Roger Dean: Relayer

Mark and Josh say:
What can I say. There are people in the world like me and there are people in the universe like Roger.

Darth Vader says:
To all you Vader-haters out there, we'll blow your planet up!!! Seriously, you folks need to take a chill pill. All the biblical allegories, snake symbolisms, and vaginal walls could just be secondary to what the man was trying to do - make something cool! So relax, and just see the painting for what is really is - A PICTURE!

David M. says:
All these years later, Relayer, for me, holds up the best of all the classic Yes albums. Someone referred to it as
"violent" and I'd have to agree with that assessment. I hear Stravinsky in some passages and Coltrane's meditations in others.
The image does indeed convey the spirit and tone of the music extremely well. The pallette Mr. Dean used is right on the money. And how *does* he make everything look so old? Thanks for the opportunity to comment on the piece.
It's a favorite album cover for sure.

carlos says:
This is trully my favorite album artwork of all times. I hope you print commercial posters of it someday.

keith says:
I would just like to echo Wendy's comments.
As a schoolboy I persuaded my mother and father to buy me VIEWS for my Christmas. It has been one of the greatest inspirations on my artwork. Now, as the big four oh draws nearer, I too have decided to go to art college part-time, and study for a degree. (Not before time and fullfilling a burning, lifetime's ambition).
Thankyou for VIEWS, your continuing work, and the INSPIRATION you give to all us budding artists. Keep up the great work.

Frank Johnson says:
A MAYBE FUTURISTIC VEIW FROM GATES PASS, TUCSON,AZ. THE BARREN DESERT WASTELAND!

chryssanthy from Greece says:
Giant mushroom like corrased rocks, fantastic colours& synthesis plus great music from Yes (after fragile)
just splendit mix.

Jose E. Gonzalez says:
I've been a Yes fan since the very first time I listened to "The Yes Album". Roger's art has a way of opening
up new visions and places in the mind that are just on the verge of consciousness. It's inspiring and gives
me hope that we are not alone, that there is a spirit of triumph and perseverance in every human being. Has anyone ever seen the cover of Hawkwind's "Warrior on the Edge of Time"? It's reminiscent of that. A lone being left to search for the truth of existence and inner resolve to live beyond all endurance.

Andy Ritson says:
This piece takes me back to my schooldays. Back then I always aspired to be "Roger Dean".
...I'm now a professional artist, and really it's all thanks to the great inspirer. I owe you a debt of gratitude too large to ever be paid back.
AndyR

Juanjo P- says:
Relayer...the strength for peace

DAVID MUÑOZ (CIUDAD REAL) ESPAÑA says:
INCONMENSURABLE. PERFECTO. MARAVILLOSO. LLENO DE VIDA. ERES DE ESTE PLANETA, ROGER? SI ES ASI....GRACIAS DIOS POR DARNOS A SEMEJANTE SER LLENO DE LUZ Y PODER TRASMITIRNOS TU VIDA.

Gabriela says:
A beleza de Relayer transmite na imagem a emoção da música, a expressão e a imaginação que viaja ao som dela.

jia bin he says:
it's the best in yes cd coverv..
one of my favorites too

Gabor and Noemi say:
(father-49 and daughter-20)
Gyonyoru, es felemelo!
Csakugy, mint a zene, amihez muvet adta a muvesz.
Koszonjuk Yes es Roger Dean!
Wonderful and soul-lifting! Just like the music itself to which the artist have given his art.
We thank you Yes and Roger Dean!
Gabor and Noemi.

Peter Pour says:
Totaly the Best.Great symbiosys between,Music and Artwork.Roger,you´re the Best!

