Mike Pinder Solo

[Iris]

Last night I listened to The Promise by Mike Pinder. First time in quite a few years. It's the re-issue, bought back in the 90s. Didn't particularly impress then and it doesn't now. The hippie self-help lyrics don't help. Yet the two bonus tracks are great - they can be sung along to! Dipped into Among The Stars this morning. Seems a big improvement on its predecessor. Any thoughts on these albums?

[gojikranz]

interested in those two bonus tracks. I just bought the mike pinder boxset from esoteric that has both albums as well as some new bonus tracks with ray Thomas that are nice. but it seems to be missing those two bonus tracks from the 90s. any info on where they come from? frustrating that they couldn't make it complete.

only listened once each but I think I agree that among the stars is better though they are both kinda light weight at least on initial listening.

[Top Cat]

It's kind of strange cause Mike's writing on his final album with the Moody Blues Seventh Sojourn was very strong I thought.
As much as I love Mellotron and Mike's work on the Moody Blues albums I never felt the need to get his solo work. I think I kind of had intuition or something that it wouldn't be on the same level.
Same thing with Ray's solo album.
I did get onboard with the Blue Jays which I think is a great album, but I never got Justin's or John's solo stuff either. And I'm a huge Moody Blues fan.
What I did hear of the solo stuff, Justin's music seem to come closer to the Moody Blues sound than any of them.

[Iris]

There's no info. on the cd about the provenance of the two bonus recordings. They sound pretty similar stylistically to what's on the album - so I'd hazard a guess and say about the same time. But they are better songs: Island to Island could have held its head up on a Moodies album.

Pinder also contributed an instrumental to a Mellotron sampler album in the 90s. Hearing that (and indeed the whole album) once is as much as much as you'll need.

[neurospiral]

It's kind of strange cause Mike's writing on his final album with the Moody Blues Seventh Sojourn was very strong I thought.

I thought Octave was his final album with the Moodies. It was nowhere near as strong as Seventh Sojourn, alas.

[ronmac]

I did get onboard with the Blue Jays which I think is a great album

Absolutely.

I thought Octave was his final album with the Moodies.

Correct.

[Top Cat]

It's kind of strange cause Mike's writing on his final album with the Moody Blues Seventh Sojourn was very strong I thought.
As much as I love Mellotron and Mike's work on the Moody Blues albums I never felt the need to get his solo work. I think I kind of had intuition or something that it wouldn't be on the same level.
Same thing with Ray's solo album.
I did get onboard with the Blue Jays which I think is a great album, but I never got Justin's or John's solo stuff either. And I'm a huge Moody Blues fan.
What I did hear of the solo stuff, Justin's music seem to come closer to the Moody Blues sound than any of them.

I thought Octave was his final album with the Moodies. It was nowhere near as strong as Seventh Sojourn, alas.

Absolutely.

Correct.

Yes, that fact had slipped my mine because I always thought of SS being his last album. Perhaps it was because his absence through a lot of that album is quite noticeable to me and I don't think of him as being on it.
It's my understanding Pinder left halfway through the recording sessions and never returned. The rest of the album was done with real strings and keyboard parts which I suspect may have been done by Justin Hayward but I can't find info on another musician being credited for the rest of the keyboard parts(perhaps someone else knows).

[SongForAmerica]

It's kind of strange cause Mike's writing on his final album with the Moody Blues Seventh Sojourn was very strong I thought.
As much as I love Mellotron and Mike's work on the Moody Blues albums I never felt the need to get his solo work. I think I kind of had intuition or something that it wouldn't be on the same level.
Same thing with Ray's solo album.
I did get onboard with the Blue Jays which I think is a great album, but I never got Justin's or John's solo stuff either. And I'm a huge Moody Blues fan.
What I did hear of the solo stuff, Justin's music seem to come closer to the Moody Blues sound than any of them.

The 8-minute title track to Graeme Edge's album Paradise Ballroom is quite good.

[Iris]

The 8-minute title track to Graeme Edge's album Paradise Ballroom is quite good.

I can see why you like that one.

And whilst we are on solo Moodies: Adam and I from Ray Thomas is charming.