Relayer is the seventh studio album by the English progressive rock band Yes, released in the UK on 29 November 1974 and in the US on 5 December 1974 by Atlantic Records. Following the departure of keyboardist Rick Wakeman mid-tour due to creative frustrations surrounding the band's previous double album Tales from Topographic Oceans (1973), Yes rehearsed as a four-piece in Buckinghamshire before deciding to record at bassist Chris Squire's home studio in Virginia Water, Surrey. Co-produced by the band and long-time engineer Eddy Offord, they auditioned several musicians, including Vangelis, before recruiting Swiss keyboardist Patrick Moraz of Refugee. This remains the only studio release to feature Moraz on keyboards.
Musically, the album features a more aggressive direction that integrates elements of jazz fusion and funk into the band's core progressive rock style. Following the structural format of Close to the Edge (1972), Relayer consists of three tracks: the side-long epic "The Gates of Delirium" on side one, and "Sound Chaser" and "To Be Over" on side two. Frontman Jon Anderson drew structural and thematic inspiration for "The Gates of Delirium" from Leo Tolstoy's literary work War and Peace, culminating in a chaotic battle sequence that incorporated found objects like metal pieces and scrapped car parts as percussion, followed by a gentle, soothing prayer for peace that was later released as a standalone single, "Soon". The album's visual aesthetic is anchored by its gatefold cover artwork, a minimalist pencil and watercolour design by Roger Dean.
Relayer received a mixed-to-positive reception from contemporary critics, though retrospective reviews widely celebrate its adventurous technical complexity. The album achieved strong commercial success, peaking at No. 4 on the UK Albums Chart and No. 5 on the US Billboard 200. The single edit of "Soon" was released in January 1975, and the band supported the album with an extensive tour across North America and the United Kingdom before entering a year-long hiatus. Relayer has since achieved gold certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for selling over 500,000 copies in the United States, and has been subject to multiple expanded audio remasters, including stereo and 5.1 surround sound mixes produced by Steven Wilson in 2014. Despite plans by the band to revive the album live in its entirety for the first time since 1975, these retrospective tours were ultimately cancelled or postponed.
Background In April 1974, the Yes line-up of singer Jon Anderson, bassist Chris Squire, guitarist Steve Howe, keyboardist Rick Wakeman, and drummer Alan White concluded their five-month transatlantic tour in support of their previous album, Tales from Topographic Oceans (1973). The album had been a commercial success, reaching number one in the UK for two weeks and becoming the first to be certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry based solely on pre-orders. Despite this success, Wakeman grew increasingly frustrated with the musical direction of the double album and, following the final tour dates in May 1974, informed the band of his decision to leave. His exit was made public on 8 June 1974, coinciding with the instant commercial success of his second solo album, Journey to the Centre of the Earth, which had recently topped the UK charts.
Reduced to a four-piece, Yes retreated to Farmyard Studios, a rehearsal and recording facility owned by drummer Trevor Morais in Little Chalfont, Buckinghamshire, and worked on new songs. After some material had been arranged, auditions for a new keyboardist began and around eight players were invited, including Jean Roussel, Eddie Jobson, Nick Glennie-Smith, and Greek musician and composer Vangelis. Others were flown in from the US and Germany. Anderson was a fan of Vangelis and visited his Paris flat several months earlier when Yes were in town performing Tales from Topographic Oceans. Vangelis agreed to an audition and shipped his keyboards to the rehearsal studio, but the group discovered he was non-committal about the role and too strong a personality for a group. Atlantic Records vice president Phil Carson added that his fear of flying caused further complications, and a subsequent rejection from the Musicians Union ended the possibility of Vangelis joining the band. Melody Maker reporter Chris Welch suggested that the band try Patrick Moraz, a Swiss musician and film composer with a background in jazz and classical music, and a member of the progressive and jazz fusion trio Refugee. Within a week Moraz accepted an invitation from Brian Lane, the band's manager, to an audition. Moraz was a fan of the band and had met the original line-up in Switzerland in 1969.
Moraz arrived at Farmyard Studios in the first week of August 1974, and saw each band member arrive in his own expensive car. He said: "Coming from Refugee, where we had been walking three miles to and from our rehearsal place ... it was quite a contrast!" Vangelis's keyboards were still situated in the studio, and Moraz used them for his audition. After tuning up he played some parts to display his ability, including a short section of "And You and I" from Close to the Edge (1972), causing the band to stop talking and gather around him. Moraz's first task was to devise a section to complement what they had written for the middle section of "Sound Chaser". The band liked what he played, and on the following day, Lane informed Moraz that his audition was a success. Moraz accepted the offer, but felt some pressure to deliver, and drove from his flat in Earl's Court near central London to the studio each day to record and learn the band's repertoire.