Steve Winkler says:
I have to tell you that your artwork on the cover of Relayer, is hands down, the greatest and most succesful attempt ever, to depict a song on canvas. ("The Gates of Delirium") ...Being a firm believer in God and the Bible, I also see this as a depiction of how life on earth in ancient times, was radically changed after the fall of man. This scene clearly shows the effects of the curse which came upon mankind as a result of Adam's treason towards God in siding with the serpent, satan. (Genesis Chapter 3) Man, being driven out of the beautiful garden of eden, is now at war with satan as represented by the serpent. Man has now become a hunter & a warrior as the effects of the curse of sin have ravaged the world. There is no greenery anywhere in this painting; the rugged granite landscape with it's high walls seems to express not only how hard and difficult life has become but also suggest a barrier between heaven and earth, and ultimately between God & man. But God has not forsaken mankind. The fact that God has provided a refuge within the Granite walls (see cave in scene/inside cover) and continues to sustain life, gives mankind hope for the future. The tension between the serpent in the painting and the warriors riding off to battle, once again, is reminicent of Genesis Chapter III. God declares the war that now exists between man and the serpent (serpent represents satan) will only be ultimately won when the Messiah "crushes the head of the serpent". The warriors are not acutally fighting a physical snake, or a demonic winged fly-creature (other illustration inside cover) but who it represents, baalzebub. (lit. lord of the flies) They are riding off to defend their people from those who under satanic influence, would seek to destroy them and the promised deliverer yet to come. ...What a masterpiece!

Gabby says:
This particular piece means a lot to me because I did a reproduction of a section of it for art class. It rocks!!!! I wouldn't have gotten the ideas I have if it wweren't for Roger....
Thanks!

Doug Norton says
I have this print from the Rock Art Collection framed and matted hanging on my wall. The accompanying book gives a brief history of each piece from the artists. You were at the University of Delaware at a signing and I got you to sign both of your books and the book that came with the print. It has remained one of my favorite works done by you and it always catches my eye and holds it there for a while. I especially liked the water droplets in the sky that were left by the rain from an open window. It adds a bit of dimensionality to it. Thanks for making such great works of art.

Wendy says:
Roger, I was first attracted to your art at the age of 12 when at school. I remember all I wanted to do was to spend every waking hour looking through 'Views' when it was first published and found its way to our art room - at the same time as I was lost for ideas as to where to take my creative urge. All my life I've been painting and drawing - and working in an office! Only now at the age of, well, almost when 'life begins' have I decided to go to university and study for a Fine Art degree. I feel that you are, and always have been, my greatest influence. I am very keen on diversity of colour and note this is the case with a lot of your work, although this painting really goes against this statement - but it shows in more graphic detail, the infinite beauty that you are able to recreate and the combination of reality with fantasy. I really can't express what I feel when I look at one of your paintings. Awe, I think is the word I'm looking for. Anyway, I'm definitely visiting your exhibition at Cork Street in November - I can't wait to see some of your originals! Oh and another thing; by way of your paintings, I have become a great fan of all things 'progressive' in terms of music - in fact, I only ever paint with that genre in the background (and the occasional 'Nature Sounds' depending on what I happen to be painting at the time...)
Once again, many, many thanks for all you've ever done. I'm sure I echo a lot of people's sentiments when I say without your imaginitive work around, a lot of past, present and indeed future fantasy artists, and possibly any other kind, would not be painting today. Thanks for the influence!

Scott Huber-Canada says:
My introduction to Yes and your artwork was through Relayer, still my favorite Yes work, and album cover. Your transcendent artwork fulfills the music as without it the music itself would not be complete. I always await your new album covers and other work, as I am sure many others do too. I want to thank you, Mr. Dean, you are the invisible yet integral other member of Yes.

Carolina says:
What i like most from this image is that it really is telling a story...Those knights with their horses, where are they going?, it seems that someone is watchig over them. What is that gargantuan snake doind there, is it a guardian? who is the people living in those alien like houses, and how can they get up there? and what is more important-how did Mr Dean got those amazing textures?

Samir says:
Roger Dean's images evoke alien spaces and other worlds that have lit up a part of my mind since childhood. they influence my thinking and my art. mr. dean, you have fans in india and I'm right up along the front row. thank you

Gerard van Steenoven says:
Beautiful painting wich need the poem of Donald Lehmkuhl to be complete,for me it`s a two in one experience. Like much of the Yes music i think especiale the music of this album will be the classic music of the future. Thanks to the Master of Images, all Yes members from the future and the past. Peace for everybody, Gerard.

James Green says:
I have long been a fan of your art and some of my most prized possessions have not only been your posters but also many record albums featuring your art including albums from Yes, Asia, and a relatively unknown band called Budgie. The Relayer art is one of my favorites and I hope that you will one day decide to add this art as a poster for sale on your website.

