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This week Mark and I wish Igor Khoroshev a slightly belated Happy Birthday by talking about some of his greatest moments for Yes. We have chosen our favourite 3 examples of the great keyboardist’s work with the band so keep listening and see if you agree. I’ve embedded YouTube videos of each song we discuss in the show notes for this episode, just in case you don’t have copies of Open Your Eyes, The Ladder and Live from the House of Blues.
- What did Igor bring to the Yes keyboard role?
- Did he have all the skills he needed?
- What are his highlights?
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Theme music
The music I use is the last movement of Stravinsky’s Firebird Suite. This has been used as introduction music at many Yes concerts. My theme music is not take from a live concert – I put it together from: archive.org
4 replies on “Happy Birthday Igor Khoroshev – 635”
Another really good episode.
The joy of listening to House Of Yes is the band playing so well and yet within their individual capacities. No hint of strain, like one of the great string quartets or the mid 60s Miles Davis Quintet with Wayne Shorter and Tony Williams et al. All the details are there, all the nuances, it’s lovingly played and it sounds like they trust each other totally. Every note sounds like it was just conceived in the moment. Even on “Owner”, which is a hard tune to get right on stage. So a far cry from some of the more, at times but not always, laboured efforts of both Yes and ARW in more recent years.
Igor takes a lot of the credit for that. Moraz was probably equally gifted in his hey day but played a lot of egotistical stuff at times that wasn’t really always repertoire appropriate. The need to be heard and (maybe) accepted as an equal was trumping the needs of the music. I don’t hear Igor doing that at all.
Yessongs was a life changing record for me aged 12 / 13 (and is still a bit of a yardstick for what progressive rock music can be) but I think House of Yes has taken over as my favourite Yes live album.
As for the studio work I have come to appreciate The Ladder over the years but I think Magnification has the stronger material if the far more confused execution. If only Igor had been a part of it. No need for the orchestrations, more room for Steve, more of a recognisable band sound. All upsides.
Open Your Eyes and the accompanying UK tour was a bit of a low point in my relationship with the band. We went the last night at Hammersmith Odeon (sorry, I’m not having the rebranding) and Jon didn’t seem all that into it. There was something self-mocking / eye rolling about parts of his performance that surprised me. The band played well but as isolated individuals rather than like the string quartet I refer to above. Was the first time I had seen them in a very long time (probably Empire Pool October 78) . I expected church and got something a good ways short of that. That I had been to a game at QPR the night before kind of added to the poignancy. From the home of a transcendent first Yes show to something a long way short in 24 hours. Put it down to tour fatigue maybe? They had played a lot of shows even if Jon was still only a sprightly 53 at the time. Whatever the problem was that night they had clearly transcended it by the following Autumn.
Anyway I’ve never really wanted to hear the Open Your Eyes album since that night. I should blow 25+ years of dust off of my copy and give it another go.
A lot else to think about on the Igor front. The partisan Yes fan in me says “he’s probably paid the price for whatever he did by now, bring the guy back”. Sadly I suspect that armada has long since sailed but how I would love to hear a co-written Howe / Igor record with Billy producing.
I saw Igor with Yes on each US tour in ’97-’00, and met him on each tour except in ’00. To say he’s a very talented musician is an understatement, so it’s a shame how his tenure with Yes ended. He could have been with the band for many years, changing their history. Yes, it would be great if he could return some day if the position is open, but knowing Steve if won’t happen as long as he has a say, which he surely does! My favorite album with Igor is The Ladder, a great album & tour shows. For those who don’t have or haven’t seen the footage or dvd of House of Yes, watch it to see Igor’s greatness in action. It’s on YouTube, among other options.
Thanks for another good episode. Loved Mark’s take on Igor / Rick playing Awaken. Igor’s work on the House of Blues version of Awaken holds up against any live version with Rick and certainly is far better than any of the other Yesmen that have played it. Lucky enough to have seen that tour (and the subsequent Masterworks tour) a few times live and Igor was the real deal!
Hey, Kevin and Mark, thanks for another great episode. You both chose great tracks to underscore his contribution to the band.
I also agree with your takes on the Open Your Eyes and The Ladder albums. I think the latter, The Ladder (ugh . . . that was bad), is a Yes masterpiece that is solid throughout on all levels. Great cohesion among the band. Personally, I’ve always felt that Lightening Strikes could have been the Roundabout/Owner for the 90’s that could have charted and rejuvinated the popularity of the band and opened Yes to a wider audience. Had that happened, it might have altered the direction of the band by reinforcing the “formula” with which they created it for use with subsequent albums. I can only chalk the failure up to horrible promotion of the LS single and album. Truly a shame. Any thoughts or insights?
Regarding OYE, I always liked it, but thought of it as a Squire/Sherwood album. Did you happen to catch Steve’s recent interview on Classic Album Review (https://youtu.be/zgrOL8H1FiU?si=Gnhjfh9LELWpglap)? He comes right out and says that there was no room for him and Jon on the album except for From A Balcony. The album was already written/structured and they just went with it. Still, some good tunes and production, as you mentioned, Mark.
Thanks for doing what you do, guys. Looking forward to the next episode.