Blue Electric Light

Sharing an identical track listing, albeit in a different order, with 1997's Light Years retrospective, The Ultimate Collection is a comprehensive overview of the hugely influential Electric Light Orchestra's illustrious career. Showcasing their signature melodic, classical rock sound, this 2001 release includes the hit singles "Xanadu," "Mr. Blue Sky" and "Sweet Talkin' Woman." Its 38 tracks are cherrypicked from their first 12 studio albums, from their 1972 self-titled debut right up to 1986's Balance of Power, but omits any material from their most recent album, Zoom.

After the release of five good albums, ELO will produce their second compilation. The tracklist, as such, is rather good but two numbers were already featured on their first compilation…

Light Years, The Very Best of Electric Light Orchestra is a two CD compilation album by Electric Light Orchestra (ELO). The album celebrates the band's 25th Anniversary singles career starting in 1972 and contains all of ELO's 29 UK hit singles plus other single edits that either didn't chart or were hits in other countries. All the songs included are the edited 7" single versions. It is also the first ELO compilation to feature the song "Across the Border" which was scheduled to be released as an EP track in 1980 but was withdrawn. Although not in chronological order, it is however the most comprehensive assemblage of the band's hits of the many compilations available. The album reached 60 in the UK Album Charts. The album was also released in Europe with an identical track order under the titles, The Swedish Collection and The Danish Collection.

The very fact that Electric Light Orchestra released a second three-disc box set is a tacit admission that, yes, 1987's Afterglow wasn't everything it should be. Happily, 2000's Flashback is. Assembled with the cooperation of Jeff Lynne, Flashback covers all the bases, featuring all the hits, a good selection of album tracks, and seven previously unreleased tracks, two alternate mixes and "After All," previously unavailable on CD…

Sharing an identical track listing, albeit in a different order, with 1997's Light Years retrospective, The Ultimate Collection is a comprehensive overview of the hugely influential Electric Light Orchestra's illustrious career. Showcasing their signature melodic, classical rock sound, this 2001 release includes the hit singles "Xanadu," "Mr. Blue Sky" and "Sweet Talkin' Woman".

Live at Wembley '78 is a live recording by Electric Light Orchestra (ELO). The sound on this album has led to accusations of the band Lip synching, as did the earlier video from which this CD was taken. However it has come to light that the sound used on the television broadcast of the Out of the Blue Concert in 1978 was a poorly mixed effort in mono sound that used a lot of the backing tapes that were used admittedly by the band due to sound problems caused by the huge metal and fibreglass stage set. The tapes were for the band's ears only, to help them keep time and should not have been heard by the audience.

By ignoring the band's first two albums, the Roy Wood-dominated Electric Light Orchestra and the transitional ELO II, the 1979 singles compilation ELO's Greatest Hits presents a somewhat skewed vision of the band…

Electric Light Orchestra without Jeff Lynne likens unto a day without sunshine. But this even-more-anonymous ensemble injects so much calculated charisma into the popcorn here that all is forgiven. Behind these replicated string flourishes and fey-Beatlisms remains sturdy songcraft…