Legendary artist Roger Dean’s original artwork for iconic album ‘Fragile’ by British band YES to be offered at Auction

The original image known, seen and loved by millions now available to a worldwide audience

Original 1971 album cover artwork for the iconic British band Yes’ landmark album Fragile by legendary British artist Roger Dean Estimate £75,000 ($100,000) and a starting bid of (£37,500) ($50,000). Imaged by Heritage Auctions, HA.com

View the online auction now at: Heritage Auctions

An extraordinary piece of British music and art history is set to go under the hammer at Heritage Auctions, as the original 1971 album cover artwork for the iconic British band YES’ landmark album “Fragile”, created by legendary British artist Roger Dean, is offered for sale after being lost for more than 50 years and subsequently recovered.

With the album title “Fragile” already chosen, YES had initially considered a literal interpretation of fragility, but Dean proposed something far more ambitious, a creation myth about a child who dreams that their planet is breaking apart and builds a space ark to carry its fragments in search of a new home. Rather than illustrating fragility literally, Dean sought to wrap the concept around an entire world, creating a fantastical vision of a fractured planet populated with miniature landscapes and bonsai trees.

Dean created the work in watercolour, gouache, spray paint, pencil and collage. The resulting image launched a celebrated creative partnership that would help define YES’ visual identity for decades, spanning subsequent album covers, the band’s distinctive logo and stage designs.

During the 1970s the original painting was stolen from Dean’s Brighton art studio and it remained missing for decades. Its whereabouts remained a complete mystery, only finally coming to light out of the blue, following an approach from a collector in 2021. After efforts to secure its return proved unsuccessful, Dean reported the matter to police and engaged Art Recovery International. The organisation, led by founder Christopher A Marinello, subsequently negotiated the artwork’s return under a confidential settlement agreement and in September 2026, the painting was reunited with Dean for the first time in more than half a century. Now bearing the artist’s signature on the reverse, the remarkable work will be offered in Heritage Auctions’ Entertainment & Music Memorabilia Signature Auction on December 2nd, 2026, with an estimate of £75,000 ($100,000) and a starting bid of £37,500 ($50,000).

The sale marks the first time an original album cover painting from Dean’s celebrated 1970s collaboration with YES has ever come to auction, offering collectors a rare opportunity to acquire the work that helped establish the visual identity of one of Britain’s most influential progressive rock bands. Speaking about seeing the painting again after so many years, Dean said: “I was very excited and curious, I wondered how I would feel, would I immediately and unquestionably recognise it? Of course I did but there were changes, it was half a century since I last saw it and of course it was that much older […] I was very excited and thought it looked like it should, magical really.”

A creation myth that helped define progressive rock

Released in the UK in November 1971, “Fragile” marked a pivotal moment in YES’ career. The band’s fourth studio album was its first to feature keyboardist Rick Wakeman and the beginning of a creative partnership with Dean that would help define YES’ visual identity for decades, spanning album sleeves, its distinctive logo and stage designs. The album reached the UK Top 10 and peaked at number four on the US Billboard album chart. Its extraordinary success helped propel YES towards international prominence, while Dean’s fantastical imagery became inseparable from the band’s expansive, otherworldly sound.

Interestingly Dean explains that he developed the concept for the album cover with his brother. He explains: “It started with a story that my brother and I had written, a creation myth that was based on a miniature planet, where a child has a dream that their world will break up and they have to build an Ark to take family and friends with the fragments of the planet on a quest to find a new world a new home planet.”

He continues: “This is not the destruction of the planet but an evolution, the Ark will lead the fragments ‘spores’ to seed the new world.” The image of a fractured planet, surrounded by floating landmasses and fantastical landscapes, became one of the defining visual statements of progressive rock. Dean’s work captured the album’s title in a strikingly imaginative way, transforming the idea of fragility into a story of renewal and survival. “I wanted to do something that took the idea of fragility and wrapped it around the world, which would be very relevant in these days,” Dean has said of the concept.

