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June 2006
As I was walking into the Point arena in Dublin
a couple of weeks ago for the 'War of The Worlds' tour, a voice
called out to me ”Justin, 'tis yourself, great to see you”.
It was nobody I knew, but he knew the music all right, and the
phrase is so charming and friendly that it brought back a lot
of memories.
I used to come to Ireland a lot in the late 70's and early 80's,
to be with the friends that I had made through being involved
with horses, and sometimes to buy and sell bloodstock at the sales.
It had all started in the mid 70's when my friend and I had realised
a dream for both of us and had turned what was previously a rather
broken down arable farm on the Wiltshire Downs in England's West
Country, into a beautifully equipped and professionally run stud
where we looked after mares and foals (as well as thoroughbred
racehorses who were resting out of training over the winter months).
It was down some country lanes not far from where I had spent
my childhood, and I knew the area, and it's people well. My own
horse from Cornwall spent some of the last years of his life there,
and he loved it too. In end the farm kind of outgrew me, and my
life had changed a lot, so we both moved on.
Back to Dublin though; it is such a beautiful city and it was
only on that last night of the tour that I finally realised “this
is brilliant! ~ this has been a wonderful tour and it's been a
privilege to be part of it”. So much of the previous four
weeks was concerned with worries like 'will it actually work?'
and' what challenges does tomorrow hold?' Logistically it was
quite difficult too, for the musicians and singers, but especially
for the excellent crew. The effort they put in was phenomenal.
Those who did most of the tour as members of the audience know
only too well that the routing was awkward and illogical a lot
of the time (I didn't disillusion some of the other performers,
who didn't know the Moodies fans, when they assumed that the familiar
faces each night were there just for them). Meals had to be snatched
when possible and hotels had not been scouted in advance, as is
the case on Moodies tours.
Each day there was a full sound check (something rare on our gigs,
only because we know each other so well and our crew usually take
care of it). But 'The War of The Worlds' is something different,
and that many musicians and that much equipment needs to be constantly
monitored and tested.
It was also a new experience for me in many other ways. One of
which was that I had never sung on stage before without a guitar
to hide behind, and to make the music I was singing to, if you
know what I mean.
What to do with my hands? I decided the best thing was nothing!
The head mics that we wore were attached by wire loops over the
ears so that the microphone is always rigidly suspended in front
of the mouth. Gary, the sound engineer tried a couple of different
types for my voice before he was happy.
The only drawback for me was that I am used to 'working the mike',
in that when I want to sing gently I can normally come right in
to the microphone, and when I'm at full voice I can move away,
kind of like doing my own follow fader. That's not possible of
course with head mics, and it takes a lot of getting used to.
In the monitors, with this head mic system, when you sing quietly
you can't hear yourself, and when you are hitting the top notes
it's really, really loud.
We used 'in ear monitors' as we use in the Moodies (I brought
my own to use on TWOTW), which some of the other guest artists
had never used them before. They are a must nowadays, especially
as none of the guitar players on stage had amplifiers. They were
all going 'direct in'.
What players they were too;
Hugh Burns, now acknowledged as one of the 'greats' in recording
circles, and Laurie Wisefield, who has the smoothest style and
quickest changes of any guitar player I have heard. Chris Spedding,
~ well, just look on the Internet, a true legend, and on bass
Herbie Flowers, probably most famous for the double bass riff
on 'Take a Walk on the Wild Side', and truly one of the nicest
men in this crazy business.
Chris, Herbie and I were on the original record together and the
years just melted away on this project.
And of course, the man in the middle, Jeff Wayne my buddy and
partner. What courage to even attempt a show like this, and what
a triumph to actually pull it off.
I knew Gordon would be the right drummer. I told Jeff he needed
him as soon as the idea of doing TWOTW on stage began.
I shared a dressing room a few times on the tour with Russell
Watson who besides having one of the most powerful and moving
voices in the singing world is also very funny, and we shared
some good times during the four weeks. Sometimes Britain does
not give great singers like Russell the credit due, but I think
in time it will dawn on people how valuable and special voices
like his are. It would be an honour to share a stage with him
again any time.
