Close to the Edge of Reason arrives on 25th July
There are concert films.
There are rock documentaries.
And then there’s Close to the Edge of Reason—a film that somehow manages to become both without really trying to be either.
For more than three years, filmmaker Robert Garofalo found himself travelling through the wonderfully unpredictable world of YES.
It began with the Full Circle Tour, continued through the band’s celebrated 35th Anniversary Tour, and somehow never really stopped. As members drifted in and out of the YES line-up, the cameras simply followed. Solo tours, rehearsals, recording sessions, television appearances, record store signings, airports, hotels, tour buses and dressing rooms gradually became part of everyday life.
Along the way came projects that few fans ever knew existed.
One production saw the classic YES line-up perform an intimate acoustic concert inside a Los Angeles studio, broadcast live by satellite to cinemas across America. Rick Wakeman’s solo tours took the cameras across Europe, throughout the UK and even to Cuba. Jon Anderson’s solo adventures led back to Los Angeles, where one particularly memorable moment saw him inexplicably walking backwards across the stage during a performance—a sequence that still raises a smile today and perfectly captures Jon’s wonderfully unique outlook on life.
None of this was planned.
Nobody set out to make a comedy.
But when you spend several years travelling with five of progressive rock’s greatest musicians, humour has a habit of finding you.
The original intention was simply to document one of rock’s most respected bands.
What emerged was something altogether more fascinating.
Rather than another history of YES or a traditional concert film, Close to the Edge of Reason quietly steps backstage and simply observes. No dramatic narration. No manufactured conflict. No celebrity talking heads explaining why the band mattered.
Just five remarkable musicians… being themselves.
Jon Anderson transforms everyday conversations into philosophical journeys through spirituality, universal consciousness and, occasionally, what may or may not have been discussions involving fairies. Rick Wakeman combines astonishing musical brilliance with an unwavering belief that capes remain a perfectly sensible wardrobe choice, while telling stories that somehow become even better every time you hear them. Steve Howe communicates more with a single guitar phrase than most people manage during an entire interview. Alan White watches the surrounding madness unfold with the calm expression of a man who has already seen every possible version of YES and quietly concluded that none of it is particularly surprising anymore. Then there’s Chris Squire—the band’s unofficial reality check—whose dry humour and perfectly timed one-liners repeatedly bring everyone gently back to Earth.
Around them, an experienced touring crew somehow keeps everything running while politely accepting that life inside the YES universe obeys its own peculiar laws. Airports become green rooms. Hotels become offices. Dressing rooms become comedy clubs. Tour buses become confessionals. Somewhere between the soundchecks and the sold-out concerts, ordinary life quietly disappears.
Perhaps that’s why the film feels so different.
It doesn’t try to explain the mythology.
It simply wanders into it with a camera.
Seen today, more than twenty years later, the footage has become something nobody expected—a genuine time capsule. Since filming ended, Chris Squire sadly passed away in 2015, followed by Alan White in 2022. Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman have both pursued new musical journeys, while Steve Howe continues to lead YES into its latest chapter.
Without ever intending to, Close to the Edge of Reason captured the final years of one of the band’s most celebrated line-ups before history had the chance to rewrite the story.
Perhaps the greatest compliment you can pay the film is this:
It never laughs at YES.
It simply laughs with them.
The result is affectionate, insightful, nostalgic and frequently hilarious—a backstage portrait that reminds us that even progressive rock legends spend a surprising amount of time trying to find dressing rooms, waiting for luggage, drinking tea, telling improbable stories and wondering where they’re supposed to be next.
Sometimes genius and glorious absurdity occupy exactly the same stage.
And nowhere is that more entertaining than in the remarkable universe of YES.
Available from 25th July
Close to the Edge of Reason is available as a Limited Collector’s Edition Blu-ray, strictly limited to 500 individually numbered copies worldwide, together with a Standard DVD and HD Streaming.
Every physical edition also includes FREE HD Streaming, allowing you to watch on Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Roku, Android TV, LG and Samsung Smart TVs, iPhone, iPad, Android devices, PC and Mac.
Pre-order now. Available 25th July. Your HD Streaming Access Code will be emailed separately before release.
