ON THE THRESHOLD OF A DREAM

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This album is simply the best I´ve ever heard! Before listen to it, I´ve listened only to The Other side of Life and i didn´t know the the progressive age of The Moody Blues. First, the sleeve attracted me in the store, so I decided to buy it. When I listed the first time to it, I got shocked. It was fantastic. The sound is less psychedelic and mellower than the first ones. The flute and mellotron work is impressive. I think no one will ever play the mellotron like Michael Pinder. He substituted a whole orchestra in The Voyage, one of the most impressive songs ever made, part of the suite The Dream/Have You Heard pt1/ The Voyage/ Have you heard pt2. The other songs are great, including the first one that introduces the "concept" of the album, with some beautiful mellotron and electronics. Dear Diary is a quite different song, with strong bass arrangement and a beautiful flute solo. Send me no Wine is a beautiful folkish with bits of mellotron. So Deep Within You has great mellotron and flute arrangements. Never comes the day is a great ballad with great acoustic guitar and melllotron and Are You Sitting Comfortably is a beautiful tune with good acoustic guitar and flute. I recommend it to everyone, as the all classic seven Moody Blues albuns.

Regarded by my friends as their most accomplished concept album , this is confusing obscure and aimless (even if there is a concept) to my ears, but again the majority of Moody fans doesn't think as me. The album is still pretty good/worthy and does belong in the classic run of late 60's early 70's albums, it just pleases me less than the previous Lost Chord and the follow-up Children.

The noteworthy fact about this album is that it was the first released on their private Threshold label - in that regard the Moody Blues were groundbreakers since they were the first group to own a label with Jefferson Airplane (they had the Grunt label). But they might've tried harder for a first private label release.

3rd concept-like album from The MOODY BLUES marking another mega wonderful album which I am sure many of you like me, own and treasure already. I would suggest that "On The Threshold Of A Dream" captures The MOODY BLUES at their most complex, characterized here by their inclusion of lengthly instrumental passages. This album contains many of their most enduring tunes and is a wonderful mix of classical rock and progressive elements. As you would expect vocals and harmonies are emphasized which suits the orchestral music to perfection.

If you haven't heard this album yet, you're in for a treat. Alluding to the listener's likely state of mind, "On The Threshold of a Dream" features a brilliant succession of songs, instrumental segues and spoken poems. I haven't heard a more cogent case for THE MOODIES' unusual approach to songwriting -- allowing each of the five members to follow their own muse within the context of a group effort -- than on this album. GRAEME EDGE's poetry has seldom shone so bright, MIKE PINDER's "Have You Heard" adds a brilliant shade of pink to the Blue machine, and JUSTIN HAYWARD (usually good for one hit) scores a hat trick with "Lovely To See You," "Never Comes The Day" and "Are You Sitting Comfortably." The records that followed no doubt strove for the same happy union, but seldom delivered on the promise of their portentous openings. Edge's "In The Beginning" promises much, advocating freedom from the machines, or more specifically freedom from the mechanized world around us. "Lovely To See You" accepts us into the fold, and from there the concept gives way to a series of vignettes: "Dear Diary," "Send Me No Wine" and a pair of psychedelic rock tracks to add some muscle. What ties "Threshold" together is its swift pacing, using seamless segues to connect the band's individual contributions into a cohesive whole. This technique prevents a musical morass from forming, a problem that plagued subsequent albums. The second side also gets off to a quick start with the single "Never Comes The Day," the sort of pretty acoustic daydreaming that helped define THE MOODIES, a field revisited on "Are You Sitting Comfortably." However, I'd argue it's the closing combination of "Have You Heard" and the instrumental "The Voyage" that bring "Threshold" to the brink of brilliance. MIKE PINDER has always been the most likely of the five to write outside the band's established idiom, and here he stumbles upon a musical epiphany of heroic proportions, sandwiched around the albums' best orchestrations. So if you're on the outside looking in, clueless to THE MOODIES' attraction, cross through "The Threshold" and join the party.

