Electric Light Orchestra - Pop symphonies on a flying saucer

I – The origins

A brummie with an odd accent who scraped a living in unlikely rock bands (The Rockin' Hellcats, The Andicaps, The Idle Race, The Nightriders, to whom the musician would later dedicate a song). This is young Jeff Lynne, born in Birmingham in 1947.

A guitarist still torn between Spanish-tinged acoustic playing and George Harrison-style electric guitar, he soon crosses paths with the ambitions of cross-genre pop genius Roy Wood, first joining the Move project and then helping create the Electric Light Orchestra.

Harvest is a young label that gathered the best of English music of those years – not just Pink Floyd and Deep Purple, but also Quatermass, Third Ear Band, Tea & Symphony, Kevin Ayers, Roy Harper and the Edgar Broughton Band.

The restless Roy Wood finds in Malcolm Jones a patron for a project he'd had in mind for a while, ever since Tony Visconti had reworked some of his songs with orchestral parts.

The Move's last album, Message From The Country, had been released in October 1971. The cover, drawn by Roy Wood himself from an idea by Jeff Lynne, depicted the three musicians (the third being Bev Bevan) as psychedelic comic-book characters. It was an excellent album that renewed the Beatles' pop and psychedelic visions with original orchestral touches, marrying the avant-garde with the theatrical language of vaudeville.

Carl Wayne's departure from the Move convinces Roy Wood that it's time for new plans, and he finds in Jeff Lynne the perfect accomplice: it's no coincidence that the aforementioned "Message From The Country" sounds like an early preview of the first Electric Light Orchestra's sound.

While working on the Move's final chapter, Roy Wood, Jeff Lynne and Bev Bevan bring in Bill Hunt (french horn) and Steve Woolam (violin) to flesh out their first ideas for an electric orchestra.

The album Electric Light Orchestra was released in December 1971 and was heavily influenced by Roy's obsession with a Chinese violin bought for a few pounds, from which the musician drew wild riffs inspired by Jimi Hendrix, which would translate into the first heavy-metal-orchestral single in history, "10538 Overture" (1053 was the serial number of the desk on which Jeff wrote the song). The track, despite reaching number nine on the singles chart, couldn't push the album above number 32 on the British album charts.

The explosive mix of Beatles, glam, hard rock and orchestral temptations earned plenty of praise from English critics. The album's almost gloomy, obsessive tone, softened by rich melodies, remains one of the finest examples of symphonic rock ever recorded. Where even Deep Purple seemed to fail, ELO moved effortlessly: the strings were a sharp, incisive instrument, nothing like the classical leanings of the Moody Blues and Procol Harum.

The album also shows a dual soul – the instrumental excursions of "Battle Of Marston Moor (July 2nd, 1644)" are bold and innovative, while "Nellie Takes Her Bow" foreshadows Jeff Lynne's songwriting credentials, closer to the orchestral indulgence of Elton John's "Madman Across The Water".

Where the two souls align, namely on "Mr. Radio", we get the finest example of symphonic pop the Beatles never made. But in truth not everything runs smoothly: the apotheosis of "10538 Overture" enchants and seduces just like the Fab Four's "I Am The Walrus", but Roy Wood's whims often clash with the harmonic and melodic structures, producing jarring effects. If "Look At Me Now" fails to repeat the symphonic-pop miracle, it's because of Roy's excessive tinkering with the song's score, the same tendency that doesn't stop the instrumental "1st Movement (Jumping Biz)" from slipping into kitsch.

Jeff Lynne counters with an equally out-of-step instrumental, "Manhattan Rumble (49th Street Massacre)", yet it stays pleasantly graceful and hints at his true pop ambitions: the harmonies of "Queen Of The Hours" foreshadow "Mr. Kingdom" (Eldorado), and the magical flow of Roy's excellent ballad "Whisper In The Night" would become the blueprint for future gems like "Shangri-La" (from A New World Record).

The presence of at least three little gems (“10538 Overture”, “Mr. Radio” and “Nellie Takes Her Bow”) secures the album's status as a minor classic. The crossover between rock and symphonic music would never again be this inspired; pop would soon force its way into the sound, relegating the debut to an odd critical limbo.

In America the album would be released as No Answer due to a telephone misunderstanding: when the American record label asked for the album's title, the phrase “no answer” ended up becoming the title of the US edition.

Everything that makes the debut so charming, however, gradually curdles: the naive fragility turns into sloppiness, the symphonic ambitions seem to overstep good taste, and internal tensions split the fanbase. A disastrous Italian tour and the lack of shared direction finally drove Roy Wood away from the project; he would be replaced by Mike Albuquerque and Richard Tandy, going on to form Wizzard (bringing along Bill Hunt and Hugh McDowell, the latter formerly of the London Symphony Orchestra), a band whose sound would channel his glam tastes - kept in check within ELO - laced with eccentric jazz and experimental touches.

Jeff Lynne takes the reins, steering the group toward a more mature sound, focusing on longer songs and landing a hit with a cover of Chuck Berry's “Roll Over Beethoven”. After reaching sixth place on the UK singles chart, it also makes an impression in America, hitting a very respectable No. 42.

Despite its success, ELO 2 strays into progressive rock without truly having the substance for it: the compositions sprawl without atmosphere or charm, and Jeff has yet to rein in his ego, mistaking pretentiousness for creativity.

The few surviving Roy Wood contributions (absent from the sleeve credits) that made it past Jeff's rewrites - namely “In Old England Town (Boogie #2)” and “From The Sun To The World (Boogie #1)” - echo the debut, while the sharp pop-rock-symphonic take on “Roll Over Beethoven” convinces Jeff Lynne to focus on his role as composer going forward.

