Hayward was born in Dean Street, Swindon, Wiltshire, England, and educated at Shrivenham School in Berkshire and the Commonweal School in Swindon. He was playing in several bands as early as age 15 when he bought his Gibson 335, a guitar that appears on nearly all of his records throughout his career, and a Vox AC30 amplifier. All previous guitars were "unsatisfactory" and required modification. He performed with local Swindon groups in clubs and dance halls playing mostly Buddy Holly songs. One of Hayward's early groups was All Things Bright, which opened for The Hollies and Brian Poole and the Tremeloes. At age 17, he signed an eight-year publishing contract as a songwriter with the skiffle artist and record producer Lonnie Donegan, a move Hayward later regretted, as it meant the rights to all his songs written before 1974 would always be owned by Donegan's Tyler Music. In 1965 he answered an advertisement in Melody Maker and auditioned as guitarist for Marty Wilde and he went on to work with Wilde and his wife in The Wilde Three.
For the most part, Hayward has used a red Gibson ES-335, though he also uses other guitars in both performing and recording, including a 1955 Martin D-28 "Dreadnought", a James Olson six-string acoustic, a black Guild acoustic, a Squier Stratocaster (essentially an inexpensive Fender Stratocaster, as Squier is a subsidiary of Fender), a Fender Telecaster, a blonde Guild 12-string acoustic (tuned to "open C" for "Question"), and in 1967 a black Gibson Les Paul. Between 1965 and 1968, he was without his Gibson 335 and relied on other instruments, most notably a 1964 Fender Telecaster and a hand-built 12-string guitar he had renovated for Donegan (he eventually bought this guitar from Donegan's widow). However, in an interview included on the Lovely to See You concert DVD (2005), Hayward says the 1963 Gibson 335 has been with him since 1967. Recently, he has played a Collings D3 on stage and on recordings. Among other instruments, Hayward also played mandolin on A Question of Balance and sitar on In Search of the Lost Chord.
Written at the end of one love affair and the beginning of another, the song "Nights in White Satin" was, according to Hayward, "in adoration of all women". Hayward married model Ann Marie Guirron on 19 December 1970. His daughter Doremi, who sings on the track "Raised on Love" on Hayward's 1977 album Songwriter, was born on 3 December 1972.
In 2013, Hayward spoke of his learning Transcendental Meditation in 1967, along with other members of the Moody Blues.
In The Beginning
Justin Hayward Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
In the beginning there was you
Then we found out that to get you’ve gotta give
And our worlds collided into blue
But I want you
I still want you
That’s what we needed and we craved
Time has no mercy, when our days went blue to gray
Still a journey come what may
But I want you
I still want you
Every day finds us searching
For the right words to say
Every night we’re still giving
Our love away
In the beginning, there was beauty, there was pain
In the beginning we were free
Now we’re surrounded by the castles that remained
These fortress walls are all we see
But I want you
I still want you
I want you
Still want you
The lyrics of the song “In The Beginning” by Justin Hayward take us back to the beginning of a love story. The first few lines describe how love was present around their lives and how it all started with the person he is singing to. However, as the song progresses, we find out that love can be hard and that it takes a lot to keep it going. The line “to get you’ve gotta give” shows that love requires effort and sacrifice. Our worlds collided into blue can be interpreted as the fact that being in a relationship comes with its own set of troubles, and it can turn your life upside down. But despite all this, the singer still wants the person he is singing to. The repetition of the line “I still want you” emphasizes his point that he loves the person and is ready to go through anything to keep the relationship going.
The second verse indicates that as time passed, they went their separate ways, but it was necessary for their growth as individuals. However, the passage of time had not been kind to them, and the good times turned into bad ones. Nevertheless, they were still on a journey, and the singer still wants the person he is singing to. The chorus emphasizes that their love has not faded. The bridge shows the struggle of communication that comes with any relationship. The lines “every day finds us searching for the right words to say, every night we’re still giving our love away” tell us that a relationship takes effort every day, and they are still in it.
Line by Line Meaning
In the beginning there was love around our lives
At the start of our love story, everything was filled with love and happiness.
In the beginning there was you
You were the reason for everything, the center of our love and life.
Then we found out that to get you’ve gotta give
We learned that to truly have and keep love, we must be willing to give of ourselves.
And our worlds collided into blue
As we struggled to find the right balance of giving and receiving, our once bright, happy world turned blue and sad.
But I want you
Despite the ups and downs, I still want and need you in my life.
I still want you
My desire for you is just as strong as it was from the beginning.
As we got stronger we went our separate ways
As we grew as individuals and in our relationship, we needed time apart to continue growing.
That’s what we needed and we craved
Though it was difficult, we knew deep down that taking time apart was necessary for our own personal growth and for our relationship to thrive.
Time has no mercy, when our days went blue to gray
Time moved on, and though we wanted to fix things, our once bright days of love and happiness turned to gray days of sadness and regret.
Still a journey come what may
No matter what happens, our journey together will continue with all its ups and downs.
Every day finds us searching
Every day, we seek the right words and actions to strengthen our relationship.
For the right words to say
We want our words to be meaningful and healing, to build up instead of tear down what we have.
Every night we’re still giving
Each night, we continue to give of ourselves, to love and cherish each other, even in the midst of difficulty.
Our love away
We give our love freely, with no expectation of receiving anything back in return.
In the beginning, there was beauty, there was pain
At the start of our relationship, there was both joy and hardship, but we embraced it all.
In the beginning we were free
We started off unencumbered, with no worries or obligations, free to love each other fully.
Now we’re surrounded by the castles that remained
Now we are surrounded by the remnants of our past, the good and the bad, which have shaped us and built up our love.
These fortress walls are all we see
These walls stand as a testament to our strength, they protect us from harm and hold up the love we've built over time.
I want you
My desire for you never fades, I still want and need you in my life.
Still want you
My love for you remains constant and unwavering, even in difficult times.
Lyrics © Fintage House Publishing
Written by: JUSTIN HAYWARD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind