Mike Pinder, RIP

[GA Russell]

Mike Pinder, the pianist of The Moody Blues, has died at 82.  RIP.

 

[felser]

RIP.  He was a major contributor in defining their classic sound, then got out when the getting out was good. 

[GA Russell]

Pinder was the last surviving member of the 1964 Moody Blues.

On the other end of the spectrum, all five members of the 1964 Manfred Mann are still with us.

[Ken Dryden]

When Pinder left, his replacement, Patrick Moraz, hastened the band’s decline with his mediocre contributions.

[sgcim]

There never would have been a Moody Blues without Pinder. He did most of their arrangements, he added the mellotron to their sound, without which, they would have been just an ordinary rock band. He was also the only remaining member of the original Moody Blues, who played mainly R&B covers He and Hayward decided to play only original material. My fave song of his was "Dawn Is a Feeling" from the first album. He was essentially their leader, and responsible for getting Hayward in the band. He added some jazz elements to the group. RIP, Mr. Pinder.

[Guy Berger]

10 hours ago, Ken Dryden said:

When Pinder left, his replacement, Patrick Moraz, hastened the band’s decline with his mediocre contributions.

Moraz had zero impact on the trajectory either way. The band was starting to run out of ideas by the early 1970s.

On 4/25/2024 at 3:46 PM, felser said:

RIP.  He was a major contributor in defining their classic sound, then got out when the getting out was good. 

Fair characterization.  A huge contributor to their sound, which coupled w/Justin Hayward and John Lodge’s superior songwriting made the early MB albums worn so well.

There are a few instrumentals by him on the early MB albums that are awesome.

[Ken Dryden]

I remember reviewing the album with Moraz and trashing it.