Yes, “Love Shine” from ‘Open Your Eyes’ (1997): YESterdays

With its contemporary synthesizers and solid, straight-forward backbeat, Yes’ “Love Shine” could have easily been a Toto song. This is in no way a slight, as the song continues the impeccable production which is one of the hallmarks of 1998’s Open Your Eyes album.

Billy Sherwood again handles the keyboards, combining the traditional Yes feel with those of the departed Trevor Rabin. There are touches of Steve Howe’s Gibson guitar throughout “Love Shine,” though the almost-reggae sounding guitar is definitely not Howe. Again, Chris Squire and Jon Anderson handle the lead vocal in tandem. Lyrically, the song is just fine.

If this had been a Toto song, however, Steve Lukather would have arranged a guitar solo which this song seems to beg for. Instead, Steve Howe’s additions feel like afterthoughts. While not particularly memorable, “Love Shine” is another Squire/Sherwood song that’s been enjoyably Yes-ified.

YESterdays is a song-by-song feature that explores the unforgettable musical legacy of Yes. The series runs every other Tuesday.

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Preston Frazier

Preston Frazier is a bass-playing lawyer living in Atlanta. He is the author of 'Toto: The Band, Not the Dog,' a look at his favorite band. Frazier hosts the music-focused Slang of Ages Podcast and regularly writes about his favorite music on slangofages.com. He can be reached at [email protected]; follow him on Twitter: @slangofages.

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