ELOBF Gig Guide #2

#85: Hello ... Hello ... my old friends ... It's great to see you once again! Please find below the second ELO Beatles Forever (ELOBF) Gig Guide detailing some interesting local ELO related gigs which are "Coming Up" for you to consider, peruse and maybe even attend thus:

Saturday 6th February

Phil Bates @ The Green Dragon, Malvern

Free entry

Saturday 27th February

Electric Live Orchestra @ The River Rooms, Stourbridge

Tickets: £8 each

Thursday 4th March

The Animals with The Move ft. Bev Bevan & Trevor Burton @ The Robin 2, Bilston

Tickets: £17.50 each (advance) or £18.50 each (door)

Thursday 11th March

Phil Bates, Mik Kaminski & Tina McBain (BBBV) @ The Swan Hotel, Leek

Thursday 18th March

Phil Bates, Mik Kaminski & Tina McBain (BBBV) @ The Garrick Theatre, Lichfield

Friday 19th March

Phil Bates, Mik Kaminski & Tina McBain (BBBV) @ Number 8 Theatre, Pershore

Thursday 1st April

The Christians supported by Groucutt & Haynes @ The Robin 2, Bilston

Tickets: £15 each (advance) or £16 each (door)

Friday 30th April

The ELO Experience @ The Robin 2, Bilston

Tickets: £12 each (advance) or £14 each (door)

Until next "Time" in the ELO (and related) Universe ... KJS ... 30-Jan-2010

Elsewhere with ELOBF #1

#84: Hello ... Hello ... my old friends ... It's great to see you once again! This short not-so-secret message today is to remind you that Yours Truly KJS and ELO Beatles Forever (ELOBF) also has a presence on YouTube via our elobeatlesforever channel (as well as Twitter) thus:

youtube.com/user/elobeatlesforever

twitter.com/elobf_kjs

Until next "Time" in the ELO (and related) Universe ... KJS ... 29-Jan-2010

SAS Band: California Man ft. Roy Wood

#83: Hello ... Hello ... my old friends ... It's great to see you once again! I was having a bit of a sift through the bargain bin at my local Morrisons (or 'Dorisons' as I call it!) the other week and I came across a rather interesting DVD priced at just £2! "Spike's All Star SAS Band" (ILC Music #DVD2418, 2003) features a great line up of British musicians and well known singers including our very own Roy Wood.

Yours Truly KJS  has (at the "Time" of writing) absolutely no post-ELO live footage of Roy Wood on DVD so it was no hard decision to buy this live concert recording and have a blast. It features Roy doing a great live rendition of "California Man" - one of the biggest and best hits of The Move. There is indeed nothing like having a good rummage and finding a gem. I do remember finding a "Xanadu" as well as a great live China Crisis DVD in the same place last year for just a couple of quid. Hopefully, there are still a few more copies of this DVD out there.

It's a great live DVD recording and includes not a few 'extras'. It's been a while since I went to a record fair and uncovered one of my legendary scoops! Those were the days ...

Until next "Time" in the ELO (and related) Universe ... KJS ... 27-Jan-2010

When 39 Ain't 40! (Part 2)

#82: Hello ... Hello ... my old friends ... It's great to see you once again! Further to the recent ELOBF article When 39 Ain't 40! (Part 1) published back on 14th January, Yours Truly KJS was looking at the 2001 reissue of ELO's first album (entitled "No Answer" in the US) the other day too. It was the initial release of EMI's "First Light" series back then - and I was reminded of all the publicity that surrounded it (by certain parties) stating that it was ELO's 30th anniversary then. I agree - it was - and their 40th anniversary is next year - in 2011!

See also: When 39 Ain't 40! (Part 1)

Until next "Time" in the ELO (and related) Universe ... KJS ... 19-Jan-2010

Fyfe Dangerfield: She Needs Me #2

#81: Hello ... Hello ... my old friends ... It's great to see you once again! If you read this article published yesterday regarding the new Fyfe Dangerfield album "Fly Yellow Moon" and the ELOesque track "She Needs Me", you may be pleased to hear that "She Needs Me" is the indeed the new single, released on Monday 11th January. You can get it from amazon.co.uk here:

www.amazon.co.uk/She-Needs-Me-Fyfe-Dangerfield/dp/B0030BYWGO

Here's the brand new official music video for "She Needs Me" for you to peruse thus:

Fyfe Dangerfield: She Needs Me (1)

Recommended: Fly Yellow Moon (Fyfe Dangerfield)

ELO Beatles Forever (ELOBF) recommends "She Needs Me" by Fyfe Dangerfield to those enlightened folks who enjoy the music of ELO/Jeff Lynne, Roy Wood, The Move, 'Brum Beat', The Beatles and related artistes.

Until next "Time" in the ELO [and related] Universe ... KJS ... 17-Jan-2010

Fyfe Dangerfield: She Needs Me #1

#80: Hello ... Hello ... my old friends ... It's great to see you once again! The above article in The Sun newspaper today (Friday 15th January) here in the UK caught my attention. It quotes the leader of The Guillemots - Fyfe Dangerfield - as saying this about one of the trax (entitled "She Needs Me") on his new album "Fly Yellow Moon" thus:

Jacqui Swift: Tell us about "She Needs Me"?
Fyfe: It's the biggest-sounding song on the record. People have said it reminds them of ELO, which wasn't a conscious thing but it's very flattering."

In my humble opinion, if a song or artiste or an album is compared favourably with ELO then you can count on it being a true compliment. What is your opinion of this ELOesque track? Anything that sounds like ELO is alright with me. Remember "So Tired" by Ozzy Osbourne?

