S01E27 OLD-SCHOOL MUSIC REVIEWS :: Fave Album From Birth Year + Fave 80s Album

THE OLD-SCHOOL MUSIC REVIEWS PODCAST

S01E27: “Fave Album From Birth Year + Fave 80s Album" and More...

Running Time: 69 min 57 sec


LISTEN TO THIS EPISODE NOW

 

OR CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD IT

Contact The Show: To email us; click HERE

Original Music Contributed by:

Blooming Fire *Check Em’ Out and “Like” Them HERE*

Old-School Written Review - Yes :: Fragile

Atlantic Records, UK 1971 2401 019

Genre: Rock
Style: Prog Rock

Goddamnit this record is good. I mean like...chillingly good. Unfortunately for me I'm only 29 years old, and therefore did not have the pleasure of hearing this record during the time of its glorious manifestation in 1971.

The record starts off with "Roundabout", an epic 8.5 minute juggernaut of a tune that in my opinion cemented Yes as one of the true Gods of Rock & Roll. The 40-second acoustic guitar solo introduction to that song is probably my favorite song intro of all time. 

Fragile is also the band's head-first dive into their obsession with combining elements of classical music into their particular flavor of rock and roll. "Roundabout" leads us into "Cans and Brahms", where we get a proper introduction to their new keyboardist, Rick Wakemen, with his 1.5 minute adaptation of the third movement of Symphony No. 4 in E minor by Johannes Brahms.

I won't bore you with a breakdown of every track on this glorious record, but I will say that by the time you reach the end of side A with the 8 minute intense, heavy-handed "South Side Of The Sky" (especially by the second half of the tune!), if you're not hooked on this record you may need to get those ears cleaned out. 

This is also their first of many collaborations with the legendary fantasy landscape artist Roger Dean, who designed and illustrated the cover art for Fragile.

So if you haven't checked out this record yet...what are you waiting for? Drop the needle, slap on some headphones, and strap in tight, because this record will definitely take you on a journey of most epic proportions...Cheers!