Legend has it that Paul McCartney was finishing off “Live And Let Die” in the studio next door while the band recorded their Chuck Berry cover, and to this day Jeff hasn't figured out what that smile Paul gave him upon hearing it actually meant. Jeff and co.'s prog-rock doesn't have what it takes to last - the lack of strong soloists, the less-than-virtuosic songwriting and the banalities that crop up here and there (the ethnic flirtations of “From The Sun To The World (Boogie #1)”, the predictable intro to “Roll Over Beethoven”) are a tough hurdle to clear. Fortunately, the skill of the string section and Jeff Lynne's devotion to melody are starting to take over, as the delightful “Momma” proves.

A few aesthetic elements of the ELO 2 project shouldn't be overlooked, as they betray a dip in inspiration: from the increasingly naive and muddled lyrics to the thoroughly bland cover art, which pales next to the gorgeous Hipgnosis lightbulb image that graced the debut. The band's determination to engage with classical music, moreover, throws up too many problems for a structural analysis of the record to hold together. Jeff Lynne's obsession with symphonic music is, in truth, the product of a generational clash: his father Phil, a serious connoisseur of the form, keeps accusing Jeff of lacking any harmonic genius.

Preceded by the single “Showdown”, the third chapter, On The Third Day, arrives. Although critics kept their distance from the record, citing a supposed lack of ambition, what the album actually delivers is one of the band's most compelling runs of beat and orchestral pop.

Greater attention to detail pushes Jeff toward a leaner style, shedding those experimental temptations that had weighed down the inconsistency of some of the earlier compositions: the fog of arrangements that kept ELO 2 from truly taking flight has lifted, though not entirely.

The violin section strikes a perfect balance between classicism and Beatles-esque pop, and Jeff Lynne's Lennon-inspired phase opens up on this new album, which marries lightness and complexity through excellent songs and mature sonics.

Side one is flawless: the admittedly baroque atmospheres of “Ocean Breakup” and “Ocean Breakup Reprise” frame a run of remarkable songs. The rhythm section tightens up, hinting at future timbral developments, the violin parts are superb, and Lynne's vocals, however indistinct (good luck making out a single word of the excellent “Bluebird Is Dead”), are brimming with pathos.

On The Third Day fails to make much of a dent on the charts, partly because “Showdown” was left off the original vinyl pressing; the track is, admittedly, quite different from the rest of the record, but its inclusion on later reissues would help audiences rediscover a hugely underrated album.

The pop suite formula isn't quite fully realized yet - the instrumental flights of fancy are too virtuosic for the drowsy American public, and too highbrow for the snobbier corners of the English rock scene. A few missteps, like “Dreaming Of 4000” and the classical-music quotations (“In The Hall Of The Mountain King”), betray a slight dip in inspiration in the second half.

On The Third Day is nonetheless the album that splits their audience in two: in England, fans would only warm to the singles while ignoring the album itself - indeed, “Showdown” and the punchy rock 'n' roll of “Ma-Ma-Ma Belle” (featuring Marc Bolan on guitar) would chart without much further impact - while in America both the album and the single (“Showdown”) would peak around the No. 50 mark. Meanwhile, the violin section expands with the addition of Hugh McDowell, who was mistakenly credited on the cover of the album's reissue (the one featuring “Showdown”).

Hugh, to be fair, joins Electric Light Orchestra just before the American tour. It's this long trek across the promised land that will convince Lynne and co. to pay closer attention to the US audience. Mik Kaminski also joins the group during the album's recording sessions, replacing Wilf Gibson – worth recalling from those years are the first, still-unreleased recordings with Del Shannon.

The fires of progressive are nonetheless dying out back in the motherland Albion: hard rock is knocking at history's door, while the first cries of punk are starting to emerge. The calmer, more conservative American public is far more receptive to the classical-tinged pop that haunts Lynne's dreams, while back home Beatles clones are seen as inappropriate.

Though overlooked by many band historians, The Night The Light Went Out In Long Beach is the only real testimony to the band's decent live performances, since in the future they would resort to more than one trick to mask their shortcomings. It's no coincidence that the album, released in a limited edition, quickly vanished from shops. Jeff himself seems embarrassed by it, despite a vigorous version of "Daybreaker" and an entertaining take on the Beatles' "Day Tripper," while "Showdown" and "Roll Over Beethoven" irretrievably lose their shine.

Electric Light Orchestra would later sue their record label over the poor quality of the recordings: the strings seem to be missing, the sound is muffled, and by the time it emerged that the master used had been catalogued as "unusable," it was already too late. Ten years later, Sony's reissue would restore some elements, but suspicions of post-production tampering, an unappealing cover and the weak quality of the performance would lead the band to simply ignore the album's existence from then on.

II – Success

Driven by the power of dreams and their ancestral meaning, Jeff Lynne and co. embark on their most ambitious project yet – namely Eldorado (A Symphony By ELO). The central figure of this sweeping rock opera is Dreamer, and the presence of a genuine thirty-piece orchestra conducted by new recruit Louis Clark unlocks the group's most lyrical side, through an allegorical, romantic language that hovers pleasantly between fantasy and innocence.

A cover borrowed from the fairy-tale world of the Wizard of Oz (created by Ozzy Osbourne's future wife, Sharon), bolder songwriting, meticulous production care, cryptic messages that would immediately spark accusations of satanism, and the presence of a genuine hit would all propel Eldorado toward colossal success, selling five million copies and earning gold status in the US.

The intense, original interplay of violins gives way to the more relaxed mood of the orchestra; the frantic harmonic twists soften into softer, gentler songwriting, while the naive touches typical of all symphonic rock alternate with enchanting moments that bring to life the idea of dreaming as the only cure for life's anxieties.

Electric Light Orchestra don't always manage to avoid certain clichés typical of the fusion between pop and symphonic music – Jeff and co. are well aware of how much the use of an orchestra dilutes their ideas, as the leader chases a more classical, more caressing sound, and fortunately Eldorado, taken as a whole, works.