Bene e Lidia says:
Roger, we believe in God, and we also believed that He gave many talents to the peace men. Congratulations for yours. Continue being that artist always. Hugs Bene and Lídia - Suzano - SP

Ted Chipps says:
Yes has always presented a rather otherworldly optimism that may indeed be ahead of it's time. Roger Dean's portrayal of worlds and planets are truly a visual representation of the images that the music so eloquently expresses. Kudos to Roger!!

Phil Sterett says:
Your comments here... W H I T E((((((((((()))))))))) Rogers use of "white" (well monochrome) was stunning to me, as the new album / brilliant cover art's release was a delightful surprise to me at the time. Cover looks like the music sounds. Wonderful chemistry. Artwork on shelf promised wonder on the inside....The moment was powerful and still crystal clear after all these years)))))(((((( Thank you so much Roger- Phil

Peter Ashekian says:
He truly transcends himself in various ways. The same thing is said about the creative genius we know as Jon Anderson.

Jon Wiggins says:
'Relayer' was always my favorite YES album, and the covers were always woven into the music to form a whole. Your images always sparked my imagination as I was growing up in a small Georgia town. Your art has enriched my life for many, many years. Thank you, Mr. Dean!

Stuart Dummit says:
Thank you so much for sharing your vision and talents with us over the years, and I look forward to more in the future. It amazes me that, especially in the case of the YES art you have done, that the images and the music can both stand independantly AND work together to amplify one another. I am also pleased that the new squared YES logo has been adopted, signifying a bold willingness and need to change without denying the past. I must state that of all the art and design work I've seen, the RELAYER package is truly amazing! I would truly love to see photos, drawings, etc. of the stage designs from the mid seventies...if only to serve as historical documentation and inspiration. Thank you again!

THE BEARMAN aka COSMIC ROCKS says:
I did an airbrush of your relayer on my van, and I never received so many complements. I spent $3000 on the paint,because your work is worth every penny.YOU ARE THE GREATEST ROGER. DON"T EVER LAY THAT PEN DOWN!!!!!!
ROCK ON, THE BEARMAN

Bill Langan says:
This and Topographic Oceans are two of my favorite paintings of yours (I'll save my comments for the latter in the next category). I had read you painted this 8 years before the Relayer album (how fitting the cover for the sidelong epic "The Gates of Dellirium"). The soldiers on horses look almost medieval Europe. The crystal-white canyons look like those that can be seen in the Southwestern United States. When looking at the Relayer album cover, the snakes don't stand out as much as they do when looking at the entire picture as a whole (it's like looking at a different version almost). Those are all my comments for this superb painting. Thanks for doing a great job and God bless you.

Tham Bahadur Limbu says:
Hello to you, I never seen such a fantistic art before like this before, its just like a master pieces to me. I'm also greatly inspire by you're work and like to paint like this. I'm from Nepal, kathmandu city. "Have you seen before big snake like this before?"If you do you will faint infront. In Nepal there are bigest snakes. I'm very afraid of snake but your snake is so nice and humble to me. I like this album of YES very much. Thank you.

Mikey Ward says:
I used to trip my ass off to this album. Everytime I see those snakes I want to shake and wag my own fingers at myself and check for tracers, but seeing as there's usually one of my children around, I refrain. Still, it's nice to know my inner child's still alive. That's what the Relayer snakes do for me, just so you know. Talk about your gates of delirium. Have a nice day.

Pedro Oliveira says:
"Relayer" has always been one my favourite Yes albuns, no matter what the cynics may say. As an art form it is complete, for besides the music - otherworldly, dramatic and enligtheningly hopeful - it includes that superb poem by Donald Lemkhul (a description of Kali Yuga (the "dark age")? - and Roger Dean's painting, which not only expresses pictorially the intent of the music but also transports us to a world of adventure, soul struggle and the search for peace. Profound Pranams, Roger, to you and to your inspiring and soul-enhancing art.

Billy McGowan says:
This album cover is a feast for all lovers of greatness. I remember as a student purchasing it and taking the album to a session of music where we were amazed at the different approach to the music which was reflected in the cover. all blended into one, neither is complete without the other. both are superb but pieced together we have one of those rare moments when everything is as one. Soon oh soon ..... You were totally in tune here.... set into rhyme. Master of images ..God cast a light on you!

