The Moody Blues

The Moody Blues are an English rock band. They first came to prominence playing rhythm and blues music, but their second album, Days of Future Passed, which was released in 1967, was a fusion of rock with classical music and established them as pioneers in the development of art rock and progressive rock. It has been described as a "landmark" and "one of the first successful concept albums". They became known internationally with singles including "Go Now", "Nights in White Satin", "Tuesday Afternoon" and "Question". They have been awarded 18 platinum and gold discs. Their album sales total 70 million.

As of 2015 they remain active with one member from the original 1964 band (drummer Graeme Edge) and two more from the 1966 lineup (bassist John Lodge and lead singer and guitarist Justin Hayward).

Founding and early history

Early years, Decca Records 1964–1966

The Moody Blues formed on 4 May 1964, in Erdington, Birmingham, Warwickshire. Ray Thomas, a juvenile John Lodge and (occasionally) Mike Pinder had been members of El Riot & the Rebels. They disbanded when Lodge, the youngest member, went to technical college and Pinder joined the army. Pinder then rejoined Thomas to form the Krew Cats. Back from a disappointing spell in the Hamburg region a few months later, the pair recruited guitarist/vocalist Denny Laine, band manager-turned-drummer Graeme Edge and bassist Clint Warwick. The five appeared as the Moody Blues for the first time in Birmingham in 1964. The name developed from a hoped-for sponsorship from the M&B Brewery which failed to materialise, the band calling themselves both "The M Bs" and "The M B Five" and was also a subtle reference to the Duke Ellington song, "Mood Indigo". Around this time the band were the resident group at the Carlton Ballroom, later to become rock music venue Mothers on Erdington High Street.

Isn't Life Strange

"Isn't Life Strange" is a 1972 single by the English progressive rock band The Moody Blues, which was based on Pachelbel's Canon In D. Written by bassist John Lodge, it was the first of two singles released from their 1972 album Seventh Sojourn, with the other being "I'm Just a Singer (In a Rock and Roll Band)" (also written by Lodge). "Isn't Life Strange" is one of the Moody Blues' longer songs, lasting for over six minutes.

"Isn't Life Strange" opens with a slow duet of the flute (played by Ray Thomas) and a pump organ, otherwise known as a harmonium, (played by Mike Pinder), with John Lodge and Justin Hayward providing vocals. The song's chorus features the band's traditional line-up, and vocals provided by Hayward, Lodge, Pinder, and Thomas.

When the Moody Blues perform "Isn't Life Strange" live, John Lodge uses a double neck guitar with a standard 6-string on one neck, and a 4-string bass on the other. He uses this since he generally plays the 6-string guitar during the verses, and the bass during the chorus since Justin Hayward takes over electric guitar during the chorus. Also, whenever the Moody Blues perform live backed by a full orchestra, the orchestra's brass section performs a solo of the chorus twice throughout the song, once in the middle, and once at the end.

Wish I

"Wish I" is the third single released by Jem from her debut album Finally Woken. The song has been used as the title music for UK reality TV show, Celebrity Love Island on ITV and ABC's Grey's Anatomy.

Track listing

Wish I Pt. 1

Wish I Pt. 2

Japanese CD

Chart positions

Other appearances

External links

Moody

Moody may refer to:

Places

Business

Fictional characters

Other

Blues

Blues is a genre and musical form that originated in African-American communities in the "Deep South" of the United States around the end of the 19th century. The genre developed from roots in traditional African music, combined with European American folk music. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads. The blues form, ubiquitous in jazz, rhythm and blues and rock and roll, is characterized by the call-and-response pattern, the blues scale and specific chord progressions, of which the twelve-bar blues is the most common. The blue notes (or "worried notes") which are often thirds or fifths which are flatter in pitch than in other music styles, are also an important part of the sound. Blues shuffles or walking bass reinforce the trance-like rhythm and form a repetitive effect called a groove.

Blues as a genre possesses other characteristics such as lyrics, bass lines, and instruments. The lyrics of early traditional blues verses consisted of a single line repeated four times. It was only in the first decades of the 20th century that the most common current structure became standard: the so-called AAB pattern, consisting of a line sung over the four first bars, its repetition over the next four, and then a longer concluding line over the last bars. Early blues frequently took the form of a loose narrative, often relating troubles experienced within African American society.