The Moody Blues: Days Of Future Passed (CD 2) CD Track Listing

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The Moody Blues Days Of Future Passed (CD 2) (2006)
Days Of Future Passed (Deluxe Edition - Hybrid SACD) - Disc 2 of 2\n2006 Decca Music Group\n\nOriginally Released 1967\nOriginal CD Issue Released July 7, 1987\nMoFI Gold CD Edition Released September 30, 1988\nRemastered Edition Released May 20, 1997\nDTS Version Released May 20, 1998\nJapanese Mini LP Version Released \n2 Hybrid SACD Deluxe Edition Released April 18, 2006\n2002 Universal International - Victor Entertainment, Inc. - Japan\n\nAlbum Details (Mini LP CD Packaging)\nJapanese limited edition featuring a miniature LP style sleeve for initial pressing. \n\nAMG EXPERT REVIEW: The 1997 remastered reissue (check the catalog number) of the reconstituted Moody Blues' first album, complete with significantly improved sound and new notes, featuring interview material with the band members about the songs, the album, and its evolution. New members Justin Hayward and John Lodge established themselves on guitar, bass, and vocals, and the band begins its venture into progressive rock territory with the London Festival Orchestra. The material, highlighted by the presence of Hayward's "Tuesday Afternoon" and "Nights In White Satin," has an air of pretentiousness, but it really rocks fairly hard, especially as heard here, and the orchestral interludes, courtesy of the late Peter Knight, have an epic sweep that is enhanced on the 1997 reissues. In 1967, a lot of people hungry for something to put on the turntable after Sgt. Pepper turned to this, and made it into an international hit. -- Bruce Eder\n\nAmazon.com Editorial Review\nThe Moody Blues' second album was also their first of what would be a succession of "concept" albums. Inspired by the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper and utilizing the London Festival Orchestra primarily for epic instrumental interludes between songs, Days of Future Passed moved the Birmingham band away from its early R&B roots (as displayed on its debut album with soon-departed future Wings member Denny Laine) into uncharted rock territory, making them the early pioneers of both classical and progressive rock. The concept of the 1968 release was very simple, tracing a day in the life from dawn to night, from awakening to sleep. The seven tracks spawned two hit singles--"Tuesday Afternoon" and "Nights in White Satin" (which hit No. 2 four years after the LP's original release) and a prog-rock cottage industry. --Bill Holdship \n\nHalf.com Album Credits\nDerek Varnals, Engineer\nHugh Mendl, Producer\n\nAlbum Notes\nAdditional personnel: Peter Knight (conductor); The London Festival Orchestra.\n\nIncludes liner notes by Hugh Mendl.\n\nAll tracks have been digitally remastered\n\nDAYS OF FUTURE PASSED is the Moody Blues' true contribution to rock history: the most cohesive integration of rock songs with orchestral music ever produced. Asked by Deram Records to create a rock reworking of Dvorak's "New World" Symphony, the Moodies instead wrote their own symphony, a song cycle that describes the emotions that accompany each part of the day, from dawn ("Dawn Is A Feeling") to night (the classic "Nights In White Satin"). The songs are connected by lush orchestral passages in which the basic musical themes are reworked. Meanwhile, the band had already begun to sound like its own orchestra, using signature Mellotron string sounds, flutes, tympani and multiple vocalists.\n\nROLLING STONE REVIEW\nOne of the several English groups that has survived more or less intact since the days of the Beatles is the Moody Blues, who take their place next to the Rolling Stones, Hollies, Kinks, Zombies, and Who in this regard, To be sure, this is a mixed bag of company, but it is certainly surprising to what extent the old English groups still share certain qualities that mark them off from their American counterparts.\n\nThe Moody Blues are part of the English rock group family that includes as nearest relatives the Hollies, the Beatles, and the Who. All these groups give prominence to their vocal work, and all still adhere to the basic English rock instrumentation (guitars, bass, drums, occasional organ or piano) with occasional orchestral augmentation. Their historical lineage may be traced back to the American rock and roll (not blues) of the late Fifties. Granted these not insignificant similarities, the English groups have each by and large developed their own stylistic character.