Sundown Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 Hey all, I'm a big Yes fan, and I've always loved "Awaken". Toward the end of the instrumental harp and pipe organ section, there are some beautiful choir sounds. Is it possible that they are real? The Fairlight hadn't been invented yet, and unless it was a Mellotron bathed in an amazing reverb, I just can't fathom a tape-based sampler making that sound. Thanks in advance. Sundown Working on: The Jupiter Bluff; Driven Away Main axes: Kawai MP11 and Kurz PC361 DAW Platform: Cubase Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aidan Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 Richard Williams Singers, arrangement by Mr Wakeman. Studio: Yamaha P515 | Yamaha Tyros 5 | Yamaha HX1 | Moog Sub 37 Road: Yamaha YC88 | Nord Electro 5D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orangefunk Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 Awesome track. For me Rick's finest hour. Apparently they recorded the pipe organ down the phone wire as they are of such high quality in Switzerland even back in 1977! The main problem I have with the record is that it sounds a bit muddy at times perhaps this is in keeping with the rock production aesthetic of the time but I actually thought the drums sounded better on their demos than the actual album. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcgoo Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 Apparently they recorded the pipe organ down the phone wire as they are of such high quality in Switzerland even back in 1977! I'd put big money on that phone line being ISDN or something similar. I have a hard time buying that otherwise (although I do remember reading RW claiming that in an interview years a ago). Custom Music, Audio Post Production, Location Audio www.gmma.biz https://www.facebook.com/gmmamusic/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orangefunk Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 Yep it says that they "rented a line" so I am guessing it isn't standard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marzzz Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 I remember that entire album well. Both Yes and ELP hit their peak in 1973, and what followed was disappointing at best (Works, Tales of Topographic Oceans, Relayer) followed by long stretches of silence. Yes comes out with Going For the One in 1977, and it was the Indian Summer of Prog Rock (that and the original UK album 1978). Awaken was the masterpiece of that album, and I agree some of Wakeman's finest work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sundown Posted February 2, 2014 Author Share Posted February 2, 2014 Thanks Aidan! I knew it sounded too good to be a Mellotron. Todd Sundown Working on: The Jupiter Bluff; Driven Away Main axes: Kawai MP11 and Kurz PC361 DAW Platform: Cubase Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aidan Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 Indeed. They're still going, btw, although Mr Williams himself died in 2007. Studio: Yamaha P515 | Yamaha Tyros 5 | Yamaha HX1 | Moog Sub 37 Road: Yamaha YC88 | Nord Electro 5D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tusker Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 Thanks for that Aidan. Cool info ... I agree it's Rick at his finest. Interesting clip for fans: [video:youtube]1fGDI4tmdVU Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SVG Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 Both Yes and ELP hit their peak in 1973, and what followed was disappointing at best (Works, Tales of Topographic Oceans, Relayer) Except for the fact that some of us regard Topographic and Relayer as the absolute height of their career. To each their own... Stephen . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cybersoniq Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 +1. While it was great to see Wakeman back in the fold for GFTO album, it would have been cool to see the direction Yes might have taken with Moraz after the great Relayer album. Both Yes and ELP hit their peak in 1973, and what followed was disappointing at best (Works, Tales of Topographic Oceans, Relayer) Except for the fact that some of us regard Topographic and Relayer as the absolute height of their career. To each their own... Stephen . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sundown Posted February 2, 2014 Author Share Posted February 2, 2014 +1. While it was great to see Wakeman back in the fold for GFTO album, it would have been cool to see the direction Yes might have taken with Moraz after the great Relayer album. The live version of "The Gates of Delirium" on Yesshows is awesome... I love the band's overall performance, but I really like those loose, wobbly-pitched Moog lines that Patrick is playing after the battle segment. With the delay line, it's just an awesome sound. Sundown Working on: The Jupiter Bluff; Driven Away Main axes: Kawai MP11 and Kurz PC361 DAW Platform: Cubase Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joegerardi Posted February 3, 2014 Share Posted February 3, 2014 I think that "Turn of the Century" is just as epic as "Awaken," and has a far more cogent and interesting story line. Though I guess it's true that this is Jon's last gonzo lyrical mysticism piece. Based, I believe, on a book that Jon read. ..Joe Setup: Korg Kronos 61, Roland XV-88, Korg Triton-Rack, Motif-Rack, Korg N1r, Alesis QSR, Roland M-GS64 Yamaha KX-88, KX76, Roland Super-JX, E-Mu Longboard 61, Kawai K1II, Kawai K4. