4 Must-Have Albums To Start Your ELO Vinyl Collection

Electric Light Orchestra was originally formed as a sort of side project for Roy Wood and Jeff Lynne of The Move. With Lynne at the helm, it became one of the most successful rock bands of the 70s and 80s.

ELO delivered a slew of hit singles in their heyday. But what about their albums? If you’re starting off a vinyl collection of the group’s work, these four LPs should be the first place you turn.

‘Eldorado’

Leave it to Dad to inspire something special. ELO was already three albums into their career with several UK hit singles in their back pockets when they made the 1974 album Eldorado. Jeff Lynne had heard just about enough from his father, who didn’t think his son’s music could hang with the classical music the older man loved. Taking that as a challenge, Lynne constructed a musically ambitious song cycle and used a full orchestra to render it. A loose concept ties it all together. But the individual moments still stand out. Tender ballads like “Can’t Get It Out Of My Head” and “Mister Kingdom” mix effortlessly with boisterous tracks like “Boy Blue”. The elder Lynne couldn’t possibly have denigrated this effort.

‘A New World Record’

As mentioned above, ELO enjoyed an impressive run with songs crossing over to the pop charts throughout their career. For those who love the bite-sized, ear-candy side of the band over the album-length statements, A New World Record is hard to top. Several songs would go on to grace greatest hits packages by the band. That includes “Telephone Line”, perhaps the ultimate weeper in their catalog. “Livin’ Thing” seamlessly melds the orchestral influences with pop savvy, while “Rockaria!” almost comes off as the band making fun of its headier tendencies. They even dip back into The Move days to re-record “Do Ya”, a rocking triumph. The hits just keep coming on this one.

‘Out Of The Blue’

Jeff Lynne was enduring some writer’s block prior to the making of this record. Once he unlocked it, the material came pouring forth in such a manner that he ended up with two albums’ worth. The quality of Out Of The Blue justifies the extended running time. You can start the overview with “Mr. Blue Sky”, the band’s signature song that realizes all the dreams Lynne had when he started the band. “Turn To Stone” is a sledgehammer of an opening track, “Sweet Talkin’ Woman” is a retro pop winner, and “Wild West Hero” goes for the glory as the closer. Dig deeper, and you keep coming up with standouts like “Sweet Is The Night” and “Steppin’ Out”. As good a double album as the 70s produced.

‘Time’

The fourth pick was a tricky one. We could have gone with Discovery, which, if you don’t mind the disco influences, delivers a thrilling aural rush. Balance Of Power, the last album before Lynne put the band to bed for a long stretch, deserves more love. But we’re going with Time to round out the quartet. This album takes us back to the concept days of Eldorado. It also finds Lynne incorporating more synthesizer textures while subtly phasing out some of the orchestral flourishes for which the band had been known. “21st Century Man” sums up the storyline in a sumptuous ballad. The album also starts with the thrilling “Twilight” and ends with the rockabilly-tinged “Hold On Tight” strongly.

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