There are many firsts contained within Yes’ new album. One of the more interesting, or maybe puzzling, is the inclusion of a whole additional disc, if you have purchased 2021’s The Quest in the physical format. The three songs it contains are carefully referred to by Steve Howe as “high-quality reserve tracks.”
So the suggestion is that these songs would not have been included on the album if it wasn’t for label Inside Out’s suggestion that an additional disc was added. This means that double-vinyl versions of the LP have four short sides – which is a bit unusual, to say the least.
Inside Out does have a tradition of producing albums by various bands in this two-disc format and I have several in my collection, including from the Flower Kings and Transatlantic. However, those packages often contain bonus material of around 30-plus minutes and sometimes are not described as “bonus” items at all, but instead simply referred to as “Disc 2.”
Yes’ different approach here reminds me of expanded versions of earlier albums which have been re-released many years later, with the inclusion of unreleased material, seven-inch single mixes or b-sides. In these post-vinyl (and compact-disc) single days, the need for b-sides has pretty much disappeared, of course – so perhaps these songs would not have seen the light of day at all. Who knows?
Anyway, I’m glad they have been included because I rather like them. It’s no secret that “Mystery Tour,” the second song, is an unashamed tribute to the Beatles and was written by Steve Howe. You may remember the single which Yes released digitally in 2020 of John Lennon’s “Imagine,” featuring John Lodge of the Moody Blues on vocals. Alan White is understandably proud of his playing on the original song when he was a member of Lennon’s Plastic Ono band.
So, Yes have undeniable connections with the Fab Four, who are cited by every member of the band as important influences. While I’m not very keen on how “Imagine” was given the Yes+ treatment, I do like “Mystery Tour” a lot.
It opens with a pure ’60s backwards cymbal and then Steve Howe brings in a catchy acoustic guitar tune, accompanied by “Strawberry Fields” Mellotron flute tones and a rhythm section recalling the Ringo Starr/Paul McCartney duo. Jon Davison’s vocals are lower than many of the Yes songs he normally sings, and he gives a great performance of the quirky but never-banal lyrics. There’s a lot of fun in the Beatles references throughout the short song in instrumental and lyrical terms, and it’s impossible not to nod your head and jig along to the rock ‘n’ rolling chorus.
“Love, love, love,” sing the backing choir and Howe pulls out a significantly tidier and more satisfying electric solo than on the “Imagine” live recording. Billy Sherwood’s climbing and mobile bass line is a joy, and everything is just as well produced as the rest of The Quest.
Like a Beatles hit, “Mystery Tour” only lasts three minutes and 33 seconds, and maybe it’s just inoffensive fluff but there’s a special place in my heart for this song. It’s not cloying or sentimental and shows a lightness of touch which is highly attractive. It sounds like they are enjoying themselves, which transfers to the listener.
- Yes, “Mystery Tour” from ‘The Quest’ (2021): YESterdays - November 23, 2021
- Yes, “Minus the Man” from ‘The Quest’ (2021): YESterdays - October 5, 2021
- Yes, “Subway Walls” from ‘Heaven and Earth’ (2014): YESterdays - December 8, 2020
