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Post by clouds on Sept 18, 2014 16:07:27 GMT
This beggars belief, just have a read of this nonsense. OK, I know its from 36 years ago, but this shows how uncool ELO were with the rock snobs!
Here are just a few of the fun facts to be picked up from the innersleeve credits on Out of the Blue, ELO's double-LP set: Jeff Lynne's Marshall amps are custom-made by Tony Frank; all ELO road cases are made by Anvil; no less than fourteen special-effects mechanisms were utilized in the creation of this work; engineer Mack "slaved over a hot mixer for 1127 hours." Here's my favorite, though: Bev Bevan uses Slingerland "Bev Bevan" drumsticks. One could say that ELO is more than a bit smitten with itself.
One could say it, and one would be right, though self-absorption is not any grounds for attacking a rock band; it's almost impossible to think of a band or an artist that isn't mainly ego. When one crosses over into self-indulgence, however, it's a different story completely. I didn't read the credits until after I had waded through the four sides of this totally uninteresting and horrifyingly sterile package. What I heard was a meticulously produced and performed set of songs, with subtle nods to the Beach Boys ("Across the Border" has a melodic passage identical to "Heroes & Villains"), the Bee Gees ("Starlight" and "Steppin' Out" both feature Jeff Lynne as Robin Gibb) and, of course, the Beatles (clearly Lynne's biggest influence). And without any noticeable passion or emotion. All method and no madness: perfectly hollow and bland rock Muzak. Solos are virtually nonexistent, which makes perfect sense because an individual statement by any one instrument would set the ELO ship jaggedly off course by injecting some heart into the proceedings. Group commander Lynne obviously is consumed by his vision of the totality of the ELO sound, floating slowly through the void.
Most ELO fans, I think, will read the credits before they listen to the records, and to them all I can say is, forewarned if forearmed. Entertainment without pretense is fine, but if you're going to imply that what you're giving us is something special, Captain Lynne, you had better make sure that we're reserving seats for an adventure, and not just a walking tour of the industrial works. (RS 256)
BILLY ALTMAN
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Post by BSJ on Sept 18, 2014 20:13:15 GMT
Group commander Lynne obviously is consumed by his vision of the totality of the ELO sound, floating slowly through the void. Most ELO fans, I think, will read the credits before they listen to the records, and to them all I can say is, forewarned if forearmed. Entertainment without pretense is fine, but if you're going to imply that what you're giving us is something special, Captain Lynne, you had better make sure that we're reserving seats for an adventure, and not just a walking tour of the industrial works. (RS 256) BILLY ALTMAN Shaking my head! Thanks for posting this!
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Post by jefflynnenut on Sept 18, 2014 20:32:57 GMT
May I add that this "Rag" also labelled Zeppelin as "directionless" and Sabbath as a "fad" Cameron Crowe is the only sensible thing that crawled it's way outta that mag. I'm sure if the general public were to buy albums judging from it's recommendations, the recoed industry would have collapsed in the 70's. One word and one word alone catagarises R.S.......W***ers! (Pardon me)!
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Post by elophile on Sept 19, 2014 1:08:28 GMT
Smug W***ers.
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Post by queenofthehours on Sept 19, 2014 13:29:45 GMT
You can't buy RS in England can you? That explains why I've never read it - not that I'd be encouraged to after reading this.
It seems bizarre to accuse ELO of being "smitten with itself" since the late 70s were full of bands less concerned with the music than with themselves. Anyone with ears should be able to tell that Jeff and the boys had spent so much effort on the music there would have been little time for themselves.
No one would think from this review that ELO's most memorable and famous tunes were from this album!
Jeff does not sound anything like Robin Gibb on 'Steppin' Out'. Maybe some ELO tracks do have a Bee Gees sound (no bad thing) but certainly not 'Steppin' Out' to my ears.
"Most ELO fans, I think, will read the credits before they listen to the records". Really? not me.
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Post by 88keys on Sept 19, 2014 18:37:34 GMT
It's funny how, in recent years, RS has sort of come around to appreciating Jeff and ELO, and RS contributing editor David Wild even wrote the liner notes for Flashback, Long Wave and Mr. Blue Sky!
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Post by wilko on Sept 19, 2014 21:03:43 GMT
This review strikes me as being written by a smug t**t who's decided he doesn't like the album before he's even listened to it.
