[The Other Side of Forty] -- In April of 1986, forty years ago this week, the Moody Blues released their 12th studio album, The Other Side of Life. Long time fans of the Moody Blues, those who had followed the band since the 1960s, might have been a bit disappointed, or even confused, by this release. The Other Side of Life found the band embracing synthesizers, sequencers, and drum machines over their usual more symphonic sound. But new fans flocked to the record. The Other Side of Life peaked at #9 on the US Billboard 200 albums chart and it went platinum, selling well over 1,000,000 units in the US alone. Of course, the Moody Blues later proved they still had those symphonic chops with a live performance at Red Rocks, Colorado (1992).
But, back to 1986 and The Other Side of Life.
"Your Wildest Dreams" was a massive hit for the band peaking at #9 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart. And the title track, "The Other Side of Life", reached #11 on the Mainstream Rock chart after being released as a single in August 1986. "The Other Side of Life" was decidedly more plodding and introspective than "Your Wildest Dreams", so you might not recall that one. But I bet you can hear the chorus of "Your Wildest Dreams" playing in your head now that you've read the title just a few times. Well, it's the very first track of this 40-year-old album, so if you join me in revisiting The Other Side of Life, you might purge that earworm by the time you finish the other songs. Among the rest of those songs, the non-single tracks I like are "Talkin', Talkin'" and "I Just Don't Care". How about you?
Flashback: The Other Side of Life (April 9, 1986)
And that's all till next week. Dedicated 80s-philes can find more flashbacks in the Prophet or Madman archives or via Bookended's 80s Flashback tag. As always, your comments are welcome on today's, or any other, flashback post. And if you like what I'm doing here, please share the link with your friends. If, however, you don't like the flashback, feel free to share it with your enemies.
See you in seven!
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