Track Listing

1. Turn To Stone
2. It's Over
3. Sweet Talkin' Woman
4. Across The Border
5. Night In The City
6. Starlight
7. Jungle
8. Believe Me Now
9. Stepping Out
10. Standing In The Rain
11. Summer And Lightning
12. Mr Blue Sky
13. Sweet Is The Night
14. Whale
15. Wild West Hero
16. Big Wheels
17. Birmingham Blues

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #43685 in Music
• Released on: 1991-06-17
• Number of discs: 1

Amazon.co.uk Review
"Why do people need a Beatles reunion", Paul McCartney once wondered aloud, "when they've already got ELO?" It was a fair question: Jeff Lynne's obsessive enthusiasm for the Sgt. Pepper's-era Fab Four saw him appropriate entire harmonic and melodic structures from his heroes--carefully substituting sawing cello lines for guitar riffs and sweetening already-friendly chords with syrupy layers of strings. The double-album Out Of The Blue was released the same year Britain was galvanised by punk--though you'd never know it. One could argue that Lynne simply wasn't aware of the tectonic shifts going on around him, such was his desire to craft his band's most definitive musical statement, including a four-part "Concerto for a Rainy Day"--precisely the kind of thing the Clash and the Sex Pistols wanted to abolish. Boasting a string of catchy, instantly memorable pop tunes, very much in the traditional ELO mould ("Turn To Stone", "Mr. Blue Sky"), it also saw, in "Sweet Talkin' Woman", a discreet acknowledgement of (gasp!) disco. How very modern. --Andrew McGuire

From Amazon.com
ELO's fusion of Beatles-esque harmonies and melodic structure, coupled with their symphonic arrangements was just on the verge of wearing thin at the time they released Out of the Blue. To argue that the double album went platinum because of the band's live extravaganza to support it--the band performed inside a flying saucer--is a premise worthy of consideration. Song for song, Out of the Blue is not as strong as Face the Music, but it still has some of Jeff Lynne's finest compositions ever recorded. "Turn to Stone" and "Sweet Talkin' Woman" are almost downright giddy in their deliveries; the former opening with a string riff, the latter with a minor key violin line, before boasting a choral background accompaniment. "Mr. Blue Sky" and "The Whale" are almost too hokey, yet still managed to work. "Standin' in the Rain," "Big Wheels," and "Summer and Lightening" are more memorable. But in the end, power cello riffs can only take you so far. Stick with a "greatest hits" or "best of" collection in this case. --Steve Gdula

CD Description
1977 is remembered as both the year of punk and the year ofdisco. At the time, though, it was the year of Fleetwood Mac's RUMOURS and Electric Light Orchestra's OUT OF THE BLUE, two albums that were simply inescapable. But where overexposure made RUMOURS feel somewhat stale and dated, OUT OF THE BLUE sounds as fresh now as it did at the time. This is due in large part to the obsessive insularity of Jeff Lynne's aesthetic. He seems not to be ignoring musical trends, but to be simply unaware of them. Lynne's mid-period Beatles fixation combines with his love of lush orchestrations and pristineproduction to create some of his strongest music, includingthe enormous hits "Turn to Stone", "Sweet Talkin' Woman" and "Mr. Blue Sky". However, the autobiographical "Birmingham Blues" suggests that Lynne was tiring of the rock-star grind, which might explain ELO's lowered profile after this release.

Customer Reviews

Five-star period-piece
Understanding this album requires a proper understanding of real 1970s popular culture. The supergroups of the latter 60s and 70s (Cream, Led Zeppelin) lead to groups who took their musicality a bit too seriously, the Prog Rockers. Most pompous of them has to be Yes, though less mainstream bands like The Enid have to be heard to be believed!

Proggers had this thing about becoming The New Classical Music. They were serious, folks! They started using more and more sounds from classical music, writing symphonies and making albums that went on for hours. Enter ELO. Pure pop, but with an eye on the rock zeitgeist: A bit of Strawbs folkiness, a touch of glam rock & blues, loads of strings and the latest electronics put together with the slickest production in the world. All this with a slight Midlands naffness misunderstood the world over: Most people miss the knowing twinkle in the eye!

This is an album everyone with an interest in pop / rock history ought to own. ELO pricked the Prog bubble and had some fun. Punk lacked their subtlety, merely raging and puking the party over.

Were ELO the last band of the decade of the greatest rock music?

Best album of all time
I'm 26 years old so this album was before my time, and I can't believe I may still have never listened to ELO if it wasn't for a random browse through my dad's record collection a decade ago (I was into Blur, Radiohead etc). Ten years later I would definitely say that Out of the Blue is is my favorite album of all time. There are only one or two tracks I'm not too keen on (ie Jungle); 50% of the rest are very good and the other 50% are stunning. Sweet Talkin' Woman was the song that blew me away at the time, but 'Standin' in the Rain' also really stood out; that must have been way ahead of its time. I would recommend ELO to anyone of any age, and this album is a great place to start.

BREATHTAKING
Why is Jeff lynne's genius never given the credit he so rightly deserves? both for his great songwriting and incredible producing ability. It seems that people think its un-cool to admit liking this band but are happy to admit to bands like Queen, Led Zeppelin ETC ETC. "Out Of The Blue" then, every song on this album is good you wont find any fillers here, the soundscape is enormous and filled with drama, the melodies are lush and the original vinyl package was great with its blue vinyl, poster and cardboard model ELO spaceship. It was 1977 and Star Wars had just hit the cinemas, I was seven and kept on to my Gran to get me "Out Of The Blue" just because I liked the album cover, what an introduction to the world of music. I would often play the album start to finish, all four sides and study the album sleeve, it was as if this band had arrived from another world bringing with them a very unique and exciting sound. What really amazes me is the sound production, remember this was 1977, it still sounds fresh today and has a big sound on any Hi-Fi you care to play it on. This album in my opinion stands up as a truly "Classic" piece of work especially when you consider it took Jeff Lynne just eight days to write it. Dated? I dont think so. Timeless Classic? Definately...