Furtwängler - (The) Salzburg Festival Orchestral Concerts

Advantages: The first Moody Blues concept album. Is this what started prog rock?
Disadvantages: Perhaps a little dated - but it is 40 years old!

...the addition of orchestration. 5, 10 Released as a single in November 1967 in mono, "Nights" is played without an orchestral backing. 6, 7, 8 and 9 The A- and B- sides of the Moody Blues first two singles with the reformed line up. Neither failed to reach the charts. 11 and 12 were recorded as material for a single which were never released. 13. A cover version recorded by the group for the BBC Radio programme "Saturday Club" in May 1967 14, 15, 16 Recorded for the BBC Radio programme "Easybeat" in September 1967, this co-incided with the release of "Love And Beauty" as a single. 17, 18, 19 A live recording (said to be one of the earliest surviving in the BBC archives) for "The David Symonds Show" - January 1st 1968. COMMENTS So, how does 'Days' sound now, 40 years later. It has to be admitted that much of it is programme... Read review

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Advantages: Great performances of popular favourites and some rare gems
Disadvantages: Barely none, with perhaps slight issues with sound.

...'s extremely wild and raucous orchestration of Bach's famous D minor Toccata & Fugue, that is more than fitting in a collection such as this (Stokowski's electric personality fully transcribes to the numerous other orchestrations he has done in the past and this is no exception). Made in 1976, the performance of the Boston Pops Orchestra under Arthur Fiedler is exciting and rugged, and full of Stokowskian electricity. Bach rarely sounds quite as thrilling. Samuel Barber's ever-popular Adagio for Strings gets a slow and a slightly exaggerated performance from Leonard Bernstein and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, but the result is still quite affecting. Beethoven's Turkish March from the play "The Ruins of Athens" is delightful and a nice make-weight; after all there always has to be some kind of Turkish flavours to be found somewhere... Read review

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Advantages: The one that started it all
Disadvantages: Perhaps a little dated by modern standards

...The album is the first by the full Moody Blues line up that stayed together for the next seven discs. Justin Hayward (lead guitar), John Lodge (bass guitar), Mike Pinder (keyboards), Ray Thomas (flute), Graeme Edge (drums). They are backed (some would say the Moodies were the backing) by the London Festival Orchestra conducted by Peter Knight. So, how does 'Days' sound now, 35 years later. It has to be admitted that much of it is programme music. It is perhaps fairer to listen to its contemporaries (The Beatles 'Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band' sounds very dated and thin in comparison) rather than Moodys new offerings. However individual songs still feature prominently in their sell-out concert tours. I owned the LP back then and bought the CD when I upgraded my collection. This is my own personal review of the play... Read review

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