RIP, Ray Thomas of The Moody Blues

[strawberrybrick]

Yesterday I was playing a compilation called Early Blues on Compleat Records. Love those early recordings, and of course, where would we all be without Days of Future Passed...

From Esoteric/Cherry Red:
"It is with profound sorrow and sadness that Cherry Red Records and Esoteric Recordings regret to announce that Ray Thomas, founder member, flautist and vocalist of the Moody Blues, passed away suddenly at his home in Surrey on Thursday 4th January 2018. We are deeply shocked by his passing and will miss his warmth, humour and kindness. It was a privilege to have known and worked with him and our thoughts are with his family and his wife Lee at this sad time."

[flatliner]

So sad.....he added so much to their sound! He, like all the others we've recently lost, will be missed....But we have his music! That will never die......

[The Dark Elf]

Incredibly sad for me. Some might scoff at Thomas's lyrical sentimentality, but I find many of his songs beautiful. I've loved the Moody Blues since I was a little kid.

Edit: Not questioning the veracity of the original poster, but there is no news release on any reputable/major site indicating Thomas died. Just posts in a couple music forums.

[Rael]

Well, 2018 is off to a good start. RIP Ray Thomas.

[ChrisXymphonia]

Edit: Not questioning the veracity of the original poster, but there is no news release on any reputable/major site indicating Thomas died. Just posts in a couple music forums.

It came straight from Esoteric Recordings' Facebook page, a reissue label led by Mark Powell who worked on Moody Blues reissues and reissued Ray Thomas' two solo-albums on Esoteric. Can't get more reputable / reliable then that I think.

[The Dark Elf]

It came straight from Esoteric Recordings' Facebook page, a reissue label led by Mark Powell who worked on Moody Blues reissues and reissued Ray Thomas' two solo-albums on Esoteric. Can't get more reputable / reliable then that I think.

Again, not questioning the post, but people have jumped the gun before (and I don't want to get all sad and blubbery for no apparent reason). I did a Google search and found nothing but a couple forum posts.

[dpt3]

It's weird, because his songs were never my favorites, and his flute-playing was never that spectacular, and, while a solid vocalist, he was always overshadowed by Hayward, but I always felt like he was such an essential part of what I love about the Moody Blues.

I always did hold out hope we'd get at least one more performance by the "classic 5", but I guess not. RIP.

[arturs]

The sad news is on Wikipedia as well. Reading the wiki entry surprised me; I had no idea Ray had frequently been ill from the 1980s onwards. Apparently this was the cause of his limited role on MB recordings in the 1980s.

What can I say? The Moodies were idols of mine since my early teens. Justin and John were great popsters, Mike added the orchestral elements, and Ray added the timelessness. With Ray's voice, flute and songs on every album I felt like I was listening to something deeper than a pop album. He was definitely an essential element of a great band that would have been merely "very good" without him.

I saw the Moodies with a friend (also a big Ray fan) in '83 and we were in the 3rd row right in front of Ray. For some reason we thought it was funny (we were 16) to yell "Go Uncle Ray" after his songs. He finally heard us and rolled his eyes and gave us this look like "who are those idiots?" Anyway, good times... RIP.

[schlongasaurus]

Again, not questioning the post, but people have jumped the gun before (and I don't want to get all sad and blubbery for no apparent reason). I did a Google search and found nothing but a couple forum posts.

Prog magazine tweeted the news about an hour ago.

[Dan Roth]

An article on Ray from Prog magazine:

http://teamrock.com/news/2018-01-05/ray-thomas-r-i-p

I didn't know that he had prostate cancer.

R.I.P. Ray. His songs were always among my favorite in the Moodies catalog. "Legend of a Mind" and "Veteran Cosmic Rocker" are two of my all time favorites.

[Fracktured]

Sad to hear. RIP Ray.

[progcd54]

"Then the tide rushes in
And washes my castles away
Then I'm really not so sure
Which side of the bed I should lay"

RIP Mr. Thomas...OMG!!!

[ronmac]

This man oozed character. What a major loss to a great talent. RIP, indeed.

[Koreabruce]

Good-bye to the Veteran Cosmic Rocker. He brought me so much pleasure over the course of many decades. It is so sad to hear of his passing, but I'm amazed that he was able to carry on for as long as he did with inoperable prostate cancer and that he was actually making another solo album until very recently. I always enjoyed his creative input: simple but poignant lyrics, an authoritative voice with a deep, distinctive vibrato, and especially his superb flute playing. Looks like I need to do a Moody's binge...

[Dan Roth]

Back when Ray and Patrick were doing some press for the band:

[Yellow Jester]

I'm so very sorry to hear about Ray Thomas of The Moodies. Condolences to his Family, Friends & Colleagues.

[spellbound]

Sorry to hear this news. Ray Thomas's contributions to the Moody Blues are vast. I've been a fan since I was a child. Rest in peace, Ray.

[chescorph]

To me, the Moodiest lost a lot of their soul when Pinder and then Thomas left. RIP.

[moecurlythanu]

Not really a surprise, but very sad all the same.

[progcd54]

Good-bye to the Veteran Cosmic Rocker. He brought me so much pleasure over the course of many decades. It is so sad to hear of his passing, but I'm amazed that he was able to carry on for as long as he did with inoperable prostate cancer and that he was actually making another solo album until very recently. I always enjoyed his creative input: simple but poignant lyrics, an authoritative voice with a deep, distinctive vibrato, and especially his superb flute playing. Looks like I need to do a Moody's binge...

Very well said!!!! RIP Ray!!!

[DocProgger]

I saw the Moodies on this 50th anniversary of Days of Future Passed tour this past summer. It had been awhile since I saw them live, and it was an enjoyable show. I was thankful to get to see Hayward, Lodge and Edge again perform, probably for the last time for me, but kept thinking it would have been so cool if Pinder and Thomas could have been a part of this. I figured and heard Ray probably has had health issues for awhile. "Legend of a Mind" alone cements his immortality, certainly one of the signature tunes of the psychedelic prog era, and he was an important part of one of the seminal groundbreaking bands of the dawn of the prog rock era. Twilight Time is also one of my favorites, and it was so cool to hear it live this past summer. Shame on the Rock HOF for once again waiting too long to induct an obvious band that should have been in years ago.

Add--I read that Legend of a Mind has not been performed by the Moody Blues since Ray retired in 2002. Thankful I got to see him perform it live several times.

[regenerativemusic]

RIP. Helped make some great music. An early Prog pioneer.

[jlneudorf]

Very sad news. The Moody Blues will always have a special place in my heart. RIP.

[emperorken]

Very sad to hear. I met Ray(and the rest of the band) at a party around 20 years ago during their Vegas stint at Caesars. A class act and one of the great voices of the Moodies. RIP.

[Paulrus]

RIP Ray Thomas.

Again, not a huge surprise but very sad all the same. I felt Ray's impact on the Moodies was most profound felt on the first few Mk II albums. Lots of credit has to go to Tony Clarke for figuring out how to best utilize Ray's vocals and flute in the Moodies sound. Ray was never a virtuoso flute player (from what I've heard he was a much better harmonica player), but talk about getting your money's worth out of a performer.

As a writer he made strong contributions with songs like "Twilight Time" and "Legend of a Mind", but he'll probably always be most remembered for the more "twee" pieces like "Lazy Day", "Floating", and "Nice to Be Here". Songs like "For My Lady" helped cement his reputation as a romantic, even eclipsing Justin Hayward in that regard.

It's sad to bid farewell to the Veteran Cosmic Rocker. Thanks for all the music, Ray.