Ultimate Yes: 35th Anniversary Collection
In its day, the British prog-rock band Yes's three-letter name was a  four-letter word to many diehard rock & roll fans. In time, though, its  musical hallmarks have become intrinsic to college radio, that arbiter of cool. Its epic instrumental suites foretold jam bands, and its rapturously twee vocals were echoed in later groups likethe Flaming Lipsandthe Polyphonic Spree. Packed into this three-CD set are tracks dating from Yes's origin as a uniquely virtuosic folk-rock act, coveringSimon & Garfunkel's "America" of all things, to its resurrection in the mid-1980s in the hands of producer Trevor Horn, who would later gain renown withArt of NoiseandFrankie Goes to Hollywood. In between are its cornerstone hits, the suite-like "I've Seen All Good People," "Long Distance Runaround," and "Yours Is No Disgrace." Inevitably, the later work, from the early 1990s on, fails to match the joy and rawness of the earlier recordings (sounds amplified thanks to remastering), but there are some new treats, including a spirited acoustic rendition of the band's signature "Roundabout."--Marc Weidenbaum