The Present (Moody Blues album)
{{Use British English|date=July 2011}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2021}}
{{Infobox album
| name = The Present
| type = Album
| artist = The Moody Blues
| cover = The Present album cover - the Moody Blues.gif
| alt =
| released = 2 September 1983
| recorded = 8 March – 10 December 1982
| venue =
| studio = Strawberry Studios South, Dorking, Surrey
| genre = Art rock, synthpop, new wave
| length = 41:47
| label = Threshold
| producer = Pip Williams
| prev_title = Long Distance Voyager
| prev_year = 1981
| next_title = Voices in the Sky: The Best of The Moody Blues
| next_year = 1984
| misc = {{Singles
| name = The Present
| type = Studio
| single1 = Blue World
| single1date = August 1983
| single2 = Sitting at the Wheel
| single2date = November 1983
| single3 = Running Water
| single3date = December 1983 (US only)
}}
}}
{{Album ratings
| rev1 = AllMusic
| rev1Score = {{Rating|2.5|5}}{{AllMusic|class=album|id=r13380/review|first=Dave|last=Connolly}}
| rev2 = Rolling Stone
| rev2Score = {{Rating|3|5}}{{cite magazine |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/artists/themoodyblues/albums/album/181108/review/5942837/the_present |title=The Moody Blues: The Present : Music Reviews |first=Errol |last=Somay |magazine=Rolling Stone |date=1983-10-27 |access-date=2012-09-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080606000829/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/themoodyblues/albums/album/181108/review/5942837/the_present |archive-date=2008-06-06 |url-status=dead}}
}}
The Present is the eleventh album by the Moody Blues, released in 1983. This was the group's last original studio album to be released on their custom label, Threshold Records.
Overview
The album is the second of the Patrick Moraz era. It provided three minor hit singles in the U.S. with "Blue World" (#62), "Sitting at the Wheel" (#27) and "Running Water".
The album has a track sequence designed to capitalise on the legacy of the more successful Long Distance Voyager, with Justin Hayward's songs at the beginning and Ray Thomas's at the end. In November 2008 the album was remastered and released on CD with two extra tracks.
The cover is a pastiche of Maxfield Parrish's painting Daybreak.
Original track listing
=Side One=
- "Blue World" (Justin Hayward) – 5:20 (lead singer: Justin Hayward)
- "Meet Me Halfway" (Hayward, John Lodge) – 4:08 (lead singers: Justin Hayward, John Lodge)
- "Sitting at the Wheel" (Lodge) – 5:40 (lead singer: John Lodge)
- "Going Nowhere" (Graeme Edge) – 5:33 (lead singer: Ray Thomas)
=Side Two=
- "Hole in the World" (Lodge) – 1:54 (instrumental)
- "Under My Feet" (Lodge) – 4:51 (lead singer: John Lodge)
- "It's Cold Outside of Your Heart" (Hayward) – 4:27 (lead singer: Justin Hayward)
- "Running Water" (Hayward) – 3:23 (lead singer: Justin Hayward)
- "I Am" (Ray Thomas) – 1:40 (lead singer: Ray Thomas)
- "Sorry" (Thomas) – 5:02 (lead singer: Ray Thomas)
=2008 remastered CD expanded edition=
The 2008 release contains two extra tracks:
- "Blue World" (Single Edit)" – 3:38
- "Sitting at the Wheel (Steve Greenberg Remix)" – 7:32
Personnel
=The Moody Blues=
- Justin Hayward – vocals, guitar
- John Lodge – vocals, bass guitar
- Ray Thomas – vocals, harmonica, flute
- Graeme Edge – drums
- Patrick Moraz – keyboards
=Additional personnel=
- Pip Williams – producer
- Greg Jackman – engineer
Charts
| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" |
| scope="col"| Chart (1983)
! scope="col"| Peak |
|---|
| {{album chart|Canada|11|artist=The Moody Blues|album= The Present|chartid=4335a|rowheader=true|access-date=July 10, 2024}} |
| {{album chart|Netherlands|26|artist=The Moody Blues|album=The Present|rowheader=true|access-date=July 10, 2024}} |
| {{album chart|Germany4|33|artist=The Moody Blues|album=The Present|id=21776|rowheader=true|access-date=July 10, 2024}} |
| {{album chart|New Zealand|26|artist=The Moody Blues|album= The Present|rowheader=true|access-date=July 10, 2024}} |
| {{album chart|Norway|14|artist=The Moody Blues|album= The Present|rowheader=true|access-date=July 10, 2024}} |
| {{album chart|Sweden|35|artist=The Moody Blues|album= The Present|rowheader=true|access-date=July 10, 2024}} |
| {{album chart|UK2|15|date=19830911|rowheader=true|access-date=July 10, 2024}} |
| {{album chart|Billboard200|26|artist=The Moody Blues|rowheader=true|access-date=July 10, 2024}} |
Certifications
{{Certification Table Top}}
{{certification Table Entry|artist= Moody Blues|title= The Present|type=album|region=Canada|award=Gold|relyear=1983|certyear=1983}}
{{Certification Table Bottom|nosales=yes}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COCCp62oAy4 "Blue World" Official Music Video (YouTube)]
- [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_jFuHKraiE "Sitting at the Wheel" Official Music Video (YouTube)]
{{Moody Blues}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Present, The}}
Category:The Moody Blues albums
Category:Threshold Records albums