Out Of The Blue

op zich goeie nummers.... beetje teveel van hetzelfde

Fav song: Night in the City

A lot of Beatles influence, but didn’t make the cut for me.

Out of the Blue is the seventh studio album by Electric Light Orchestra (ELO), originally released in 1977. I believe this is actually the first ELO album I've sat down and listened to. The whole double album was written by their frontman Jeff Lynne. It definitely has a theatric vibe to it. Like it veers into the glam rock side a bit too often. The production is great but maybe too great. It can come across as overproduced in spots. I'm sure in 1977 this was amazing but it hasn't aged very well. It's a bit bloated but was still an entertaining listen in my opinion.

Sounds like the 70s.

Enjoyable but a little too poppy for me.

Some good stuff, but most of it is a bit overwrought for my taste.

pretty out there. i like the groove, but a lot of it started to sound the same after a while. probably one of your favorite rock stars favorite records.

Take the Beatles, Pink Floyd, and add a bamboozling suite of American overproduction to add that disco and country twang to create ELO's Out of the Blue. This album has that unmistakable 70s sound. Orchestral overkill, and I say that relatively positively as I do actually enjoy this kind of sound. I think that this is a good album with a few stand outs (obviously Mr. Blue Sky is great, and we all know the song, but after listening to the whole album I think that Sweet Talkin Woman is the better single).

As much as I want to like ELO, I just never really have. I like Jeff Lynne, but ELO’s tunes just don’t vibe with me. Out Of The Blue is probably their best album, although admittedly I haven’t listened to them all. The opener Turn to Stone and of course Mr. Blue Sky are the only tunes I really “like”. I think I want the music to sound futuristic, but it sounds very dated to me, which I suppose is an unfair knock on an album approaching half a century old.

This was surprisingly pleasant. Obviously, Mr Blue Sky is a song that has woven its was into the fabric of society due to its irrepressible bouncy fun, but i wasnt sure how much more there would be to offer. A wealth of fun is to be had here with beautiful orchestration and arrangement, decent hooks and a light progginess that didnt swamp it all. Obviously, its way too long and could be accused of lacking real light and shade. But i enjoyed it on balance

Mr. Blue Sky is the best song. This group has a really well defined style and I think it's cool that they are so unique. All of it sounds a little samey which wouldn't be a problem if I really liked it, but most of them, I think sound good, but I don't love them as tracks. There are also some experiments on here where they go a little progressive or a little moody. Ultimately, this thing goes on too long and I skipped several tracks out of boredom.

Some songs 👍, but this got tedious by the end. I think listening to some albums all in one go/big chunks is messing with my enjoyment of music.

I think I'm confusing ELO with ELP which are much more serious and less poppy than this. This is like if prog rock got mixed up with some hippies or the Beatles. It's not bad it's just way more pop music than I expected. The production is very high level and it has to be for all the instruments involved. It sounds like they are running a full orchestra (heh) on some of these tracks. "Across the Border" has a goddamn mariachi band in it. Also sounds like twelve string guitars, a billion synth modules, etc, etc. It's all very expansive in terms of the playing and instruments. It's quite long. And by that I mean about twice as long as it should be. This could've been two albums (and it is a double, after all). It could be that I'm not listening hard enough but I'm not really getting a lyrical thematic element that requires a double album to get across. I guess the songs are all similar sounding, but thats more of a detriment really. Like if Tom Petty was actually 3 Tom Petty's and wrote the same song a bunch of times with 300 different instrumentalists. Even "Mr. Blue Sky" which has 990 MILLION plays on spotify is only remarkable because of the vocoder. My favorite on here is probably "Wild West Hero"; shame it took an hour to get to it. I think the biggest feeling I got from this is that it feels like a record company made this specifically for radio. Very strange given that it's this big rock band putting out a long album. It's not unlistenable, it's not poorly made (in fact it's excellently recorded and mastered from what I can tell), it's just kinda boring to me. Music for shopping malls in the 80's.

It doesn't have any major flaws, but it still doesn't appeal to me too much. The second half is much better than the first

abwechslungsreich und doch irgendwie eintönig.

A barbershop quartet of the future. I hear the beginnings of Daft Punk here, but also vestiges of the Beatles and The Bee Gees. First track starts off strong, a real feast for the ears. After, it slows, and with the exception of some great and evocative sounds, I stopped caring until Summer and Lightning. Overall, it’s a technically strong album that doesn’t quite narratively hold together for me. It’s lacking a bit of soul and it’s all over the place, jumping around in style even within songs. I’d rather listen to similar contemporaries, although I do acknowledge this album’s influence and importance. The Simon-esque spaceship receives a thousand points in my book.

very different, it's good but more would pick a few songs out of it rather than listen in full again

This is a good album, but it's really held up by Turn to Stone and Mr. Blue Sky. I also like the song Believe Me Now, though it's too short. Most other songs are meh or uninteresting, though Jungle is just plain bad. 2.5/5 -> 3/5.

Na het slaapverwekkende Big Star album is dit wel weer een lekker wakker word album! Turn to stone is heerlijk poppy en enthousiast. Het is super catchy pop allemaal, met knallers als Turn to Stone en Sweet talkin woman. Maar mijn hemeeeeel, wat kakt dit daarna in zeg! Het pakt daarna weer even volle bak op met Mr Blue Sky, maar verder vind ik dit voornamelijk een vrij 'ok' album. Niet echt nummers die er uit springen eigenlijk. Best wel ballsy om Mr Blue Sky zo in het midden te plaatsen? Vraag me af hoeveel mensen dit hadden gehoord? Was het een single van tevoren? Want zo sterk is de rest van het album toch niet? het zal wel, album is verder best ok. De grotere hits halen het op naar een prima! FAVO: Turn to Stone, Sweet talkin woman, Mr Blue Sky(duh)

Good but won’t return

I am a little too young to have been around for ELO's heyday. Of course they were still known and still producing music in the 80's and that is when I discovered them and really liked them. However, by then I heard the "hits" mainly and was a big fan of their greatest hits albums and all of that. I had little to no exposure to their mainstream, full album playlists. So, I was excited when this album came up in my queue. After listening though... I don't know what I expected? Maybe some gems I had not heard or a kind of "Oh yeah! This song!" string of hits? But what I got was largely a relatively obscure album with little heard songs and a few "I might know this ones" Luckily I like the ELO signature sound overall and I am not saying the album was not OK to listen to, It was good. I think it is probably something better reserved for a long term specific fan of the band than a casual listener like myself.

