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ELO - "Time", someone explain this album to me.

Mr. Not

By Mr. Not,
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Mr. Not

Mr. Not

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I've read some posts of people liking this album here, I think Circumstantial Tree specifically, but I really just don't see the appeal. I've given the album multiple tries over the years. I think the problem is that the first track (exclude to the prologue), "Twilight" is very strong, and then the rest of the album is just... Underwhelming. Some say "The Way Life's Meant To Be" is the strongest track, for example, but to me it just sounds like an Out of the Blue reject; and that double album was half filler as it was! "Here is the News" is the only other song on the album I really enjoy, but not fully. The instrumental work is great, but it would be nice if Jeff Lynne could actually sing on the track!

 

The album certainly's no Eldorado.

 

From here I've heard that ELO just got worse and worse, so I've been cautious all this time and haven't listened to "Secret Messages" beyond. Just the "Calling America" track which is rightfully catchy.

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By Tor

By Tor

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Easy .

It came out in the 80`s .

Everything I loved in music was destroyed in one swoop thanks to a Calender date . 80 .

Not only E.L.O. suffered .

 

John Lennon :rose:

 

The Who , Floyd , Yes , McCartney , Sabbath , Purple , Supertramp , Neil Young , Joni , Fleetwood Mac , Dylan (well maybe he was in decline from 67 ) etc etc etc

 

In short the album is crap compared to the brilliant albums E.L.O. released in the 70`s .

 

The 80`s for me was like I just been dropped on the Planet Music Hell , where people started cutting their hair (even Rush!) , wearing tank tops , listening to Phill Collins dance songs .

Margret Thatcher ruled our Country and Keyboards and Video`s became the essentail part of every god damn song that came out .

I hated the 80`s

Everything about it .

Once we got out of that decade things started getting back to normal .

This album (Time ) is proof of everything I`ve said above is fact .

I hope this helped .

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hobo73

hobo73

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yeah I saw this in hubby's CD collection when we first met and was like "Oh, I never heard this album before."

His reply? "You're not missing out. Trust me." lol

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ozzy85

ozzy85

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A lot of things had gone on with ELO by '81... For starters, they just received a bad knock for their involvement in the Xanadu soundtrack. Second, Jeff Lynne was tired of a string section in his band, he'd been doing that for ten years. Everything was going synth, even Rush. Economic recession meant less gatefold albums, double LP's and such. I read somewhere that either Time was supposed to be a full concept double or Secret Messages was... maybe both.

 

People wanted Duran Duran and vinyl jackets. Well, some did. It was really starting to become the '80's by '81--'82. I graduated in the middle of the '80's, hence my name here. Weird times. I went to heavy metal.

 

...Still, I bought the album new, and loved it on it's own merits. Like with other bands at that time, I was unaware of the past and had to work backwards through several band catalogs to get where they came from.

 

Time seems like a good concept album with a couple of pieces missing.

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sitboaf

sitboaf

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It's true the band's heyday was Eldorado through Discovery, but I like the Time album quite a bit. It's certainly better than the following albums Secret Messages and Balance of Power, which concluded the band's career (for 15 years, anyway).

 

Maybe if you listen with the right frame of mind, it will help.

It's written as if from the future, with nostalgia toward the (brand new) 1980s, so it's got that current of humor running through it.

 

Prologue / Twilight is a romping good time. 4/5

Yours Truly 2095: the humor of the album is centered here and one other place. Disco-y. Funny. 3/5

Ticket to the Moon: a very nice piano-driven ballad. The only "pretty" song on the album. 3/5

The Way Life's Meant to Be: Some nice acoustic and surf guitar here. 3/5

Another Heart Breaks: dirgy and moody. Doesn't fit real well in context, and doesn't live up to it's potential. 2/5

Rain is Falling: the hidden gem. Wonderful song. 3.5/5

From the End of the World: Wacky, but meh. 2/5

Lights go Down: OK. Some good vocals. 2.5/5

Here is the News: Another funny song. Zany sequencers. 3/5

21st Century Man: Acoustic-driven ballad is nice. 3/5

Hold on Tight: the "hit" from the album. 4/5

Epilogue: Echoes 21st Century Man and acts as a nice close to the album. 3/5

 

Important! Seek out the deleted track Julie Don't Live Here. It's probably the best non-album song in ELO's entire catalog, and as good as Hold on Tight or Twilight.

Go buy it, and if you don't like it, I will mail you 99¢.

 

The Time album on a budget: Prologue, Twilight, Julie Don't Live Here, Rain is Falling, Hold on Tight

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goose

goose

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The full video album, which is interesting. Interesting how this album is so different from Time. Time is definitely more proggy. Discovery had three big radio hits.

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Mr. Not

Mr. Not

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It's true the band's heyday was Eldorado through Discovery, but I like the Time album quite a bit. It's certainly better than the following albums Secret Messages and Balance of Power, which concluded the band's career (for 15 years, anyway).

 

Maybe if you listen with the right frame of mind, it will help.

It's written as if from the future, with nostalgia toward the (brand new) 1980s, so it's got that current of humor running through it.

 

Prologue / Twilight is a romping good time. 4/5

Yours Truly 2095: the humor of the album is centered here and one other place. Disco-y. Funny. 3/5

Ticket to the Moon: a very nice piano-driven ballad. The only "pretty" song on the album. 3/5

The Way Life's Meant to Be: Some nice acoustic and surf guitar here. 3/5

Another Heart Breaks: dirgy and moody. Doesn't fit real well in context, and doesn't live up to it's potential. 2/5

Rain is Falling: the hidden gem. Wonderful song. 3.5/5

From the End of the World: Wacky, but meh. 2/5

Lights go Down: OK. Some good vocals. 2.5/5

Here is the News: Another funny song. Zany sequencers. 3/5

21st Century Man: Acoustic-driven ballad is nice. 3/5

Hold on Tight: the "hit" from the album. 4/5

Epilogue: Echoes 21st Century Man and acts as a nice close to the album. 3/5

 

Important! Seek out the deleted track Julie Don't Live Here. It's probably the best non-album song in ELO's entire catalog, and as good as Hold on Tight or Twilight.