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Post by lawrev on Apr 17, 2023 15:15:10 GMT
This beggars belief, just have a read of this nonsense. OK, I know its from 36 years ago, but this shows how uncool ELO were with the rock snobs! Here are just a few of the fun facts to be picked up from the innersleeve credits on Out of the Blue, ELO's double-LP set: Jeff Lynne's Marshall amps are custom-made by Tony Frank; all ELO road cases are made by Anvil; no less than fourteen special-effects mechanisms were utilized in the creation of this work; engineer Mack "slaved over a hot mixer for 1127 hours." Here's my favorite, though: Bev Bevan uses Slingerland "Bev Bevan" drumsticks. One could say that ELO is more than a bit smitten with itself. One could say it, and one would be right, though self-absorption is not any grounds for attacking a rock band; it's almost impossible to think of a band or an artist that isn't mainly ego. When one crosses over into self-indulgence, however, it's a different story completely. I didn't read the credits until after I had waded through the four sides of this totally uninteresting and horrifyingly sterile package. What I heard was a meticulously produced and performed set of songs, with subtle nods to the Beach Boys ("Across the Border" has a melodic passage identical to "Heroes & Villains"), the Bee Gees ("Starlight" and "Steppin' Out" both feature Jeff Lynne as Robin Gibb) and, of course, the Beatles (clearly Lynne's biggest influence). And without any noticeable passion or emotion. All method and no madness: perfectly hollow and bland rock Muzak. Solos are virtually nonexistent, which makes perfect sense because an individual statement by any one instrument would set the ELO ship jaggedly off course by injecting some heart into the proceedings. Group commander Lynne obviously is consumed by his vision of the totality of the ELO sound, floating slowly through the void. Most ELO fans, I think, will read the credits before they listen to the records, and to them all I can say is, forewarned if forearmed. Entertainment without pretense is fine, but if you're going to imply that what you're giving us is something special, Captain Lynne, you had better make sure that we're reserving seats for an adventure, and not just a walking tour of the industrial works. (RS 256) BILLY ALTMAN It is quite common for albums to have extensive listings of musical gear used during the recording process. ELO's lists are generally less extensive than a lot of guitar - oriented albums, even to this day. Being a guitarist myself, I do want to know who played what. I don't consider that ego.
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Post by eloneen on Apr 17, 2023 16:36:32 GMT
I hadn't read this before. Thanks for reviving the conversation. So interesting, that review: I hear no resemblance to Robin Gibb in anything on this album. If a comparison to the Bee Gees is to be made at all, one could possibly consider the breathy vocals in Starlight ( which I REALLY dislike) as a failed attempt to sound like Barry Gibb, who pulls off the breathy singing thing much better than Jeff ever could. Jeff once said he was going for an Al Green sound there (a colossal failure on that one, I must say)...Jeff should just stick to sounding like himself! He has a good enough voice! Big Wheels (which is my second favorite ELO track, after Telephone Line) is oozing with over the top pathos. Nothing sterile about that one. Did the reviewer actually listen to all of the songs all the way through? To each his/ her own...
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Post by jackpunch on Apr 17, 2023 23:06:30 GMT
Silly Billy.
I never understand music critics. Music is art it's subjective, so unless you are going to stick to facts i.e., the production is highly compressed or all the songs are in the same time signature etc, what's the point.
I'm not going to buy or not buy an album based on some halfwit who's trying to be one of the cool kids.
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Post by Timeblue on Apr 18, 2023 5:26:55 GMT
A critics opinion is just one persons opinion, he or she does not speak for me. That's why I never listen to what they say, if we did then we would all be like robots. What gives them the right to say "I like this, this is good/I don't like this, this is bad"? The proof is in the pudding regarding the bands success at this time.
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Post by fourlittlediamonds on Apr 18, 2023 8:49:48 GMT
This was 1977, Punk/New Wave had arrived to supposedly wash away bands like ELO(whose origins and influences were in the 60's) and Rolling Stone was desperate to be seen to be part of the revolution (like the NME in the UK.)
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Post by cleldo on Apr 18, 2023 15:57:38 GMT
This was the album that made me love ELO. My brother got it for Christmas in 1977 and I was smitten by the sounds coming from his room. So how was an 11 yrar old so taken by this sterile emotionless music, simple this reviewer got it so wrong, and lets face it the sales proved him wrong too. Still love it to this day
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Post by lawrev on Apr 18, 2023 16:11:16 GMT
Although I will say that, compared to ANWR, OTTB is a bit too long. But that's old history.
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Post by Helmut83 on Apr 18, 2023 22:03:59 GMT
OTTB = "On the Third Blue". The other album I like is "Out of the day".
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