Denny Laine, Co-Founder Of The Moody Blues & Paul McCartney’s Wings, Has Died

Guitarist Denny Laine, who co-founded The Moody Blues and Paul McCartney’s Wings, has died at age 79. His death from Interstitial Lung Disease (ILD) was confirmed by Laine’s wife Elizabeth Hines.

Born Brian Frederick Hines on October 29, 1944 in the Channel Islands and raised in Tyseley, Birmingham, England, Laine established his stage name at age 12 when he formed his first professional band, Denny Laine & The Diplomats.

In 1964, Laine was recruited to form The Moody Blues, alongside Mike Pinder, Ray Thomas, Graeme Edge and Clint Warwick. Laine’s tenure in the band was short-lived, but included singing lead on the band’s first #1 single, “Go Now.” By the end of 1966, Laine was no longer a member of The Moody Blues.

Between 1966 and 1971, Laine was involved in a number of groups, performing with the Electric String Band, Balls and Ginger Baker’s Air Force.

The Beatles Paul McCartney sought out Laine to form Wings in 1971. The original Wings lineup included Paul’s wife Linda McCartney on keyboards and Denny Seiwell on drums. Over the next decade, Laine remained the only constant member of Wings not named McCartney. The trio was primarily responsible for recording the 1973 Wings album, Band On The Run, which reached the top of the charts on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean.

In 1977, Wings released their most successful single, “Mull Of Kintyre” which was co-written by Laine and Paul McCartney. Wings issued their seventh and final album, Back to the Egg in 1979. Two years later, McCartney officially disbanded Wings.

Paul McCartney shared this message in response to Laine’s death:

I am very saddened to hear that my ex-bandmate, Denny Laine, has died.

I have many fond memories of my time with Denny: from the early days when The Beatles toured with the Moody Blues. Our two bands had a lot of respect for each other and a lot of fun together. Denny joined Wings at the outset. He was an outstanding vocalist and guitar player. His most famous performance is probably “Go Now” an old Bessie Banks song which he would sing brilliantly. He and I wrote some songs together the most successful being “Mull of Kintyre” which was a big hit in the seventies. We had drifted apart but in recent years managed to reestablish our friendship and share memories of our times together.

Denny was a great talent with a fine sense of humor and was always ready to help other people. He will be missed by all his fans and remembered with great fondness by his friends. I send my condolences and best wishes to his wife, Elizabeth and family.

Peace and love Denny. It was a pleasure to know you. We are all going to miss you.

Love,
Paul

During his stint in Wings, Laine released three solo albums, 1973’s Ahh…Laine, 1977’s Holly Days and 1980’s Japanese Tears. Laine’s post-Wings years saw the release of additional solo albums, starting with 1982’s Anyone Can Fly. More solo albums were issued in the 1980s and 1990s, with Laine’s final solo album being 2008’s The Blue Musician.

In 2018, Laine was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame as a member of The Moody Blues. That same year Laine performed the music of Wings with now-defunct funk collective Turkuaz. In March 2023, Laine participated in The Music Of Paul McCartney all-star tribute concert at Carnegie Hall in New York City with Nancy Wilson, Graham Nash, Patti Smith, Christopher Cross and Bettye LaVette, among others.