While "The Lost Chord" established the MOODY BLUES sound fundamentals with more than a nod to current psychedelic trends, this was the album that solidified their individual, classic sound. Discarding the sitars and pop celebrity references, they hone their songwriting skills and conceptual focus to create a characteristic blend of lysergic love songs and lush, enveloping textures.

Even the spoken intro element works better here, pitting a bureaucratic machine against a hipster for man's search for identity on "In the Beginning". Oddly, Ray and Justin seem to have traded roles slightly on the album; Hayward's "Lovely to see You" is the simple, bouncy tune whereas Thomas' "Dear Diary" is a melancholy "Day in the Life"- themed offering- the Fab Four influence is inescapable here, with Leslie-flitered vocals and a slightly bluesy piano touch. We then get variously effective love songs: "Send Me No Wine" is almost madrigal in theme but folk-rock in flavor; the pleasant but forgettable "To Share Our Love" has a more driving 60s rock style; "So Deep Within You" is more groovy and also slightly creepy with its fumbling double-entendre lyrics; "Never Comes the Day" is the best of the four, with pretty verses and a rousing, anthemic chorus. "Lazy Day" is the other half of the "Dear Diary" bookend, its homey Ray Thomas vibe masking a bourgeois lament.

Though the preceding songs stayed comfortably in Moody Pop territory, they saved the best for last: the mighty journey of the rest of the album. "Are You Sitting Comfortably?" strikes a pastoral, Arthurian pose, and "The Dream" is full of seasonal rebirth imagery, but "The Voyage" is the intended opus of the album; a brave effort in musical exploration that pushes Pinder's Mellotron expertise to amazing levels of symphonic emulation, bookended sweetly by "Have You Heard", a lovely affirmation and conclusion to the loose tale.

In my opinion, this is the first uniquely MOODY BLUES album- "Days" is essential, of course, but is also very much a collaboration. While they would have bigger hits and explore deeper realms, "On the Threshold of a Dream" is an excellent representation of the band and a pleasant voyage to drift away on. Don't bother preparing yourself for a life-changing experience; it's neither challenging to listen to nor 'ahead of its time'. What the MOODY BLUES give us is warm, smooth soundscapes and 60s pop-rock song forms, comfortable exploration, layered simplicity and naive pretentiousness. Oh, and the first in a series of lovely gatefoldk album covers- best seen on the original vinyl, of course.

Have you heard?

I think this is my favourite Moodies album. It does sound quite dated at times now, but it has an appealing innocence about it. Hayward's vocals are very melodic, and the harmonies are as pure as ever. The tracks are segued together in the way which was to become a trademark of the band, and which gives their albums a certain continuity.

The album opens with what was at the time a very futuristic track. "In the beginning" includes robotic effects and electronic wizardry, before introducing the more familiar sounding "Lovely to see you", a classic uplifting number. Ray Thomas' makes two contributions to the album, including the lilting "Dear Diary".

"Never comes the day" has a more structured feel to it, with subtle time changes, and fine vocals. The closing section of the album from "The Dream" onwards is really a single piece. It includes "The voyage" and "Have you heard (Parts 1&2)", the four sections melding together to form a wonderful 9 minute track. While most of the album is fairly basic, this is a fine piece of prog, including some haunting melotron, and bombastic orchestration.

I suspect those hearing the album for the first time today will notice more acutely how the music here has aged, but for those who have been familiar with it for the last 30+ years, it still sounds as fresh and inspired now as it did then.

