Best Ever Albums

Re: In Search Of The Lost Chord by The Moody Blues

Johnnyo — Wed, 4 Mar 2026 15:08:57 GMT

Author: Johnnyo

Posted: 03/04/2026 20:08

Mu listening group didn’t meet on Tuesday as intended so this thread is going to hang around for another month if anyone has anything else to add.

There will also not be another new album thread until we meet. Annoying

Re: In Search Of The Lost Chord by The Moody Blues

Johnnyo — Sat, 28 Feb 2026 05:05:42 GMT

Author: Johnnyo

Posted: 02/28/2026 10:05

Overall, I have greater appreciation for this album having listened to it a few times whilst writing these posts.

It's flawed and I found it hard going in parts but overall, it's a better album than i had originally given it credit for.

Will I listen to it a lot, no, but will I pull it out more often, probably

An interesting adventure into and discovery of an album that i really hadn't given a lot of attention to

Re: In Search Of The Lost Chord by The Moody Blues

Johnnyo — Sat, 28 Feb 2026 05:01:27 GMT

Author: Johnnyo

Posted: 02/28/2026 10:01

The Word & Om

These last two tracks from In Search of…. Need to be listened to together.

The word is a spoken word track of about 45 seconds which leads into the final track on the album, Om.

Very atmospheric track which I really like. A good conclusion to the album. A little bit trippy with sitar, tabla and a whole load of chanting (not a bad thing), this might be my favourite track on the album. Very George Harrison sounding.

It’s got a great feel to it

Link

Re: In Search Of The Lost Chord by The Moody Blues

Johnnyo — Fri, 27 Feb 2026 05:20:38 GMT

Author: Johnnyo

Posted: 02/27/2026 10:20

The Actor

According to Wiki, "The Actor" explore love and reflective introspection.[8] In an interview, Hayward remembered the context that inspired the lyrics to "The Actor": "Late at night, the road outside in Bayswater, quiet for a while, all alone in the world (for a bit), being in love but struggling with relationships."

I find it a perfectly pleasant track, but it really doesn’t grab me. Nothing against it, I just can’t put my finger on why I find it a little throw away. Others may love it and I totally get that you might

Link

Re: In Search Of The Lost Chord by The Moody Blues

Johnnyo — Thu, 26 Feb 2026 09:55:53 GMT

Author: Johnnyo

Posted: 02/26/2026 14:55

Visions Of Paradise

Another flute led track, but when you have as good as player as Ray Thomas, why not?

A little too laid back / mellow for my liking but Quite beautiful in it's own way but doesn’t feel like it’s going very far and enhancing the album too much.

Excellent Justin Haywood vocals though.

Link

Re: In Search Of The Lost Chord by The Moody Blues

Johnnyo — Tue, 24 Feb 2026 03:58:34 GMT

Author: Johnnyo

Posted: 02/24/2026 08:58

The Best Way To Travel

Very 60’s vibe to this and again, a rather recognisable track for the casual listener like me.

Really nice sound and I like the distortion in the recording.

Not sure whether it’s the case but I’m sure that Steve Miller must have listened to this track, in fact the whole album, before maying Book Of Dreams. A very good acid / psychedelic song

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YqOiZjwQKaU[youtube]

NB - Not sure why, but couldn't get the video to post. Will try again later

Re: In Search Of The Lost Chord by The Moody Blues

Johnnyo — Sun, 22 Feb 2026 05:58:40 GMT

Author: Johnnyo

Posted: 02/22/2026 10:58

Voices In The Sky

One of the two singles from the album, and probably one of the most recognisable tracks as well. I think that, for the casual listener, which I am, when you think of the Moody Blues, you quite often think of this track

It’s actually a really beautiful song. Very melodic and I really, really like it. Great Track.

Link

[/youtube]

Re: In Search Of The Lost Chord by The Moody Blues

Johnnyo — Sat, 21 Feb 2026 05:59:06 GMT

Author: Johnnyo

Posted: 02/21/2026 10:59

DaveP wrote:

Never really got into the Moody Blues. I was (and still am) a big prog rock fan. Back in the day loved both the big names (Floyd, Yes, Genesis, ELP etc) and the less well know bands (PFM, Greenslade etc) but never really got into The Moodys.

I knew the singles of course but always find them a little too twee and polite.

I did buy “To Our Children’s Children’s Children”, Remember finding in a bargain bin and so took a chance, but didn’t think much of it. Oh, and a compilation but again something I didn’t play it much.

But given that you wanted thoughts on it I thought I would give it a play and have to say I am very pleasantly surprised.
Coming out in ’68 it very much of its times, full of great harmonies (especially on “House of Four Doors”. and hooks, lyrics seem a little poor but can easily ignore due to the great tunes. Indeed, the harmonies at times remind me of the Beach Boys. And of course the whole album displays huge Beatles influence, both in songwriting and performance (and not just the Sitars)

Hard to comment on individual tracks as I have only played it 4 or 5 times and always takes me a while to get into individual bits, but I do feel that the sum is most definitely better than the parts. So definitely early Prog in that respect and it maybe why I never got into the compilation (which did have some of these songs on it) as they would seem out of place without each other.

