I've begun thinking that Electric Light Orchestra is a better band than Metallica.

[Tobin S.]

I must be getting old.

My wife got me The Essential Electric Light Orchestra for Valentine's Day. It's a two disc set with a total of 37 songs, and I'll be damned if every one of them isn't good.

Yes, I still buy compact discs. That might be another sign.

[DetlefK]

1. That's normal. One eventually outgrows that aggressive, angsty stuff.

[OriginalGeek]

5. Ha!

I'll listen to Napalm Death until I die. Barney Greenway is a liberal political voice in metal and they keep writing great stuff.

While definitely aggressive (more so in the beginning than now), I'm not sure I'd say metallica and harder metal in general is all that angsty. Maybe metal-core is but I don't listen to that. It's just that after 3 and a half great albums, Metallica hasn't done much other than poppy horseshit produced for radio since then. If they were still writing Whiplash/Creeping Death quality stuff I'd still listen to them.

And I'll be seeing them in July. Not because I particularly want to - I saw them a couple times back in the 80s when they were still good - but one of the opening acts is Volbeat and my daughter has been wanting to see Volbeat for years so we going to the show. I'll stay around for Metallica to hear a few of the old songs but not interested in the rest. But it's very rare I pay for a show and leave early - too much money to not get the whole thing in.

The last time I paid for tickets to a show and left during the headliner was the Monsters of Rock tour in 1988. I was there to see one of the opening bands - Metallica. I stuck around for Scorpions and left during Van Haggar. (Had it been DLR Van Halen I woulda stayed).


But with all that said, ELO is a great band. I wish I could have seen one of their reunion shows...

[Dave Starsky]

2. Now you actually have to dig into their albums.

There is a WHOLE lot of other stuff ELO did that is just as good as anything on the compilations. Hell, there are B sides and outtakes they did that are as amazing as any of their hits.

I am a fan.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

10. I love ELO. Now he needs to find albums by ELO before they were ELO.

Last edited Tue Feb 14, 2017, 06:07 PM - Edit history (2)

One of my favorite albums is "Shazam," which came out on A&M, always a good label. Here's a song from that album:

Another great album is "Message from the Country." Back in 1977, I think, I found "Split Enz" in the 99¢ bin at Sears. Excellent purchase.

The Move

Bonus Todd Rundgren (from the Nazz era, and there's someone else I like) cover:

This is on "Split Enz." It's from the 'Message from the Country" era. The lyrics are here too:

Extended version:

One more, also on "Split Enz":

[Dave Starsky]

13. I usually recommend that new ELO fans...

check out A New World Record or Out of the Blue, then go backward or forward depending on their musical preference.

Those first two albums are pretty rough.

[Ron Obvious]

3. Well, of course they are! n/t

[Iggo]

4. Apples and Screwdrivers. (n/t)

[OriginalGeek]

6. with an apple and a screwdriver

you can make a pretty serviceable hash pipe

[Iggo]

7. So I've heard. So I've heard.

[Dave Starsky]

8. Which is the apple and which is the screwdriver?

Because if I'm ever stranded on a deserted island, and the only thing I have is a solar powered mp3 player and the complete collection of one of these bands, I would want to know which one I should choose.

[Iggo]

9. Metallica's definitely the screwdriver.

[Phentex]

11. I thought LynneSin bought all the ELO cds

I'm surprised you still found one.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

12. Vinyl, people; vinyl.

Don't tell me you fell for the digital hoax.