William Quincy Belle: Yes: Siberian Khatru

Friday, 3 June 2011

Yes: Siberian Khatru

Sing, bird of prey
Beauty begins at the foot of you, do you believe the manner?
Gold stainless nail
Torn through the distance of man as they regard the summit

Even Siberia goes through the motions, hold out and hold up
Hold down the window (outbound, river)
Hold out the morning that comes into view (bluetail, tailfly)
River running right on over my head

How does she sing?
Who holds the ring and ring and you will find me coming?
Cold reigning king
Hold all the secrets from you as they produce the movement

Even Siberia goes through the motions, hold out and hold up
Hold down the window (outbound, river)
Hold out the morning that comes into view (bluetail, tailfly)
River running right over the outboard, river
Bluetail, tailfly
Luther in time
Dood'ndoodit, dah, d't-d't-dah

Hold down the window
Hold out the morning that comes into view
Warm side, the tower
Green leaves reveal the heart spoken Khatru

Gold stainless nail
Torn through the distance of man as they regard the summit
Cold reigning king
Shelter the women that sing as they produce the movement
River running right on over
Then over my head outboard, river

Bluetail, tailfly
Luther in time
Suntower asking
Cover, lover
June cast, moon fast
As one changes
Heart gold, leaver
Soul mark, mover
Christian, changer
Called out, saviour
Moon gate, climber
Turn round, glider

References

Uploaded by dreamtrigger on Sep 19, 2008

Wikipedia: Siberian Khatru
"Siberian Khatru" is the third, shortest and final song of progressive rock band Yes album Close to the Edge. Live versions of the song are found on the Yessongs, Keys to Ascension, and Live at Montreux 2003 albums, and it also is on several compilation albums. It is notable for being the only song on Close to the Edge that is not a multi-part suite. However, Siberian Khatru contains several separate melodies, tones, and sections in the tradition of progressive rock. The live version on the 2-disc album set Yessongs is preceded by Igor Stravinsky's Firebird Suite and Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring is an acknowledged influence on the song itself, there the introduction.

Note: Even though Siberian Khatru is the only song on Close to the Edge without titled sections, it has more sections and is more musically diverse than the others on the album.

Structure
Siberian Khatru begins with an introductory guitar riff, after which the main instrumental theme (played by the keyboards) is introduced. The structure of this theme is a four-measure phrase consisting of three bars in common time (4/4) and the last bar in 3/4. This theme is repeated until the verse section begins. The lyrics start at about 1:05. The song progresses through various sections, featuring solos by Steve Howe and Rick Wakeman. There is a polyrhythmic section featuring the guitar, playing in a meter of 12, and bass and drums playing in a meter of 8. Jon Anderson begins singing seemingly random two-syllable words and phrases, which then becomes a Yes tradition. The conclusion is similar to the introduction, returning to the main instrumental theme with a guitar solo on top of it.

[I saw the group play live. A recording of the Firebird Suite would play as the members came out on stage to take their places. With the finale, Wakeman would start playing the mellotron seamlessly taking over from the Firebird then Howe would do the opening guitar riff for this song. There live recordings of this. Good mix of classical and progressive rock.]

Wikipedia: Close to the Edge (Yes album)
Close to the Edge is the fifth studio album by the English progressive rock band Yes. The album was released on Atlantic Records in September 1972. It reached #4 in the UK, and it reached #3 in the U.S. during a chart stay of 32 weeks. In the Netherlands it reached #1 on the Dutch album charts, and has been the only Yes album to do so.

Wikipedia: Yes (band)
Yes are an English progressive rock band formed in London in 1968, generally regarded as one of the archetypal bands and pioneers of the genre. Despite many lineup changes, occasional splits within the group, and the ever-changing trends in popular music, the band has continued for more than 40 years and still retains a large following. They have sold nearly 50 million albums. The band's music blends symphonic and other classical structures with their own brand of rock music.