Ray Thomas

[houseboy]

Don't know where I've been hibernating for the last 18 months but only just found out today that Ray Thomas of the Moody Blues died in January of '18. He retired in 2004 for health reasons. This man was responsible for some of the most beautiful and memorable flute in a rock context and in their heyday the Moodies really were the soundtrack of my life. The solo in the middle of Nights in White Satin and the stunning solo in the middle of Legend of a Mind are just two absolute stand out moments out of many he produced over so many albums (especially the first - now considered classic) seven. The Moody Blues are a special band, writing so many beautiful pieces of music from short songs to almost symphonic long pieces and Thomas was, for so many years, integral to their sound.

Something beautiful left the world when he died.

[Buxtonclaret]

There were a few obituaries around at the time.
Not sure if Hamps did one on here. But this was a decent one.

Ray Thomas obituary

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2018/ ... _clipboard" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[houseboy]

There were a few obituaries around at the time.
Not sure if Hamps did one on here. But this was a decent one.

Ray Thomas obituary

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2018/ ... _clipboard" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Thanks for that bud.

[Juan Tanamera]

I had all the early albums from Days Of Future Passed through to Seventh Sojourn.
Soft rock at it's finest, and as Ian says some beautiful songs from Ray Thomas.
(Did he write Ride My Seesaw?)

[houseboy]

I had all the early albums from Days Of Future Passed through to Seventh Sojourn.
Soft rock at it's finest, and as Ian says some beautiful songs from Ray Thomas.
(Did he write Ride My Seesaw?)

No - that was one of Lodges but he did write Legend of a Mind from the In Search of the Lost Chord album and When the Tide Rushes In from A Question of Balance (among many others). The ones you had mate were often called the Core Seven because they never quite managed to reach the same heights after that. Legend and it's amazing flute middle section still makes my hair stand on end 50 years on. I had the pleasure of seeing them at the FTH in Manchester back in the 70's, somehow, despite so many studio overdubs that even they thought couldn't be reproduced live, they always carried it off, thanks in large part to Thomas and of course Pinder's Mellotron, which gave them their huge symphonic sound.

[tim_noone]

No - that was one of Lodges but he did write Legend of a Mind from the In Search of the Lost Chord album and When the Tide Rushes In from A Question of Balance (among many others). The ones you had mate were often called the Core Seven because they never quite managed to reach the same heights after that. Legend and it's amazing flute middle section still makes my hair stand on end 50 years on. I had the pleasure of seeing them at the FTH in Manchester back in the 70's, somehow, despite so many studio overdubs that even they thought couldn't be reproduced live, they always carried it off, thanks in large part to Thomas and of course Pinder's Mellotron, which gave them their huge symphonic sound.

"Myth" by Beach House...on utube I think you'll Like the Music and the Family Video

[houseboy]

"Myth" by Beach House...on utube I think you'll Like the Music and the Family Video

I'll give it a try later bud, thanks.

[LeadBelly]

I was a Moodies fan in the late 60s/early 70s; still got vinyl In Search of the Lost Chord, To Our Children's Children's Children + Octave from their later work.
A mate I shared house with at uni had Days of Future Passed & that got me into their work. I only saw them once, though, - in Cardiff at the old Capitol Theatre, I think early 1972; they were excellent live at that show (as already alluded to, you tended to wonder if they would be able to reproduce the recorded sounds live).

[houseboy]

I was a Moodies fan in the late 60s/early 70s; still got vinyl In Search of the Lost Chord, To Our Children's Children's Children + Octave from their later work.
A mate I shared house with at uni had Days of Future Passed & that got me into their work. I only saw them once, though, - in Cardiff at the old Capitol Theatre, I think early 1972; they were excellent live at that show (as already alluded to, you tended to wonder if they would be able to reproduce the recorded sounds live).

I think live they still sounded good because they were more 'rocky', relying a little less on all the multi-instrumentalism that made their recorded work so unique. The main instrument though was Mike Pinder's mellotron, which gave the band it's main 'symphonic' sound. A pig of an instrument to use live because it used tape loops that went out of tune with the temperature. I read a great story once about a gig they played when all the loops just fell out of the back of the mellotron and the band had to jam while Pinder fixed it (he had worked for the company who made them so he knew them literally inside out). Apparently it still took him about half an hour. Oh the joys of being on the road with a band.

[tim_noone]

Just listening /watching Jesse Marchant "Adrift" trilogy part 3......Touches the Soul.