The Moody Blues

It is so hard to imagine the excitement of being in pop music in the mid 1960s, when almost everything had a fresh and exciting feel - as compared to the well trodden paths that are followed by today's pop and rock stars. The Beatles opened the door for British bands to explore, something The Moody Blues would do later in their career, on the likes of Nights In White Satin.

Before that the five piece had a slightly different existence - Justin Hayward's arrival would change the dynamic somewhat. This was a band featuring Denny Lane, Ray Thomas, Mike Pinder, Clint Warwick and Graeme Edge. Like many pop bands of the time, the gravy train was started with a cover version. For The Moody Blues, their rendition of Bessie Bank's Go Now, would take them to the world stage.

The basic rock and roll of this debut is summed up with the opening I'll Go Crazy and the bluesy I Don't Mind. Only one song goes over the 4 minute mark (Can't Nobody Love You) and all the arrangements are very simple. A surprising find after 50 years is the album's version of Gershwin's Ain't Necessarily So.

The official 50th anniversary reissues consist of a Deluxe edition includes the original album, re-mastered from the first generation master tapes, along with all the singles the band recorded between 1964 and 1966. But there are also 29 previously unreleased bonus tracks, including the band’s entire July 1964 sessions at Olympic studios in London. The set is packaged in a clamshell box, with a lavishly illustrated booklet and an essay written by Mark Powell, three rare promotional postcards and a poster.

Two years after this release the band had changed line-up and changed style - before becoming one of the early proponents of prog-rock. This is a world away from that kind of indulgence.