| "Lightning Strikes" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Yes | ||||
| from the album The Ladder | ||||
| B-side | "The Messenger" "Homeworld (The Ladder)" | |||
| Released | 1999 | |||
| Recorded | February–May 1999 | |||
| Studio | Armoury Studios | |||
| Length | 4:35 (full version) 3:54 (radio edit) | |||
| Label | Eagle | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Jon Anderson | |||
| Producer(s) | Bruce Fairbairn | |||
| Yes singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Lightning Strikes" is a song by the progressive rock band Yes, first released in 1999 as a single in promotion of the band's eighteenth studio album, The Ladder. [1] [2]
"Lightning Strikes" contains the same Mellotron flute sample that "Phenomenal Cat" by The Kinks uses in the intro. Drummer Alan White had been experimenting with more "unusual jazz and African type" rhythms in the studio, playing them to front-man Jon Anderson. He then adapted some of his chords he had been working on as well as a melody which he wrote to fit it. [3] Bassist Chris Squire was reportedly very pleased with the final product and how it pushed the band into a new musical direction. [4]
Bret Adams of AllMusic enjoyed the track, labeling Steve Howe's acoustic guitar playing as "bouncy" and stating that the song's biggest was the inclusion of a horn section. [5]
Another positive review by Jason Warburg of The Daily Vault praised the track. They also noted the use of horns on the track and Howe's "strong riffs" on acoustic and electric guitar. Furthermore, they noted keyboardist Igor Khoroshev's "lively" organs and synth runs. They also called White's and Squire's playing "cuban-flavored". [6]
Stephanie Sollow also enjoyed the track, writing for Progressiveworld. They noted the track's heavy Caribbean sound, stating that the track was the most upbeat on the record, being almost dance music. [7]
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Lightning Strikes" (radio edit) | 3:54 |
| 2. | "The Messenger" | 5:12 |
| 3. | "Homeworld (The Ladder)" | 9:32 |
| Total length: | 18:38 | |
Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes. [8]
Yes
Additional musicians
Yes are an English progressive rock band formed in London in 1968 by lead singer Jon Anderson, bassist Chris Squire, guitarist Peter Banks, keyboardist Tony Kaye, and drummer Bill Bruford. The band has undergone numerous lineup changes throughout their history, during which 20 musicians have been full-time members. Since February 2023, the band has consisted of guitarist Steve Howe, keyboardist Geoff Downes, bassist Billy Sherwood, singer Jon Davison, and drummer Jay Schellen. Yes have explored several musical styles over the years and are most notably regarded as progressive rock pioneers.
The Yes Album is the third studio album by English progressive rock band Yes, released on 19 February 1971 by Atlantic Records. It was the band's first album to feature guitarist Steve Howe, who replaced Peter Banks in 1970, as well as their last to feature keyboardist Tony Kaye until 1983's 90125.
Union is the thirteenth studio album by English progressive rock band Yes, released on 30 April 1991 by Arista Records. Production began following the amalgamation of two bands that featured previous and then-current members of Yes: Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe (ABWH), consisting of vocalist Jon Anderson, drummer Bill Bruford, keyboardist Rick Wakeman and guitarist Steve Howe, and Yes, at that time comprising bassist and vocalist Chris Squire, guitarist and vocalist Trevor Rabin, keyboardist Tony Kaye and drummer Alan White. The eight musicians signed with Arista and a combination of unfinished tracks by both groups were selected for Union. The album's sessions were problematic from the start, including disagreements between some of the musicians regarding the "merger" of the two bands, strained relations during the recording process, and decisions by the production team of Anderson and producer Jonathan Elias to bring in session musicians to re-record parts that Wakeman and Howe had originally completed.
Keys to Ascension 2 is the fifth live and sixteenth studio album by the English progressive rock band Yes. It was released as a double album in November 1997 by Essential Records as the successor to the previous live/studio album Keys to Ascension. After guitarist Steve Howe and keyboardist Rick Wakeman returned to the band in 1995, the group relocated to San Luis Obispo, California and started to write new material. The reunion of this particular line-up was promoted with three concerts at the city's Fremont Theater in March 1996, the five's first live performance together since 1979. Keys to Ascension 2 features the remaining half of the live set from the 1996 shows and five new studio tracks including two which marked a return to the group writing long-form pieces.
Yesshows is the second live album by the English progressive rock band Yes. It was released in November 1980 on Atlantic Records as the final album before the group disbanded in early 1981. Their first live album in seven years, it is compiled of recordings from their 1976, 1977, and 1978 tours from dates in North America and Europe with its mixing supervised by bassist Chris Squire.
Magnification is the nineteenth studio album by the English progressive rock band Yes, released on 10 September 2001 by Eagle Records. It is their only album recorded both as a four-piece band and without a keyboardist, and their last album to feature founding member and lead vocalist Jon Anderson. Following the departure of keyboardist Igor Khoroshev, the band decided to record a new studio album with orchestral arrangements for the first time since Time and a Word (1970). The album was recorded and mixed using Pro Tools with producer Tim Weidner and orchestral arrangements by Larry Groupé conducting the San Diego Symphony Orchestra.