At times the orchestral excess swamps the drums and bass, but a clever play of colors and two gems like "Laredo Tornado" and "Nobody's Child" file away the best prog-tinged pop temptations. The thoroughly American charm of "Can't Get It Out Of My Head" betrays a certain admiration for Klaatu and for the lush ballads typical of musicals, a perfect marriage that turns it into a classic; its dreamy, liberating lyrics captivate the imagination of the US audience, and the single's No. 9 placing on the American charts crowns the record and pushes the album to No. 16.

In England the audience remains skeptical, criticizing the ambitious tone of Eldorado, in particular that mix of grandeur and pop which instead has the band's fans hailing it as a masterpiece. It isn't a true concept album, even though dreaming remains the common thread running through the lyrics, with Jeff Lynne clearly airing his own musical passions. He pays tribute to Lennon on the excellent "Laredo Tornado" with compelling lyricism, also nods to his friend Roy Wood on "Mister Kingdom," before returning to the rock 'n' roll of Chuck Berry on the less convincing "Illusions In G Major" (a clumsy copy of the Moody Blues' "I'm Just A Singer In A Rock 'n' Roll Band") and chasing after Bob Dylan on the energetic "Boy Blue."

But the album's true masterpiece is "Nobody's Child," in which blues and jazz settle into incisive harmonic lines welcoming horns, strings and voices in a hypnotic crescendo of rare beauty. Dreaming ("Can't Get It Out Of My Head"), the end of war and the story of a veteran ("Boy Blue"), the desire for freedom ("Laredo Tornado"), the allure of wealth ("Mister Kingdom") and of seduction (the painted lady of "Nobody's Child") are all themes very close to America's heart in those years, and the record's comforting sonic backdrop guarantees the album incredible success.

The accusations of satanism wouldn't dent the band's image, since the supposed hidden messages ("He is the nasty one" – "Christ you're infernal" – "It is said we're dead men" – "Everyone who has the mark will live") would never prove genuine, and Lynne wouldn't stop joking about it on later records, poking fun at it on the following album Face The Music and, years later, naming an album Secret Messages outright.

Meanwhile, internal tensions turn particularly fierce, with Mike De Albuquerque leaving the group during the recording of Eldorado and forcing Jeff to play bass himself, while Mike Edwards follows suit shortly after (he would die in 2010 in an accident, crushed by a giant hay bale in the English county of Devon), opening the door to two new musicians, namely Melvyn Gale and Kelly Groucutt, violinist and bassist respectively in one of the most stable and successful line-ups of Electric Light Orchestra.

The band also opens a few shows on the Deep Purple tour, who, after hearing Jeff's complaints about the countless difficulties of recording Eldorado, recommend the group try Musicland Studios in Munich (where the band would record their material until 1981).

Imposing orchestral openings and an irresistible riff introduce "Fire On High," kicking off the first true masterpiece by Electric Light Orchestra, Face The Music, where all their Beatles-esque influences take shape through elegant, never excessive arrangements.

The more direct, less pretentious sound betrays the expectations of the more prog-oriented fans, but the songs can only seem weak to those who confuse the clothing with the lyrical body. The album's title is itself a challenge, and facing the critics (Face The Music, precisely) is Jeff Lynne's first order of business: amid a Handel quotation and a masterful progression of acoustic guitars, violins and drums, he answers accusations of satanism with a backwards-recorded line that reads: "the music is reversible but time is not, turn back, turn back."

The two rock-pop forays "Nightrider" (a nod to Lynne's old band) and "Poker" are every bit as good as Jeff and co.'s earlier dalliances with rock 'n' roll, thanks to the irony that finally comes through behind the excellent orchestrations. A curious link joins "Nightrider" to "Evil Woman": the high notes of the violins in the former return in more subdued tones in the latter's score, which becomes the band's first big hit on the American charts (reaching number ten). The track is a funky-soul number that anticipates the disco leanings of Discovery, with an elegance recalling Earth, Wind & Fire and Boz Scaggs.

The perfect fusion of pop and symphonic music is Face The Music's winning weapon, and it also goes down well in Britain, where every single lands on the charts (for the record, "Strange Magic" at number thirty-eight and "Evil Woman" at number ten).

The three ballads are excellent. Behind the sinuous melody of "Waterfall" lie precious orchestral alchemies, the guitars languish and the voices lull without ever losing their spark. The delicacy of "Strange Magic" is exemplary, with guitars that sound like a Hawaiian lap steel, vocal parts that dissolve, and traces of psychedelic folk that would come to mark Electric Light Orchestra's sound. But it's "One Summer Dream" that confirms the band's skill at writing unforgettable melodies and letting them float atop lush orchestral arrangements without ever sinking: nostalgia and melancholy take over, evoking the poetry of John Lennon and the grace of Harry Nilsson.

The only weak spot in the tracklist, "Down Home Town," doesn't dent the splendid success of an album that exceeds even the rosiest sales projections, reaching a remarkable number eight in America. The record would also earn a curious tribute-nod from Todd Rundgren, who in 1980 would title a collection of fake Beatles covers "Deface The Music."

Nonstop touring follows for the band, who win over an increasingly broad audience and unveil the flying saucer that becomes the group's trademark onstage: a hot-air balloon and a sophisticated use of laser beams set just the right mood, despite one curious mishap — in Los Angeles, many unsuspecting residents believe they've spotted a UFO and flood the police and fire department switchboards asking for help.

Electric Light Orchestra are by now a flawless war machine: the platinum success of Face The Music spurs Jeff Lynne's creativity, and he trims back part of the rhythm section to give the sound a more easy, flowing feel.

The Fab Four loom ever closer, to the point that George Harrison would go on to declare: "If the Beatles had carried on, their music today would be Electric Light Orchestra."

The secret of songwriting now rests firmly in Jeff Lynne's hands, and he no longer misses a beat.

