The Moody Blues, The Beatles, and The Mellotron

TV Confidential with Ed Robertson

TVC 651.1: Part 2 of a conversation that began last week with Marc Cushman, author of Long Distance Voyagers: The Story of The Moody Blues, a two-volume, total-immersion experience into the six-decade career of The Moody Blues, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame group that not only was the first rock group to champion the “concept album,” but influenced such other groups as Yes, Deep Purple, and ELO. Volume 1 of Long Distance Voyagers covers the formation of The Moody Blues, their breakthrough in the 1960s, and their “classic seven” albums throughout the 1970s. Volume 2 begins with the release of the Long Voyager Album album in 1981, shortly after founding member Mike Pinter left the group (to be replaced by former Yes keyboardist Patrick Moraz) and continues with the evolution of the Moody Blues over the next four decades. Topics this segment include the friendly relationship between The Moody Blues and The Beatles, including how Mike Pinder encouraged John Lennon and Paul McCartney to use the Mellotron on their Strawberry Fields album, a few months before the release of Days of Future Passed; how the success of Days of Future Passed typecast the Moodies for a while in the 1970s, even though they were selling out huge stadiums at the time; how Patrick Moraz helped The Moody Blues reinvent themselves with Long Distance Voyager, paving the way for their success in the 1980s and 1990s; and why it took more than a year to release Long Distance Voyager. Volumes 1 and 2 of Long Distance Voyagers: The Story of The Moody Blues are available now wherever books are sold through Jacobs Brown Media Group.

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