Your Wildest Dreams

This song is about "the one who got away." Feeling a bit nostalgic, the singer wonders if his long-lost love remembers him the way he remembers her. The song was written by The Moody Blues guitarist/singer Justin Hayward, who told us that it was inspired by a real person, but one that shall go nameless. "I found with 'Wildest Dreams' that it was a common experience for a lot of people," he said. "I thought I was writing a frivolous sort of song. I thought 'Wildest Dreams' would be a throwaway thing that people wouldn't really take much notice of lyrically. But I found out that it was a common experience and desire by a lot of people. So that was very revealing."

The Moody Blues were one of the first bands to use a Mellotron, which was a keyboard instrument that played sounds by triggering tape loops. Mike Pinder, a founding member of the band, was their Mellotron virtuoso. After Pinder's departure in 1979, Justin Hayward began experimenting with synthesizers, and became particularly fond of the Yamaha DX7, which is apparent on this track.

Tony Visconti, famous for his work with David Bowie, produced The Other Side Of Life album and encouraged the band to use some unusual instruments. "Most of 'Wildest Dreams' - 90% of it - is Tony Visconti, my DX7, and a guitar synth," Justin Hayward tells us. "The piece at the beginning that sounds like a sort of Theremin, a (humming) 'oooo ooo,' that's a guitar synth. All of that is. So it was just another way of exploring musical avenues. Tony Visconti was very much into that and the first person who really turned the band on to programming in a serious way. And he was very, very good at it, so I enjoyed every moment of that."