A New World Record is precisely the Fab Four album that never was, a record that stamps the group's sound with its own identity and shifts away from symphonic influences in favor of a more pop sound. For the cover, the band enlists John Kosh, one of Britain's leading designers, famous for the gorgeous artwork of the Eagles' "Hotel California" and for countless other covers for the Beatles, Linda Ronstadt, Jimmy Buffett, Randy Newman, Bob Seger, Rod Stewart, James Taylor, 10,000 Maniacs, T. Rex, The Who and many others. The flying saucer created by the artist would go on to become one of the most recognizable logos of any rock band. The emblem also becomes the set design for the group's future tours.

Recorded between London and Munich, conceived almost entirely on an old upright piano, A New World Record comes close to perfection: the melodies are majestic, extraordinary and irresistible. It falls to "Livin' Thing" to pave the way for the album's ultimate chart conquest, with horns, falsetto vocals and Caribbean rhythms gliding over constant harmonic shifts, made even more infectious by the violin riffs and guitar breaks. It's impossible to resist the chorus of "It's a Livin' Thing," a cry that many will read as an ode to life rather than a simple love song (and which in Italy would be reworked by Anna Oxa as "Questa è vita," the B-side of the hit single "Un'emozione da poco").

Reaching number four on the British charts and thirteen in America (with two different b-sides), the single anticipates by a month the album's triumph on the charts. With a number six in the States and a surprising number five in the homeland of the punk revolution, Electric Light Orchestra ride to success the kind of harmonic and sonic perfection that, at that very moment, represents public enemy number one for the new generations.

While in England the chart assault is entrusted to the light rock 'n' roll of "Rockaria!" (a fine number nine), in America the band releases the old Move classic "Do Ya" as a single (reaching number 34); the latter remains one of the greatest railroad pop songs of all time, a track Todd Rundgren would have loved to have written himself.

A New World Record is an album steeped in fantasy tones: the spaceship that lands on the opening notes of "Tightrope" brings with it furious violins, voices brimming with joy, and rhythms and bass lines that are almost soul, making for one of Lynne's most successful and original pop songs, complete with a rhythmic-harmonic progression that is a genuine trademark.

There's no room for mediocrity here: "Telephone Line" obliterates every doubt, and no pop song could match it in that fraught year of 1976. Its chart success (No. 8 in the UK, No. 7 in the US) underlines its status as a stand-out track, winning over even the band's detractors with its contagious refrain, steeped in beat and progressive flourishes, and its deliciously imperfect-perfect stride. The irresistible rhythmic and orchestral delight of "So Fine" and the grace of "Above The Clouds" introduce moods and textures that Lynne would later celebrate with even greater personality on the double LP Out Of The Blue.

It falls to two ballads to close out the album's two sides: "Mission (A World Record)", a cosmic-pop piece rich with a delicate, seductive flavour that wraps around blues and soul without disturbing them, and the evocative "Shangri-La", which pays homage to the best of the Beatles ("my Shangri-La has gone away, faded like the Beatles on Hey Jude") and to George Harrison.

On A New World Record, melancholy becomes art through a series of harmonic constructions free of any hesitation; the darkness that had undermined the dreams of Eldorado has vanished, and the female voice caressing the orchestral finale restores a sense of optimism and joie de vivre.

After some failed sessions with Elton John yielded two demos that were never developed or released ("The Loop" and "Fireball"), Jeff turned to producing other artists, quietly arranging some tracks for Anita Garbo and gifting Helen Reddy a lovely ballad ("Poor Little Fool"), while spending the summer of 1977 in the studio recording the new album.

Imposing, majestic and ambitious, Out Of The Blue successfully embraces every stereotype of dinosaur-rock; the towering stage sets of the tour would make Pink Floyd blush, the aesthetic eccentricities expand the band's clownish look, and a string of hit singles establishes Electric Light Orchestra as one of the finest pop-rock outfits of all time.

Critics had by now stopped accusing ELO of being mere clones of the Liverpool lads — the happy inspiration behind "I'm the Walrus" and "A Day In The Life", entrusting pop's grand gestures to an orchestra, had been diluted in Lynne's skilled hands without losing any of its spark. All that was missing was an ambitious double album to complete the circle.

Inspiration came to Jeff's aid while he was staying in Switzerland, and a forty-piece orchestra joined the band in Germany to bring their latest grand dream to life. The release of the double LP was accompanied by a massive promotional push, and the build-it-yourself flying saucer included with the first pressing would become a cult object among fans the world over.

But the real stroke of genius behind Out Of The Blue is its cohesive, unified sound, which never erases the finer nuances of the arrangements while still guaranteeing an engaging listen on any format (it would be one of the last albums also released on Stereo-8) and excellent radio playback. There's no doubt the spectre of tedium lurks just around the corner — everything was becoming almost too perfect to last — and Out Of The Blue would prove to be something close to a swan song: Lynne hones in on some of his most memorable songs, making this the group's most quintessential record.

A run of classics drives the double album, which sets aside the more dreamlike, fairy-tale themes to focus instead on the struggles of a relationship. The sweeping vocal harmonies of "Turn To Stone", the excellent piano arrangement of "It's Over", the original blend of mariachi, classical and pop sounds on "Across The Border", and the superb "Sweet Talkin' Woman" are just the album's calling card. A first side that leaves no room for doubt, especially thanks to the flawless vocal harmonies that duet over a buoyant rhythm with harsher, more robotic tones, making the aforementioned "Sweet Talkin' Woman" one of the most brilliant examples of pop songwriting.

Without losing any emotional tension, the second side flows with a lighter touch, allowing itself a moment of delightful romance with "Steppin' Out" and landing another gem of pop 'n' roll eccentricity with "Jungle", an exuberant, tongue-in-cheek track that plays with jungle rhythms, anticipating the frenzy of hip-hop.

