ELO - A New World Record Vs Discovery

[CP/M User]

These are the only two albums I've got of their's and that includes the Vinyl copy I've got of "A New World Record". Lots of people (critcs) seem to rave on about "Discovery" album and how it got a emmy award or something. For me I like "A New World Record" more because it's bare bones music (well sort of), the song's on "Discovery" seem to be doing too much - if ELO did a live performance of "A New World Record" I'd definitely be in for a DVD of that! :-D

The only shady song on ANWR which is passible I suppose is "Rockaria", "Tightrope", "Telephone Line", "Mission (A World Record)" are gems (particularly Mission - I regard as highly underrated song from the ELO camp). Then you've got "So fine", "Livin' Thing", "Above the Clouds", "Do Ya" and "Shangri-La". Sure it's a 70s album which has all the 70s sounds about it, 30 years on and I reckon it's still pretty good! :-D

What do you lot think?!?

CP/M User.

 

[ziloo]

Sure it's a 70s album which has all the 70s sounds about it, 30 years on and I reckon it's still pretty good! :-D

CP/M User.

To my ears, it is more than good..., they are great!!
Many of their works are eternal classics. I am listening to "Fire on High"
right now.

ziloo

 

[CP/M User]

ziloo wrote:

To my ears, it is more than good..., they are great!!
Many of their works are eternal classics. I am listening to "Fire on High"
right now.

Yeah well for me as far as Greatness goes - A New World Record fits the bill. Sure Discovery is good - though I like ANWR more. I haven't heard any of the other albums - so can't really comment on them.

Not sure the name of the other album they had (around 1977/8), though it's got this big ELO Space station with a Space Ship entering it - cute! :-D

 

[ziloo]

Now that we are going down memory lane, how about fleetwood mac,
ABBA, Alan Parsons, Jean Michel Jarre, Super Tramp..., just to name a
few..., do they still sound great?

ziloo

 

[DimensionDude]

Just off the top of my head, I think that the ELO album with the space station cover is "Out of the Blue." That album contained "Mister Blue Sky." I had it on 8-track...really, I did.

Kent

 

[CP/M User]

DimensionDude wrote:

Just off the top of my head, I think that the ELO album with the space station cover is "Out of the Blue." That album contained "Mister Blue Sky." I had it on 8-track...really, I did.

Yeah thanks I can confirm that now I have my music book at hand - it is "Out of the Blue.". Strangely enough I forgot to mention I had ELO - Greatest Hits album. Some of the songs from that album look familiar like "Turn to Stone", "Sweet Talkin' Woman" & "Mr Blue Sky". Forgot I had their Greatest Hits cause I haven't played it in yonks.

CP/M User.

 

[CP/M User]

ziloo wrote:

Now that we are going down memory lane, how about fleetwood mac, ABBA, Alan Parsons, Jean Michel Jarre, Super Tramp..., just to name a few..., do they still sound great?

Don't get me started with ABBA. The only album I had of Fleetwood Mac is their Rumors album (on DVD-Audio). I regard them as a fine group. Super Tramp - depends on what it is. I have a Greatest Hits album of theirs, though I've always regarded their Breakfast in America album their best album.

I heard of Alan Parsons, though I'm unfamiliar with his music, where does The Alan Parson Project come into play - is that Alan's backing group? (Silly Question). Jean Michel Jarre doesn't ring anything! :-(

I'm more of a 60s music enthusiast, though the groups in the 70s I admire would have to be The Eagles, Doobie Brothers, Fleetwood Mac (naturally), Flying Burrito Brothers, The Carpenters, Don McLean, Bob Seger, Linda Ronstadt, James Taylor (you probably get the idea by now).

CP/M User.

 

[JeffMeunier]

I now find 70s & 80s music that I once liked to be tedious to listen to. I tried to stay away from mainstream stuff like Abba and Fleetwood Mac, but I did collect a bunch of J.M. Jarre on vinyl and CD. I remember the University of Connecticut radio station played a whole side of Equinox one night looooong ago and I fell in love with it. I still appreciate Jarre's competence, but I can't tolerate him like before. His stuff's a bit [er, much] too moody for me now. Of course, as a moody high-schooler, it was just what I was looking for.

I think a person's opinion of music has more to do with the person than the music. For instance, when Pink Floyd broke up I thought it was the end of the world, but today I don't even own any Floyd. You probably have similar feelings about <insert your favorite ex-band here>. However, after 30+ years I still listen to Alice Cooper occasionally. Does that mean Cooper is better? Not at all.

(For the record, Floyd and Cooper were *not* mainstream back then.)

The appeal of music also has a lot to do with the memories it conjures. For me, the music of the early to mid 80s reminds me of trying to get dates, occasionally succeeding but subsequently getting dumped, so there's not a lot of appeal there. Late 80s to early 90s: college years, which in retrospect was more fun than it seemed like at the time. That music, the end of the hair band era, was some of the worst ever, but I like it. Well, it makes me laugh at least.

Back on topic: I like ELO's greatest hits. Never owned anything else by them. They didn't try to be innovative with their sound (contrast with anything "new wave"), so they don't sound too dated. They relied on classic composition, and that doesn't go out of style.

Agree? Disagree? Anyone?

 

[ziloo]

I think a person's opinion of music has more to do with the person than the music.....

The appeal of music also has a lot to do with the memories it conjures...

and I think the older we get, memories and memories and nostalgia becomes
an important part of our sense of identity. That in turn very much influences
the type of music we like to listen to...

ziloo

 

[CP/M User]

Well as I said I'm a 60s enthusiest, some of the mainstream stuff from the 60s I've come to appreciate less - an example of that is some of the mainstream stuff The Rolling Stones have done. Most of it though has been pretty good - I haven't got sick of it. In fact I'd say there's more 60s music I like now than what I used to - for instance I used to think Folk was a bit of a drag, though I consider it very powerful now. You'd better blame The Byrds for that one - even though I've always enjoyed Byrds music. The group itself have some interesting connections with other performers/groups likewise - it's got me listening to stuff from the 40s with groups like The Weavers, The Almanac Singers and people like Pete Seeger and Woody Guthrie.

Some of the 70s music I took onboard years ago I've become tired of in the last 10<->15 or so years that I've collected and other groups like The Who I find it's a mix of good and bad - perhaps if it's 60s I tend to like it more. David Bowie is good as far as Space Oddity is concerned, don't know what I was thinkin' with the Sweet, though their cover of Fox on the Run is good. If a group in the 70s is the product from something generated by the Byrds in the 60s, then I can appreciate their music too! :-D

If you'd ask me 20 years ago which group I'd like - I'd say Dire Straits without hesitation, 10 til a few years ago I'd say Pink Floyd, now I reckon The Byrds have an edge over Floyd! :-D For me their all still great groups though! :-D

CP/M User.