Rick Wakeman success allowed Wakeman to buy a new home in Gerrards Cross and start a collection of cars, which he rented out through his new business, the Fragile Carriage Company. In late 1971, Wakeman played two notable piano sessions, on "It Ain't Easy" on Bowie's album "The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars" and on "Orange" by Al Stewart. In the 1972 "Melody Maker" readers' poll, Wakeman ranked second in the Top Keyboardist category behind Keith Emerson. That year, Yes followed "Fragile" with "Close to the Edge". It became their best selling album since their formation
The Six Wives of Henry VIII (album) dedicated for Henry himself, but Wakeman had recorded the tracks on the wives first and used up the available space on a vinyl record. He decided to leave the Henry track and rename the album accordingly. When the album was finished, its final production cost had reached around £25,000. Wakeman described working on it as "difficult and cumbersome", but said the project was eventually a rewarding one. He was excited when it came to presenting the album to A&M management at their London office, which included a lawyer who represented the label's US division. After the album was played in