This Album is a transitional album for The Moody Blues. They are in effect changing their sound here. The reason is probably that rock was changing and you can only follow a similar formula for so long. There are some very good songs on this album although it is a very dramatic change in sound. People expecting "Days of Future Passed" or "In Search of the Lost Chord" may be bewildered when they first hear this album, as I was when I blindly purchased it. It is not however, a bad album by any stretch. "Send Me No Wine" stands out and is a great folk/rock song. "So Deep Within You" is another great song and I swear, is a predecessor to disco. Once again in 1969 they are a bit ahead of the game here. "Never Comes the Day" is an awesome track that starts off slow, but is in effect very dramatic when it builds up to it's climax and that is when you realize you have heard this song on the radio. It is a great rock song. "Lazy Day" is another very beautifully written song. Harmonized vocals blend together, producing a rich chourus of gorgeous chords. "Are You Sitting Comfortably?" is another steadily stunning composition. The suite "Have You Heard pt.1/The Voyage/Have You Heard pt.2" is probably the highlight of the album with trippy instrumentals and very good song writing. It is a GOOD voyage and I vacation there often these days. It is very classic Moodies in this respect, to take a simply crafted melody and transform it into a work of art. They were very good at this if you haven't already noticed. You will hear this ability time and time again throughout their career. This is another great album, but if you don't like it the first time, listen to it a couple more times and soon you'll start noticing the little things that make almost all of the songs on this album great. Another 4 star effort by them.

It took me a few listens to get into this album, unlike Days of Future Passed. However, I did come to like it a fair bit...although I can't really give any of the MOODY BLUES albums I've ever heard over a 4. This one doesn't come up quite that far, though, so I give it a 3.

As with Days of Future Passed, a Ray Thomas composition jumped immediately to the forefront--"Dear Diary" was perhaps the biggest highlight on the album for me. This makes a wonderful song indeed for listening to out and about while people-watching. While it definitely picks up on a sense of isolation from the rest of society, it does so without going into excessive venom and resentment, and with the catchy, almost bluesy guitar stylings, and beautiful flute solos, it is a great laid-back listen. The other striking feature of this song is that Mr. Thomas' vocals sound almost like a shockingly good (though rather less bitter) Roger Waters impression! The similarity is quite striking indeed, especially when he starts talking: "Somebody exploded an H-bomb today..." Surely unintentional on Mr. Thomas' part, it is quite an ear-opener to notice.

"Lazy Day" also can be quite strange for a Pink Floyd fan because of the Roger Waters resemblance--as if the same voice with an entirely different technique. I enjoy the effect from the second vocal line that seems to echo in the background, and the other layered vocals. It is not "Dear Diary", perhaps, but enjoyable.

"Lovely to See You Again" has almost a CSNY vibe to it, with the harmonies and clear rock beat, and is a pleasant listen. "To Share Our Love" also had a feeling reminiscent of CSNY, and so these songs seem like a matched set to my ear. Both are quite enjoyable.

"So Deep Within You" has some of the album's most pleasant vocals--it might be said to have a strong "period" sound, but it seems to represent the best of its time. The same could be said for "Are You Sitting Comfortably", especially due to its percussion. Personally, I am reminded of songs like "Dust in the Wind" when I hear it.

"Never Comes the Day" is musically the most striking--the chord progression starting with the lines "But you will help me tonight..." is absolutely fascinating to me.

The album's weak point was for me "Send Me No Wine". The song has a rather folkish, almost country sound to it that I find distasteful (others may appreciate it--I personally dislike that kind of music); as with another reviewer, this song set me in such an awful mood on my first listening that I was ill disposed towards the entire album. Subsequent listenings pinpointed the problem, and in my opinion it is really this one song that causes any trouble--so I skip it.

I also have to admit that I expected a clearer concept, when I first heard "In the Beginning", and was vaguely disappointed when it turned out to be less unified. The sequence from "The Dream" to the second "Haven't You Heard" (I'd like to make a point here that "relaxing" should not be automatically equated with "boring"--I do not find this boring) is quite beautiful indeed. Although the Mellotron sounds dated and awkward to modern ears, it is my understanding that it could be a very temperamental instrument to work with, so I respect Mr. Pinder for having the patience to get some pretty good sounds out of it.

My suggestion is, if you are looking for a more unified, tightly-constructed concept album, you may fare better with Days of Future Passed--but if your main interest is some good music, then don't overlook Threshold.

