Drama (Yes) | Extended Play Lounge Ep. 61
Added 2024-02-06 17:37:11 +0000 UTCI enjoyed this album much more than I was anticipating...especially after reading about all of the 'drama' happening behind the scenes with financial and artistic differences in the band as well as a roster change...with Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman departing the band before the album was completed.
This is a fascinating look into the changing musical aesthetics of the band and society as the 1970's became the 1980's. I hope you enjoy as much as I did!
**File edited and re-uploaded on 2/13/24 to fix audio issues.**
Comments
Doug, I experienced exactly what you conjectured, meeting ‘Drama’ as a new album while an established Yes fan. I enjoyed it very much but not as much as what came before. PS Regarding white cars and such, I did not embrace the direction popular music took in the 80s, despite graduating from high school in 1982. Saying that, in 1979, I enjoyed Gary Numan singing ‘Cars.’ I believe there are live performance videos of him driving around on stage in a little car. Cheers! 😱🦎😉
James Geckle
2025-12-07 20:16:28 +0000 UTCThe Prog Corner of our 6th Form Common Room was most perturbed by the prospect of a Yes album without Jon. But on hearing it I was pretty happy. Some others among my friends weren't quite so smitten. We went to Hammersmith to see the band, and were majorly disappointed with Trevor's vocals...it transpired that that heavy tour schedule they'd booked in had destroyed his vocal cords and he limped to the end of the concerts in pretty poor shape. Still like the album though- especially Chris's playing.
Ralph Darvill
2024-03-20 01:21:27 +0000 UTCI discovered Drama in 2017. I listened to it a couple of times and remember liking it a lot, especially Into The Lens and Machine Messiah. But hadn't listened to the album since. So it's the first time I'm hearing Drama again in 7 years. And now it sounds even better than then. I would even say 'much better'. I've come to enjoy great sounding and imaginative prog hybrids with more pop oriented music, sometimes even more than pure prog. And Drama definitely falls into that category. Only now I noticed how subtle are Geoff's keyboard lines sometimes and how creative Alan's drumming is. This work is a great pack of musicality, all five members are essential to the sound. Also, now I realized the greatness of Does It Really Happen? and Run Through The Light. I didn't give that much attention to these songs throughout my first listens. Both songs are very groovy and moving despite being quite differently sounding. Really admire the decision to step back from bass playing duties by Chris in Run Through The Light. Trevor is really comfortable with playing fretless and in this song bass sounds amazing. The only song I still have problems grasping is Tempus Fugit. It's probably the proggiest song and fan favourite, but it's too crazy dynamically and in my humble opinion doesn't fit the sound of the album that well. But it's a good song, I still enjoy it. I remember the discussion on Discord about how influential and successful 90125 was and its comparison with Drama. This EPL even more established my position that I probably don't need 90125 in my life when Drama and many other great prog-pop efforts by different bands from the same era exist. And I say this despite being familiar with 90125 for a much longer time than Drama. 90125 is a greatly produced album but I think it greatly lacks the imagination and exploitation of their musical abilities. While Drama is a vast and beautiful two-dimensional landscape of prog and pop, 90125 really lacks the 'prog' dimension and doesn't really distinguish itself that well from many other pop artists of that era.
Einaras Sipavičius
2024-02-25 01:51:06 +0000 UTCThis is literally my favorite Yes album and Tempus Fugit is my favorite Yes song btw. :)
Wolverale12
2024-02-19 12:32:38 +0000 UTCThis was my album introduction to YES, I knew the earlier hits, and I loved it right away. My older brother gave me the cassette, with no cover, and I had no idea it wasn’t Jon Anderson until I bought the vinyl. Top 3 YES for me. Machine Messiah still blows me away, arguably their heaviest song. Into the Lens is sublime, Steve’s guitar flourishes and Alan’s drumming really stand out. Both side enders are bangers. Like Tormato, not so much Going for the One, and Drama takes us to the next era of YES!! Thanks Doug… ✌️
Steve Hartke
2024-02-17 07:36:20 +0000 UTCThanks! We'll get there. :)
R. Douglas Helvering
2024-02-13 20:30:40 +0000 UTCA characteristically upbeat listen, Doug, and generous-spirited. Much as I like Trevor for his production work (You really should do Lexicon of Love one day) I don't think posterity will bother over-much with Drama. Really enjoying your journey through Yes, can't wait for your take on the first two albums, and I hope you can fill in the missing, sometimes shorter, tracks on the part-done albums too!
