“Strange Magic” was a huge hit on the airwaves in the mid 70s, as were “Rhiannon” by Fleetwood Mac, “That’s the Way of the World” by Earth, Wind, & Fire, and “Love Will Keep Us Together” by Captain & Tennille., to name just a few.
Probably my favorite ELO song. I can recall listening to this on my car radio returning to college from spring break in 1976. Definetely a Big hit for ELO in the U.S.A.. I wondered when Cosmo was going to request this, since everything else of off the "Face the Music" LP had pretty much been requested. Worth the wait....Steve G
I heard a Dolby 5.1 surround sound remix of this song by an acquaintance of mine. He has various software tools that he uses to separate and remix the tracks. This song in particular sounded great in Dolby 5.1 - he had the "La La La' in the background rotating all the way around the room as they sang it. In any case, it made me want Jeff Lynne to do some official Dolby remixes.
Jeff Lynne really hit his stride by the time he helped form ELO with former members of Carl Wayne and the Vikings/The Move and The Idle Race. If he was nothing else, Lynne is a master at writing a memorable song hook.
Another great song off another great album. You can't go wrong with listening to FTM. It's got something for everyone and pretty much all the songs are high quality. Even for diehard ELO fans, this song would probably rate pretty highly.
Harri, I am so glad that you have discovered the wondrous music of Jeff Lynne and ELO. You have reacted to more of the band's songs than any other people who do reactions, and I appreciate that. ELO has been one of my favorites for years. Two of Jeff's albums that have been shockingly overlooked are these: “Eldorado” and “Time”. “Eldorado” is about a dreamer, a seeker and, for the full effect, should be heard from beginning to end. The music takes one from the mundane life of a banker (“Can't Get It out of My Head) through dreamy travels with songs that end with the album title song “Eldorado”, a beautiful, lyrical cry for a different life. Every song on the album is worthy of placing on your program for reaction, which isn’t practical unless you want to react to the whole beautiful record. A few I would recommend are these: “Can't Get It out of My Head”, “Boy Blue”, “Mister Kingdom”, “Laredo Tornado”, “Illusions in G Major”. “Time” is wonderful, too. These two albums, especially “Eldorado”, should put to rest any notion that Jeff Lynne is not the highest quality of musical genius! Please listen and see what you think!
Absolutely mesmerizing. I love the stringed instruments used in most ELO songs. They draw you in and take you away. My favourite "I Can't Get It out of My Head" has such strings. Jeff Lynne is exceptional. Thanks Harri. Cheers from Canada 🇨🇦
Hi Harri! Really can't go wrong with them can you ? In my fave top 10 bands ever (excluding the Fabs who have their own list, naturally). Hope all is well in your world. Amazing to me still what music can do for your mental health, music is medicine. I feel better already! Love ya. x
ELO was a great success in the US, UK and here my country Chile. SouthAmerica. Congratulations Harry, other great reaction. Try I am Alive, On The Run, Stranger, The Whale (instrumental song) . Greeting
Great choice Cosmo my friend. ELO is hard to go wrong by. Jeff Lynne should have been the real Fifth Beatle. Took my family to see them a few years ago. It was one of the best concerts I ever saw. Thanks Harri pal. Fantastic review. 👍🙃🔥🕊️🌏😉🤴😎
Yes Matt, and what a rarity that was. I know of no other such instance in ELO's 175-song catalog. Of course, Jeff wrote the lick, but fancied the way Richard played it.
Richard Tandy was a bassist until switching to keyboards full time in 1972 after they bought one of the very first Moog synthesizers and realised they had no one who could play it. Richard volunteered to learn it and they hired Mike d'Albuquerque to replace him on bass.
My favorite group that I still listen to today. Discovered them in college during the early 70s. Still have my albums and CDs that I play when driving. ELO, Moody's, Chicago and more, they are my exploring companions 🙂
This is a favourite of mine by them. Lovingly assembled. A beautiful build. That descending line dahdahdahdahdah. Izzat the hook you meant? You hoped it would return and it stepped right up! Happens not infrequently. Will return.
Nice one Harri! One of my favorite ELO tracks. Check out Ma Ma Ma Belle for a great guitar hook. It features guest guitarist Marc Bolan of T.Rex. Cheers!
