Music lovers are sailing into Morristown, NJ late this Tuesday afternoon for a sold-out July 16, 2024 concert at MPAC by Christopher Cross and Justin Hayward.
Christopher Cross was the first artist in history to win all four major awards in a single Grammy ceremony when in 1981 he brought home honors for Best New Artist, Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Album of the Year for his debut recording, the multi-platinum-selling Christopher Cross.
Justin Hayward fronted the rock band, The Moody Blues, which sold over fifty-five million records. His album with bassist John Lodge, Blue Jays, reached the Top 5 in the UK and his single with 10cc, “Blue Guitar,” reached the UK Top 10. In 2018, Hayward and the Moody Blues were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Inside the MPAC auditorium, the lights dim and guitarist Mike Dawes takes the stage warning, “I like to play every single part of the guitar!” Launching into his shuffle tune, “Boogie Shred,” Dawes knocks on the body, taps on the strings, and fast-picks his way through the tune to avid applause.
Announcing, “This one’s for Eddie Van Halen!” Dawes plays “Jump” with personality and style as he bends strings while playing every part of the instrument. For his final number, Dawes performs his rhythmic new-age composition, “Somebody That I Used to Know,” eliciting hoots, hollers, and applause from the crowd.
As Dawes tunes his guitar, keyboardist Julie Ragins takes the stage followed by Justin Hayward carrying his guitar. The crowd cheers as the trio begins to play The Moody Blues’ 1968 hit, “Tuesday Afternoon.”
In his warm, expressive voice, Hayward sings, “Tuesday afternoon/I’m just beginning to see/Now I’m on my way,” before wind player Karmen Gould joins the trio playing the flute solo.
Josh Johnson joins in on guitar for “Driftwood,” a sweet and gentle ballad which features Gould on bass flute, Hayward and Ragins singing in harmony, and Dawes playing an electric guitar solo.
The crowd cheers, and Hayward, 78, exclaims, “Thank you very much indeed!” before sailing into the slow, soft rock tune, “Living for Love,” which has him accompanied by Dawes on acoustic guitar, Ragins on keys, and Gould keeping time on the high hat.
Hayward talks about how he took a “sequence of bits of Moody Blues songs” to create a medley of “The Day We Meet Again,” “One Lonely Room,” “Out and In,” “In My World,” and “Voices in the Sky,” which gets the crowd hooting and hollering with many standing and cheering.
Strumming his guitar, Dawes has concertgoers clapping along to “The Voice,” where Hayward and Raines engage in a call-and-response vocal before blending in harmony together and the crowd joins them in singing the catchy, “Oh, oh, won’t you tell me again/Oh, oh, can you feel it” refrain.
Following the gentle ballad, “Forever Autumn,” Dawes, Raines, Hayward, and Ragins perform the 1986 Moody Blues’ hit, “Your Wildest Dreams.”
Music lovers join Hayward as he sings the song’s rhythmic “I wonder where you are/I wonder if you think about me/Once upon a time/In your wildest dreams” refrain accompanied by Ragin on keyboard, Gould on flute, and a Mike Dawes guitar percussion loop.
Fast acoustic guitar strumming opens “Questions” and has concertgoers clapping along to the upbeat country feel before Hayward steps up to perform his classic 1978 #1 Moody Blues smash, “Nights in White Satin.”
Gently strumming his guitar, Hayward croons in his soft expressive voice, “Nights in white satin/Never reaching the end/Letters I’ve written/Never meaning to send.” Gould plays a flute solo on the interlude before the arrangement builds to a thundering conclusion which inspires a standing ovation.
The musicians bow, exit, and return for an encore of The Moody Blues’ 1971 hit, “The Story In Your Eyes.” Music lovers join Hayward and Co. singing the song’s rhythmic “Listen to the tide slowly turning/Wash all our heartaches away” refrain with Ragins playing keyboard with one hand and a drum with the other and Hayward following with an impressive electric guitar solo.
Concluding his set with the ’80s rocker, “I Know You’re Out There Somewhere,” Hayward inspires the crowd to stand and applaud prior to announcing, “Thank you so much!” as he and the band bow and exit the stage.
During intermission, several concertgoers comment on tonight’s show thus far. Remarks Jessica from Morris Plains, “I’m a long time Moody Blues fan and Justin Hayward’s set exceeded my expectations! He sounded exactly like he used to and his guitarist, Mike Dawes, was phenomenal, too.” Scott from Morris Plains agrees, adding, “I loved Justin Hayward! I was born in the ’70s so it was nostalgic hearing all the songs my mom used to play, and he still sounds just like he used to.”
Lou from Butler contends, “I loved Justin Hayward’s set! Since the ’60s, I’ve been a big fan of The Moody Blues, and Justin’s voice sounds the same even though he’s 78 years old!” Geri from Chatham remarks, “I think Justin was great — for somebody in our age bracket, his voice has held up remarkably well — and seeing him from the front row was a fabulous experience.” Her husband, Peter, concurs insisting, “I thought he was just great!”
