The Laptop Sessions: “Tuesday Afternoon” (Moody Blues Acoustic Rock Cover Song)

Tuesday, October 21st, 2008

By Jim Fusco:

Wow, “Tuesday Afternoon” posted on a Tuesday afternoon!  Okay, well, a Tuesday evening, but still.  I swear I didn’t even plan it and even just realized as I was beginning to type my post.  But, it fits so well!

I love this song and the Moody Blues, of course.  “Tuesday Afternoon” is the afternoon section of the Moodies’ first album with their second lineup (after the addition of Justin Hayward and John Lodge and the subtraction of Denny Laine and Clint Warwick).  The album is “Days of Future Passed” and stands as one of the classics.  It has reached classic status because it’s one of the first true concept albums.  It also is the first real fusion of a rock band with a classical orchestra.  It’s almost surreal listening to the album.  This album alone (not to mention the ten great albums they did AFTER this one) should’ve given them a one-way ticket into the Rock’n'Roll Hall of Fame.  It’s so stupid that they’re not in.  I heard that the Hall doesn’t consider them a “rock” group.  Are you serious?  Have they ever even heard “Story in Your Eyes”?  Or, I don’t know, “I’m Just a Singer in A Rock’n'Roll Band”????  That doesn’t give it away?   My God, and they’re discounting the fact that the Moody Blues had some of the best musicians ever in Justin Hayward on guitar, John Lodge on bass, Graeme Edge on drums, Mike Pinder on piano and mellotron (which he truly pioneered as an instrument rather than just an effects machine), and Ray Thomas, who played a brilliant flute.  This issue always makes me so angry.  The Hall of Fame uses the same argument for not letting Chicago in.  Are you freakin’ serious?  Those guys had more hits than Muhammed Ali!  I just don’t get it.

Anyway, this song falls in the mid-point of the album, as the album takes the listener on a trip throughout an entire day.  I love that concept.  It’s so original.  Of course, the album ends with one of the all-time great songs in “Nights in White Satin”, but “Tuesday Afternoon” was a big hit in its own right.  In fact, I even heard it today while waiting in line at Subway for lunch.

By the way, in case anyone’s being keeping track, I got a new job.  It’s great: a nice atmosphere, professional collegues (what a change from my last job), and I’m getting paid 33% more than I ever have.  It took me three long months to land it, and I know I won’t let anything screw it up this time around.  I have a nice outlook now, especially because it’s good to be a part of a company that’s actually hiring in these economic times.  That’s a good sign for me…and for getting my loved ones Christmas presents, too!  I’m looking forward to a nice holiday season now.

I hope you enjoy this video as another Tuesday afternoon passes us by.  I’ll be back on Friday for yet another acoustic cover song from the Beach Boys, whom I haven’t covered in a very long time.  This song is from a composer, though, that I haven’t covered yet!  So, I’ll keep you guessing on that one for a couple days and to pacify you in the meantime, I present Chris and Jeff tomorrow and Thumpin’ Thursday (TM).  I’ll also be back (hopefully sooner than Friday) to announce yet another big milestone, so stay tuned!

The Laptop Sessions: “For My Lady” (Moody Blues Acoustic Rock Cover Song)

Saturday, August 23rd, 2008

By Chris Moore:

Hello and welcome to yet another edition in the session-a-day project at the best acoustic cover song music blog on the web! Yes, that’s right, we don’t post a cover once a week or a music video every once in a while like most other sites — no, we have committed ourselves to posting one cover song a day in 2008. (And, if it goes much longer then that, we’ll probably end up committing ourselves. Not to another “session-a-day” project, just “committing.” And not to a relationship. I mean like to an institution for the mentally unstable!)

That’s how hard we work around these parts…

But, let’s get down to acoustic cover song business. Today, I bring you my second track from one of my favorite bands, the Moody Blues. “For My Lady” holds a special place in my heart for a couple reasons. First, it is on their Seventh Sojourn album, which is one of their first seven concept albums — one of my favorite collections of all time. But second, and more personal, is the fact that this is the very first song that Jim, Mike, Becky, and I learned and performed live together as a band. It was the first of many and happened long before Cliff came into the picture. By the time Masters of the Universe came together we had long forgotten how to play this song (and, by we, I mean me and probably Becky too, and maybe even Mike, but not Jim!) and it was only played once at Jim’s parents’ anniversary party.

And now it is officially added to the list of acoustic cover songs available here at the Laptop Sessions. I hope you enjoy it, and I hope you hurry back tomorrow for another great cover song music video by Jeff…

See you next session…

Jim Fusco’s 100th Laptop Session: “A Simple Game” (Moody Blues Acoustic Rock Cover Song)

Thursday, July 17th, 2008

By Jim Fusco:

Welcome to my 100th Laptop Session! I cant believe I’ve actually done 100 already, but the thing I’m happiest about is that the blog is finally starting to pull the visitors we’ve always thought we deserved from all this hard work over the past few months. So, I hope you’ll click on the “Share This” button under the title of all of our music video blog posts and share our videos on Facebook, MySpace, and Digg. We keep coming out with the content- free acoustic covers and original songs every day of the year- and now we need your help to make this spread. Because, I’ll admit- after doing 100 videos, it was almost a necessity to get more visitors to keep the spirits high here at the Laptop Sessions. And, I can honestly say, these spirits have never been higher. So, expect higher and higher video and sound quality every single day!

