Tales From Topographic Oceans (Deluxe Version)

One of the ‘70s progressive rock band's most popular albums and also one of its most critically divided, Tales from Topographic Oceans represents everything that listeners either love or hate about the band's music. The songs are long and meandering, each taking up an LP side, featuring extended instrumental passages, complex harmonic arrangements, and lyrical concerns that require thought and contemplation. The band's serious intent juxtaposed against the celebratory mayhem of their arena-sized shows represented an unusual combination of rock ‘n' roll conventions. This re-master includes "The Revealing Science of God / Dance of the Dawn" with the restored introduction, as well as two additional studio run-throughs of "Dance of the Dawn" and "Giants Under the Sun." The outtakes are an interesting insight into this incredibly tight instrumental unit; the performances are looser, with the individual pieces more easily discerned. However, long-time fans will certainly be most excited by the increased fidelity of the new mixes that illustrate Steve Howe's guitar mastery, Chris Squire's melodic bass-guitar attack and keyboardist Rick Wakeman's flourishes and extra textures. No one else sounds like Yes.