Go buy it, and if you don't like it, I will mail you 99¢.

 

The Time album on a budget: Prologue, Twilight, Julie Don't Live Here, Rain is Falling, Hold on Tight

 

I'd say ELO 2 - Discovery is all fantastic. On The Third day may be my favorite ELO album. The first three tracks are perfect. "Oh No Not Susan" and the use of the word "f***ing" has always been curious to me.

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ozzy85

ozzy85

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DiscoVery is… Very Disco. And very good.

Also, as I mentioned before, this song is fabulous:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VyURPbtEzLs

 

Case in point... great song. After you're done listening to this, click on the link for When Time Stood Still. Both excellent songs, both deleted fron the album.

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Mr. Not

Mr. Not

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DiscoVery is… Very Disco. And very good.

Also, as I mentioned before, this song is fabulous:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VyURPbtEzLs

 

Case in point... great song. After you're done listening to this, click on the link for When Time Stood Still. Both excellent songs, both deleted fron the album.

 

There'll have to be a separate thread for band's EP/bonus songs that should have made it to an album

 

The band "Edguy" is a band where I could care less about ANY of their albums (from what I've heard so far, which is quite a bit), but I'm impressed with a couple of specific songs which were only on EPs. An unfortunate coincidence.

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Mr. Not

Mr. Not

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Out of the Blue [...] that double album was half filler as it was!

 

There's definitely some filler, but I was wondering if it literally is half filler, because it really seems like it.

 

Here's the verdict!

 

filler tracks:

Starlight

Believe Me Now

Steppin' Out

Big Wheels

Sweet is the Night

The Whale

Brimingham Blues

Wild West Hero

 

So that's 8/17 tracks... 17's odd so we could call 8 or 9 both half, it would just be slight under or over. But how about playtime-wise? 34 minutes of 70... Damn, just barely half of the album again!

 

You can literally say half the album is filler. The half that isn't is fantastic, but man, what a poor excuse just to get a double album out. But hey, perhaps others like the entire package. I think my Dad did.

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sitboaf

sitboaf

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I'd say ELO 2 - Discovery is all fantastic. On The Third day may be my favorite ELO album. The first three tracks are perfect. "Oh No Not Susan" and the use of the word "f***ing" has always been curious to me.

You can literally say half [of Out of the Blue] is filler

 

I love ELO 2, as well. Maybe you and I love it more than most, but it's very proggy and very solid.

 

On The Third Day is a little uneven for me. I like the first three songs, but I think the middle of the album is outstanding.

 

I agree that Out of the Blue is overlong. I'd include "Jungle" with "Starlight," "Birmingham Blues" and "Wild West Hero" as a filler tracks.

But I enjoy "Sweet is the Night" (excellent Kelly Groucutt vocals), "Believe Me Now," "Stepping Out," "The Whale" and the entire Concerto for a Rainy Day section.

Also, "Sweet Talkin' Woman" would make a much better album starter than "Turn to Stone" does.

 

Maybe it helps to think of Out of the Blue, as I do, as Jeff Lynne being inspired by every synth and sequencer he could get his hands on while writing songs at a feverish pace. The result was a tune-up album for the much more focused and enjoyable Discovery.

Edited by sitboaf
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nappy2112

nappy2112

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Out of the Blue [...] that double album was half filler as it was!

 

There's definitely some filler, but I was wondering if it literally is half filler, because it really seems like it.

 

Here's the verdict!

 

filler tracks:

Starlight

Believe Me Now

Steppin' Out

Big Wheels

Sweet is the Night

The Whale

Brimingham Blues

Wild West Hero

 

So that's 8/17 tracks... 17's odd so we could call 8 or 9 both half, it would just be slight under or over. But how about playtime-wise? 34 minutes of 70... Damn, just barely half of the album again!

 

You can literally say half the album is filler. The half that isn't is fantastic, but man, what a poor excuse just to get a double album out. But hey, perhaps others like the entire package. I think my Dad did.

 

Loved that album and most of what you listed.

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Mr. Not

Mr. Not

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Different tastes for Out of the Blue will happen. I originally thought of "Jungle" as filler... The only tracks I listed that I could ever see that happening with as well are "Sweet Is the Night' and "Big Wheels". But you never know.

 

As for On the Third Day, I do love all the tracks really, ironically Showdown being my least favorite (though still good) since it's the most generic of the album. But it was the original three that got me into ELO as a whole so I pay my respects to them, and Bluebird / Susan are both very Beatles, though exploring new territory simply by being ELO. I could say that what makes it different from The Beatles is the inclusion of strings and depressing lyrics, but then there's Eleanor Rigby which kind of kills that proposition! However, I can say from a personal level that unlike Elanor Rigby, with these two songs I can feel the sadness that is being conveyed much more.

Edited by Mr. IsNot
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sitboaf

sitboaf

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Saw American Hustle today... two songs from ELO on the sound track

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhvSvdEb53E

That's the 2012 re-recording, unfortunately.

I wish the Jeff Lynne of today had a lot more appreciation for what the Jeff Lynne of the early '70s managed to produce on relatively primitive equipment.

Admittedly, his album of re-recordings is pretty darn good.

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