Third album of the so-called "MB's core 7" - the first being 'Days of Future Passed' (1967) and the second 'In Search of the Lost Chord' (1968). A good work at all just like the previous one but inferior to DOFP.

What seems more clear are the ways band members were taken with Justin Hayward and John Lodge tending to a balladesque or soft rock line while keyboardist Mike Pinder keeps a progish bias and Ray Thomas apparently senseless in the middle of the stream.

'Lovely to see you' and 'Never comes the day' are pure Hayward cool songs, very agreeable but not prog; Lodge contributes with two typical soft rocks 'Send me no wine' and 'To share our love'; from Pinder we have the best prog moment with 'Have you heard (1&2)' completed by instrumental 'The Voyage'; 'Lazy day' is the most interesting track composed by Thomas being his 'Dear diary' the weakest point of the album. Worthy is 'Are you sitting comfortably?' a joint-venture by Lodge&Thomas.

The final sensation is about a sometimes unbalanced work compensated by the quality of the songs individually, the singing and the musicianship.

Even so, it's Moody Blues and it's one of the "core 7" and highly recommended for any prog collection. Total: 4.

Threshold marks the midway point in a five-album, three year flash of activity for the Moodies. They had established themselves as a musical force with what was arguably the first true modern progressive album Days of Future Passed and the brilliant hits "Tuesday Afternoon" and "Nights in White Satin", followed by the more experimental but thematic In Search of the Lost Chord. The band had a strong following and was coming off a torrid touring schedule, looking forward to an extended studio stay and the first album on their own new label.

The result was a somewhat more disjointed overall feel on Threshold of a Dream as a whole but with tracks that, when considered separately, were quite a bit more developed musically. This is much closer to the approach taken on Seventh Sojourn than on any other Moodies album. Each band member contributed at least two songs, and each brought their own influences into the overall work. It was a new approach, but another successful combination.

"In the Beginning" is not a particularly strong opening work, with some goofy space-age sound effects and garbled background vocals, but providing an innocuous introduction and lead-in to "Lovely to See You Again". The guitar work by Justin Hayward is exquisite, melding well with a comfortable tempo and the kind of gorgeous harmonies for which the band was already well known. My only issue with this song is that it fades away after a couple of minutes, just about the time the listener starts to wrap their head around the peaceful and loving mood of a young man on a stroll with his lady.

"Dear Diary" is a Ray Thomas song, and like "For My Lady" on Seventh Sojourn, this is a bit melancholy on the surface, but upon closer listen is really just a bit of a light song about life flitting by without enough people stopping to smell the flowers. Sappy today, but quite an appealing thought in the late 60s. Thomas' flute matches Michael Pinder's eerie keyboards quite well and sets an appropriately reflective mood.

I liked "Send Me No Wine" the first time I heard it. It's another light tune, a kind of love song with a bit of twangy guitar that is a different sound from the heavier brooding tone on most Moodies songs. Like most of the songs on the album, this one has a nice feel to it, but could have been expanded to great effect with some extended guitar soloing or even a spoken-word piece inserted somewhere.

"To Share Our Love" sounds like almost a sequel to "Send Me No Wine", which again reinforces my contention that song should have been extended and explored further. This is also a Lodge composition, but the rhythm is a bit more up-beat and the harmonies a bit more lush. Of all the Moodies songs off their first three albums, this one sounds the most dated today, but is still pleasant to listen to on a slow quiet afternoon.

Pinder waits until the middle of the album to offer his first contribution, the lumbering "So Deep Within You". This is not so much a love song as it is a pervert song. One almost feels like a voyeur listening to Pinder's lusty extolling of his lover's favors. What Ian Anderson would have sounded like if he weren't such a vocal troll.

By far my favorite melody on the album comes with "Never Comes the Day". To me Hayward's vocals are the most identifiable with the classic Moodies sound, and the backing vocals give this a happy and full sound. The faint but lively harmonica adds a folksy dimension to an otherwise decidedly proper British sound. This is also the longest song on the album, but I wouldn't have minded a couple more verses or at least a few more rounds of the chorus. Just a great tune!

