Original released on LP Threshold THS 17
(UK, 1976)
There is certain kind of music which just... sounds good. "In Your Song", which opens this 1976 album, is almost disco, but even without Justin Hayward and John Lodge as collaborators, it manages to sound so much like The Moody Blues that a person who likes their 1970s material feels at home. Naturally, the following tracks are even more like the Moodies – possibly excluding "One Night Stand" (which was a single) and "Keep on Searching" that have soulful female background vocals and attempt to rock. But those (especially the former) are very nice songs as well. Now and then Ray Thomas slips closer to average, for example, "Friends", "Didn't I" and "Migration" aren't amongst most memorable tunes on earth. But "Carousel" and "The Last Dream" are very impressive again. It is interesting that "In Your Song" was actually penned by Nicky James who has co-written the rest of the tracks as well, excluding "The Last Dream." At this point I have no much idea about who Nicky James was and what his own albums were like, but "Hopes, Wishes & Dreams" sounds like Ray Thomas. The improvement in this record is, I think, due to Nicky James - Ray Thomas' songwriting partner on both releases- contributing material that better caters to Thomas' vocal/musical style. Also, the orchestration is a bit more smoothly integrated with the band, where before it was a bit heavy-handed and over the top. I consider this a pinnacle of the Moodies' hiatus-period solo albums - better than "Blue Jays", even. (in RateYourMusic)
Ray Thomas' second solo album isn't as ambitious as its predecessor, but it is overall a more pleasing release, sounding more in line with his lighter work as a member of the Moody Blues, as well as taking some unexpected stylistic turns. In place of the lush orchestrations and oversized arrangements that characterized parts of his earlier album, "From Mighty Oaks", the sound here is closer to the early-'70s Moody Blues, with guitarists John James and John Jones getting lots of room to shine. Additionally, Thomas is in excellent voice throughout - indeed, the singing here is perhaps the best of his career, supported at times by his own overdubbing as well as Helen Chappelle, Barry St. John, Liza Strike, Nicky James, John James, and John Jones. He also offers a generally lighter touch as a composer - the songs are honest and heartfelt though mostly (with the notable exception of the closer, "The Last Dream") not self-consciously profound or serious. "Keep on Searching" is a personal confessional that's also a piece of broad, brassy good-time music with a great beat, displaying elements of soul, while "Carousel" is a seemingly silly, lighthearted throwaway number with some serious statements buried amid its swirling keyboards (courtesy of Mike Moran). And the relatively reflective "In Your Song," "Migration," and "We Need Love" might have easily passed muster on a Moody Blues album, which is what most of the people buying this album at the time would have been looking for in the first place. Most of the songs are collaborations between Thomas and his longtime friend Nicky James, who also sings and plays percussion here. This is also one of the best-sounding records to come from the Moody Blues' orbit, and is proof of the value of the time they put into building Threshold Studios. (Bruce Eder in AllMusic)