The painting itself reveals further details of the artist’s creative process. Measuring 17.5 by 17.5 inches, it was created using watercolour, gouache, spray paint, pencil and collage. The globe at its centre is a collaged element attached to the board, while the spaceship seen on the finished album cover was added during the production process and does not appear in the original painting. Dean also offered a fascinating insight into the miniature world depicted on the planet, explaining: “I loved the idea of all those bonsai trees, miniature trees in the miniature world.”

The reunion with the artwork all these years later revealed another intriguing detail, on the reverse of the painting was an earlier attempt at the composition. Dean suggested that this side may originally have been intended as the front, with the ghostly outline of a planet visible beneath the surface, before he decided to start again on the opposite side. Following its recovery, Dean signed the reverse in blue watercolour crayon and silver ink, adding a personal postscript to the artwork’s extraordinary history.

A landmark work returns to the art market

For Heritage Auctions, the opportunity to offer the painting represents a significant moment in the collecting history of music memorabilia. Sarahjane Blum, Director of Illustration Art at Heritage Auctions in New York, said: “This is an exceptional piece of music history, not simply because it is the original artwork behind one of the most recognisable album covers of the progressive rock era, but because of the extraordinary story of its disappearance, recovery and reunion with Roger Dean. His imagery helped give YES a visual identity that was as distinctive and ambitious as its music. To have the original painting offered for the first time after more than 50 years missing is an incredibly exciting prospect for collectors and a landmark moment for original album artwork.”

The work’s recovery was made possible through the efforts of Christopher A Marinello, founder of Art Recovery International, who worked to secure its return to Dean. He commented: “Recovering a work of this cultural significance after more than 50 years is a remarkable outcome. The painting’s disappearance left a significant gap in the history of Roger Dean’s work and reuniting it with its creator was an important step in bringing that chapter to a close. Its return is a reminder that even after decades, the provenance of a missing artwork can be investigated and its rightful ownership addressed.”

The artwork’s journey from Dean’s studio to its rediscovery adds a compelling dimension to its artistic and historical importance. For more than half a century, the original painting was absent while its image circulated around the world on record sleeves and in the collective imagination of music fans.

Today, Dean’s influence extends well beyond YES. His distinctive visual language has appeared across album covers, logos, stage designs and video games, including work associated with Asia, Virgin Records, Psygnosis and Tetris. His ability to create fantastical landscapes that feel both organic and otherworldly has made his work instantly recognisable across generations.

The original “Fragile” painting now offers collectors the opportunity to own the physical work behind an image seen and loved by millions, as well as a rare surviving record of the creative process behind one of progressive rock’s most enduring collaborations.

View the online auction now at: Heritage Auctions

Fragile

Here’s a fun and often surprising fact regarding Roger Dean and Fragile — he did not hear the music before pitching YES his ideas or showing them any designs. He did, however, listen to the first three YES albums before getting to work, focusing predominantly on The YES Album. The YES/Roger Dean partnership was serendipitous, almost to the point of being supernatural — Dean created vistas that matched YES’ lyrics and instrumental majesty as if conceived by one mind.

Few marriages of sound and vision are as perfectly suited as YES and Roger Dean — it was like they grabbed the same shooting star simultaneously. The iconic YES logo was still an album away, but Fragile established a cosmic vibe forever associated with YES while laying a crucial foundation for two future YES narratives. The planet fragments would become the central visual themes of Yessongs — one of the most visually arresting and innovative triple live-album packages ever — and make an encore appearance on the jacket of their follow-up live album, Yesshows. The Fragile spaceship returns on Jon Anderson’s 1975 debut solo LP, Olias Of Sunhillow, albeit in a slightly different guise.

Roger’s inspiration for Fragile was not a vision of destruction but of possibility—the planet fragments represent the potential of new worlds and new life. While the detailed, expanded narrative of the celestial diaspora wasn’t fully formed yet, its origins are here. And while there’s rarely a direct graphic link in Dean’s visual representation of YES music, there’s a quasi-mystical reflectiveness that seems accurate even if it’s unexplainable.