ELO is one of those bands where the singles are a great time, but the full albums leave me wanting. This double record get same-y very quickly. Mr. Blue Sky is rocks.

Rock, Pop, 1977 -> 4

2024-07-24: First!

God, I want to like this *so much more than I do*. I like Jeff Lynne, or at least I think I do. I think his three-album run as producer of Cloud Nine, Traveling Wilburys Vol. One, and Full Moon Fever in the late 80's can be stacked up against any three-album run by any producer. But...I don't know. Everything here is *so* clean and *so* sheen that I just don't really connect with it. And it's always so, so much. Chill on the vocoder and the strings. Yes, I KNOW that's your thing and why so many people love this, but not me. It's not bad, and there are songs I dig (especially "Jungle" and "Mr. Blue Sky"), but it's not anywhere near the top of my list. 3/5

Happy to be made to listen to it, after so many years of being aware of it's presence and not bothering. Positives: Some songs are pretty good. You can hear the Beatles strongly throughout which is no bad thing. Negatives: Way too long Vocoder ruins some songs, even arguably the best on the album. Very outdated instrument. Quite samey, though this probably ties into the length. Glad I was made to listen to it, but won't be running back. Ironically for a band that wanted to extend the Beatles and bring them into the future, they ended up sounding very dated and not standing the test of time, unlike the Beatles.

Incredibly catchy, but leaves me wanting Electric Light Morechestra.

É um álbum bem típico da década de 1970, não possui grandes feitos. Não é um trabalho ruim, não se difere dos demais inseridos na mesma época. Destaque para Mr. Blue Sky.

Some solid tunes, but a lot of tracks are too over the top.

The music isn’t bad, but really not my vibe. The album cover is kind of cool though.

Warmed over seventies Beatles has more tuneful and less awful than I expected considering how much I dislike Jeff Lynne. That overdone production tho eww.

Enjoyed this album. Mr Blue Sky is the definitive winner for me. Song is just so damn catchy. Not sure I would go into the rest of their catalog, but definitely enjoyed my time listening to them yesterday.

Buen album, bastante disfrutable , ademas de Mr. Blue Sky. Turn to Stone como primer track es brutal. Jungle da vibes de funk con ese beat,Believe Me Now es corta pero buenarda también.

It isn’t just anyone who could combine strings, horns, electric guitar, harmonies and cow bell and produce such enjoyable results.

I was going to give this 4 stars for unadulterated nostalgia. But listening to the whole thing again... it's not quite a 4 star album. Obviously the big hits 'Turn to stone' ' Mr Blue Sky' 'Sweet talkin Woman' etc. are burned deeply into the earliest memories of those of us born in the 70s, but this shouldn't even be a double, a lot of it is smooth-radio-country. And it really really does sound a lot like Beatles tropes everywhere. However this is a classic album cover if ever I saw one, the gatefold was excellent fun back and front. Ridiculous, over-produced, rambles on forever but has the hits where it counts. Jeff's big sprawling and highly polished magnum opus.

Me before Mr. Blue Sky comes on: When is Mr. Blue Sky going to come on Me while Mr. Blue Sky is on: Nice Me after Mr. Blue Sky has come on: Damn I wish Mr. Blue Sky would come back on

I'm on my haterade today. A few hits. I'm not feeling nothing else

Happy and cheerful songs

Interesting in places, and overall pretty enjoyable, but oddly sterile and hollow-sounding. Another one where I prefer listening to a song or two rather than a whole album; there where parts where I was enjoying it, but I also got pretty annoyed, especially toward the end.

Me gusta más la segunda parte del disco. La primera parte es como música ahí de fondo, que no molesta.

3.5/5

Good album - very dad rock and a bit silly at times, but nice overall

Very cinematic (even outside of Mr Blue Sky, how many of these songs have been used in movie montages… sounds like all of them would fit). Kinda flopped back and forth, I think for that very reason, between finding this to be good-but-not-my-thing (thought a few too many times about Guardians of the Galaxy) and finding the construction as pop music very exciting and progressive (other times I thought about Sufjan’s Age of Adz).

I had fun! I’ll admit to being an ELO hater but today I went on a nice walk and it was sunny and warm and I had a pleasant time!

very fun and super enjoyable pop bangers on here - album was a bit long for my tastes but did not really overstay it's welcome

Puhh det var ret generisk, og ikke lige mig. Ikke direkte dårligt, men bare alt for meget det samme. Også bare latterligt langt...

Not moay kup ov teeeya

It's an album I can say I neither loved nor hated. I'd say its closer to a 2.5 for being way too long

Again, clearly very high quality music and it’s very uptempo which is great vibes. It’s just a bit too one note for my taste.

Quite enjoyed this (although really noticed the Beatles debt after listening to so much Beatles lately, something that didn't occur to me when I first heard ELO in the 70s) but it was too long and some of the tracks were a bit samey.

70s, psychadelic rock

Decent but very repetitive

already listened to it, very nice, one of my fav double albums

Fuck knows, felt dead long and dead partridge.

It was fine, not really my cup of tea though

i did like it. i didn’t finish because it got a little redundant to me but i would def go back to finish. it has that classic rock type of vocal style that isn’t bad but it was just registering to me like “oh i’m not in the mood for classic rock lately” but i did find a lot of influence for modern stuff like MGMT. the instrumentals are very cool and innovative. will come back! :)

Chill and a good listen, but Mr Blue Sky is doing the real heavy lifting on this album

Jeg synes Jeff Lynne er en god sangskriver der laver gudesmukke hooks, men ELO vil desværre aldrig være andet end “hvad hvis Queen var straight?” for mig

Synes ærlig talt at det bliver lidt uoverskueligt at skulle tage stilling til 70 minutters musik. Der var nogle gode ideer og det lød fint, men det kommer til at tage lang tid at genhøre for at finde de bedste sange... Ikke umiddelbart noget jeg eksplicit sætter på selv, men nok heller ikke noget jeg direkte skipper

Super catchy, but feels a little dissatisfying, like processed food. The songs on this album (which like most double albums, is too long) tend to blend into one another; there's not a ton to differentiate them. However merits three stars at least for Mr Blue Sky.