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tonysounds Posted February 3, 2014 Share Posted February 3, 2014 I love "The One", and those were awesome tours. And I Have to say, I thought Tormato was just awful, but DRAMA kicked ass. Hitting "Play" does NOT constitute live performance. -Me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cybersoniq Posted February 3, 2014 Share Posted February 3, 2014 On the heals of the great GFTO collection, I was also amazed how bad the follow-up Tormato was. Here's a fun story on the Tormato title and cover: "Quarrels between Yes members were nothing new, and members came and went on a regular basis, but things seemed particularly stormy during this period; in fact, singer Jon Anderson and keyboardist Rick Wakeman would both exit the lineup in the months following Tormato. Wakemans displeasure became particularly evident during an infamous incident when he hurled a tomato at the artwork for the record, which was then titled Yes Tor, after a geological formation in southern England; as he later put it, We had paid a fortune for the artwork, which when we were shown it, we all agreed we had been ripped off. It was a pile of brown smelly stuff. I picked up a tomato and threw it at it[The title] was hastily changed to Tormato. Read More: 35 Years Ago: Yes' 'Tormato' Album Released | http://ultimateclassicrock.com/yes-tormato/?trackback=tsmclip Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richforman Posted February 3, 2014 Share Posted February 3, 2014 I like a lot of Tormato; some of the tracks are very questionable, but the opener "Future Times/Rejoice" along with "Release Release" and "On the Silent Wings of Freedom" all at least rock along very nicely and are pretty entertaining IMO, if not up to the epic heights of ambition and invention of most of their earlier work. I do recognize that a lot of the synth patches are famously pretty thin and cheesy but I actually also have a soft spot for "Don't Kill the Whale," that one doesn't bother me at all. Rich Forman Yamaha MOXF8, Korg Kronos 2-61, Roland Fantom X7, Ferrofish B4000+ organ module, Roland VR-09, EV ZLX12P, K&M Spider Pro stand, Yamaha S80, Korg Trinity Plus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Heslop Posted February 3, 2014 Share Posted February 3, 2014 Awaken is on my funeral songs list along with "Because" by the Beatles. By far the greatest concert going moment of my life was Awaken during the Union tour. I had 3rd row seats and Yes were in the round so I was a few feet away from Wakeman at times. I'm not ashamed to admit I cried. For me Awaken is on a three way tie with Close To Te Edge and The Revealing Science of God. I too love the Yesshows version of Gates...maybe more than the album version. Also on the clip, there is an hour or more of footage on YouTube of Going For the One. Highlights include a harp and pipe organ jam with Rick and Jon and Rick conducting Steve Chris and Alan in a melodica trio. Stage: Korg Krome 88. Home: Korg Kross 61, Yamaha reface CS, Korg SP250, Korg mono/poly Kawai ep 608, Korg m1, Yamaha KX-5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joegerardi Posted February 4, 2014 Share Posted February 4, 2014 "Whitewashing the passage..." God bless you for that one, Rick! ..Joe Setup: Korg Kronos 61, Roland XV-88, Korg Triton-Rack, Motif-Rack, Korg N1r, Alesis QSR, Roland M-GS64 Yamaha KX-88, KX76, Roland Super-JX, E-Mu Longboard 61, Kawai K1II, Kawai K4. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sundown Posted February 5, 2014 Author Share Posted February 5, 2014 I like a lot of Tormato; some of the tracks are very questionable, but the opener "Future Times/Rejoice" along with "Release Release" and "On the Silent Wings of Freedom" all at least rock along very nicely and are pretty entertaining IMO, if not up to the epic heights of ambition and invention of most of their earlier work. I do recognize that a lot of the synth patches are famously pretty thin and cheesy but I actually also have a soft spot for "Don't Kill the Whale," that one doesn't bother me at all. I like some of the tracks on Tormato, but it's sometimes the synth work that gets in the way. Rick's choice of sounds on that album is less than great. "Onward" is a great track, as are the others that were mentioned. Sundown Working on: The Jupiter Bluff; Driven Away Main axes: Kawai MP11 and Kurz PC361 DAW Platform: Cubase Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tusker Posted February 5, 2014 Share Posted February 5, 2014 I like some of the tracks on Tormato, but it's sometimes the synth work that gets in the way. Agreed. The polymoog elbowed out the minis and the Hammond, and music lost some of it's earthiness. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aidan Posted February 5, 2014 Share Posted February 5, 2014 The sounds definitely went downhill on Tormato and had already done so to a certain extent on GFTO, mostly due to the Polymoog. True story: when I was 13, a friend of my parents introduced them to a mutual friend who had worked for Moog in an administrative capacity in Europe. When he was made redundant, he took a Polymoog as his redundancy package in lieu of cash. Ironically, he couldn't play a note. Thus it was that this prog rock-mad boy was taken over to this house one evening and there in front of me was this stuff of dreams remember, the Polymoog retailed at about £4,800 in the UK - around 25 grand in today's money, an unimaginable wealth. So I spent that evening, and several others, happily putting the Polymoog