Disco de The Moody Blues: “Greatest Hits”

This is not completely a collection of MB masterpieces -- at least two are re-makes, and are not as good as the originals. I fear buying an MB "greatest hits" album now: Will I be getting the originals, or jazzed-up remakes ?

This is a great disc to spend your money on. All the popular Moody Blues songs. A great introduction to the group. The sound is great also. "Nights In White Satin" is even included with the spoken coda at the end. The only annoying thing is that the songs are not in chronilogical order. It jumps from period to period, but tells you in the liner notes what order the songs should go in. Strange. Maybe you can program them in order. It's a better listening experience for me to hear their music as it evolved in time. If you are a person who like to buy collections, this is great price performance value. I play it all the time. Even in the order the songs are listed; the Moody Blues are a great group, and this is a great disc.

This was for me, like so many a fantasy-novel-toting, soda-slurping, smirky little six year old girl in the 1990s, my Moody Blues gateway drug. True, 'Question' and 'Isn't Life Strange' are indeed more contemporary remakes, but an interested fan would still get a lot from hearing them. Stacking, say, the album version of 'Question' against the single and 'Legend' cuts is like comparing fine wines. There are subtle nuances between album and single (not just in length, oh, no,) and more dramatic ones between these and 'Legend,' but it's still the same song, just available in Regular, Zero and Diet versions, so to speak. Anyone mad enough to collect everything the Moodies ever did (me!) would like this, especially as it is a grand example of Moody Blues music to say...lend to unsuspecting friends. The best-known songs are there, the remakes are credible and open the discussion of Multiple Versions and Rare Tracks, and the order in which the tracks are set is very conducive to an hour's entertainment. If you want to hook a friend, score some rare versions of favorite songs, or just like the band, this is a good CD to buy.

In 1989, The Moody Blues released 'Greatest Hits,' the first "comprehensive" collection of their music. Spanning the years 1967 to 1988, the Justin Hayward era (he was not the original lead singer -- Denny Laine of Paul McCartney & Wings fame was), this collection was the only single disc collection available of the Moodies for years.

It's got plenty of gems here, don't get me wrong. The full length 'Nights in White Satin,' 'Tuesday Afternoon,' 'The Voice,' 'Your Wildest Dreams,' and even 'Ride My See Saw.'

But there are many more negatives here than positives. Why did the band decide to re-record 'Question' and 'Isn't Life Strange'? It makes no sense to me. The originals are far inferior to the remakes used here, in my opinion.

And there's plenty missing that could fit. 'Steppin' in a Slide Zone,' 'Blue World,' 'Late Lament,' or why not a Laine-era (1964-1966) gem like

'Go Now' or perhaps 'People Gotta Go'? Those would sound great on here.

The sound quality is also inferior to compilations released later on, which is understandable, considering this was released in 1989. Technology and remastering techniques have changed considerably since twenty years ago.

Overall, if you want a single-disc Moody Blues collection, go for 1997's 'The Best of the Moody Blues.' There you get a track from the Denny Laine era ('Go Now') plus almost everything here, including 'Question' and 'Isn't Life Strange' in their original album versions. Or, if you want a two disc set, go for 'Gold.' But unless you are a die-hard fan wanting the 1988 versions of 'Isn't Life Strange' and 'Question,' this collection really isn't necessary.

This import cd is an exact same copy as "The story of the Moody Blues" Legend of a Band. I didn"t realize this till after I bought it. Still plan to keep it though.