Another surprising album. ELO seems so corny but I liked this album. The hits are there (Turn to Stone, Mr. Blue Sky), all of the songs hang together and there's very little to actively dislike.

Enjoyed this overall. Light and breezy, but with a few interesting bits to lift it out the doldrums.

Good!

Very Beatles with a hint of prog and disco orchestration

Psychedelic and pretty good.

Could’ve cut this down a few songs. Way over the top but also gives us one of the happier songs in life with Mr Blue Sky.

mocne 4/5 podobalo mi sie to, tyler the creator vibe type shit

I was surprised by how long this album was, felt like it could've easily been two.

Is it normal to hate and love something, in equal proportion? Like I hate this style for how cheesy it is. But it’s so unapologetically cheesy, that I have to respect it. Also, it’s hard to hate on something that’s mostly jolly, earnest and naive. Also, too, there’s an adequate amount of cowbell. That said, I prefer The Darkness, and won’t listen to this again.

fun but way too long

good futuristic sound and can hear influences of Queen and The Beatles album starts strong but tends to drag on some songs/parts are overproduced but overall enjoyable album and fits the vibe for a long summer drive

Big unique sound, a few notable songs, the rest just blends together.

A pretty good album, but there is a reason "Mr. Blue Sky" is the most well-known track (although I thought "Birmingham Blues" was also pretty good.

Landmark album from ELO. A perfect display of what they can do and what they do well! Run's a bit long though...

Foi bacana, muito diferente do que eu tô acostumado.

Enjoyed this, but isn’t really something Iw old seek out.

First songs varied from wonderful to just okay. Apparently super populair because You Tube presented me with their bloody MacDonalds commercial (come on people, don't suggest that that garbage is proper food) every 2 minutes, whichever link I tried. Had to give up.

Good solid 70s rock by a premium 70s rock band. Their sound didn't change much as they wrote Xanadu!

ELO is definitely one of my favorite “classic rock” bands. This is still way too long and has some fat that could be trimmed! Still, I love their arrangements and sonic quality. I’m on their weird wavelength! 3.5

Probably a 3.5 for me. Like me some ELO but it can be very ELOish.

Very average, looking at below average territory. Music is pretty good, classic 70s rock, but the vocals are a challenge for a normal human being. I guess I will leave it at 3 out of 5, because somehow I made it to the end of the record.

It was good. I probably won’t listen to it again.

...

I had a suspicion after hearing this that Taylor Hawkins was a fan. It sounds a lot like his music. I was right. RIP. Kinda sounds like a knock-off Queen/Beatles/Billy Joel, but also sounds pretty good??? 6/10

Catchy, but a bit poppy for my tastes. I'd never heard of Electric Light Orchestra or even Mr. Blue Sky before this listen...

Good pop album and mostly an enjoyable listen. It stands the test of time pretty well but feels a little sterile and over produced in places. Stand out tracks for me were Mr Blue Sky and Sweet Talkin’ Woman

starts off strong, gets boring. some really good songs though

Fun, lively and energetic. Can’t say I was familiar with this artist before this project, but this was a pretty entertaining record. Some unique sounds and compositions.

I do enjoy ELO, but maybe not a full album of theirs all at once.

blue

There are a few good songs here, like Turn To Stone, Across The Border, Starlight, Believe Me Now, Standing In The Rain, Summer and Lightning and Mr Blue Sky - but this album doesn't quite reach the height for me.

the album was/ felt so long i could listen to it all. (also i didnt listen to it yesterday so im doing two today). the songs were all very similar but all pretty good.

This is not the album of theirs that Eric played over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over again. 3.5

I enjoyed the hits, and the production and instrumentation are nice, but the album felt pretty repetitive to me. Didn't really draw me in and I felt bored.

This is a great album. It has taken me a while to properly get into ELO. For years I appreciated the big singles but never fully bought into the whole sound. In recent years though, it has really clicked, and Out of the Blue shows exactly why they were so huge. It is ambitious, melodic and unapologetically grand. The strings, harmonies and huge choruses could easily tip into over the top territory, but somehow it all works. There is a real sense of scale to the album, yet it never loses its pop instincts. The hooks are everywhere. Turn to Stone is a brilliant opener, full of energy and drive, and It’s Over shows the more emotional, dramatic side of the band. Even across a long running time, it rarely drags. It feels like a fully realised vision rather than just a collection of songs. Favourite song: Turn to Stone and It’s Over Least favourite song: Birmingham Blues Album artwork: Amazing cover. Iconic and perfectly matching the space age ambition of the music

Singles are okay. Okay-ish, anyway.

Meh

At the time, I would have thought this to be "spacy", for lack of a better word. The sound if late-Beatleish with a slant towards the late 70s or even early 80s. Sonically, everything is good. It's just, that short of one or two songs (Mr. Blue Sky, anyone?), this is a forgettable affair. Pity. 3/5

I feel like I should like this a lot more than I do. For whatever reason, they've just never clicked for me in spite of me liking all of their component parts. I think maybe it's just a bit too 70s-y for me?

Decent album! I liked mr blue sky

ELO / Jeff Lynne has a very, very distinct sound but there is a bit of sameness. This isn't a bad album and Mr. Blue Sky is a great song but it doesn't resonate better than three stars for me.

ELO’s greatest hits is up there with any rock band’s. Seriously, go listen to it. However, with this album, once you’ve heard a few songs you’ve kinda heard em all

3.5 some really good songs and musicianship. They could have cut some of the filler songs to make a better album

A bit dated, but also fun and familiar. I like some of the songs.