Although 1 thing to say is that a Mr Bowie must have been familiar with the album as “Departure>Ride My See-Saw” must have had an influence on “Future Legend > Diamond Dogs”

So thanks for highlighting this album, will definitely be playing it lots in the future and may even delve deeper into the bands other recordings.

Thanks for your thoughts DaveP and for taking the time to post here. It's really appreciated

You know what, I think that you have summed up how I feel about the album. The whole is definitely great than the sum of it's individual tracks and I too have generally picked up Moodies albums in bargain bins but rarely play them so the 60's listening group is a great way to discover / rediscover albums from that period

So far I have found this album more enjoyable that I initially anticipated, not having played it for probably 20 years.

Will be posting more track comments as I get the time and again, thanks for contributing to the thread

Re: In Search Of The Lost Chord by The Moody Blues

DaveP — Fri, 20 Feb 2026 13:50:08 GMT

Author: DaveP

Posted: 02/20/2026 18:50

Never really got into the Moody Blues. I was (and still am) a big prog rock fan. Back in the day loved both the big names (Floyd, Yes, Genesis, ELP etc) and the less well know bands (PFM, Greenslade etc) but never really got into The Moodys.

I knew the singles of course but always find them a little too twee and polite.

I did buy “To Our Children’s Children’s Children”, Remember finding in a bargain bin and so took a chance, but didn’t think much of it. Oh, and a compilation but again something I didn’t play it much.

But given that you wanted thoughts on it I thought I would give it a play and have to say I am very pleasantly surprised.
Coming out in ’68 it very much of its times, full of great harmonies (especially on “House of Four Doors”. and hooks, lyrics seem a little poor but can easily ignore due to the great tunes. Indeed, the harmonies at times remind me of the Beach Boys. And of course the whole album displays huge Beatles influence, both in songwriting and performance (and not just the Sitars)

Hard to comment on individual tracks as I have only played it 4 or 5 times and always takes me a while to get into individual bits, but I do feel that the sum is most definitely better than the parts. So definitely early Prog in that respect and it maybe why I never got into the compilation (which did have some of these songs on it) as they would seem out of place without each other.

Although 1 thing to say is that a Mr Bowie must have been familiar with the album as “Departure>Ride My See-Saw” must have had an influence on “Future Legend > Diamond Dogs”

So thanks for highlighting this album, will definitely be playing it lots in the future and may even delve deeper into the bands other recordings.

Re: In Search Of The Lost Chord by The Moody Blues

Johnnyo — Thu, 19 Feb 2026 04:21:02 GMT

Author: Johnnyo

Posted: 02/19/2026 09:21

MadhattanJack wrote:

Johnnyo wrote:

Legend Of A Mind
...
As with many tracks on this album, it focused on drug use and in this case, specifically around the author Timothy Leary

What's interesting (to me) about this track is that they apparently couldn't agree on the lead guitar part in the little bridge between each verse. It's supposed to give the song a kind of light/happy medieval-troubador feel, but in the Lost Chord version they pan it all the way to the right channel and practically bury it in the mix. A few years later in the This is the Moody Blues version, they move it to the center and turn it way up, and in 1996, for the re-recorded "Timothy Leary Lives" version they did for the Beyond Life with Timothy Leary documentary (version below), they get rid of it altogether. And then for the "Leary is the Best" version (below that), it's backwards, along with everything else, so why am I even mentioning it? I have no idea.

Link

Link

After This is the Moody Blues, "Legend of a Mind" actually got left off of many, if not most, Moody Blues "Best Of" compilations. You might think this was because they were worried Timothy Leary might sue them, but apparently he liked the song and had no problem with it whatsoever. I guess they just decided it was too "Sixties" and therefore hopelessly outré.

That's interesting MadhattanJack. Thanks for sharing. I find it interesting when there are different mixes on different version of the same album or you get a different mix on a retrospective for example. This means that we, as listeners, may get different perspectives of the same song

In my 70's listening group we discissed

Rumours (1977) by Fleetwood Mac

and some said that one of the singles (can't remember which one, sorry) was issued to radio stations as a mono whereas the album version is stereo.

Re: In Search Of The Lost Chord by The Moody Blues

MadhattanJack — Wed, 18 Feb 2026 23:24:56 GMT

Author: MadhattanJack

Posted: 02/19/2026 04:24

Johnnyo wrote:

Legend Of A Mind
...
As with many tracks on this album, it focused on drug use and in this case, specifically around the author Timothy Leary

Re: In Search Of The Lost Chord by The Moody Blues

Johnnyo — Wed, 18 Feb 2026 07:43:09 GMT

Author: Johnnyo

Posted: 02/18/2026 12:43

House Of Four Doors (Part 2)

One of the shortest tracks on the album at only 1.47, despite that, still rather good with very good orchestration and harmonies. Fits into the overall flow of the album

Link

Re: In Search Of The Lost Chord by The Moody Blues

Johnnyo — Mon, 16 Feb 2026 09:30:29 GMT

Author: Johnnyo

Posted: 02/16/2026 14:30

Legend Of A Mind

One of the longer tracks on the album and I think that it benefits from that.