The suite "Concerto For A Rainy Day", which takes up the third side of the double album, is the true zenith of the band's career: the vocal and orchestral arrangements are flawless, lending magic to each of the suite's four parts. From the rain of the brooding "Standin' In The Rain" to the sunlit finale of "Mr. Blue Sky", it's the band's finest concentration of ambition and style on display.

Free of the sprawl and stylistic hesitation of Eldorado, the suite combines acoustic textures and synthesizers with brilliant choral arrangements and an Oscar-worthy pop song. "Mr. Blue Sky" deserves a section all its own — its cutting guitar riff, its driving beat, and the devilishly clever sequence of harmonic chords carried by the vocal line are Lynne's creative triumph, one that would earn unexpected praise from one of America's most esteemed songwriters, Randy Newman, who on his album "Born Again" dedicated a song to the group ("The Story Of A Rock 'n' Roll Band") that, in his usual mocking style, references their hits.

"Sweet Is The Night" seems to temper the enthusiasm, opening the album's final side, on which Richard Tandy lets the synths drift and injects the orchestra with electronic jolts, even scoring a small personal triumph with the instrumental "The Whale". His creations would draw some of the fiercest and most unfair criticism of the era, but the final one-two punch of the blues-inflected Gershwin cover "Birmingham Blues" and the operatic intrusion of "Wild West Hero" silences any debate about the band's state of health.

Out Of The Blue cements Electric Light Orchestra's place in history with five charting singles: "Turn To Stone" (No. 18 UK, No. 13 US), "Mr. Blue Sky" (No. 6 UK, No. 35 US), "Sweet Talkin' Woman" (No. 6 UK, No. 17 US), "Wild West Hero" (No. 6 UK) and "It's Over" (No. 75 US). The album reaches No. 4 on the best-selling album charts in both America and the UK.

Success, however, makes life together increasingly difficult, and the decision to cut the string section proves to be the first step toward decline: only Mik Kaminski stays in touch with the band for concerts and videos, meanwhile forming a disastrous band called Violinsky.

From the Beatles to the Bee Gees, the leap for Electric Light Orchestra is a short one: with the new album Discovery, the English group embraces the disco temptations of the era, which brought so much fortune to the Gibb brothers. On "Don't Bring Me Down", Lynne discovers the endless possibilities of sampling – reworking the rhythm section of "On The Run", the artist does without an orchestra for the first time, and the track becomes the album's biggest hit (No. 3 in the UK, No. 4 in the US).

The number-one spot on the UK album charts and the resounding success across Europe underpin the band's evolution. The singles "Shine A Little Love" (No. 6 UK, No. 8 US), "The Diary Of Horace Wimp" (No. 6 UK), "Don't Bring Me Down" (No. 3 UK, No. 4 US), "Confusion" (No. 37 US) and "Last Train To London" (No. 8 UK, No. 39 US) seem to verge on self-parody, but Lynne's brilliant touch steers everything towards a sparkling rereading full of irony. And it's precisely those sticky, irresistible hit-single refrains that manage to offset a slight lack of inspiration. It isn't the disco turn that grates – quite the opposite: "Last Train To London" is the album's most delightful melody, "Confusion" brushes against kitsch with frivolous lightness and passion, while the remarkable "Need Your Love" and "The Diary Of Horace Wimp" confirm the band is in rude health.

The discovery – the Discovery, indeed – of disco music brings new sounds into the world of Electric Light Orchestra, but at times Jeff's voice slips into a falsetto that can grate; technology flattens some harmonic choices that flirt with funk without its verve on "On The Run", and slide into the languid on the poor "Wishing".

Taken as a whole, the album works and cements the band's fame, which they then cash in on first with a Greatest Hits and, right after, with the soundtrack to the ill-fated film Xanadu, both of which top the charts.

Now devoid of any artistic ambition, the soundtrack's songs confirm the slide towards a Bee Gees sound that also winks at the style of ABBA.

Unfortunately, the number-one chart position coincides with the band's worst performances ever: "I'm Alive", "All Over The World" and Olivia Newton-John's tedious version of "Xanadu" (later re-recorded by Jeff Lynne for the 2000 box set Flashback with far better results) are a pale remake of the disco temptations of Discovery, and its exclusion from the band's discography when putting together the Classic Album Collection box set is a real godsend for listeners; forgetting even the little good that seems to be there is the best antidote to the album's worrying blandness, especially given the irritating John Farrar songs that fill the record's other side.

Spurred on by the creativity of new wave and 80s electronic pop, Jeff plans a new double album, but the record label rejects the proposal over its excessive costs. The lineup for the new album, Time, is cut down to just four members – Jeff Lynne, Bev Bevan, Richard Tandy and Kelly Groucutt – who once again find themselves at Musicland Studios in Munich to craft one of the finest chapters of their career. The band takes on a new sonic chimera, electronics, unsettling fans with a decisive turn towards synth-pop and dropping the cello section from live shows, replaced by two keyboardists (the faithful Mik Kaminski and Lou Clark), a second electronic drummer (Pete King) and a second guitarist (Dave Morgan), who is also handed the vocoder.

Time is a concept album about the future of robots. On stage, not without a fair share of technical problems and mishaps, they even use an R2-D2 robot that cost a whopping 5,000 pounds; the four-strong keyboard section does away with the use of backing tapes, while the spaceship that had featured in previous shows is shelved. Surprising and packed with great songs, the album marks the shift from Urania-style science fiction to a futuristic brand of pop. The synth orchestra Jeff puts on display for Time is full of tasteful irony, and the author's self-control guarantees a flawless result.

