Hard Rock Park Ride is Quite Trippy--and Moody

I'm no senior citizen. (Although if I could appeal to the cold-hearted orb that rules the night, I suppose I might wish I were younger.) But I am a tad chagrined to admit that I'm old enough to have bought the Moody Blues' seminal album, "Days of Future Passed," when it was first issued--on vinyl of course. The groundbreaking concept album (which dates back to 1967, if you must know) traces the cycle of a day and ends with the nearly eight-minute opus, "Nights in White Satin." With its groundbreaking melding of classical and rock music, its evocative imagery, its haunting and plaintive melody, and its iconic station in the rock canon, "Nights" is an inspired choice to be reinterpreted as a theme park dark ride. The Moody Blues' Nights in White Satin- The Trip is one of the featured attractions at the new Hard Rock Park in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The park and its collaborators, the Sally Corporation, have done a masterful job creating an immersive, dream-like soundscape that brings the song to life. With its eye-popping visuals and stunning effects, the ride is near Disney quality--and quite trippy. Read my review of Nights in White Satin- The Trip. And stop trying to figure out how old I am, you cold-hearted orb.

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Photo: The entrance to Hard Rock Park's signature dark ride, Nights in White Satin- The Trip. Arthur Levine, 2008. Licensed to About.com.