Long Distance Voyager
| Long Distance Voyager | ||||
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| Studio album by The Moody Blues | ||||
| Released | 15 May 1981 | |||
| Recorded | 19 February 1980 – 14 April 1981 at Threshold Studios and RAK Studios | |||
| Genre | Progressive rock | |||
| Length | 46:32 | |||
| Label | Threshold Records | |||
| Producer | Pip Williams | |||
| The Moody Blues chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Long Distance Voyager | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   |
| Rolling Stone | |
Long Distance Voyager is the tenth album by The Moody Blues, first released in May 1981 on the group's Threshold record label. It was the group's first album featuring keyboardist Patrick Moraz (who previously had worked with bands such as Refugee and Yes) in place of co-founder Mike Pinder, who left after Octave in 1978.
Upon release in 1981, Long Distance Voyager became the Moody Blues' second American number one album, and was also the source of the Top 20 singles "Gemini Dream" (#12) and "The Voice" (#15). It also continued their winning streak in their native United Kingdom, reaching #7 there.
In November 2008, the album was remastered and released on CD with one extra track.
The songs on Long Distance Voyager were recorded at the band's own Threshold Studios. The songs were recorded and mixed by Greg Jackman, while Pip Williams was the album's producer. Supplementing the Moody Blues—Justin Hayward, John Lodge, Ray Thomas, Graeme Edge, and Patrick Moraz—was a string section performed by the New World Philharmonic, which Pip Williams arranged.
Long Distance Voyager is only partially a concept album, as only half of the songs relate to the "voyager" referred to in the album's title. The final three tracks comprise a mini-suite that combines themes of carnival jesters and the chaos experienced backstage at a rock show.
The cover for the album was a painting from the Arts Union Glasgow, while the sleeve was based on a concept by the Moody Blues which was designed by Cream, who were in charge of the album's artwork.NASA's Voyager spacecraft is at the top of the front side of the album cover. Both Voyager 1 and Voyager 2's flybys of Saturn were in the news in 1980-81.
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