# What do we think of ELO, do we like them? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [June 25, 2013, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-think-of-elo-do-we-like-them/661918 "2013-06-25T22:11:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2017, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-think-of-elo-do-we-like-them/661918/141 "2017-09-30T19:22:12Z")
Note to ELO fans: The ELO tribute album _Lynne Me Your Ears_ is currently downloadable free on [this page](http://www.goodmusicguy.com/retirement-party-part-12/) (scroll down to the bottom). ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2017, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-think-of-elo-do-we-like-them/661918/142 "2017-10-03T03:43:02Z")
How to decide: 1. Go to Wiki and download song list for album 2. Go to you tube and listen/watch 3. Decide if you like the song or not 4. Listen to more songs from album 5. Calculate whether buying individual songs you liked is cheaper than buying the whole album 6. Download positive results from 5. or 4. as appropriate. Welcome to the 21st Century! P.S. Yes, I like them. But that doesn’t mean you will. ---
**Author:** ![psiekier](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psiekier/32/116_2.png) [@psiekier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psiekier)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2017, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-think-of-elo-do-we-like-them/661918/143 "2017-10-03T22:13:19Z")
> [@TruCelt](#): > > Calculate whether buying individual songs you liked is cheaper than buying the whole album Wait… why not just buy _Strange Magic_ (_All Over The World: The Very Best of ELO_, the “best of” album available on iTunes, lacks my favourite songs from _Time_, but _Strange Magic_ includes them), and listen to the whole thing? If that doesn’t lift your heart up, there’s no point in further investment… and my plan only has _one_ step! … but [your way](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOCExv3QQP8&list=PLpX5yXmQQvRzF6-y05Nq4iQPPjg5gin_S) might work too, **TruCelt** , even if the VEVO version of “Twilight” _isn’t_ [the one made famous by the ladz at Studio Gainax](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-840keiiFDE). ---
**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2017, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-think-of-elo-do-we-like-them/661918/144 "2017-10-05T00:25:37Z")
I wore out my copy of [ELO’s Greatest Hits](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ELO%27s_Greatest_Hits). Just loved their stuff. It was right in there in High School, spinning heavily on my Sony PS-T22 turntable with a decent Ortofon cartridge. Along with Close To The Edge, The Stranger, Turnstiles, Breakfast In America, and the rest of the beloved vinyl. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2018, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-think-of-elo-do-we-like-them/661918/145 "2018-10-10T14:57:10Z")
Bumped. Just stumbled across this beautiful Jeff Lynne acoustic version of “Telephone Line”: [Telephone Line - Jeff Lynne (Acoustic) - YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRfW5Nahgc4&list=RDF0nOWwiosiw&index=27) ---
**Author:** ![Jumpbass](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jumpbass/32/147_2.png) [@Jumpbass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jumpbass)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2018, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-think-of-elo-do-we-like-them/661918/146 "2018-10-10T15:45:08Z")
Thanks for sharing that! It’s always been one of my favorite ELO tunes. In fact, I think it was what first brought them onto my radar. With Richard Tandy as well! And how about that studio? ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2018, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-think-of-elo-do-we-like-them/661918/147 "2018-10-10T16:53:38Z")
> [@Jumpbass](#): > > With Richard Tandy as well! And how about that studio? I believe that the studio in that clip is actually a room in Jeff’s home studio in suburban Los Angeles, called “Bungalow Palace.” He has the whole house set up for recording, with different acoustics in different rooms. IIRC, the acoustic “Telephone Line” was from (or, at least, produced at the same time) as the 2012 documentary about Jeff, “Mr. Blue Sky,” much of which was recorded at his home. A trailer for the documentary (including a few moments of Jeff and Richard doing “Can’t Get It Out Of My Head”): [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dohr\_F7yvrU](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dohr_F7yvrU) ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2018, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-think-of-elo-do-we-like-them/661918/148 "2018-10-10T17:45:49Z")
