Austin has a great music history from it's '60's origins with KAZZ FM and Sonogram Records spinning The Thirteenth Floor Elevators and The Sweetarts to The Vulcan Gas Co., Janis Joplin and Johnny Winter. The 70's saw that sweet mingling of cowboy and hippy called "Outlaw" at The Armadillo and Oat Willies to the early punk scene at Raul's, Duke's Royal Coach Inn, Club Foot, Studio 29. It's been a great ride and made Austin the live music capital of the world. Enjoy a memory or two from our ticket archives. A simple paper testament to Austin's music history.
The Moody Blues The Moody Blues formed on 4 May 1964, in Erdington, Birmingham, England. Ray Thomas, John Lodge, and Michael Pinder had been members of El Riot & the Rebels. They disbanded when Lodge, the youngest member, went to technical college and Michael Pinder joined the army. Michael Pinder then rejoined Thomas to form the Krew Cats. The pair recruited guitarist/vocalist Denny Laine, band manager-turned-drummer Graeme Edge, and bassist Clint Warwick. The five appeared as the Moody Blues for the first time in Birmingham in 1964. The name developed from a hoped-for sponsorship from the M&B Brewery which failed to materialise, the band calling themselves both "The M B's" and "The M B Five" and was also a subtle reference to the Duke Ellington song, "Mood Indigo".
Soon, the band obtained a London-based management company, 'Ridgepride', formed by ex-Decca A&R man Alex Murray (Alex Wharton), who helped them land a recording contract with Decca Records in the spring of 1964. Initially they were signed to a management company who then leased their recordings to Decca. They released a single, "Steal Your Heart Away", that year which failed to chart. The Moody Blues appeared on the cult UK series "Ready Steady Go!" singing the uptempo 'B' side "Lose Your Money (But Don't Lose your Mind)". But it was their second single, "Go Now" (released later that year), which really launched their career, being promoted on TV with one of the first purpose-made promotional films in the pop era, produced and directed by Alex Wharton. The single became a hit in the United Kingdom (where it remains their only Number 1 single to date)[2] and in the United States, where it reached #10. The band encountered management problems after the chart-topping hit and subsequently signed to Decca Records in the UK (London records in the USA) as actual recording artists. A four track Extended Play release titled: "The Moody Blues" featuring both sides of their first two Decca singles was issued in a colour picture sleeve in early 1965.
Their debut album The Magnificent Moodies, produced by Denny Cordell with a strong Merseybeat/R&B flavour, was released on Decca in Mono only in 1965. It contained the hit single together with one side of classic R&B covers, and a second including four Laine/Pinder originals."Bye Bye Bird" (Decca AT 15048) was lifted from the album in December 1965 as an overseas single charting in France (no.3).
Alex Wharton left the management firm and the group released a series of relatively unsuccessful singles. They enjoyed a minor UK hit with a cover of "I Don't Want To Go On Without You" (no.33) in February 1965, while the Pinder-Laine original "From The Bottom of My Heart (I Love You)" (no.22) produced by Denny Cordell (with a vocal choral sound towards the conclusion that anticipated their later more famous vocal sound on "Nights in White Satin") was issued as a UK single in May 1965. Further UK singles were: "Everyday"(no.44) in October 1965, another Pinder-Laine song, plus their later "This is My House (But Nobody Calls)" (Decca F 12498,1966) and "Boulevard de la Madeleine" also issued in late 1966. Denny Laine quit in late 1966 and a final 'Mark one' Moodies single Pinder-Laine's "Life's Not Life" was scheduled for release in January 1967 (Decca F 12543) c/w "He Can Win". (This single's release is often listed as being cancelled, however, both promo and regular stock copies have been seen over the years.) In June 1966 Warwick left the group. He was briefly replaced by Rod Clark (born Rodney Clark, 23 November 1942, Surlingham, near Norwich, Norfolk), but in October, Clark departed the group, which split for a month. The group re-formed in November 1966 and new members were John Lodge, their bassist from El Riot, and Justin Hayward, formerly of The Wilde Three.
Arrival of Hayward and LodgeHayward was recommended to Pinder by Eric Burdon of The Animals and was endorsed by famed UK singer Marty Wilde, the leader of The Wilde Three. Pinder phoned Hayward after reading his application, and was impressed when Hayward played him his 45 rpm single "London Is Behind Me" during their car ride to meet the other members in Esher.
After financial misfortune and a confrontation from an audience member, the band soon realised that their style of American blues covers and novelty tunes was not working for them and they decided that they would only perform their own material. The band were introduced to Decca staff producer Tony Clarke who produced a recording session which saw Justin Hayward's "Fly Me High" & Mike Pinder's older-styled "Really Haven't Got the Time" (Decca F12607) as the 'Mark Two' Moodies first single released in May 1967. This picked up both radio airplay and favourable reviews, and failed to chart in the UK, but the sound gave clues to the direction their music would evolve. Their new style, featuring the symphonic sounds of Pinder's Mellotron, was first introduced on Pinder's song "Love And Beauty" (Decca F 12670) which was issued as a single c/w with Hayward's rocker "Leave This Man Alone" in September 1967. This too was not a UK hit, but further established their 'new' Moodies identity. Ray Thomas' flute had been in evidence earlier ("I've Got A Dream") on their debut album, however it became a far more featured instrument from this point onwards as they started incorporating distinct psychedelic influences, which was later developed in a concept album revolving around an archetypal day in the life of everyman.