A classic, I know, but I don't think I've actually listened to the whole album before, or really heard most of the non-radio-hits. It's impressive how much the vocoder makes this sound a bit like time travel music-wise, with synthesizer-like sounds showing up in an analog context (the live string and horn sections contrast nicely with the sci-fi vocoder, or whatever synthesizer process gives the synth sounds and vocal manipulation). A fun listen, although not really my favorite sound, and it's sometimes hard for me to distinguish ELP, ELO, and Yes. And of course a few great radio hits like "Sweet Talkin' Woman" and "Mr. Blue Sky" make it a better experience (that helps you forget some of the weaker songs on the somewhat tediously long double-album).

Paul not my cup of tea

Meh. Some good songs but a lot of slog.

This album had some cool aspects to it instrumentally, but I was never able to get hooked and it kind of dragged on. Turn to Stone being the first song was really the high point that song its very fun. I didn't hate it by any stretch but I was happy when the album was over.

Предимно заради mr blue sky. Иначе разчупено звучат, ама не ме грабна нищо др

This really feels like the same experience over and over. If you like it, you'll love it. If not????

Very cool and creative group, and this album holds many good songs. I want to like them more for their creativity and uniqueness, but I think I might have burnt out a bit on them throughout the years and have a hard time really appreciating it THAT much. 'Mr. Blue Sky' is especially good, and there are some other songs I forgot the name of that are decent as well, along with some that pass by unnoticed. The length of the album was very noticeable as I got fed up by the end and just wanted it to be over. I was contemplating putting a 4 on this, but I don't feel like I want to revisit it soon, and it feels a bit weaker than some other 4s as well so it's going to be a strong 3 instead.

I really enjoy ELO in small doses. It has lots of qualities i like: innovative, orchestral and just plain fun. So when I started listening to "Turn to stone" I was really feeling it and looking forward to the rest of the album. It really has moments of greatness but for some reason i always get the feeling I'm done with ELO after a few songs and it instead feels bland for some reason I can't really but my finger on. Anyway, "Turn to Stone" as previously mentioned is great and so is "Mr Blue Sky". For new songs I discovered I hadn't heard "Standin' in the Rain" which was which was great. Actually the whole movement of "Standin' in the rain", "Big Wheels" and "Mr Blue Sky" was great and made "Mr Blue Sky" even better as a part of a bigger whole. Anyway, I feel a 3 is a bit harsh but I can't really bring myself to give it a 4 either.

Listened Before? N Pretty good prog album. I'm familiar with these guys but hadn't listened to them much. Enjoyable. Added to Library? N Songs added to playlist: Mr. Blue Sky

ELO is an acquired taste. There tends to be a lot of similar instrumentation and treated vocals across all the tunes, and so if you like the sound, you'll like it, and if you don't like it, you won't like any of it, pretty much. This record has a couple of classics in "Turn to Stone" and "Mr. Blue Sky" which both still sound great and interesting today. The rest of the record is unfortunately somewhat forgettable, tunes blend into each other and don't have the hooks and songwriting necessary to really stick out like those two specific tracks do.

Pop/rock with occasional string arrangements and some synths from time to time. Catchy, but nothing that stands out too me.

probably too much with a double album

It’s alright, one stand out song is Mr Blue Sky, the rest is just ok

Lots of classic songs, but too slick for my taste.

Mr Blue Sky is awesome but the rest is a weird version of a less bombastic Queen. Respect the orchestral arrangements though.

Just a bit too 70s synth for me.

So Jeff Lynn was involved in a lot of really great collaborations and some of my favorite albums of all time... But unfortunately for me electric Light orchestra never did it for me. I could never really put my finger on it but it was just their overall sound. Maybe because Don't bring me down was overplayed on the radio. Giving him a 2.68 rounded up to 3 because he is a Wilbury.

3,5 It's really easy to understand how much Jeff Lynne love the Beatles and Bowie. Buuuuut it's not because you take ideas from the best commercial artists of all time that you can reach their level. However it's fun, you can easily dance to My blue sky. Feel peace with the whale or Jungle. So much interesting music and ways to use new instrument. It feels like a Chicago album, for a space movie. I'm feeling it, liking it but I will probably forget it in 2 weeks. Fav : It's Over / Mr Blue Sky Worst : Birmingham Blues

It's... I mean it's alright, I guess. These fells are clearly talented but most of this album has a distinct disco stank on it that's just distasteful. The saving grace here is that the back 3rd of the album is actually pretty good. Even the disco grossness is dialed back in favor of a more Stones-esque vibe.

Something similar to Queen and The Beatles

ELO is nice, but sometimes (for me) too easy, too smooth, too beautiful.

Out of the Blue I do like ELO a lot, they have some absolutely superb songs in their catalogue. I’ve given most of their albums a listen over the past few years but I’ve never been able to really latch on to any of them, despite loving a lot of the songs. This is no exception, there are some cracking tunes on here - Turn to Stone, Night in the City, Starlight, Jungle, Big Wheels, Summer and Lightning, Birmingham Blues, as well as the classics Sweet Talkin’ Woman and Mr Blue Sky - and in fact I don’t think any of the songs are particularly weak, but there is a similarity in tone, sound, structure, arrangement and production that it becomes hard to differentiate a lot of the songs. I am a fan of their signature style and I do like the mix of pop, rock, disco and, of course, the orchestral elements, but over the course of 70 minutes it feels like might be nice to disrupt that formula from time to time. I get there is a consistency and coherence but some variation would be welcome. I did like it, some of the subtleties became clear on repeated listens, and there are some superb songs, but the whole thing doesn’t quite settle with me for some reason that I cant quite work out. ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Enjoyed the album when I was in high school, however not one of my favorites. I did like Sweet is the Night and The Whale.

sometimes it was really good and other times it was average

Can’t really say I’m digging it. It’s hard for me to put my finger one what isn’t working for me. Definitely don’t like the guy’s voice. And doesn’t really seem like they are singing about anything. Like, thematically the songs are just kinda empty. Mr. Blue Sky is alright, but mostly because it reminds me of “Ziggy Stardust” which is a better song. “Sweet is the Night” is pretty good also. Interesting mostly as a precursor to the Flaming Lips, who I would say really built on and developed these ideas in a much more interesting and deeply felt direction.

