History Music / CloseToTheEdge

* LongestSongGoesFirst: The side-long suite "Close to the Edge" is the opening track, and its opening movement is the longest of

''Close to the Edge'' is the fifth studio album by ProgressiveRock group Music/{{Yes}}, released on September 13, 1972. The album was recorded over a very slow process after finishing up production on ''Music/{{Fragile}}'', having recorded such complex arrangements with their rehearsals that they were forgotten the next day--drummer Bill Bruford said that the title of the album was reflective of the state of the band at the time. Upon release, the album received mixed reviews, but has since been retrospectively named as Yes' masterpiece, if not prog rock's masterpiece altogether; it has been the all-time top-rated album on [[http://www.progarchives.com/top-prog-albums.asp?salbumtypes=1 Prog Archives]] for many years, and has also topped multiple similar lists.

The album was ranked at #583 on [[UsefulNotes/AcclaimedMusicAllTimeTopAlbums Acclaimed Music's compilation of various critics' lists]] as of 2020, and [[UsefulNotes/RollingStone500GreatestAlbumsOfAllTime2020 Rolling Stones' 2020 list]] put it at #445.

** "And You and I" is loosely inspired by Creator/IsaacAsimov's ''Literature/FoundationTrilogy''; in particular, the "mutant enemy" is inspired by the Mule.
** "Close to the Edge" is inspired by Creator/HermanHesse's ''Siddhartha''.

''Close to the Edge'' is the fifth studio album by ProgressiveRock group Music/{{Yes}}, released on September 13, 1972. The album was recorded over a very slow process after finishing up production on ''Fragile'', having recorded such complex arrangements with their rehearsals that they were forgotten the next day--drummer Bill Bruford said that the title of the album was reflective of the state of the band at the time. Upon release, the album received mixed reviews, but has since been retrospectively named as Yes' masterpiece, if not prog rock's masterpiece altogether; it has been the all-time top-rated album on [[http://www.progarchives.com/top-prog-albums.asp?salbumtypes=1 Prog Archives]] for many years, and has also topped multiple similar lists.

The album was ranked at #557 on Website/AcclaimedMusic's [[UsefulNotes/AcclaimedMusicAllTimeTopAlbums compilation of various critics' lists]].

''Close to the Edge'' is the fifth studio album by ProgressiveRock group Music/{{Yes}}, released on September 13, 1972. The album was recorded over a very slow process after finishing up production on ''Fragile'', having recorded such complex arrangements with their rehearsals that they were forgotten the next day--drummer Bill Bruford said that the title of the album was reflective of the state of the band at the time. Upon release, the album received mixed reviews, but has since been retrospectively named as Yes' masterpiece, if not prog rock's masterpiece altogether; it has been the all-time top-rated album on [[http://www.progarchives.com/top-prog-albums.asp?salbumtypes=1 Prog Archives]] for many years.

* GratuitousForeignLanguage: Jon Anderson had no idea what "Khatru" (as in "Siberian Khatru") meant until he asked someone to look it up[[note]]"As you wish" in Yemeni Arabic[[/note]].

''Close to the Edge'' is the fifth studio album by ProgressiveRock group Music/{{Yes}}, released on September 13, 1972. The album was recorded over a very slow process after finishing up production on ''Fragile'', having recorded such complex arrangements with their rehearsals that they were forgotten the next day--drummer Bill Bruford said that the title of the album was reflective of the state of the band at the time. Upon release, the album received mixed reviews, but has since been retrospectively named as Yes' masterpiece, if not prog rock's masterpiece altogether; it is the top-rated album on [[http://www.progarchives.com/top-prog-albums.asp?salbumtypes=1 Prog Archives]].

!!And you and I troped over lists of endless examples:

* GratuitousForeignLanguage: According to Anderson, "Khatru" (as in "Siberian Khatru") means "As you wish" in the Yemeni dialect of Arabic, but he had no idea what it meant until he asked someone to look it up.

* OminousPipeOrgan: "I Get Up, I Get Down" features a solo on the pipe organ at [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Giles-without-Cripplegate St Giles-without-Cripplegate]].

** "Close to the Edge" is inspired by Creator/HermanHesse's ''Siddhartha''.
* TriumphantReprise: "Seasons of Man", the final movement of "Close to the Edge", is musically similar to the first movement, "The Solid Time of Change".

[[caption-width-right:350:Close to the edge, down by a river (Not right away, not right away!)]]

[[caption-width-right:350:Down at the edge, round by the corner/Not right away, not right away/Close to the edge, down by a river/Not right away, not right away]]

''Close to the Edge'' is the fifth studio album by ProgressiveRock group Music/{{Yes}}, released on September 13, 1972. The album was recorded over a very slow process after finishing up production on ''Fragile'', having recorded such complex arrangements with their rehearsals that they were forgotten the next day--drummer Bill Bruford said that the title of the album was reflective of the state of the band at the time. Upon release, the album received mixed reviews, but has since been retrospectively named as Yes' masterpiece, if not prog rock's masterpiece altogether.

* EpicInstrumentalOpener: Many of their songs have at least one minute of instrumental buildup; "Close to the Edge" is the probably the most recognizable example, with first section "The Solid Time of Change" lacking lyrics for its first four minutes.

## "The Solid Time of Change" (6:04; 0:00-6:04)
## "Total Mass Retain" (2:25; 6:04-8:29)
## "I Get Up, I Get Down" (5:43; 8:29-14:12)
## "Seasons of Man" (4:30; 14:12-18:42)

## "Cord of Life" (3:47; 0:00-3:47)
## "Eclipse" (2:29; 3:47-6:16)
## "The Preacher, the Teacher" (3:10; 6:16-9:26)
## "Apocalypse" (0:42; 9:26-10:09)

* EpicRocking: 39 minutes long, three songs, one side-long, two taking up the other. However, if every section of every song is counted as individual, then only "The Solid Time of Change" and "Siberian Khatru" qualify.