The Moody Blues' contract with Decca Records was set to expire and they owed the label several thousand pounds in advances. They had the support, however, of Decca A&R manager Hugh Mendl, who had been instrumental in the recent establishment of London/Decca's new subsidiary imprint Deram Records. With Mendl's backing, The Moody Blues were offered a deal to make a rock and roll version of Antonín Dvorák's New World Symphony that would promote the company's new Deramic Stereo Sound (DSS) audio format[3] in return for which the group would be forgiven its debt.
The Moody Blues agreed, but they insisted that they be given artistic control of the project, and Hugh Mendl (as executive producer) was able to provide this in the face of Decca's notoriously tight-fisted attitude to its artists.[4] The group were unable to complete the assigned project,[citation needed] which was abandoned. However, they managed to convince Peter Knight, who had been assigned to arrange and conduct the orchestral interludes, to collaborate on a recording that used the band's original material instead.
Although Deram executives were initially skeptical about the hybrid style of the resulting concept album.[3] Days of Future Passed (released in November 1967) became one of the most successful pop/rock releases of the period, earning a gold record award and reaching #27 on the British album chart. Five years later it was to reach #3 in the U.S./Billboard charts. The album was a song cycle or concept album that (like James Joyce's Ulysses) took place over the course of a single day. In production and arrangement the album drew inspiration from the pioneering use of the classical instrumentation by The Beatles to whom Pinder had introduced the Mellotron that year. It took the form to new heights using the London Festival Orchestra, a loose affiliation of Decca's classical musicians given a fictitious name adding the term "London" to sound impressive, to provide an orchestral linking framework to the Moodies already written and performed songs, plus overture & conclusion sections on the album including backing up Graeme Edge's opening & closing poems recited by Pinder. Strings were added to the latter portion of the album version of Hayward's "Nights in White Satin" (absent on the single hit version) as was Pinder's "The Sun Set". The orchestra and group never actually perform together on the recording with the band's rock instrumentation centred on Pinder's Mellotron. The album, despite being a lush concept album, was in fact cut in a very workmanlike manner, with the band recording a particular song, then the track being presented to Peter Knight who quickly composed a suitable "linking" orchestral portion which the Decca musicians ('London Festival Orchestral') then recorded. The album was as much an original work by Knight himself as the group. The composing credits were listed on the sleeve as: "Redwave-Knight", when in fact Hayward wrote "Nights..." and "Tuesday Afternoon", Thomas provided "Another Morning" and "Twilight Time", Lodge penned "Peak Hour" and "Evening (Time To Get Away)", and Edge contributed the opening and closing poems (the latter titled "Late Lament") read by Mike Pinder who composed both "The Sun Set" and "Dawn is a Feeling" (sung by Hayward, with Pinder himself singing the bridge section).
Decca staff producer Tony Clarke produced the album, and afterwards continued working with the band. Sometimes known to fans as "The Sixth Moodie" he went on to produce all of their albums and singles for the next eleven years. Engineer Derek Varnals would also contribute heavily to the creation of the early Moodies' studio sound, working with Pinder & Clarke to create a more symphonic overlapping sound on the Mellotron as opposed to the sharp 'cut off' the instrument would normally give, partly achieved by removing all the "sound effects" tapes (trains, whistles, cockerel crowing, etc.) and then 'doubling up' the tapes of orchestral instruments' sounds, which combined with Pinder's ability and sensitivity at playing (Pinder having earlier worked for the company that manufactured the Mellotron) and Varnals' recording skills at creating an orchestral 'wave' sound that characterised their non-orchestra accompanied sound thereafter.
The album plus two singles, "Nights in White Satin" and "Tuesday Afternoon" (as a medley with "Forever Afternoon," listed as "Forever Afternoon (Tuesday?)" on the album), became massively popular.
. - Wikipedia
From Wikipedia
Austin has a great music history from it's '60's origins with KAZZ FM and Sonogram Records spinning The Thirteenth Floor Elevators and The Sweetarts to The Vulcan Gas Co., Janis Joplin and Johnny Winter. The 70's saw that sweet mingling of cowboy and hippy called "Outlaw" at The Armadillo and Oat Willies to the early punk scene at Raul's, Duke's Royal Coach Inn, Club Foot, Studio 29. It's been a great ride and made Austin the live music capital of the world. Enjoy a memory or two from our ticket archives. A simple paper testament to Austin's music history.
