Denny Laine

Brian Frederick Hines (29 October 1944 – 5 December 2023), known professionally as Denny Laine, was an English musician who co-founded two major rock bands: the Moody Blues and Paul McCartney and Wings. Laine played guitar in the Moody Blues from 1964 to 1966 and sang their hit cover version of "Go Now". Laine befriended Paul McCartney, who later asked him to join his band Wings.

Laine was a constant member of Wings for their entire run from 1971 to 1981, playing guitar, bass and keyboards, and singing backing and lead vocals. He wrote songs with McCartney, including the 1977 hit "Mull of Kintyre". Laine worked with a variety of other artists, such as Ginger Baker, Trevor Burton and Bev Bevan as a part of groups over a six-decade career. In later years he participated in a number of Wings/McCartney/Beatles tribute performances and recordings. He also had an extensive solo career consisting of ten studio albums of original music and a Wings covers album and also wrote a musical. Laine performed as a solo artist and touring musician until his death. In 2018, Laine was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Moody Blues.

Brian Frederick Hines was born on 29 October 1944 to Herbert Edward Arthur Hines and Eva Lillian Hines (née Bassett) in Holcombe Road, Tyseley, Birmingham, England, and he attended Yardley Grammar School. He took up the guitar as a boy, inspired by gypsy jazz musician Django Reinhardt. He gave his first solo performance as a musician at age 12 and began his career as a professional musician, fronting Denny Laine and the Diplomats, which also included Bev Bevan, future drummer with the Move and Electric Light Orchestra. Laine changed his name because he felt "Brian Frederick Hines and the Diplomats… wouldn't work", instead taking the surname of his sister's idol, the singer Frankie Laine. The first name Denny was a childhood nickname, stemming from the fact that at the time "everyone had a backyard, and a den to hang out. I think I got that nickname there."

At the beginning of 1964, Laine left the Diplomats. In May of that year he received a call from Ray Thomas and Mike Pinder who were forming a new band, the M&B 5, who within a few months changed their name to the Moody Blues. He sang lead vocal on the group's first big hit, a cover of Bessie Banks's hit "Go Now"; other early highlights included another UK hit, "I Don't Want to Go on Without You", and the two minor UK chart hits "From the Bottom of My Heart (I Love You)" and "Everyday", both written by Laine and Pinder. Laine also sang on "Can't Nobody Love You" and "Bye Bye Bird", the latter of which was a hit in France. A self-titled EP and the album The Magnificent Moodies followed, on Decca Records. Laine and Pinder wrote most of the band's B-sides during the period 1965–66, such as "You Don't (All the Time)", "And My Baby's Gone" and "This Is My House (But Nobody Calls)". However, Laine's tenure with the Moody Blues was relatively short-lived and, after a number of comparative chart failures, Laine quit in October 1966. He was replaced by Justin Hayward. The last record issued by the Moody Blues that featured Laine was the single "Life's Not Life" b/w "He Can Win", in January 1967.

A compilation album of singles and album tracks of the early Moody Blues, led by Denny Laine, was released in 2006 under the title An Introduction to The Moody Blues.

Biography summary from English Wikipedia, photograph via Wikimedia Commons.