To Our Children's Children's Children
Studio album by
Released21 November 1969
RecordedMay–September 1969
StudioDecca, London
GenreProgressive rock
Length40:15
LabelThreshold
ProducerTony Clarke
The Moody Blues chronology
On the Threshold of a Dream
(1969)
To Our Children's Children's Children
(1969)
A Question of Balance
(1970)
Singles from To Our Children's Children's Children
  1. "Watching and Waiting"
    Released: 31 October 1969
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]

To Our Children's Children's Children is the fifth album by the Moody Blues, released in November 1969. While the single released from it, "Watching and Waiting", did not do well, To Our Children's Children's Children was critically well-received and sold well, reaching number 2 in the UK album chart [2] and number 14 in the US, their best showing yet in that country.[3] "Gypsy (Of a Strange and Distant Time)" became a fan and album oriented rock radio favourite, despite never being released as a single, and remained in the band's concert setlist through the 1970s. The album was mixed and released in both stereo and quadraphonic.

Background

The album was the first released on the group's newly formed Threshold record label, which was named after the band's previous album from the same year, On the Threshold of a Dream. It was inspired by the 1969 Moon landing.[4] In the opening track, "Higher and Higher", sound effects of a rocket launching begin the song and last for the first minute. The album was one of those listened to, on cassette tape, by the crew of Apollo 15 in 1971.[5] The album's lushly-produced sound meant that The Moody Blues were able to perform only "Gypsy", and "Out and In", live at the time of its release, leading to a creative decision to strip back the production of their next album, A Question of Balance, so that they could perform more of its contents on stage.

Track listing

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
1."Higher and Higher"Graeme EdgePinder (narration)4:07
2."Eyes of a Child I"John LodgeLodge3:24
3."Floating"Ray ThomasThomas3:02
4."Eyes of a Child II"LodgeLodge1:20
5."I Never Thought I'd Live to Be a Hundred"Justin HaywardHayward1:05
6."Beyond"Edgeinstrumental2:59
7."Out and In"Mike Pinder, Lodge[nb 1]Pinder3:50
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
1."Gypsy (Of a Strange and Distant Time)"HaywardHayward3:33
2."Eternity Road"ThomasThomas4:19
3."Candle of Life"LodgeLodge, Hayward4:15
4."Sun Is Still Shining"PinderPinder3:40
5."I Never Thought I'd Live to Be a Million"HaywardHayward0:34
6."Watching and Waiting"Hayward, ThomasHayward4:16

Personnel

Charts

Chart (1969-1970) Peak
position
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[6] 11
French Albums (SNEP)[7] 10
Italian Albums (Musica e Dischi)[8] 19
UK Albums (OCC)[9] 2
US Billboard 200[10] 14

Certifications

Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[11] Platinum 100,000^
United States (RIAA)[12] Gold 500,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. To Our Children's Children's Children at AllMusic
  2. "Moody Blues | Full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". Official Charts. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
  3. "The Moody Blues – Chart History | Billboard". Billboard. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
  4. "Watch To Our Children's Children's Children - BFI Player". BFI Player. Retrieved 15 October 2018.
  5. HSA Space Exploration and Aviation Auction Catalog #6000. Heritage Capital Corporation. 1 February 2008. ISBN 9781599672274.
  6. "Top RPM Albums: Issue 3764". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  7. "Le Détail des Albums de chaque Artiste – M". Infodisc.fr (in French). Archived from the original on 22 October 2014. Retrieved 9 June 2012. Select Moody Blues from the menu, then press OK.
  8. "Classifiche". Musica e Dischi (in Italian). Retrieved 27 May 2022. Set "Tipo" on "Album". Then, in the "Artista" field, search "Moody Blues".
  9. "The Moody Blues | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  10. "The Moody Blues Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 5 February 2022.
  11. "Canadian album certifications – The Moody Blues – To Our Children's Children's Children". Music Canada.
  12. "American album certifications – The Moody Blues – To Our Children's Children's Children". Recording Industry Association of America.

Notes

  1. CD versions of the album credit Pinder only.
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