Richard
2024-02-11 08:05:10 +0000 UTCI recently parted with my Yes LPs I don’t listen to, namely Oceans/Going for the One/Tormato - Drama survived the cut because it’s so different, in a good way.
David Edinborough
2024-02-10 19:31:40 +0000 UTCI love the little bit of Yes history that took place between drama and 90125. Before meeting up with Trevor Rabin, Chris and Alan attempted to form a band with Jimmy Page called XYZ (Ex-Yes/Zeppelin).
Greg Goddu
2024-02-10 06:22:50 +0000 UTCSO energetic!
Tom (the soggy one)
2024-02-10 00:36:41 +0000 UTCGroovy it is. I really have grown to love this album.
Jean-Michel LaFontaine
2024-02-10 00:28:40 +0000 UTCVery enlightening. I was disappointed with Drama when I first hear it (on release), as I had been with Tormato before it. I was that guy Doug mentioned, who he thought would be pleasantly surprised when it was released - no I wasn't! This is the first time I've listened to it since the time of it's release, and it's a much better album than I remember. I can hear the component parts of Buggles plus Steve, Chris and Alan, so it seems like part-Yes, part pop. I can hear how this paved the way for Asia, which some have called prog pop. However, for me it misses the spiritual aspirations and energy of the original Yes. That aspect only ever seemed to return (and not always) when Jon Anderson was in the line-up. Great to be taken through this with fresh ears and a different point of view.
Adie
2024-02-08 15:00:27 +0000 UTCExcellent album. I absolutely love it (despite the lineup changes).
Murdock Moriarty
2024-02-07 23:01:51 +0000 UTCCheck out The Buggles song "I am a camera"
Pat Bourque
2024-02-07 22:50:19 +0000 UTCI was one of those that gave up with Yes when they became The Yeggles, so thank you for introducing me to this album. Better than I expected, with the bass, drums and guitar remaining recognisable, the synths bringing a new sound and the vocals remaining reasonably consistent. I believe The Buggles brought out I am a Camera as a single after this, but quite pared down in comparison.
Richard Stoney
2024-02-07 19:48:39 +0000 UTC(The tour in support of Tormato)…” concluded in June of 1979.” Yep. My first Yes concert was the final show of the Tourmato In The Round tour in June, 1979 at the Hollywood Sportatorium in Hollywood, FL.
Illume Eltanin
2024-02-07 07:48:57 +0000 UTCLove, love, love this album. It was the 3rd/4th Yes album I heard - 90125, Fragile, then bought this and Yessongs at the same time while in Germany as an exchange student. That trip was also the first time I heard Rush (Moving Pictures), and that group of albums all made perfect sense to me. The single of “I Am A Camera” is a really odd edit, and a strange choice to begin with, especially with “Tempus Fugit” as a choice (and short, too). The MSG dates sold out before the album was released, I think. The album came out only a week or two before the tour. The US audiences were supportive, but Trevor’s voice was shot by the UK tour. They apparently didn’t like it to start, but that made it worse. A song called “Everybody’s Song” was an early version “Does it Really Happen.” Although it is listed as being from the Paris sessions, it’s actually older. Probably from the early Going for the One sessions in ‘76, but possibly Relayer. Either way, it was prior to Rick Wakeman’s return. While they have edited out the channel, you can clearly hear a Patrick Moraz solo bleeding through the (probably the drum) mics. It’s an interesting listen, especially since it has Jon on vocals: https://youtu.be/jpLTCgU5nZg?si=Q3qVW2m0P7ayJOU4
Randy Hammill
2024-02-07 04:53:51 +0000 UTCYour description of the worries and reactions to this album—before and after hearing it—parallel my reaction almost exactly! While there were some new wrinkles (I agree there's a bit of reggae influence—but really, more like Police influence), and some callbacks to older Yes (Downes's Hammond work sometimes reminds me of Tony Kaye's), it just sounds like Yes! Did you notice that the chord sequence in the last part of "Does It Really Happen?" is the same (relatively) as the last part of "Starship Trooper" (V-bIII-I)?
