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The Moody Blues
www.moodyblues.co.uk
CD Reviews
A Night at Red Rocks With the Colorado Symphony Orchestra
Review by Gary Hill
For my money a lot of the albums where rock bands record with symphony orchestras are suspect.

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A Question of Balance
Review by Steve Alspach
The fourth album released by the Moody Blues between 1967 and 1972, A Question of Balance was the first album by the Moodies that didn't have any sort of coherent theme to it. It was still an influential album.
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Blue World 12 inch single (Vinyl)
Review by Gary Hill
This twelve inch single from the Moody Blues is out of print, but you can certainly find it online and most likely at a decent price.

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Days of Future Passed
Review by Steve Alspach
Few bands make a quantum leap in musical style the way Moody Blues did between 1965 and 1967.
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Days of Future Passed Live
Review by Gary Hill
In 2017 The Moody Blues album Days of Future Passed turned 50 years old. It's hard in retrospect to understand just how much of a game-changer that album was, merging symphonic music and rock into a concept album.

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December
Review by Gary Hill
With a band as devoted to pretty ballads and symphonic stylings, it was just a matter of time before they did a holiday disc.

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Every Good Boy Deserves Favour
Review by Gary Hill
This Moody Blues album is somewhat typical of the group, but in many ways seems less effective than some of the other releases in the group’s catalog.

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Hall of Fame - Live At The Royal Albert Hall 2000
Review by Gary Hill
I’ve only seen the Moody Blues live once and it was a disappointing show. They pushed the sound system past the point of good music and into the distortion zone. 

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In Search of the Lost Chord
Review by Gary Hill

The third album from The Moody Blues, this came out in 1968. As such, it's more proto-prog than actual prog, since that wasn't really a thing yet.


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Live at the Isle of Wight Festival 1970
Review by Gary Hill
The Isle of Wight Festival in 1970 saw the Moody Blues play in front of half a million people. I’m sure many people then (as today, even) thought of the Moody Blues as a strictly studio band.
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Long Distance Voyager
Review by Gary Hill
In the 1980’s the Moody Blues took on a more electronic sound. I know that sound didn’t sit well with a lot of fans. For them this was probably the last great Moody Blues album – at least for a while. 

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Octave (original vinyl)
Review by Gary Hill
I recently saw a list of most disappointing albums, and this was on it. I decided to do this retro review as sort of my rebuttal to that.

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On the Threshold of a Dream
Review by Gary Hill
I’ve always liked this album a lot.

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Seventh Sojourn
Review by Gary Hill
This album from the Moody Blues probably falls in the middle of the road of their older stuff. There are a few exceptional tracks.

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The Magnificent Moodies
Review by Gary Hill
For the fiftieth anniversary of the release of this album, it’s been reissued with a lot of bonus tracks.

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The Present
Review by Gary Hill
I know a lot of people disregard these later Moody Blues albums. I happen to have a special attraction to them because Patrick Moraz is on them, bringing a Yes connection.

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To Our Children's Children's Children
Review by Steve Alspach
The middle of the seven albums released by the Moodies between 1967 and 1972, "…Children…" has space exploration as its theme. No small wonder - it was 1969, and space travel was quite the thing back then.
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Voices in the Sky: The Best of the Moody Blues
Review by Gary Hill
I wouldn’t want to be the one to have to put together a “Best Of” package for an act like The Moody Blues. I mean, these guys have had so much great music how do you pick?
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DVD Reviews
The Moody Blues - Classic Artists DVD
Review by Gary Hill
There is certainly more to like about this documentary than there is to dislike.

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The Moody Blues - Lovely to See You Again DVD
Review by Gary Hill
This live DVD showcases the Moody Blues in a 2005 performance.

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The Moody Blues - Threshold Of A Dream: Live at the Isle of Wight Festival DVD
Review by Gary Hill
I have always liked the Moody Blues. So, I looked at this DVD with anticipation.
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Related Articles
John Lodge - 10,000 Light Years Ago
Review by G. W. Hill

It’s a safe bet most people reading this review know of John Lodge from his work as part of the Moody Blues.


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Yes - 50 Live
Review by Gary Hill
I am always upfront about the fact that I am a Yes fanatic. They've been my favorite band for more than 45 years now.

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Various Artists - A Life in Yes: The Chris Squire Tribute
Review by Gary Hill
I grew up as a Yes fanatic from the age of 12. As a bass player myself, Chris Squire was a huge part of my own growth as a musician.
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Nektar - A Spoonful of Time
Review by G. W. Hill

The whole “do an album of covers” concept is a popular approach these days.


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Various Artists - Abbey Road Reimagined - A Tribute To The Beatles
Review by Gary Hill
The whole get a bunch of musicians together and record covers of an entire album thing is something I really like.

