Remembering Denny Laine 1944-2023

Denny Laine, former member of The Moody Blues and Wings passed away on 5 December 2023 in Naples, Florida following a lengthy battle with interstitial lung disease, after catching COVID. A GoFundMe was set up by his wife, Elizabeth and there was recently a benefit concert held at the Troubadour in LA to raise money for his medical expenses. Rather than talk about his death, I’d rather talk about his life and remember the great music he gave us. I also want to share an old concert review I wrote when I saw him in Chicago in 2015. I think people would rather be remembered for the life they lived and have that celebrated than us dwelling on their death and talking about that.

About Denny Laine

Denny Laine was born in the Channel Islands in 1944 and raised in Birmingham. His inspiration to pick up the guitar was Django Reinhardt. An early band of his, The Diplomats had future Move and ELO drummer Bev Bevan in it (isn’t classic rock a small world?). He chose his stage name in honour of his sister’s favourite singer Frankie Laine. He left The Diplomats for The Moody Blues after Mike Pinder and Ray Thomas invited him to join the band. Denny sang lead vocals on the band’s first big hit, a cover of Bessie Banks’ “Go Now”. The only Moody Blues album he played on was their debut The Magnificent Moodies (the Americans and Canadians got Go Now: The Moody Blues #1). He wrote some songs with Mike Pinder including “And My Baby’s Gone”, “Let Me Go”, “True Story”, “From The Bottom of My Heart”, “Stop”, “Thank You Baby”, and “This is My House”. He left the band in 1966 and was replaced by Justin Hayward as lead singer and the band went into a prog rock direction with albums like Days of Future Passed, In Search of the Lost Chord, On The Threshold of a Dream, To Our Children’s Children’s Children, and A Question of Balance – a great run of albums.

In between The Moody Blues and Wings, he was in a few bands like Electric String Band – with Trevor Burton of The Move and Viv Prince of The Pretty Things, they shared a bill with Jimi Hendrix and Procol Harum. They were short lived though and broke up. Denny Laine released a couple solo singles, “Say You Don’t Mind” (later covered by Colin Blunstone during his solo career) and “Too Much In Love”. He and Trevor Burton were in another short-lived band called Balls from 1969-1971 and they only released one single “Fight For My Country”. They recorded an album together, but it was never released. Denny Laine also played in Ginger Baker’s Air Force for a few months in early 1970.

Finally, he joined Wings in 1971 and remained in the band until they broke up in 1981, a very important part of the band. Other band members came and went, but Paul, Linda, and Denny were there the whole time. All those hits like “Give Ireland Back to the Irish”, “My Love”, “Live and Let Die”, “Helen Wheels”, “Jet”, “Band on the Run”, “Listen to What the Man Said”, “Silly Love Songs”, “Let ‘Em In”… he was there! He was not just a guitarist, but a multi-instrumentalist for the band, playing keyboards, bass, and woodwinds. He famously co-wrote “Mull of Kintyre”, Wings’ biggest hit in the UK. While in Wings, he recorded a Buddy Holly covers album with Paul and Linda McCartney called Holly Days and he recorded a solo album, Ahh… Laine!. Sadly, I can’t find either on Spotify.

Even in the 80s, he worked with Paul McCartney, playing on solo albums Tug of War and Pipes of Peace. Unfortunately, Denny Laine and Paul McCartney had a falling out and drifted apart.

He always toured and played music and even in 2023, it was a busy year for him, playing concerts up until July 2023 and he married his wife, Elizabeth.

Of Denny Laine, Paul McCartney said:

“Denny was a great talent with a fine sense of humour and was always ready to help other people. He will be missed by all his fans and remembered with great fondness by his friends. I send my condolences and best wishes to his wife, Elizabeth and family. Peace and love Denny. It was a pleasure to know you. We are all going to miss you.”

– Paul McCartney

Throwback Concert Review: Denny Laine & the Cryers at The Abbey, Chicago, IL 6 September 2015

This is originally from Rebeat Magazine.

If you’re a fan of Wings and very early Moody Blues — that is, before they went prog — you’ll probably know of Denny Laine. He was an original member of the Moodies and is best known at that time for singing lead on their hit “Go Now,” a song written by Larry Banks and Milton Bennett for Bessie Banks. Laine sang the song so well that he made the song his own, and the Moody Blues’ version is considered by many to be definitive. Excited to hear this song and many of his other songs from his time with Paul McCartney and Wings, I was happy to see that he had a tour date right in my city, Chicago.

Denny Laine is touring this time with the Cryers, a New York/New Jersey-based band who have been around since 1991 and describe themselves accurately as rock-Americana-indie. They were the opening act and the backing band for Laine and played their own original material, much of it coming from their 2011 album Rock & Roll Holiday. Songs including “Small,” “I Think She Knows,” and  “Don’t Bother Me Please” showcased their influences stemming from blues, ’70s rock ‘n’ roll, and country rock. Their energy pumped up the crowd for Laine and whetted the audience for what was to come.

Laine dominated the stage for about an hour, mostly playing hits from Wings and a couple of Moody Blues songs. At 70 going on 71 his voice sounds fantastic, and his guitar playing was great throughout the show. He and the band had great chemistry, worked well together, and they all joked a lot with the audience and each other, and he told a few stories about the songs and the bands he was in. It was a very friendly environment between him and the audience of about 50 to 60 people. Laine even noted how enthusiastic the audience was and likened the Abbey to playing to a big crowd. There was a big emphasis during his set on songs that he had a big part in when he was in Wings and the Moody Blues, so if you’re turning up to a Denny Laine show expecting “Nights in White Satin” (which was recorded a few years after he left the Moody Blues) or “Silly Love Songs,” you might be disappointed.

There was a part in the show, however, where he did play a bit of “Nights in White Satin” and joked with the audience about how the Moody Blues changed their sound. He also chucked in a bit of “How Can We Hang Onto a Dream?” and “Red Red Wine” after an audience member called out requesting it. Laine also explained how the Moody Blues’ name evolved from the name of a brewery called Mitchells & Butlers in the hopes of being sponsored by them, and later on, called themselves the MB Five, and finally the Moody Blues. Other stories he told include about how he toured with Sonny Boy Williamson and how blues and folk music were a big inspiration for him, especially with the songs “Deliver Your Children” and “Lose Your Money.”

The highlights and my favourite moments of the show were his cover of James Brown’s “I’ll Go Crazy”; “Deliver Your Children,” from Wings’ London Town written by Laine and Paul McCartney; “Mull of Kintyre,” another song he co-wrote with Paul McCartney; “I Wish You Could Love,” one of Laine’s songs from the ’80s; “Spirits of Ancient Egypt” from the Wings album Venus and Mars; “Go Now”; and “Band On The Run,” the perfect song to finish the concert.

While the night was short, it was great, and Laine was very friendly, signing autographs and taking pictures with audience members. Overall, the show was excellent, and if you’re a big fan of the Moody Blues, Wings, or Denny Laine, I would recommend that you “go — now”!

Note: Denny Laine was really nice and I remember him being so generous with his time. He even signed things and took pictures with people who didn’t pay for the meet and greet until he was escorted away and told to sign things for the people who paid for meet and greet. What a class act and down to earth person! He even signed something for a friend of a friend.

You can see my photos with him below:

Here’s a photo of my signed Wings Over America album:

I have a video here where I talk about the signed album:

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A post shared by Angie Moon 🌙 🍄 (@angiemichellemoon)

Sending my condolences to Denny’s family and loved ones.