Cassie says:
Mr.Dean I am only young yet i feel deeply inspired by your work, I was introduced to your art through my friend and am greatful to her for telling me about it.I only wish to be able to create such marvellous artwork as you.The Relayer is my favourite piece of yours and I hope to browse and see many, many more. I wish you all the best.

AWG says:
I've always liked how the shading on the undersides of the rock outcropings (and elsewhere) look like a keyboard... especially in the upper right pillar over the soliders.

Gautama Moktan says:
This cover represents the best half of my life at probably the most happiest times . It is very nostalgic too. I got this by exchanging a very very expensive crystel fruit basket with my super rich girl (who did not know of roger dean or Yes).The girl is gone off to find better rich guys , but this album and Roger Dean stays with me forever. Iam now an accomplished artist , and it all started from Roger Dean who is my Master inspiration and encouragement . ithout him , I would not have any Art in my life . This painting is like the place I live in .

J Dub says:
RELAYER convinced me that Roger Dean was more than an album cover artist but an actual modern painter. To me the lyrics and the painting and their relationship aren't important -- this is a masterpiece on it's own. Submit: Submit

Ken Scott says:
My favorite album by Yes, musically and of course, visually. I always thought that this was the classiest looking cover that you did for them. Thank you for your talents!

Stephane Oillic says:
undoubtedly one of my favorite... darker, yet still magical... different from the previous covers (as was the album)... it still makes me dream...

lazarus says:
Without a doubt my favourite YES album cover of all time. Now if you could just do a painting inspired by my favourite piece of yes music, ie. "AWAKEN" I would be a truly happy YES fan

Vicki Berg says:
I was introduced to your work through my boyfriend who happens to be crazy about Jon Anderson. This past valentines day I bought him a lithograph of relayer and to make it even better it was signed by Jon Anderson. Needless to say he loved it.
Good Luck and Walk in the Light Roger Dean and all.

Celeste and Christine say:
We love you. We think you're gonna make it. No, scratch that. You HAVE made it! What exactly is it in your mind that compells you to create such wonderful pieces of art? Hmmmmmm? Do you dream about them before you create them? What materials do you use? How and where can we acquire your pieces? We live in Toronto, Canada and we would love to decorate our house Roger Dean style. Please advise.... Over. This message will self destruct in 10 seconds. Thank you, come again.

Luciano Ladeira says:
Roger..... Does the worlds you paint exist in anywhere (another plane of existence...?). My friend is an astral traveler and he said that once saw the city of "Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe" cover. I believe that landscapes like you paints can exist in a dimension of life that we almost touch, but we still can't see. A big embrace for you and thank you for make me dream on in your paintings! Luciano

William Surdi says:
Mr.Dean: Your Artwork for "YES",will be remembered for generations to come.God Bless.

Kim D. says:
I have to agree with Mr. Masson-Doubleday about the womb imagery in Roger's work. The cave walls are very much vaginal -- this isn't vulgar, it just demonstrates what I consider Mr. Deans strengths -- which is to comfort and confound. God love him.

David Rebok says:
Dear Mr. Dean, I've always loved your paintings, and the one for Relayer is a real gem. Your favorite among Yes album covers, it deserves comment. What I like most about your work is the attention to natural formation, such as in stones, arches, stalactites, and what have you, and how you maximize their beauty and their usage by man. This especially comes through in your drawings and models of houses. In the Relayer painting, we are given one of your many landscapes with roads carved out of and weaving through rather treacherous terrain, and the including of animals, in this case the two snakes. I think you must be a true lover of nature, for your imagination runs wild with organic flavor throughout your work. Frankly, I don't know how you do it. I never get tired of looking at them. My favorites, after more than 20 years of scrutiny, are Topographic Oceans and Relayer and the cover for McKendree Spring. I also love the Badger painting, though I confess that I wouldn't sleep well with them living in my basement! Thanks for keeping your vision alive and well.
Always admiring,
David Rebok

Paul Rogers says:
This was the first Yes album I actually bought after thrashing a friends copy of Yessongs for a year or so. The cover image, the Donald Lehmkuhl poem inside and most importantly, the music, all contributed to what I still consider my favorite album. Whilst some reviewers have described it as "steely grey" I find the compositions to be extremely warming. Frenetic too. In particular reference to the cover image. I always found it strange that Roger had chosen to put the primary focal spot of the composition (The snakes head) on the _back_ cover. I've often wondered if the image was meant to be the other way around but was mirrored to substantiate the line "horsemen rode into the west" from the poem.Maybe not. In western tradition we read top left to bottom right. A tradition that is reversed, of course, in Japan. Knowing Roger's admiration and affinity for things "eastern", did he *intentionally* flaunt the western tradition in this piece? I've always wanted to say thanks for this piece. What better way than comments on an official forum?

