GRAEME EDGE BAND WITH ADRIAN GURVITZ
''PARADISE BALLROOM''
2009
1977
44:00
1/Paradise Ballroom/9:12
2/Human/6:07
3/Everybody Needs Somebody/4:53
4/All Is Fair in Love/5:06
5/Down, Down, Down/5:54
6/In the Light of Night/3:09
7/Caroline/6:01
8/Be My Eyes/4:00
All Tracks By The Graeme Edge Band & Adrian Gurvit\z
Emerson Able /Sax (Baritone)
Rebop Kwaku Baah /Percussion
B.J. Cole /Guitar, Horn, Strings
Ben Crawley /Flugelhorn, Trumpet
Bill Easley /Flute, Sax (Alto), Sax (Tenor), Soloist
Graeme Edge /Drums, Producer
Adrian Gurvitz /Guitar, Keyboards, Producer, Vocals
Paul Gurvitz /Bass, Vocals
Tony Hymas /Keyboards
Edgar Matthews /Flugelhorn, Trumpet
Lawrie McMillan /Flute, Sax (Tenor)
Ken Spain /Trombone
Blue Weaver /Organ, Synthesizer
REVIEW
by Dave Thompson
Having been pushed to the periphery on his sophomore solo album, Kick Off Your Muddy Boots, Moody Blues drummer Graeme Edge wrestled back control for the follow-up, Paradise Ballroom. On Boots, singer/guitarist Adrian Gurvitz shared the limelight only with keyboardist Mickey Gallagher, leaving his own brother, bassist Paul, and his putative employer, Edge, to languish in the shadows. Now the tables were turned, as Edge insisting on co-writing all the tracks with Gurvitz (the drummer contributed only three on his debut), and promoted Paul to lead vocalist. This resulted in a much more coherent set, and a far funkier one, throwing the spotlight directly onto the rhythm section, bolstered by guesting Traffic percussionist Rebop Kwaku Baah. Of course, Gurvitz's lead guitar still splays across the album, but so does a full horn section, as the set sashays around disco, reggae, Motown, funk, and soul, the upbeat songs counterbalanced by gorgeous, introspective numbers. The discofied adaptation of "Everybody Needs Somebody" is inspired, the breezy "In the Light of Night" a delight, and the funky title track a soul-filled extravaganza.
BIOGRAPHY
by Greg Prato
Born on the 30th of March, 1941, in Rochester, Staffs (England), drummer Graeme Edge is best known as the drummer for the Moody Blues, but has also led his own outfit from time to time, the Graeme Edge Band. Although Edge's love of boats and the sea almost made him decide on a different career path, he ultimately chose music, playing with local bands on a regular basis. Eventually, Edge received an invite from the Moody Blues, leading to the birth of one of prog-rock's most enduring and beloved bands. In addition to his drumming duties, Edge also proved to be quite a skilled lyricist, penning the words to such Moody Blues tunes as "The Day Begins" and "Late Lament" from Days of Future Passed, "Departure" and "The Word" from In Search of the Lost Chord, and "In the Beginning" and "The Dream" from On the Threshold of a Dream (in addition to writing such songs as "Don't You Feel Small," "22,000 Days," "Going Nowhere," and "The Spirit"). During the mid-'70s, Edge formed the Graeme Edge Band, issuing a pair of albums, 1975's Kick off Your Muddy Boots and 1977's Paradise Ballroom.
''PARADISE BALLROOM''
2009
1977
44:00
1/Paradise Ballroom/9:12
2/Human/6:07
3/Everybody Needs Somebody/4:53
4/All Is Fair in Love/5:06
5/Down, Down, Down/5:54
6/In the Light of Night/3:09
7/Caroline/6:01
8/Be My Eyes/4:00
All Tracks By The Graeme Edge Band & Adrian Gurvit\z
Emerson Able /Sax (Baritone)
Rebop Kwaku Baah /Percussion
B.J. Cole /Guitar, Horn, Strings
Ben Crawley /Flugelhorn, Trumpet
Bill Easley /Flute, Sax (Alto), Sax (Tenor), Soloist
Graeme Edge /Drums, Producer
Adrian Gurvitz /Guitar, Keyboards, Producer, Vocals
Paul Gurvitz /Bass, Vocals
Tony Hymas /Keyboards
Edgar Matthews /Flugelhorn, Trumpet
Lawrie McMillan /Flute, Sax (Tenor)
Ken Spain /Trombone
Blue Weaver /Organ, Synthesizer
REVIEW
by Dave Thompson
Having been pushed to the periphery on his sophomore solo album, Kick Off Your Muddy Boots, Moody Blues drummer Graeme Edge wrestled back control for the follow-up, Paradise Ballroom. On Boots, singer/guitarist Adrian Gurvitz shared the limelight only with keyboardist Mickey Gallagher, leaving his own brother, bassist Paul, and his putative employer, Edge, to languish in the shadows. Now the tables were turned, as Edge insisting on co-writing all the tracks with Gurvitz (the drummer contributed only three on his debut), and promoted Paul to lead vocalist. This resulted in a much more coherent set, and a far funkier one, throwing the spotlight directly onto the rhythm section, bolstered by guesting Traffic percussionist Rebop Kwaku Baah. Of course, Gurvitz's lead guitar still splays across the album, but so does a full horn section, as the set sashays around disco, reggae, Motown, funk, and soul, the upbeat songs counterbalanced by gorgeous, introspective numbers. The discofied adaptation of "Everybody Needs Somebody" is inspired, the breezy "In the Light of Night" a delight, and the funky title track a soul-filled extravaganza.
BIOGRAPHY
by Greg Prato
Born on the 30th of March, 1941, in Rochester, Staffs (England), drummer Graeme Edge is best known as the drummer for the Moody Blues, but has also led his own outfit from time to time, the Graeme Edge Band. Although Edge's love of boats and the sea almost made him decide on a different career path, he ultimately chose music, playing with local bands on a regular basis. Eventually, Edge received an invite from the Moody Blues, leading to the birth of one of prog-rock's most enduring and beloved bands. In addition to his drumming duties, Edge also proved to be quite a skilled lyricist, penning the words to such Moody Blues tunes as "The Day Begins" and "Late Lament" from Days of Future Passed, "Departure" and "The Word" from In Search of the Lost Chord, and "In the Beginning" and "The Dream" from On the Threshold of a Dream (in addition to writing such songs as "Don't You Feel Small," "22,000 Days," "Going Nowhere," and "The Spirit"). During the mid-'70s, Edge formed the Graeme Edge Band, issuing a pair of albums, 1975's Kick off Your Muddy Boots and 1977's Paradise Ballroom.