Customer Reviews

To Our Children's Children's Children

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This album is many peoples favorite, as it has a wide variety of styles, from rock & roll to ballads to 'spoken word'. Besides the orginal remixed 5.1 songs (13), we are treated to (11) more versions from the previous three albums. The full versions and alternate mixes are a surprise for those hard-core fans. Here is a list of what songs are not mentioned here:

Gypsy (Full Version)
Candle Of Life (Full Version)
Sun Is Still Shining (Alternate Mix)
Gypsy (BBC Radio Concert 17/12/69)
Sunset (BBC Radio Concert 17/12/69)
Never Comes The Day (BBC Radio Concert 17/12/69)
Are You Sitting Comfortably (BBC Radio Concert 17/12/69)
Dream (BBC Radio Concert 17/12/69)
Have You Heard (BBC Radio Concert 17/12/69)
Nights In White Satin (BBC Radio Concert 17/12/69)
Legend Of A Mind (BBC Radio Concert 17/12/69)

Musical experiences don't get much better than this. Treat yourself!

(Note: Disc 1 is an SACD mix made from the original quadraphonic tapes. Disc 2 is the original remastered quadraphonic tapes - not SACD. This is seen as Disc 1 is gold colored and Disc 2 is silver. Also note that because this was originally a quadrophonic mix, the center front speaker is not used).

One of the Moodies greatest achievements is this haunting, beautiful work that transports its listeners to far off realms. If any band is benefited by the surround sound format, it's the Moody Blues as this gorgeous sounding SACD release proves. Sound-wise, the CD plays much better in multichannel surround (even without the SACD player -- as the Dolby Pro Logic II mimics the surround rather well) than standard two-speaker format. Alive and as profoundly moving as ever, To Our Children's Children's Children is beginning to end one of the greatest musical expressions put to record.

Sadly, the fantastic cover artwork by Phil Travers is ruined by the person or persons in charge of reproducing the cover! True of at least 3 of the Moodies' SACD releases, the cover images are reproduced way too light so that nearly all the details of the painting are faded or lost altogether! Unfortunately, this is true on the cover as well as the interior booklet! Take a look at the original pressing of the LPs or any of the prior CD cover releases and you'll see just how bad Decca screwed this up! What happened to the quality control?! It's just a shame that this definitive release does not have the definitive covers it should! For any other band, it wouldn't be such a big deal, but for the Moodies, the cover art and packaging were part of the greater whole and this oversight is a big flaw in an otherwise fantastic release. One other smaller beef is that they should have had entirely new liner notes in each release, rather than just one new paragraph and a repeat of the notes detailed on Days of Future Passed.

At any rate, the music and sound get 5 stars, but 1 star is lost due to the work done by whoever was responsible for the cover art reproduction. Phil Travers original cover is vibrant and rich. This is very washed out and drains much of the original's beauty.

Forty years are soon to have passed for all of us who have followed the seminal rock and roll band--The Moody Blues.
Millions of us gnash our teeth at "critics" who elected the short-lived (yes they were very good, also) "Young Rascals" to the Hall Of Fame; but not the Moodies? These misguided, effete music snobs (in the world of rock and roll--go figure) mystify all those of us who appreciate the Moodies for their risk taking, for the songs that have resonated for four full decades and will continue to do so; and for the concerts that still electrify hundreds of thousands of fans every year in the 21st century. The Moodies are a band that has an unsurpassed catalog of greatness, but some still refuse to give them their due, alas.

Our band, chock full of outstanding singer-songwriters, takes a journey into space and time with "To Our Children's Children's Children". I don't have SACD playback capabilities with my system, but the high quality components I do have: Levinson, Meridian, Wilson speakers, et al, finally got to play this Moodies masterpiece in all its awesome stereo with the release of this incredible import Deluxe CD today. I own all of the OOP Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab (MFSL) recordings. "To Our Children's Children's Children" (TOCCC) sounds so much better than the heretofore great MFSL CD, that it is mind-blowing. Don't waste your money on paying for the over-priced, after-market, MFSL issued CDs, not when these new SACD releases of early Moodies albums are now the reference quality recordings you should have; if you dearly love the Moodies music.

"Watching and Waiting" is one of Justin Hayward's own personal favorite songs (co-writing credit shared with Ray Thomas), and when you hear all the "soft dynamics" of this majestic song you will find yourself noting chords and notes that you never heard before. "Gypsy", seemingly always left off of Moodies "best of" compilations (for some unknown reason), resonates with more energy and clarity and bass. The side 2, "longer version" of "Gypsy" is also outstanding. Mike Pinder's "Sun Is Still Shining" (not a personal favorite of mine before), now carries much more weight; the sitar is given its space and the whole song is just, well, really cool. If you want to hear the Moodies at their best, all the new import SACD editions are worth every penny. You will rediscover the joy of listening to concept albums by a band that basically originated the concept of making rock and roll albums cohesive, "about something", etc. Enjoy the awesome Moodies' music in the very best medium to hear them--the SACDs! Oh, and thanks Justin, for your hard work in seeing to it that these SACD releases were done so very, very well!

