Someone at MASTERWORKS posted a very long & in-depth review of The Moody Blues' DAYS OF FUTURE PASSED explaining why it deserves to be considered "progressive rock" (which it often isn't). I wrote the following in reply... enjoy!
Henry
I happen to be one of those who actually enjoys the group from their earliest recordings, despite the shocking change in style between the Denny Laine & Justin Hayward periods.
In fact, ever since I got ahold of their early recordings on CD, I often play the first 3 CDs back-to-back AS A SET, even though the majority of the songs were released as singles, not albums.
To do it properly, I had to create my own custom CD version of THE MAGNIFICENT MOODIES. When it was originally reissued, it was available either as 2 LPs or 1 CD (25 songs total), with the original LP on one disc and the singles on the other. The CD contained the LP followed by the singles. I preferred tracking them in relase order, which means, the first 4 singles, the LP, and the last 3 singles. Strangely enough, there is a a version of the CD that came out with the last 3 singles (6 songs) MISSING, which is terrible, as it removes an important part of the band's stylistic "evolution". On a song like "Everyday", you can hear how the band is already moving toward the style they became known for EVEN WITH Denny Laine still in the band!
Perhaps the most important part of that CD I bought, apart from having all 25 songs in one place, was the fact that it was in MONO. The US LP "GO NOW" was in horrible "re-channeled stereo" (just like all the early US Rolling Stones LPs-- wretch!!!). So the songs, while some of them are on the "crude" and "raw" side, sound terrific-- with the exception of "Go Now", which still sounds awful, even in mono. It's ironic that their ONE hit from that period was somehow mastered terribly back when. I've read that the song has been remastered properly-- decades after-the-fact-- but I'm not gonna buy an entire new CD just for one songs I don't even care for that much. (Incidentally, on my custom version, I included "Go Now" with the singles, NOT with the LP. I wasn't gonna put it on there twice.)
My favorite songs from the Denny Laine period are "Steal Your Heart Away" (their debut single! --I only recently heard the original version by Bobby Parker-- and I definitely prefer the MB version), "It's Easy Child" (the B-side to "Go Now"), "From The Bottom Of My Heart (I Love You)" (the opening always makes me think of a spaghetti western), "Something You Got", "I've Got A Dream", "It Ain't Necessarily So" (these 3 from the LP), "Everyday", and "Boulevarde De La Madelaine" (this one I followed the example of the CD by putting it as the LAST track on the CD, even though it was the 6th single and strictly chronologically would have 3 songs after it).
Next up is PRELUDE, the early "loose" songs with Justin Hayward & John Lodge. This makes a PERFECT "bridge" between the Denny Laine era and DAYS OF FUTURE PASSED. This is especially true as the vast majority of it was recorded before DAYS... was released. It's like "the album that never was but should have been". It's amazing how Justin Hayward's "Fly Me High" and Mike Pinder's "I Really Haven't Got The Time" exist side-by-side (and were in fact recorded the SAME DAY), despite the 2 songs each representing very different styles and directions of the group (Pinder's song sounding very much like it came from the later Denny Laine period). PRELUDE is a GREAT collection, with "Please Think About It" being the only real DUD on the thing. "Leave This Man Alone", "Cities", "Gimme A Little Somethin'", "King And Queen", "What Am I Doing Here"-- all magnificent songs and recordings. (I tend to skip "Late Lament" as it's almost identical to the version on DAYS...)
It's strange, I'm sure, but sometimes I play these 3 CDs and just stop at the end of DAYS..., whereas I'm sure most people probably start with DAYS... and keep going.
