ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA

I can't get over the difference in sound between this 1973 release and the next one "Eldorado". Much better production and sound quality here with "On The Third Day" and it's just more my style of music as well. This one while still very much tapping into what THE BEATLES did is a pretty good rocking record. "Eldorado" is dominated with orchestration and the sound quality is not good, There's no way I could go more than 3 stars with it. Sure that style would be the key to Jeff Lynne and ELO's success but for my tastes give me that gritty, slicing cello any day and that harder edged record.

Like "Eldorado" there are two songs I recognize, probably from listening to FM classic rock stations. "Showdown" is one I really like but wasn't the biggest fan back in the day. Also "Ma-Ma-Ma Belle" is the other one I know and this rocks pretty hard, no doubt a good live track for these guys once upon a time. I can't believe Marc Bolan is playing guitar on this one along with the next tune "Dreaming Of 4000". Marc has been on some good Fusion albums and speaking of that check out the final 30 seconds of "Oh No Not Susan" with the Jerry Goodman-like violin.

Back in the day when I was 17 years old and finding my way musically I did check these guys out by buying "Out Of The Blue" for the very happy "Mr. Blue Sky". Interesting that the RYM site has the four straight albums beginning with "Eldorado"and ending with "Out Of The Blue" as their highest rated. And add "Time" from 1981. I'll take the "The Third Day" thankyou.

I've mentioned many times that orchestral music just isn't my thing and this album is full of it. I think the first time I heard this band was probably the song "Telephone Line" on the radio and I really liked that one. But they would have many hit songs playing on the radio over the years, I'm sure Jeff Lynne isn't hurting financially. Just read the Bio here. This particular album and "On The Third Day" the one before it get props from some Prog fans but to my ears this is commercial sounding music that is inconsistent overall.

After the opening overture we get the hit "Can't Get It Out Of My Head" and it's a pretty good tune and one I remember from back in the day. I still can't get over how orchestral this album is with that 40 piece orchestra in play. I honestly thought this band would be in Prog Related, so I'm surprised to see them in Crossover although this record by itself leans heavily towards the Symphonic I must admit.

I'm not surprised at the success commercially of this one with the two or three popular tunes and of course being unique with that orchestra. And come on this also brings THE BEATLES to mind at times as well. Jeff was onto something. Just not my thing. 3 stars.

Every Electric Light Orchestra album in the 70's and 80's could stand on its own and face fierce competition in the prog, rock and pop genre. "Discovery" and "Xanadu" may be the most commercial outcome by ELO but it does not diminish their artistic quality and strong songwriting at its core. Lynne was able to come to terms with the latest music development such as disco and produce two decent answers "Last train to London", "Shine a little love" without staying superficial. The bulk of the album is firmly rooted in pop which aged well because of wise production techniques and to my pleasure, also aptly arranged keyboards. Beatles hooks are still on big sale and keep repeating which brings the artistic value a bit down to a typical ELO listener. "The diary of Horace Wimp" is a witty Beatles go 70's BeeGees vocal connection.

This album is not meant to be analysed and reflected upon endlessly, it's supposed to bring you the jovial end of 70's atmosphere with 2 decent ballads ("Need her love"

"Don't bring me down" is an overrated rock'n'roll pastiche that ELO tried to compete with on the next albums ("Hold on tight", "Rock'n'roll is a king")

Recommended to the ELO fans, pop enthusiasts and if you're an old 72'-74' ELO fan, you'd better stay away from it!

"Secret Messages" continues in the way of strong ELO deliveries. While it is not as adventurous and exploring as "Time", Lynne is still in a fine and inspired mood not only to create memorable music but also in an increasingly masterful fashion. Production-wise, this is a top record, way better than his later average trademark attempts with Tom Petty or Paul McCartney's Flaming pie. Material is strong and you can see the extra mile done in the studio be it for the Tandy's wide array of keyboard sound or Bevan's typical 80's drum sound. Songs are mainly upbeat though we have interesting time signature changes such "Loser gone wild" which took me a long time to appreciate. "Danger ahead" has a fantastic catchy rhythm pattern that stuck in my head for years despite it being an average song. And the mandatory rock'n'roll number is one of the better ELO attempts. Lynne's vocal abilities are breathtaking - Lennon's signature is still there but he can easily switch to Orbison-like vocal in the slower numbers and has created his own style since.