Electric Light Orchestra's transformation into a quasi-new-wave band is so convincing that it becomes a blueprint for other musicians, both contemporary (Steve Winwood in his pop turn on "Talking Back To The Night") and still to come (Flaming Lips, Grandaddy, Apples In Stereo, Collective Soul, Red Hot Chili Peppers). The lead single "Hold On Tight", reaching No. 4 in England and No. 10 in the States, drives the album to a well-deserved peak on the charts back home.

Electric Light Orchestra recapture all the post-Beatles pop verve with the rousing "Twilight" (No. 30 UK, No. 33 US), pay tribute to Freddie Mercury on the piano ballad "Ticket To The Moon" (No. 34 UK), and showcase an impressive stylistic range. "The Way Life's Meant To Be", the only track to bring back the guitars, is a folk-pop number read through the lens of Nick Lowe, the lively "From The End Of The World" pokes fun at rockabilly's renewed vogue, while "Here Is The News" anticipates certain 90s pop elements.

But the real gems of the album, besides the aforementioned "Twilight", are the exhilarating and fun "Yours Truly, 2095", the melancholy "21st Century Man", the sly reggae of "The Lights Go Down" and "Rain Is Falling", which boasts the one genuinely interesting lyric amid a sea of banalities that represent the record's only real flaw. Even though a double album might have risked making the project less compelling, it's worth noting the generous amount of unreleased material that would later surface on various b-sides and in the Afterglow box set, proof that Lynne was in a full state of creative grace.

While "The Bouncer" was too bizarre for the project, it's harder to understand the exclusion of "When Time Stood Still", which boasts one of the most romantic refrains since the days of Eldorado, and another b-side from the period, "Julie Don't Live Here", which ranks among the band's most retro creations, with hints of Beach Boys and Del Shannon.

The Time tour remains one of the most fascinating, thanks to the heartfelt and precious tribute Lynne and co. pay to John Lennon with a medley that also includes Beatles songs – namely "Nowhere Man", "Across The Universe" and a full version of "A Day In The Life".

III – The Slow Decline

Still fixated on the idea of the concept album, Jeff Lynne plans another double record: the title, Secret Messages, responds to yet another accusation that the band had hidden strange satanic messages in the previous Time, but the devil is lurking round the corner for Electric Light Orchestra. Despite the advent of the compact disc, the eighteen songs are trimmed down to eleven, and success seems to be deserting the band. Three singles – "Rock 'n' Roll Is King" (No. 13 UK, No. 19 US), "Secret Messages" (No. 4 UK, No. 36 US) and "Four Little Diamonds" (No. 86 US) – aren't enough to secure the album's place in history.

There's a sense of incompleteness that lingers throughout, taking away some of the charm from an otherwise solid and well-balanced work. The sound is slightly out of focus (blame the new studios in Holland), but there are flashes of brilliance; starting with the original and innovative "Losers Gone Wild", built from layered sonic strata that explode into an almost glam refrain, continuing with the lively "Four Little Diamonds" (which, together with the unreleased "Beatles Forever", was meant to form a triumphant tribute to the Fab Four), and closing with the title track "Secret Messages", which for a moment evokes the full grandeur of their vision of pop music.

The ballads "Take Me On And On", "Stranger" and "Letter From Spain" don't disappoint either, but the shaky, clumsy "Time After Time" (originally included only on the cassette edition) and "Danger Ahead" leave room for some doubts. Nor is it clear why tracks like "After All" and the excellent "Hello My Old Friend" were sacrificed in favor of less interesting songs.

There's a certain fun in Jeff and co.'s game of slipping hidden messages into the various tracks – in response to the outlandish accusations of satanism that had dogged Time, between a "welcome to the show, come again!" at the start and a "thank you for listening" at the close, there's room for barking dogs, sounds captured outside the studio door, and wry conversations among the band members about Kelly Groucutt's departure.

The album cover plays with symbolism too: the band is shown leaning out of windows in the background, while the angel holds up their logo, the text on the back anagrams the names of the four musicians, and the warning about hidden messages appears in the early pressings before vanishing, like many other messages (the most famous being "plant a tree and have a happy year") that remain trapped in the leftover tracks later partially recovered on the aforementioned Afterglow compilation.

Even though it reached number four in England, the album doesn't sell particularly well and only makes it to number 36 in America, paving the way for the coming crisis. Bevan joins Black Sabbath, and Jeff Lynne releases his first track without the Elo name for the soundtrack of "Electric Dreams": the song "Video" (produced with Richard Tandy) notches an unremarkable, forgettable chart success.

Jeff, increasingly drawn to the role of producer, teams up with another pop 'n' roll icon, Dave Edmunds, first cutting two tracks for the album "Information" and then making his presence strongly felt on the follow-up "Riff Raff" with three songs of his own composition and an Electric Light Orchestra-flavored remake of a Four Tops classic, "Something About You".

Released in 1986, the new album Balance Of Power is the product of a contractual obligation that Jeff Lynne dispatches with his usual grace but without a single remarkable idea. The sound falls in line with the AOR of Foreigner or the Chicago of "If You Leave Me Now"; the sax makes its entrance, and the band's trademark vocal harmonies fade in favor of a weak, half-hearted lead vocal.

It's no coincidence that the two best moments are the single "Calling America" (No. 28 UK, No. 18 US), which offers a more varied pop structure than average, and "Endless Lies", a song originally written for Secret Messages and revived here in a far more interesting version.

Ninth place in England and 49th in America are little more than a consolation prize handed out by the fans – sales, in fact, will quickly collapse. The Electric Light Orchestra chapter is drawing to a close, delivering Jeff Lynne's ugliest song yet, "Getting To The Point".