If "Never" is the strongest song, "Lazy Day" is probably the weakest. This is nothing more than a couple minutes of harmonized "ah-ah-ah" vocals and what sounds like a frumpy bassoon bleating out a rhythm off to the side. Just filler, good for keeping the mood going but little more.

I guess "Are You Sitting Comfortably?" was something of a radio favorite in England, or so I've heard, but to me it doesn't do much to distinguish itself from some of the stronger works on the album. I get the impression this was supposed to set the tone for the spoken-word "The Dream". This may have been an attempt to introduce a mystic or medieval feel to the album, but if so it comes far too late and frankly is just a bit confusing. Not all the Moodies ideas were necessarily good ones. This sounds very much like an outtake from Days of Future Passed.

The rest of the album is all Pinder, kind of a mini-concept piece with "Have You Heard" parts book-ending "The Voyage". This is a spacey and pretentious instrumental with lots of overbearing Mellotron and some pleasant but slightly pompus piano. The overall impression is that Pinder is giving its listeners some head-trip music to bring them down off their cloud after listening to a varied sampler of what the band is capable of. This would be laughed off today, but considering the time in which it was released, it's harmless enough and largely excusable.

This is certainly not the best work the Moody Blues ever did - Seventh Sojourn, In Search of the Lost Chord, and even Long Distance Voyager are somewhat more accessible and definitely more cohesive. But this was a very strong effort from a road- weary band who were still evolving their trademark sound, and it represents a period in time where music itself was much less encumbered by norms and expectations than today. Overall, an excellent effort and a worthwhile addition to any collection. Four stars.

peace

Yes one of Moody Blues most accomplished albums with plenty of instrumental material to feast off, great time signatures and overall a perfect conceptual piece. Arguably not as good as their follow up album but personally this is a bette rstudio album. It is hard to actually be too critical about The Moodey Blues over this time period because in essence they were one of about 6 bands at the times truly putting out the ' conceptual' progressive LP. On The Threshold Of a dream is a classic example of this and is a worthy contender for one of the Moody Blues best albums. The album is very short but that was not unusual for days of vinyl. Three and a half stars.

This is the third of THE MOODY BLUES' fabulous seventies seven, and the outstanding compositional quality continued on this album, let down only by three successive substandard song fragments on the first side.

'On The Threshold of a Dream' is the first of the MOODIES' albums to be released on their own label, and represents a refinement rather than an evolution of their formula. The cornerstones of the album are PINDER'S contribution and the three HAYWARD compositions. The first of these, 'Lovely To See You', is a wonder. Has there ever been such a simple sentiment expressed so eloquently? It's extremely difficult to write upbeat lyrics and music, and so much easier to be cynical and destructive. Yet I listen to this and feel that HAYWARD is genuinely pleased to have us on board, and delighted to be back singing for us. 'Never Comes The Day' and the dreamy 'Are You Sitting Comfortably' are excellent songs in the HAYWARD tradition.

MIKE PINDER'S work on this album is outstanding, and he provides us with his best composition, 'Have You Heard/The Voyage/Have You Heard' which finishes the album. This is true mellotron-laden progressive music, required listening for every student of the development of progressive rock.

RAY THOMAS provides two whimsical tracks, the prosaic 'Dear Diary' (with a nice lyrical twist in the fadeout) and the silly, dispensable 'Lazy Day'.

The problem with this album comes with the song fragments 'Send Me No Wine', 'To Share Our Love' and 'So Deep Within You.' None of these are sufficiently developed to be considered full songs, nor do they flow together well. THE MOODY BLUES were to perfect the use of song fragments on their masterpiece 'To Our Children's ...' but the idea of running song fragments together was here in its embryonic stage and not well executed. The poetry of 'In The Beginning' is cringeworthy in its alliterative banality, and sadly is not the only time this band subjects us to such nonsense. One hopes they had their tongues firmly in their cheeks while writing such stuff.

