Electric Light Orchestra
The Move got the bright idea to mix classical music with rock, and The Electric Light Orchestra was born. But founder Roy Wood found other things to occupy his time, and by the second album Jeff Lynne had inherited the wheel. A penchant for The Beatles' post-Strawberry output popped up noticeably on the first and third albums, but ELO was fast supplanting the strings with Richard Tandy's sweeping synthesizers. "Showdown," an anomaly, would soon become the norm as subsequent singles ("Can't Get It Our Of My Head," "Evil Woman," "Strange Magic") revealed a commercial appetite for the band's pop/disco amalgam. Lynne hit his stride as a songwriter with A New World Record, followed by Out of the Blue and Discovery. At the time of their release, ELO may well have been the world's greatest pop act. However, as disco's fortunes waned, ELO's music lost its relevance; Time, released in 1981, seemed like a caricature of the band's original ideals. Jeff Lynne left the group following 1986's Balance of Power and ELO disbanded. In 1991, Electric Light Orchestra Part Two emerged from the ashes, led by original member Bev Bevan and featuring past members such as Kelly Groucutt and Mik Kaminski, serving more as an oldies act than a source of new music. Lynne, in the meantime, consummated his longstanding affection for The Beatles by joining George Harrison in The Travelling Wilburys. In 2001, Jeff Lynne released Zoom under the ELO moniker.
| Date | ALBUMS / Singles |
|---|---|
| 1971 December | NO ANSWER (a.k.a. THE ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA) |
| 1971 | 10538 Overture |
| 1972 | Roll Over Beethoven |
| 1973 February | ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA II |
| 1973 September | Showdown |
| 1973 December | ON THE THIRD DAY |
| 1974 March | Ma-Ma-Ma Belle |
| 1974 | THE NIGHT THE LIGHT WENT OUT IN LONG BEACH |
| 1974 | Daytripper (live) |
| 1974 | Daybreaker (live) |
| 1974 June | Can't Get It Out of My Head |
| 1974 October | ELDORADO |
| 1974 October | SHOWDOWN |
| 1974 November | Eldorado |
| 1975 October | FACE THE MUSIC |
| 1975 November | Evil Woman |
| 1976 March | Nightrider |
| 1976 March | Strange Magic |
| 1976 June | OLÉ ELO |
| 1976 July | Showdown (live) |
| 1976 October | Livin' Thing |
| 1976 October | A NEW WORLD RECORD |
| 1976 | A NEW WORLD RECORD (Brazilian EP) |
| 1977 January | Do Ya |
| 1977 February | Rockaria! |
| 1977 April | THE LIGHT SHINES ON |
| 1977 May | Telephone Line |
| 1977 November | Turn To Stone |
| 1977 November | OUT OF THE BLUE |
| 1978 January | Mr. Blue Sky |
| 1978 February | Sweet Talkin' Woman |
| 1978 June | Wild West Hero |
| 1978 October | It's Over |
| 1978 December | ELO EP |
| 1978 December | THREE LIGHT YEARS |
| 1979 March | THE LIGHT SHINES ON VOL. 2 |
| 1979 May | Shine A Little Love |
| 1979 June | DISCOVERY |
| 1979 July | The Diary of Horace Wimp |
| 1979 July | Don't Bring Me Down |
| 1979 October | Confusion |
| 1979 November | ELO'S GREATEST HITS |
| 1979 November | Last Train To London |
| 1980 May | I'm Alive |
| 1980 June | Xanadu |
| 1980 July | XANADU |
| 1980 July | All Over The World |
| 1980 November | Don't Walk Away |
| 1980 | FOUR LIGHT YEARS |
| 1980 | A BOX OF THEIR BEST |
| 1981 July | Hold On Tight |
| 1981 August | TIME |
| 1981 October | Twilight |
| 1981? | 21st Century Man |
| 1981 December | Ticket To The Moon |
| 1982 January | Rain Is Falling |
| 1982 March | The Way Life's Mean To Be |
| 1983 June | Rock 'N' Roll Is King |
| 1983 June | SECRET MESSAGES |
| 1983 August | Secret Messages |
| 1983 September | Four Little Diamonds |
| 1983 | MILESTONES |
| 1983 | COLLECTION |
| 1984 January | Stranger |
| 1986 January | Calling America |
| 1986 March | BALANCE OF POWER |
| 1986 April | So Serious |
| 1986 April | FIRST MOVEMENT |
| 1986 July | Getting To The Point |
| 1988 March | ALL OVER THE WORLD |
| 1988 | A PERFECT WORLD OF MUSIC |
| 1989 December | THE GREATEST HITS |
| 1990 June | AFTERGLOW |
| 1990 October | THE VERY BEST OF THE ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA |
| 1990 | ELO CLASSICS |
| 1991 April | Honest Men |
| 1991 May | ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA PART TWO |
| 1991 August | EARLY ELO |
| 1991 October 14 | For The Love of a Woman |
| 1992? | ELO'S GREATEST HITS VOLUME 2 |
| 1992 | BURNING BRIGHT |
| 1992 | ELO'S GREATEST HITS LIVE |
| 1993 June | THE DEFINITIVE COLLECTION |
| 1994 July 7 | THE VERY BEST OF THE ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA (Dino) |
| 1994 August | Power of a Million Lights |
| 1994 October | MOMENT OF TRUTH |
| 1994 October | Breakin' Down The Walls |
| 1994 October | THE BEST VOLUME 1 |
| 1994 October | THE BEST VOLUME 2 |
| 1995 April | STRANGE MAGIC: THE BEST OF ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA |
| 1995 June | THE BEST OF ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA (Disky) |
| 1996 | IN CONCERT |
| 1997 May | ONE NIGHT - LIVE IN AUSTRALIA |
| 1997 | LIGHT YEARS: THE VERY BEST OF ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA |
| 1998 September | LIVE AT WEMBLEY '78 |
| 1998 September | LIVE AT WINTERLAND '76 |
| 1998 November | GREATEST HITS LIVE, VOL. 2: ENCORE COLLECTION |
| 1999 September | FRIENDS AND RELATIVES |
| 2000 March 28 | LIGHT UP THE NIGHT LIVE |
| 2000 October 3 | THE COMPLETE ELO LIVE COLLECTION |
| 2000 November 21 | FLASHBACK |
| 2001 May 8 | THE GOLD COLLECTION |
| 2001 June 12 | ZOOM |
| 2003 April 1 | THE ESSENTIAL ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA |
| 2004 March 2 | EARLY YEARS |
| 2005 April 5 | THE COLLECTION |
| 2005 June 21 | INSIDE THE ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA 1970-1973 |
| 2006 | THE HARVEST YEARS 1970-1973 |
| 2008 | THE VERY BEST OF THE ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA VOLUME 2 - TICKET TO THE MOON |
SEE ALSO...
KELLY GROUCUTT discography
JEFF LYNNE discography
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