Seventh Sojourn (1972)

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These reviews are given in the spirit of a personal editorial and of personal opinion. If you would find yourself offended by these views and criticisms within the body of these reviews, please do not read further. It is not our intention to offend or injure someone's views on their favourite band. We wrote these as one-time fans who now, after many years, revisited these albums and wanted to write fair and unbiased reviews of The Moody Blues' material. If indeed, a member of The Moody Blues does happen to read these reviews, please take into consideration that these are simply opinions. These reviews present an alternate perspective.
Thank You,
Shawn and Andrew Dow,
March, 2007

Album Review by Andrew Dow

Album Review by Shawn Dow

Album Review by Andrew Dow

The last of what Moodies fans call "the classic or core seven" Moody Blues album. Technically, their eight album if you count "The Magnificent Moodies" released in 65, but I don't really count that as a Moody Blues album. From "Days of Future Passed" make seven, so "Seventh Sojourn". Now, a sojourn is a rest or sabbatical, so in a sense I think the Moodies knew it was time to call it a day after this one. They had been recording and touring for six years straight. That's a long time for any band to exist as a working unit, especially without personnel changes to freshen things up.

After having a No. 2 album in the US with "Every Good Boy Deserves Favor", that piece of progressive rock crap, the Moodies knew the US was demanding more Moody Madness. So, they went into Morgan studio in London and came up with this, their last album. A radical shift occurred in this album, a pair of Lodge compositions both successfully charted in the US and a Hayward song did not! This is the album where Lodge morphs into an overblown egotist, especially in his solo and later Moodies work. This was his warm-up act, and what an act it is.

Lost In A Lost World: For the first in Moodies history a Pinder song opens an album with this oration on segragation, racism and how we're all "Lost In A Lost World". The music isn't so bad really, it has a nice driving, slow pulse and multi-part vocal harmonies and its rising tone. It's middle 8 - like the chorus, is simply a mass of voices padded by a mellotron and crying oboes. The dark, sinister tone is much better than "My Song". The bass/guitar combination works well, but really the song meanders and simply plods along mindlessly in its crying and wailing. Pinder starts to come off as preaching again, telling us to "come down on our knees and say a prayer", and how we need to remember how we're all children and should be an "ever-loving family". The preaching begins! The rising cymbal flourish to end the second verse is nice only to be followed by a return to the first section. This song starts to make me feel lost!

New Horizons: Ah... finally a song from Hayward. Not since "To Our Children's, Children's Children" have I heard a better Hayward song. Its slow, methodical delivery and soft vocals fit Hayward's range and do not overextend them, showcasing his quiet delivery. The drum rolls by Edge only work to improve the song and make me forgive him for his terrible playing on "Every Good Boy Deserves Favor". The background chamberlin effect helps the songs orchestral tone. The nice middle 8 and offbeat drum pattern and tambourine create a nice effect and run straight into a patented Hayward solo where he reiterates the vocal melody, and adds a little to it as well. A good, solid double-tracked guitar sound. The song rolls back into the verse by the mellotron with cellos quietly bowing. One of Hayward's best ballads, wiping "Nights In White Satin" off the map! The slow syncopated crossing roll by Edge is nice and showcases the micing of his kit, and he does it twice. Really nice sounding! The song then quietly ends out with the mellotron and they all end together. Good effort by The Moody Blues here.

For My Lady: Now the album stays in mellow mode. A rocker was needed after the two last tunes, but we have another revisiting of "And The Tide Rushes In" with the Scottish flavored drinking song, complete with, do I dare say, an accordion to guide the chorus. I remember my mother liked this tune, then again she liked Roger Whittaker, too. The song then goes into a chorus-like middle 8 where Thomas' voice crescendos off-key and ruins the effect. Mellotrons back the tune and fill in the whole song in the background but do not help it much. A weak effort, the song repeats too much and makes me think, "This is a chick tune!"

Isn't Life Strange: Lodge started a whole new trend in his writing with this turgid piece of overly sentimental bull-crap. "Isn't Life Stra-a-a-a-a-ange?" Oh, come on! I can just see Lodge and Hayward looking into each other's eyes with glowing love. Tears come into their eyes as Lodge's falstetto cries out "To Cry!!!!" Mellow-drama at its worst and it simply plods away in its crashing and booming chorus. I can't even understand some of the words. Hayward's electric guitar is nice, but once again, buried. Then we are taken back to the beginning in the familiar A,B, A,B, pattern. The slight crying out of Hayward's guitar is gross and awful sounding. They again roll into mello-dramatic overdrive in the chorus and simply crash it out, sounding like the awful playing on "After You Came". Then, suddenly, an oboe toots out a fading anthem, only to be interrupted by Lodge's queries on love, and Edge bashing out a tympani-like response and Hayward's awful screeching on electric guitar. More crash, more boom, more tears. Anyone got a hanky? Now, I'm not trying to sound unsympathetic to love songs, but this isn't even worthy to be called a love song to me. Just a lot of moaning and crying. This, surprisingly was a huge hit in the US, and didn't even chart in the UK!

