Departure (The Moody Blues Song)
"Departure" is a short 1968 song by the progressive rock band The Moody Blues. Written by drummer Graeme Edge, it was released on the album In Search of the Lost Chord. The song itself is only 48 seconds long, making it one of their shortest songs.
In Search of the Lost Chord is a concept album about the search for spiritual fulfillment. "Departure" is the opening track and introduces the album's concept, basically leading the "departure" for the search. The lyrics are spoken rather than sung as it is presented in the form of a poem in the mode of the climactic "Late Lament" portion of the "Nights in White Satin" track on Days of Future Passed, and they are recited by Graeme Edge, making it one of the very few Moody Blues songs to feature Edge on vocals, or, in this case, narration.
The song begins with the strumming of a tambura, which is followed by Edge's vocal track over the mellotron. Those two sections are separated by hit of the drums. The vocals begin with a gentle recitation, which gradually gets louder until it becomes hysterical laughter. The end of the laughter then fades into "Ride My See-Saw", the album's next track.
Read more about Departure (The Moody Blues Song): Personnel
Famous quotes containing the words departure, moody and/or blues:
“Some departure from the norm
Will occur as time grows more open about it.”
—John Ashbery (b. 1927)
“Without, the frost, the blinding snow,
The storm-wind’s moody madness—
Within, the firelight’s ruddy glow,
And childhood’s nest of gladness.
The magic words shall hold thee fast:
Thou shalt not heed the raving blast.”
—Lewis Carroll [Charles Lutwidge Dodgson] (1832–1898)
“The blues women had a commanding presence and a refreshing robustness. They were nurturers, taking the yeast of experience, kneading it into dough, molding it and letting it grow in their minds to bring the listener bread for sustenance, shaped by their sensibilities.”
—Rosetta Reitz, U.S. author. As quoted in The Political Palate, ch. 10, by Betsey Beaven et al. (1980)