Down Came The Rain

An extensive 6CD box set devoted to one of the key innovators of the '60s psychedelic sound featuring their entire output, rarities and demos. Featuring the first CD issue of the mono mix of the 'Mass In F Minor', the collection also compiles the original dedicated mono 45 mixes, plus rare cuts, early demos, and extended takes, as well as the legendary live recording of the band captured in Stockholm during their European tour in late 1967, all lovingly remastered by Alec Palao. To complement these unique psychedelic sounds the box set includes a comprehensive history of the group by Gray Newell, featuring in-depth recollections from original vocalist James Lowe, and from key member of the later incarnation of the band, Richard Whetstone, making this the definitive Electric Prunes' collection.

Depending on the personal state of mind: rain can be perceived as unpleasantly wet or wonderfully refreshing. At all times and across all genres, composers and musicians have been dealing with rain. Bear Family Records delivers a wonderfully relaxed CD compilation that spreads good cheer in rain as well as sunshine with songs like Raindrops, Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head, Just Walking In The Rain, It Might As Well Rain Until September or Crying In The Rain. Stylistically, we cover a wide range from R&B, soul and blues to country, doo-wop and pop.

Unlike either its predecessor Alone in the Universe or 2001's Zoom, From out of Nowhere didn't appear after a prolonged period of silence from Jeff Lynne's ELO. It arrived in November of 2019, nearly exactly four years after Alone in the Universe, a rapid turnaround that recalls Lynne's work schedule as a bandleader and producer in the 1970s and '80s. That's not the only way From out of Nowhere conjures memories of the past. From the spaceship hovering on its record cover to the song title "Sci-Fi Woman" stirring up the ghost of "Evil Woman," the album is designed to sound and feel like an Electric Light Orchestra album from the late 1970s.

Jeff Lynne’s ELO have announced that they’ll release their new album later this year. The follow-up to 2015’s Alone In The Universe is titled From Out Of Nowhere and will launch on November 1 through Columbia Records.

The set is built around the A and B sides of singles, with album cuts salted in between. This is effective in charting the band's progression from melodic popsters to hard rockers and back to the pop-inflected music that closed out their career. The highlights are scattered throughout – "American Woman," of course; "Rain Dance," with its unnerving echoes of American massacres, the funky, improvised live "Truckin' Off Across the Sky," even the goofy "Clap for the Wolfman," which came when the Guess Who were all but finished. The Ultimate Collection works well as an introduction to the Guess Who, but will not gratify anyone with more than a basic need to know. On a sonic level, the set sounds good, however.