3.5/5

Fun but a little long and gimmicky with so much of the layered melody effects. No real complaints

Decent enough effort from my least favourite Wilbury. Extra star for Mr Blue Sky.

I don't understand why this is considered so iconic - it's the blandest, most milquetoast shit ever. Stand-out: Sweet Talkin' Woman

Me gusta más la segunda parte del disco. La primera parte es como música ahí de fondo, que no molesta.

Some tunes but felt like listening to the same song again after a while

Light pop, and the album includes Mr Blue Sky. What’s not to like. I give this 3 stars.

My punk loving heart tried hard to give this stink eye scorn. But some of these sounds are hard wired to ridiculous summer day fun in the swimming pool with ELO in the background which nearly hard wires me to smile on hearing it. Poppy, for sure. It isn’t Queen or Bowie it’s spangly stuff with orchestral bits thrown in but come on, Mr. Blue Sky is just fun. I want to give it a 3.5 but I can’t. Sigh. A 3 it is.

Pretty awesome, but not awesome enough for a 4*. I wish I could give a 3,5 or anything.

A bit overflowing at times, for my liking. Some good songs in the second half of the album

Some cool songs some not so good ones. It’s an average record with some moments of brilliance.

Ratings: 5: I will happily play this album anytime 4: I may occasionally play this album of my own free will 3: I will happily listen to this if someone plays it in the background 2: I will tolerate this if it is playing in the background 1: I will leave the room if someone plays this in the background Definitive 3. There are some bright spots on this album, but Jeff Lynne's production will always prevent me from choosing to play it. I enjoyed the listens though.

I’ve never listened to an ELO album from start to finish, so this is a first. I found it pleasant enough. It’s hard to not like Mr Blue Sky. And I really liked the last track Wild West Hero.

Lidt langt

Long album, but some great songs on it.

Always liked ELO but a bit samey.

I'm chuckling at the chord similarity of Believe Me Now to the Beatles new single Now and Then. Just kind of makes things a little full circle with the ELO-Beatles thing. Orchestral tinged pop rock with irresistable hooks and harmonies. Such an obvious riffing off of Beatles structure. I'm feeling very short attention span today so it seems a bit much. Turn to Stone and Sweet Talkin' Woman are among my earliest songs I recall from my childhood. Clearly they've benefitted from a renaissance once Mr. Blue Sky was included in the Marvel Universe. Aside from the hits, Steppin' Out is a standout -- also The Whale sounds vaguely David Bowie-ish.

many of the songs have the same vibe, and for that reason it feels long with its 17 tracks. Beatles but futuristic with an orchestra. An extension of mr. Blue Sky

Hadn’t ever listened to the whole album and found it’s pretty good.

Fun for Monday morning

an album of singles meant for 45s. too hard to get through in any one sitting

Some great bangers, others were ok!

Impressive; great rhythms

Always liked ELO's music. But, all sounds the same after a while.

I remember several of these songs, being an ELO fan since my teens. Not my favorite of their albums but a good second or third place.

Highly polished complex pop/rock music. Unfortunately, it's too smooth and just passes me by. Inoffensive.

Only know Mr. Blue sky going in Used it during reading time. Pleasant listening. Enjoyed the synth vibe

I came. I listened. I left. Felt too much like work finishing it.

Good stuff. Can pop up in my play list if it likes.

Knew the singles. Good strings and very cohesive overall. 7/10.

Its nice. Not my normal go to but enjoyable.

Last week was not a good week for album selections in my personal opinion so this was a nice change. Heard the name, don’t know the songs apart from Sweet Talking Woman (ruined by usage in TV adverts) and Mr Blue Sky. Not fully enjoyed but an average 3 given how it’s an improvement over last week.

Music my dad used to listen to!

Better in small doses. Was very over the sound by the end of the album.

Big 3

I liked it

An hour and then some of tracks that are hard to distinguish from each other. Then comes Mr Blue Sky and you think the whole album has basically been stripping that track back for parts and trying to run with it, The success rate is pretty low.

Honestly enjoyed this album a lot more than I thought I would

Teil meiner musikalischen Erziehung. Drei Sterne.

вайб как будто более успокоившихся спиритуалайзд. есть космические приколы, но если там ты прям ебариш на ракете, то тут уже пристыковался к мкс и чиллишь

Bouncy and light-hearted, but ultimately very repetitive and far longer than it should have been.

My first thoughts listening to this on my run this morning -- Not my bag. “Mr Blue Sky” is undeniably a banger though, and it’s the song where ELO is trying their hardest to make a McCartney Beatles song. 70 minutes is a bit of a slog to get through. However, I might give it another chance on my nicer headphones, I think the orchestration could benefit from that. OK, I admit, I am already liking this a lot better from the start, my AirPods can make a nice enough sound at times, but this is certainly an album that benefits from the Headphones experience. The vocoder is pretty sick. "It's Over." Still ended up wearing on me a bit by the end. I’m going with a strong 3.

Fun stuff here. Orchestrations and arrangements are masterly. But I mean, what kind of person are you if you’re listening to ELO regularly?

Very good

Pleasantly uplifting and enjoyed pretty much through the whole thing with only a few moments where it lost me 3.5/5

Very good. 3/5

A good Album. But not there best. I like Eldorado more. Not so commercial. And "I can't get it out if my head" is one of my all times favorits.

Enjoyable album

Such a unique sound. This mix of orchestral strings with voice effects and rock melodies just somehow works. 3.5/5 Might listen again

Some really nice songs. Nice 70-ties vibes. A bit too smooth but a good album.

Pretty recognizable songs here, yeah an album of the time 3.2

It was fun, heard a lot of song I recognised but didn't know where they'd come from. Some tracks made me feel like I was watching film credits over and over again, however.

Fun album, though i feel like there was a serious missed opportunity. The best moments were when the band gets weird with song structure/instrumentation, with "Mr Blue Sky" being the obvious crown jewel. Too many of the other songs have very ordinary classic rock song structures, and they dont hit the same heights as some of their other hit songs like "Dont Bring Me Down". I do feel like if the mixed some of the songs to be more vocal forward, it might have felt a little better. Overall fun listen though!

It's a great album but it's not necessarily my taste. I like having it on in the background while I worked on stereo gear in my basement.

