Yes - Live in Philadelphia
Recorded on videotape at the Philadelphia Spectrum on June 21, 1979,  this truncated Yes concert (running a mere 51 minutes, or roughly half the concert's actual length) finds the band during the summer leg of their "In the Round" tour, which was the last to feature the band's "classic" lineup of vocalist Jon Anderson, guitar wizard Steve Howe, bassist Chris Squire, drummer Alan White, and keyboardist Rick Wakeman. This is a valuable recording for Yes fans (yours truly saw the Seattle concert of this tour just a month before this Philly gig), but the image quality is definitely sub-standard and the sound mix is barely a notch above awful. Camera access was obviously limited, so the visuals grow rather tedious by the time the DVD reaches the fourth-track performance of "Starship Trooper," and one can only wonder why Alan White's synthesized drum solo was included at the expense of another full-length song. Fortunately this was a good night for the band, and as usual Steve Howe provides an amazing performance on his array of Gibson and Fender guitars. Of course, it all winds up with a closing performance of "Roundabout," and anyone who witnessed the '79 tour will be glad that this DVD--regardless of its marginal quality--was made available. All others may wish to stick to the higher fidelity of Yes's great music on CD.--Jeff Shannon