THE MOODY BLUES are not a challenging listen, but there are times when our souls need good cheer. A few stumbles apart, this album is delightful, and will reward the open-minded listener. Cheer yourself up by giving this a whirl.

The psychedelia of "In Search" is partially gone (but not totally) but this album doesn't really move me.

Very much late sixties related, this album doesn't pass the proof of time very well, I 'm afraid. If ever The Moodies were ones of the very first to introduce the great mellotron in their work, it has gone by now (unfortunately).

One has to admit that the band was quite innovative for their time. Recording concept albums one after the other was not a usual affair in those pre-historical musical times. I entered their catalogue a year later (1970) and couldn't testify their influences so far. One thing is for sure : while you would listen to the early "Barclay James Harvest" albums, there is little doubt about their major source of inspiration. The Moodies of course. (The Fab Four being the other part of it).

There aren't really any highlights on this album. Just a bunch of average songs IMO. To be complete, I would say that very few songs are poor, but there is no speak about a masterpiece here. The band can be integrated into the prog movement because of its originality but not really due to his compositions so far.

To be honest, it is not the type of album I spin very often. Songs as "Never Comes The Day" or "Lazy Day" are too childish and sounds rather outdated. You might say that they ARE indeed old, but still there are many albums of the late sixties which sound so much better than this one .

This album is propelling us in another time. The pastoral "Are you sitting comfortably?" being one of my fave? Probably due to the sweet fluting, I guess. Still, when you listen to the short and spoken "The Dream", you have some kind of a premonition to what ELO will deliver some years later (The Golden One - El Dorado).

One of my fave from this work is the dual "Have You Heard?". Another tranquil ballad which features an excellent melody. As if the quality is increasing towards the end of this album. Thge closing The Voyage being another interesting number.

I am upgrading this work more for its influences as well as persistent quest for "concept" from the band than truly for its essential qualities. Three stars.

On the tHreshold of a Dream is the continuation of In Search of the Lost Chord in teh sesne that The Moody Blues are determined to further explore their twist in the mainstream rock in pursue of artsy pastures. This album isn't as consistent as its predecessor, but as an ensemble the band has shown clear signs of maturation, especially regarding the way that the instruments are ensembled and the slightly more pompous use of orchestral ambiences in tha album's most ambicious passages. The album kicks off with a delicious dialogue between the Establishment and the Ego, which gives an existential variation to the Cartesian fundational thought - the closing morals gives way to the uptempo 'Lovely to See You', a nice homage to the beauty of communication. 'Dear Diary' has Thomas bring a journey into the fields of lazy intorspection in a jazz-pop scheme, and the same happens with his other input 'Lazy Day': nice tunes with nothing special to them. The same can be said about Lodge's efforts 'Send Me No Wine' and 'To Share Your Love': the former is a country-based serenade while the latter is an early Who-like rocker... again, nice tunes with a recognizable structure and catchy melodies, yet far from the greatness of other Lodge- penned tracks in some other albums. Pinder also rests comfortably on pop-oriented ground with a slight artsy component: 'So Deep Within You' shows him mixing Beatles and Yardbirds with a dicrete use of mellotron layers along the way. The album's second half is the most interestin in terms of progressive music. 'Never Comes the Day' is the mandatory Hayward-penned candid song - acoustic guitar bases, emotionally driven vocal lines, evolving mellotron harmonies, all these are here in good shape. Thomas' harmonica replaces his usual flute, in this way stating the subtle coauntry-inspired colors of the nuclear composition. 'Are You Sitting Comfortably?' is more pastoral, bringing soft Celtic moods, a bit less exotic than 'Visions of Paradise' from the previous album: it includes beautiful flute flourishes. The sequence of the last tracks brings the long expected climax. The poem 'The Dream' inserts the solemnity of a philosophical event, with the Pinder-penned 'Have You Heard' and 'The Voyage' bringing a lyrical approach to the matter. The two 'Have You Heard' sections are captivating prog ballads delivered in a controlled fashion. The interlude 'The Voyage' is the album's finest moment, an amazing tribute to Grieg and Debussy wrapped in a sort of mysterious vibe, in this way giving coherence to the concept of having a dream as a liberation of the mind. The multiple mellotron colors, the flute solo, the cellos and the symphonic percussions are put together in a very disciplined way without letting go of an inch of emotional drive - intelligence and emotion fused in one single sonic force. Thsi album is not as big asother Moodies' efforts, but it happens to be essential for teh collector to grasp the sustained evolution of The Moody Blues during their 67-72 era.