IV – Jeff Lynne, battles and loves

Bev Bevan, disillusioned with Sabbath, comes back swinging to reform Electric Light Orchestra, but Jeff has already closed that chapter for good. The band billed as ELO Part 2 is thus Bevan's own creation, an attempt to win back the more progressive-oriented fans by blending the pop-orchestral side with heavy hard-rock intrusions in an Asia vein, but the weak point remains the songwriting, messy and devoid of originality – and it's more than a little ironic that the second album, Moment Of Truth, delivers its best performances precisely in its most pop-leaning passages. Meanwhile, Mik Kaminsky and Kelly Groucutt record two little-known albums together as "OrKestra" ("Beyond The Dream" and "Roll Over Beethoven"). Their presence among the pricier finds at online record markets is misleading: these are harmless little songs dressed in familiar sounds but lacking any real pathos. The two later rejoin ELO Part 2 for the shows that would yield the live album One Night – Live In Australia, which, aside from two unreleased tracks, presents the band's classic repertoire in pleasant tribute-band-style renditions. It's no surprise that ELO Part 2 would later turn into a full-blown nostalgia act, drawing ever smaller crowds as time went on.

Jeff Lynne's path during those years is tied to his role as producer and to the friendship that grew out of the "Cloud Nine" sessions with ex-Beatle George Harrison, an encounter that would open the door to other major collaborations pulling Jeff's music toward a cleaner, more country-oriented sound. After the Beatles, the Beach Boys and the Bee Gees, the Byrds and Roy Orbison would become his new stylistic touchstones, with highly rewarding results.

The supergroup Traveling Wilburys ("wilbury" was George's nickname for recording mistakes made during the production of "Cloud Nine") came about from an unexpected request by Warner for a b-side to a new George Harrison single. Jeff was working with Roy Orbison at the time, and when the ex-Beatle asked for his help recording "Handle With Care", Jeff wasted no time asking Bob Dylan if he could use his recording studio, while George stopped by Tom Petty's place to borrow a guitar. At that point the urge to play took over, and everyone ended up pitching in to make what would become the cornerstone of a hugely successful project.

The success of the Traveling Wilburys' debut album isn't exactly a bolt from the blue – public curiosity was running high, and although the record isn't a masterpiece, it would go down in rock history as one of the most successful collaborative projects of its era. Dylan, Petty, Harrison, Lynne and Orbison keep their egos in check, and the whole thing sounds delightfully fresh and enjoyable even decades later, a fact borne out by the considerable success of its 2007 reissue. There's no doubt that every musician involved drew fresh inspiration from this project, inspiration that had seemed to have gone dormant, and their careers would pick back up from this point with even more engaging force and passion.

If Lynne's first solo project, Armchair Theatre, ultimately falls short, it's due to a lack of clear direction: the temptation to chase the success of the Wilburys and of Roy Orbison's "Mystery Girl" album, also produced by Jeff himself, isn't enough to make the otherwise pleasant songs feel convincing. The public is willing to forgive the artist a few commercial indulgences, but won't accept him wiping away ELO's past so completely; the sound is often bloodless, and the version of "September Song" is embarrassing. Even the single "Every Little Thing" lacks the charisma needed to win anyone over. Another Jeff song, "Wild Times", ends up on the soundtrack of the film "Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves".

After producing Tom Petty's fine “Full Moon Fever”, the '90s bring more quality production work: the posthumous Del Shannon album, collaborations with Ringo Starr, Roger McGuinn, Joe Cocker, Julianna Rae and Mark Knopfler are just the prelude to his triumphant entry into the world of Beatles production. Producing “Free As A Bird” for “Anthology” changes Jeff's life, and Paul McCartney also brings him along for the “Flaming Pie” album.

V – On the Threshold of the New Millennium

The new millennium puts the Electric Light Orchestra name back solely in the hands of Jeff Lynne, who, after a legal battle lasting years, acquires exclusive rights to the name and releases a triple anthology, Flashback, which includes the earliest recordings made under the Elo name back in the days of Balance Of Power.

These are all tracks that had been sitting in the drawer for years, but what sparked the most interest among fans was the new version of Xanadu sung by Jeff Lynne and stripped of Olivia Newton-John's vocal flourishes.

Yet another legal battle (this time with Gordon Townsend) over the use of the Electric Light Orchestra name definitively ends any relationship between Lynne and his former bandmates: the new band, now simply called The Orchestra, wins unexpected critical praise with the curious album “No Rewind”, which would even be reissued years later to support the band's tour, once again causing legal headaches for Lynne.

Acquiring the rights to the Electric Light Orchestra production catalogue in 2001 paves the way for remasters with unreleased material. Lynne takes the opportunity to brand his second solo album, Zoom, under the Elo name, bringing the flying saucer from the tour back onto the cover.

Almost an anthology of the creative threads and influences running through his career, the album opens with a rather weak “Alright”, but that's one of its few low points. His knack for post-Beatles pop and his songwriting mastery take shape in gentle melodies like “Moment In Paradise” and “Ordinary Dream”, and in a classic like “Just For Love”, where languid guitars and synthesizers forge a compelling stylistic marriage.

Traces of his recent collaborations are evident in “Melting In The Sun”, which could have come straight from the pages of the Traveling Wilburys, and in “State Of Mind”, a perfect slice of rock 'n' roll with a Roy Orbison-style riff.

There are dips in quality, though: the rock 'n' roll of “Easy Money” is dull, and “All She Wanted” drifts by unremarkably. Still, craft and class guarantee a solid overall result: varied and flowing, Zoom brings back pop-jazz elements (“Stranger On A Quiet Street”), blues (“In My Own Time”), British-flavoured r'n'b (“Long Time Gone”), and hits another moment of pure Electric Light Orchestra-style pop with the smooth “It Really Doesn’t Matter”.

Despite having more than one reason to be interesting, the album fails to achieve the success it hoped for. The halt in touring and the official announcement that followed would put the word “end” to the Electric Light Orchestra story.

It would be the success of Britpop and the critical rehabilitation of Beatles-devoted pop bands (starting with Oasis) that would restore dignity to their music; interest in the reissues with bonus tracks, the surprising chart entry of the single “Surrender” (No. 81 in the UK) and the release of “Latitude 88 North” (a track completed by Jeff for the 1977 reissue of Out Of The Blue) confirm that the band weathered the turn of the millennium brilliantly.

