MY CAREER IN FIVE SONGS

The Moody Blues scored a dozen top 10 hits in their five-decade prog-rock reign. Justin Hayward says these are his favorites.

- GARY GRAFF

"SONGS KIND OF jump out of a guitar," Justin Hayward notes via Zoom from his home in the south of France, where he splits time with his native England. He should know. Shortly after he discovered his beloved Gibson ES-335- particularly the 1963 model he plays to this day- the Moody Blues guitarist from days of future passed had a magic guitar to begin writing songs on.

It was a 12-string gifted to him by skiffle great Lonnie Donegan when he signed the then 17-year-old Hayward to a publishing deal (unfortunately lopsided, as so many were at the time). "It was the first nice guitar

I'd had," Hayward recalls. "A guitar is so rhythmic, so harmonic. It contains so many resonances within it. It's the perfect instrument to play to and write with. You don't need anything else if you don't want." Hayward, who bought the 12-string back after Donegan reclaimed it, did have plenty more to work with, however. With the Moodys he created a body of songs that was responsible for worldwide sales of more than 70 million albums and a dozen Top 40 hits in the U.S.. There was also the short-term Blue Jays project with Moodys bassist with whom Hayward had John Lodge joined the band in 1966 - and, to date, seven solo albums. He has the reputation of a songwriting guitarist, but when the spirit takes hold he can cut loose as well.