SHOWDOWN / IN OLD ENGLAND TOWN (INSTRUMENTAL)

"Showdown" is a song from Electric Light Orchestra which originally was released as a single in September 1973, and it reached the Numbers 12 and 53 in the U.K. and U.S. charts, respectively. It wasn`t released in the original U.K. version of their "On the Third Day" album , but was released in the U.S . version of that same album. It was later released as part of that album in very re-issue of that album. The B-side, an instrumental version of "In Old England Town" from their "ELO2" album, is a shorter version of this song without vocals on which the melody of the vocals is played in a moog synthesizer, and it includes Roy Wood on bass and cello (as the album version). I think that "Showdown" shows a gradual change from the band from their more Progressive Rock albums between 1971 and 1973 to a more commercial approach. It sounds like a Pre-Disco song with Pop Music influences. This commercial approach became more clearly established from their "Face the Music" album from 1975. At the time of the release of this single , John Lennon was once a guest in an U.S. Radio programme on which the song was being broadcasted. He said that he liked the song very much and he called it "Son of The Beatles". The B-side is more close to their Progressive Rock origins as a band.