Harri, glad you loved, "Strange Magic". It is, indeed, one helluva infectious chorus. To go along with those dreamy verses. And I can hear what you're saying about it reminding you a bit of, "Livin' Thing". The songs don't really sound alike, and yet *tonally* they are similar. Jeff's voice is also similar on both tracks. As for, "Strange Magic's", chart success, it was not quite a Top 10 Hit like, "Evil Woman", was from the same album--but it was close, coming in at # 14. Everyone knew the song, it got tons of radio play. Thanks for the reaction.
@@HarriBestReactions It's subtle, and I never thought of it before, but you're right, the vibe is similar. And Jeff--the man of a thousand voices--sings them in much the same way.
Great song! Again, from my younger years, it has been brought to the present in an animation of the same title. Love the song, love your reaction, not a bad song for an earworm Harri!
Pluto was in Sidereal Virgo when thus song was released in 1975. It was like msgic. Virgo is a damsel in a bost, one hand holding a lantern and the other holding a stalk of rice. The boat is on marshy water close to the rtwo rims of the marssh, made out by the forest fringes. The lady is practising magic in the boat.
Hi Mary-Ellen. I sponsored, "Fire On High", on this channel some time ago. Here is Harri's reaction to it: *"Fire On High"* reaction by Harri: ua-cam.com/video/7QolAxTMm0o/v-deo.html
I am a Beatles fanatic but i can recognize Jeff Lynne's ELO's greatness. It took 4 Beatles and George Martin to accomplish what Jeff Lynne has done musically all by himself. Of course, by popularity and COMMERCIALLY, The Beatles are no 1 but musically Jeff Lynne rules. Jeff Lynne is better with Harmonies, Orchestration, as an incredible Producer, singer and songwriter. No wonder why all the Beatles loved Lynne's work and why he worked with them on so many music projects.
Hey man, I cannot agree that Jeff is a better songwriter than Lennon or McCartney. I'll call it a push, or give a slight edge to the Fab 2 merely for being first. But I will add to your list that Jeff beats three of The Beatles and ties one (Macca) in terms of his prowess as a multi-instrumentalist. Thanks for commenting.
@@Cosmo-Kramer WE can have different opinions on that. A the end of the day, it doesn't make anyone better or worse. I forgot to add Jeff Lynne is the most versatile musician i can think of.
@@Cosmo-Kramer Done! Lucky you! You know i like to bring facts, but since i appreciate all the love you are giving to ELO and Jeff on this channel and others, i had to do it for you! Enjoy your Week-end!
I am a Beatles fanatic but i can recognize Jeff Lynne's ELO's greatness. It took 4 Beatles and George Martin to accomplish what Jeff Lynne has done musically all by himself. Of course, by popularity and COMMERCIALLY, The Beatles are no 1 but musically Jeff Lynne rules. Jeff Lynne is better with Harmonies, Orchestration, as an incredible Producer, singer and songwriter. No wonder why all the Beatles loved Lynn's work and why to work with them on so many music projects.
Hello Harri! If you'd like more guitar driven ELO you should check out the GREAT Zoom album from 2001. Same strong melodies, but instead of being string based (70's) or synth based (80's) this one is, and superbly so, guitar based. Some recommendations; Lonesome Lullaby, Stranger on a Quiet Street, Alright, etc.
Don't know about a "huge hit" - it was their worst peforming single in the UK so far, when released! 10538 Overture - #9 Roll Over Beethoven - #6 Showdown - #12 Ma-Ma-Belle - #22 Evil Woman - #10 Strange Magic - #38 Maybe because it sounds like a great album track and not a natural single? I don't know. ELO first came to my attention in 1976 with the next single, Livin' Thing (#4), so this was the previous year and I first became aware of the song on the original 1979 Greatest Hits album - the one with the ELO roundel appearing as a medal on the cover and a letter written to the fans by Jeff on the back. For a long time, I thought all music was this great, then we got the '80s...