As with many tracks on this album, it focused on drug use and in this case, specifically around the author Timothy Leary

I particularly like the flute playing on it and This is one of my favourite tracks on the album. Really very good

Link
[/youtube]

Re: In Search Of The Lost Chord by The Moody Blues

Johnnyo — Fri, 13 Feb 2026 03:37:49 GMT

Author: Johnnyo

Posted: 02/13/2026 08:37

House Of Four Doors

First part of a two-part composition (part 2 to come) I really rather like this. Excellent orchestration.

Has an ethereal feel to it and a 60’s psychedelic vibe.

Link

Re: In Search Of The Lost Chord by The Moody Blues

Johnnyo — Wed, 11 Feb 2026 08:39:23 GMT

Author: Johnnyo

Posted: 02/11/2026 13:39

Dr Livingstone, I Presume

I’m just not sure what to make of this in isolation of the rest of the album and that might be a recurring theme when taking about each of the tracks in isolation from the rest of the album. I’m gong to persevere non the less.

I don’t see any subtext here; it’s a song about David Livingstone.

I find the track rather twee and rather childlike. Not my cup of tea I’m afraid although the guitar solo towards the end of the track is rather decent

Link

Re: In Search Of The Lost Chord by The Moody Blues

Johnnyo — Sat, 7 Feb 2026 02:21:31 GMT

Author: Johnnyo

Posted: 02/07/2026 07:21

MadhattanJack wrote:

It's important to note that the Bodhisattva, whoever that may be, doesn't really want you to be homeless per se — he only wants you to sell your house in town, not the country house, or the beach house, or the uptown penthouse condo that you bought for your mistress which your wife supposedly doesn't know about except that actually does and she's also been cheating on you with the poolboy for the past three years. Also, if you have any albums by The House Of Love, you should hold on to those too because they're all really good, especially the ones they made during the 80s and 90s.

I love The House Of Love

The Butterfly album is a masterpiece.

Re: In Search Of The Lost Chord by The Moody Blues

MadhattanJack — Fri, 6 Feb 2026 17:17:29 GMT

Author: MadhattanJack

Posted: 02/06/2026 22:17

Johnnyo wrote:

Also a Fun fact there about steely Dan that I wasn’t aware of

Re: In Search Of The Lost Chord by The Moody Blues

Johnnyo — Fri, 6 Feb 2026 13:10:49 GMT

Author: Johnnyo

Posted: 02/06/2026 18:10

Romanelli wrote:

Johnnyo wrote:

Ride My See-Saw

One of the most recognisable tracks from the album and a rather good track TBH.

No surprise that it was chosen as a single from the album as it’s extremely radio friendly.

The vocals, which was always a Moodies strong suit are great on this track.

Link

Just my opinion: This song was always everything I DON'T like about The Moody Blues. I've never liked the sound of their voices together. They just always sounded more like a men's choir than a rock band. A song about a see-saw always seemed kinda hokey to me. Their more uptempo songs seem to me to lack a real feel...they sound like they are just playing faster because they needed a faster song. And I could live the rest of my life without hearing any of their overly serious and drama heavy spoken word pieces Just because it worked once doesn't mean you have to keep doing it.

a lot of what the moodies did doesn’t work for me which is why I’m pleased that this album was chosen by the group. I have to listen to and evaluate the album which might either confirm my existing thoughts about the band, or I might get a new appreciation for them.

Either way, I’m going to make the most of the journey

Thanks to everyone so far for engaging with the thread

Re: In Search Of The Lost Chord by The Moody Blues

Johnnyo — Fri, 6 Feb 2026 13:06:21 GMT

Author: Johnnyo

Posted: 02/06/2026 18:06

MadhattanJack wrote:

It's an Eastern mysticism thing, actually. Buddhists, and a fair number of Hindu sects, use the see-saw metaphor to illustrate how in the unenlightened life, individuals are forced into constant up-and-down, good-vs.-evil, pleasure-and-pain cycles that prevent them from escaping the "wheel of samsara" and the "karmic cycle" and ultimately ascending into higher planes of consciousness as Bodhisattvas. Steely Dan also did a song about it on Countdown to Ecstasy, where the Bodhisattva takes you by the hand and convinces you to sell your house in town.

So, supposedly, In Search Of The Lost Chord is a concept album consisting of this one song about how the unenlightened life really sucks and should be escaped from, followed by a bunch of songs suggesting various ways to do that — travel, drugs, religion, meditation, acting classes, repeating monosyllabic mantras for long periods of time, crushing squatting people between giant skulls and fetuses, and so on. The usual sort of thing, really.

That’s interesting MJ. Now you say that the song makes so much more sense in the context of the rest of the album.

Also a Fun fact there about steely Dan that I wasn’t aware of

Re: In Search Of The Lost Chord by The Moody Blues

MadhattanJack — Thu, 5 Feb 2026 18:02:56 GMT

Author: MadhattanJack

Posted: 02/05/2026 23:02

Romanelli wrote:

A song about a see-saw always seemed kinda hokey to me.