So, yes, in the end I had a brilliant time on the tour. The music
is so moving and as I have said before, I would go anywhere to
sing Forever Autumn.
Also, to walk on stage every night to the sight, and sound of
dozens of the prettiest string players in the world is daunting
and wonderful. I hope Jeff asks me again next time!
I'm whizzing off down Italy's A 10 auto-route again
next week to help re-master the final two of the 'classic first
seven' Moody Blues albums. Alberto has the original masters now
and Danilo is coming along to oversee the whole thing. It's going
to be fab! The out-takes on the bonus CD's of these last two contain
tracks, recorded with Mike after Seventh Sojourn, that I thought
were lost forever.
I think anyone who has the first five recent re-mastered albums
will agree with me that they are the only versions worth having
on CD, and Mark Powell and Joe Black at Universal have delivered
a stunning collection, visually and sonically.
I cant wait to get back into Moody Blues music again, new and
old, and I'm really looking forward to seeing the guys again in
the summer and planning the whole UK and Europe tours coming up
in September and October. I've done a few interviews lately with
Eastern European journalists and I'm always a surprised and moved
at the depth of feeling for the band across Europe and beyond.
We will get to play there won't we?
Love,
Justin
From the writings of the poet Rainer Maria Rilke;
“The longer I live, the more urgent it seems
to me to endure and transcribe the whole dictation of existence
up to its end, for it might just be the case that only the very
last sentence contains that small and possibly inconspicuous word
through which everything we have struggled to learn and everything
we had failed to understand will be transformed suddenly into
magnificent sense.
And who can be sure if in the realm of the beyond it might not
somehow matter that here we had reached precisely that end that
was ultimately meant for us. There is also no certainty that new
challenges might not confront us on the other side while we flee
from here completely exhausted - challenges that the soul, as
it finds itself shaken and without having been either summoned
or prepared, would face even more than other tasks with a sense
of shame”.
NEW FALL SHOW ADDED
Third Amsterdam Date Announced For The Fall Tour!
A third show has been scheduled for October 20th in Amsterdam
this Fall. The MoodyBluesToday Presale on 4 Star and 5 Start ticket
Packages will begin at 9am EST on Monday, May 22nd, 2006. Click
Here for details.
NEW CONTESTS
Check out the NEW Contests on MoodyBluesToday.com
including tickets to see the band’s OC Fair performance in
July.
There are more contests for the OC show, new video footage of
the band and more exciting features on MoodyBluesToday.com
Coming Soon!!
SPREAD THE WORD!
UPCOMING EVENT
BORDERS Store Appearance by The Moody Blues!
Justin, John & Graeme will be signing copies of their latest
release, “Lovely To See You: Live at the Greek.”
29 July: South Coast Plaza Borders, Costa Mesa, CA from 1-4pm
For more details & directions: MoodyBluesToday.com
TICKETS AND TICKET PACKAGES FOR 2006 SHOWS
Tickets & Packages Still Available For The Fall Tour
Visit the MoodyBluesToday BOX OFFICE for Ticket Packages while
they are still available!
Box office link: Click
to visit...
27 September: Devon, UK (4 Star)
29 September: Bristol, UK (4 Star)
03 October: Glasgow, UK (4 Star)
04 October: Newcastle, UK (4 Star)
06 October: Ipswitch, UK (4 Star)
07 October: Brighton, UK (4 Star)
11 October: London, UK (Member tickets)
19 October: Amsterdam, NL (4 & 5 Star)
20 October: Amsterdam, NL (4 & 5 Star) PRESALE STARTS 9am
Monday, May 22nd
Tickets Available For The CA Show
30 July: OC Fair, Costa Mesa, CA
MoodyBluesToday Festival Ticket Packages have SOLD OUT! There
are still tickets available to the show through Ticketmaster.
Click
here to access Ticketmaster...
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