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| From | "Miguel Motta" <a2j@bellsouth.net> |
| Subject | The ELO Issue |
| Date | Sat, 10 Jul 2004 06:56:04 -0400 |
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I usually don't take sides on issues of music influences, as I for one am open to the many creative sounds that bands bring to the mix, but felt that I would put my two cents into the ELO discussion for what it's worth...
My line of thinking is a simple one... You either like the band or you don't... I am a huge Beatles fan (original generation fan for that matter as I was in my early teens when they first came to the US) and I can say that they truly "walked me thru life" with each album, each film and every interview, book ,etc. I could get my hands on... My "rare" Beatle collection is quite extensive and I have even had the privilege to meet Pete Best and also add the autographs of Macca, Ringo, George Martin & Pete Best to my collection... The point I'm trying to make is that once they "dissapeared" it was not easy to convey a world without a new Beatle release every other year or so... Thank heaven for Badfinger, The Raspberries and power pop in general which kept "the music" alive... Out of all these "Beatlesque" bands the true Beatle fan had an array to choose from...
...Which brings us to ELO... I could either take 'em or leave 'em... and of all the supposedly Beatles influenced bands I have personally rejected to listen to some because, as I said, "I was there" and, IMHO, know what a Beatle influence song should sound like... Jellyfish, Oasis, Cheap Trick, and (umm) The Knack, I honestly and sincerely fail to see the connection, with these bands one has to be hard-pressed to hear the true infusion of Lennon-McCartney... Don't get me wrong, they are great bands, but Lennon-McCartney?... sound-wise a hint perhaps, but not even close... but that's just my personal opinion...
...ELO I've embraced somewhat... I think Mr. Lynne has a good grasp and dominion of the studio and is a halfway decent songwriter... Few producers can convert the recording studio into a "musical intrument" and bring forth interesting sounds; i.e. Mark Hudson, Ray Davies, McCartney, of course, etc... The problem I have with Jeff Lynne is that his productions, as decent as they may be, end up sounding the same all the time... Just listen to his productions of Roy Orbison, Del Shannon, Wilburys, George Harrison, and of course his own ELO stuff... they don't offer any musical challenges to the ear, as opposed to say, George Martin who would, together with The Fabs bring a fresh approach to each song everytime around...
Anyway, I know I've gone over my 60 seconds, but bottom line for me is... you either like ELO (and their multi-platinum albums sales proves that there are a lot of fans out there) or you simply set them aside and say, nah, I'll pass on this band... Did they pick up on "I am the Warlus"? Most intentionally... Did it work? Seems it did... Is Mr. Lynne laughing all the way to the bank? ... I don't think he "laughs" but in his "quiet times" there must be a chuckle or two... but in the end it he gave the best he had for people to either take or leave be... I've chosen to add one album (Zoom, which I think was halfway decent) and the one live concert DVD (Zoom also, because it's like a greatest hits) to my collection for archival purposes and pass on the brunt of his extensive catalog...
Cheers...
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