**Originally posted by Hyperelastic** _“As for ELO, they should have turned down the FRUITY CRAPLOAD knob on their synthesizer once in a while.”_ This is still one of the funniest things I’ve even seen on these boards. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2018, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-think-of-elo-do-we-like-them/661918/149 "2018-10-10T18:06:36Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > Bumped. > > Just stumbled across this beautiful Jeff Lynne acoustic version of “Telephone Line”: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRfW5Nahgc4&list=RDF0nOWwiosiw&index=27](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRfW5Nahgc4&list=RDF0nOWwiosiw&index=27) I knew instantly who bumped this. 🙂 Thanks for the YouTube link! ---
**Author:** ![Kelby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/a587f6/32.png) [@Kelby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kelby)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2018, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-think-of-elo-do-we-like-them/661918/150 "2018-10-10T18:08:40Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > First thing I think about when I think about ELO. (Actually, the _only_ thing I think of when I think of ELO.) Are you familiar to [the homage to that video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJHRtklMRwc) from the opening credits of the TV series Densha Otoko? Wow, I’ve been listening since Showdown days, and had never before heard “Twilight”. Thank you. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2018, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-think-of-elo-do-we-like-them/661918/151 "2018-10-10T18:19:47Z")
> [@Kelby](#): > > Wow, I’ve been listening since Showdown days, and had never before heard “Twilight”. It’s from _Time_, their 1981 album that marked a move away from their signature string sound, in favor of an emphasis on synthesizers. It was released as a single, but only hit #38 on the U.S. chart. ---
**Author:** ![Kelby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/a587f6/32.png) [@Kelby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kelby)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2018, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-think-of-elo-do-we-like-them/661918/152 "2018-10-10T19:29:26Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > It’s from _Time_, their 1981 album that marked a move away from their signature string sound, in favor of an emphasis on synthesizers. It was released as a single, but only hit #38 on the U.S. chart. Missed that album, too. Senior year in college must have been rougher than I thought. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2018, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-think-of-elo-do-we-like-them/661918/153 "2018-10-10T21:50:14Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > I knew instantly who bumped this. 🙂 > > Thanks for the YouTube link! I aim to please! ---
**Author:** ![psiekier](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psiekier/32/116_2.png) [@psiekier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psiekier)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2018, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-think-of-elo-do-we-like-them/661918/154 "2018-10-11T14:21:20Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > It’s from _Time_, their 1981 album that marked a move away from their signature string sound, in favor of an emphasis on synthesizers. I went to see Jeff Lynne’s ELO in August. I wasn’t surprised that they didn’t perform any songs from _Time_, but except for “When I Was a Boy” (from _Alone in the Universe_) and “Handle With Care” (the Traveling WIlburys song), every little thing they played was a classic ELO hit that pre-dated _Time_. Jeff Lynne knows what side his bread is buttered on. > [@kenobi 65](#): > > It was released as a single, but only hit #38 on the U.S. chart. The B-side was a song I’d never heard before until a few years ago - “[Julie Don’t Live Here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkZrE2uZqhI)”. This song also appears on a later re-release of _Time_ that included other B-sides like “The Bouncer”; a release aimed at getting you to buy another CD even if you already had all their stuff on vinyl or cassette from back then. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2018, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-think-of-elo-do-we-like-them/661918/155 "2018-10-11T14:45:45Z")
> [@](#): > > What do we think of ELO, do we like them? :shrug: To me, they’re the ultimate Generic 70s Band. I don’t change the station when a song of theirs is being played, but none of it is particularly memorable to me. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2018, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-think-of-elo-do-we-like-them/661918/156 "2018-10-11T14:48:51Z")