Text by Syd Schwartz from the Deluxe Edition of Fragile

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YES Release Digital Deluxe Version of ‘Aurora’ with New Video for ‘Ariadne’

YES, who is Steve Howe, Geoff Downes, Jon Davison, Billy Sherwood & Jay Schellen, released their 24th studio album ‘Aurora’ earlier this year via InsideOutMusic/Sony Music. Now, the band are pleased to launch a deluxe digital edition, including instrumentals of the full album. As well as this, a brand-new video for the track ‘Ariadne’ is being released, once again produced by Matt Hutchings. Watch the new video below:

Jon Davison: “‘Ariadne’ was one of those songs that seemed to reveal itself as we were writing it. I’ve been captivated by Greek mythology since I was a child, so there was something particularly exciting for me about exploring the story of Ariadne through music. There’s a wonderful sense of mystery and discovery in the song, and that’s what I love most about it. I’m really proud of what we created together, and I hope people feel that same sense of discovery and wonder when they hear it.”

Stream & download the deluxe version of ‘Aurora’ here: https://yes-band.lnk.to/Aurora-Deluxe

‘Aurora’ is available physically as a Limited Deluxe 180g Light Green 2LP+2CD+Blu-ray Artbook & Poster, as well as a Ltd Deluxe 2CD+Blu-ray Artbook, both featuring the stunning artwork of Roger Dean and Freyja Dean, as well as a bonus disc of instrumentals, and a blu-ray featuring Dolby Atmos, 5.1 Surround Sound & 24bit stereo mixes (by Curtis Schwartz). The album is also available as a Gatefold 180g 2LP + LP-booklet, Special Edition CD Digipak & as Digital Album. Order here.

When YES first began sketching out ideas for what would become ‘Aurora’, the process was loose and exploratory. There was no preconceived concept at the start, just a collection of musical fragments that gradually began to find one another and take form. Among these early sketches was a piece titled “Aurora,” and it quickly became clear that the name carried certain gravity. It suggested light, emergence, and a sense of vastness, qualities that resonated deeply with the band. Jon Davison remembers how “the title immediately resonated with Steve Howe and sparked visual inspiration for artist Roger Dean, setting a conceptual tone that would guide the project.”

Work on ‘Aurora’ began almost as soon as the ‘Classic Tales of YES’ tour ended in 2024. The idea of a new album surfaced quickly and with the label’s encouragement, the band had the time to develop material organically. Rather than gathering in a single studio for months, they embraced a modern workflow; ideas were born in home studios, shaped independently, and then woven together through constant collaboration. Downes and Howe often acted as the central creative axis, with Howe, as producer, serving as the point through which all ideas eventually flowed.

Across ‘Aurora’, each track carries its own character. Some echo the classic YES approach, others push into new territory, but together they form a cohesive whole that honours the band’s heritage while embracing forward motion. With their 24th studio album, Yes demonstrate not just longevity, but a sustained curiosity, a desire to keep exploring, keep refining and keep discovering their capacity to create.

The post YES Release Digital Deluxe Version of ‘Aurora’ with New Video for ‘Ariadne’ appeared first on Yesworld.

Keys To Ascension: The Studio Recordings

Complete studio recordings from both ‘Keys To Ascension’ albums, on vinyl for the very first time.

Spirit Of Unicorn Music and Cherry Red Records are proud to announce the release of ‘Keys To Ascension: The Studio Recordings’, a new collection bringing together every studio recording from YES‘ two original ‘Keys To Ascension‘ albums. The set will be available on 29th January 2027 as a gatefold double vinyl edition, a limited yellow double vinyl edition (available exclusively at the Official YES Store), and a studio CD edition. It marks the first time these recordings have ever appeared on vinyl.

‘Keys To Ascension’ was originally released in two volumes, in 1996 and 1997. Both albums combined new studio material with a live concert split across the two releases. The recordings took place in San Luis Obispo, California, in 1996/97, where the reunited band also played three live shows in March 1996.

