Denny Laine (born Brian Frederick Hines, 29 October 1944) is an English musician, singer, songwriter and guitarist. He was an original member of the Moody Blues, singing the band’s first hit “Go Now” in 1964, and in 1970 played lead guitar on Ginger Baker’s debut album, and with Paul McCartney and Wings from 1971 to 1981. In 2018 as a founding member of the Moody Blues, Laine was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Laine was born in Tyseley, Birmingham, where he attended Yardley Grammar School, and took up the guitar as a boy, inspired by gypsy jazz musician Django Reinhardt. He gave his first solo performance as a musician at the age of 12 and began his career as a professional musician fronting Denny Laine & the Diplomats, which also included future Move and Electric Light Orchestra drummer Bev Bevan.

In 1964, Laine left the Diplomats, shortly afterwards, he received a call from Ray Thomas and Mike Pinder to form a new band, The M&B 5, which eventually was changed to The Moody Bluesand sang the group’s first big hit, “Go Now“; other early highlights included “I Don’t Want To Go On Without You”, another UK hit, and the two minor UK chart hits “From the Bottom of My Heart (I Love You)” and “Everyday”, both written by Laine and Pinder. He also sang on “Can’t Nobody Love You” and “Bye Bye Bird” which was a hit in France. A self-titled EP and The Magnificent MoodiesLP on Decca followed. Laine and Pinder wrote most of the Moody Blues‘ B-sides during the 1965-66 period, such as “You Don’t (All the Time)”, “And My Baby’s Gone” and “This Is My House”. However, Laine’s tenure with the band was relatively short-lived and, after a number of comparative chart failures.