April 2016 – Classic Rock Review

Union by Yes

The 1991 album, Union, is unique not only among the vast collection of Yes albums, but is a unique release among all mainstream rock albums. At the time they were recorded, the fourteen tracks were recorded by two distinct groups which later merged into a single, eight man group, with all members having a prior history in Yes. In fact, members from all of the previous incarnations of the group are present on this album save for the group’s original guitarist Peter Banks and short-time vocalist Trevor Horn.

Horn had replaced Jon Anderson for the 1980 album Drama, but Anderson returned for the commercially successful 90125 in 1983. Along with Anderson, the lineup of that album included guitarist Trevor Rabin, bassist Chris Squire, keyboardist Tony Kaye and drummer Alan White. This same line-up remained for the studio album, Big Generator, which also had notable commercial success. However in September 1988, Anderson split from this variation of Yes and formed Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe (ABWH) with former Yes members guitarist Steve Howe, keyboardist Rick Wakeman and drummer Bill Bruford, as well as former King Crimson bassist Tony Levin. This new branch of the classic band released an eponymous album in 1989, which went gold in the United States.

However, when ABWH produced material for a second album in 1990, Arista Records owner Clive Davis initially refused to release the record because he felt the initial mixes were insufficient. Anderson approached Rabin, who had been planning a new album and incarnation of Yes with ex-Supertramp vocalist Roger Hodgson. When Hodgson dropped out, it was agreed that Anderson would record lead vocals on the Rabin-led material and both projects would be merged as a “reunited” Yes project. Union features nine primary musicians (although there is no track where they all play together) and four producers with material recorded in no less than seven studios throughout Europe and the United States.

Union by Yes
Released: April 30, 1991 (Arista) Produced by: Jonathan Elias, Steve Howe, Trevor Rabin, Mark Mancina & Eddie Offord Recorded: Various Studios in Correns, Paris, Devon, London, Los Angeles, New York City, 1989-1990
Track Listing	Group Musicians
I Would Have Waited Forever Shock to the System Masquerade Lift Me Up Without Hope Saving My Heart Miracle of Life Silent Talking The More We Live – Let Go Angkor Wat Dangerous (Look in the Light of What You’re Searching For) Holding On Evensong Take the Water to the Mountain	Jon Anderson – Lead Vocals Steve Howe – Guitars, Vocals Trevor Rabin – Guitars, Vocals Tony Kaye – Keyboards, Vocals Rick Wakeman – Keyboards Chris Squire – Bass, Vocals Tony Levin – Bass Alan White – Drums, Vocals Bill Bruford – Drums

Union by Yes

Released: April 30, 1991 (Arista)
Produced by: Jonathan Elias, Steve Howe, Trevor Rabin, Mark Mancina & Eddie Offord
Recorded: Various Studios in Correns, Paris, Devon, London, Los Angeles, New York City, 1989-1990

Track Listing

Group Musicians

I Would Have Waited Forever
Shock to the System
Masquerade
Lift Me Up
Without Hope
Saving My Heart
Miracle of Life
Silent Talking
The More We Live – Let Go
Angkor Wat
Dangerous (Look in the Light of What You’re Searching For)
Holding On
Evensong
Take the Water to the Mountain

Jon Anderson – Lead Vocals
Steve Howe – Guitars, Vocals
Trevor Rabin – Guitars, Vocals
Tony Kaye – Keyboards, Vocals
Rick Wakeman – Keyboards
Chris Squire – Bass, Vocals
Tony Levin – Bass
Alan White – Drums, Vocals
Bill Bruford – Drums

As for the material itself, it is a bit scattered and incohesive in the album’s final form, with specific, individual parts being greater in total than the whole. The first two tracks may be the strongest original ABWH songs. “I Would Have Waited Forever” was co-written by producer Jonathan Elias and alternates between driving rock sections and complex, vocal-driven parts. “Shock to the System” is a strong edged rocker, featuring Howe’s strong riffs and a steady drum beat by Bruford.

