----------------------------------------------------- OCTOBER 1, 1994 ----------------------------------------------------- Source: Expose' Newsletter http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/1831/expo-rdc.html Book Reviews: Yes - But What Does It Mean? By Peter Thelen - - - - - - - - - Yes - But What Does It Mean?  by Thomas J Mosbo Available direct from: Wyndstar,  824 Neumann Court, Milton WI 53563,  340p - - - - - - - - - I was a bit skeptical when I first saw the cover of this one, what could it be other than 300 pages of fan-drooling over a bunch of silly and pretentious Yes lyrics? Never having been totally "into" Yes -- at least not enough to make me follow them to their current malaise, I certainly had my doubts about this -- that is until I read it. Mosbo has done a scholarly job on this thesis documenting the many unique aspects of the band's music -- including each of the band members past and present, their influences and contributions to the group's sound, along with plenty of background information to give the work solid foundation, footnotes, references, etc. And of course there is plenty of discussion with respect to the lyrics. The core of the writing here is divided into four different Yessays: The first "What is Yes Music" covers bits of the band's history, an overview of many of their songs, the members of the band and their backgrounds, and an introduction to many of the recurring themes in Yes' music -- the positivity, mysticism, prophets and hope. It then goes on to examine in greater detail some of the shorter to midlength songs in more exhaustive detail. The second section "Yessonatas" covers all of their longer works, with more specific attention given to "Close To The Edge", "Gates of Delerium", "Heart of the Sunrise" and "Awaken". Section three "Unravelling the Tapestry" focuses on the band members' respective solo work, and includes an in depth (I mean really in depth) focus on the story of "Olias" and Chris Squire's "Fish Out Of Water". The fourth section is "Tales from Beethoven's Symphonies", over sixty pages devoted to "Tales of Topographic Oceans". The back of the book is equally comprehensive, three appendices -- the first two being discographies of all Yes albums and much of the Yes related solo material, and Jon Anderson's solo output, all complete with reviews and such. The third appendix is Yes-themes, listing of all the lengthy pieces broken down into themes, time indexed so the diehard explorer can follow along on the CD player. An extensive index follows, making this a good reference book as well as an interesting reader. I'm still not a total convert, but through Mosbo's book I've learned more than I ever wanted to know about this band. This is a must-have for any serious fan of Yes. Close Window YesInThePress.com For site comments, problems, corrections, or additions, contact YesinthePress@aol.com