How do you decide who your favourite band are? It changes virtually from minute to minute and depending on mood. Then, will the next album be better or worse than the average? That's the sort of thing that would have kept me awake all last night if I hadn't been silently singing the song that I gave as an answer some hours ago.
So, I narrowed down the band by thinking of records that have been played often, despite their age. Have I bothered to see them live? Yes, in this case, and possibly the best gig I have ever been to as a spectacle. And then I chose a track that I never tire of listening to.
I have liked the Electric Light Orchestra from the beginning. I remember 10538 Overture being released and the mix of "rock" music and string arrangements, particularly the heavy use of cello, and I was hooked. Jeff Lynne's vocals are always good as are his lyrics. I suppose they are middle of the road in many ways but I don't care. And then, 40 years ago next year, (where the hell did all those years go!), they released the LP, "Out of the Blue". Kenny Everett had a copy on release day and played it through twice, back to back, on his radio programme on Capital. Not something that could happen these days in the era of playlists. And for me, the standout track. Wild West Hero. I saw them live at Wembley in 1978, the picture below from one of the eight nights they sold Wembley Arena out for, the first group ever to do that. And Jeff Lynne is a vastly underrated musician and producer, or at least with the public. Within the trade he is highly thought of.
Three years ago I wrote and directed a revue show for the musical theatre company I was with. It had a wild west theme. One of our group had arranged Mr Blue Sky, from the same album, for a previous concert, as a four part chorus number, so I got her to do the same for Wild West Hero. It was the last song played in the first half and I had one of our young male leads to start and end the song. At the start of the second half we had a silent film I wrote and directed in which he starred as a wild west hero. I doubt I'll get the chance to do something like that again.
Wild West Hero
As we appear to have diverged a bit as there were two differing lists of subjects to follow perhaps I should have chosen this track instead.
2 comments:
Both good tracks. Though Wild West Hero is marginally superior.
I was a huge ELO fan back in the day.
I still have Out Of The Blue up in the loft... on blue vinyl!
And I remember having a VHS cassette of a concert they had done somewhere... may have even been Wembley. It was shown on the telly and they were introduced as "The greatest band in the world" (or something like that), by the late Tony Curtis. I played that tape till it wouldn't play no more.
Wild West Hero was certainly one of my favourite tracks and I remember I used to sing it to myself, in my head each night, as I cycled home from work. My challenge was always to get a bit further before I finished singing.
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