Yes - Close to the Edge (1972)

Dan:

Close to the Edge is unquestionably one of the greatest rock albums ever made, and a perfect example of progressive rock in its earliest form. It adopts the long suite as its basic mode, draws inspiration from literary and philosophical sources, particularly Herman Hesse's Siddhartha, and rocks like crazy. Like many prog bands of the time, Yes wrote songs about personal search and discovery, as well as inner peace and enlightenment. 

I've always felt that Jon Anderson's voice is perfectly matched to songs about search and discovery. He projects a sense of purity and innocence that gives meaning even to the most opaque lyrics. It's hard to imagine anyone else singing them.

The album's program should be familiar to anyone bothering with this blog. "Close to the Edge" comprises all of side 1 and has four distinct parts. I love Rick Wakeman's cathedral organ on (iii) "I Get Up I Get Down," as well as Anderson's plaintive vocal on (iv) "Seasons of Man." Side 2 has another suite ("And You and I") and the shorter "Siberian Khatru." I've always been a bit puzzled about "Khatru." Apparently, Wakeman, Anderson, and guitarist Steve Howe wrote the lyrics but it's hard to figure out what they mean. Perhaps I should follow Steve (my son, not Steve Howe) in simply listening to the sounds of the voices rather than interpreting them. That should work pretty well because I know I like Yes songs whether I can figure them out or not. I particularly like the way the words overlap as refrains in various parts of "Siberian Khatru."

Close to the Edge and The Yes Album are two of the most original works in all of rock history. Despite their lofty ambitions and mysterious resources, they're most enjoyable to hear. Yes peaked with these albums; nowhere else in their recorded output will you find the same level of excellence on display. That's not a true critique of their other works but rather a tribute to two of rock's best.

Steve:

Spot on, Dad. This album is definitely a pinnacle not just of progressive rock but of music in general. I'm always reminded of something one of the band members said about the process of making this album (can't recall who or where, sorry) - that the band really didn't know what they were doing as they were making it. That is a rather self-effacing way of saying that they were quite literally inventing a new kind of music, and although they didn't know exactly what the end result would be, they trusted each other, trusted their ears, and worked tirelessly to make it just right.  There is a clear line of development from earlier multi-part suites like "Starship Trooper" to the more unusual structures of "Heart of the Sunrise" from Fragile, forward to the artistic zenith of "Close to the Edge" and "And You and I". These latter tracks improve on the impressive compositional economy of the earlier tracks while adding panoramic layers of sonic detail that seem intended to conjure nothing less than Heaven itself. Tell the Moondog, tell the March Hare.

"Siberian Khatru" is no less impressive. Yes reaches that same transcendental spiritual breakthrough with the building section where they sing "Outboard / River / Bluetail / Tail Fly / Luther /In time..." and so on. As Dan hinted above, I don't search for or find any real meaning in lyrics like these, but when I hear them in this vocal and instrumental arrangement, they sound like the Ultimate Truth.