EVERY GOOD BOY DESERVES FAVOUR

For me this is the most difficult album to rate of the ‘big-7’. Like Seventh Sojourn, there is no central theme to the songs here, except that for the most part they are mildly pessimistic and depressing. John Lodge’s tribute to his newborn daughter (“Emily’s Song”) is the most noteable exception.

Starting off with the chant “Desolation”, followed by muffled (nuclear?) explosions (thunder perhaps?) and then either fallout or rain, depending on your perspective, the opening “Procession” gives way to the most driving guitar riffs of the album in “The Story in Your Eyes”, but what starts to sound like a phoenix-rising affirmation turns sour with the biting lyrics –

“But I’m frightened for the children, that the life that we are living is in vain, and the sunshine we’ve been waiting for will turn to rain.”

A pretty mixed message in the tepid ending as well:

“When the final line is over, and it's certain that the curtain's gonna’ fall - I can hide inside your sweet, sweet love forever more”.

Well, let’s hope.

“Our Guessing Game” is another Ray Thomas tune that reminds me a lot of “For My Lady” on Seventh Sojourn, only a bit more depressing. Thomas has this knack of making his songs all sound like sea-faring chants, with melodies that roll along with a peaceful ebb and flow. This one has a great affirmation as well –

“There are times when I think I've found the truth, and there are times when I know that I'm wrong.

But there are days when I try to hide my fear - Bless the days when I'm feeling strong”.

Indeed.

Lodge puts way too much pressure on his tiny daughter in “Emily’s Song” with the heart- wrenching poem –

“Through all that life can give to you, only true love will see you through - and will stand beside you now in what you say.

And in the morning of my life, and in the evening of my day, I will try to understand in what you say.

Take me into your world, alone I cannot go. For I've been here so long, you're leaving me behind.

Walk with me now into your land of fairy tales, and open up that book of pages in my mind”.

Good stuff there.

Graeme Edge serves up his own angst with a guitar-heavy Moodies’ standard in “After You Came” and what seems to be a lament of frustration in a very personal relationship –

“I've reached, reached the top of the wall - all I've found's another way to fall”.

“One More Time to Live” is a reprise of the opening track with a round of Moodies’ rap that can be considered a walk through the landscape of mankind’s history – “desolation – creation – evolution – pollution – saturation – population – annihilation – revolution – confusion – illusion – conclusion – starvation – degradation – humiliation – contemplation – inspiration – elation – salvation – communication – compassion”.

A pretty dated emotive outburst today, but this was pretty heavy stuff thirty-five years ago.

Thomas takes us to a nice quiet meadow to reflect on nature’s beauty in “Nice to Be Here” and what was kind of a hippie anthem during my childhood. Give peace a chance!

On the other extreme is the depressing truth of “You Can Never Go Home”, and truer words were never spoken. I really love the harmonic vocals of the whole band on the choruses on this song – they give off a really groovy feeling, and that is an emotion that has become almost obsolete and somewhat trite for today’s jaded generation, and that’s unfortunate.

Mike Pinder sums up the album with “My Song”, a kind of anthematic call-to-arms for the peacenik generation delivered up as only the Moodies can, with quiet introspective vocals and peaceful orchestration whose ending leaves me with the same sense of cautious optimism that the finale of Klaatu’s Hope does.

This album demonstrates best of all the early ones the Moodies’ talent for infusing a sense of world-weary but stubborn hopefulness in the ultimate goodness of mankind, and of our shared destiny to muddle our way through this thing called life together, for better or worse. Hopefully we’ll figure it all out someday. In the meantime, I think I’ll have another listen.

peace