The Moody Blues
The Moody Blues are an English rock band that formed in Birmingham during May 1964. Among their innovations was the fusion of rock with classical music, most notably on their 1967 album Days Of Future Passed. As of 2019 they are still active, with one member remaining from the original formation and two from the classic 1967-1978 line-up.The group was initially made up of vocalist/guitarist Denny Laine, bass player Clint Warwick, keyboardist Mike Pinder, flautist Ray Thomas and drummer Graeme Edge. Although the 1965 single "Go Now" became a #1 hit, their subsequent debut The Magnific ...read more
The Moody Blues are an English rock band that formed in Birmingham during May 1964. Among their innovations was the fusion of rock with classical music, most notably on their 1967 album Days Of Future Passed. As of 2019 they are still active, with one member remaining from the original formation and two from the classic 1967-1978 line-up.The group was initially made up of vocalist/guitarist Denny Laine, bass player Clint Warwick, keyboardist Mike Pinder, flautist Ray Thomas and drummer Graeme Edge. Although the 1965 single "Go Now" became a #1 hit, their subsequent debut The Magnificent Moodies failed to reach similar success, and Laine and Warwick left a year later. In late 1966, Justin Hayward and John Lodge took up their empty positions. Both assumed the role of main songwriter, and it was during this time that The Moody Blues were transformed from mainly a covers band into a unique combination of classical, symphonic, progressive and psychedelic rock.Although they continued recording under their original name, Days Of Future Passed is often considered a complete re-start (perhaps especially by the group itself, which later reflected this in the titles for Seventh Sojourn and Octave, technically their eighth and ninth albums). The singles "Nights in White Satin" and "Tuesday Afternoon" renewed the quintet’s popularity, and have since remained among their most recognizable songs.While the music on their second LP featured a full orchestra, subsequent recordings were performed entirely by the band on a wide variety of instruments, including the mellotron. Between 1967 and 1972, they brought out seven multi-million selling studio albums and embarked on several worldwide tours. After a hiatus of five years, during which most members spent time working on solo and duo projects, the band reformed and released Octave. Mike Pinder left the band soon after the record had been completed, and was replaced by Patrick Moraz, formerly of Yes.Seven further studio albums have followed to varying degrees of success, the most recent being December in 2003. Moraz departed in 1991, after which the group has never included a full-time keyboardist. Ray Thomas eventually retired in 2002, reducing The Moody Blues to the trio of Edge, Lodge and Hayward.Original member Ray Thomas passed away in January of 2018, just a few months before the band was inducted into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. « hide |