> [@psiekier](#): > > I went to see Jeff Lynne’s ELO in August. I wasn’t surprised that they didn’t perform any songs from _Time_, but except for “When I Was a Boy” (from _Alone in the Universe_) and “Handle With Care” (the Traveling WIlburys song), every little thing they played was a classic ELO hit that pre-dated _Time_. > > Jeff Lynne knows what side his bread is buttered on. Indeed! I saw them in August, as well (at their Chicago show), and I noted the same thing – they played at least one song from every ELO album up through _Discovery_ (including “All Over the World” from the _Xanadu_ soundtrack), but only the two songs you mention from any later albums. One of the few of their classic songs that they didn’t play was “Strange Magic” – it’s not one of my particular favorites, but after the concert, I heard several fans who were surprised by its absence. My thought on the matter is that they only played a couple of slower songs – “Telephone Line” and “When I Was a Boy” – and I suspect that that was an intentional choice, to keep the energy level up. ---
**Author:** ![Jumpbass](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jumpbass/32/147_2.png) [@Jumpbass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jumpbass)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2018, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-think-of-elo-do-we-like-them/661918/157 "2018-10-11T14:56:26Z")
Waitaminute here. Back up the bus. Jeff Lynne toured an ELO act? Who was in the band? How many original members? Any strings? How did I miss this? ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2018, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-think-of-elo-do-we-like-them/661918/158 "2018-10-11T15:26:00Z")
> [@Jumpbass](#): > > Waitaminute here. Back up the bus. Jeff Lynne toured an ELO act? Who was in the band? How many original members? Any strings? How did I miss this? Yup; he reformed the band a few years ago (2014, IIRC). Until this summer, the only U.S. dates they’d played were in Los Angeles and New York (a couple of shows in each place); otherwise, they’d been playing in England and continental Europe. This summer’s tour only had nine stops in the US (plus a show in Toronto), before they continued the tour in Europe. They’d announced the tour in the fall of last year (and I had bought my tickets the moment they went on sale). It was the first time that they’d really done a U.S. tour since '81 or '82 – there had been a tour planned in 2001, in support of the _Zoom_ album, but it was cancelled due to low ticket sales. Jeff is the only remaining member from the old band who’s currently with the group. Jeff and drummer Bev Bevan had a falling out 30 years ago – after the band had originally broken up in '86, Bevan continued to tour and record as “ELO Part II,” without Jeff’s blessing or approval, and the two of them apparently haven’t spoken with each other in decades. Lynne and Bevan had been co-owners of the ELO name, but Jeff bought out Bev’s share of the name around 20 years ago. Jeff and keyboardist Richard Tandy are still good friends, and have worked together regularly (as the video which Elendil’s Heir posted yesterday illustrates). Richard was in some of the first concerts that the re-formed ELO did, a few years ago, but (IIRC) he was a last-minute cancellation for the band’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction in 2017, and I don’t think that he’s appeared with them since – while little has been said about it, I suspect that he has some health issues going on. Of the other “classic” band members, bassist Kelly Grocutt died of a heart attack in 2009. Violinist Mik Kaminski is a member of The Orchestra (a band which evolved out of Bevan’s ELO Part II, and which still tours, mostly playing ELO covers). Cellist Hugh McDowell played with ELO Part II for a time; otherwise, both he and cellist Melvyn Gale have had no connection with the band since the '80s. The touring band is huge – Jeff has two additional guitarists with him (one of whom also serves as the band director), a bassist, two keyboardists, a drummer, two backup singers, and three string players (two cellists and a violinist). It should be noted that the few studio recordings that ELO has done in the past 20 years have essentially been Jeff playing most (if not all) of the instruments himself. ---
**Author:** ![Jumpbass](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jumpbass/32/147_2.png) [@Jumpbass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jumpbass)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2018, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-think-of-elo-do-we-like-them/661918/159 "2018-10-11T22:39:29Z")
Thanks, I knew about how most of the original members had left the fold, I was hoping some came back. None did. Oh, well. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2018, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-think-of-elo-do-we-like-them/661918/160 "2018-10-25T15:45:07Z")
My thanks to **kenobi 65** , who clued me into ELO’s upcoming 2019 North American tour. I hope to see them: [https://jefflynneselo.com/jeff-lynnes-elo-announces-2019-north-american-summer-tour/](https://jefflynneselo.com/jeff-lynnes-elo-announces-2019-north-american-summer-tour/) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-think-of-elo-do-we-like-them/661918.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-we-think-of-elo-do-we-like-them/661918.md?page=9)