The Present

This article is about The Moody Blues album. For what's happening now, see Present.
The Present
Studio album by The Moody Blues
Released 28 August 1983 (UK)
2 September 1983 (US)
Recorded 8 March 1982 – 10 December 1982 at Strawberry Studios, South London
Genre Rock
Length 41:47
Label Threshold Records
Producer Pip Williams
The Moody Blues chronology

Long Distance Voyager
(1981)
The Present
(1983)
Voices in The Sky: The Best of The Moody Blues
(1984)
Singles from The Present
  1. "Blue World"
    Released: August 1983
  2. "Sitting at the Wheel"
    Released: November 1983
  3. "Running Water"
    Released: March 1984
Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic [1]
Rolling Stone [2]

The Present is the eleventh album by The Moody Blues, released in 1983. It is the second album of the Patrick Moraz era. It had three minor hit singles, "Blue World" (#62), "Sitting at the Wheel" (#27) and "Running Water". The album itself features strong compositions, but with a track order designed to capitalise on the legacy of the more successful Long Distance Voyager, with Justin Hayward's songs at the beginning and Ray Thomas' as finales.

The Present also became, in 1983, the first compact disc manufactured worldwide. In November 2008, the album was remastered and released on CD with two extra tracks.

The cover is a pastiche of Maxfield Parrish's famous painting Daybreak, with some subtle details: The "X" that the standing child is giving to the other is said to symbolise the Roman numeral "X", this being the Moody Blues' tenth album (with Lodge and Hayward).

Original Track Listing

Side One

  1. "Blue World" (Justin Hayward) – 5:20
  2. "Meet Me Halfway" (Hayward, John Lodge) – 4:08
  3. "Sitting at the Wheel" (Lodge) – 5:40
  4. "Going Nowhere" (Graeme Edge) – 5:33

Side Two

  1. "Hole in the World" (Lodge) – 1:54
  2. "Under My Feet" (Lodge) – 4:51
  3. "It's Cold Outside of Your Heart" (Hayward) – 4:27
  4. "Running Water" (Hayward) – 3:23
  5. "I Am" (Ray Thomas) – 1:40
  6. "Sorry" (Thomas) – 5:02

2008 remastered CD expanded edition

The 2008 release contains two extra tracks:

  1. "Blue World" (Single Edit)" – 3:38
  2. "Sitting at the Wheel (Steve Greenberg Remix)" – 7:32

Personnel

The Moody Blues

Additional personnel

Charts

Album – Billboard (North America)

Year Chart Position
1983 Pop Albums 26

Singles - Billboard (North America)

Year Single Chart Position
1983 "Blue World" Mainstream Rock 32
Pop Singles 62
Billboard Hot 100 62
"Sitting at the Wheel" Mainstream Rock 3
Pop Singles 27
Billboard Hot 100 92

References

  1. Connolly, Dave. The Present at AllMusic
  2. Somay, Errol (1983-10-27). "The Moody Blues: The Present : Music Reviews". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 2008-06-06. Retrieved 2012-09-04.

External links