Jairo J. Drummond Camara says:
I saw that amazing painting for the first time in 75 (well, I bought the imported vinyl from a store in Rio, about a week to receive it in my city..), meddle of high school...and I could only say that the magic is still there today, this incredible marriage through ages, Dean and Yes.

Daniel Williamson says:
I'm a big fan of yours, I grew up up digging your original style and ideas, thanks for being an original!

Fred Mrozek says:
The giant serpents in the foreground dominate the landscape, while three riders on white horses prove that the serpents do not wholly rule the environment. This seems like a rather familiar biblical theme which goes so well with the lyrics on the album.
The geology, too, is clearly evolved from the seeds which fell to the water-covered, insipient earth on the Yessongs covers. (Yea, like the 40,000 feet of limestones just happened to sink at exactly the rate of deposition...) The second planet was terraformed partly from the remains of the first, life began and soon men appeared. (An astute observer notes the progression on several album covers...) The rubble at the foot of the massifs, and the general cirque-like contours testify to glacial epochs prior to the "present" of the painting.
This Relayer scene shows the balance of power between the "three men" and the "serpent" while the Album lyrics narrate the battle details and announce the victor: "The s"u"n will lead us, our reason to be here..." If the number of the riders alludes to the three-ness of the Biblical Trinity, anti-biblical persons will be greatly annoyed(*) to learn that, in the oldest Chinese pictographic characters (called radicals), the dominant symbol for God (Shang-Ti) depicts three mouths speaking the commands that seperate reservoirs of water above the earth from those on the earth. In other "God radicals", the same three mouths make other decrees, while the symbols for other familiar themes and concepts often integrate a figure of the serpent in exactly the same contexts and situations found in the first 11 chpaters of Genesis. (Sorry for the digression, but these Chinese pictographs could practically narrate some half dozen of these Roger Dean paintings... while agreeing with the album lyrics on numerous points too.)
The levitating stones of The Ladder are like prophecies of the future control that men, while in service to "Relayer", might one day weild over the natural world. (Only in "Dean Space" men don't subdue nature to build Malls. Men, by this time, aspire to an architecture where men live within nature and not above it.) The flying mountains of Ladder may also symbolize either the attainment of impossible goals generally, or the beginning of a new cycle of planet seeding, where the state of civilisation acheived in the "Ladder epoch" parallels that of the beings piloting the fish-vessels of Yessongs... beings who may have "sang together" at the foundation of the (Fragile) Earth.
Sooner or later, we must ask the question, how natural is the natural earth? Was it assembled from materials in our solar system... in order to make it a habitable biosphere. Is there evidence within our solar system of such "construction activity?" Who was the architect? Who were the laborers? Did they leave records of themselves in the roots of our oldest langauges? Did the head architect himself stop by in the middle of history for a visit? Did Yes name this album after Him? Is the parallel Biblical text for the interpretation of Roger Dean Yes cover art, within the 2nd Letter of Peter in Chapter Three? (Did Peter pick up this statement of solar-system-affairs from his close personal relationship with the Relayer Himself?) Doesn't TFTO's mention of the personage "Relayer" give additional clues? Isn't it neat how we can ask these questions till we are blue in the face while Roger (and Yes) stay(s) silent as a clam?
(*) Alot more annoyance too where that came from... and from diverse sources that, statistics being what they are, ought not agree with each other about such things.

Tony Warrington says :
I love this picture but cannot buy the poster anywhere.
Thanks for many years of great artwork,
TONY

Maurice Masson-Doubleday says:
The cover to RELAYER sets the tone for Yes' most violent album. The lurking snakes and advancing soldiers in the ever present vaginal walls are a true "gates of delirium" -- one of my favorites.

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