Comments:

After purchasing the album, I hated to admit to myself that the other tracks did not live up to my hopes and expectations. There was too little rock guitar and that everything was overall a bit too nice. Even though it could not be measured with other favorites from the same time, such as "A Salty Dog" and "Full House", I actually did play it quite a lot and learned to a certain degree to appreciate even the the songs that sounded like ”family pop”; they were after all good and well-written songs. However, the three Hayward songs were always favorites. Now, many years later, I have relistened to the album and obviously noticed new aspects and learned to appreciate some of them. It is obvious that the group in many ways was trend-setting and lyrically, in fact ahead of their time, e.g. with focus on the environment and greedy abuse of the resurces of the Earth. In fact, very impressive that young men in their midtwenties could deliver such a mature piece of work.

The middle part of "Question" is still incredible and probably one of the most beautiful pieces of music group ever delivered. The pompous intro (and end) I was never very crazy about, and I still think that the two parts do not fi really well together. Haywards "It's up to You" is another highlight; a melodic rocker with a small touch of country. "Dawning is the Day" is an evocative and more complex number. Mike Pinders to numbers "How are we here" and "Melancholy man" originally fell out, far from my taste, but of course I now realize that they are actually both nicely and beautifully constructed. John Lodge's songwriting I found came the closest to Hayward’s, and he was my number two favorite. His "Tortoise and the Hare" is a light upbeat soft rocker - a really nice song. His "Minstrel Song" is a grand and nicely arranged composition. Ray Thomas croons safely through his own "And Tide Rushes in," and together with Graeme Edge he has put the final number "The Balance" together. Edge, who was often responsible for the recitals, has also written the fine "Don’t You Feel Small", which could sound like a song taken from a movie.

As a whole, "A Question of Balance" is probably one of the most succesful Moody Blues albums and one that has aged with grace.