The sessions hold a special place in the YES story. They were the first studio recordings from the classic quintet of Jon Anderson, Steve Howe, Chris Squire, Alan White and Rick Wakeman since ‘Tormato‘ in 1978, and they would also prove to be the last from that celebrated line-up.

This new 2LP set compiles all seven studio tracks from both original albums, approximately 75 minutes of music. Among them are the expansive epics ‘Be The One’ and ‘That, That Is’, along with ‘Mind Drive’, ‘Foot Prints’ and ‘Children Of The Light’.

This new release includes brand new material from Roger Dean, the artist synonymous with YES for many decades, who together with designer Michael Inns have completely refreshed the artwork. The compelling package is completed with new liner notes from Prog magazine’s Jerry Ewing and is an essential addition for YES fans old and new. 

Tracklist

1. Foot Prints
2. Be The One (The One / Humankind / Skates)
3. Mind Drive
4. Bring Me To The Power
5. Sign Language
6. That, That Is (Togetherness / Crossfire / The Giving Things / That Is / All In All / How Did Heaven Begin / Agree To Agree)
7. Children Of The Light (Children Of Light / Lifeline)

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Out September 18, 2026

Mercury Studios commemorates the 25th anniversary of YES‘ 2001 album Magnification with a dynamic half-speed remaster, available September 18. Combining the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame band’s signature progressive rock sound with sweeping symphonic arrangements, Magnification will be released on vinyl for the first time as a 2LP set, alongside a limited-edition 500-unit cassette release available in the U.S. and U.K.

Originally released in September 2001, Magnification is YES‘ 19th studio album and the first recorded as a four-piece, featuring the classic core lineup of Jon Anderson (lead vocals, MIDI guitar), Chris Squire (bass, backing vocals, lead vocals on “Can You Imagine”), Steve Howe (acoustic, electric & pedal steel guitars, backing vocals), and Alan White (drums, piano, backing vocals). There was no dedicated keyboard player on the sessions, and perhaps the harmonic freedom this provided inspired an adventurous musicality that harkened back to the band’s early days.

Compositions such as “Dreamtime” and “In the Presence Of” feature extended instrumental sections, while songs including “Can You Imagine” and “Time Is Time” reflect Yes’s post-1980s pop sensibility. Seamlessly woven throughout the album are ambitious orchestral arrangements performed by the San Diego Symphony Orchestra under the direction of three-time Emmy Award-winning film composer Larry Groupé. Magnification marked only the second time YES had recorded with a full orchestra, following 1970’s Time and a Word. The band supported the album with its acclaimed Yessymphonic Tour, where songs including the “Magnification,” “Don’t Go,” and “In the Presence Of” were brought to life with a full orchestra onstage.

Magnification also represents a pivotal chapter in the band’s history. Keyboardist Igor Khoroshev had departed the previous year, Rick Wakeman would return to the band in 2002, and Magnification ultimately became founding member Jon Anderson’s final studio album with YES.

This anniversary edition of Magnification was cut to lacquer at half-speed and pressed on two 180-gram LPs to deliver a highly detailed playback. The intensive half-speed remastering process brings forth high frequencies, expands dynamic range, and improves stereo imaging and detail. The Magnification album art was a departure for Yes as they opted to work with Bob Cesca instead of longtime creative collaborator Roger Dean. The remaster’s double gatefold package features a newly designed LP-exclusive cover by Bob Cesca and new art based on his original 2001 packaging illustrations.

TRACK LISTING

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Alan White Documentary Enters New Development Phase with UK Partner Indy Studios

New UK development partnership marks a major next step for the Alan White documentary, with the project moving toward a UK-led production path.

One Take LLC has officially entered into a development partnership with UK-based Indy Studios on the feature documentary in development about the life, legacy, and music of legendary drummer Alan White.

The partnership marks a significant new chapter for the film, which has grown from the foundation of the 2022 Alan White tribute concert at Seattle’s Paramount Theatre and years of work around archival gathering, interviews, and story development. With Indy Studios now on board, the documentary moves into a focused new phase as the team works toward a UK-led production model and a broader international strategy for the film.