Following a short intermission, pianist Jerry Leonide, bassist Kevin Reveyrand, drummer Francis Arnaud, saxophonist Andy Suzuki, and vocalists Jewelee Peter, Lisbet Guldbaek, and Julia Sarr take the stage along with Christopher Cross to open tonight’s set with “All Right.”
His trademark falsetto sounding just like it did on the original recording, Cross, 73, sings, “It’s all right, I think we’re gonna make it/I think it might just work out this time.” Jerry Leonide shines on a jazzy piano solo and Francis Arnaud plays a drum solo before Andy Suzuki renders a soprano sax solo and Cross solos on guitar, fast-picking along to Kevin Reveyrand’s rumbling bass.
The crowd cheers, and Cross says, “Good evening!” as he and the band segue into “Never Be the Same” with an arrangement that features breezy background vocals from Jewelee Peter, Lisbet Guldbaek, and Julia Sarr, and an Andy Suzuki alto sax solo. Audience members happily hum along with Cross on the song’s “And I’ll never be the same without you here/Live alone, hide myself behind my tears” chorus.
After thanking concertgoers “for all the years of support of my music,” Cross continues with “I Really Don’t Know” where the crowd sings along on the catchy “I really don’t know anymore/I really can’t say” chorus.
Following the Afro-Cuban styled, “Alibi,” Jerry Leonide plays a cascading keyboard solo which serves as a prelude to Cross’s ostinato guitar intro to his 1980 #1 hit, “Sailing.” As Cross croons, “Sailing takes me away to where I’ve always heard it could be,” music lovers in the house are transported to another place and time.
Lights shine on “Minstrel Gigolo” as Cross sings, “You’re the minstrel gigolo/Don’t you know,” before Andy Suzuki joins in on soprano sax and the background trio vocalizes while slowly swaying from side to side under colored lights.
Cross tells the audience how much he enjoyed working with the late Burt Bacharach. Segueing into the pair’s “Arthur’s Theme (Best That You Can Do),” audience members happily sing along on the hit’s well-known “When you get caught between the moon and New York City” chorus.
Revealing that his next number was “inspired by a trip to Africa,” Cross performs “Light the World,” a number which features Andy Suzuki on EWI (electronic wind instrument), the backup vocalists singing in Swahili, and the crowd joyfully clapping along to the song’s infectious rhythm.
Music lovers applaud as Cross and Co. launch into “The Light is On” where Cross sings the tune’s “It’s alright/The light is on” chorus before Suzuki plays a mystical-sounding EWI solo and Cross solos on electric guitar.
The ensemble follows up with “No Time for Talk,” a tune with a progressive Latin feel that boasts a space-age sounding EWI solo from Andy Suzuki and a percussive Jerry Leonide piano solo.
Announcing, “I’m gonna close with a song that began it all,” Cross delivers a dynamic live interpretation of his 1980 hit, “Ride Like the Wind.” Heads bop as lights flash to the driving beat and music lovers join in singing the tune’s infectious “Da da-da da, da da da da” interlude.
The crowd responds with a standing ovation and the musicians take leave of the stage before Cross returns to stand alone in the spotlight and sing an encore of “Think of Laura.” Accompanied by Leonid on piano, Cross vocalizes in his warm tenor, “Think of Laura but laugh don’t cry/I know she’d want it that way” on this poignant musical elegy. The crowd cheers before Cross concludes by stating, “Please be good to each other. I love you.”
As concertgoers make their way out of the MPAC auditorium, several share their thoughts on tonight’s performance by Christopher Cross and Justin Hayward. Acknowledges Mary Ann from Sparta, “I’ve loved Christopher Cross for years. His voice always stays the same and he’s so eloquent. Everybody who performed on stage with him tonight was fabulous, and I knew every single song he played.”
Comments Amer from Ridgewood, “Christopher Cross was really good tonight — this was my first time seeing him and I especially enjoyed ‘Sailing’ and ‘Think of Laura.’” Adding, “I’ve been a fan of the The Moody Blues ever since I was a kid, so I knew all the songs Justin Hayward sang,” Amer insists, “At 78, he sounded amazing, and his performance of ‘Nights in White Satin’ was the best part of the entire show!”
Larry from Franklin Lakes asserts, “It was a fabulous concert tonight; I really enjoyed it! Christopher Cross played all of his hits and his band was incredibly tight, and Justin Hayward is a legend — I’ve been listening to him for 60 years and I can’t get enough of him — he sounded fabulous and his backup musicians sounded gorgeous.”
Lastly, Sherisse from New Jersey confesses, “Christopher Cross is one of my mom’s favorite musical artists so I became familiar with his music from her. The first song of his that I ever fell in love with was ‘Think of Laura,’ which he sang tonight, but unfortunately, he didn’t do one of my other favorites, ‘Swept Away,’” before concluding, “I still completely enjoyed his show; hearing him perform live was just magical!”
To learn more about Christopher Cross, please go to christophercross.com. For more info on Justin Hayward, please click on justinhayward.com. For information on upcoming concerts at MPAC — including Air Supply on August 8, Dweezil Zappa’s Rox (Postroph)y Tour on August 22, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band’s All the Good Times Farewell Tour on October 9, and Rick Springfield on November 2 — please click on mayoarts.org.
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