Search - Yes: Live at Montreux 2003 [HD DVD] on HD DVD

Chris Who?

S. Schulman | New York, NY | 03/24/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Don't get me wrong... I love this band and I am thankful that we have another DVD to capture the live Yes experience. The audio is great and it doesn't seem to be "touched up" in any way, although I only got to watch the first couple of songs last night before my kids took over the TV... If you are into close ups of Steve Howe's fingers (even during Rick's solo's), you've come to the right place. I couldn't even tell what Chris Squire was wearing until the third or fourth song. It seems like they had four cameras, with one permanently focused on each person but Chris, who is obviously the most dynamic performer of the bunch. Again, I am grateful for any recording of this band, but it's frustrating to have the camera focusing on Steve or Jon during keyboard or bass solo's. Any Yes fan knows that you need to be ready to watch Rick's fingers during the harpsichord part of Siberian Khatru, but the director (who was probably affiliated with the Jazz Festival or the original TV broadcast, not the band) seems a bit late on all of these types of parts. All in all, though, it's a great set list and a piece of history that every Yes fan should have."

Tsongas Is Better

Timothy P. Jenson | Phoenix, AZ | 06/18/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I own every Yes DVD to date... Montreux is good, but not as good as I hoped it would be. I may have over-hyped it a bit in my mind. I was really looking forward to this release which is basically the same concert that is contained in the Yesspeak "concert slideshow." Unfortunately the sound on this release isn't much better than the Yesspeak version. In addition to the audio letdown, the band just didn't seem to have the energy as they did on the 35th Anniversary Tour. I haven't seen or heard a Yes recording yet that does justice to how powerful and energetic they were playing at the end of the 35th tour. Steve plays well, but doesn't really get animated playing until the end of the concert. In Tsongas, he actually looks like he wants to be there and really rocks. Jon's voice seemed off a bit, they hardly showed Chris, Rick looked good but was back in the mix, and Alan was hardly audible. The recordings of "Southside" and "And You and I" aren't as good as on Tsongas either.



That being said, there are many positives to this recording. "Don't Kill the Whale" was energetic, the solos are fantastic (I've seen Steve play "To Be Over" several times live, and this is the best I've heard), and Awaken is extremely powerful, especially at the end.



All in all it is certainly worth buying, but I would recommend that you buy Tsongas, Symphonic, and An Evening of Yes first if you are looking for the best overall product."