The documentary is intended as more than a music film. It will trace Alan White’s remarkable journey from post-war County Durham to the global stage through his work with John Lennon, George Harrison, and YES, while also exploring the steadiness, humility, and humanity that made him such a singular figure in music history.

“This is a meaningful step forward for the film,” said Michael McMorrow, Producer and Executive Producer. “Alan’s story has always deserved a thoughtful, ambitious, and properly structured path forward. Bringing Indy Studios into the fold gives us the right creative and strategic partnership in the UK as we shape the next chapter.”

Gigi White, Executive Producer, added: “We’ve been very intentional about finding the right people to help carry this story forward. There’s a real sense of alignment here, both creatively and personally, and that matters.”

The partnership strengthens the documentary’s UK ties at a crucial moment in its development, with an eye toward editorial shaping, production planning, funding strategy, and long-term positioning within the UK and international documentary landscape.

“As a production company with a long history in documentary and factual-entertainment, this is exactly the kind of story we feel compelled to tell,” said Pete Campion, Co-Founder of Indy Studios. “We share deep connections to Alan’s Homeland in North East England, so it is a real honour to be involved in a project celebrating one of the region’s most remarkable cultural figures. Alan’s story is not only about musical excellence; it is about humility, determination, and positivity. We believe those qualities have never been more relevant, and we are proud to help share his legacy with audiences, old and new, around the world.”

Further updates on the documentary will be announced in the coming months.

Contact: Michael McMorrow/ Email: michael@onetakellc.com

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YES Live At Roosevelt Stadium, Jersey City, 17 June 1976

Full Concert Featuring Relayer Lineup Marks 50th Anniversary With Official Debut Arriving July 17

New Studio Album, Aurora Available June 12.

YES celebrates the 50th anniversary of one of its most storied performances on July 17 with Live At Roosevelt Stadium, Jersey City, 17 June 1976. The live album’s first official release arrives on the heels of the band’s new studio album, Aurora, debuting on June 12.

2CD and 3LP versions of Live At Roosevelt Stadium are available to pre-order HERE. Rhino.com is offering an exclusive vinyl LP edition (limited to 500) that includes a 12×12 lithograph of of new original album artwork by Roger Dean. A special Spirit of ’76 vinyl edition will also be available at select independent retailers with an insert. The album will also be available to download and stream.

On June 17, 1976, the formidable Relayer lineup of YES — Jon Anderson, Steve Howe, Chris Squire, Alan White, and Patrick Moraz — performed in front of a capacity crowd at Roosevelt Stadium in Jersey City, NJ. The quintet was captured mid-tour during a live broadcast on New York’s WNEW-FM. While the performance has remained one of the band’s most popular bootlegs for decades, this release marks its first official appearance.

The recording finds the band at a creative peak during the “Solo Albums Tour.” Following the success of Relayer (1974), the members spent 1975 recording five individual solo projects; this 1976 tour was the first time these new arrangements were integrated into the live set. The performance balances full-band epics like “The Gates Of Delirium” and “Ritual” with staples like “Siberian Khatru” and “Heart Of The Sunrise.” The set also features rare individual spotlights for Anderson’s ethereal selections from Olias of Sunhillow and Moraz’s rhythmic explorations from The Story of I, alongside Howe’s acoustic signature, “Clap.” The performance concludes with a rare rendition of “I’m Down,” a high-energy classic originally by The Beatles.

Ahead of the full release, the live version of “Roundabout” is out digitally today.

LIVE AT ROOSEVELT STADIUM, JERSEY CITY, 17 JUNE 1976

2CD Track Listing

3LP Track Listing

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YES, who is Steve Howe, Geoff Downes, Jon Davison, Billy Sherwood & Jay Schellen, are proud to announce their 24th studio album ‘Aurora’ will be released on the 12th June 2026 via InsideOutMusic/Sony Music.

Steve Howe: “Making this record was joyful, a chance to play, explore and give everything to the music. It’s always been about collaboration, somebody can write a song, but until everybody puts their contribution in it isn’t really a YES song. We’re not trying to echo the past; we’re carrying the spirit of YES forward and turning it into something new”.