Writing and recording Following the release of the 80-minute Tales from Topographic Oceans (1973), which featured a rigid musical structure, Anderson sought to explore "outrageously different" musical avenues on Relayer, and during this period, was influenced by the electronic music compositions of Karlheinz Stockhausen and Wings of the Delirious Demon (1972) by Turkish-American musician İlhan Mimaroğlu. Anderson recalled sharing a mutual desire with Moraz to create a "very modern" sound, though Anderson's further proposal that the band record completely unguided "free form music" was rejected by the other members as too radical.
Relayer shares the same structural framework as Close to the Edge (1972), comprising a single multi-part epic on side one and two shorter tracks on side two. Although the band composed two additional songs during the rehearsal period, they lacked the studio time required to record them; Anderson later described one of these unreleased tracks as highly intricate and complex. For most of his keyboard arrangements, Moraz relied entirely on his memory rather than transcribing his parts to paper, making exceptions only for particularly precise arrangements. Howe primarily played a 1955 Fender Telecaster for the album, marking a stylistic departure from the Gibson models he had favoured on previous releases; he also incorporated a pedal steel guitar and an electric sitar. Squire utilised a Fender Jazz Bass on "To Be Over", breaking away from his signature Rickenbacker 4001.
Following rehearsals at Farmyard Studios, the band decided to record Relayer at Squire's home, New Pipers, in Virginia Water, Surrey. Squire had purchased the property at Christmas 1972 and was converting the garage into a recording studio. This marked the first time Yes recorded an album outside of London; the location served as a cost-cutting measure that eliminated commercial studio fees and allowed the band more time to develop the music. They were joined by Eddy Offord, who had worked with the band since 1970 as their engineer, co-producer, and live sound mixer. Offord installed a 24-track recording machine and mixing desk that he had used with the band while on tour, which could be disassembled and stored in several flight cases. Genaro Rippo was enlisted as the tape operator. Relayer was the final Yes album with Offord before he left in mid-1975 to work with other artists. Though he later stated that his time with the band had become "a bit stale", he made brief returns during the recording of Drama (1980) and Union (1991). Recording sessions typically lasted eight or nine hours. Moraz wished Offord had been "a little less stoned" during the sessions, claiming it affected the album's production quality and ranking it inferior to Offord's work on Fragile (1971) and his albums with Emerson, Lake & Palmer. Mixing was completed at Advision Studios in London.
Songs Side one
"The Gates of Delirium" is a 21-minute track that Anderson described as "a war song, a battle scene, but it's not to explain war or denounce it ... There's a prelude, a charge, a victory tune, and peace at the end, with hope for the future." He originally planned to base the entire album on the literary work War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy, but instead opted for a side-long track inspired by its themes. Moraz recalled discussing the novel with Anderson, which prompted Moraz to present him with a copy of Délirius, a French science fiction graphic novel by Philippe Druillet. Moraz noted: "He related to it immediately so I think that perhaps as a title 'The Gates of Delirium' came from that".
The song originated from several short themes Anderson had amassed and played to the group on a piano; he was relieved when his bandmates understood his musical vision. Anderson and Howe tracked its structure by recording sections on cassette tapes, allowing the group to develop what was previously recorded while Anderson composed the subsequent parts. The track was recorded in sequential sections; though the group was familiar with the entire piece beforehand, they spent several weeks recording takes of each segment to select the strongest performances. Once chosen, these sections were edited together before overdubs were added.
The battle section features crashing sound effects created from metal pieces and used car parts that Anderson and White had collected from a scrap yard. After constructing a metal framework, the pair banged on the structure to produce heavy, percussive sounds, with White ultimately pushing over a tower of car parts to generate a massive crash. Howe recalled that Anderson became highly excited by his own vision for the battle sequence, which led the band to produce two distinct mixes: one that was "too far gone" and another that was "too safe". Following the battle's climax, the track concludes with a gentle melody that later became known as "Soon". Anderson stated that his lyrics for the section were addressed to God, asking Him to send light as a purpose for human existence. He later reflected that "The Gates of Delirium" did not translate as effectively on the studio recording, but noted that it fared significantly better when performed live in concert.
Side two "Sound Chaser" represents a radical stylistic departure for the band, containing heavy elements of jazz fusion and funk arrangements. Moraz was asked to devise an introduction to the song during his audition; his contribution was finalised after "one or two takes" and used on the final version. He considered his Moog synthesizer solo at the end a highlight of his performance on the album, but felt that the keyboards overall were buried in the final mix. Howe described the track as "an indescribable mixture of Patrick's jazzy keyboards and my weird sort of flamenco electric [guitar]"; however, he disliked the chords Moraz initially played during the guitar solo, prompting a change that Moraz ultimately disagreed with. Yes biographer Dan Hedges compared the track to the style of jazz fusion group Return to Forever.