through its paces, until unfortunately we lost touch with the owner when he moved. As for Onward, it's OK but once you twig that it's basically a massive steal from The Long and Winding Road, its appeal kind of wears off IMO. Studio: Yamaha P515 | Yamaha Tyros 5 | Yamaha HX1 | Moog Sub 37 Road: Yamaha YC88 | Nord Electro 5D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Heslop Posted February 5, 2014 Share Posted February 5, 2014 I like some of the tracks on Tormato, but it's sometimes the synth work that gets in the way. Agreed. The polymoog elbowed out the minis and the Hammond, and music lost some of it's earthiness. Agree 100% What I always find ironic, is I have a "Contemporary Keyboard" issue from the "Journey to the Centre of the Earth/ Myths and Legends of King Arthur" era when he was not in Yes, where he talks about feeling the moog sound is best suited to a monophonic instrument. Also on the Hammond...plenty in 6 wives, but very very little of it in Journey or Arthur. Of course both are also orchestral pieces. There was more Hammond again on Criminal Record, but I sort of think of Tormato (and to some extent GFTO) and Rhapsodies as a turning point in his choice of sounds and instruments. Mind you I will always be a sucker for Hammonds, Minimoogs, and Mellotrons. Stage: Korg Krome 88. Home: Korg Kross 61, Yamaha reface CS, Korg SP250, Korg mono/poly Kawai ep 608, Korg m1, Yamaha KX-5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Synthoid Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 I think that "Turn of the Century" is just as epic as "Awaken," and has a far more cogent and interesting story line. Turn of the Century is still one of my favorite Yes songs. Certainly has stayed with me all these years. When an eel hits your eye like a big pizza pie, that's a Moray. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richforman Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 Wasn't Tormato the album where famously, Wakemen quit in anger after discovering that the producer had, without his knowledge or approval, taken MIDI capturings of some of his keyboard performances, and replaced the sounds with the cheesier digital patches heard on the final product? Or was that later in the band's history? (Or did I make the whole thing up? I seem to remember reading that.) Rich Forman Yamaha MOXF8, Korg Kronos 2-61, Roland Fantom X7, Ferrofish B4000+ organ module, Roland VR-09, EV ZLX12P, K&M Spider Pro stand, Yamaha S80, Korg Trinity Plus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Synthoid Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 One of the worst album covers on record anyway... http://www.progarchives.com/progressive_rock_discography_covers/105/cover_377121942008.jpg When an eel hits your eye like a big pizza pie, that's a Moray. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cybersoniq Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 Since the original MIDI specification was written in 1982, that could not have happened during the Tormato sessions. That said, after Eddie Offord left mid-project, Producer and Engineer Brian Kehew had a challenging time to sort through the tapes to complete the album and things were mixed up. It wasn't until the 2004 Tormato re-mastering project, where it was determined that the original album tracks were NOT decoded properly during the mix using DOLBY A. Big Ooops! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richforman Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 Oh, right, duh, thanks cyber. Does my story ring a bell with anyone though? Maybe it was later on the "Union" album? Rich Forman Yamaha MOXF8, Korg Kronos 2-61, Roland Fantom X7, Ferrofish B4000+ organ module, Roland VR-09, EV ZLX12P, K&M Spider Pro stand, Yamaha S80, Korg Trinity Plus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aidan Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 It was Union but it wasn't just sounds that were replaced it was entire performances. Wakeman threw his copy out of a car window when he heard the result. Studio: Yamaha P515 | Yamaha Tyros 5 | Yamaha HX1 | Moog Sub 37 Road: Yamaha YC88 | Nord Electro 5D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcgoo Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 Oh, right, duh, thanks cyber. Does my story ring a bell with anyone though? Maybe it was later on the "Union" album? It was indeed the Union album. Wakeman had some choice words about the producer in a Keyboard interview: "I wouldn't trust him with a food mixer" or something like that. The producer (don't remember his name) had a pretty scathing response that keyboard published after Wakeman's interview. Custom Music, Audio Post Production, Location Audio www.gmma.biz https://www.facebook.com/gmmamusic/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bosendorphen Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 Oh, right, duh, thanks cyber. Does my story ring a bell with anyone though? Maybe it was later on the "Union" album? It was indeed the Union album. Wakeman had some choice words about the producer in a Keyboard interview: "I wouldn't trust him with a food mixer" or something like that. The producer (don't remember his name) had a pretty scathing response that keyboard published after Wakeman's interview. Yeah, Jonathan Elias. "The devil take the poets who dare to sing the pleasures of an artist's life." - Gottschalk Soundcloud Aethellis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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