Legend of a Band - The Story of the Moody Blues

Starring:Moody Blues
Studio: Polydor / Pgd
Product Type: DVD

Amazon.com

For a band that never aspired to hit singles, the Moody Blues have had a remarkably lengthy career, as evidenced by this glossy 1990 profile. Interview snippets with engagingly chatty band members are interspersed with a dozen of their videos, including those for their hits from the 1981 comeback album Long Distance Voyager: "The Voice" and "Gemini Dream." Singer-guitarist-songwriter Justin Hayward speaks most eloquently and interestingly among the quintet, and for the most part the videos are hilariously cheesy examples of the bad, cheap-looking, early-MTV-days genre. The band lip-syncs the song as a ridiculous story plays out starring the group's members. Some vintage performance footage is unearthed, which should please the group's voraciously loyal fan base, if not those still unconvinced. --Kevin Filipski

Customer Reviews:

Better than Classic Artists Version.......2007-05-24

I recently purchased Legend of a Band along with the longer and more expensive Classic Artists 3-DVD set. I must say while LOAB doesn't show as much footage as CA, it does seem to tell the story much clearer and without a lot of the superfulous interviews of people that most of us have never heard of anyway. I am a huge John Lodge fan and the segment of him at the site of The Isle of Wight Festival was fantastic and that alone was well worth the price of the DVD! I highly recommend this to any MB fan.

Dated, but still worth a look.......2006-12-27

I was very eager to see this documentary, and it did not disappoint. Despite it being filmed in 1991, it is still worth seeing because by that stage the the Moody Blues had achieved over 30 years of success. The documentary features a mix of interviews and videos. It was fascinating listening to Justin Hayward describe the early days and how songs were created. He even performs an acoustic version of "Tuesday afternoon". The DVD contains about 10 videos in their entirety, including the original videos of "Nights in white satin", and "I'm just a singer". The remaining videos are from the later years except for the remix of "Question". I am pleased to have all of these videos now im my library, but would have liked to see more videos from the early days, or even early concert footage. Perhaps some footage from the famous Isle of Whyte concert in 1970.

Overall, this is an effective documentary containing footage that any fan of this incredible band will want it in their collection. it's also a good way to get 10 of their videos in their entirety too.

Not "Moody Blues Anthology," but pretty good.......2006-09-27

Until the release of the "Classic Artists" DVD, this is as good a biography of the Moody Blues as you are going to find. There is interesting information about the band, and it does give you a chance to hear from the individuals, so Ray Thomas and Graeme Edge become more than accompanists, just as they were in days of future past, and Justin Hayward and John Lodge show a little of the minds behind the voices up front.

Two things would have made this a better program: it would have been nice to have had more footage of the "Mark II" band in performance, and it would have been invaluable to have Mike Pinder participate, since he was essentially the founder of the band and his Mellotron helped to define the Moodies' sound at its best. (It is also striking that Patrick Moraz was not interviewed; it is as though the producers were avoiding the controversy about whether he was a member of the band which broke out shortly after this.)

This could have been longer to good effect, but it is good for what it is, and certainly helps the viewer to know a little bit about one of the best bands to (so far) be denied enshrinement in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Wonderful Insight to the "Blues".......2006-07-13

I have been a fan of the Moody Blues since my high school days. I have seen them in concert several times over the past several years. This DVD provides a more comprehensive look at the band and especially the artists. Quite franly, I was very impressed by the devotion of the Blues to their music and their fans. The quality of the DVD could have been better, however some of the footage was old and recarding equipment "back them" was only a shadow of what it is today. Overall an excellent addition to an Moddy Blues fan collection.

An Amazing Band.......2006-04-22

My DVD just arrived today and I wasted no time in watching it. The quality isn't the best technically but the band makes up for it in their telling of their story. It was very informative to discover how the band evolved from "just another rock 'n' roll band." I remember the "Go Now!" days, how the group disappeared from the public scene in North America for a while, only to emerge with a totally different and very welcome image and style.

It is great to hear it from the band members. It is good to hear the band explain that the songs were just that...songs. There were no secret meanings, spiritual or otherwise. If you "dig" the sound of the Moody Blues, past or present, you'll enjoy this DVD.

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