Open Your Eyes is the seventeenth studio album by the English rock band Yes, released in November 1997 by Eagle Records in the UK and by Beyond Music in the US. Following the 1996 revival of the 1970s "classic" line-up of Yes, the band's relationship with management had broken down and keyboardist Rick Wakeman had once again left the band. While various other members dispersed, guitarist, keyboardist, and producer Billy Sherwood began developing new songs with band bassist and de facto leader Chris Squire to prevent the band from losing momentum and fully splitting. Yes' new management company suggested adding a couple of songs originally written for Squire and Sherwood's other band Conspiracy to help build up material for a new Yes studio album. With the writing and production sessions dominated by Squire and Sherwood, and with singer Jon Anderson, guitarist Steve Howe and drummer Alan White only involved later in the process, the writing and creative input of the latter three members was limited.
The Ladder is the eighteenth studio album by the English progressive rock band Yes, released in September 1999 on Eagle Records. It is their only studio album recorded with six full time members and their last with keyboardist Igor Khoroshev.
In a Word: Yes (1969–) is the second box set by the English progressive rock band Yes, released in July 2002 by Rhino Records. The five-CD set includes tracks from the band's entire career between the years 1969 to 2001, including material by Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe and previously unreleased tracks.
The Ultimate Yes: 35th Anniversary Collection is a compilation album by the English progressive rock band Yes. It was originally released on 2 CDs on 28 July 2003 by Warner Music in the United Kingdom. A 3 CD edition with additional material, including new recordings from October 2003, was released in the US on 27 January 2004 by Rhino Records.
Essentially Yes is a box set by progressive rock band Yes. It was released in 2006 by Eagle Records. It contains five discs, four of which are previously released studio albums; Talk, Open Your Eyes, The Ladder, and Magnification. The fifth disc is a single CD version of what was later released as the 2-CD live album Live at Montreux 2003.
Igor Petrovich Khoroshev is a Russian keyboardist, composer, and producer best known for being a member of progressive rock band Yes from 1997 to 2000.
Greatest Hits Live is a bootleg live album of British progressive rock band Yes.
House of Yes: Live from House of Blues is a live album and video by the English progressive rock band Yes, released on 25 September 2000 by Eagle Records in the United Kingdom and by Beyond Music in the United States. It is a recording of the band's performance at the House of Blues at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas on 31 October 1999 during their world tour supporting their eighteenth studio album The Ladder. By the time of the album's release, guitarist Billy Sherwood and keyboardist Igor Khoroshev were already out of the band, reducing Yes to a four-piece.
Fly from Here is the twentieth studio album by the English progressive rock band Yes. It was released on 22 June 2011 by Frontiers Records, and is their only album featuring lead vocalist Benoît David and keyboardist Oliver Wakeman. Its ten-year gap from Magnification (2001) marks the longest between two studio albums to date. Yes reformed in 2008 after a four-year hiatus with a line-up of David, Wakeman, bassist Chris Squire, guitarist Steve Howe, and drummer Alan White. The band prepared material to record for Fly from Here during breaks in touring in 2010 and 2011, during which they enlisted former Yes frontman Trevor Horn as producer. After songs contributed by Wakeman were scrapped in favour of expanding the song "We Can Fly" into a 24-minute six-part "Fly from Here" suite, the band replaced him with former Yes keyboardist Geoff Downes as he co-wrote much of the new material.
"Fly from Here" is a set of songs by progressive rock band Yes from their 2011 album Fly from Here and its 2018 remixed edition Fly from Here – Return Trip. With a complete length of 23 minutes and 49 seconds, the original version of "Fly from Here" is the longest composition ever released by Yes, beating "The Solution" by two seconds, while the Return Trip re-recording is 21 minutes and 31 seconds long.
Heaven & Earth is the twenty-first studio album by the English progressive rock band Yes. It was released on 16 July 2014 on Frontiers Records and is the first album with lead vocalist Jon Davison and the final album to feature founding bassist Chris Squire before his death in 2015. The group started preparing new material for an album during the 2013 leg of their Album Series Tour. Davison took an active approach with the songwriting, travelling to the homes of the other band members to collaborate on songs. Yes enlisted producer Roy Thomas Baker and future Yes bassist Billy Sherwood to complete the mixing.
From a Page is a mini-album by the English progressive rock band Yes, released on 25 October 2019 by Yes Records. It contains four previously unreleased tracks originally recorded by the 2008–2011 line-up of the group and intended for release on an album, but ultimately weren't included on Fly from Here. During this time, the lineup included bassist Chris Squire, guitarist Steve Howe, drummer Alan White, singer Benoît David, and keyboardist Oliver Wakeman. Wakeman, who wrote most of the material on From a Page, was inspired to release it following Squire's death in 2015.
The Quest is the twenty-second studio album by English progressive rock band Yes, released on 1 October 2021 by InsideOut Music and Sony Music. It is their first studio album featuring Billy Sherwood since The Ladder (1999), replacing bassist Chris Squire following his death in 2015, and their first album without any original members. It is also their first album since Talk (1994) to be produced by only one member, namely guitarist Steve Howe, and their last studio album to be released before the death of drummer Alan White in 2022.
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