Graeme Edge, drummer and co-found of British rock band Moody Blues, which helmed the progressive-rock movement of the ’60s and ’70s, died on Thursday at his home in Bradenton, Florida. He was 80.
The band’s frontman, Justin Hayward, confirmed his passing on the group’s website on Thursday. Rilla Fleming, Edge’s partner, said he died from metastatic cancer, the New York Times reported.
“It’s a very sad day. Graeme’s sound and personality is present in everything we did together and thankfully that will live on,” wrote Hayward.
Born in Rocester, Staffordshire, Edge co-founded Moody Blues in 1964 along with original band members Denny Laine, Clint Warwick, Mike Pinder and Ray Thomas.
“In the late 1960’s we became the group that Graeme always wanted it to be, and he was called upon to be a poet as well as a drummer,” wrote Hayward, who joined the group in 1966 with bassist John Lodge after Laine’s departure.
“He delivered that beautifully and brilliantly, while creating an atmosphere and setting that the music would never have achieved without his words. I asked Jeremy Irons to recreate them for our last tours together and it was absolutely magical.
Edge’s drumming and spoken word poetry was instrumental to the band’s biggest hits in their “classic” era in the ’60s and into the ’70s, including including “Nights in White Satin,” “Tuesday Afternoon,” and “I’m Just a Singer (In a Rock and Roll Band).”
When the Moody Blues went on hiatus from 1974 to 1977, Edge traveled the world on his yacht and recorded two solo albums, “Kick Off Your Muddy Boots” (1975) and “Paradise Ballroom” (1978), inspired by his visit to the Caribbean.
In 1978, the band reunited for the album “Octave,” after which they pivoted from prog-rock to a more synth-pop sound in the earlier ’80s. Around this time, Edge linked with a jazz-combo group formed of various musicians from London’s club scene, called Loud, Confident and Rong.
In 2018, the group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Their last album was released in 2003.
More to come…
Graeme Edge, drummer and co-found of British rock band Moody Blues, which helmed the progressive-rock movement of the ’60s and ’70s, died on Thursday at his home in Bradenton, Florida. He was 80.
The band’s frontman, Justin Hayward, confirmed his passing on the group’s website on Thursday. Rilla Fleming, Edge’s partner, said he died from metastatic cancer, the New York Times reported.
“It’s a very sad day. Graeme’s sound and personality is present in everything we did together and thankfully that will live on,” wrote Hayward.
Born in Rocester, Staffordshire, Edge co-founded Moody Blues in 1964 along with original band members Denny Laine, Clint Warwick, Mike Pinder and Ray Thomas.
“In the late 1960’s we became the group that Graeme always wanted it to be, and he was called upon to be a poet as well as a drummer,” wrote Hayward, who joined the group in 1966 with bassist John Lodge after Laine’s departure.
“He delivered that beautifully and brilliantly, while creating an atmosphere and setting that the music would never have achieved without his words. I asked Jeremy Irons to recreate them for our last tours together and it was absolutely magical.
Edge’s drumming and spoken word poetry was instrumental to the band’s biggest hits in their “classic” era in the ’60s and into the ’70s, including including “Nights in White Satin,” “Tuesday Afternoon,” and “I’m Just a Singer (In a Rock and Roll Band).”
When the Moody Blues went on hiatus from 1974 to 1977, Edge traveled the world on his yacht and recorded two solo albums, “Kick Off Your Muddy Boots” (1975) and “Paradise Ballroom” (1978), inspired by his visit to the Caribbean.
In 1978, the band reunited for the album “Octave,” after which they pivoted from prog-rock to a more synth-pop sound in the earlier ’80s. Around this time, Edge linked with a jazz-combo group formed of various musicians from London’s club scene, called Loud, Confident and Rong.
In 2018, the group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Their last album was released in 2003.
More to come…