Now the band are extremely pleased to launch the new single ‘Turnaround Situation’, accompanied by a visualizer created by Matt Hutchings (who also made the video for ‘Aurora’). Watch it now below:

Jon Davison: “‘Turnaround Situation’ came from realizing that every time I ignored my conscience, life seemed to fall apart in one way or another. I’ve taken the wrong road before. Most people have. There’s always a temporary thrill in it, but eventually it catches up with you.

The strange thing is, the right road is usually the harder one. It demands more from you. But in the end, it gives something back too: clarity, self-respect, and a kind of inner freedom. I think that’s what everyone’s really chasing underneath it all.”

Watch the previously released video for ‘Aurora’

 
‘Aurora’ will be available as a Limited Deluxe 180g Light Green 2LP+2CD+Blu-ray Artbook & Poster, as well as a Ltd Deluxe 2CD+Blu-ray Artbook, both featuring the stunning artwork of Roger Dean and Freya Dean, as well as a bonus disc of instrumentals, and a blu-ray featuring Dolby Atmos, 5.1 Surround Sound & 24bit stereo mixes (by Curtis Schwartz). The album is also available as a Gatefold 180g 2LP + LP-booklet, Special Edition CD Digipak & as Digital Album.

Available exclusively in the band’s official store: Aurora 2xLP on grape-colored vinyl, housed in a gatefold sleeve. Includes a numbered certificate of authenticity. Strictly limited to 500 copies worldwide. Visit the store now to shop this release, additional variants, and exclusive merchandise.

Aurora Tracklisting

1. Aurora (07:27)
2. Turnaround Situation (05:50)
3. Love Lies Dreaming (06:24)
4. Countermovement (13:48)
5. Ariadne (06:18)
6. All Hands on Deck (03:04)
7. Outside the Box (04:20)
8. Emotional Intelligence (03:30)
9. Jambustin’ (Bonus Track) (04:24)
10. Watching the River Roll (Bonus Track) (04:42)

When YES first began sketching out ideas for what would become ‘Aurora’, the process was loose and exploratory. There was no preconceived concept at the start, just a collection of musical fragments that gradually began to find one another and take form. Among these early sketches was a piece titled “Aurora,” and it quickly became clear that the name carried certain gravity. It suggested light, emergence, and a sense of vastness, qualities that resonated deeply with the band.

Jon Davison: “The title immediately resonated with Steve Howe and sparked visual inspiration for artist Roger Dean, setting a conceptual tone that would guide the project.”

Work on ‘Aurora’ began almost as soon as the ‘Classic Tales of YES’ tour ended in 2024. The idea of a new album surfaced quickly and with the label’s encouragement, the band had the time to develop material organically. Rather than gathering in a single studio for months, they embraced a modern workflow; ideas were born in home studios, shaped independently, and then woven together through constant collaboration. Downes and Howe often acted as the central creative axis, with Howe, as producer, serving as the point through which all ideas eventually flowed.

Across ‘Aurora’, each track carries its own character. Some echo the classic YES approach, others push into new territory, but together they form a cohesive whole that honours the band’s heritage while embracing forward motion. With their 24th studio album, YES demonstrate not just longevity, but a sustained curiosity, a desire to keep exploring, keep refining and keep discovering their
capacity to create.

The post Turnaround Situation appeared first on Yesworld.

YES announce 24th studio album ‘Aurora’

YES, who is Steve Howe, Geoff Downes, Jon Davison, Billy Sherwood & Jay Schellen, are proud to announce their 24th studio album ‘Aurora’ will be released on the 12th June 2026 via InsideOutMusic/Sony Music.

Steve Howe: “Making this record was joyful, a chance to play, explore and give everything to the music. It’s always been about collaboration, somebody can write a song, but until everybody puts their contribution in it isn’t really a YES song. We’re not trying to echo the past; we’re carrying the spirit of YES forward and turning it into something new.”

The band are also launching the first single from the album, and you can watch the beautiful animated video for the title track, created by Matt Hutchings (Greg Lake, Oasis, Iron Maiden).

