Even if you wouldn’t consider yourself a die-hard fan of the Electric Light Orchestra (ELO), I bet there’s a song on this compilation that is connected to some fun memories for you from the 1970s. The songs on this album are from 1973-1978 and include my favorite – Strange Magic – as well as Evil Woman, Can’t Get It Out Of My Head, Sweet Talkin’ Woman, and Mr. Blue Sky.

How It Was Made

ELO’s Greatest Hits was released in 1979. Oddly the songs Don’t Bring Me Down and Shine a Little Love from their earlier 1979 album Discovery were not added to the compilation. I’m sure there is a fascinating behind-the-scenes record company decision for this, but it’s unknown to me. Rock and roll historians note that the LP’s album sleeve art featured a letter written by the band’s co-founder and leader, Jeff Lynne, describing the ’73–’78 period and the recording of each of the songs. Sadly that can’t be found with the cassette, but that doesn’t stop us from featuring a photo of the cassette in our Song Stories collection!

ELO’s Place In Music History

Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) is an English band formed in 1970 by Jeff Lynne and Roy Wood, both multi-talented songwriters and instrumentalists, along with drummer Bev Bevan. ELO created their own unique sound that has been called “a fusion of Beatlesque pop, classical arrangements, and futuristic iconography.”

Roy Wood departed after just two years, so in 1972 Lynne became the band’s sole leader, arranging and producing every album while writing nearly all of their original material. It’s obvious that ELO’s sound and style came from Lynne’s and Wood’s desire to create modern rock and pop songs with classical overtones. 

In 1986 ELO disbanded. Apart from a brief reunion in the early 2000s, ELO remained largely inactive until 2014, when Lynne re-formed the band again as Jeff Lynne’s ELO.

ELO enjoys tremendous success during their years together. During their original 13-year period of active recording and touring, they sold over 50 million records worldwide. From 1972 to 1986, ELO accumulated 27 top 40 songs on the UK Singles Chart and fifteen top 20 songs on the US Billboard Hot 100. In 2017, the 4 key members of ELO (Roy Wood, Jeff Lynne, Bev Bevan and Richard Tandy) were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Did you know that due to its popularity and frequent use in multiple television shows and movies, Mr. Blue Sky has sometimes been described as the band’s signature song?

“Hey there Mr. Blue
We’re so pleased to be with you
Look around see what you do
Everybody smiles at you”

Songwriter: Jeff Lynne
Mr. Blue Sky lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC

Grateful to this source for history and public domain photos: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_Light_Orchestra