It's an irresistible tune--a prime example of Jeff's singular magic--which proved to be a much bigger hit at # 14 in the world's primary market, than it was in the land that you and Jeff call home, brother Dave. That made it America's second highest charting ELO single at the time, just 4 slots behind, "Evil Woman". People can differ on their definition of "huge", but I daresay any song that reaches the Top 15 in the US is appropriately characterized as a huge hit. (Just as I'd consider songs in the 16 to 25 range to be "big hits", and songs from 26 to 40 to be "hits".) ps~That ELO Greatest Hits album was quite a compilation! Although I must admit I rarely played it, favoring instead the original albums, as it was missing the beautiful orchestral Intros on tracks such as, "Strange Magic", and, "Evil Woman", that set those songs up so exquisitely. It must've been a long time before you ever heard them. The album cuts were not played on the radio. Did you ultimately buy, Face The Music, in the '80s or '90s? And whatever year it was that you finally heard those Intros--like the one I included in this reaction--did they enhance the song for you the way I feel they do, or were you so accustomed to the single edits that you felt, and still feel today, like you could take or leave them? I reckon there's a third option, that you feel they detract from the songs--but I'd be a bit surprised to hear you say that.
@@Cosmo-Kramer - I used to record songs off the radio onto cassette tape, mostly from the chart show (Top 40 singles) on Sunday nights, because you were able to anticipate a song you wanted moving up the chart and getting played on air. Albums, at first on cassette - Out Of The Blue, Discovery, Greatest Hits. Sometime after Xanadu (1980 Summer break) and Time (1981), when I was in my first year as a university student, I got a record player and started buying all the albums on vinyl, so that's when I went back and got all the old albums as well as the new ones as they were released. Our Hall of Residence also had a record library, so there was some interesting stuff in there. Secret Messages was the first ELO album I heard only on vinyl as it was released in 1983, and there was a new album by Fleetwood Mac the previous year. Kelly Groucutt released his solo album in 1982, I recall. I was getting a lot of other stuff on vinyl all the time - all The Beatles albums from Sgt Pepper onwards, and the red and blue compilation albums. We showed Apocalypse Now in the Hall film club, so The Doors were very popular for a while. Happy days...
@@davemac1197 Happy days, indeed. Two questions. 1) Regarding the Intros on SM and EW, you must have heard the songs in single edit form umpteen million times in the few years between getting their Greatest Hits album and getting FTM. How did the novel (to you) Intros resonate once you heard them? Did they add, subtract, or have no effect on the song in your ears? How 'bout today? 2) Did the '84 film, This Is Spinal Tap, resonate with lads in England the way it did here when it was released?
@@Cosmo-Kramer - 1) I think I already had an idea of what to expect after Out Of The Blue. The surprise was more good stuff! 2) Never seen it. The films I went to see in 1984 were Dune, A Nightmare On Elm Street, Ghostbusters, The Terminator, Red Dawn, Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom, Gremlins, 2010: The Year We Make Contact, The Bounty, Star Trek III: The Search For Spock, Starman, Runaway, Dreamscape, The Philadelphia Experiment, and Electric Dreams. I used to get Cinefex, a bi-monthly journal of film special effects, so I was mostly going to see films at the cinema that featured heavily in the magazine. Didn't realise there were so many in one year! At the time, I was working in a Motor Tax office (you call it the DMV) and one of the other guys there had the same film interests - his all time favourite was Blade Runner and mine is 2001. I remember we went to see the Star Wars trilogy matinee - all three films back to back over 6 hours!
Absolutely love ELO. music of my life.
You can never go wrong with ELO. One of my favorite bands of all time. ❤️
Great song.
It was a big hit in the USA. ELO was very successful here. They have many songs Harri that you need to listen to! ♥️
Jeff Lynn has some very subtle voice acrobatics in this song that I feel get overlooked, but so beautiful
👍😊
John Lennon worship ❤😮
I love this song, it’s true, is magical! 👏👏👏
Their best!!! 👍❤🤙
@catscan2022 Hypnosis is repetitive. ;)
When music was great music! 🎶❤️
This song has been stuck in my head since 1975. Welcome to the club!
My favorite ELO song.
ELO one of the best bands- EVER !!
Jeff and Kelly's voices blended so well together.
you will never mistake elo for anyone else
love this one!
absolutely brilliant song. Great choice.
