Folks: it’s with a somewhat heavy heart that I have to open up a dialog on a topic of some internal conflict for me, namely: how much do I really like Jeff Lynne?
The truth is, I’ve always been deeply conflicted about this guy. On the one hand, he wrote, arranged, performed and produced some of the most pleasing ear candy to emerge from the 70s — an era when radio competition was particularly fierce. For a while there, the guy was unstoppable, and *prolific* to boot. And those songs! Pure pop perfection!
Even his lesser numbers — like the material he tossed off for the godawful Olivia Neutron Bomb vehicle “Xanadu” — kicked ass. What pop tunesmith wouldn’t give his right arm to be able to write something like “I’m Alive,” or the title track from that movie?
And it’s not like Mr. Lynne doesn’t also have an impeccable pop/rock pedigree, to boot. Lesser rock nerds will of course know that he was a critically important member of the underappreciated late-phase Move, along with Mod fave Roy Wood. Serious Prock aficionados will even have heard a track or two from his admirable early efforts with the Idle Race. And — Lord knows — he keeps all the “right company” *these* days.
So what is it about this guy that keeps him rattling around in the same box where I keep my Jellyfishes, Ringo solo albums, Badfinger singles and such? More than any artist, I want to say — at the same time — “he’s awesome!” and “he’s a hack!” I mean, I don’t feel this way about Hall & Oates, fercrissake!
Is it the signature, unmistakable production? The have-your-cake-and-eat-it-too attitude towards wanting to be “orchestral” and candy-coated at the same time? The awful Look? Just plain jealousy? What is it?
I’m hoping that hearing what the rest of you think about Mr. Lynne will help me come to grips with my feelings on the man.
I look forward to your responses.
Ok – I’m on the fence about Jeff too. I had a good friend in junior high that was a huge ELO fan. We spent many an afternoon spinning their discs and I remember digging them back then.
I then moved away and went far away from ELO and never thought of them much (or admitted to having listened to them).
Just the other month though, was driving home from work and XPN played “Telephone Line” and I was singing along at the top of my lungs…what do they call it? A “Guilty Pleasure”? Man that song is mint!
I love the ELO hits and love both version of Do Ya (one of the first songs I played on the geetar.) I need some more education on The Move as to date my minimal exposure has not been positive.
No shame in digging ELO. Those songs are great pop gems.
Now, for Lynne’s production… Fine for ELO but not for anyone else!!! It still boggles my mind that they had him produce those Anthology Beatles songs. Wha? You guys know more but I think I read that George Martin was busy. So? Who was strapped for cash that they couldn’t wait for him.
Lynn’s Look and rock personae have always been a let down and has largely led I believe to adding the “guilty” to “pleasure”.
Lynn’s Look is really bad. More than his god-given inflexible hair and beard, his main Look downfall is his dedication to those smokey shades. It’s not like they created an air of mystery. For a bandleader/lead singer, he had no stage presence, no Rock Super Hero persona. When he’s seen playing guitar or piano, it’s totally nondescript.
Look aside, beside “Telephone Line”, I find almost no personality or emotion in his Prock work. He is a founding Prock Rocker, but I’m not sure that being a founding Prock Rocker carries that much more weight than being, I don’t know, World Party.
All this said, I do like a lot of ELO hits. I would think they are one of rock’s greatest Greatest Hits bands. What say you, A-Dogg?
Mr. Mod:
The thing is, the ELO “hits” extend far further than their actual number of “hits.” One of the reasons I placed the “I’m Alive” and “Horace Wimpy” videos in my post was to illustrate this tremendous depth. I tell you, to damn ELO with the “great singles band” form of faint praise is to not know ELO. Hall and Oates — now *there* was a Great Singles/Greatest Hits Band. By mathematical calculation, ELO should be much Greater… but they’re not, and Jeff Lynne just seems lacking to me. Again, I ask: why? The “great producer for Jeff Lynne but nobody else” angle is interesting. I’ll have to ponder that.
Passing note: the reason I posted the “Showdown” video was to show you Just… how… bad… the Lynne “Look” could be. Astonishing!
I think ELO would be more worth of an “Anthology” than a simple greatest hits package.
There are some great ELO non-hits – I think my fav would “Sweet Talkin Women” be considered a hit? The best thing about “Xanadu” was the hit “All Over The World”
His look – Ugh. His production – great for ELO. OK for outsiders. I thought his Wilberry and Roy Orbinson productions were good.
How come no one talks more about ELO’s logo. Is that one of the most enduring “branding” images?
I told you why he’s less than he seems he should be: he stands for nothing, he asks for nothing, he desires nothing. Lack of human desire is a major hinderance to being considered a GREAT in rock. As a listener, what emotional or psychological “in” does Jeff Lynne offer anyone? Yeah, he creates some stirring musical arrangements, but I say something about the artist’s personality and desires need to come through as well.
Mr. Mod, you have hit the nail on the head. As I was lying in bed this morning, this same thought came to me, albeit on a more specific level: I couldn’t think of a word Jeff Lynne ever wrote that really sounded like he *meant* it, knowhutimean? Compare and contrast, again, with Hall and Oates. Those guys, for some reason, seem to be able to sing about luv and kissin’ and such and make you believe they care about the object of their affections desperately.
I’d also like to note that the fundamental emptiness of Lynne’s music makes it very easy to grow tired of. I spent the better part of two days listening to an ELO LP I thrifted over the weekend, and I am sick to *death* of it and the whole Lynne schtick.
The problem is directly linked to who he hangs out with. Imagine you were watching Picasso run his studio towards the end of his career, after most of his artistic achievements had occurred. Then imagine he made friends with a guy who was a decent artist, but who started his paintings by tracing Picasso’s stuff and then coloring in over it. Wouldn’t part of you be kinda pissed that he gets to hang with Picasso? Wouldn’t it color your perceptions of him? Jeff Lynne is good but part of you knows that he’s just trying to write “I Am The Walrus” over and over again, and because that’s the case, he shouldn’t be hanging with people who cut their legacies out of whole cloth.
Think of it – if Jeff Lynne wrote the same music, did the same production – had the same goofy look – but was reclusive and didn’t “hang” with the people he hangs with, would you have as much of a problem with him? I don’t think so. He’d be Rick Rubin… with a touch of Eric Carmen thrown in for good measure.
Please note – “people who cut their legacies out of whole cloth” doesn’t include Tom Petty. 😉
10 points to Christian for working Eric Carmen into his insightful post!
It sounds like you’re proposing Buddhism as the antithesis of rockism.
Townsman Christian, you’re onto something. Nice work!