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Post by orioles70 on Mar 17, 2019 21:33:47 GMT
Jeff never seems to play anything from Time in concert. A few of the tracks would fit into a standard set list - Ticket to the Moon or Here is the News for instance. But each time I listen to it, I'm struck by what a cohesive concept it is. It is best consumed in one sitting, start to finish. It doesn't rely on cello or violin, but does have a lot of synths.
Wouldn't it be great if Jeff would leave the big 12 piece band behind and play smaller venues. The TIME album before intermission. Then come back and play a mix of other deep cuts that don't make the standard concert list. Lift me up from Armchair Theatre. Words of Aaron from the Move days. Couple of Idle Race tunes. Maybe a cover or two from Jeff's own idols - a George song or a Roy song. So much material to choose from!
I'd also love to hear Eldorado or ANWR played live from start to finish. But it's TIME that has missed left off and underappreciated.
Could Jeff pull TIME off without Richard?
.... quick prayer for Richard's health
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Post by Helmut83 on Mar 17, 2019 22:32:55 GMT
orioles70, I don't really agree with Time being best consumed in one sitting. For me it's perfectly "splittable" in parts. I don't enjoy it's songs any less because I'm not playing the rest of the album together with it. I think part of the problem with Time (and there shouldn't be any problem really, it's a problem that Jeff Lynne himself has generated) is that it's creator refuses to play anything that doesn't sound exactly as in the records. And obviously the records having so many synths, as you pointed out, makes it a problem when playing live. That's an approach I've been criticizing since long here. I think a big majority of those songs are fantastic, and even when they sound different because a few synths or effects are missing, they would still be fantastic to be heard live. Heck, when I grab my guitar and play them I rediscover how great those songs are (and I'm a terrible performer) because it's not those synths what makes them great but the composition itself, melody and chords. Imagine Jeff playing a more acoustic, traditionally arranged version of "From the end of the world"... wouldn't it be an experience worth living (or listening) even without those synths? And yes, I think he could perfectly well pull off "Time" without Richard. If we are talking about musical performances, if you have the correct crew it could be pulled of without Jeff, and it's likely that it would be pulled off better without Jeff, only that none of us here would admit it because what we like is having Jeff in front of the show (which makes sense because he's the guy who wrote the song). My point is that these days both Jeff and Richard are old and their performances are nowhere close to what they used to be, so when playing live they are totally replaceable.
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Post by Timeblue on Mar 18, 2019 16:59:05 GMT
A lot of artists and bands do tours based on a particular album of theirs these days so I for one would love a complete Time show with other lesser known hits too just as Orioles70 said. It would need to have two parts just because Time is so short! On the subject of replacing Jeff and Richard,you are walking a tightrope my friend.i can hear the women sharpening their claws as we speak! If Jeff went down the complete album route then Time for me would be the ideal choice as it tells a story more so than say...Eldorado (even though I'd love to hear that in its entirety too)
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Post by Horacewimp on Mar 18, 2019 17:14:25 GMT
Jeff did do Prologue going into Twilight at Wembley, then dropped it for the tour which was a shame as it was great.
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Post by BSJ on Mar 18, 2019 17:51:17 GMT
On the subject of replacing Jeff and Richard,you are walking a tightrope my friend.i can hear the women sharpening their claws as we speak!
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Post by StrangeMagic on Mar 18, 2019 23:04:20 GMT
orioles70 , I don't really agree with Time being best consumed in one sitting. For me it's perfectly "splittable" in parts. I don't enjoy it's songs any less because I'm not playing the rest of the album together with it. I think part of the problem with Time (and there shouldn't be any problem really, it's a problem that Jeff Lynne himself has generated) is that it's creator refuses to play anything that doesn't sound exactly as in the records. And obviously the records having so many synths, as you pointed out, makes it a problem when playing live. That's an approach I've been criticizing since long here. I think a big majority of those songs are fantastic, and even when they sound different because a few synths or effects are missing, they would still be fantastic to be heard live. Heck, when I grab my guitar and play them I rediscover how great those songs are (and I'm a terrible performer) because it's not those synths what makes them great but the composition itself, melody and chords. Imagine Jeff playing a more acoustic, traditionally arranged version of "From the end of the world"... wouldn't it be an experience worth living (or listening) even without those synths? And yes, I think he could perfectly well pull off "Time" without Richard. If we are talking about musical performances, if you have the correct crew it could be pulled of without Jeff, and it's likely that it would be pulled off better without Jeff, only that none of us here would admit it because what we like is having Jeff in front of the show (which makes sense because he's the guy who wrote the song). My point is that these days both Jeff and Richard are old and their performances are nowhere close to what they used to be, so when playing live they are totally replaceable. BLASPHEMY! Nothing is better without Jeff, not just because he's the guy that wrote the song. Did someone hijack your account, or are you having an episode?
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Post by Helmut83 on Mar 19, 2019 2:23:54 GMT
Tightrope or no tightrope, it's my genuine opinion on the matter. I know perfectly well what you all would love to hear and what would leave you all happy, but when that doesn't coincide with what I think, I'm sorry guys but I'm going with what I think. I think the fact that it makes you so uncomfortable and annoyed might be due to you secretly finding some truth to what I say.
