John Lodge, bass player for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame band The Moody Blues performed on Sunday Oct 14th at the City Winery in downtown Washington DC for an intimate group of energetic fans.
John Lodge and his band started the show at 8pm sharp which is unusual. Usually shows start at least a few minutes late but not this show. I have been a fan of The Moody Blues ever since I was a kid. I am not young, but there were a lot of fans at this show that have been fans of The Moody Blues since the beginning of the band back in 1964, which is a few years before my time, but not by much!
John and his band played for about ninety minutes. I have seen a few concerts in small venues such as the City Winery and as I have said before, I love attending shows at small venues such as this show. The reason is, since the audience is smaller, the connection between the band and the audience is more intimate and personal. Granted I know performers in many ways love playing for large crowds, as the adrenaline from shows like that must be amazing. This show was like many others where the band seemed more comfortable and relaxed but also so full of energy.
I was amazed at the energy of the performance of John and his band. The smiles on John and his bands’ face throughout the show told the story for the night.
Lodge, of course, played some songs from The Moody Blues, but he also played a few songs from his latest album, titled “10,000 Light Years Ago” which was released in 2015. Songs from this album they performed included, “In My Mind”. “Get Me Out of Here”, and “10,000 Light Years Ago”
For the music catalog from The Moody Blues. John Lodge performed songs that he was the songwriter. Some songs recorded by The Moody Blues that he performed John said have never been performed live by The Moody Blues and as he said probably never will. I
He spoke of the passing of Ray Thomas in early 2018, played and dedicated the song “Legend of a Mind” which was written by Ray Thomas and recorded by The Moody Blues.
One of the most amazing things from this night was the audience. Music has changed drastically since The Moody Blues recorded actual “Albums”. Sure, bands released singles on 45’s, for those who do not know what 45’s are, google it for a great education music before CD’s and digital downloads! With music being on LP, Cassette or 8-Track, google 8-track, it was not easy to “skip songs” so you put in LP on the turntable, put the needle down at the start of the LP and let it play all the way though, until it was time to flip over the LP for even more music! Which was great for the artist as you had the ability to listen to be introduced to more songs than you are today. These were the great days of music!
To close out the night, John and his band played “I’m Just a Singer (In a Rock and Roll Band)” at which point the band left stage briefly before coming back to perform “Ride My See-Saw” for an encore.
This was a great night, seeing a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Legend. One band I had always wanted to see live was The Moody Blues but never have. I just hope that it’s not too late as The Moody Blues have always had a hard-core fan base.
Rating: A
Photos by Jeff Talbert
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