“Breathe and Hope and Chase and Love…” Some Thoughts on the 50th Anniversary of “Tales from Topographic Oceans”

Things are all in colours
And the size of others shall send you forward
Arranged to sail you toward
A peace of mind
— “The Remembering (High the Memory)” (second movement of Tales from Topographic Oceans)

December 7 is, of course, Pearl Harbor Day. It is my brother’s birthday. And on this day in 1973, the ultimate prog band, Yes, released their controversial magnum opus, Tales from Topographic Oceans.

It has widely been panned not only as Yes’s worst album, but also as the epitome of everything ...