Sierra Studios and Relic Entertainment are proud to present rock legends Yes and their new song "Homeworld." This classic track, inspired by the game, appears off their most recent release, The Ladder.

Internationally acclaimed as the most imaginative band of their generation, Yes are back with a collection of new songs and performances that are as fresh and exciting as anything they achieved in the past. Yes are celebrating their extraordinary 30 plus year career with a new CD The Ladder, a record that evokes the songwriting and ingenuity of their best work.

Jon Anderson and Chris Squire are the founding members of Yes. Both men are still at the helm, alongside fellow Yes veterans Steve Howe and Alan White. This classic line-up of the group also features additional guitarist Billy Sherwood and keyboardist Igor Khoroshev. Their happiness and satisfaction with the on-going revival of Yes fortunes is reflected in the new music found on The Ladder (to be released on September 28, 1999 on Yes Beyond/BMG in the US and on Eagle Rock in the UK and Europe).

Quality performance was the idea, when Jon and Chris first put the band together in 1968. They met in La Chasse Club in Soho, London, When Jon Anderson met Chris Squire they found they had a lot in common, with a fondness for Simon & Garfunkel, The Fifth Dimension and The Byrds. They wanted to form a new group that would get out of the R&B rut and emphasise melody, lyrics and vocal harmonies. This would be backed by a top notch group that could play like an orchestra. They rehearsed the first version of Yes in a West End basement with Peter Banks on guitar, Tony Kaye on organ and Bill Bruford on drums. Together they defined the future Yes sound with their first two Atlantic albums Yes (1969) and Time And A Word (1970). Hailed by the critics the band quickly moved on from clubs and pubs to play at such top venues at London’s Royal Albert Hall. On their first appearance at the venue they supported Cream playing their farewell show.

Word started to spread to America about the group in 1972. At the same time, Steve Howe joined the band as lead guitarist and helped make The Yes Album (1972) a success. During the early Seventies intensive US touring established their reputation with rock hungry audiences. This was the Yes that played such mind blowing arrangements as ‘Yours Is No Disgrace,’ ‘Starship Trooper’ and ‘I’ve Seen All Good People’ under a barrage of laser beams in packed stadiums. Rick Wakeman, their brilliant new keyboard player replaced Tony Kaye and made his debut on Fragile (1971) which unveiled such dazzling new works as ‘Roundabout’ and ‘Long Distance Runaround.’ Many more important albums followed during these boom years. Close To The Edge (1972), the double LP epic Tales From Topographic Oceans (1973) and Relayer (1974) gripped the public’s imagination and were accompanied by ever more spectacular stage shows. During this hectic period Bill Bruford was replaced by powerful new drummer Alan White and keyboard player Patrick Moraz was featured on Relayer during Wakeman’s absence.

The Yes fantasy image, was enhanced by the work of artist Roger Dean. He designed many of their most distinctive album covers and helped conceive elaborate stage sets.

Yes were up there alongside Led Zeppelin, ELP and Deep Purple. Fans cheered the band’s big production numbers and the great musicians.

Then came punk rock. Many established bands fell victim to a violent change in fashion and attitudes. Yes rode out the storm and came back with some of their biggest and most successful albums. At the end of the decade they produced Going For The One (1977), which yielded the hit song ‘Wondrous Stories’ and Tormato (1978) which despite less favourable reviews included the audacious ‘Arriving UFO.’

However, at the beginning of the Eighties Yes underwent a crisis. Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman left to pursue solo projects and were replaced by Trevor Horn (vocals) and Geoff Downes (keyboards). The ‘new’ Yes unveiled an aptly titled album called Drama (1980), which contained some unexpectedly powerful work, notably ‘Machine Messiah.’ After a difficult US and European tour with Trevor having to replace Jon as lead vocalist, the group underwent another upheaval.

The new recruits left along with Steve Howe, who promptly set about forming Asia, which became one of the most successful rock bands of the Eighties. Chris Squire and Alan White kept the Yes flag flying with South African born guitarist Trevor Rabin providing much needed new material. He co-wrote one of the band’s biggest hits ‘Owner Of A Lonely Heart’ which graced the hugely successful 90125 album (1983). With Jon Anderson back as lead vocalist and Tony Kaye recruited on keyboards it seemed the band’s future was assured. The same team, Rabin, Anderson, Squire ,White and Kaye would produce the acclaimed follow up Big Generator (1987).