The finger-picked acoustic instrumental “Masquerade” is a real highlight of the early album as a very folky yet technically proficient piece which shows what a fantastic instrumentalist Howe is. This track earned a Grammy Award nomination for Best Rock Instrumental Performance in 1992. “Lift Me Up” is the first and best track from the Rabin/Squire faction and features decent progressions throughout and may be the most cohesive track on the album. The first single released from the album, “Lift Me Up” reached the top of the Album Rock Tracks chart. Shortly after, another Rabin track, “Saving My Heart”, was also released as a single as a percussion driven track with some reggae elements.

Co-written by producer Mark Mancina, “Miracle of Life” has a whole lot of eccentric instrumentation, such as banjo, playing on the same riff and rudiments through a long intro. After two full minutes, the verses begin with alternating lead vocals by Anderson and Rabin and featuring some pulling rhythms of Squire’s bass, which all work to make it a pleasant listen. We return to the ABWH material with Howe’s “Silent Talking”, which features a Rush-like, extended riff pattern and extensive keyboards by Elias and, although relatively short at 4 minutes, this is probably the most genuine progressive rock track on the album.

Union descends to a nadir through the latter tracks, which include the lazy soundscapes of “The More We Live – Let Go”, the Eastern soundscapes and recited Cambodian poetry of “Angkor Wat”, and the pure eighties pop/rock approach of “Dangerous (Look in the Light of What You’re Searching For)”. However, the album does end on a high note with a medley starting with Levin and Bruford’s rhythmic instrumental “Evensong” and moving to Anderson’s haunting but inspired “Take the Water to the Mountain”, builds to a bright climax.

Following the album’s release, Yes supported Union with a massive arena tour which helped the album sell over 1.5 million copies worldwide. Many group members have expressed dissatisfaction, especially the former members of ABWH (save Anderson), as that group dissolved following this album and Anderson re-joined the 1980s version of Yes moving forward.

Part of Classic Rock Review’s celebration of 1991 albums.

Ordinary Average Guy
by Joe Walsh

Buy Ordinary Average Guy

Joe Walsh‘s long solo career was beginning to wind down by the early nineties, in part due to a decades long “party” which was starting to take its toll on him personally and professionally. His ninth solo studio album, Ordinary Average Guy, is hardly his most heralded or successful. However, this was an important record in the sense that it takes a nostalgic look to the past as well as a sobering assessment of the present. Also notable here is Walsh’s inclusion of several fine ballads, a musical area which he had rarely explored to that point in his long career.

After The Eagles broke up in 1980, Walsh dove into his solo career which he began with Barnstorm in 1974 and continued in between Eagles albums with releases such as 1978’s But Seriously, Folks. In 1981, Walsh released the commercially successful There Goes the Neighborhood, which spawned the single, “A Life of Illusion”, a song originally intended for Walsh’s first solo album. Later in the decade, Walsh released You Bought It – You Name It and The Confessor, the latter of which included heavy input by Stevie Nicks. 1987’s Got Any Gum? would be Walsh’s final release of the decade and a commercial disappointment.

In 1990, Walsh reunited with former Barnstorm drummer Joe Vitale to co-produce Ordinary Average Guy. This album also features vocal and composition contributions by former Survivor lead vocalist Jimi Jamison as well as backing vocals by the legendary Ringo Starr.

Ordinary Average Guy by Joe Walsh
Released: April 23, 1991 (Epic) Produced by: Joe Walsh & Joe Vitale Recorded: August 1990
Track Listing	Primary Musicians
Two Sides to Every Story Ordinary Average Guy The Gamma Goochee All of a Sudden Alphabetical Order Look at Us Now I’m Actin’ Different Up All Night You Might Need Somebody Where I Grew up (Prelude to School Days) School Days	Joe Walsh – Lead Vocals, Guitars, Keyboards Waddy Wachtel – Guitars Joe Vitale – Drums, Percussion, Keyboards, Bass

Ordinary Average Guy by Joe Walsh

Released: April 23, 1991 (Epic)
Produced by: Joe Walsh & Joe Vitale
Recorded: August 1990

