Mike Pinder, the keyboardist and last surviving original member of the rock group Moody Blues, has died. he was 82 years old.
Moody Blues bassist John Lodge posted a statement from Pinder's family on Facebook. “Michael Thomas Pinder died on Wednesday, April 24, 2024 at his home in Northern California, surrounded by his devoted family. Michael's family would like to share with his trusted friends and admirers that he passed away peacefully. His last days were filled with music, surrounded by the love of his family. Michael lived his life with childlike wonder, traveling a deeply introspective path that merged mind and heart.”
Pinder, born in the Erdington area of Birmingham, England, in 1941, co-founded the group in May 1964 and co-wrote the first hit “Go Now.” After several initial changes in the line-up, in 1967 they released “Days of Future Passed”, considered one of the first progressive rock albums, on which Pinder also debuted recording with a Mellotron, one of the first electroacoustic keyboards that uses loops of tape manipulated to create an otherworldly orchestral sound.
The instrument became a hallmark of Pinder's style in the group, including on their timeless single “Nights in White Satin,” one of classic rock's most soaring ballads, which eventually peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard charts. . While the Moody Blues were intertwined with the hippie era of the late '60s, the band never made it to the canonical Woodstock Festival: they were booked and on the original bill, but canceled for a concert in Europe.
Pinder was an occasional vocalist in Moody Blues, singing on songs like “The Day Begins” and “Ride My See-Saw,” and took the band into even headier progressive terrain on LPs like “In Search of the Lost Chord.” from 1968 and “On the Threshold of a Dream” from 1969. These albums would influence a generation of progressive artists of the 70s such as King Crimson, Genesis and Yes.
Pinder would release nine albums with the band, including 1969's “To Our Children's Children's Children” (inspired by the first moon landing), and expanded his instrument repertoire to include Chamberlin and synthesizers. His last contribution to the group was 1978's “Octave,” where he sang the ballad “One Step Into the Light.”
During and after his time with the band, he released three solo albums: 1976's “The Promise,” 1994's “Among the Stars” and 1995's “A Planet With One Mind.”
The Moody Blues were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2018. A complete list of survivors was not immediately available.
“He created his music and the message he shared with the world from this spiritually rooted place,” Pinder's family said in their statement. “As he always said, 'Keep your head above the clouds, but keep your feet on the ground.' The true essence of him uplifted all who came in contact with him. His lyrics, philosophy and vision of humanity and our place in the cosmos will touch generations to come.”