The early Nineties saw some confusion. The band split into different spheres of influence. At one point Jon headed a breakaway unit called Anderson, Bruford, Wakeman & Howe while the ‘official’ Yes remained active in Los Angeles under the aegis of Chris Squire and Trevor Rabin. In 1991 nostalgia set in. Jon Anderson had the idea of bringing as many ex-members of Yes as possible together for the Union album and tour of 1991. Some eight musician including both Tony Kaye and Rick Wakeman on keyboards, Bill Bruford and Alan White on drums, with Steve Howe and Trevor Rabin on guitars took part in this unique project. They set off on a world tour performing ‘in the round,’ As the circular stage revolved around Jon singing in the middle, many Yes fans felt their past lives were spinning before them!

A new Yes album Talk emerged in 1994 with multi-skilled Trevor Rabin in charge of production. Jon Anderson was back as lead vocalist and Talk introduced guitarist and back-up vocalist Billy Sherwood. Trevor Rabin concentrated on writing film music and producing his own albums. Yes was far from over. They got back together with Jon Anderson, Steve Howe, Rick Wakeman, Chris Squire and Alan White creating a classic line up.

They began work on a new series of recordings which included the elaborate CD sets ‘Keys To Ascension Vol.1’ and ‘Vol.2’ (1996) based on recordings made during a series of concerts at the Freemont Theatre in San Luis Obispo, California. The band played brilliantly on ‘Roundabout,’ ‘Starship Trooper’ and ‘America’ and revived many more old favourites. It was at this point that Rick Wakeman decided he wanted to concentrate on his solo career and quit the band.

The band’s next studio album Open Your Eyes (1997) featured songs written by Chris Squire and Billy Sherwood and included guest keyboardist Steve Porcaro (Toto). Billy became the 13th new member of Yes respectively and joined the line up for the 1997-98 Open Your Eyes world tour. During their 30th anniversary year the group travelled the length of American twice and visited many new territories in Europe and South America before concluding the tour in Japan. Everywhere they were greeted as heroes and in Mexico found themselves playing to audiences of 8,000 a night.

During 1998 the band attended a special Gold Awards ceremonies at the Hard Rock Café in New York and in March, Said Chris looking back at the band’s career in some astonishment: "I don’t want to be looked upon as the leader of the band, but I have been here the whole time. And I got stuck with all the bills! Jon was only not there for one album. Alan too feels like he has been there forever, since 1972. I had no idea we could possibly be in anything that would last this long. At first I thought if Yes could stay together for five or six years that would be amazing. Who knew it would end up being thirty years?’

Under the aegis of highly respected producer Bruce Fairbairn, the band gathered last November to begin work on The Ladder at The Armoury Studios in Vancouver. After spending a month or so preparing demos and selecting material the band reconvened in Janaury to start work on laying down tracks. The result is a striking return to form for the band. Performances range from ballads like ‘It’s A Good Day’ and ‘If Only You Knew’ to a remarkable Afro-Caribbean set. The Ladder includes ‘Lightning Strikes’ one of the most unique Yes tunes yet! The band are at their funkiest on ‘The Message’ an unexpected but heartfelt tribute to Bob Marley, while major new Yes works ‘New Language’ and ‘Nine Voices’ give Steve and Igor free instrumental reign.

‘Homeworld,’ the first track on The Ladder, is one of the longer pieces and is being linked to a computer game called Homeworld made by Sierra Studios. Says Alan White, "It’s about a civilisation lost deep in space and looking for their home. We got involved with Sierra Studios and Relic Entertainment at an early point and Jon directed the lyrics towards that game." (‘Homeworld’ will be included on the soundtrack of this PC real-time strategy game).

Says Jon Anderson: "It was important that thirty years down the line we explored the classic Yes style while challenging ourselves as writers and musicians. Working with Bruce Fairbairn ensured we got the best performances out of everyone."