Mr Blue sky is a classic, the rest of this album is mid

I like ELO, so it was fun to hear some of there lesser known tracks. These guys are good a creating a well-crafted pop song. Nothing life-changing for me on here, but I still enjoyed.

Great album.

Interesting album and totally different sound from anything else at the time. Three really good songs on it.

Good Liked tracks: Mr. Blue Sky

When I think about ELO, the glossy vocal arrangements seemingly from the future are the first thing to come to mind. I find myself being reminded that this was in fact a music product of the late 70s. Under that super shiney sheen are some almost.. Regular pop rock songs. I think that's why the band is at their best when they are being overly dramatic. Personal favorites include "Mr. Blue sky" and "standing in the rain". 3.5⭐

Komische Musik. So Rockmusik, bisschen Hippie mäßig. Aber gar nicht so übel. Geiles Cover. Es dudelt so vor sich hin und ist viel zu lang. Bestimmt historisch betrachtet irgendwie interessant, aber nix für mich.

3.5/5 - not everything on this album hits the highs of the highlights, Mr. Blue Sky the obvious gem but still an enjoyable listen throughout

55/100 Based on this scale: 1 star - 0 to 19 2 stars - 20 to 39 3 stars - 40 to 59 4 stars - 60 to 79 5 stars - 80 to 100 It felt a bit bland at first, but then the slightly "proggy" elements came in. Even then, the blandness wasn't wholly abandoned, but it managed to be interesting at times. Some nice bits with instrumentation.

Believe me now. Gezellige plaat.

Its fun. I love the album cover. 3.5/5

is ol

Of course everyone loves Mr. Blue Sky, which is a song that would lead you to believe that the album, like the song, would be a grand exhibition. And while the opposite is not the case, it definitely is somewhere in the middle. This album is like the trippy Beatles sound a few more instruments and delay effects then kicked up the weird another notch. The talent is there, and the songwriting is good, but it’s not monumental. It’s good.

Oh fuck yes! Mr Blue Sky is on constant rotation for me. Turn to Stone with all its strings is a fun opener. A lot of 70s goodness in the instruments, harmonies and overall upbeat feeling. Enjoyed Steppin Out, Believe Me Now.

This feels like along album. It's fine I guess. I didn't find anything that gripped me musically or lyrically. Perhaps the best I can say is that for its time there's a lot of slick gloss here stuck to some quite middling ideas. I understand why it's here on this list, but it's not something I'll be throwing on for my own listening pleasure.

This album was so long!

Great arrangements and 70s production. Enjoyed it, just not my jam.

All the hits are 4s. And they are super strong 4s. But the other songs are all good, but they all sound the same.

3.5

Takie Beatlesowe, ale czego się spodziewać po latach 70' w UK. Przyjemnie się słucha na chillową posiadówkę.

Very of it's time, but not bad.

ELO is an acquired taste. There tends to be a lot of similar instrumentation and treated vocals across all the tunes, and so if you like the sound, you'll like it, and if you don't like it, you won't like any of it, pretty much. This record has a couple of classics in "Turn to Stone" and "Mr. Blue Sky" which both still sound great and interesting today. The rest of the record is unfortunately somewhat forgettable, tunes blend into each other and don't have the hooks and songwriting necessary to really stick out like those two specific tracks do. I'd give it a seven if that was an option, but since that isn't, I don't think it deserves four stars...

ELO is good! Kind of a long album, but enjoyable overall!

Decent stuff but I never could get into ELO's sound.

great start a little easy to lose focus

Cool 👍🏽

Really enjoyed this one. 3.5 out of 5.

Tää oli hyvä vaikka toi elektroninen vääntö ei iha sopinu mulle. Unohin et Mr. Blue Sky oli tältä bändiltä, myös Sweet Talkin Woman ja Across the Border oli jees.

A fun album. Probably didn't need to be over an hour long. Had high hopes for this record since Mr. Blue Sky rips - was a little let down but overall a good listen.

Pretty one note, and full of songs heard pretty frequently.

A fine line between coherent and samey. Too damn long as an album. Quite fun but needs an edit.

Not for me. A few stand out tracks and of course, Mr Blue Sky

Enjoyably high tempo & light. Very indicative of the time it was made - very synth pop sing songy vocals

Favorite Tracks Summer and Lightning Mr Blue Sky Sweet is the Night

I like: Sweet Talkin' Woman Starlight Jungle Mr. Blue Sky

Festif et orchestral, mais trop « hop la vie » pour moi

Good low key but not my vibe really

Excellent production. Excellent music. Some excellent songs. Lots of filler.

A more cheerful poppy Pink Floyd - Mr Blue Sky is an all-timer

en voi antaa korkeampaa kuin kolme tästä puuttuu itsehillintä, hyvällä tapaa sekä ymmärrys

A fun ride.

I wasn't listening in the best circumstances, but while it was certainly an entertaining collection of songs, there just seemed to be a huge gap between the hits that I was familiar with and the other tracks. The hits are amazing and there's three or four of them here, but the rest just felt insignificant.

decent.

Despite the expected cool instrumentation, non-single tracks get kinda boring.

A consistent album that built a sound and stuck with it…decent example of 1970s Prog Rock!

ok overall somewhat repetitive with a few great songs

I love sapce. magical aura

solid no doubt but forgettable honestly

Funky and sometimes mellow but overall pretty safe. Maybe the best ‘pop’ prog album? Mr Blue Sky is a masterpiece.

A very strong 3. The album has some great disco pop rock but is dragged down by its bloat. There is a really great album hiding in there.

Not really my type of music but I can appreciate that it’s good. Mr Blue Sky is the obvious highlight. The rest of the songs start to get a bit samey the longer you listen.

Pretty cool, haven’t listened to much stuff with this kind of loud instrumentation before. Reminded me a bit of David Bowie? Also for some reason never listened to the full song of Mr Blue Sky before this so, that was also cool.