You And Me: Edge and Hayward's first and only writing effort, with Hayward coming out in the lead so we can hear his guitar picking, sounding very countrish, backed by gushing mellotrons and annoying tambourines. The song settles with Hayward leading the vocals with some anti-war talk. Some more "ahs" by the guys to pad it out. Edge's snare drum is mixed way ahead of the band with a lot of percussion, guiros and other stuff Ray can hit. The song isn't really much of a message song and Edge's drumming tends to sound like its going to stumble over itself. The final "Stop" sung out by the chorus is terrible. The final guitar lead out is really nice for Hayward, showing us some nice playing again. The finale is the best part of the tune, with what may be the best jam for this band. The syncopation in the ending is a bit much, but still the song is marred by too many flaws to be recommended.

The Land of Make Believe: Snakes and snails and puppy dog tails. Hayward heads for the sandbox again with this childish little song that sports the same sound as "Emily's Song" from "Every Good Boy Deserves Favour". Its hard to tell what this song is really about, but I know dope is referenced here in the lyric, "breathing in the smoke of high and low". More talk about prayers being heard and soaring mellotrons and spouting on about "love being the only reason why". Man, I'd almost like to smack Hayward across the face. The lyrics of the last few Moodies albums are much more up-front than the other albums. They wanted to get their "message" out I guess. The song goes on too long and repeats all over again and almost sounds condescending. Hayward's guitar playing is nice in some parts, and not in others, showing how inconsistent he actually is. The song grows monotonous and really tires the listener out.

When You're A Free Man: Pinders final epic: a slow blues-style heady trip. It's lethargic delivery with mellotron and cellos with more "New Horizons" style drumming from Edge. Hayward's guitar is great in this tune, scratching out quick little licks and then finally a solo, really giving him the space he needed. Probably his best guitar solo, but the solo can't save the song from really being a downer and putting me in a coma. Then Pinder starts on about God again and how the world's gone astray. "Let's be God's Children and live in perfect peace". Oh, man, oh, man! More preachy sermon on the mount stuff, right out of "Melancholy Man". Groan, groan, and groan!!

I'm Just A Singer (In A Rock And Roll Band): The opening drum run is faded in here in behind the "Free Man" anthem, and then rolls into Lodge's big hit, with its chorus of voices and blaring saxes and mellotron. The frenzied bass run is nice but the constant chorus of voices slightly lead by Lodge drowns out the tune. The frenzied delivery of vocals almost makes the song sound like it doesn't make sense. The guitar solo is aptly heard in the mix and isn't bad at all. At least he's not repeating the vocal melody again. It does repeat a lot and ends in a frenzy of bad over-drumming by Edge and is followed by hoots and whistles. I've lost a lot of admiration over the years for this tune. It's so overly fevered and out of breath I just lose interest.

Summary

The Moody Blues reached the highest point in album sales in the US with this one, going as high as No. 1. The massive hits "Isn't Life Strange", and "I'm Just A Singer (In A Rock And Roll Band)" propelled the band to its highest point yet. Then they broke up. Moodies fans argue that they just said they didn't play together anymore, but that's loser talk for ab break-up. The Moodies themselves admitted they broke up years later. The strain of recording and touring is taxing and so they stopped. However, they each did solo work. So, they didn't get tired of playing, they just got tired of playing with each other.

For all the albums success story, I just don't care much for it actually. There are high points like "New Horizons" and some Hayward guitar work, but the songs come off just like the last two albums, preachy and pseudo-intellectual and especially Pinder again with "When You're A Free Man". Lodge began a new chapter in his evolution as an egotist with "Isn't Life Strange", creating a style he would later use on Blue Jays and Natural Avenue, even up to the Moodies last albums.

Drab in tone and delivery, I can't imagine how this album charted so high in the US. Not as bad as "Every Good Boy Deserves Favor", but still not as good as "In Search of The Lost Chord", or even "A Question of Balance", (and that's saying something). The albums sole redeeming quality is "New Horizons" and Hayward's guitar work (at times). Weak.

Star Rating (out of 5)

** out of *****

Album Review by Shawn Dow

Watch for an upcoming Review by Shawn Dow