Tonight, I bring you a song I find fitting for my 100th Laptop Sessions song. Out of all the cover songs I’ve done, “A Simple Game” by the Moody Blues (and made a big hit by the Four Tops) stands as one of my original “favorite” songs. Back on the “Best Song EVER” show on WCJM free internet radio, I chose this as one of my top three favorite songs of all time, along with “The Little Girl I Once Knew” by the Beach Boys and “Hey Jude” by the Beatles. Of course, this show was recorded in 2000 when I was only 15 or 16 and my favorite songs list has changed a little bit. I’d have to say “I’ll Feel A Whole Lot Better” by the Byrds and “You Just May Be The One” by the Monkees are my top two right now. But, “A Simple Game” is still up there for me, especially because it WON the “Best Song EVER” contest on WCJM!

A few years later, we did another “Best of” show called the “Song for the New Millennium Show”, and another one of my picks won: “All The Things” by the Byrds, which Jeff stole as a Laptop Session from me a few days ago. But, he did the cover song justice (as he does with all of his acoustic cover songs), so you should really check it out here on the Laptop Sessions Music Video Blog.

This song, “A Simple Game”, was never on a Moody Blues album- only a single. Mike Pinder wrote the song and the Four Tops took it and made it a huge hit, especially in England. But, I’ve always known the Moody Blues version, being such a big fan, so that’s the version I’ve stayed true to here.

I hope you enjoy my 100th Laptop Session- an expansive collection of acoustic cover songs and my own original music. Please stay tuned every single day here on the music video blog and we’ll continue to hit milestones, break records, and record great music!

The Laptop Sessions: “New Horizons” (Moody Blues Acoustic Rock Cover Song)

Friday, June 13th, 2008

By Jeff Copperthite:

Welcome to your fantastic Friday edition of The Laptop Sessions. Today I delve into a new band for me, but Jim has covered this band before. Of course i’m talking about the Moodies themselves.

I bring you a song from The Moody Blues’ album “Seventh Sojourn” called “New Horizons”. Jim introduced me to this song on a past radio show, and I have enjoyed it since. There is no Moody Blues song that I have heard that I didn’t like. I really should purchase some of their albums.

I’m very happy with how this video came out. You may notice I am using a capo. The song is in F and I usually have no problem whatsoever playing a song in F without a capo, but this song does require some barre chords to play. My arm was in a bit of pain today because I took a baseball off my shoulder in a game I umpired today. Barre chords tend to hurt my hand and forearm if I play them for a long time. I can get through a song fine, but today not so much. So I capo’d the song on the 5th fret, and played it using a C transposition. Worked for me, hopefully it’ll work for you.

A new band is coming to the sessions on Monday. Remember to check back every day for a new session, as a single laptop session a day rolls on through 2008!

Come back tomorrow for Jim’s latest and greatest session!

The Laptop Sessions: “Nights in White Satin” (Moody Blues Acoustic Rock Cover Song)

Friday, March 7th, 2008

By Jim Fusco:

Well, in the world of Moody Blues songs, it doesn’t get much more popular than “Nights in White Satin”.

I wanted to do this classic for the Laptop Sessions because I thought it would translate well to a solo acoustic performance. I hope you like my whistling flute solo! I wasn’t gonna do it, but Chris and Becky egged me on, and I think I nailed it!!

I love the vocal exercise this song presents and I’ve always thought that Justin Hayward has one of the best singing voices ever.

So, this is a high bar to rise above, but I’m such a big Moody Blues fan that I know the song backwards and forwards.

Enjoy today’s Session and make sure to come back for a Super Saturday appearance from Chris!

The Laptop Sessions: “The Voice” (Moody Blues Acoustic Rock Cover Song)

Sunday, January 27th, 2008

By Jim Fusco:

And now, pinch-hitting for an under-the-weather Jeff, is Jim Fusco!

Tonight, I bring you one of my favorite songs from the Moody Blues, “The Voice”, from their #1 album, “Long Distance Voyager”.

Actually, this tune is climbing up my all-time favorites list as it has all the criteria for a song I would love: a catchy tune, faster paced, that glorious late 70’s, early 80s sound that’s not too overdone, and a great guitar solo.

Of course, I’ve stripped all of that out in my version here, except for the tune and the tempo, but I think it gives a different take on the song as a whole.

I actually recorded a full version of this song a few weeks ago, complete with synthesizers! I think it sounds just like the original and was a lot of fun to try recreating the sounds.

Check out the Fusco-Moore Productions store in the next week or so because I’ll be putting my version online as a free mp3 download! Here’s the link: http://fusco-moore.com/store.

Okay, look for a new video from Jeff tomorrow and again on “Original Wednesday”, as no matter the circumstance- you’re getting a Session a Day in ‘08!