This year marks the 50th anniversary of Justin Hayward joining the Moody Blues. Over the years, the singer and guitarist has written a number of songs with the group that have become classics. But he’s also enjoyed a successful solo career outside of the band that began in the mid-’70s. His solo work is something that remains a priority.

Spirits of the Western Sky, Hayward's latest solo album, was released in 2013, and he toured extensively in support of the record while also continuing to perform shows with the Moody Blues.

Eagle Rock Entertainment is all set to release All the Way, a compilation that takes a look at Hayward’s solo output and includes one brand new track, “The Wind of Heaven.” You can watch our exclusive premiere of the video for that song above.

"This is the story in a movie that is going into production this year about a veteran who finally returns home from Afghanistan only to find that the life he knew before he left is no longer there,” Hayward says of the song. “He eventually finds himself again through communion with wild horses. When my friend David Minasian told me the synopsis of The Wind of Heaven, and played me the demo of a song he had started work on for the movie, I was totally inspired and eager to collaborate with him. He graciously welcomed me, and together we made a piece of music that is one of the most special and meaningful I have ever been part of.”

As Hayward reveals, he’s quite happy how his collaboration with Minasian turned out. “I’ve never really been successful writing with other people,” he says. “But with David this time and ‘The Wind of Heaven,’ it’s one of the nicest things I’ve ever done. It’s a lovely and interesting story. He wrote some thoughts and handed it off to me to run with it.”

The upcoming 15-track compilation (which is due on Sept. 2) includes a wide variety of material from Hayward’s solo albums, including the original version of his Top 10 hit “Blue Guitar,” recorded with members of 10cc, “Forever Autumn,” from Jeff Wayne’s War of the Worlds, solo live performances and different versions of classic Moody Blues tracks.

In a 2015 conversation with Ultimate Classic Rock, Hayward confirmed he was already thinking about his next solo release. “I have a few things in the can," he admitted. "I’m going to work on a few things as the year goes on. It’s just timing of when I release those or put them up. But at the moment, I’ve got so much work. I’m going to be on the road for more than eight months this year. So it’s just a question of [when] my engineer and I can get together and do that. I have to do that, because basically I’m just a guy who writes songs and I have to present those somehow.”

For the moment, he’ll be back out on the road starting on Sept. 9 for a fresh round of solo tour dates. All The Way will be released digitally on Friday, with a CD release planned for Oct. 14.

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