08/14/06 UPDATE!! Universal Records has just announced that it will release U.S. versions (of the here-to-fore only available as import purchases) of "Days Of Future Passed," "In Search Of The Lost Chord," and "To Our Children's Children's Children" on 09/12/06. So let's also hope that you may be able to get the remaining other SACD Moodies' discs from U.S. sellers (presumably at lower prices than the import versions) too, if these first three discs sell well. I owe it to Universal, after criticizing their earlier decision NOT to release U.S. versions of the Moodies SACDs, to pass along this great news.

This is one of the best Moody Blues albums from their peak of 1967-1972. I don't mind a radical remix and this is not one. But, the old quad mix they used for this release from 1972 is not good. The electric guitar, mostly the lead, is buried in the mix. They should have remixed this album from the master tapes. Why use an old 4 channel mix, done for stereo systems featuring early 1970's technology. REMIX the album in 5.1. Don't cross-fade the songs.

The bonus disc was disappointing. The 3 studio tracks they put on, Gypsy (Alt Mix with no fadeout), Candle of Life (Alt Mix with clean intro and a longer ending), and Sun Is Still Shining (Alt longer Mix) are all great. But why only 3 songs! How about an unedited complete version of "I Never thought I'd Live to be A Hundred". The song was cut in half for the album and put on both sides. How about a mix of "Eyes Of a Child Pt. 2" that doesn't fade in or out. How about a mix of "Out and In" with a clean intro and longer ending. The live BBC show is ok, but it was recorded the same week as the live album "Caught Live Plus 5". So the versions and song choices are the same. They should have released it, but as a seperate release from this. They should have added more outtakes from the studio recordings to the bonus disc. There was still atleast 25 minutes of time left on the cd with the live segment included.

I'm glad they released this, but it could of been so much better.

Once again, let's start off with some of the issues raised by others. First, as far as the cover being lighter- it always was on the first editions of the album. The cover wasn't darkend until the time of reissues. For a good example of this, pull out This Is The Moody Blues and see for yourself. Second, as far as the sound being different, it's because this is taken from the old quad mix(four channel) and not the two channel stereo. To take full advantage of the quad feature, producer Tony Clarke remixed the album in late '71. To my ears, this IS the best sounding version as the sound is much clearer than even on the MoFi editions and with this version you actually get a bonus disc of alternate takes/mixes and some BBC stuff. Although, I know some will still perfer the MoFi versions as they are of the original stereo. This album has become a favorite of many and it's easy to see why. The album is strong from beginning to end. Starting with the cool blast off sounds of Higher And Higher to the wonderful and bittersweet Watching And Waiting. This is one of those albums whhere it's impossible to pick favorites. I should point out that the BBC stuff is now available on the Moodies BBC release.

*The following comments are in regard to the bonus tracks on this release. To read my opinions on the original content of this album, check out my review under:
"To Our Children's Children's Children" by The Moody Blues (Audio CD - 1997) - Original recording remastered

Here is what I enjoyed about each of these outstanding bonus offerings...

"Gypsy" (alternate version):
Sounds like a possible remix for the 1974 "This Is The Moody Blues" compilation had the song been chosen for that release! One difference in this version is that Justin's chanting (Before the "Left without a hope of coming home" parts) is louder in the mix, plus there are no backing vocals accompanying Justin's. I love the extended chaotic ending, and I get a kick out of the laughter and falsetto chanting at the tail end of the mix, probably from John Lodge. :) Justin's dramatic final vocal, edited in places and mixed more in the background on the final version, was well delivered, as well!

"Candle Of Life" (alternate version):
The vocals sound like they have less echo coming from them, on this mix. Also, the ascending piano chords, in the extended fadeout, were the highlight for me, and they sounded fantastic, too!

"Sun Is Still Shining" (extended version):
You can hear falsetto-like backing vocals behind Mike Pinder's singing, here, which is a pretty neat addition. Also, I didn't know there was a flute on this recording until the very end of the extended fadeout, and the piece is played very well by Ray Thomas! Fantastic! :)

The remaining tracks, from the David Symonds BBC radio show, sound almost identical to the performances from "Caught Live +5" (as noted in another review) except less songs appear on this disc, and both "The Voyage" and "Legend Of A Mind" are shorter versions, as performed here. Also, on this occasion, David Symonds introduces most of the tracks, before The Moody Blues start playing, and amusingly, he sounds like he is slightly chuckling when he introduces "Legend Of A Mind," for The Moodies! :) Mono sound quality on this performance, but it still sounds magnificent!

Just like the 1997 CD remaster of "To Our Children's Children's Children," this Deluxe Edition also featured a topnotch remastering job! I would recommend this release to any Moody Blues fan or collector. Thanks for reading! God Bless... :)

I bought this album when it first came out on vinyl, have it on cassette, CD, remastered CD, and now SACD.