Track Listing

Primary Musicians

Two Sides to Every Story
Ordinary Average Guy
The Gamma Goochee
All of a Sudden
Alphabetical Order
Look at Us Now
I’m Actin’ Different
Up All Night
You Might Need Somebody
Where I Grew up (Prelude to School Days)
School Days

Joe Walsh – Lead Vocals, Guitars, Keyboards
Waddy Wachtel – Guitars
Joe Vitale – Drums, Percussion, Keyboards, Bass

The album begins with “Two Sides to Every Story”, co-written by bassist Rick Rosas. It starts with a harmonica lead, accompanied by a basic rock drum beat and chanting vocals and is fun and entertaining overall, albeit lyrically a bit clichéd. The title track, “Ordinary Average Guy”, is a fun bag of sonic candy which acts as a near modern adaptation of the famous “Life’s Been Good”, complete with rock/reggae elements and textures and the spoof-like lyrics. “The Gamma Goochee” cover song sounds like a great party tune with thumping bass and subtle synths to complement the vocal chanting and call and response crowd effects.

“All of a Sudden” is the first song on the album to depart from the established “party mode”, with somber and introspective lyrics on growing older. Co-written by Jamison, this track showcases fantastic music to match the vibe and mood. With slide electric guitar interludes over some steady synths, bass and drums and a saxophone lead by Larry Otis, this is the high point of Ordinary Average Guy. Unfortunately, this is immediately followed by the album’s low point, “Alphabetical Order”, a complete throwaway song, which seems like it is a mockery of rap but even misses the mark on that front.

On the second half of the album, the material is more evened out with accessible pop/rock. “Look at Us Now” has a rollin’ drum intro with slowly developing, harmonized slide guitar. The song proper maintains the beat while adding riff rudiments to accent the vocals, in an approach reminiscent of material on John Lennon’s Plastic Ono Band more than two decades earlier. “I’m Actin’ Different” has an acoustic backing throughout with steady but strong rhythms and a slight Soul vibe as the song goes along. “Up All Night” features some over-the-top synths along with Latin-flavored percussive effects, while the cover “You Might Need Somebody” features a unique mix of 1980s Adult contemporary with Walsh’s persistent talk box guitars leading a built-up layer of fine guitar textures. The album concludes with a suite of two songs which nod back towards adolescent years. On “Where I Grew up (Prelude to School Days)” a synth arpeggio accompanies the solo Walsh vocals with little additional arrangement, while Vitale’s “School Days” wraps things up with the drummer taking lead vocals in a quasi doo-wop rock with eighties-style production overtones.

While a couple of songs were Mainstream Rock hits, Ordinary Average Guy failed to break the Top 100 on the Album charts. Similarly, its follow up Songs for a Dying Planet in 1992 was equally non-commercial and critically panned, and Walsh would not release another solo album for two solid decades.

Part of Classic Rock Review’s celebration of 1991 albums.

Temple of the Dog
25th Anniversary

Buy Temple of the Dog

Temple of the Dog was sort of a reverse super group in the sense that the group members would go on to play in two of the more successful rock bands of the 1990s. However, at the time of this group’s short recording career in 1990, none of its members had yet achieved any great fame or recognition as they would in Soundgarden and Pearl Jam in subsequent years. In any case, the 1991 eponymous is an exceptional musical statement which far surpasses the trivial curiosity it was portrayed as throughout the early nineties.

In March 1990, Mother Love Bone front man Andrew Wood died of a heroin overdose. Wood’s former roommate and Soundgarden lead vocalist Chris Cornell approached two former members of Mother Love Bone, guitarist Stone Gossard and bassist Jeff Ament about recording some material he had previously worked on with Wood. At the time, Gossard and Ament were in the early phases of the group who would become Pearl jam and they invited another group member, lead guitarist Mike McCready to join the Temple of the Dog. In turn, Cornell enlisted Soundgarden drummer Matt Cameron to round out the quartet.