"Days of Future Passed" was unique if only (but not only) for using an orchestra both between and within songs, and "In Search of the Lost Chord" successfully transitioned to the mellotron while incorporating more of the predominant psychedelic influences of its time. Both established a new sound distinct from their peers while seemingly operating within the same world, which makes their singularity all the more remarkable. With few notable exceptions, "On the Threshold of a Dream" finds the group falling backwards into the cliches of their time.

The intro "In the Beginning" is your classic fun fare reminiscent of the intro to "In Search of..", and "Lovely to See you" is a fair catchy pop number with some good guitars, but "Dear Diary" and "So Deep within you sound" more like The Doors than the Moody Blues, but not even that good. Forgettable ditties like "Send me no Wine" and "To Share our Love" could almost have been prepared by Moodys Mach 1 or any other late 60s chart band, although they lack the requisite hooks to reach for the charts. Even "Never Comes the Day" could have been better without the awkward up tempo chorus clashing with the undeniably classic melody of the verse. It also suggests the inspiration or BJH's "Love is Like a Violin" that appeared in 1977. The "Have You Heard/The Voyage" combination may be pleasing to prog fans but is really not where the band's strengths lie, and was better explored in the "Four Doors/Legend of Mind" juxtaposition on "In Search of..", though I admit enjoying Pinder cut loose a bit on piano for a change.

While not the stuff of nightmares, On The Threshold of a Dream is the weakest of the 7 classics, and to my mind is not one at all. Fails to convincingly surpass the 2.5 star threshold.

This was the first album I ever listened to from The Moody Blues, and this created a really bad first impression. The music is not prog at all, and isn't really that conceptual. I found the music really weird, especially the opening to the album. There are a few moments that I liked, but for the most part, I really don't like this record. You can't see much skill from the musicians from listening to this, and really has no instrumental passages or progression like most prog does. Now, I realize that this was 1969, but at this time there were albums like ABBEY ROAD and TOMMY which dominated this type of proto-prog. I'm not A Moody Blues fan, but really pass this by. The previous album is much better in comparison, and most prog fans will be dissapointed. Only buy if you're a fan because this isn't the place to start.

On The Threshold Of A Dream is the fourth full-length studio album by UK progressive rock act The Moody Blues. It was the first album by the band to reach #1 in the British album charts and to enter top 20 in the American album chart. A big commercial success for The Moody Blues even though the only single released from the album Never Comes the Day turned out to be a commercial flop.

The music on the album continues in the same style that the band initiated on In Search of the Lost Chord (1968). Pretty simple pop/ rock songs with additional progressive features like flute and mellotron. The most progressive moment on the album is probably the ending three piece suite ( Have You Heard? Pt. 1, The Voyage and Have You Heard? Pt. 2) which I find pretty good. But most of the songs on the album are of high compositional quality albeit a bit too sweet, nice and likable in atmosphere for my taste.

The vocals are pleasant and warm and the musicianship is generally good.

The production is a bit better than the one on In Search of the Lost Chord and I think it suits the music well with a warmer and fuller sound.

On The Threshold Of A Dream is a natural successor to In Search of the Lost Chord but I must admit that I don´t hear much difference between the two in terms of songwriting or changes in the overall style. On The Threshold Of A Dream is a good melodic progressive rock album though and if you enjoy song oriented and simple progressive rock it´s recommendable. Don´t expect to be blown away by extented intrumental sections though. A 3 star rating is deserved.