BEST BET: THE MOODY BLUES
By Barry
Gilbert
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
June 23, 2005
7:30 p.m. June 29, 2005, at Savvis Center, 1401 Clark Avenue. $40 and $45. 314-241-1888 or 618-222-2900.
The Moody Blues, those
flamboyant -- some would say pretentious -- art-rock knights in
white satin, will bring a smaller version of themselves to Savvis
Center. The core band is down to a trio, with the retirement in
2003 of founding flautist, singer and songwriter Ray Thomas. And
they will not be playing with a symphony orchestra. This time
out, the surviving Moodys -- guitarist Justin Hayward, bassist
John Lodge and drummer Graeme Edge -- will be playing the
relatively intimate (4,800 seats) Concert Club at Savvis. It will
be a great chance to see and hear up close one of the great,
second-wave British Invasion bands, which over about 20 original
records has specialized in concept albums embellished with
touches of psychedelia, mysticism and lush soundscapes. Reports
from the road indicate that the Moodys, who have not released an
original, non-Christmas studio disc since "Strange
Times" in 1999, deliver a career-spanning sampling of their
catalog, including "Tuesday Afternoon," "I Know
You're Out There Somewhere," "I'm Just a Singer in a
Rock and Roll Band," "Nights in White Satin" and,
of course, the perennial encore favorite "Ride My
See-Saw."