Jon Anderson: Vocals
Steve Howe: Guitars, Vocals
Chris Squire: Bass, Vocals
Rick Wakeman: Keyboards
Alan White: Drums, Percussion
“We just knew we had a big landscape we could explore...” – Steve
Howe (from the sleeve-notes)
Tales From Topographic Oceans was and remains one of the most
ambitious, expansive, experimental and, successful albums of the
so-called “classic era” of rock music. Released just prior to
Christmas in the UK in 1973, it became the first Number 1 album
of 1974 (against competition from the likes of David Cassidy,
Elton John, Slade and Perry Como who held the No 1 position
immediately prior to and after release), while in the US a
slightly later release saw the album quickly rise to Number 6 in
the Billboard Top 200 – in a chart whose upper echelons included
Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Carly Simon and John Denver. The
achievement of band and album in placing such uncompromising
music – a single piece per side of a double album – firmly into
the mainstream commercial music marketplace was unprecedented and
remains under-appreciated to this day. It is a vindication of how
well Yes understood its audience that the current Yes line-up is,
at the point of writing these notes, about to embark on a major
US tour, performing large sections of the album more than 40
years later.
“I worked on and off for about 3 years on this new mix in my
quest to do it justice… I hope it will satisfy the people who
agree with me that it may just be Yes' pre-eminent masterpiece”
Steven Wilson
Any re-presentation of such an album, especially one so beloved
of long-term Yes fans (it has been the most consistently
requested title of the series since the announcement of the first
release), needs careful consideration. As the above quote
illustrates, Steven Wilson applied both patience and time with
the mixes appraising each mix separately and as part of the
greater album in order to bring fresh clarity to every nuance of
the music. That approach has yielded new mixes in stereo and 5.1
surround which will delight Yes fans and, perhaps, even allow for
a necessary re-appraisal of an album which has often been
unfairly overlooked by comparison with other releases of the era.
For anyone who still finds the concept of such lengthy pieces
daunting, Steven has helpfully included a series of ‘single
edits’ derived from the new mixes. These are included on the CDs.
Additionally, the Blu-Ray edition carries a full set of
instrumental mixes and the single edits in high-resolution stereo
while a mix of “Dance of the Dawn” appears in stereo and 5.1
surround.
“Music was driving us and it had nothing to do with the record
business. It had nothing to do with radio or a hit record. It’s
standing by your dreams and your aspirations. In this lifetime
isn’t it worth trying to do something a bit different?” Jon
Anderson (from the sleeve-notes).
Far from being unafraid to do “something a bit different” Yes was
confident enough in its decisions to consistently defy record
industry convention, management advice and music critics alike in
its determination to be informed and directed by the music. The
results of that commitment to music were evident at the time in
the quality of the s, the enthusiasm of the fans then
(as can be heard on the sole live included here but is
also clear on all surviving concert s of the time) and
the love and affection for this album from both long-standing
fans there at the time of release and those many newer fans who
have discovered the album over the decades.
This edition also presents the best transfer of the original
stereo mix issued in the digital age.
With the combination of the original album mix in its highest
available resolution, completely new stereo and surround mixes,
expanded artwork, fully approved by Roger Dean and more, this is
the definitive edition of
“Tales From Topographic Oceans”.
CDs 1 - 3:
2016 full album mix, five single edits & an alt. version of Dance
of the Dawn all mixed by Steven Wilson. Full alt. album featuring
side two (studio) & side 4 (live) of original album prev.
unreleased.
Blu-Ray:
– Album mixed in 5.1 Lossless Surround + extra track mixed from
original multi-track sources.
– New 2016 Album mix
– Original Album mix (flat transfer)
Both in High Resolution Stereo
– Alt album, single edits + exclusive audio extras