Jeff Norman
2024-02-07 04:38:48 +0000 UTCand not only the music, the Yes logo in Drama is also more metallic :P
Eusebio R-Z
2024-02-07 04:32:51 +0000 UTCNot the best Yes record but damn fine and boy there’s a real infusion of energy and grit in the sound.
Gary Thobaben
2024-02-07 03:21:52 +0000 UTCIt is truly a top 5 Yes song!
Gary Thobaben
2024-02-07 03:14:17 +0000 UTCSomewhat ersatz for me. Big stadium arrangements of familiar sounding stuff.
George Davis-Stewart
2024-02-07 00:25:54 +0000 UTC"How do they come up with Yes-quality music with all of this crap going on?" They were quite used to it, Dr. Helvering. ;-)
Tom (the soggy one)
2024-02-06 23:39:24 +0000 UTCOkay- last observation (maybe). The heavier, metal-y sound was absolutely the right direction at the time. Both punk and disco were HUGE, but so was heavy metal. What people were NOT doing by 1980 was prog-rock. Another GFTO or Tormato would have killed the band. Yes, I know they went on hiatus after this, anyway, but this album was moderately successful, as was the related tour.
Tom (the soggy one)
2024-02-06 23:07:06 +0000 UTCDoug- you make a great point about the vituosity here. The production and the writing (most of the 'Paris' album was junked) came together so quickly that there is a much more unified sound, and less performers trying to out-do each other. There is also incredible energy and enthusiasm here that was middling at best on Tormato. And I LOVE Tormato.
Tom (the soggy one)
2024-02-06 23:03:02 +0000 UTCMore "Fly From Here" trivia- the entire FFH suite was originally a full side of The Buggles' unfinished second album (unfinished because they joined Yes). There is a demo of that suite on YouTube- 98% IDENTICAL to the Yes version from 2011 (with a Buggle on keyboards and the other Buggle producing).
Tom (the soggy one)
2024-02-06 22:46:45 +0000 UTC"Machine Messiah" is a lost piece of mastery that is available for only those who journey into the archives of progressive rock.
Rebecca Walsh
2024-02-06 21:52:42 +0000 UTCTrevor Horn did sing on another album, in a way. The 2011 release "Fly From Here", which was partly written by Horn and Downes, and produced by Horn, originally featured Benoit David as lead singer. Several years later, Alan White suggested that Trevor re-record the lead vocals himself, which resulted in the 2018 re-release "Fly Fom Here - Return Trip". Trevor appreciated the chance to sing with Chris again, if only in a virtual way.
Joe Harley
2024-02-06 21:49:30 +0000 UTC"I Am a Camera" is the title of a play that formed the basis for the later musical, "Cabaret". The original title was taken from one of the "Berlin Stories" of Englishman Christopher Isherwood, who lived in Berlin in the 1930s. The quote is: "I am a camera with its shutter open, quite passive, recording, not thinking." There are moments in the Yes song that are reminiscent of music played by the cabaret house band in the musical, which I think is a nice touch.
Joe Harley
2024-02-06 21:23:07 +0000 UTCChris' bass work in Does It Really Happen? is just... *chef's kiss*. Especially that outro... The Drama tour was my first Yes gig. It was a good show, but Trevor was clearly struggling a bit with the vocals in the live setting. It was no surprise that the line-up didn't last.
Nick
2024-02-06 21:19:08 +0000 UTCI would have preferred if this album and the YesWest albums were released with some appellation other than Yes. Neither was really Yes. The Jon Anderson albums from this era are quite special: Song of Seven and Animation - both title tracks are well worth the price of admission.
Christopher Arters (relative timeworx - Mr.A)
2024-02-06 20:38:00 +0000 UTCTrevor Horn had a sci-fi disco (no, really) band/project called Chromium before The Buggles, and the beginning of Run Through the Light comes from there: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQU30q3g1xQ The rest is from the Paris sessions. Fun fact Yes hired Roy Thomas Baker as a producer for the post Tormato album, it didn't work out.
Tamás Polyák
2024-02-06 19:07:10 +0000 UTCOne of my favourite Yes albums. This is I am a Camera, the original Buggles tune: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bOwO_EFAVPw
Tamás Polyák
2024-02-06 18:57:09 +0000 UTC
