Yes

About Yes

The band's early work moved quickly from covers of Beatles and Traffic songs toward original material. Steve Howe joined as guitarist in 1970, replacing Peter Banks, and this shift proved decisive. Albums like The Yes Album, Fragile, and Close to the Edge established their sound: layered keyboards from Tony Kaye and Rick Wakeman, Bill Bruford's precise drumming, and Howe's textured guitar work created dense, multi-part structures. Roger Dean's artwork became visual shorthand for the band's aesthetic. They sold aggressively throughout the 1970s before internal friction fractured the group by 1981.

A restructured Yes emerged in 1983 with Trevor Rabin on guitar and Alan White on drums, adopting a more accessible approach that yielded the hit single Owner of a Lonely Heart from the album 90125. This period lasted into the late 1980s but gave way to further lineup shifts. The 1991 album Union merged Yes with Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe, a supergroup formed by departing members, though the project remained musically restless. Through the 1990s and 2000s they continued recording with rotating personnel, releasing Keys to Ascension, The Ladder, and Magnification, which substituted a full orchestra for keyboards.

The deaths of Chris Squire in 2015 and Alan White in 2022 marked substantial losses for the group. Yes kept touring and recording regardless, most recently delivering Mirror to the Sky in 2023 with newer members sharing duties. The Groove Hunter currently tracks 7 editions, including The Yes Album, Fragile Super Deluxe, Close to the Edge, and Relayer, providing collectors with crucial context on one of rock's most recorded ensembles.