John Lodge releases new single In These Crazy Times (Isolation mix) featuring vocals from Jon Davison from YES. The song was written during isolation.

by | Jul 28, 2020 | New Releases, News

John Lodge bass guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter for The Moody Blues has released a new single “In These Crazy Times (Isolation mix)”. The track isavailable to download on Amazon, iTunes, and all usual streaming services. 


Watch John chatting about and performing some of the track here: https://youtu.be/YWGat1uK7iQ


You can Listen and buy the track here : https://johnlodge.hearnow.com


John recorded the track in his home studio in Florida and he performed vocals and guitar and using GarageBand – keyboards and drums. Joining John on the song are his wife, Kirsten and son, Kristian, both of whom have never recorded before. John was also delighted to have Jon Davison, of YES, add backing vocals and harmonies. 


John says: “In 1967 “The Moody Blues” recorded ‘Days of Future Passed’, and we were in the studio in lockdown 24 hours a day creating an album that changed my life.  Being in lockdown now reminds me of the creativity and solitude that took place during that period of my life.  So I have taken the opportunity, given by this lockdown period, to write and record a new song about these difficult day – days that stretched into weeks and months.”


“When the pandemic came I had just finished up my US tour and the Rock and Romance cruise and within three days my wife and I were ‘stranded’.  Music is my life, and without a studio (or my band), I decided to perfect my use of ‘GarageBand’ to create all the instruments, and record my guitars and vocals in my “ home studio”. 


“As I believe we are all in this together, I thought what a great idea to involve all of my family.  My wife Kirsten is singing backing vocals (for the first time!), my son Kristian is playing Lead Guitar, his wife, Inga, took the photo for the cover (with social distancing!), Jon Davison, from the band ‘Yes’, joined me on vocals, and Emily, my daughter is managing the whole thing.”


“The track was recorded at my home and Kristian and Jon added their parts in their homes, before we sent it to Ray Nesbit, my Front of House Sound Engineer for him to mix at his ‘home’ studio.  It truly is an ‘Isolation Mix’.  My wish is that we can all be together again soon, and then I hope that my 10,000 Light Years Band and I can get together and make a ‘Freedom Mix’.”


“I hope you all can relate to this song as another step in life’s strange and mysterious path, and help you continue to keep the faith that we can do it together.”


About John Lodge:
John Lodge is bass guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter for the iconic Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame 2018 inductees, The Moody Blues. Songwriter of such mega Moody Blues hits from “Ride My SeeSaw,” to “I’m Just A Singer (In A Rock and Roll Band),” “Isn’t Life Strange?” and many more, Lodge has been performing and recording with The Moody Blues for more than five decades, selling in excess of 70 million albums.  Lodge has been voted one of the “10 most influential bass players on the planet,” and has been the recipient of many awards, including ASCAP (American Society of Composers and Publishers), an Ivor Novello Award, to name just a few.  


In These Crazy Times (Isolation Mix) Out Now Listen and Buy the track here: https://johnlodge.hearnow.com
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Ray Thomas Founding Member Of The Moody Blues Has Passed Away

by | Jan 7, 2018 | News

It is with profound sorrow and sadness that Cherry Red Records and Esoteric Recordings regret to announce that Ray Thomas, founder member, flautist and vocalist of the Moody Blues, passed away suddenly at his home in Surrey on Thursday 4th January 2018.

We are deeply shocked by his passing and will miss his warmth, humor, and kindness. It was a privilege to have known and worked with him and our thoughts are with his family and his wife Lee at this sad time.

Born in Stourport-on-Severn on 29th December 1941, Ray was a member of various Birmingham Blues and Soul groups in the early 1960s, notably with El Riot and the Rebels, who also featured John Lodge and Mike Pinder at various stages in their existence. Ray formed The Krew Cats with Mike Pinder in 1963 and the group performed on the Hamburg club scene that year. Returning to Birmingham, Thomas and Pinder formed the Moody Blues with Denny Laine, Graeme Edge, and Clint Warwick. The band signed to Decca Records and enjoyed a worldwide hit with their cover of Bessie Banks’ “Go Now” in January 1965.

In October 1966 the Moody Blues line-up changed with the recruitment of Justin Hayward and John Lodge to replace the departing Denny Laine and Clint Warwick. The musical style of the group changed dramatically with the incorporation of the Mellotron into their sound, along with Ray’s evocative flute playing.

The band’s 1967 single “Nights in White Satin” (from the groundbreaking album “Days of Future Passed” – a number one album in the USA in 1972) was graced by a magical flute solo from Ray, contributing to the evocative arrangement of the song.
Over seven albums released between 1967 and 1972, the Moody Blues enjoyed major success, and each album was graced with compositions by Ray such as “Legend of a Mind” (about the psychedelic champion Timothy Leary), “Eternity Road”, “And the Tide Rushes In” and “For My Lady”.

In the mid-1970s, Ray recorded two successful solo albums; “From Mighty Oaks” (1975) and “Hopes Wishes and Dreams” (1976). The Moody Blues success continued into the 1980s. Ray’s song “Veteran Cosmic Rocker” (from 1981’s “Long Distance Voyager”) highlighted Ray’s marvelous sense of humor.

Ray remained with the Moody Blues until 2002 when he retired from the band due to health issues. Despite mobility issues, Ray continued to play and record occasionally, contributing a new song, “The Trouble with Memories” to a 2010 boxed set release of his two solo albums and more recently to the John Lodge album “10,000 Light Years Ago” in 2014. In 2017 it was announced that the members of the Moody Blues, including Ray Thomas, were to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2018.