 
‘Aurora’ will be available as a Limited Deluxe 180g Light Green 2LP+2CD+Blu-ray Artbook & Poster, as well as a Ltd Deluxe 2CD+Blu-ray Artbook, both featuring the stunning artwork of Roger Dean and Freya Dean, as well as a bonus disc of instrumentals, and a blu-ray featuring Dolby Atmos, 5.1 Surround Sound & 24bit stereo mixes (by Curtis Schwartz). The album is also available as a Gatefold 180g 2LP + LP-booklet, Special Edition CD Digipak & as Digital Album.

Available exclusively in the band’s official store: Aurora 2xLP on grape-colored vinyl, housed in a gatefold sleeve. Includes a numbered certificate of authenticity. Strictly limited to 500 copies worldwide. Visit the store now to shop this release, additional variants, and exclusive merchandise.

Aurora Tracklisting

1. Aurora (07:27)
2. Turnaround Situation (05:50)
3. Love Lies Dreaming (06:24)
4. Countermovement (13:48)
5. Ariadne (06:18)
6. All Hands on Deck (03:04)
7. Outside the Box (04:20)
8. Emotional Intelligence (03:30)
9. Jambustin’ (Bonus Track) (04:24)
10. Watching the River Roll (Bonus Track) (04:42)

When YES first began sketching out ideas for what would become ‘Aurora’, the process was loose and exploratory. There was no preconceived concept at the start, just a collection of musical fragments that gradually began to find one another and take form. Among these early sketches was a piece titled “Aurora,” and it quickly became clear that the name carried certain gravity. It suggested light, emergence, and a sense of vastness, qualities that resonated deeply with the band.

Jon Davison: “The title immediately resonated with Steve Howe and sparked visual inspiration for artist Roger Dean, setting a conceptual tone that would guide the project.”

Work on ‘Aurora’ began almost as soon as the ‘Classic Tales of YES’ tour ended in 2024. The idea of a new album surfaced quickly and with the label’s encouragement, the band had the time to develop material organically. Rather than gathering in a single studio for months, they embraced a modern workflow; ideas were born in home studios, shaped independently, and then woven together through constant collaboration. Downes and Howe often acted as the central creative axis, with Howe, as producer, serving as the point through which all ideas eventually flowed.

Across ‘Aurora’, each track carries its own character. Some echo the classic YES approach, others push into new territory, but together they form a cohesive whole that honours the band’s heritage while embracing forward motion. With their 24th studio album, YES demonstrate not just longevity, but a sustained curiosity, a desire to keep exploring, keep refining and keep discovering their
capacity to create.

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Expanded and Remastered edition of recordings from 2010 recording sessions available 2LP and a 2CD Deluxe Edition

In Stores April 24
Preorder Now: https://mercury-studios.lnk.to/eYQTpbMB

YES revisit their 2019 4 song mini-album From A Page with this expanded 15-track double album, featuring the original 4 songs alongside alternate takes & demos of songs written during these sessions, many of which would appear on the band’s subsequent album Fly From Here.

In 2010, after a last-minute show in Zacatecas, Mexico, the band (Chris Squire, Steve Howe, Alan White, Benoit David & Oliver Wakeman) met up in Phoenix, Arizona to begin writing for the next YES album. This two week session would bear fruit to the 4 released songs in addition to “Into the Storm”, “Hour of Need” & “The Man You Always Wanted Me To Be”, all of which would appear on the Fly From Here album featuring Geoff Downes after Wakeman departed during the recording sessions.

Overseen by Oliver Wakeman, and mixed and remastered by Karl Groom, this expanded and remastered edition of From A Page incorporates the original 4 songs, along with alternate keyboard versions of 3 songs from Fly From Here, featuring Oliver Wakeman’s keyboard parts from the original writing sessions replacing the keyboard parts added by Geoff. Disc 1 also features the studio version of the Chris Squire-written song “Aliens”, which was played during the 2008 ‘In The Present’ tour, to create the album which was envisioned prior to Trevor Horns arrival.