"You're walking meadows in my mind, making waves across my time" Sublime. Thank you Cosmo and Harri 👍😊
Sublime, indeed. My pleasure, Paul.
Wow Jeff's voice is so smooth on this
Some really great memories from that year God I missed the late 70s, and ELO was a sound that brought such good Joy to those times.
the whole album this piece came from is very trippy...Thanks brother Harri
The Cosmo & Harri Combo strikes again! Thank's guy's, ELO always takes me back, and that's a very good thing🤗 Much gratitude❤
My pleasure, Robin, I'm glad you're enjoying them. :)
Music is wonderful. I so appreciate your enjoyment of these amazing songs. Thank you.
One of my faves!!!! They have a long list of awesome songs...
ELO, is such a great underated band
ELO for som reason captures the feeling of the 70s and of rainy days for me.
“Strange Magic” was a huge hit on the airwaves in the mid 70s, as were “Rhiannon” by Fleetwood Mac, “That’s the Way of the World” by Earth, Wind, & Fire, and “Love Will Keep Us Together” by Captain & Tennille., to name just a few.
Love this band and this is probably “one” of my favourite songs by them.
Probably my favorite ELO song. I can recall listening to this on my car radio returning to college from spring break in 1976. Definetely a Big hit for ELO in the U.S.A.. I wondered when Cosmo was going to request this, since everything else of off the "Face the Music" LP had pretty much been requested. Worth the wait....Steve G
I heard a Dolby 5.1 surround sound remix of this song by an acquaintance of mine. He has various software tools that he uses to separate and remix the tracks. This song in particular sounded great in Dolby 5.1 - he had the "La La La' in the background rotating all the way around the room as they sang it. In any case, it made me want Jeff Lynne to do some official Dolby remixes.
That sounds like a damn good idea.
Jeff Lynne really hit his stride by the time he helped form ELO with former members of Carl Wayne and the Vikings/The Move and The Idle Race. If he was nothing else, Lynne is a master at writing a memorable song hook.
Another great song off another great album. You can't go wrong with listening to FTM. It's got something for everyone and pretty much all the songs are high quality. Even for diehard ELO fans, this song would probably rate pretty highly.
This is one of my all time favorite songs! Another home run from Cosmo Kramer and rightly appreciated by Harri. 🌺✌️
Not surprised, Debbie, given your impeccable taste. Thanks! :)
Such a feel good song
So glad you got the version with the orchestral intro. Many don't know it's there.
I made sure of that. You obviously owned, Face The Music, as the single edit omitted it.
Cosmo Kramer, I dont now who you are but I come across you in various ELO reactions...keep up the good work
Oh, I'm Frieda's boss.
Harri and Cosmo thanks for keeping great music alive!
You bet!
That's my favorite song of theirs. Jeff Lynne is a genius.
Have a great day!
Top 5 song in my book of ELO's songs. I knew Cosmo Kramer had to include this one with his other brilliant picks. Glad you enjoyed it Harri. ✌❤😉👍
I'd have to tear up my ELO Fan Club Membership card if I didn't sponsor this song on Harri's highlight tour of their catalog. lol
they have a song called Fire on High with one of the best intros ever !
Harri, I am so glad that you have discovered the wondrous music of Jeff Lynne and ELO. You have reacted to more of the band's songs than any other people who do reactions, and I appreciate that. ELO has been one of my favorites for years. Two of Jeff's albums that have been shockingly overlooked are these: “Eldorado” and “Time”. “Eldorado” is about a dreamer, a seeker and, for the full effect, should be heard from beginning to end. The music takes one from the mundane life of a banker (“Can't Get It out of My Head) through dreamy travels with songs that end with the album title song “Eldorado”, a beautiful, lyrical cry for a different life. Every song on the album is worthy of placing on your program for reaction, which isn’t practical unless you want to react to the whole beautiful record. A few I would recommend are these: “Can't Get It out of My Head”, “Boy Blue”, “Mister Kingdom”, “Laredo Tornado”, “Illusions in G Major”. “Time” is wonderful, too. These two albums, especially “Eldorado”, should put to rest any notion that Jeff Lynne is not the highest quality of musical genius! Please listen and see what you think!
