Moody Blues put their fans in a nostalgic mood at Palace

By MICHAEL LISI
Gazette Reporter

ALBANY-The Moody Blues have gone from being part of the British invasion to one of the darlings of the VH­1 set over the last 25 years, but while they and their fans grow older, their songs just seem to get better with age.

That was evident Sunday night at the Palace Theatre as the Moody Blues provided the packed house with an anthology of greatest hits that sounded uncannily like the recorded versions of the songs.

Songs like "I'm Just a Singer (In a Rock and Roll Band)," and "Isn't Life Strange" were done to perfection as the eight­piece band sounded like a full orchestra with two keyboard players, two drummers and two backup singers providing the punch.

If there was trouble, it was the band's sometimes emotionless renderings of their timeless tunes. They seemed to be going through the motions at times, showing little energy during the show.

The four original members of the group-lead vocalist and guitarist Justin Hayward, bassist John Lodge, flautist Ray Thomas and drummer Graeme Edge-aren't as young as they used to be, and maybe that's why they basically stayed planted in front of microphones throughout the show's two sets.

They also stopped after virtually every song, giving a thumbs­up sign thrusting a fist in the air or just holding their hands open at the end of each song, which seemed peculiar given the fact that they were so low­key during the performance

Hayward, who joined the band a year after it formed, was in superb voice. Sparkling renditions of tunes like "Tuesday Afternoon," and the classic "Nights In White Satin" were breathtaking as Hayward's familiar British­accented vocal seemed to take the crowd back in time as the band touched on different points in its career.

The band, which had no opening act, split the show into two 45­minute sets, with the first touching mostly on its successes during the last decade. Songs like "I Know You're Out There Somewhere," "Wildest Dreams" and "Tell Me Again Tonight" were prominently featured, and they sounded as fresh as when they were first released.

Hayward almost sounded apologetic when he introduced a short three­song set from the band's latest record "Keys of the Kingdom." He had reason to be apprehensive.

Two of the songs, "Bless the Wings That Bring You Back" and the Beatleslike "Lean On Me," sounded like they were written for adult contemporary radio and lacked the band's trademark sound. Only the new single, "Say It With Love," seemed to recapture Hayward's extraordinary songwriting passion as they closed the first set with it.

The second set was strictly for fans who came to hear the hits. The band made no excuses as they rambled through songs like "The Other Side of Life," "Nights" and "Question," doing faithful renditions of each.

Hayward handled almost all of the guitar chores. Singing lead and playing lead guitar are two tough jobs, and foisting both on Hayward made him less effective at both of them.

Hayward rarely changed the sound of his hollow­body Gibson guitar and used the guitar throughout the show. A second guitarist would have take a lot of the pressure off Hayward and infused the extended jam in "Singer" and songs like "The Other Side of Life" with the power they seemed to need.