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Various Artists - Animals Reimagined - A Tribute To Pink Floyd
Review by Gary Hill
Animals is, without question, my favorite Pink Floyd album. it's actually pretty high up on my list of best albums of all-time, too.

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John Lodge - B Yond - The Very Best Of
Review by Gary Hill

This is unusual as "best of" sets go. For one thing, many of the tracks are not John Lodge solo numbers, but rather numbers he wrote for and recorded with The Moody Blues.


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Billy Sherwood - Citizen
Review by G. W. Hill

A contender for best of the year, this is arguably Sherwood’s best solo album ever.


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Various Artists - Citizens of Hope and Glory. The Story of Progressive Rock written by Stephen Lambe
Review by Scott Montgomery

This is an enjoyable read that saunters through the chronology and culture of progressive rock.


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Yes - Classic Artists DVD
Review by Gary Hill

Yes seldom do anything in a small way when it can be done in an epic manner. 


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The Prog Collective - Epilogue
Review by G. W. Hill

This is quite a cool set. The main man behind this is Billy Sherwood, and I always like the stuff he does.


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Yes - Friends and Relatives
Review by Gary Hill
Friends and Relatives is a two CD set that is a compilation of two Yes tracks from the KTA albums with solo works from the various artists. Other than the two stellar group performances, the Rick Wakeman pieces and Steve Howe`s take on Tales From Topographic Oceans stand out the most.
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Patrick Moraz - Future Memories I and II
Review by Gary Hill
Patrick Moraz might not be the household name that Rick Wakeman is, but he definitely has plenty of prog rock cred built up. Stints in Yes and the Moody Blues will do that for you.
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Yes - In A Word: Yes 1969-
Review by Gary Hill

This box set is a class act. The whole thing comes in something that resembles a book. 


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Patrick Moraz - In Princeton DVD
Review by Gary Hill
The core of this DVD is a solo concert by Patrick Moraz from 1999. It is professionally filmed, although, I have to say that the film quality is somewhere on the excellent side of very good – in other words, it’s not perfect.
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Jeff Wayne - Jeff Wayne’s Musical Version of The War of the Worlds
Review by Gary Hill
This album is a rock opera based on the classic H. G. Wells book War of the Worlds. It is a very theatric work, somewhat more musical theater than rock album.
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Jeff Wayne - Jeff Wayne’s Musical Version of The War of the Worlds 2005 Edition
Review by Gary Hill
In the world of rock opera's Jeff Wayne's War of the Worlds stands far above the majority of the competition. A release that has shown lasting appeal, maintaining a following for all these years, has just been re-issued in this hybrid Super Audio CD.
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Various Artists - Legends: Crank It Up (Limited Edition Hybrid SACD version)
Review by G. W. Hill

Originally released as a Time Life Series installment, this album features a lot of songs most people will know.


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Various Artists - Light My Fire - A Classic Rock Salute To the Doors
Review by G. W. Hill

I’ve always been a big fan of the Doors.


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Yes - Live In Philadelphia 1979 DVD
Review by Gary Hill
This DVD really seems to be an official release of a bootleg video. For one thing the audio is in mono, rather than stereo.
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Mainhorse - Mainhorse (original vinyl)
Review by Gary Hill

The main claim to fame of this 1971 disc is the fact that it was Patrick Moraz' first band (at least in terms of first band with a release). The thing is, the music holds up really well as early progressive rock by itself.


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Moraz Alban Project - MAP
Review by G. W. Hill

Patrick Moraz is probably best known for his stints as the keyboard player for Yes and The Moody Blues.


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Various Artists - Mountains Come Out of the Sky. The Illustrated History of Prog Rock – written by Will Romano
Review by Scott Montgomery
Overall, this is a very good and highly recommended overview of the genre and its history. 
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Various Artists - Mountains Come Out of the Sky. The Illustrated History of Prog Rock – written by Will Romano
Review by Scott Montgomery
Overall, this is a very good and highly recommended overview of the genre and its history. 
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Moraz / Bruford - Music For Piano and Drum
Review by Gary Hill
While many might think that Bill Bruford and Patrick Moraz first played together in Yes, that's not true. They never played in Yes together.
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Robby Steinhardt - Not In Kansas Anymore: A Prog Opera
Review by Gary Hill
Robby Steinhardt was probably best known as the violinist for the band Kansas. He was certainly a unique individual in the prog rock scene of the day playing that instrument.

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Patrick Moraz - Out in the Sun
Review by Gary Hill

The first solo album from Patrick Moraz, The Story of i (also reviewed in this issue), was released in 1976 as part of a group effort from members of Yes to release solo albums.  


