As mentioned before, following the release of Fly From Here, vocalist Benoit David was forced to leave the band due to medical issues and was replaced by Jon Davison, who remains the Yes vocalist to this day.
However, in 2018, the mix was totally shaken up with the release of Fly From Here: Return Trip. While the initial 2011 release of Fly From Here featured Benoit David, who did a hell of a job, the album really was Trevor Horn’s baby. Half of the album was based on material that he wrote, some of which he sang with Yes during his time in the band, and the album bears his production stamp. Despite the “No Jon No Yes” detractors, the album was an artistic triumph.
So when, in 2018, this revised and re-edited version of the album appeared, bearing the subtitle, “Return Trip”, I was intrigued. Horn went back in and trimmed down a lot of the title suite (which initially took up the whole of side one), as well as the rest of the album.
He also completely wiped Benoit David from the album and replaced the vocals with his own. And, the thing is, it was a totally legit move. This is his project and, more importantly, this effectively reunited the Drama lineup and further validated that short-lived iteration. There is no reason why this should not exist.
Except that it was a massive dick move. I mean, one of the shittiest things a band has ever done to an ex-member. Now, while it’s always great to hear songs sung by the composer, Benoit did an amazing job on the original album, and his performance is by far the superior of the two. Adding salt to the wound, Benoit was even airbrushed out of the band photo inside the gatefold. Were it not for the eventual release of From A Page, we may never remember that poor Benoit helped to save Yes and was stellar throughout his tenure.
Not that Horn does a bad job. He is great. Some of the edits in the suite are pretty slick while others make little sense. His mix of the “Sad Night At The Airfield” completely recasts that song as a more ethereal experience and is really cool, despite being inferior to the original. Elsewhere, the fat is trimmed, and there are a few shifts in arrangement here and there. Around three minutes are cut, in total. I don’t think this really improves the piece, but I always appreciate alternative perspectives.
This truncation allowed for Squire’s lovely “The Man You Always Wanted Me To Be”, to close the first side, rather than open the second. With the extended, jammy outro, this change is fitting.
This also allows the dark, cinematic “Life On A Film Set” to open side two. This is another piece that is derived from an old Buggles demo, and is one that really benefits from Trevor Horn singing.
Steve Howe’s “Hour Of Need”, which appeared on Fly From Here as a very pretty, folk-pop song, is given an extended intro and outro on this restored full-length mix. This definitely changes the song, as does Horn’s voice behind Howe’s. It is far cooler, though it’s totally understandable why it was edited to begin with. This outro jam is bangin’.
This leads to Howe’s solo instrumental, “Solitaire”, which is a really cool piece with a nice little chug that, on the original album, would lead right into the epic “Into The Storm”, to close out the album.
On the Return Trip, however, this leads into a previously unheard song, ironically titled “Don’t Take No For An Answer”. Written and sung by Steve Howe, there is no question as to why this was cut from the original album. It is, however, one more chance to hear a Yes song with Chris Squire’s bass, and I always appreciate that.
Fortunately this ends and we get “Into The Storm” to close out the album. This sounds really great, especially the Horn/Squire blend. Is it better than the original? No, that would be impossible. Is it on par? Perhaps.
The most noticeable difference between these two versions of this album is in the production. The original release was mixed and mastered much louder, or at least it was much hotter, crisper. Return Trip, however, is more refined. The drums are not as up front as before (but nowhere near as distant as on Heaven & Earth). The overall vibe is mellower than the original but everything still sounds incredible.
While I love the fact that this exists, simply so that there is an official follow-up to Drama (one of my favorite albums ever), it does not compare to the original. Trevor Horn is a good singer but, honestly, Benoit David does a better Trevor Horn than the man himself. There was a lot more vocal muscle on the original.
What irks me is that this was originally intended to be an alternate view of this album but it ended up supplanting it instead. The original is out of print, and it’s not streaming anywhere, and that is a bummer. There is plenty of room in this world (and my collection) for both albums. The more Yes, the merrier.
Benoit David deserves more.
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