Justin Hayward is vocalist, lead guitarist and composer for the Moody Blues. Over the last thirty-five years the band has sold a phenomenal fifty five million albums and has received numerous awards.
Justin’s interest in music started at the age of seven when he had his first piano lesson. He taught himself the ukulele and soon progressed to guitar. By his early teen’s he was playing in local groups in Swindon and when he left school he answered an advertisement in " The Melody Maker" and found himself playing with The Wilde Three with Marty Wilde and his wife Joyce.
He made several recordings with The Wilde Three and also appeared with them at the London Palladium. After making a couple of solo singles he joined the Moody Blues in the summer of 1966.
Justin’s career as a songwriter took off with the composition "Fly Me High" in 1966 which was followed by the classic hit songs "Nights in White Satin" & "Tuesday Afternoon" from the album "Days of Future Past". This album went on to become one of the most historic recordings of our time and was a favourite of the NASA astronauts and was taken aboard the Atlantis shuttle space craft by Chief astronaut "Hoot" Gibson on many missions.
With other great hit songs "Question" "The Voice" "I Know Your Out There Somewhere" and "Your Wildest Dreams" Justin continues to have a very successful career with the Moody Blues recording and touring throughout the world.
When the Moody Blues took a break from touring in 1975 Justin recorded the Blue Jays album, followed by the hit single "Blue Guitar". Whilst continuing his work with the Moodies he also made several solo albums "Songwriter" "Night Flight" "Moving Mountains" and most recently "The View From the Hill". Justin had a top ten single in 1978 with "Forever Autumn" taken from Jeff Wayne’s "War of the Worlds" album. He also collaborated in 1989 with Mike Batt and the London Philharmonic Orchestra and recorded the album "Classic Blue".
Justin is featured with the Moodies on the Rock Walk "Hall of Fame" on Sunset Boulevard and has been awarded three ASCAP awards for most performed works, an Ivor Novello and is a member of the infamous SODS " The Society of Distinguished Songwriters". In March 1997 Justin was honoured when he was chosen as the subject for "This is your life" where he had a chance to meet up with many of his friend s including Marty Wilde.
Justin now lives with his wife Marie on the Mediterranean and records in Italy at "Studio Mullinetti" where he say’s "Spending more and more time in this beautiful part of the world I have re-discovered the music in me, and to make music in a beautiful place with your friends is every songwriters dream".
