The Moody Blues are a rock group formed in Erdington, Birmingham, Warwickshire, England, UK during 1964, initially comprising keyboardist Mike Pinder, multi-instrumentalist Ray Thomas, guitarist Denny Laine, drummer Graeme Edge, and bassist Clint Warwick. The band became well-known playing rhythm 'n' blues music, having some changes in membership before settling with the line-up of Pinder, Thomas, Edge, guitarist Justin Hayward, and bassist John Lodge, who remained together for most of the group's 'classic era' into the early '70s.
Their 2nd L.P., Days of Future Passed, released in 1967, was a fusion of rock with classical music that established the band as pioneers in the development of art rock and progressive rock, having been described as a 'landmark, one of the first successful concept albums'. The group toured extensively during the early '70s, before an extended break from 1974 - 1977. Mike Pinder left the group a year after they re-formed, being replaced by Swiss keyboardist Patrick Moraz in 1978.
During the following decade The Moody Blues developed a more synth-pop sound, producing The Other Side of Life during 1986, leading to them being the 1st act to have its 1st 3 top 10 US singles in a different decade. Health problems led to a smaller role for founder Ray Thomas in the '80s, although his musical contributions increased after Patrick Moraz left during 1991 before he retired from the band in 2002.
The group's most recent L.P., a collection of Christmas music, was issued during December 2003. The Moody Blues continued to tour throughout the 1st decade of the new millennium, still reuniting periodically for events, one-off concerts, short tours and cruises. The band's biggest hits include Go Now, Nights in White Satin, Tuesday Afternoon, Question, Gemini Dream, The Voice and Your Wildest Dreams, having sold 70 million L.Ps worldwide, with 18 platinum and gold albums. The group were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2018.