Once Upon a Time in the Top Spot: Yes, Going for the One
37 years ago today, Yes topped the UK charts with an album from which most of the band’s casual fans…or certainly the ones in America, anyway…would be hard pressed to name a single song.
We offer that States-centric caveat because two of the songs, “Wondrous Stories” and the title track, were actually hit singles across the pond, hitting #7 and #24, respectively, but the truth of the matter is that, over the course of the past decade or two, there’s actually been a universal tendency for Yes’s history to be simplified so that only two very specific bits tend to stand out in any substantial way: the classic-album trifecta of The Yes Album, Fragile, and Close to the Edge, and the grand reinvention of the band with 90125. As Going for the One falls between those windows, it often slips through the cracks, which seems a bit ridiculous for a former #1 record.
Going for the One marked the departure of keyboardist Patrick Moraz from the band’s lineup and the return of Rick Wakeman to the ranks of Yes, but – perhaps more importantly for the portion of the group’s fanbase who’d grown weary of epic-length concept albums – it also found the band writing songs which, with the notable exception of “Awaken,” were under 10 minutes in length for a change…and although it’s not as if there needs to be any sort of defense for the 15 minutes and 38 seconds of “Awaken,” you can always just chalk it up to Yes enjoying the opportunity to deliver a suitably grand finale for the album.
Once upon a time in an interview with author Chris Welch, Jon Anderson described Going for the One as “a kind of celebration,” citing the album’s success as having resulted from the members of Yes having had the chance to go their separate ways, exercise the opportunity to pursue solo endeavors, and return creatively refreshed and ready to work within the confines of the group dynamic once more. Wakeman, meanwhile, revealed within the pages of Dan Wooding’s book, Rick Wakeman: The Caped Crusader that he made his decision to re-enter the fold because he met up with Yes in Switzerland, “found that they had changed drastically,” and “we began relating to each other for the first time.”
Sadly, those relations weren’t destined to last for the long haul: Yes’s next album together, Tormato, proved to be the last for Anderson until 90125, with Wakeman sitting things out until the massive Yes amalgam known as Union in 1991. But if you fancy yourself at least a little bit of a Yes fan but don’t know much of their music beyond “I’ve Seen All Good People: Your Move,” “Roundabout,” and “Owner of a Lonely Heart,” you’d do well to give a listen to Going for the One.It’s far better than its comparatively low profile would have you believe.