Until I heard this in SACD, I was beginning to think SACD was frivolous since playing the 2 channel CDs through Dolby Prologic II Music mode does a nice job on enveloping you in non-gimmicky surround.

But when I put this SACD version on all I could say was "WOW". I read in prior reviews that you can hear things you've never heard before and it's all true. Partly because of the quality of the master tapes, but also the way in which they remixed the album for Quadrophonic. You will hear harmonies you've never heard, nice background bits of Mike's mellotron plus guitar, and flute clarity like you wouldn't believe.

I am back on the SACD wagon after hearing this, and will be buying all the original 7 in that format.

The extra cuts were a very nice added bonus and the liner notes/booklet are first-rate (or as good as a CD liner can be). Othes have already opined on that aspect but I'll add that it is nice to have all the original artwork again along with some background info.

You may have read that the Super Audio CD format (SACD) sounds very much like listening to a good vinyl LP on a high-end audio system. My own experience with "To Our Children's Children's Children" mirrors that view. This particular CD is one of the Moody's seven "concept" albums and it finally gets the treatment it deserves in this high resolution format. The extra tracks are a bonus for Blues' fans, but the real attraction here is the album itself, and the sound is probably as close to the original session master tapes as we're going to get. Highly recommended!

To counter some of the negativity on reviews of the CD layer, I am instead focusing on the SACD layer for my review, which was, for me, the only reason I bothered with this deluxe edition. If you are reading this review, please realize it is for the To Our Children's Children's Children's and NOT the regular CD version where this review may end up being seen.

First, the CD layer is a bit compressed. Over all it seems more like what they've done is bumped the gain more than compressing the dynamic range, at least in so far as my untrained eye can see given the WAV form anaylysis I did via my eyeballs on this one. They push it almost to the limit of what CD can handle which means distortion doesn't occur but it does lend for a much, much louder experience than the original CD releases.

Second, the SACD layer. Oh.My.God. The quadraphonic release of this album is nothing short of absolutely brilliant. They've mastered the levels to more normal levels for a mix and what is provided is nothing short of breath taking. Being surrounded by The Moody Blues, which I've experienced with their other SACD reissues, is always a transcendental experience. Hearing Eyes of a Child fill the room and surround me always draws me in.

Of all the core 7, I think the tracks on this album may be my least favorite, however that's like saying I don't like to breath. While they aren't my favorites, they are still some great tracks.

Third, the SACD STEREO layer is also similarly mastered. They bump the gain a touch, but over all it retains the original dynamics as you would want an expect from an SACD.

The second disc is all rare b-sides/performances that you can't find elsewhere and this alone may make it worthwhile for the purchase. They have all be remastered and cleaned up and sound pretty good over all.


Will Children's Children's Children be the be all, end all definitive disc to play for someone on the fence looking to get into SACD? No. It is, however, the definitive release of this album and offers something not many were or are able to enjoy, the original quadraphonic release of this album, along with a fantastic SACD stereo mix (CD mix leaves some to be desired, but hopefully you aren't buying this set for that).

If you have access to SACD capable hardware, buy this version. Well, unless you have the original reel to reel or 8 track quadraphonic releases and they are still listenable. Even if all you have access to is two speakers, the SACD stereo layer has a depth lacking from the standard CD layer on this disc.

...Try 10 or 11 stars! My personal favorite of the classic seven presented in stunning new form! Of course, there are going to be naysayers on any reissue...some people will swear by the old releases, no matter how staggeringly wonderful the new ones are. This is the first of the SACD releases I've purchased, and I am truly in awe! First of all, the minute I remove the plastic cover, here's this wonderful packaging, complete with fold out art and, among other things, the wonderful picture of the band that adorned the vinyl inner sleeve and had been left off all other CD releases of this album. There's a booklet chock-full of pictures and information, plus lyrics. Before I even put the CD in my player, I'm already leaping for joy at this reissue, so you can just imagine my joy once I actually start listening to the album! The very first blast of "Higher And Higher" is so crisp sounding that when the acoustic guitar comes in, I can't help but put my fist in the air! Song after song sound better than I've ever heard them before. "Candle Of Life", always one of my favorites, almost has me in tears. "Beyond" fills my car with sonic wonder. By the end of the closing song Watching And Waiting, I've got chills! Then there's the bonus disc...yes this stuff is for diehard Moody Blues fans only...but then again, it is likely to be die-hard Moody Blues fans buying this album...the casual listener would be satisfied with any of the number of compilations available.
When I first heard the Moodies albums were being reissued, and already owning copies of all seven, I figured I might get the new copies of a couple of my favorites of the seven. Upon experiencing this one though, I stand corrected...I WILL be ordering ALL of them! This is truly the classic seven as they are meant to be enjoyed! I can't wait for "Every Good Boy" and "Seventh Sojourn" to come out!