Yesyears

Yesyears is the first box set by English progressive rock band Yes, released in August 1991 on Atco Records. After the group left Atco for Arista Records when they became an eight-man formation in 1990, the deal gave Atco the right to the band's back catalogue, thus allowing them to release a career-spanning box set. Yesyears contains studio and live tracks from 1969 to 1991 with previously unreleased mixes and songs, digitally remastered by Joe Gastwirt.

Yesyears
Box set by Yes
Released	6 August 1991
Recorded	1969–1991
Genre	Progressive rock
Length	291:23
Label	Atco
Producer	Yes, Paul Clay, Tony Colton, Eddie Offord, Trevor Horn, Trevor Rabin and Paul De Villiers
Yes chronology
Union (1991) Yesyears (1991) Yesstory (1992)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[1]

One of the major attractions of Yesyears was its inclusion of rare material, including many previously unreleased songs, and a full-colour booklet detailing Yes's history.

A condensed version of this package, entitled Yesstory, would be released in 1992 on two discs.

Yesyears was deleted in the late 1990s, preceding the release of Rhino Records' (five-disc) box set In a Word: Yes (1969–) in 2002. Most of the rare material found on Yesyears but not on In a Word would surface on Rhino's reissues of Yes albums in 2003 and 2004.

Track listing

Disc one

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Source	Length
1.	"Something's Coming"	Leonard Bernstein, Stephen Sondheim	Single B-side to "Sweetness", July 1969; while the Yes album reissue (2003) includes the mono mix from the UK single, this is the stereo mix, released as an A-side in the Netherlands in 1970.	7:06
2.	"Survival"	Jon Anderson	Yes (1969)	6:18
3.	"Every Little Thing"	John Lennon, Paul McCartney	Yes (1969)	5:41
4.	"Then"	Anderson	BBC recording on 19 January 1970	4:18
5.	"Everydays"	Stephen Stills	BBC recording on 4 August 1969	4:08
6.	"Sweet Dreams"	Anderson, David Foster	Time and a Word (1970)	3:49
7.	"No Opportunity Necessary, No Experience Needed"	Richie Havens	Time and a Word (1970)	4:48
8.	"Time and a Word"	Anderson, Foster	Time and a Word (1970)	4:31
9.	"Starship Trooper a. "Life Seeker" b. "Disillusion" c. "Würm"	Anderson, Chris Squire, Steve Howe	The Yes Album (1971)	9:25
10.	"Yours Is No Disgrace"	Anderson, Squire, Howe, Tony Kaye, Bill Bruford	The Yes Album (1971)	9:41
11.	"I've Seen All Good People" a. "Your Move" b. "All Good People"	Anderson, Squire	The Yes Album (1971)	6:53
12.	"Long Distance Runaround"	Anderson	Fragile (1971)	3:30
13.	"The Fish (Schindleria Praematurus)"	Squire	Fragile (1971)	2:37
Total length:				72:45

Disc two

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Source	Length
1.	"Roundabout"	Anderson, Howe	Fragile (1971)	8:31
2.	"Heart of the Sunrise"	Anderson, Squire, Bruford	Fragile (1971)	10:35
3.	"America" (Single edit)	Paul Simon	Single A-side, July 1972; full version included on The New Age of Atlantic compilation (1972), and on Yesterdays (1975)	4:04
4.	"Close to the Edge" I. "The Solid Time of Change" II. "Total Mass Retain" III. "I Get Up I Get Down" IV. "Seasons of Man"	Anderson, Howe	Close to the Edge (1972)	18:34
5.	"Ritual (Nous Sommes du Soleil)"	Anderson, Howe, Squire, Rick Wakeman, Alan White	Tales from Topographic Oceans (1973)	21:33
6.	"Sound Chaser"	Anderson, Squire, Howe, White, Patrick Moraz	Relayer (1974)	9:22
Total length:				72:39