Pity that this music has not made it to the stage due to the studio trickery.

'10538 Overture' marks the very beginning of ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA. I cite Wikipedia on the formation of ELO: "In 1968, Roy Wood -- guitarist, vocalist and songwriter of THE MOVE -- had an idea to form a new band that would use violins, cellos, string basses, horns and woodwinds to give their music a classical sound (...). Jeff Lynne, frontman of fellow Birmingham group The Idle Race, was excited by the concept. (...) In January 1970, when Carl Wayne quit the band, Lynne accepted Wood's second invitation to join [The Move]. On 12 July 1970, when Wood added multiple cellos to a Lynne-penned song intended to be a Move B-side, the new concept became a reality and '10538 Overture' became the first E.L.O. song."

The Move was originally supposed to end at that point, but to help finance the new band, one further Move album was recorded and released during the lengthy ELO recordings in 1970-71. Only the remaining Move trio of Wood, Lynne and drummer Bev Bevan played on all songs of E.LO.'s debut album The Electric Light Orchestra that was released in December 1971.

'10538 Overture' is about an escaped prisoner, hence the number in place of a person's name. Both Wood and Lynne sing on it. I find especially the vocals quite terrible here, they remind me of John Lennon on 'I Am the Walrus'. The sound quality is rather muddy really, but for the playing it is sufficient enough. The cellos, French horn and other wind instruments give the arrangement the unique flavour, and I also like the guitars. The song in itself is pretty repetitive, it's definitely the classical intruments, despite not being played the purest possible way, that make '10538 Overture' worthy.

The single's B side track 'First Movement (Jumpin' Biz)' also appears on the debut album, starting its second side. It's an instrumental, with acoustic guitar playing the lead melody and Roy Wood's cellos shaping the soundscape, at times giving associations to the string arrangement on 'Eleanor Rigby'. Some horns are also heard, for a moment. I sympathize an album reviewer comparing this piece to early FOCUS instrumentals such as 'House of the King' or 'Sylvia', although I clearly prefer Focus. Again, the composition itself is not very exciting.

The single peaked at no. 9 in the UK singles chart and visited also the Dutch top 40. My more subjective rating would be a lukewarm three stars, but let's make it four for the historical value. Wood, Lynne and co. indeed "picked up where The Beatles left off", as they had planned.

This is a transitional album for ELO, along with the three previous ones, they made quite a big development. "Face the music" shows brilliant songwriting skills by Lynne and their prevalent typical 70's sound where strings are pushed to a supporting role to the main rock instruments. Classical references are gone to be replaced by Lynne ideas all over the place. I like the general high music standards, good production. The growing absence of progressive rock was inevitable. "Strange magic" and "Evil woman" are unforgettable not overplayed 70's singles. The progressive mind will, however, be please by the majestic dynamic first instrumental track. Classic ELO.

ELO is the group that tried to stand out with classical orchestration, so we dive in, finally we take off with it!

