The Moody Blues, the #63 Artist of the Rock Era, Part One

"Timeless, classic music."

"Great, great band.  Quality always endures."

"This band is so talented.  These guys are among the best--way ahead of their contemporaries."

"In terms of innovation, harmonies, songwriting....only The Beatles would rate higher than The Moody Blues."

"The sheer beauty and intricacy of the music is incredible."

"Such melody, harmony and rhythm in gorgeous compositions."

"Perfection...I listen and my soul is soothed."

"The Moody Blues! A higher conscious experience!"

"You know,  instinctively, you are hearing music perfect in all senses!  God bless the Moody Blues."

"The Moody Blues' albums are such masterpieces."

"I adore the music of the Moody Blues!  So many instruments and the vocals are amazing!"

"This was the greatest most beautiful intelligent music to listen to as the soundtrack for our adolescence,"

It was nearly unanimously said about this next group that they were "years ahead of their time".  They were distinct in that they were equally adept at playing Rock & Roll as they were at performing tender ballads.  

They began on May 4, 1964, though they didn't come into prominence until several years later and ironically, two members who went on to become the leaders of the band were not with them originally.  Mike Pinder and Ray Thomas combined in Erdington, Warwickshire, England, a city near Birmingham, to form the Krew Cats.  They recruited guitarist and singer Denny Laine, drummer Graeme Edge (previously the group's manager) and bassist Clint Warwick and changed their name to the Moody Blues.  

They played in the Birmingham area and were the resident band at the Carlton Ballroom in Erdington.  The Moody Blues signed with the management company Ridgepride, who helped them sign a recording contract with Decca Records.  The group's first single, "Steal Your Heart Away", went nowhere.  

"Go Now" launched the band into the Top 10, hitting #1 in the U.K., #2 in Canada and #10 in both the U.S. and the Netherlands. 

The Moody Blues released an extended play of the four songs on both sides of their first two releases, and then released the album The Magnificent Moodies in 1965.  

But three successive single releases failed to continue the momentum.  In 1966, Warwick retired and Laine soon followed him out the door.  The Moodies continued by reforming with John Lodge, who had been in the group El Riot with Pinder and Thomas, and Justin Hayward.    
A few more unsuccessful singles followed, but what would become the trademark sounds of the group began to surface.  The Moodies began to emphasize the flute playing of Thomas and more of Pinder's Mellotron.

Although they hadn't enjoyed a lot of success, still hadn't released a second album and they owed the label several thousand pounds in advances, the group had a believer in Decca's A&R manager Hugh Mendl.  Mendl was behind the establishment of the Decca subsidiary label Deram Records, and was eager for an artist to record an album that would showcase the firm's new Deramic Stereo Sound.  

The idea of performing a symphony written by someone in house didn't work, but the Moody Blues convinced the label to let them work on a similar idea using their original material.  Label executives weren't sure what they had when the album was recorded, but in 1967, the Moodies released Days of Future Passed.  

The LP was one of the first concept albums based on everyman's day.  It highlighted Pinder's Mellotron and was accompanied by a collection of classical musicians from the Decca stable who played together under the fictitious name of the London Festival Orchestra.  Tony Clarke produced the album, and the parties involved were so happy with his work that he produced the group for the next 11 years.  

The Moodies released the single "Nights In White Satin", and the condensed version did not do it justice.  It did not even crack the Top 100 at the time.  

 

Days of Future Passed reached #27 on the British Album chart at the time.  More on it later.  The single "Tuesday Afternoon" stalled at #24 in the U.S. and didn't chart at all in the U.K., making it one of The Top Unknown/Underrated Songs of the Rock Era*.

 

The legendary album is best experienced from beginning to end, but we will highlight the top tracks. "Dawn Is A Feeling" might refer to the beauty of the world and the importance of appreciating what we have.

As Justin Hayward explains, the concept is of an ordinary day in the life of everyman, but it could just as well be interpreted as a lifetime.  This is "Peak Hour".

 

This composition leads into "Nights In White Satin" on the album. "The Sunset"/"Twilight Time".

 

The next year, the Moodies returned with the album In Search of the Lost Chord.  Another of many underrated songs by the group is "Ride My See-Saw", a peak of #61 from a company which refuses to see the importance of albums in its Single rankings.

 

One of the great tracks is "Legend Of A Mind", written in tribute to Timothy Leary, which features the flute work of Thomas.

 

The genius of Hayward and Lodge is that they could write and the Moodies could perform great rock & roll while also writing some of the great love songs of their generation.  This is "The Actor".

 

The group released another outstanding album in 1969, On the Threshold of a Dream.  One of the prime cuts on the album is "Lovely To See You".

 

Later in the year, the Moody Blues launched their own record label, Threshold and released the album To Our Children's Children's Children, another concept album inspired by the first U.S. moon landing.  "Gypsy (Of A Strange And Distant Time)" is an Top Track*.

 

We also want to feature another fan favorite, "Eternity Road".

 

Here is the haunting "Watching And Waiting".

 

Both parts of "Eyes Of A Child" are other highlights on the album.

 

By now, the Moodies had become known for their progressive rock, on full display on their 1970 album A Question of Balance.  The album went to #1 in the U.K. and #3 in the United States.  But with a peak of #21, the group was once again way ahead of their time with a song that ranks high among The Top Unknown/Underrated Songs of the Rock Era*.

"Dawning Is The Day" urges us to escape the trappings of the modern world.

