Electric Light Orchestra, need some help

[NightWoundsTime]

I've got a stack of ELO LP's sitting here that I'm considering selling since I can't get into them. Somebody name me a couple songs that are decently representative of the sound.

 

[Aman]

"Out of the Blue" is their popular LP to start with. 'Turn to Stone', 'It's Over', 'Sweet Talkin Woman', and 'Believe Me Now' are all popular tunes from the album, and overall, in my opinion, represent their sound.

ELO is a great band, and Roy Wood is a brilliant musician. Don't give up on them yet... but by all means, if you can't get into them after a while, maybe you just don't like their style.

 

[catachresis]

ELO is great and vastly underrated. Nevertheless, if you can't get into the sound at all, no playlist is going to alter that. You could got to Amazon, check the track listing for a best of ELO compilation and replicate that. Alternately, listen to some of their best (and therein most representative) albums from beginning to end: -Eldorado-, -Face the Music-, -New World Record-, and -Out of the Blue-. Early ELO is much more overtly prog rock of the characteristically English post-hippy 'Wizard-y' stripe. Later ELO alternates between ultra-disco bubble-gum pop and cod-prog: - Time- would be the later album to check.

I think Jeff Lynn ought to be credited as one of the greatest Pop composers of the seventies and eighties. He took something of the creativity and infectiousness of The Beatles and made it smoother, more electronic, hookier and gripping -- superlative uber-pop. But it's pop. If you're a hardened rocker, there's nothing that's going to make you put your Stooges cds away.

 

[NightWoundsTime]

Thanks guys, Out of the Blue was just what I was looking for. Eldorado sounded nice but didn't seem like much of a payoff.

 

[Doc Sarvis]

Some ELO trivia: On the LP "Face the Music" the first song is called "Fire on High". At the beginning you hear some jibberish; it's actually backwards speech. Played in reverse, the voice says "The music is reversible but time is not. Turn back! Turn back!" ...Then the LP's edge is reached.

 

[ServinginEcuador]

ELO is one of my favorite groups. Here's some of my favs by them:

Evil Woman
Mr Blue Sky (great soundstage test with the three voices singing Mr Blue Sky, Please tell us why, you had to hide away for soooo long, sooo long. Sweet on a good system!)
Turn to Stone
Hold on Tight (all time favorite)
Strange Magic
Do Ya (second favorite)
Livin' Thing
Can't Get it Out of My Head
Don't Bring Me Down
Calling America


I own the 3-disc greatest hits CD, and it is chock full of great tunes that almost never get air time on the radio.

 

[Mr.PD]

ELO, brings back some great memories.
Out of the Blue, I listened to so many many times. I was sure happy when I found it on CD a little while back.

I don't know which album it's from, but the song Don't Bring Me Down I used to hear a lot. When I lived in a small apartment house the guy in the apartment above me loved that song.

 

[catachresis]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr.PD ELO, brings back some great memories. Out of the Blue, I listened to so many many times. I was sure happy when I found it on CD a little while back. I don't know which album it's from, but the song Don't Bring Me Down I used to hear a lot. When I lived in a small apartment house the guy in the apartment above me loved that song.

"Don't Bring Me Down" is from the Xanadu-era disco-laden Discovery album, which to my mind is very hit-and-miss. That song and "Shine a Little Love" are whizzing slick pop tunes but other tracks are just unbearably cringe-worthy.

 

[catachresis]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NightWoundsTime Thanks guys, Out of the Blue was just what I was looking for. Eldorado sounded nice but didn't seem like much of a payoff.

Doug Martsch openly lifts the sinister guitar chorus of Eldorado's "Loredo Tornado" for his final song on Keep It Like a Secret - "Broken Chairs" (I think that's the one).

ELO got such a bad rep in the 80s that it got hard to find anyone who would admit liking them. But you keep finding tiny homages to them floating up from cool bands. For younger folks who can't imagine what I'm on about, the whole vocoder, cool-pop electronica milieu of Air's Moon Safari is very ELO.

 

[Todd R]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NightWoundsTime I've got a stack of ELO LP's sitting here that I'm considering selling since I can't get into them. Somebody name me a couple songs that are decently representative of the sound.

ELO,
That was the first concert I ever saw

One of my favorite bands growing up. If you decided you don't want the albums, you can send them my way.
TR

 

[soundboy]

Noticed that both JC Penny and Target are currently using ELO tunes in their TV ads?

Twlight has got to be one of the best ELO songs....from the "Time" album.

No one mentioned "Zoom"? It was released a couple of years ago.

 

[Jahn]

Quote:

Originally Posted by soundboy Noticed that both JC Penny and Target are currently using ELO tunes in their TV ads? Twlight has got to be one of the best ELO songs....from the "Time" album. No one mentioned "Zoom"? It was released a couple of years ago.

it doesn't hurt that it was the intro music for Daicon IV and Densha Otoko either, hehe.

 

[Tech2]

Nobody's mentioned my favorites, so I'll chime in.

From out of the Blue, in order, nothing beats:

Standing in the Rain
Big Wheels
Summer and Lightning
Mr. Blue Sky

 

[ls20]

the Delgados did a beautiful cover of Mr Blue Sky that John Peel adores... as do i

 

[PSmith08]

Let us not forget their last hit, so to speak: "So Serious." That, along with most of their other material, has been a personal favorite of mine for a couple years now.