A big "THANK YOU" for including the beautiful intro music! Just a great ELO song!
Hey Marco, you know your ELO! I wouldn't listen to the song any other way. (Same goes for the Intro to, "Evil Woman".)
Absolutely mesmerizing. I love the stringed instruments used in most ELO songs. They draw you in and take you away.
My favourite "I Can't Get It out of My Head" has such strings. Jeff Lynne is exceptional.
Thanks Harri. Cheers from Canada 🇨🇦
Hi Harri! Really can't go wrong with them can you ? In my fave top 10 bands ever (excluding the Fabs who have their own list, naturally).
Hope all is well in your world. Amazing to me still what music can do for your mental health, music is medicine. I feel better already! Love ya. x
ELO was a great success in the US, UK and here my country Chile. SouthAmerica. Congratulations Harry, other great reaction. Try I am Alive, On The Run, Stranger, The Whale (instrumental song) . Greeting
Great choice Cosmo my friend. ELO is hard to go wrong by. Jeff Lynne should have been the real Fifth Beatle. Took my family to see them a few years ago. It was one of the best concerts I ever saw. Thanks Harri pal. Fantastic review. 👍🙃🔥🕊️🌏😉🤴😎
Thanks, brother Daniel, appreciate it!
You’d naturally think the guitar lick would’ve come from Jeff Lynne, but it was keyboardist Richard Tandy who performed it.
Yes Matt, and what a rarity that was. I know of no other such instance in ELO's 175-song catalog. Of course, Jeff wrote the lick, but fancied the way Richard played it.
Richard Tandy was a bassist until switching to keyboards full time in 1972 after they bought one of the very first Moog synthesizers and realised they had no one who could play it. Richard volunteered to learn it and they hired Mike d'Albuquerque to replace him on bass.
Tandy is such a talent, and in my opinion, a major architect of the “classic ELO sound,” along with strings arranger and conductor Louis Clark.
@@chronomatt6990 Agreed. They were integral contributors.
I love this song!! Thank you Harri 😁
excellent choice!! I love ELO. thanks Harri
These songs all sound so much better today than they did when they were on the radio.
Thanks!
My favorite group that I still listen to today. Discovered them in college during the early 70s. Still have my albums and CDs that I play when driving. ELO, Moody's, Chicago and more, they are my exploring companions 🙂
ELO was largely inspired by the Moody Blues
Guitar licks ELO has so many Harri. Do Ya, Ma ma ma belle, Poker, Roll Over Beethoven, Fire On High and hundreds of them...
And the whole Zoom album.
@@bobwoolerOriGinal True!
Yes you are absolutely right! I forgot about Beethoven.It was even better than the original.In my opinion.😀
This is a favourite of mine by them. Lovingly assembled. A beautiful build. That descending line dahdahdahdahdah. Izzat the hook you meant? You hoped it would return and it stepped right up! Happens not infrequently. Will return.
Nice one Harri!
One of my favorite ELO tracks. Check out Ma Ma Ma Belle for a great guitar hook. It features guest guitarist Marc Bolan of T.Rex.
Cheers!
one of those songs i remember hearing in the background on my moms big ole stereo way back when
Harri, glad you loved, "Strange Magic". It is, indeed, one helluva infectious chorus. To go along with those dreamy verses. And I can hear what you're saying about it reminding you a bit of, "Livin' Thing". The songs don't really sound alike, and yet *tonally* they are similar. Jeff's voice is also similar on both tracks. As for, "Strange Magic's", chart success, it was not quite a Top 10 Hit like, "Evil Woman", was from the same album--but it was close, coming in at # 14. Everyone knew the song, it got tons of radio play. Thanks for the reaction.
I'm happy to hear you feel so too ambassador..I thought i was hallucinating 🤣😂
@@HarriBestReactions It's subtle, and I never thought of it before, but you're right, the vibe is similar. And Jeff--the man of a thousand voices--sings them in much the same way.
Great song! Again, from my younger years, it has been brought to the present in an animation of the same title. Love the song, love your reaction, not a bad song for an earworm Harri!
Such a great song. But then it's ELO. grin.
😀🎻
Ive been wondering when he would get you to this one. My second favorite from them.
I'll bite. What's your top favorite, Brandon?