Fyfe Dangerfield: She Needs Me (2)
Recommended: Fly Yellow Moon (Fyfe Dangerfield)

ELO Beatles Forever (ELOBF) recommends "She Needs Me" by Fyfe Dangerfield to those enlightened folks who enjoy the music of ELO/Jeff Lynne, Roy Wood, The Move, 'Brum Beat', The Beatles and related artistes.

Until next "Time" in the ELO (and related) universe ... KJS ... 15-Jan-2010

When 39 Ain't 40! (Part 1)

#79: Hello ... Hello ... my old friends ... It's great to see you once again! Speaking as someone who has (sadly) passed the threshold of the age of 40, I find it hard to understand all the fuss and promises of major ELO release activity celebrating the 40th 'anniversary' of Electric Light Orchestra. As far as I'm concerned, 2010 is ELO's 39th birthday because I consider their birth to be in 1971 and not 1970. Their self-titled first album (known, of course, as "No Answer" in the States) may well have been - in part - recorded in 1970 but, to me, as it was released in 1971, that is the year that ELO began. I remember one of the (many) EMI re-releases of ELO's tenure with Harvest being entitled "Early ELO: 1971-1973". I also recall that ELO Part II's 1997 UK tour was marketed as their 25th Anniversary Tour. Sony's "Light Years" compilation (Sony Music #4890392/4) was released and advertised in that very tour programme that year too! Evidently ELO Part II's management thought that 1972 was the year of their conception to further confuse the matter!

ELOBF: When 39 Ain't 40! (2)

All this talk by certain parties of an ELO 40th anniversary release bonanza should be taken with a pinch of salt and as a master marketing campaign originated by Sony. Yours Truly KJS expects (yet) another ELO compilation this year! I'd rather see the full "Secret Messages" 18-track set released including "Beatles Forever" - to celebrate "Secret Messages" 27th and ELO's 39th anniversary!

Until next "Time" in the ELO (and related) Universe ... KJS ... 12-Jan-2010

DVD Discovery: In Performance (Electric Light Orchestra)

#78: Hello ... Hello ... my old friends ... It's great to see you once again! First things first: A belated Happy New Year to all ELOBF visitors and friends from Yours Truly KJS! I hope that 2010 will be a year of blessing, prosperity and a step towards the official release of "Beatles Forever"! It's been 44 days since my last article and in that time Yours Truly KJS has seen the legendary Roy Wood, survived Christmas and got my teeth into January! During those six weeks of apparent inactivity, I was (as usual) trying to get a copy of Kelly Groucutt's seminal 1982 UK single "Oh! Little Darling" (RCA245) and searching for any other ELO items of interest that I don't already own or know about when I found this interesting DVD on amazon.co.uk thus:

www.amazon.co.uk/Electric-Light-Orchestra-Performance/dp/B002Z1TGH0

Entitled "Electric Light Orchestra - In Performance", it was released in Europe in 2009 and is credited as being published by 'Mainstreet'. This DVD is not sophisticated and is basically two live performances copied from VHS to DVD and re-packaged. It includes ELO gigs from 1974 and 1976. The 1976 concert is none other than the entire "Fusion" VHS that was published circa 1990 in the UK by Pickwick (#PTR2152). The 1974 gig is not unlike the set list from "The Night The Light Went On (In Long Beach)" album. It was refreshing to watch both gigs despite the questionable hissing sound quality! It was even better to see Kelly Groucutt singing lead vocals on a couple of songs and totally enjoying it. There isn't a lot of ELO material kicking about out there from their 70's heyday at the "Time" of writing. Neither is there a lot from the 1980's. Hence this unofficial release might be an attractive capture for ELO completists out there - at least until an established label picks it up and gives it the appropriate treatment via an official issue ...

Until next "Time" in the ELO (and related) Universe ... KJS ... 11-Jan-2010

Perpetual Light

#77: Hello ... Hello ... my old friends ... It's great to see you once again! Yours Truly KJS was listening to the charity single recorded by Eric Troyer with the Hagley R.C. High School Choir back in 1994 entitled "Perpetual Light" earlier today.

It was recorded to raise funds in memory of the twelve schoolchildren and their teacher killed on Sunday 20th November 1993 in a major road accident on the M42. I still remember the memorial concert on Wednesday 11th May 1994 held at the Symphony Hall in Birmingham - headlined by ELO Part II - as well as the associated news pieces on Central TV and BBC Midlands Today. I also remember touching base with Kelly Groucutt in the lobby and seeing grieving friends and family consoling one another. It was one of the most moving evenings of my life. It is such a lovely song with nice lyrics written by Jim Driscoll, so I thought that I'd quote the lyrics here thus:

"Smiling faces everywhere

No sign of sadness or despair

Voices singing through the night in harmony

Listen carefully and you'll hear

Wondrous raptures in the air

Music with wings like a bird in flight gliding gracefully.

It shines forever it will always be

Look for it everywhere, find it, you'll be free

Let's sing and dance and always share

The joy and laughter discovered there

Such love and warmth, such inner sight

When your heart is filled with light

Perpetual Light

Out of darkness comes the light

The day must always follow night

And with the sun must always come some happiness

Shine on forever in every child's smilin' eyes

The faces filled with magic will always light the skies

CHORUS
We can keep their dreams alive

All the memories will survive

You can make the world a better place

When your heart is filled with light"

Until next "Time" in the ELO (and related) Universe ... KJS ... 10-Jan-2010