It’s worth remembering that between the release of 1971’s Fragile and 1974’s Relayer, Yes had steadily risen from plucky progressive rock hopefuls to become bona fide superstars, selling millions of albums around the globe and effortlessly filling arenas around North America and Europe.
With relationships souring due to clashing egos and the financial imperative to keep the cash-cow rolling, the idea of enabling every band member to record a solo album could be viewed either as a cunning managerial sleight of hand, designed to let off some creative steam outside of the parent band – or a collective act of hubris. This being Yes, the answer is likely to be both of the above.