1 Shine A Little Love synth that fuzzes, finally of the kind rocket that takes off... at the time; a sound that reminds me from near and far of the EARTH, WIND & FIRE with this slew of violins that go off in all directions and these choirs worthy of the BEE GEES; good we are far from the prog? Ah always trying to find some somewhere, yes Marc, in short, a thunderous title with a quick little guitar solo; good just for the alien ship of their concerts and the presentation by Daniel WILD 2 Confusion ah this heavy, imposing title, at a time when prog was dying a beautiful death and when you had to ogle here and there to get a little new blood, a real... confusion; these pompous keyboards, this false flute which puts the bucolic imprint, these sounds from behind which give relief, in short, only memories ... anyway 3 Need Her Love .. when I was talking about the ship at their concerts, there you have the arrival in music; a mid tempo, a slow tempo to pick up the bride and drag her into a slow, I need your love you know... a melancholy ballad that will remain linear 4 The Diary Of Horace Wimp with Jeff leading the way on this track Charisma, English prog sound in all its grandeur with string instruments featured; a sampled voice and an air that could shock, personally the violins made my hair stand on end, it's the opposite; good the bells are very artificial but it's rhythmic and you don't get bored, what more could you ask for; a little of the madness of 'Love is all' without knowing which title is the oldest... I catch my breath but go snoop on the clip it was really in the model 'Heavy metal' or the 'Savage planet' 5 Last Train To London go to the second side and the piece that makes my hair stand up there, the flight of violins bristles me too much, we're on 'The cruise s'amuse', OK for TV but here deuce; I want to move on, I persist and... boom the progressive, enjoyable break, which I play almost endlessly... yes I had recorded in a loop... at the time of tape recorders at K7; a little siren, the return of incisive violins and that's how we made a title, when disco could have become prog? then we would be damn well off 6 Midnight Blue ... well I'll tell you a secret: Jeff's head reminds me of a TOTO band I can't help it and this sound off the beaten track, no .. beaten makes me say that this n wasn't just rock but hey you know it since you're there reading; an air with always these cursed violins (again this cursed word ..) and the bucolic serenade goes away after having made you visit a clean universe 7 On The Run and hop a game of pinball; title that unrolls, synth notes with spatial effects, wow, simple but well done; watch out for the synth solo that plays it star more than me, you die! It slows down, yes they break the rhythm then it starts up again and the ship leaves forever... so it's over? 8 Wishing .. no the sound of the reactor comes back to hope for another end, mid tempo, violins, here there were the MOODY BLUES who cleared away without knowing it, there it is ELO who rubs it; a piano solo and hop we're happy, another vocoder and the air that traps you in a fake sticky rhythm, like cotton candy 9 Don't Bring Me Down .... here is a chro just for this title or almost ... everything is there: the sound, the rhythm, the madness, the air, the hard side without doing it, the solo winded guitar, the 'Kellog's' yes, I couldn't find anything better than that since I was a child and loved cornflakes; in short all that for a Bruce I still can't believe it! Well let's get back to this title representing the ultimate sound, the clapping of the hands, the funky sound but heavy enough to think of an ersatz of hard music, awesome I tell you; later it will be disco in a club then so strong that the hard will monopolize it and basta the disco; short ELO as UFO it is clear and obvious!

Before you are shocked by the rating of this review, let me contextualize a bit... this time, I don't want to focus on the technical or the commercial lowlights that ELO proved to enact with this work, I'm going to talk about how I lived with this album since I was a kid.

It's probably one of the few reviews I'll do in this way, but I think it's the best way to do it.

When I was a kid, all my father made me listen to was 80s songs and hits, Queen, Dire Straits, Men At Work. As well as showing his admiration and always remarkable amazement for the symbols of prog, Yes, TAPP (Alan Parsons & Eric Woolfson), Vox Dei, Pink Floyd, Supertramp, and many more bands. I was always curious about a specific band; ELO was my first pure emotional approach to music. As a consequence of several moves, my father lost many records and vinyls throughout his life, today he probably doesn't have even half of his original number of records bought... But, thank God, he wasn't robbed of the record that I still identify with the most. Discovery was the first listen that made me cry, jump, laugh, worry, and various emotions that are hard to explain. Even though this album can't be considered a prog masterpiece by many people, I consider that it IS, and firmly, a masterpiece and my favourite project of Jeff Lynne's incredible band.

The love-filled lyrics, that make you feel so strongly special things for that person that it keeps going round and round in your head ad nauseam, the melodies so flooded in nostalgia and hope with drops of perseverance and adventurous incitement to want to listen to EVERY SINGLE THING that sounds in every song, because every song has thousands of beautiful and perfect details that, together, make every part of this album sound endearing and instantly recognizable to every person who has heard it and felt the lyrics and rhythms as much as I have.

