Despite a good reputation as a live band and two positively received albums, Yes had not yet made the commercial breakthrough to a larger audience that other bands on the Atlantic label had already achieved

With the arrival of Steve Howe as guitarist, "The Yes Album" with a better concept of what could be done in the studio in collaboration with sound engineer and co-producer Eddie Offord and material that could be recorded with the same punch in the studio, managed to be the final step to conquer a larger audience both in Europe and America.