\n\nThe Moody Blues, on the evidence of their most recent recordings, have matured considerably since "Go Now," but their music is constantly marred by one of the most startlingly saccharine conceptions of "beauty" and "mysticism" that any rock group has ever affected. To be specific: Days of Future Passed claims to "have extended the range of pop music," finding "the point where it becomes one with the world of the classics." This is pure nonsense.\n\nThere are some quite fine rock tracks on Days of Future Passed ("Tuesday Afternoon" especially), but all of these songs have next to nothing to do with "the classics." In any case the "classics" for the Moody Blues apparently are Rimsky-Korsakov, Brahms, David Rose, and Elmer Bernstein; the London Festival Orchestra is generally used between tracks to play Hollyridge Strings changes on the rock compositions in the album. The whole execution of the album is so perverse that the only real surprise is the discovery that between the movie soundtrack slush there is some quite palatable rock which makes no compromises, even in the direction of orchestral accompaniment--as a matter of fact there is almost none on the rock tracks. Then why the Festival Orchestra? Why the hideous spoken introduction and conclusion? If this crap is supposed to be breathtakingly beautiful or the aesthetic raison d'etre of the album, god deliver us back into the hands of prosaic rock, like "Peak Hour," or "Forever Afternoon," or "Nights in White Satin." Or even the triteness of "Twilight Time."\n\nThis must remain the real curiosity of Days of Future Passed: what is obviously a fine, tight English rock group has chosen to strangle itself in contextual goo. Ironically almost every one of the rock tracks has something to recommend it--but what might have been a quite capable, even exciting, album is willfully turned into something musically akin to Milo's chocolate cotton. Which is too bad.\n\nIf Days of Future Passed is the Moody Blues being self-consciously "beautiful," In Search of the Lost Chord is the Moody Blues being self-consciously "mystical." Too bad again. But let us be charitable: we will say nothing further of the seven minute closer on the album, "Om." Nor the opening "Departure." The rest of the album is very well produced and generally tasteful; John Lodge's "Ride My See-Saw" and Ray Thomas' "Dr. Livingstone, I Presume" are both well done, solid rock tracks. On the other hand we have "House of Four Doors," an overblown piece of literal psychedelia with four (count 'em: four) squeaky door sound effects sandwiched in between some rock mood music.\n\nThe dilemma of this whole album is illustrated by "Legend of a Mind," featuring a nifty lyric about "Timothy Leary's dead." If you don't listen to the words it sounds like a better than average rock song with interesting flute work by Ray Thomas and appropriately swooping cellos--but then there are those insane lyrics that keep bombarding you with Timothy Leary's name. Mike Pinder's "The Best Way to Travel" sounds indebted to the Pink Floyd, while the inevitable sitar pops up painlessly on Justin Hayward's "Visions of Paradise." Whoever does the vocal on "The Actor" and "The Word" (they run together) does one hell of a job; beautiful, unabashedly emotional singing.\n\nSo what are we finally to make of the Moody Blues? The conceptions of both of their recent albums have been disastrous, but in both cases some interesting, listenable music was surfaced. Their writing is not consistently imaginative, but it is not especially derivative either; the singing is consistently good and the arrangements are effectively executed with little reliance on studio musicians. Hopefully next time around the Moody Blues will leave their London Festival Orchestra and Yantra at home and get together a straight-ahead, no bullshit album of rock; judging from even these albums they should be quite capable of doing this and, furthermore, doing it well. (RS 23 - Dec 7, 1968) -- \nJIM MILLER
This rock cd contains 19 tracks and runs 57min 40sec.
Freedb: 030d8213
Buy: from Amazon.com

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