Among the many curiosities surrounding the band's story, one worth noting is the surprising initiative by the Not Lame label, which brought together around thirty artists for a covers album titled “Lynne Me Your Ears”.

Unlike other similar projects, the album is full of interesting reinterpretations. Earl Slick, Ben Lee, Peter Holsapple, Tony Visconti, Roger Klug, Todd Rundgren and other musicians give their best-known songs a lively dusting-off, often with brilliant results.

Even though there are a few missteps, the respect and passion of the musicians involved are evident: “Steppin' Out”, “Bluebird Is Dead”, “Mr. Blue Sky”, “10538 Overture”, “Do Ya”, “Rockaria” and “On The Run” raise more than one smile, and the curious remake of “The Minister” reveals “Day Tripper” lurking within the original riff.

In truth, the album offers several points of curiosity and interest, such as the fine version of “One Summer Dream”, which takes on more prog-rock contours and less of a ballad feel, while “Boy Blue” turns into pure pop 'n' roll and “Sweet Is The Night” becomes almost indie.

But Lynne's greatest satisfaction comes from his work for George Harrison: besides completing the album "Brainwashed" (the former Beatle's final chapter), the musician carries forward the "Concert For George" project. The DVD, recorded at the Royal Albert Hall, wins a Grammy and documents an evening of great music and friendship.

After once again being in Tom Petty's service for the production of "Highway Companion" in 2006, and after taking part in the aborted sessions with Rossif Sutherland, Jeff plans his return to the studio, but aside from producing a few tracks on Regina Spektor's album "Far" there are no clear signs of activity, and it takes until early 2012 for the English composer to make a promise about an album coming later that year.

The release of another major box set, The Classic Album Collection, brings Electric Light Orchestra's name back to shop shelves with eleven remastered albums enriched by outtakes already featured in the made-in-Japan editions, but it's only the beginning.

The special vinyl reissue of Eldorado, the CD and DVD edition of the debut Electric Light Orchestra for its fortieth anniversary (with new 5.1 mixes), Jeff Lynne's participation in a tribute album dedicated to Paul McCartney (among the other names planned are Cure, Brian Wilson and B.B. King), and his production of Joe Walsh's (ex-Eagles) record "Analog Man", all confirm that the electric light defies the economic crisis and switches back on, unconcerned by the many sources of alternative energy.

New gleams come from , an album of cover versions that, while partly disappointing fans' expectations, confirms Jeff Lynne's good health. The musician relives his emotions as a young BBC listener, assembling songs he loved or came to reappraise over time, but it's not a mere calligraphic exercise: the album flows with brio and verve, and the reworkings of tracks like "At Last", "Smile" and "Love Is A Many Splendored Thing" prove convincing and full of a candor that such projects usually overlook. To hear something new, though, we'll have to wait until 2013: Jeff Lynne in fact has plenty of new songs in the drawer, one of which, "Point Of No Return", finds a place on the album "Mr Blue Sky", a best-of that actually contains versions re-recorded entirely on his own by Jeff.

After rummaging through the drawers of memory with Long Wave, Jeff Lynne finally dusts off the E.L.O. trademark with an album that stays timidly in the vicinity of the post-Discovery production, with a less pompous sound and perfectly calibrated songwriting, reconciling his natural inclination toward pop-symphonic emphasis with the ability to distill his own lyricism into songs with a sure, mature touch.

Alone In The Universe (2015) is the album where the musician takes a first look back at his life, entrusting it to the nostalgic, romantic piano stride of "When I Was A Boy", which candidly quotes "Imagine" (John Lennon) and "A Whiter Shade Of Pale" (Procol Harum). The potential appeal of the new project under the Elo name is nonetheless tied to the mnemonic placement of their past: the most devoted fans will only rejoice at Jeff's rediscovered ability to transfigure the soul-funk of "Love And Rain" into a delightful pop-beat destined to join his classics, or to flirt with rock'n'roll on "Ain't It A Drag" without causing a rash, while casual listeners will find the extreme brevity of the running times comforting, with songs barely topping three minutes that never linger in the redundancy so common in much pop music.

As always, a few tracks stand out for their class and style, songs capable of drawing even fans of the most hardline rock into its golden world, as happens with the pulsing, open-hearted melody of "All My Life" and the superb "Alone In The Universe" (David Bowie meets Elton John).

Although Lynne made the whole record entirely on his own, the prestigious, glorious sound of times past remains intact ("One Step At A Time"); the seductive "When The Night Comes" sounds as if it came straight out of the Out Of The Blue sessions with its multi-voiced harmonies, while "I'm Leaving You" is pure Roy Orbison-era Traveling Wilburys.

With Alone In The Universe the Elo name finally returns to stand proudly within contemporary record production.

For Jeff Lynne it's the start of a new, exhilarating run of success, confirmed first by a tour that culminates in the release of the live album Wembley Or Bust, then by another fine collection of pop songs, From Out Of Nowhere.

It falls to the enchanting, seductive "Losing You" and to the nostalgic elegance of "Songbird" to keep the songwriting quality high, adding potential classics to the musician's already remarkable repertoire, but it's the title track that is the gem of a record with no ambition toward experimentation or innovation.

Electric Light Orchestra's music has not, in truth, evolved or reinvented itself over time, but it has kept that charm which is otherwise embodied by the image of the Elo-branded spaceship. Jeff Lynne's songs are like a good piece of science fiction: predictable, yet always evocative and stirring.

From Out Of Nowhere is, in short, an excellent confirmation for Jeff Lynne, yet another masterstroke from a pop maestro, one that ought to give pause to the unmoved detractors of the Electric Light Orchestra fable.

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