This past Saturday night, the Moody Blues, a band that has been steadily touring for the past 54 years (except for a brief hiatus in the mid Seventies), was inducted—finally— into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland. These guys were eligible for induction since 1990, but no one bothered nominating them until this year.
As is customary for an inducted band, the Moodys performed a handful of their classic cuts at the ceremony. They kicked things off with 1973's "I'm Just a Singer (In a Rock and Roll Band)," followed by 1986's "Your Wildest Dreams" and 1968's "Ride My See-Saw" and finishing with 1967's "Nights in White Satin."
Like a lot of venerable bands from rock's second generation, the Moody Blues have undergone a few lineup changes throughout the years. The band members actually included in the induction included vocalist-guitarist Justin Hayward, bassist John Lodge and drummer Graeme Edge, who represent the current touring version of the group. Guitarist-vocalist Denny Laine also made the cut; Laine sang the band's first hit, "Go Now," before flying the coop and reemerging in the early Seventies as a key member of Paul McCartney and Wings. Two other classic-era members—keyboardist Mike Pinder and flautist Ray Thomas—also were included. Thomas died in January at age 76.
Moody Blues members who did not make the cut include founding bassist Clint Warwick and middle-era keyboardist Patrick Moraz. The only Moodys to actually perform Saturday night were Hayward, Lodge and Edge, which was a bit disappointing for longtime Moody Blues fans—but also expected.
Above and below, you can watch all the band's performances from induction night.
When asked about the ageless attributes of "Nights in White Satin," Hayward had this to say: "It's never lost the meaning," he told Rolling Stone. "It only works if you do it from the heart. I can only do it that one way. It's still just a series of random thoughts of a young person, but I'm very pleased that people are able to share that and it resonates. It's a record with almost nothing on it, except a lot of echo. But it's a mysterious kind of record too."
Besides the Moody Blues, this year's nominated acts included the Cars, Dire Straits, Sister Rosetta Tharpe and Bon Jovi.
GW Moody Blues homepage photo: Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic/Getty Images
