar' work is played by Squire....on bass. That's undone by the fucking crap Cans and Brahms from Wakeman and the tuneless, rhythmless Five Per Cent Of Nothing. I'm sure they had their reasons (Wakeman allegedly wasn't allowed to contribute anything himself) but really, they add nothing whatsoever to the album.

The Verdict

Four magnificent tunes, three not so bad ones, two utterly shit ones - Fragile is a mixed bag that leans toward the good side of the ledger. What's more, it's quite accessible - probably, apart from The Yes Album, the band's most accessible 70s release (well, maybe Going For The One is up there also). 

Consequently it's probably worth tracking down for the four magnificent tunes only.

My rating: 7.4/10

Standout Tracks

Roundabout

Heart Of The Sunrise

Long Distance Runaround