@@robtaylor5550 shine a little love
@@brandonious7732 Great choice! Honestly I'm not even sure I could pick a favorite. Or I guess maybe it's more the case that mine changes by the day.
JEFF est très grand !....
C'est le meilleur!
can't beat some ELO plus there are plenty to enjoy
I've covered this song with my band once. It's deceptively complicated.
Beautiful song though.
Definitely one of the ten best tracks they ever recorded
Pluto was in Sidereal Virgo when thus song was released in 1975.
It was like msgic. Virgo is a damsel in a bost, one hand holding a lantern and the other holding a stalk of rice. The boat is on marshy water close to the rtwo rims of the marssh, made out by the forest fringes.
The lady is practising magic in the boat.
you've got to give Fire on High a listen from the same album! I remember it being used on one of the sports shows in the seventies.
Hi Mary-Ellen. I sponsored, "Fire On High", on this channel some time ago. Here is Harri's reaction to it:
*"Fire On High"* reaction by Harri: ua-cam.com/video/7QolAxTMm0o/v-deo.html
ELO is love-or-hate because they get stuck in your head for days.
Makes me cry. This my youth. Everything seemed good only to grow up
I’m your first viewer love e l o we should have fun with this one
Jeff Lynne was another HookMaster. 🪝
Great song, and reaction video!
Well Jeff Lynne is the guitarist and I guess composer arranger whatever almost I don't want to say musical genius but dude's really good
☮️❤️🔥🔥🔥🎶🎵
I am a Beatles fanatic but i can recognize Jeff Lynne's ELO's greatness. It took 4 Beatles and George Martin to accomplish what Jeff Lynne has done musically all by himself. Of course, by popularity and COMMERCIALLY, The Beatles are no 1 but musically Jeff Lynne rules. Jeff Lynne is better with Harmonies, Orchestration, as an incredible Producer, singer and songwriter. No wonder why all the Beatles loved Lynne's work and why he worked with them on so many music projects.
Hey man, I cannot agree that Jeff is a better songwriter than Lennon or McCartney. I'll call it a push, or give a slight edge to the Fab 2 merely for being first. But I will add to your list that Jeff beats three of The Beatles and ties one (Macca) in terms of his prowess as a multi-instrumentalist. Thanks for commenting.
@@Cosmo-Kramer WE can have different opinions on that. A the end of the day, it doesn't make anyone better or worse. I forgot to add Jeff Lynne is the most versatile musician i can think of.
@@fabfour7397 Thanks, mate.
@@Cosmo-Kramer Done! Lucky you! You know i like to bring facts, but since i appreciate all the love you are giving to ELO and Jeff on this channel and others, i had to do it for you! Enjoy your Week-end!
@@Cosmo-Kramer my pleasure 😇
Like Living Thing? Well they both were hits in 1976, Strange Magic in the Spring, and Livin Thing in the Fall.😉
From the opening guitar lines…the hook…I hear Paul McCartney and Wings. ELO always gives me that Beatlish vibe!
I am a Beatles fanatic but i can recognize Jeff Lynne's ELO's greatness. It took 4 Beatles and George Martin to accomplish what Jeff Lynne has done musically all by himself. Of course, by popularity and COMMERCIALLY, The Beatles are no 1 but musically Jeff Lynne rules. Jeff Lynne is better with Harmonies, Orchestration, as an incredible Producer, singer and songwriter. No wonder why all the Beatles loved Lynn's work and why to work with them on so many music projects.
Hello Harri! If you'd like more guitar driven ELO you should check out the GREAT Zoom album from 2001. Same strong melodies, but instead of being string based (70's) or synth based (80's) this one is, and superbly so, guitar based. Some recommendations; Lonesome Lullaby, Stranger on a Quiet Street, Alright, etc.
And it doesn’t matter has great guitar riffs just like One day and Long black Road.
He reacted to, "Alright".
@@fabfour7397 Yep, those too.
@@Cosmo-Kramer Ah, ok. Well, it's all in your hands, Cosmo. Give us some more Zoom 👍😃
I'm sorry. I left the one song off of the list that I would recommend over all the rest… “Eldorado”.
