Eldorado (Electric Light Orchestra album)
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Eldorado, A Symphony, officially known as simply Eldorado, is the fourth studio album and a concept album by the Electric Light Orchestra released in 1974.
Concept
Eldorado is the first complete ELO concept album, and Jeff Lynne conceived of the entire story before he wrote any music.[1] The story follows a Walter Mitty-like character who mentally journeys into fantasy worlds via dreams, to escape a mundane reality he can't tolerate.
Recording
On this album Jeff Lynne stopped overdubbing strings, as he had on the first three ELO albums, and instead hired an orchestra.[1] Louis Clark co-arranged and conducted the strings, and would become a full member.[1] The group's resident three string players continued to perform on the recording and can be heard most prominently on the songs Boy Blue and Laredo Tornado.
Mike de Albuquerque departed early on in the recording process, leaving Lynne to play bass and provide most of the backing vocals for the album, though de Albuquerque was credited. Kelly Groucutt replaced de Albuquerque for the subsequent tour, when cellist Melvyn Gale also joined.
"Eldorado Finale" is heavily orchestrated much like "Eldorado Overture". Jeff Lynne said of the song, "I like the heavy chords and the slightly daft ending, where you hear the double bass players packing up their basses, because they wouldn't play another millisecond past the allotted moment."[1]
Use as soundtrack
In 1978, the avant-garde filmmaker Kenneth Anger recreated his classic 1954 film Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome, using this album as the soundtrack.
Reception
"Can't Get It Out of My Head" was released as a single (with "Illusions in G Major") and was a success in the US.
"Boy Blue" was released in an edited form as the second single but failed to make any impact.
The album was soon certified Gold in the US. However, the album and singles failed to find a wide audience in the band's native United Kingdom.
Cover artwork
The front cover, designed by Sharon Arden, later known as Sharon Osbourne, comprises a still from the popular 1939 film The Wizard of Oz.[citation needed]
Original Track Listing
All songs written by Jeff Lynne.
Side one
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Eldorado Overture" | 2:12 |
| 2. | "Can't Get It Out of My Head" | 4:21 |
| 3. | "Boy Blue" | 5:18 |
| 4. | "Laredo Tornado" | 5:29 |
| 5. | "Poor Boy (The Greenwood)" | 2:57 |
Side two
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 6. | "Mister Kingdom" | 5:29 |
| 7. | "Nobody's Child" | 3:56 |
| 8. | "Illusions in G Major" | 2:37 |
| 9. | "Eldorado" | 5:17 |
| 10. | "Eldorado Finale" | 1:34 |
Reissue
The album was remastered and reissued in 2001 with two bonus tracks, "Eldorado Instrumental Medley", a suite of the album's orchestral parts, plus "Dark City", an early draft of the track "Laredo Tornado".
- "Eldorado Instrumental Medley" – 7:56
- "Dark City" – 0:46
Chart Positions, Chart Runs
- US: #16 Billboard 200, 32 weeks
- UK: did not chart on its own when first released, but reached #38 in 1978 as part of the 3-LP box-set Three Light Years.
- AUS: #40 ARIA Albums Chart, 14 weeks
- CAN: #7 RPM Albums Chart, 28 weeks
Personnel
- Jeff Lynne – vocals, electric and acoustic guitars, bass, keyboards, orchestra and choral arrangements
- Bev Bevan – drums, percussion
- Richard Tandy – piano, moog synthesiser, guitar, backing vocals, orchestra and choral arrangements
- Mike de Albuquerque – bass (credited, but did not play on most of the record)
- Mik Kaminski – violin
- Hugh McDowell – cello
- Mike Edwards – cello
- Louis Clark - orchestra and choral arrangements and conducting
- Peter Forbes-Robertson – spoken word
