Fragile

1	Roundabout 8:29
2	Cans and Brahms Extracts from Brahm's 4TH Symphony in E Minor Thir 1:35
3	We Have Heaven 1:30
4	South Side of the Sky 8:04
5	Five Per Cent for Nothing 0:35
6	Long Distance Runaround 3:33
7	Fish (Schindleria Praematurus) 2:35
8	Mood for a Day 2:57
9	Heart of the Sunrise 10:34

Barnes & Noble

The arrival of keyboardist Rick Wakeman for Yes' fourth recording, 1972's FRAGILE, signaled a major change for the founding fathers of UK progressive rock. Though Yes had begun expanding its scope with FRAGILE's predecessor, THE YES ALBUM, Wakeman's classically influenced approach helped the band attain new heights in composition and arrangement. The classical-rock sound Yes perfected on FRAGILE would define the group's style for the remainder of the '70s: Cuts like "Long Distance Runaround," "Heart of the Sunrise," and the FM staple "Roundabout" feature tricky time signatures, complex structures, and radical dynamic shifts, but Jon Anderson's straightforward vocal melodies and guitarist Steve Howe's signature licks make these songs instantly accessible. Each member of the band also indulges himself in a more "experimental" solo piece, and each is sophisticated in conception and elegant in construction. Ultimately, FRAGILE achieves the perfect marriage between Yes's lofty ambitions and their infectious melodic appeal. Jim Allen

All Music Guide

The band's breakthrough album, dominated by science-fiction and fantasy elements and new member Rick Wakeman, whose organ, synthesizers, Mellotrons, and other keyboard exotica added a larger-than-life element to the proceedings. Ironically, the album was a patchwork job, hastily assembled in order to cover the cost of Wakeman's array of instruments. But the group built effectively on the groundwork left by The Yes Album, and the group had an AM-radio sucker-punch, aimed at all of those other progressive bands who eschewed the notion of hit singles, in the form of "Roundabout," the edited version (sort of "highlights" of the album version) of which pulled in millions of young kids who'd never heard them before. The single clicked, most album-buyers liked the long version and all of the rest of what they found, and the band was made. Remastered in much improved sound and graphics in 1995, look for the version of this CD with a reference to "digital remastering" across the top back of the jewel case. Bruce Eder