Disc three

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Source	Length
1.	"Soon" (Single edit)	Anderson	Single A-side, January 1975; excerpt from "The Gates of Delirium" from Relayer (1974)	4:06
2.	"Amazing Grace"	Trad. arr. Squire	Previously unreleased, recorded 4 November 1976 in London; included on the Going for the One reissue (2003)	2:31
3.	"Vevey, Part One"	Anderson, Wakeman	Previously unreleased, recorded 23 February 1977 in Vevey; Different recording/version to one found on the Going for the One reissue (2003)	1:07
4.	"Wonderous Stories"	Anderson	Going for the One (1977)	3:49
5.	"Awaken"	Anderson, Howe	Going for the One (1977)	15:35
6.	"Montreux's Theme"	Howe, Squire, Anderson, White	Previously unreleased, recorded during the Going for the One sessions late 1976/early 1977 and included on its reissue (2003)	2:26
7.	"Vevey, Part Two"	Anderson, Wakeman	Previously unreleased, recorded 23 February 1977 in Vevey; Different recording/version to one found on the Going for the One reissue (2003)	0:56
8.	"Going for the One"	Anderson	Going for the One (1977)	5:32
9.	"Money"	Squire, Anderson, White, Wakeman	Previously unreleased, recorded 31 March 1978 in London during the Tormato sessions and included on its reissue (2004); with a spoken overdub by Rick Wakeman	3:12
10.	"Abilene"	Howe	B-side of "Don't Kill the Whale" single (UK), August 1978; included on the Tormato reissue (2004)	3:55
11.	"Don't Kill the Whale"	Anderson, Squire	Tormato (1978)	3:54
12.	"On the Silent Wings of Freedom"	Anderson, Squire	Tormato (1978)	7:46
13.	"Does It Really Happen?"	Geoff Downes, Trevor Horn, Howe, Squire, White	Drama (1980)	6:30
14.	"Tempus Fugit"	Downes, Horn, Howe, Squire, White	Drama (1980)	5:14
15.	"Run with the Fox"	Squire, White, Peter Sinfield	Single A-side, December 1981, by Chris Squire and Alan White	4:09
16.	"I'm Down"	Lennon, McCartney	Previously unreleased, live at Roosevelt Stadium, Jersey City, NJ, 17 June 1976	2:31
Total length:				73:13

Disc four

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Source	Length
1.	"Make It Easy"	Trevor Rabin	Previously unreleased, recorded January 1982 by Cinema; included on the 90125 reissue (2004)	6:08
2.	"It Can Happen"	Anderson, Rabin, Squire	Previously unreleased, recorded January 1982 by Cinema; early version of 90125 song, included on its reissue (2004)	6:01
3.	"Owner of a Lonely Heart"	Rabin, Anderson, Squire, Horn	90125 (1983)	4:27
4.	"Hold On"	Rabin, Anderson, Squire	90125 (1983)	5:15
5.	"Shoot High, Aim Low"	Anderson, Kaye, Rabin, Squire, White	Big Generator (1987)	7:00
6.	"Rhythm of Love"	Anderson, Kaye, Rabin, Squire	Big Generator (1987)	4:46
7.	"Love Will Find a Way"	Rabin	Big Generator (1987)	4:49
8.	"Changes"	Rabin, Anderson, White	Previously unreleased, live at The Summit, Houston, TX, 19 February 1988; studio version on 90125	7:34
9.	"And You and I" I. "Cord of Life" II. "Eclipse" III. "The Preacher the Teacher" IV. "Apocalypse"	Anderson, Bruford, Howe, Squire	Previously unreleased, live at The Summit, Houston, TX, 19 February 1988; studio version on Close to the Edge	10:49
10.	"Heart of the Sunrise"	Anderson, Squire, Bruford	Live at The Summit, Houston, TX, 19 February 1988; studio version on Fragile	10:50
11.	"Love Conquers All"	Squire, Billy Sherwood	Outtake from Union, recorded in early 1991	4:58
Total length:				72:37

Yesyears (Atco 791 644) failed to chart in the UK or United States

Personnel

Yes

• Jon Anderson – lead vocals (1.1 – 1.13, 2.1 – 2.6, 3.1, 3.4 – 3.5, 3.8 – 3.12, 3.16, 4.3 – 4.10), harp (3.3, 3.7), guitar (3.6)
• Peter Banks – guitar, backing vocals (1.1 – 1.8)
• Bill Bruford – drums (1.1 – 1.13, 2.1 – 2.4)
• Tony Kaye – keyboards (1.1 – 1.11, 4.1 – 4.11)
• Chris Squire – bass, backing vocals (all); lead vocals (3.15, 4.2)
• Steve Howe – guitar, backing vocals (1.9 – 1.13, 2.1 – 2.6, 3.1, 3.4 – 3.6, 3.8 – 3.14, 3.16)
• Rick Wakeman – keyboards (1.12 – 1.13, 2.1 – 2.5, 3.3 – 3.12)
• Alan White – drums (2.5 – 2.6, 3.1, 3.4 – 3.6, 3.8 – 3.16, 4.1 – 4.11)
• Patrick Moraz – keyboards (2.6, 3.1, 3.16)
• Geoff Downes – keyboards (3.13 – 3.14)
• Trevor Horn – lead vocals (3.13 – 3.14)
• Trevor Rabin – guitar (4.1 – 4.11), lead vocals (4.1, 4.11)

Additional musicians

• David Foster – backing vocals (1.6), acoustic guitar (1.8)
• Billy Sherwood – additional background vocals, acoustic guitar, keyboards (4.11)

References

1. https://www.allmusic.com/album/r78747