Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Moody Blues, The
Label: Decca Records
Release: 1969
Length: 36:59
Rating: 4/5
The music of The Moody Blues, those English pioneers of psychedelic and progressive rock, has stood the test of time. More than four decades after they first made waves with the legendary, you could even say revolutionary, “Days of Future Passed” (1967), it still wins over new generations of listeners with its rich blend of majestic symphonic arrangements, contagious vocal harmonies and wonderfully flowing melodies. From album to album, right up to the start of the seventies, the legendary Moodies got more and more complex, putting ever greater emphasis on symphonic arrangements and heavy use of reverb (a special effect for creating vocal echoes).
You could feel that trend on their fourth studio effort, “On the Threshold of a Dream”, where they carried on the tradition of concept albums they’d started on the previous two records, this time via a metaphysical trip into the world of dreams. The dream concept really comes to the fore on the second half of the album, peaking in “The Voyage” suite, which was supposedly partly inspired by Strauss’s symphonic classic “Also Sprach Zarathustra”. Once again there’s no shortage of narrative interludes, courtesy of keyboardist Mike Pinder. He shines above all with his innovative (for the time) use of the mellotron, and with his organ and cello playing he’s again key to creating those majestic, at times almost sacred-sounding orchestral arrangements. Together with guitarist Justin Hayward, bassist John Lodge, flutist Ray Thomas and drummer Graeme Edge, he makes up a quintet of superb vocalists who weave countless melodic harmonies that make it easy to sink into the world of dreams. Here too, Justin Hayward is the band’s lead voice, the one who grabs you most when it comes to spinning contagious melodies, with remarkable clarity of tone and emotional warmth, though each of his bandmates is convincing in their own way.
As far as atmosphere goes, the music of The Moody Blues has always sounded like it came from some long-gone, mythological and utterly romantic age, when fantastical visions walked hand in hand with pastoral everyday life. “On The Threshold of a Dream” is no exception: with its lyrically rich character it quickly whisks the listener into the heart of ethereal plains. “In the Beginning” is a classic narrative intro that leads the listener into the core of the concept. Electronic sounds mix with the mellotron in the background while Hayward, Edge and Pinder trade off as narrators. Hayward’s character tries to find the meaning of life, Edge plays the antagonist from the computerized, cybernetic world who wants to pull the protagonist into a cold world of electronic domination and the total absence of any human warmth, while Pinder appears as the “voice of conscience”, who finally convinces the protagonist to think freely, which is also the main message of the concept.
“Lovely to See You”, even though it was never released as a single, became an evergreen classic thanks to its cheerful acoustic guitar melody and excellent vocal harmonies, and it’s also the best-known song on the album, still played at gigs today. The psychedelic-pastoral “Dear Diary”, where the central melody is carried by Thomas’s ethereal vocals and flute, reflects a cynical take on everyday life from a misunderstood individual, who tops it all off at the end of the lyrics with a generous dose of black humor: he reads in the paper about a successful hydrogen bomb test and breathes a sigh of relief when he finds out that none of the people testing the explosion were anyone he knew personally. “Send Me No Wine” is built on a bouncy tempo and a pleasant acoustic melody over waves of mellotron, which was kind of typical of John Lodge’s songwriting style, and here he takes the lead vocal. Lodge’s songwriting also gave us the excellent “To Share Our Love”, which likewise rides a bouncy tempo with a spirited Hayward guitar riff front and center. Interestingly, the lead vocal here goes to Pinder, which went against their tradition of the songwriter also being the lead singer.
“So Deep Within You” is a romantic love song where the central melody is woven by Thomas’s flute along with Pinder’s vocals and mellotron. Hayward’s “Never Comes the Day” was the only single released from the album, and, rather surprisingly given the album’s otherwise solid success, it totally bombed on the radio charts. Still, it’s a splendid, even moving song in the classic Hayward melodic tradition, with plenty of tasteful acoustic guitar touches and the heart-wrenching singing that has always gone with this vocal master’s talents. “Lazy Day” is another playful, sarcastic little gem from Thomas, both as singer and songwriter, with lyrics toying with a guy who spends every Sunday bored in front of the TV. His apathetic habit lasts all the way to the grave.
“Are You Sitting Comfortably?” rests on a pleasant pastoral melody shaped by romantic acoustic guitar and flute arrangements. The romantic-pastoral mood blends beautifully with lyrics inspired by the legend of King Arthur, his queen Guinevere, the wizard Merlin, the castle of Camelot and the knights of the round table. “The Dream” is a short spoken overture to the closing suite which, in its atmosphere and recitation, recalls a typical nightmare, fitting right in with the dream concept. The first of the two parts of “Have You Heard” is the mellotron-drenched opening of an excellent symphonic prog-rock suite made up of three parts. The second part of the suite, inspired by Strauss’s “Also Sprach Zarathustra”, is “The Voyage”, ruled by mighty orchestral arrangements built on mellotron, organ, piano, cello and flute. At the end, the ethereal “Have You Heard” motif comes back once more with remarkable expressive power, bringing this fascinating journey through the world of dreams to a close.
“On the Threshold Of a Dream” cemented The Moody Blues’ place among the key innovators in bridging symphonic music and psychedelic rock. The album is stuffed with a collection of songs that are pure ear candy, ones that will charm every lover of refined melodies and orchestration deftly steered through rock’s twists and turns. With it they firmly nailed down their signature sound and carried on a run of superb albums that had a major influence on the development of psychedelic and early progressive rock, though, to be honest, they weren’t pulling any especially revolutionary musical moves anymore, since they were slowly handing the baton of leading pioneers in art-rock adventure to some other bands, ones they had helped pave the way for in their day.
Lineup
Justin Hayward – vocals, guitar
John Lodge – vocals, bass guitar, cello
Ray Thomas – vocals, harmonica, flute, tambourine
Mike Pinder – vocals, mellotron, organ, cello
Graeme Edge – drums, percussion, vocals
Production
Tony Clarke
Track list
1. In The Beginning
2. Lovely To See You
3. Dear Diary
4. Send Me No Wine
5. To Share Our Love
6. So Deep Within You
7. Never Comes The Day
8. Lazy Day
9. Are You Sitting Comfortably
10. The Dream
11. Have You Heard (Part 1)
12. The Voyage
13. Have You Heard (Part 2)