Interesting mix of genres and elements which could also be from the 2000s

An album I'm actually familiar with before reviewing! Endearingly cheesy, with some legitimately strong hooks and all-time classics. The production on this album sounds really good for its time. Fav Tracks: Turn to Stone, Sweet Talkin' Woman, Starlight, Believe Me Now, Steppin' Out, Mr. Blue Sky, Wild West Hero Least Fav Track: Jungle 7/10

Turn to Stone: Solid 4 (Iconic) It's Over: Light 3 Sweet Talkin Woman: Solid 4 (Iconic) Across the Border: Heavy 2 (kinda bothersome) Night in the City: Heavy 2 (love the strings!, song is alittle annoying, all over the place) Starlight: Light 4 Jungle: Light 4 Believe Me Now: n/a Steppin Out: Lightest 4 Standing in the Rain: 3 (great practical instrumental really close to a 4) Big Wheels: Solid SOLID 4 Summer and Lightning: Light 4 Mr. Blue Sky: 4 (iconic) Sweet Is the Night: Light 4 The Whale: Heavy 2/Light 3 Birmingham Blues: Lightest 3 Wild West Hero: Lightest 3 (good blend from BBlues) Overall, I really like the production and specifically inventive composition, feels like a Beatles album but still inventive enough. Strings are a plus and a half

✅🅾️✅✅🅾️🅾️✅🅾️🅾️🅾️✅✅✅✴️🅾️🅾️ Musicality: 7/10 Lyrics: 5/10 Track Diversity: 5/10 Production Quality: 7/10 Replay Value: 8/10 Enjoyment: 7/10 Average: 6.5/10

Mr Blue Sky is an unimpeachably great pop song The rest of the album sounds like knock offs of it

Good music, just not my thing.

ELO wrote some decent stuff, and had an instantly recognisable sound. Some of their material can be a bit samey, but when its good, its very, very good. This albums got some classics, and is a good listen.

Ok. Mr bkue sky is a great song

There's something about ELO that reminds me of Broadway musicals. Maybe it's the harmonies and the orchestra, and the general prog rock ethos. But I also think that they've achieved a Sci Fi vibe that is stronger and more unique than what many of the 70s prog rock bands vied for. I can see "Sweet Talkin' Woman" as the hold music or elevator music on the planet Xerces (I don't know), or "Summer and Lightning" playing distantly in a Dune-like landscape. And for these reasons, there's something about this album that is making my office job that I'm sitting at right now (definitely working) feel much more cinematic. Special shout out to the ghostly synths of "Starlight," which was a delight since it's almost the Halloween season. Totally unexpected and fun. Overall though, it got a bit "same-y." Solid 3.

Again, catchy stuff, but a little too simple for me... I have to revisit this one when I feel like listening to some pop-ish rock?

3.5

Está bien. Influencias de los Beatles y beachboys. Poquita sangre

So übertrieben komponiert und arrangiert, dass es eine Freude ist, jedenfalls ist es nie langweilig. Klingt manchmal nach Queen und Pink Floyd und Bowie und und und, 1977 halt. Was nicht schlimm ist.

Elo har gjort så många bra låtar. Detta album saknar hits om vi bortser från deras största, Mr. Blue sky. Fullt godkänd platta dock.

- Great collection of songs that all have great vibes - A little long and a lot of the songs sound similar to each other - Mr. Blue Sky and Turn to Stone are perfection - 3.5

I was only familiar with Mr Blue Sky before, but overall I enjoyed this. It was interesting to see the beginnings of prog rock

Znám samozřejmě skladbu Mr. Blue Sky, takže jsem plus mínus věděla, co očekávat. Na téměř hodinu a půl dlouhou dávku čistého veselí a funku musí být člověk v tom správném rozpoložení, jinak se snadno může stát, že to bude neuvěřitelně otravný poslech. Já byla v náladě neutrální, a tak mi nevadilo to mít na repeat puštěné v pozadí, nicméně poslech byl trochu náročnější, jelikož nejde o hudbu, kterou běžně poslouchám. Nicméně jsem si to docela užila, i když asi celé album neuslyším v dohledné budoucnosti znova. Hudba je dobře konstruovaná, instrumentace je zajímavá, vokály jsou zábavné, i když ten častý robotický efekt už mě fakt štval a pár písniček mi zkazil, hlavně Believe Me Now, nebýt toho to mohl být super dramatický zážitek. Většina písniček mi splývala a nezapamatuji si je. Vibe je však jasný, ucelený a své posluchačstvo si to našlo podle všeho. K pár skladbám se nejspíš vrátím. Nejlepší písničky: Night in the City, Mr. Blue Sky Nejhorší písničky: nic (žádná mě neurazila, spíš jich je víc nudných) Hodnocení: 7/10

Pretty fun music buuuut, not enough variety on display to justify the 70 minute runtime if you ask me. Felt like the same ideas were repeated several times each to get to 17 songs. I'd say 2.5.

i grew up with this album a wee bit so its dear to my heart. its sweet and fun, if bland in places. most of these tracks are very familiar and cosy for me. I acknowledge that its generally quite samey and Jeff Lynn is not a particularly great vocalist. but the orchestral elements are used in delightful ways.

This one was a strong 3 for me. beat my expectations for the album but didn't blow me away

THIS IS SOOOO BORING IT JUST MAKES ME WANT TO LISTEN TO ABBEY ROAD ITS SO TACKY 6/10

super slick and catchy but i couldn’t sense any heart

Classic? Yes. 10/10? No.

Ìets teveel Beatles-inspiratie naar mijn smaak. Maar minder zeurend/zeikerig dan het eerdere Beatles-werk en minder kinderachtig dan het latere werk. En je hoort ook de inspiratie door anderen voldoende terug. Zo denk ik tijdens het luisteren ineens aan het nummer 'Daydream' en later aan Abba. Af en toe pakt een fragment mij, meestal het 'Orchestra' gedeelte. (Ben inmiddels halverwege het volgende album van DJ Shadow en hoor in mijn hoofd nog steeds Night in the Sky erdoor heen. Dat melodietje had ook zomaar op dat album kunnen staan.)

Psychedelische Beatles met allerlei rare geluidjes en effectjes tussendoor en stemmen als de Bee Gees. Het is bombastisch, psychedelisch, disco, uptempo. Het is over de top en toch klinkt het ook wel weer ok. Maar een dubbelalbum is zoals gewoonlijk teveel van het goede

A variety of different emotions are conveyed by these songs. Album is giving movie soundtrack vibes. Old school futuristic.

