Age hasn't seemed to slow Steve Howe down. At 58, the Yes guitarist released two albums in 2005 – the excellently diverse Spectrum and now the third installment in his Homebrew series. Homebrew 3 targets longtime and/or hardcore fans by offering the roots of 21 songs from late-period Yes back to Anderson Bruford Wakeman and Howe, as well as GTR and his own solo material. It provides a sonic snapshot of the way Howe recorded original versions of "Solar Winds," "Turbulence" and "The Messenger" (once known as "From Door to Door") – often as he wrote them and before collaborations ensued. Some pieces, such as "No Deceiving" (which ended up as "Soft As A Dove" on Yes' Magnification), are strikingly different from their final form, while others, including "Never Say No" and "Between Your Smiles," are oddly familiar. Most interesting are the four pieces from Howe's GTR period, which conclude Homebrew 3. "Reaching Out," "The Last Word" and "Getting Through" reveal a heavier side of Howe's nimble-yet-fragile fretwork. "Outlawed," on the other hand, is one of only two collaborations on Homebrew 3 and stemmed from a writing session with GTR partner Steve Hackett. It recalls Howe's early solo material more than anything else.
Most of the songs (or, in some cases, just snippets) are short, and about a quarter of them feature Howe's strained and shaky singing. His liner notes, however, offer valuable insight into each piece, as well as details about what guitars he played and how specific songs evolved. The guitarist's writing tone is particularly edgy on "No Deceiving," which he originally intended to be an a cappella piece before his Yes bandmates got ahold of it. While his grammar could use some help – it's hard to believe InsideOut's usually diligent quality-control team didn't catch some of the errors – Howe's atmospheric photography that fills the CD booklet pleasantly accents the music and the Roger Dean-designed cover.
Track Listing:
1) Turbulence
2) Hint Hint
3) The Main Title
4) Just A Passing Phase
5) Suddenly
6) Kind of Friends
7) Pyramidology
8) In the Course of the Day
9) Family Tree
10) Solar Winds
11) In Your World
12) No Deceiving
13) From Door to Door
14) Cruise Control
15) It's Too Late
16) Seven Castles
17) Between Your Smiles
18) Reaching Out
19) The Last Word
20) Getting Through
21) Outlawed
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