Progressive rock bands stumbled into the '80s, some with the crutch of commercial concessions under one arm, which makes
the Moody Blues' elegant entrance via
Long Distance Voyager all the more impressive. Ironically enough, this was also the only album that the group ever got to record at their custom-designed Threshold Studio, given to them by Decca Records head Sir Edward Lewis in the early '70s and built to their specifications, but completed while they were on hiatus and never used by the band until
Long Distance Voyager (the preceding album,
Octave, having been recorded in California to accommodate
Mike Pinder), before it was destroyed in the wake of Decca's sale to Polygram. In that connection, it was their best sounding album to date, and in just about every way is a happier listening experience than
Octave was, much as it appears to have been a happier recording experience. While they may steal a page or two from
the Electric Light Orchestra's recent playbook,
the Moodies are careful to play their game: dreamy, intelligent songs at once sophisticated and simple. Many of these songs rank with the band's best: "The Voice" is a sweeping and majestic call to adventure, while the closing trio from
Ray Thomas ("Painted Smile," "Reflective Smile," and "Veteran Cosmic Rocker") forms a skillfully wrought, if sometimes scathing, self-portrait. In between are winning numbers from
John Lodge ("Talking Out of Turn," the pink-hued "Nervous") and
Graeme Edge ("22,000 Days"), who tries his hand successfully in some philosophizing worthy of ex-member
Mike Pinder. Apart from the opening track,
Justin Hayward furnishes a pair of romantic ballads, the languid "In My World" (which benefits greatly from a beautiful chorus heavily featuring
Ray Thomas' voice), which distantly recalls his
Seventh Sojourn classic "New Horizons," and the more pop-oriented, beat-driven romantic ballad "Meanwhile." In typical
Moodies fashion, these songs provide different perspectives of the same shared lives and observations. "Gemini Dream," which was a big hit in the U.S., does sound dated in today's post-
Xanadu landscape, but never does the band lose the courage of their convictions. Although the title and the cover art reference the then-recent Voyager space probe, only half of the songs have a "voyager" connection if you apply it to touring on the road; apologetic love songs consume the other half. Still, not everything has to be a concept album, especially when the songs go down this smooth. This album should make anybody's short list of
Moodies goodies. And, yes, that's
Patrick Moraz who makes his debut here in place of original member
Mike Pinder. ~ Dave Connolly & Bruce Eder