In Search of the Lost Chord
	Produced by Tony Clarke
	Released on July 26, 1968
	UK CHART POSITION #5 . . . US CHART POSITION #23 . . . GOLD RECORD
	Find it at GEMM
DES 18017 cover [high resolution scan]

K ronomyth 3.0: BE YOUR OWN GURU TWO. The Moodies’ followup to Days features a mantra (“Om”), a yantra, and kantya just see where this is headed? In Search of the Lost Chord is the band’s most overtly psychedelic album, a travelogue for the inner eye and ear to accompany the listener’s (wink, wink) meditative state. As good as Days of Future Passed was (is? will be?), you wouldn’t want that orchestra following the Moodies everywhere, so they morphed into a multi-instrumental psychedelic studio band a la The Beatles. The Lost Chord finds them expanding their instrumentation to include sitar, tablas, cellos and whatever the mellotron could conjure. The results are rarely as succinct as The Beatles but occasionally more thrilling, such as the opening combination of “Departure” (one of Graeme’s recitative bits) and “Ride My See-Saw.” That experience is one of the truly indelible moments in the Moodies’ oeuvre, along with the graceful introduction to “Tuesday Afternoon” and Hayward’s anguished howl in “Nights In White Satin.” Other highlights from Chord include Thomas’ “Legend of a Mind” (beginning with the untimely prediction “Timothy Leary’s dead...”), Hayward’s pretty “Voices In The Sky” and the truly trippy “House of Four Doors/The Best Way To Travel.” Chord is scripted as a kind of musical transcendental meditative journey, though it’s not likely to propel anyone past their current plane of existence (in other words, no Om-coming is forthcoming). Instead, the album is a trip of the cap to Sgt. Pepper’s and Magical Mystery Tour. With The Beatles about to change direction again, you could argue that the Moodies were now the most successful prog band on the planet, with Days, Chord and Dream foundational stones in the Church of Progrology.

DES 18017 inner gatefold	DES 18017 back cover

TRACK LISTING

1. DEPARTURE    (Graeme Edge)    0:48
2. RIDE MY SEE-SAW    (John Lodge)    3:37
3. DR. LIVINGSTONE, I PRESUME    (Ray Thomas)    2:58
4. HOUSE OF FOUR DOORS    (John Lodge)    4:11
5. LEGEND OF A MIND    (Ray Thomas)    6:40
6. HOUSE OF FOUR DOORS (PART 2)    (John Lodge)    1:43
7. VOICES IN THE SKY    (Justin Hayward)    3:32
8. THE BEST WAY TO TRAVEL    (Mike Pinder)    3:12
9. VISIONS OF PARADISE    (Justin Hayward/Ray Thomas)    4:15
10. THE ACTOR    (Justin Hayward)    3:09
11. THE WORD    (Graeme Edge)    1:35
12. OM    (Mike Pinder)    6:27
    
    2008 CD reissue bonus tracks
    
13. SIMPLE GAME (JUSTIN HAYWARD VOCAL MIX)
14. THE BEST WAY TO TRAVEL (ADDITIONAL VOCAL MIX)
15. VISIONS OF PARADISE (INSTRUMENTAL SITAR MIX)
16. WHAT AM I DOING HERE (ALTERNATE MIX)
17. THE WORD (MELLOTRON MIX)
18. OM (FULL VERSION)
19. DR. LIVINGSTONE, I PRESUME (BBC SESSION)
20. THE BEST WAY TO TRAVEL (BBC SESSION)
21. A SIMPLE GAME
    
    2006 2-CD deluxe edition bonus disc
    
1. DEPARTURE (ALTERNATE MIX)
2. THE BEST WAY TO TRAVEL (ADDITIONAL VOCAL MIX)
3. LEGEND OF A MIND (ALTERNATE MIX)
4. VISIONS OF PARADISE (SITAR MIX)
5. WHAT AM I DOING HERE? (ALTERNATE MIX)
6. THE WORD (MELLOTRON MIX)
7. OM (FULL VERSION)
8. SIMPLE GAME (JUSTIN HAYWARD VOCAL MIX)
9. KING AND QUEEN
10. DR. LIVINGSTONE, I PRESUME (BBC TOP GEAR SESSION)
11. VOICES IN THE SKY (BBC TOP GEAR SESSION)
12. THINKING IS THE BEST WAY (BBC TOP GEAR SESSION)
13. RIDE MY SEE-SAW (BBC TOP GEAR SESSION)
14. TUESDAY AFTERNOON (BBC AFTERNOON POP SHOW)
15. SIMPLE GAME (SINGLE VERSION)

CREDITS

GRAEME EDGE -- drums, timpani, tamourine, tablas, piano
JUSTIN HAYWARD -- twelve string guitar, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, sitar, tablas, piano, ellotron, bass guitar, harpsichord, percussion, vocals
JOHN LODGE -- bass guitar, cello, tambourine, snare drum, acoustic guitar, vocals
MIKE PINDER -- mellotrons, piano, harpsichord, cello, acoustic guitar, bass guitar, auto-harp
RAY THOMAS -- 'C' flute, alto flute, soprano saxophone, vocals
Derek Varnals -- engineer
Philip Travers -- cover

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