Veteran Cosmic Rocker
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| “Veteran Cosmic Rocker” | ||
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| Single by The Moody Blues from the album Long Distance Voyager |
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| A-side | "Talking Out of Turn" | |
| Released | November 1981 | |
| Length | 3:14 | |
| Label | Polydor | |
| Writer(s) | Ray Thomas | |
"Veteran Cosmic Rocker" is a 1981 song by the progressive rock band The Moody Blues. It was written by the band's flautist Ray Thomas, and it is sometimes regarded as his greatest contribution to The Moody Blues music. "Veteran Cosmic Rocker" first appeared as the final track of The Moody Blues 1981 album Long Distance Voyager, and was later released in November of 1981 on the B-Side of "Talking Out of Turn."
"Veteran Cosmic Rocker" is the third and final song in a suite that concludes Long Distance Voyager. The first song in this suite is "Painted Smile," which is then followed by "Reflective Smile," a short poem connecting the themes of the two songs. It's lyrics tell the story of a stereotypical rock and roll musician who is loved by his fans.
"Veteran Cosmic Rocker" also features a diverse instrumentation. Ray Thomas performs a harmonica solo about half way through the song. It also makes heavy use of the sitar, played by Justin Hayward.
Also, at the very beginning of the song, Ray Thomas can be faintly heard saying the line "I'll have a Scotch and Coke please, Mother!"
"Veteran Cosmic Rocker" was one of Ray Thomas's final major songs written for the Moody Blues, as his presence would become less noticeable as the band moved more towards a progressive rock sound. His final composition for the Moody Blues would be "My Little Lovely," from Strange Times. Thomas would later retire in 2002 due to health issues.
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