Interesting layered vocals (sounds like 3 or 4 people). Relaxed melodies and repetitive sing-along-able hooks/choruses. Reminds me a bit of Queen maybe? Little funk, little electronic.

Any songs known?: 1 - Mr Blue Sky Favourites?: - Sweet Talkin' Woman - Mr Blue Sky - Jungle - Birmingham Blues Least Favourites: - Steppin' Out - Big Wheels - Standin' in the Rain Thoughts?: - Liked the vibe of the album - It was very long - 20 tracks - Vibes: space, very 70s, space-age, Guardians of the Galaxy Album art: 5/5 - great vibe Overall score: 3/5

all basically sound the same. turn to stone and across the border were better songs. got repetitive at the end. the whale sounds like the end of evangelion.

Props for creating such a unique sound combining Lynne’s voice, the orchestral elements, yet going for a futuristic vibe. Mr. Blue Sky is one of my all-time favorites, but admittedly, the tracks I haven’t heard don’t make a big impression.

This band seems to get mentioned frequently but this is one of the first times I've intentionally listened to them. Strikes me as vanilla - not objectionable, not particularly exciting either.

Liked it surprisingly more than I thought. Basically feels like prog-pop. Lot more melodic elements than I was expecting. Still not a huge fan of the sound, but it's slightly interesting and inoffensive. I don't hate it, don't love it.

“Out Of The Blue” demuestra a cabalidad la capacidad de composición de Jeff Lyne. La enorme colección de canciones pasean por paisajes enormes y fantásticos, que toman del trabajo de The Beatles, específicamente en el periodo en que se dedicaron a experimentar en el estudio sin presentaciones en vivo. Un indispensable del catálogo musical de los ‘70s.

Not bad, some good classic songs on here but didn't really grab me. A good listen nonetheless and glad I did.

одна песня хорошааа, но я ее и так знал, а в целом альбом хорош для спокойного праздника

Fun 70s rock album

A pretty good double-album although the arrangements begin to sound alike after a while.

Falsetto needs to be used much more sparingly

A bit cheesy, but it has some bops.

Enjoyable but pretty middle-of-the-pack. A few nice melodies and harmonies but nothing particularly stands out as remarkable.

It's an album with classic stuff: Turn to Stone, Sweet Talkin' Woman, and Mr. Blue Sky... Are three songs enough to make it a classic album? Listening to the whole thing is a good listen with those songs in the mix, but the songs around it are just decent. I wish there were 1/2 stars. Not enough for 4 for me. I think going forward that's my barometer... at least 1/2 of the songs gotta be amazing! This is not quite there for me.

This music is interesting, but never engaging. It was everywhere when I was a kid, but it never particularly interested me then. There is something very sterile about it that precludes any emotional entanglement. I do like Mr Blue Sky though. Especially on a sunny day.

I like the mix of rock and orchestra most of the time.

Very seventies, close harmonies and guitar solos... This was very orchestral (to be expected) and adds more weight to my theory that this list is constructed by middle aged white men. Two to three stars.

So many strings. I know that's part of their sound and the disco phenomenon was in full swing, but I think it is too much. Jeff Lynne has some good hooks and really established a style all his own with ELO. This kind of soft rock fits squarely between Queen and The Eagles. Mr. Blue Sky is the stand out hit for me. That song gets its hooks into me, and I just love it.

Sounds aged and drags on a bit, sounding very samey... But there is some interesting stuff in here.

Not special here. Nothing this band did was extraordinary

The hits are great, the rest is..ok. 3.5

Skal lytte mere

Love ELO. Still I think that this one is just mediocre, somehow. It has some legendary bangers on it, but most of the songs don't get me, sadly. + Turn To Stone + Night in the City + Starlight + Mr. Blue Sky + The Whale + Birmingham Blues

I was familiar with Mr. Blue Sky via a Girl Talk mashup but past that, it was all new to me. definitely not my wave but I enjoyed it, was relaxed and easy to listen to. probably won’t ever come back to it in full.

This album is just so long. Mr. Blue Sky is a classic but the rest is hard to listen to for so long.

I enjoyed this. Was fun and didn't feel a lot like most classic rock albums.

Not really my scene but some excellent y songs on it.

Mr. Blue Sky es un temazo. El resto no me importó mucho.

3/5 The songs are incredibly complex and are structured in an amazing way, but it all just sounds so predictable at some point, that is why I don’t remember much of it but wish to give it the benefit of the 2,5 I had in my mind. ‘Mr. Blue Sky’ and ‘Turn to Stone’ were my favorites.

Save for Mr Blue Sky and a couple of others, it's a forgettable album for me.

Interesting mix of pop, disco and progressive rock

def well produced and good musicianship. The first a lot of this record sounds like 'the same song' - little variance in tempo and the drum shuffle is similar/the same. Lots going on in these recordings also, maybe a bit too much sometimes. Mr Blue Sky is obviously a humungous hit and for good reason - it's also the best song on the record by a mile. Jungle was a pleasant surprise also.

3.5/5 These guys felt like watered down Beatles. It was pretty good, and fast tempo. It was a little, (a lot) too long. I knew one song. That's always a good feeling. I thought it was going to be a little bit more epic than it ended up being, so that was kind of disappointing. I will probably get curious about it and listen to the song I knew again but other than that, I probably won't listen to it again soon.

Very long. Very 70s. Not the worst effort but at the length it is, not something I'll come back to even though I didn't mind the music itself. Perhaps a shorter album by them would be more to my taste.

“Turn to Stone” is a good song to open the album with. An interesting mix of various genres (prog-rock, classical, and occasional disco). However, wasn’t really feeling the overall symphonic vibes. Favorite Songs: Turn to Stone, It’s Over, Night in the City, and Starlight.

This feels suspiciously like pop-punk before there was such a thing. Lot of good songs on here, but ends up feeling a little too saccharine in the end.

An attempt to make a progressive space rock album by disco-fying Bowie's sound.