Richard Tandy the keyboard player played the guitar intro
It's a lalabye
Don't know about a "huge hit" - it was their worst peforming single in the UK so far, when released!
10538 Overture - #9
Roll Over Beethoven - #6
Showdown - #12
Ma-Ma-Belle - #22
Evil Woman - #10
Strange Magic - #38
Maybe because it sounds like a great album track and not a natural single? I don't know.
ELO first came to my attention in 1976 with the next single, Livin' Thing (#4), so this was the previous year and I first became aware of the song on the original 1979 Greatest Hits album - the one with the ELO roundel appearing as a medal on the cover and a letter written to the fans by Jeff on the back. For a long time, I thought all music was this great, then we got the '80s...
It's an irresistible tune--a prime example of Jeff's singular magic--which proved to be a much bigger hit at # 14 in the world's primary market, than it was in the land that you and Jeff call home, brother Dave. That made it America's second highest charting ELO single at the time, just 4 slots behind, "Evil Woman". People can differ on their definition of "huge", but I daresay any song that reaches the Top 15 in the US is appropriately characterized as a huge hit. (Just as I'd consider songs in the 16 to 25 range to be "big hits", and songs from 26 to 40 to be "hits".)
ps~That ELO Greatest Hits album was quite a compilation! Although I must admit I rarely played it, favoring instead the original albums, as it was missing the beautiful orchestral Intros on tracks such as, "Strange Magic", and, "Evil Woman", that set those songs up so exquisitely. It must've been a long time before you ever heard them. The album cuts were not played on the radio. Did you ultimately buy, Face The Music, in the '80s or '90s? And whatever year it was that you finally heard those Intros--like the one I included in this reaction--did they enhance the song for you the way I feel they do, or were you so accustomed to the single edits that you felt, and still feel today, like you could take or leave them? I reckon there's a third option, that you feel they detract from the songs--but I'd be a bit surprised to hear you say that.
@@Cosmo-Kramer - I used to record songs off the radio onto cassette tape, mostly from the chart show (Top 40 singles) on Sunday nights, because you were able to anticipate a song you wanted moving up the chart and getting played on air. Albums, at first on cassette - Out Of The Blue, Discovery, Greatest Hits. Sometime after Xanadu (1980 Summer break) and Time (1981), when I was in my first year as a university student, I got a record player and started buying all the albums on vinyl, so that's when I went back and got all the old albums as well as the new ones as they were released. Our Hall of Residence also had a record library, so there was some interesting stuff in there. Secret Messages was the first ELO album I heard only on vinyl as it was released in 1983, and there was a new album by Fleetwood Mac the previous year. Kelly Groucutt released his solo album in 1982, I recall. I was getting a lot of other stuff on vinyl all the time - all The Beatles albums from Sgt Pepper onwards, and the red and blue compilation albums. We showed Apocalypse Now in the Hall film club, so The Doors were very popular for a while. Happy days...
@@davemac1197 Happy days, indeed. Two questions. 1) Regarding the Intros on SM and EW, you must have heard the songs in single edit form umpteen million times in the few years between getting their Greatest Hits album and getting FTM. How did the novel (to you) Intros resonate once you heard them? Did they add, subtract, or have no effect on the song in your ears? How 'bout today? 2) Did the '84 film, This Is Spinal Tap, resonate with lads in England the way it did here when it was released?
@@Cosmo-Kramer -
1) I think I already had an idea of what to expect after Out Of The Blue. The surprise was more good stuff!
2) Never seen it. The films I went to see in 1984 were Dune, A Nightmare On Elm Street, Ghostbusters, The Terminator, Red Dawn, Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom, Gremlins, 2010: The Year We Make Contact, The Bounty, Star Trek III: The Search For Spock, Starman, Runaway, Dreamscape, The Philadelphia Experiment, and Electric Dreams. I used to get Cinefex, a bi-monthly journal of film special effects, so I was mostly going to see films at the cinema that featured heavily in the magazine. Didn't realise there were so many in one year! At the time, I was working in a Motor Tax office (you call it the DMV) and one of the other guys there had the same film interests - his all time favourite was Blade Runner and mine is 2001. I remember we went to see the Star Wars trilogy matinee - all three films back to back over 6 hours!