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The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra - Plays Prog Rock Classics
Review by G. W. Hill

I like these Royal Philharmonica Orchestra sets. I


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Mike Pinder - Promise / Among the Stars
Review by G. W. Hill

Mike Pinder is best known as the original keyboardist for the Moody Blues.


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Refugee - Refugee (Three-CD Expanded Edition)
Review by Gary Hill

Refugee released their only studio album in 1973. The band was considered a nod to the classic prog band The Nice, but I'd say there was more to it than that.


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Yes - Relayer
Review by Gary Hill
At first glance, Relayer resembles Close To The Edge in that it is composed of three cuts, one in the twenty-minute range, and the other two taking up about the same length of time between them. However, while there are some strong moments here, this is arguably Yes at their most self-indulgent and least cohesive.
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Rick Wakeman - Return To The Centre of The Earth
Review by Gary Hill
By going back to his past, Rick Wakeman has created an album that is nearly a masterpiece. A sequel to his Journey to the Centre of the Earth disc, Return to the Centre of the Earth is a very potent progressive rock concept album.
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Various Artists - Riding the Rock Machine - British Seventies Classic Rock
Review by Gary Hill
I have heard arguments that say that the 1970s were the decade with the best music. Like any decade, they had a lot of garbage music

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Various Artists - Rock N Roll Christmas
Review by Gary Hill
f you are looking for a CD that combines solid rock with Christmas themes to augment your holiday festivities, this is a good choice.
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Various Artists - Rockin' the City of Angels written by Douglas Harr
Review by G. W. Hill
This book is something very special. A good tag-line for this would be "come for the pictures, stay for the stories."

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William Shatner - Seeking Major Tom
Review by G. W. Hill

What an interesting ride I’ve had leading into this album.


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The Prog Collective - Songs We Were Taught
Review by Gary Hill
The Prog Collective releases compelling progressive rock album after album.

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Alan Simon - Songwriter
Review by Gary Hill

I don't think I had heard of Alan Simon until recently. This double disc set captures a lot of his previous work.


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Various Artists - Steinway To Heaven
Review by Gary Hill
It seems like a rather novel, but still somewhat obvious concept. Take various keyboardists, mostly from the world of progressive rock and have them record various classical piano pieces.
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Various Artists - Still Wish You Were Here: A Tribute to Pink Floyd
Review by Gary Hill
I generally like things like this where an album is created by taking the track list of a famous album and having different artists reproduce the songs.

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Various Artists - Tales From Yesterday
Review by Gary Hill
A tribute to the music of Yes, Tales From Yesterday, features some very fine renditions of Yessongs performed by a variety of artists (including several past and present members of Yes). This is a mixed bag. Some of the tracks are quite faithful to the original, while others represent major reworkings.
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Mike Batt - The Hunting of the Snark
Review by Gary Hill

This is sort of a marriage of progressive rock with musical theater and is based on the writings of Lewis Carroll. 


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Yes - The Royal Affair Tour: Live From Las Vegas
Review by Gary Hill
This live album from Yes is a couple years old. It has some interesting songs that aren't often performed by the band.

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Patrick Moraz - The Story of i: Remastered Edition
Review by Gary Hill

The first solo album from Patrick Moraz, this is getting a cool remastered edition. This features two bonus tracks and restored art.


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Yes - The Ultimate Yes
Review by Gary Hill

This 35th Anniversary collection of Yes shares a lot of material with other compilations of theirs.


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Yes - Time And A Word: The Yes Story written by Martin Popoff
Review by Greg Olma

There have been a few books written about the band, Yes but this one really includes the involvement of many of the members of the group through extensive interviews. 


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Patrick Moraz - Windows of Time
Review by Gary Hill
Patrick Moraz is every bit the keyboard powerhouse that Keith Emerson and Rick Wakeman are, but he never seems to get the kind of respect they do. That’s a shame.


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Yes - Wonderous Stories: The Best of Yes
Review by G. W. Hill

I’m sure some would make the argument that we don’t need another Yes compilation album.


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Ray Thomas - Words & Music
Review by Gary Hill
This is a new collection of music from Ray Thomas. You probably know Thomas as a member of the band The Moody Blues.

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The Prog Collective - Worlds on Hold
Review by Gary Hill
The Prog Collective always puts out interesting music. It's a project that has Billy Sherwood at its core.

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Yes - Yesyears Box Set
Review by Gary Hill
Released during the flurry of activity surrounding the Union tour, this four CD set is a pricey, but fairly solid addition to the Yes catalog. While any compilation will undoubtedly bring up complaints as to what was included and what was not, this album presents a fairly accurate representation of the chronology of the band.
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