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Post by queenofthehours on Mar 19, 2019 19:47:50 GMT
Jeff did do Prologue going into Twilight at Wembley, then dropped it for the tour which was a shame as it was great. I was hoping Jeff would play Prologue and Twilight on the tour and was greatly disappointed when he didn't . I think Twilight is terrific live and my favourite sequence in the whole of ELO is the Prologue-Twlilight-Yours Truly 2095 sequence. I think Jeff should at least play that if he ignores the rest of Time.
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TIME
Mar 19, 2019 20:02:38 GMT
Post by StrangeMagic on Mar 19, 2019 20:02:38 GMT
Tightrope or no tightrope, it's my genuine opinion on the matter. I know perfectly well what you all would love to hear and what would leave you all happy, but when that doesn't coincide with what I think, I'm sorry guys but I'm going with what I think. I think the fact that it makes you so uncomfortable and annoyed might be due to you secretly finding some truth to what I say. There's a huge difference between discomfort and rage. Check your English-Spanish dictionary.
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Post by BIuebird on Mar 19, 2019 21:03:58 GMT
I would love to hear Jeff play some songs from Time, since it's my favorite ELO album. Prologue into Twilight would be awesome, and it's too bad he dropped it from the tour last time. It would be wonderful to hear the album in its entirety, although I think it would be even better with "The Bouncer," "When Time Stood Still," and "Julie Don't Live Here" added in their proper chronological order. As for Helmut's suggestion... I am sorry my friend, but I thoroughly disagree that it would be done better without Jeff! Without Jeff, or even any of the other former ELO members, it's not ELO... It's just another cover band.
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Post by Helmut83 on Mar 19, 2019 21:27:54 GMT
As for Helmut's suggestion... I am sorry my friend, but I thoroughly disagree that it would be done better without Jeff! Without Jeff, or even any of the other former ELO members, it's not ELO... It's just another cover band. That's exactly the point, BIuebird . These days those guys are there because they are the original band members, and a live show without them playing is just a cover act, it doesn't have the certificate of authenticity that their presence there gives them. Having the original members not only gives the show that certificate of authenticity but also provides you with the emotion of seeing your musical heroes personally, and playing their music, no less. Now, orioles70 's question was whether Jeff would be able to pull off "Time" without Richard Tandy, so it's a question about performance on live shows. I make this question to you, and to everyone else who reacted with "rage" to my opinion: do you really think Jeff couldn't get these days any other keyboardist to perform as good as, or better, than the 71 year old version of Richard Tandy? Do you really think so? Time ago someone posted here the isolated and raw track of Jeff Lynne's guitar during a live show. It was awful. Some fans were in complete negation that that was Jeff Lynne. Others justified his playing with different excuses. In my opinion, the reality is that some skills go deteriorating with age and these days, performance-wise, both Richard Tandy and Jeff Lynne are not a shadow of what they used to be, and someone younger could do it much better. Again, I wouldn't want someone younger and better at performing, I would want my musical heroes to be there even if their performance is not very good (the reason they have such a great backing band is exactly that, to make up for their failures). That's where we can agree. But, answering to Orioles question, if we are talking strictly about performance and leaving personalities aside, I still think these days reality is that lots of people would be able to play the songs much better than Jeff and Richard. I hope my opinion is intepreted better this time and doesn't simply activate the "he's saying something bad about Jeff Lynne" alarm again.
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Post by orioles70 on Mar 19, 2019 23:48:09 GMT
Helmut83 I'm sure you are right. 10 years after Jeff passes, cover bands will be playing top notch versions of his music, perhaps while a holographic Jeff stands in as front man. But - in the fan section of my brain, I like to imagine that Jeff and Richard had almost supernatural powers and communicated by "Secret Messages" that no mere mortals could duplicate. When L.E.O. did the Alpacas Orgling album, I remember reading that Blue (the producer and musician who organized the effort) had sort of "Discover"ed a trove of studio magic tricks while working with someone who had worked with Jeff Lynne. He was like a kid playing in the sand box as he made that album. nowadays, all the software has made it perhaps too easy to do some things but artists still need the creative spark to write original songs and loads of talent to perform live
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TIME
Mar 20, 2019 0:59:29 GMT
Post by Helmut83 on Mar 20, 2019 0:59:29 GMT
Helmut83 But - in the fan section of my brain, I like to imagine that Jeff and Richard had almost supernatural powers and communicated by "Secret Messages" that no mere mortals could duplicate. Yeap, this pretty much sums it up for me, and I know how it is because I like to imagine similar things too.
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Post by eloneen on Mar 21, 2019 0:27:22 GMT
Helmut83 and orioles70 I know I've said this before, but it bears repeating here in this context. If you watch the videos for the acoustic set recorded at Bungalow Palace a few years back, you'll see Jeff and Richard looking at each other the way happily married older couples do.... like they are reliving fond old memories that they've shared over the years, and they don't have to say a word. It's really sweet.
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Post by Helmut83 on Mar 21, 2019 1:08:36 GMT
Helmut83 and orioles70 I know I've said this before, but it bears repeating here in this context. If you watch the videos for the acoustic set recorded at Bungalow Palace a few years back, you'll see Jeff and Richard looking at each other the way happily married older couples do.... like they are reliving fond old memories that they've shared over the years, and they don't have to say a word. It's really sweet. That's right. Also, they seem to play well there, although it's hard to know how much of it is edited.
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