Moody Blues covered by Go Now! at Desert View
VIA SBINSIDER ENTERTAINMENT CRITIC |February 9th, 2024
Wednesday night the 8th, the old hippies of SaddleBrooke turned out for a night of excellent music and a strong dose of nostalgia when GO NOW! played a 90 plus minute cover show of Moody Blues music. The room was sold out, proving the SaddleBrooke crowd has great taste and appreciation for the best.
What SaddleBrookers looked like in the 60’s
GO NOW! was schedule to perform here by TAD entertainment 4 years ago but alas, the panicked intervention of COVID caused the cancellation of their original play date. But, fast forward 4 years (Hard to believe that COVID started in March 2020!)
Notwithstanding the 4-year delay, the GO NOW! band delivered a stellar performance of many of Moody Blues biggest hits: The Actor, Voices in the Sky, I know you are out there somewhere, I am just a singer in a rock and roll band, and about 20 more. The requisite encore was Story in your Eyes.
The audience clapped and sang along, and a few even used the “mosh pit” at the front of the seating to dance.
The drummer, Gordy Marshall, was a 25 year member of the original Moody Blues and appears to be the GO NOW! band leader. He also played the keyboard and one number using the original flute of Ray Thomas.
From this listener’s perspective, the drummer overpowered the singer’s voices too often. The melodies and lyrics are huge component of the Moody Blues appeal and that aspect of the show was at times frustrating. Too, the GO NOW! band did not have a keyboardist or a flautist as the Moodies did. The Moodies introduced to the world the mellotron and its sound was featured in much of their music. Ray Thomas added a unique flavor with his flute playing on most songs and that was lacking in this performance-some was filled in by the synthesizer.
Moody Blues
Alas, Desert View Theater doesn’t allow smoking inside so the folks who attended Moodie’s concerts many moons ago, where not able to pass any marijuana joints around which would have really added to the atmosphere of nostalgia. With Arizona legalizing recreational marijuana several years ago, perhaps many had ingested THC edibles prior to attending? Everyone sure seemed to be having fun.
