The Moody Blues - Collected

Artist:

Moody Blues (The)

UPC:

602498464663

See Also:

Hayward, Justin (Vocals/Guitar) Kinks (The) Moraz, Patrick

Description:

This is the Moody Blues installment in Universal Music`s Collected series. The 54 selections span the band`s nearly 40-year career -- from early British Invasion-era songs through to the 2003 seasonal offering December. The original lineup hailed from Birmingham, England, and featured Ray Thomas (harmonica/vocals), Mike Pinder (keyboards/vocals), Denny Laine (vocals/guitar), Graeme Edge (drums), and Clint Warwick (bass/vocals). They had a massive worldwide smash with a remake of Bessie Banks` "Go Now" in early 1965. However, they suffered from the inability to provide a suitable follow-up, despite the undeniable groove heard on the blue-eyed soulful "From the Bottom of My Heart (I Love You)." Ultimately, Warwick and then Laine exited, replaced by John Lodge (bass/vocals) and Justin Hayward (guitar/vocals). They continued with minimal notice, even as Hayward immediately unleashed the pre-psychedelia pop of "Fly Me High" and "Cities," or the slightly more esoteric "Love and Beauty" and "A Simple Game." It wasn`t until the combo hedged their bets and turned in the rock-meets-symphonic masterpiece Days of Future Passed (1967) that the Moodies were able to truly define their sound. Collected serves up key material from the "classic seven" long-players Days of Future Passed, In Search of the Lost Chord (1968), On the Threshold of a Dream (1969), To Our Children`s Children`s Children (1969), A Question of Balance (1970), Every Good Boy Deserves Favour (1971), and Seventh Sojourn (1972). There are likewise cuts from several solo and offshoot albums. Most notably, the Hayward/Lodge effort Blue Jays (1972) ("Blue Guitar" and "Remember Me [My Friend]"), Hayward`s excellent solo album Songwriter (1977) ("Raised on Love"), and Lodge`s criminally underrated Natural Avenue (1977) ("Carry Me"). The late-`70s re-formation with Octave (1978), "Forever Autumn" from Jeff Wayne`s War of the Worlds (1978), and Hayward`s Night Flight (1980) LP -- with the hard to find "It`s Not On" -- are also covered. The Moodies in the `80s were able to rack up even more MOR rockers such as "The Voice," "Gemini Dream," "Your Wildest Dreams," "I Know You`re Out There Somewhere," and "Say It with Love." While die-hard enthusiasts might have the odd personal favorite left off, thanks to recent remastering and a better than average tune stack, Collected (2007) is decidedly more desirable an overview than most other available Moodies anthologies. ~ Lindsay Planer

Album Information

Release Date:

03/27/2007

Type:

Performer

Genre:

Rock & Pop

Subgenre:

Art Rock

Label:

Universal International

Catalog Number:

6466

Original Release Year:

2007

# of Discs:

3

SPARS Coding:

DDD

Studio/Live:

Studio

Mono/Stereo:

Stereo

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