antoniodeste

Of course, if one wants to listen to symphonic music, it's better to turn to symphonic composers. But considering "Days Of Future Passed" from this perspective, I believe, is misleading. The "symphonic" aspect should not be confused, in my opinion, with the use of an orchestra, which does not always serve specific symphonic goals or is exclusively symphonic in nature. Therefore, I think "Days Of Future Passed" deserves at least a chance, even if it may not stand out in the overall production of the band.

Well, since we're at it, and... for completeness, Greenslade's "live" (with this lineup) should still be available on the market, released by the (phantom) Mystic Records with recordings from '73 and '75 and published in 1999. Following that, in 2000, "Large Afternoon" (also for Mystic), a studio album with Greenslade and Reeves, plus John Young on keyboards and Chris Cozens on drums. Finally, there's the other live album from 2001, titled "The Full Edition," featuring John Trotter on drums. And then... Dave Greenslade got tired and reunited for yet another reunion with Colosseum. I believe that of these three, at least the first "live" is very, very interesting. ;-)

Really fun! And I'm not joking!! If I think that in addition to the healthy fun of reading this review, brainiac has reviewed an album that I really like from a band that I like a lot, what can I say? Very well done!
P.S.: ClemPson, but maybe it's a typo ;-))

@Fuggitivo: thank you for the info! In my post no. 11 I was actually alluding to this but I’m glad that Esoteric (which I see quite active on the reprints of many worthy but forgotten works) has republished once again these gems after a few years.

Thank you so much! And good luck with your studies!! :-))

It’s not new for many artists to deliver better live performances than their studio recordings, so, if you allow me… you’re stating the obvious ;-). Moreover, in jazz and its derivatives, often – but I suppose you know this well – the "rule" is exactly this, thanks to the possibilities of expansion that compositions can take on in a different dimension. Being not such a young music lover myself, let me say that, while I understand your perfectly respectable tastes, pairings, and definitions, I sometimes find them at least... "curious." As I have argued in these pages on other occasions, I believe that labels or definitions of "belonging" to this or that style or genre are not very useful, and often the boundaries between them are really blurry. I think that what matters in music is that it essentially communicates something, and perhaps can also teach us new things or evoke particular emotions, even from different perspectives. Anyway, I’m very pleased with the effort you are putting into exploring themes and artists that are, so to speak, "outdated," and it does you credit, given your age, to be interested in names and styles that may be marginal in the vast whirlpool of today’s musical landscape. I also thank you for the suggestions regarding listening to materials from sources other than the official ones. Whenever the opportunity arises, I will try to remember them… Even though I have never historically had a great passion for bootlegs :-))). Warm regards to you!

@Ten Year Blur: from what I read, I can understand that you don't lack preparation and skill. Perhaps you are also a guitarist. However, allow me to find it a bit misleading to compare Ollie Halsall to Alvin Lee. I believe they traveled in very different territories and styles. I won't hide the fact that I admire both, in their diversity, and I consider Halsall to have perhaps never clearly showcased his technical ability, which—though I say this quietly—I consider to be far superior to the magnificent Alvin. Perhaps only with Hiseman's Tempest was something perceived, and paradoxically, the only way, in my opinion, to verify this is through an excellent bootleg, a record of a BBC show where for a short time Holdsworth was paired with Halsall before the final replacement. It is precisely here that the overwhelming scope of Halsall's stellar and original technique can be quite clearly discerned. Another discussion is expressiveness and communication at a solo level. And perhaps in this, Alvin Lee is much more "groovy" and immediate, but in a language, that blues, simple, wonderfully poor, and perhaps for this reason more immediate. Unfortunately, I think Halsall was rather scattered and almost never managed—even with Patto—to demonstrate his full value. And then, absurdly, he ended his story doing things with Kevin Ayers that were a bit... like that, and with a Spanish group of young people who were a bit... wacky. Amen.

@Amarok74: I don't want to say something silly, but it seems to me that given Anderson's frail health after a recent "illness" that has lasted quite a while, this decision was made by mutual agreement within the band, considering the difficulties with travel due to potential tours.

An intense review for a truly intense work. Great job also in describing the multitude of emotions that records like this could (and still can) evoke. That period of Ackerman, with "Past Light," is truly filled with uncommon delicacy, whispers, and magic. Thank you for reminding me of it... :-)

"I would like to rediscover that simple and genuine enthusiasm that the Moody Blues have communicated to me, and I face a reality where it's hard to look up at the sky with the intimate desire to one day explore it..." This, I believe, is what often brings me back to listen to the Moody Blues. A mix of childlike enthusiasm and a desire for simplicity combined with an idealistic and mystical yearning for communion with the "Great Mysteries," even if it is "only" interpreted through the language of music. Remarkable reviews and considerations, in my opinion. They reveal an attitude towards reflecting on things that - as Pi-airot himself implies - are today buried under the pragmatism of harsh everyday life and the need for concreteness in a world that essentially lives by numbers. An epic of a world that has faded, that of the best Moody, which, every time I listen again, can only revive very particular sensations and emotions, at least for me. I don't know why, but I have always regarded this (beyond the supposed unhappiness of the title, which I instead find beautiful) as the group's most cohesive and creative work, deeply imbued with healthy "European" mysticism, perhaps second only to "In Search of the Lost Chord." I will say, to conclude, that when Aldrin and co. set foot on the moon, I wasn't a parent yet, but the vivid memory of those moments followed with the "eyes of a child" made me experience that event in an absolutely indelible way, even if, perhaps... all of this, in the economics of life's matters, has served very little. ;-)