Temple of the Dog was recorded in Seattle in just 15 days with producer Rick Parashar, who also provided some keyboards on select tracks. With few expectations from the record label, the musicians were free to record as they saw fit and they accomplished great synergy over that short time period. The name of the group and album was taken from the Mother Love Bone song “Man of Golden Words”.

Temple of the Dog by Temple of the Dog
Released: November, 1991 (Situation Two) Produced by: Stephen Street & John A. Rivers Recorded: Black Barn Studios, Surrey, England, Summer 1991
Track Listing	Band Musicians
Say Hello 2 Heaven Reach Down Hunger Strike Pushin’ Forward Back Call Me a Dog Times of Trouble Wooden Jesus Your Saviour Four Walled World All Night Thing	Chris Cornell – Lead Vocals, Harmonica, Banjo Mike McCready – Guitars Stone Gossard – Guitars Jeff Ament – Bass Matt Cameron – Drums

Temple of the Dog by Temple of the Dog

Released: November, 1991 (Situation Two)
Produced by: Stephen Street & John A. Rivers
Recorded: Black Barn Studios, Surrey, England, Summer 1991

Track Listing

Band Musicians

Say Hello 2 Heaven
Reach Down
Hunger Strike
Pushin’ Forward Back
Call Me a Dog
Times of Trouble
Wooden Jesus
Your Saviour
Four Walled World
All Night Thing

Chris Cornell – Lead Vocals, Harmonica, Banjo
Mike McCready – Guitars
Stone Gossard – Guitars
Jeff Ament – Bass
Matt Cameron – Drums

Cornell wrote all the lyrics as well as most of the music on this album. Uniquely, the album begins with its two longest tracks, both of which were written in direct response to Wood’s death. “Say Hello 2 Heaven” starts with a solo, picked electric guitar before the strummed rhythms come in for the verses. This opener features a soulful and dynamic melody with fine backing harmonies during the chorus, which helped drive the song to the Top 5 of the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. “Reach Down” starts with a doomy and droning electric guitar riff above slow rhythms through the verse sections. Giving this eleven minute track much of its mass the extended duo guitar lead by McCready and Gossard, while the predominant lyrical theme is “reach down and lift up the audience”.

The most popular song on the album, “Hunger Strike”, may be its simplest. Three chords are built upon with stronger arrangement and vocals building the track’s intensity. Pearl Jam vocalist Eddie Vedder performs co-lead vocals with Cornell as Vedder stepped in when Cornell was having trouble with the vocals during a duo band rehearsal. The result was a worldwide hit in 1992. “Pushin Forward Back” is a bass driven riff track, written by Ament and Gossard as an odd-timed riff drone jam. Like many many tracks on this album, this acts as a canvas for Cornell’s fine vocals. Presented as a standard ballad, complete with minor-key piano by Parashar, “Call Me a Dog” is a vocal driven, sad ballad which manages to never become mushy or boring. “Times of Trouble” is another crooning ballad but with slightly more grunge rock elements including soaring vocal melodies through choruses and a later slight harmonica lead by Cornell.

“Wooden Jesus” is built on a revolving drum beat by Cameron with some strategically added percussion for extra effect in the intro. Later comes an interesting little banjo during second verse and great wah-wah guitar lead during the bridge. “Your Savior” features funky beats and grooves throughout with more good drumming, leading to “Four Walled World”, a slow, cool jam based tune co-written by Gossard. The sparse guitar chords and fretless bass help to make this a fine track sonically as do the later dual slide guitars add the next logical element to the effect. The closer “All Night Thing” features a sparse arrangement with shuffling brush drums accompanied by Hammond organ with the lead vocals pretty much carrying the dynamics. Clever and accessible, this album closer sounds like it could have been a big hit.

Temple of the Dog sold poorly upon its initial release in April 1991, but it found new life a year later after Soundgarden’s Badmotorfinger and Pearl Jam’s Ten found great success in late 1991. Eventually, the album sold was certified platinum and went on to become one of the more highly regarded releases of the decade.

Part of Classic Rock Review’s celebration of 1991 albums.