Over the years I have lived all kinds of sensations, feelings, experiences, phrases, talks, laughs, cries, fears, reliefs, surprises, all kinds of situations that generally impact and change one, sometimes completely or in large part generating a strict and notorious turn of margin in our mind, which makes us rethink many things. And through all that I have just mentioned, I have never stopped listening to Discovery over time, because it is a work that accompanies me day and night with its lyrics and its mystical and essential magic for any music lover or music lover (I can relate, haha). I can say, clearly and proudly, that there is no better medicine, talking about music of course, than a song that touches your soul with the situation you are going through, as if it had been composed thinking about you... And it seems that this album reflects so many feelings, that it makes you think that it was made for you! Because ELO knew how to adapt the music to the human heart and walk to the skin-deep touch that embraces our mind and body day by day.

It is definitely my favourite album of all time, and one of the most pro-love, pro-dream projects I have ever heard and admired. There is no greater thrill for me than that of a start-to-finish listen to Discovery, from the shifting, sensual melody of "Shine a Little Love" to the solid, walking rhythm and salsa that pours out "Don't Bring me Down" to close the album.

A beautiful aural and emotional journey through the intrepid and virtuosic routes of one of my favourite bands. Discovery is a masterpiece, by ELO, a master band. Thanks for reading.

"Xanadu was Olivia Newton-John's follow-up to the massive hit Grease and was supposed to establish her as a bankable musical film star. It didn't quite happen that way, thanks to Xanadu's poor box-office showing and dreadful critical reception. There's little to recommend in this film, aside from the fact that it can be entertaining if viewed from a camp perspective." -- The All Movie Guide review

The name 'Xanadu' most likely makes us progheads think of the great Rush song, which was inspired by Samuel Taylor Coleridge's 1816 poem Kubla Khan; Xanadu is the name of the summer capital of Kublai Khan's dynasty. In the American musical fantasy film, Xanadu is a nightclub. I haven't seen the film, but as a 10-yr old kid I couldn't have avoided hearing the No. 1 hit title song multiple times. Coincidentally Electric Light Orchestra was probably the first band whose album [A New World Record, 1976] had made a strong impression on me as a child. I just fancied adding and writing about this single after hearing 'Xanadu' on radio yesterday, played for the memory of the actor and singer Olivia Newton-John who passed away a week ago; personally I don't much care about the song, or Newton-John.

The complete Xanadu soundtrack album -- reviewed by surprisingly many here -- is actually split between her side (songs were written by her long-time producer John Farrar) and ELO's side, the latter including the collaborative title hit. The song is recognizibly early 80's ELO all the way, with the exception of the lead vocals. You could imagine the song being sung by Jeff Lynne in which case it surely would have been a hit nevertheless, if not quite as big as it was with Olivia Newton-John as the star. Extremely catchy and melodic, it has the word HIT stamped all over it. But despite being very accessible to the masses, there is the distinctive orchestral production belonging to ELO and no one else.

The B side song 'Fool Country' (written by Farrars) was not included on the soundtrack album even though it was featured in the film, in the nightclub grand opening segment following the movie title track and before its reprise. It's a short, fast-tempo country rocker.

'Xanadu' was deservedly a big hit, but two stars will do for this single, and I'm addressing both of my stars mainly to Jeff Lynne as a songwriter and producer.

Here is an introduction to ELO that I managed to score on vinyl. The songs are taken from the first 2 albums with the exception of the best track from On the Third Day, that is Showdown. This is an early compilation, the first of a plethora of compilations to follow. As a result its a rather odd curiosity but features perhaps the proggiest selections. 10538 Overture and First Movement are a case in point. The album is a short, sharp prog excursion, and very welcome in my vinyl collection. I definitely recommend a listen for those who are accustomed to the more commercial side of ELO. The selections here are quite the opposite of commercial.