Disc 2 includes demo versions of many of the songs, including “Updraft”, which became the basis for the ‘Army of Angels’ section of “Into The Storm”, “Don’t Take No For An Answer”, which was not on the original album but worked on during the sessions, along with an acoustic alternative version of “Words on a Page” and the single mix of “To The Moment”, which was previously only available on the original vinyl.

From A Page will be available as a 2CD box set and 2LP. Featuring artwork from Roger Dean, the box set includes 2CDs, booklet with expanded liner notes by Oliver Wakeman, a fold out poster and 5 art cards, packaged in a clamshell box. The double LP features the audio pressed on two 180-gram, half speed mastered vinyl, packaged in a gatefold sleeve showcasing the majestic artwork Roger Dean designed for this album.

From A Page Tracklistings

Oliver Wakeman has scheduled UK & European performances in 2026 for his “From A Page Tour”, in which he will be performing YES and selected solo works. Find out more at: https://www.oliverwakeman.co.uk/concerts

UK April 2026 – “The From A Page” Tour

(An evening of YES and original works)

UK & European November 2026 – “The From A Page” Tour

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The Fragile Tour 2026

YES Receive Stunnning Reviews from USA leg of the FRAGILE tour, which they bring to the UK in April and May 2026.

“YES, quite possibly the most important Prog Rock originators and granddaddies of the genre, delivered deep cuts and their groundbreaking classic album, “Fragile,” in its glorious, delightfully indulgent, layered, and ambitious grandiosity tonight.” – Sonic Nation, 11/10/25

“Prog-rock stalwarts YES took the stage…bringing new energy to their classic sound.” – Danielle Modica, NYS Music, 10/9/25

“Truly prog rock at its finest, if I do say so myself. They’ve still got the groove, the intensity, and the mythicality that established them as such a unique act over 50 years ago.” – Rock DNA Magazine – 5 stars – 5/10/25

Progressive Rock legends, YES, recently returned from the USA where they performed 31 shows on their Fragile Tour across the country. They hit the road in the UK once more for a 9-date trek across the country starting on 22nd April at the Royal Concert Hall in Glasgow and ending with a two-night run at the prestigious Palladium in London on 3rd and 4th May.

The tour will see YES performing their 1971 classic album, ‘Fragile’, in its entirety, including such timeless songs as ‘Heart of the Sunrise’, ‘South Side of the Sky’ and the much loved ‘Roundabout’ as well as a selection of songs from right across their illustrious catalogue from their legendary 70`s releases right up to their current album, ‘Mirror To the Sky.’

‘Fragile’ was the fourth album by YES cracking the Top 10 in the UK in 1971 achieving Platinum status along the way and was the first to feature keyboardist Rick Wakeman. The single, ‘Roundabout’ was a Top 20 hit in the States with the album breaking into the Top 5 on the Billboard chart receiving a Double Platinum certification in the process.

Steve Howe: “After The Yes Album, everything seemed to align. With Eddie Offord co-producing, and each of us contributing solo pieces, Fragile became a bold statement of creativity. It was Bill Bruford’s idea to include individual showcases — it was a bit oddball, but it captured the spirit of the time.”

Each show will feature a gallery of work by esteemed artist, Roger Dean, whose paintings have graced the covers of many of YES albums over the years. ‘Fragile’ was the first YES album to feature Dean`s iconic artwork.

The current line-up of YES features Steve Howe, whose association with YES began in 1970, along with Geoff Downes, a member of the 1980 ‘Drama’ era line-up. Jon Davison has been lead vocalist in YES since 2012 while bassist, Billy Sherwood, who was hand-picked by original bassist Chris Squire, has been involved with YES since 1990’s. Jay Schellen, who worked closely with Alan White on drums, completes the line-up.

Steve Howe: “We’re all looking forward to the UK dates and will be presenting an intriguing first set then all of ‘Fragile’, in its entirety then a slight diversion before our usual final encore. See you all then”

Tickets are on sale now at yesworld.com/live

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