"Cinema" is an
instrumental
An instrumental is a recording normally without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through semantic widening, a broader sense of the word song may refer to instru ...
by the
progressive rock
Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog; sometimes conflated with art rock) is a broad genre of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom and United States through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early 1970s. Init ...
band
Yes, from their 1983 album, ''
90125''. In
1985 it won the
Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance
The Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance was an honor presented to recording artists for quality instrumental rock performances at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Award ...
, the band's only Grammy.
History
The 1980 incarnation of Yes included
Trevor Horn
Trevor Charles Horn (born 15 July 1949) is an English music producer, label and recording studio owner, musician and composer. He is best known for his production work in the 1980s, and for being one half of the new wave band The Buggles (wit ...
,
Geoff Downes,
Steve Howe
Stephen James Howe (born 8 April 1947) is an English musician, best known as the guitarist in the progressive rock band Yes across three stints since 1970. Born in Holloway, North London, Howe developed an interest in the guitar and began to le ...
,
Chris Squire
Christopher Russell Edward Squire (4March 1948 – 27June 2015) was an English musician, singer and songwriter best known as the bassist and backing vocalist of the progressive rock band Yes. He was the longest-serving original member, having r ...
and
Alan White. When this group split up following the tour for the album ''
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has been ...
'', Squire and White joined forces with singer and guitarist
Trevor Rabin
Trevor Charles Rabin (; born ) is a South African rock musician and composer. Born into a musical family and raised in Johannesburg, Rabin took up the piano and guitar at an early age and became a session musician, playing and producing with a va ...
. The three were eventually joined by former Yes member
Tony Kaye, and the four began writing and recording demos under the band name "
Cinema
Cinema may refer to:
Film
* Cinematography, the art of motion-picture photography
* Film or movie, a series of still images that create the illusion of a moving image
** Film industry, the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking
...
".
Chris Squire played some of the band Cinema's recordings with former Yes lead singer
Jon Anderson, who expressed interest in participating in the project. With four out of the five having been Yes members, it was decided to change the name of the band from Cinema to Yes. The title of the instrumental track "Cinema" is therefore an acknowledgement of the four-piece band that co-wrote and performed it, before Anderson joined and the band was renamed Yes.
"Cinema" developed from a twenty-minute-long track with the working title "Time".
At just over two minutes in length, "Cinema" is the shortest track on ''90125'',
and one of the shortest tracks Yes has recorded. Although the band had recorded short tracks before, they were well known in the 1970s
for entire albums of lengthy songs, such as 1973's ''
Tales from Topographic Oceans
''Tales from Topographic Oceans'' is the sixth studio album by English progressive rock band Yes, released on 7 December 1973 by Atlantic Records. It is their first studio album to feature drummer Alan White, who had replaced Bill Bruford in t ...
'', which has four songs, none shorter than 18 minutes.
"Cinema" is one of two songs on ''90125'' (the other being "
Leave It
Leave may refer to:
* Permission (disambiguation)
** Permitted absence from work
*** Leave of absence, a period of time that one is to be away from one's primary job while maintaining the status of employee
*** Annual leave, allowance of time aw ...
") that does not list Anderson as a co-writer.
Live performances
In the ''
9012Live'' concert video, "Cinema" was the first song played, preceding "Leave It" as it does on ''90125''.
In later years, Yes would follow "Cinema" with "
Owner of a Lonely Heart
"Owner of a Lonely Heart" is a song by British progressive rock band Yes. It is the first track and single from their eleventh studio album, '' 90125'' (1983), and was released in October 1983. Written primarily by guitarist and singer Trevor ...
" instead, as seen in the ''
House of Yes: Live from House of Blues'' video concert.
In 2004, current and former Yes members Squire, White, Rabin, Howe, and Downes united to perform "Cinema" and "Owner of a Lonely Heart" at the
Prince's Trust
The Prince's Trust ( cy, Ymddiriedolaeth y Tywysog) is a charity in the United Kingdom founded in 1976 by King Charles III (then Prince of Wales) to help vulnerable young people get their lives on track. It supports 11-to-30-year-olds who are u ...
concert honouring
Trevor Horn
Trevor Charles Horn (born 15 July 1949) is an English music producer, label and recording studio owner, musician and composer. He is best known for his production work in the 1980s, and for being one half of the new wave band The Buggles (wit ...
.
References
{{Authority control
Yes (band) songs
Song recordings produced by Trevor Horn
1980s instrumentals
Songs written by Trevor Rabin
Songs written by Chris Squire
Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance
Rock instrumentals