 

The group was a huge hit at the Isle of Wight Festival.  The Moodies continued their hot streak with the album Every Good Boy Deserves Favour in 1971.  "The Story In Your Eyes" peaked at #23, another of The Top Unknown/Underrated Songs of the Rock Era*.

 

"You Can Never Go Home" is a song Hayward wrote about the death of his father.  It is inspired by the book You Can't Go Home by Thomas Wolfe.

 

The band released the album Seventh Sojourn in 1971, a #1 album in the United States, also characterized by the orchestral sound they had begun with Days of Future Passed.  "Isn't Life Strange" reached #9 in Canada.

 

The great song "I'm Just A Singer (In A Rock And Roll Band)" is yet another example of chart methodology unable to correctly ascertain the huge popularity of the group.  It stalled at #12, although it did reach #4 in Canada.

 

"For My Lady" is another of the group's solid ballads.

 

We also want to feature this tasty number, "You And Me".

Days of Future Passed received new life in 1972 and this time, it generated tremendous interest, reaching #3 on the U.S. Album chart.  "Nights In White Satin", largely ignored when originally released because of the decision to cut the length so it could be a single, became the biggest career hit by the Moody Blues, and ranks as one of The Top 500 Songs of the Rock Era*.

After an extensive world tour, the group took a hiatus from recording and performing, although they did oversee the completion of their compilation album This Is The Moody Blues, which went Gold.  During this time, Hayward and Lodge recorded an album together, Hayward released the first of several solo albums while Lodge also released a solo project, Pinder recorded a solo album and Edge produced two albums.

 

The group reunited for another studio album, although the Moodies had to work through internal tensions between the members.  Finally, the group completed the album Octave, released in 1978, but Pinder did not tour with the group.  Keyboardist Patrick Moraz, formerly with Yes, joined the Moody Blues on tour.  "The Day We Meet Again" is one of the best songs on the album.

The group toured the United States and Europe before working on their next album.  Moraz joined the group in the studio, but Pinder, who thought he was still in the Moodies for studio recordings, sued to stop the album.  He lost the lawsuit and never joined the group again.

 

In 1981, the Moody Blues made a big comeback with the album Long Distance Voyager, their first #1 album since Seventh Sojourn nine years before. The single "Gemini Dream" rose to #1 in Canada but only #12 in the United States, yet another underrated song.

 

"The Voice" is another of those underrated songs, peaking at #16.

 

The band scored a #9 hit, #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart, with "Your Wildest Dreams".

"Your Wildest Dreams" won a Billboard Award for Video of the Year.  

In 1983, the group released the album The Present, which yielded the #3 Mainstream Rock hit "Sitting At The Wheel".

 

In 1988, the group signed with Polydor Records and returned with the album Sur La Mer.  "I Know You're Out There Somewhere" hit #2 on the Mainstream Rock chart and #9 on the AC chart.

 

The group released the album The Present in 1983, which didn't come close to their previous album.  But the Moodies once again enjoyed success with their 1986 album The Other Side of Life, which reached #9 and sold over one million copies in the U.S.  "Candle Of Life".

The Moodies released the compilation The Story of the Moody Blues - Legend of a Band in 1990, followed by the superb box set Time Traveler in 1994.  Both went Gold.

In 1991, while working on a new album, Moraz was fired and replaced by Bias Boshell and Paul Bliss, who had been added to their live shows.  With that lineup, the Moody Blues released the album Keys of the Kingdom.

The group continued to do well on the road, and their concert at Red Rocks in Colorado was especially memorable, with a recording of the 1992 concert released on DVD.  The album was certified Gold.  

Bliss became a permanent fixture on stage until he was replaced in 2010.  After Edge was injured in 1991, Gordon Marshall was recruited and became a second drummer until 2015.  But none of the new musicians became official full-time members of the band.

The Moody Blues did not release another studio album until 1999 with Strange Times.  In 2000, they released a recording from their show at the Royal Albert Hall in London on both CD and DVD, called Hall of Fame.  This was the last tour for Boshell, with Bliss taking over from there.

In 2002, Thomas retired, and the remaining three members (Hayward, Lodge and Edge) recruited flautist and rhythm guitarist Norda Mullen for a North American tour.  Mullen continues to perform with the group to this day.

In 2003, the Moody Blues released the album December.  In 2007, the Hard Rock Park in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina featured a ride called "Nights in White Satin:  The Trip", which included the playing of the group's signature song with new orchestration.  The ride only lasted two years when the company was bought by new owners.

The group continued to tour regularly through 2010, the same year that producer Tony Clarke died.  The Moodies added keyboardist Alan Hewitt for their 2010 world tour.

In 2013, the Moody Blues released the compilation Timeless Flight.  They continued to tour through 2015 and appeared at the Glastonbury Festival in June of that year.

On January 4, 2018, Thomas died at the age of 76, shortly before the group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

The Moody Blues have influenced countless groups such as ELO, Genesis and Yes.

The band had 21 career hits with three reaching the Top 10.  Just as was the case with Joni Mitchell, AC/DC, Jackson Browne and others, hits don't tell the whole story.  They had eight hits on the Mainstream Rock chart, with four reaching the Top 10 and one #1, and that chart has been in existence for a fraction of the time the Moodies have been recording music.  If it had been, those numbers would easily triple or quadruple--sure, the band had its hits, even though many were underrated, but what drew millions of fans to them was their incredible albums.

The Moody Blues have sold over 70 million albums worldwide.  They are a member of the Vocal Group Hall of Fame.