“Go Now”: The Moody Blues’ Rhythm and Blues Roots

The Moody Blues are best known for 1967’s Days of Future Passed, a fusion of rock and classical music that yielded the hits “Nights in White Satin” and “Tuesday Afternoon.” But the Moody Blues that hit the US in 1964’s British Invasion had a completely different sound; as their name implied, they played rhythm and blues. And like fellow British Invasion bands like the Beatles, Rolling Stones and the Dave Clark Five, the group looked to the black artists of American R&B for material. Their first hit: “Go Now.”

The appeal of “Go Now” came from the group’s distinctive use of harmony vocals, which featured lead singer Denny Laine, combined with Mike Pinder’s haunting piano work. But as identified as the group had been with the song, it originated in New York City with a struggling R&B singer named Bessie Banks.

Co-written by her husband Larry Banks and Milton Bennett, “Go Now” was intended to break Bessie nationally. A demo cut at New York’s Mira Sound Studios with piano and vocals was brought to legendary producers Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, whose office was a few blocks away.

Leiber and Stoller produced the track in November 1963 and released “Go Now” on their Tiger Records label. Of the Tiger releases, the producers were proudest of “Go Now”; in the duo’s autobiography, Leiber called Banks’ work “the most overlooked soul performance of the sixties.”

The record initially did well, which gave Banks high hopes for the song’s success. “Go Now” was chosen “Pick Hit of the Week” on New York’s WINS Radio, which guaranteed seven days of airplay. But five days in, Banks became another casualty of the British Invasion. The Moody Blues’ cover of “Go Now” hit the airwaves, pushing Banks’ original aside.

While the Moody Blues’ pared-down version stuck to Leiber and Stoller’s arrangement in many ways, the group added lush harmonies and featured Pinder’s bluesy piano up front. Laine told Michael Wright that the Banks version was discovered in a suitcase of American records carried to the UK by a friend of the band. When Laine heard the piano break in the original, he knew it would provide an opportunity to showcase Pinder’s keyboard skills.

Disappointed when her version was forgotten, Banks quit recording until 1967; her last R&B release was in 1974 and she then turned to gospel music.

The Moody Blues also made a change in musical direction. Unable to duplicate the success of “Go Now,” Denny Laine quit the group in late 1966; Laine would later join Paul McCartney’s Wings. Laine was replaced by singer-guitarist Justin Hayward in late 1966 and with the addition of bassist John Lodge, the Moody Blues would pioneer the use of classical music orchestration in rock.


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