Graeme Edge, drummer and wordsmith for the Moody Blues, giants of symphonic rock – obituary

• Graeme Edge, the drummer and songwriter who has died aged 80, was a co-founder of the Moody Blues, who went far beyond their rhythm’n’blues roots; the last surviving touring member of the original line-up, he was the only one of the band to play on every album, and contributed several songs, as well as some fondly remembered if slightly portentous spoken-word passages as they blazed a trail for what became known as “symphonic rock”.