The music of The Moody Blues coming to Popejoy
Apr. 30—The classic sounds of The Moody Blues will mingle in a symphonic collaboration with the New Mexico Philharmonic at Popejoy Hall on Saturday, May 4.
The tribute band Go Now! will perform The Moody Blues' timeless catalog of songs, including "Tuesday Afternoon," "Go Now," "Legend of a Mind (Timothy Leary's Dead"), "I Know You're Out There Somewhere," "Question," "Isn't Life Strange," "Forever Autumn" and "Nights in White Satin."
Go Now! drummer and band leader Gordy Marshall joined the Rock and Roll Hall of Famers in 1990.
"I worked with them for 25 years and absolutely loved them," he said in a telephone interview from London. "It feels like my band. I just fell in love with the whole shebang. We tour the U.K. as well as the Netherlands.
"I think The Moody Blues' secret weapon is the songs are just great," Marshall continued. "They were all writers and they were all singers and they were all lyricists. They all had different skill sets."
Formed in Birmingham, England, in 1964, the band rose to prominence with the number one single "Go Now" in late 1964-65. They embraced the psychedelic rock movement of the late 1960s, with their second album, 1967's "Days of Future Passed," being a fusion of rock with classical music that established the band as pioneers in the development of art rock and progressive rock.
"They brought a collective musical texture to one group," Marshall said. "They covered all sorts of genres of music — classical, love songs, progressive and rock 'n' roll."
The band initially hired Marshall for a nine-week tour.
"We all hit it off so well that we continued for 25 years," he said.
The Moody Blues never played "Go Now" because it was sung by original lead singer Denny Laine, not longtime frontman Justin Hayward, Marshall said.
Go Now!'s biggest challenge has been deciding what to play and what to leave out, he added.
"We approach it with the greatest respect," he said. "We stand on the shoulders of giants. I know exactly how The Moody Blues worked from the inside. We've taken the original recordings and used that as a template."
Mick Wilson, the lead singer of 10cc, handles the lead vocals. South African guitarist Nick Kendall (discovered by Queen's Brian May) handles the guitar solos. Michael Krajewski, formerly with the Houston Symphony, will conduct.
"We're selling out and the reception has been off the scale," Marshall said. "Everybody realizes that life isn't that serious. We have a lot of fun on stage and we take the music very seriously."
Along with his Moody Blues tenure, Marshall has worked with Rod Stewart, Mariah Carey, Emma Bunton (Spice Girls) and Joss Stone. In 2012 Splendid Books published his first travel book "Postcards from a Rock & Roll Tour."
