Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Electric Light Orchestra
Label: Legacy Recordings
Released: 1974
Rating: 5/5
Eldorado, that conquistador legend of the lost golden city of an ancient Mesoamerican civilization, remained the eternal unfulfilled dream of generations of all sorts of reckless adventurers. For the legendary British art rock adventurers Electric Light Orchestra, on the other hand, it stood, in a somewhat figurative sense, for the realization of their artistic dreams. “Eldorado” (often also called “Eldorado, A Symphony”) was the album that gave ELO their first big commercial breakthrough (mostly in the US; they’d have to wait a while longer for bigger success on home turf) and produced their first masterpiece.
Their charismatic leader, singer/guitarist and brilliant producer Jeff Lynne, had by then grown tired of fiddling with orchestral sound in the studio, especially the multi-layered overdubbing of string parts for both cellos and the violin. So for this ambitious project he decided to hire a real orchestra, conducted by Louis Clark. Clark also helped Lynne with arranging the individual orchestral parts for the album and eventually became a regular member of ELO. Of course, ELO were by no means the first rock band ever to work with an orchestra. But with this album they pulled off one of the most successful marriages of a rock band and an orchestra, and gave the term symphonic rock a completely new dimension.
“Eldorado” was conceived as the band’s first concept album. Lynne dreamed up the story before he even started writing the music and lyrics. It’s about a slightly introverted guy with a vivid imagination who, in a special mental way, travels through dreams into a parallel fantasy world to escape the dull, bland everyday life he can’t stand anymore. On his journey he finds himself in various fantasy roles until he faces a fateful decision: stay, or go back to the real world. The iconic cover, with a scene from the film The Wizard of Oz, had no real connection to the concept or the lyrics of the album, apart from the golden glow of Dorothy’s magical shoes and the fact that the concept is about a journey to a fantasy land. As a fun fact, the cover was designed by Sharon Arden, daughter of then-ELO manager Don Arden, who much later “rose to fame” as the infamous wife of Ozzy Osbourne.
This time, too, the recording of the album didn’t go without lineup shuffles. Soon after the release of the previous album “On The Third Day” (1973), Hugh McDowell, one of the two original cellists, returned to the fold and joined Mike Edwards on cello. McDowell had realized he’d never get rich with The Wizzard, the band of Lynne’s former buddy Roy Wood. The previous bassist, Mike de Albuqerque, had already said his goodbyes before recording started and contributed nothing to this album, even though he’s credited on it. Lynne played all the bass parts on the album himself. Albuqerque was replaced by Kelly Grocutt before the tour.
On “Eldorado,” ELO finally nailed down their trademark symphonic rock sound. Lynne’s production got even cleaner, which let most of the orchestral arrangements (which often sound very cinematic) shine even more than usual. Of all the ELO albums, “Eldorado” may well have the most polished orchestral arrangements. Compared with most symphonic prog rock bands, you could call the lion’s share of the compositions on “Eldorado” “sacred simplicity,” since complexity had long since given way to exceptional accessibility and melodiousness. But simplicity can often be a remarkable virtue in progressive rock too. To my mind, what set the greatest (progressive) rock bands apart was exactly this ability to churn out excellent pop songs whenever they wanted, alongside their sprawling, complex compositions. ELO were one of the best proofs of that: a perfect fusion of melodic rock in the true Beatles tradition with classical-music orchestral arrangements. On “Eldorado,” the trend toward ever greater melodic accessibility in ELO’s music got an even stronger emphasis. Lynne’s vocals, accordingly, improved further, especially in terms of range and warmth. Though he was never a guitar hero, he gradually established himself as one of the best melodic rock singers around.
As is the tradition with most concept albums, there are no gaps between the songs here either; they flow from one into the next. The album opens with “Eldorado Overture,” built on sweeping, energetic classical-style orchestral arrangements and the spoken word of Peter Forbes-Robertson, the story’s narrator. This dramatic intro pours straight into the romantic symphonic pop rock treat “Can’t Get It Out Of My Head,” one of their biggest hits (without a doubt their best-known track on this album, and it came out as a single too) and also one of the best ELO pop songs. This evergreen is soaked in a special romantic pathos, created by gorgeous orchestral arrangements and a supremely tasteful melodic chorus with Lynne’s poetic vocals. The excellent “Boy Blue,” which glides brilliantly between symphonic and melodic rock, kicks off with Mexican-flavored string arrangements, followed by a dramatic section with all sorts of varied passages on Tandy’s keyboards, strings and Bevan’s drum fills. Lynne’s slightly paranoid vocals, the simple guitar lines and the bouncy rhythm give it a bit of a cowboy flavor, too.
“Laredo Tornado,” opened by a juicy guitar riff, is the true incarnation of the ELO trademark melodic sound, with Lynne’s eclectic vocals, at times romantic, at times a little drowsy, a funky rhythm with some tasteful bass moves and witty violin arrangements. As usual, Lynne’s vocal skills come alive in the mighty, romantic chorus, which radiates incredible warmth and drama at the same time. “Poor Boy (The Greenwood)” is a shorter piece with a bouncy rhythm, lots of choral harmonies and fun, varied, almost cinematic orchestral arrangements. “Mister Kingdom,” which you could also call one of the lost Beatles songs, has a subtle intro with tasteful orchestral arrangements and an excellent vocal performance. Here Lynne’s vocal tone once again veers a bit toward John Lennon. The combination of melodic rock passages and rich symphonic arrangements creates a romantic atmosphere that will enchant all the musical dreamers out there. On “Nobody’s Child” the intro repeats the orchestral motif from “Boy Blue” once more, followed by a dramatic yet romantic orchestral section where Lynne sings about the dreamer’s love adventures. The slightly sarcastic main vocal melody over piano is joined by rich orchestral arrangements and mighty choral vocals.
The short “Illusions in G Major,” with its bouncy, simple boogie rhythm on piano and guitar lines, is the only real rocker on the album. Its funny lyrics are worth a mention: a rock star tells a psychiatrist about his strange visions. Next comes the title track, “Eldorado,” which is also one of the album’s best. It’s the key moment of the concept, where the dreamer suddenly realizes he prefers the dream world to the real one and tries by any means to get back to Eldorado. The exceptionally romantic atmosphere shines in full light with mighty, ultra-rich orchestral arrangements, choral harmonies and Lynne’s energetic, varied vocal performance, in which, as the concept’s protagonist, he bids farewell to the bleakness of the real world and rejoices in true freedom in Eldorado. Some Christian fundamentalists, “famous” for their double standards, accused Lynne of hiding a “blasphemous” subliminal message in the lyrics when the song is played backward, which is of course total nonsense. Lynne later answered these slanders on the next album, “Face The Music” (1975), by slipping a short, mocking backward message into the track “Fire On High,” poking fun at the madness of religious zealots. With “Eldorado Finale” the album closes with the same motif as the opening: a short dance of mighty orchestral arrangements and the closing spoken words of the “old wise man.”
For ELO, “Eldorado” truly meant striking the golden city, and the fulfillment of the dreamer’s dream from the concept, even though the biggest triumph of their career was still some time away. With it they made one of their best records and a classic of symphonic/art rock, where the word “orchestra” in the band’s name truly came alive as a timeless symphony about a strange fantasy journey. After this masterpiece ELO became “world players,” and their creativity and commercial success climbed steeply for several more years, while their albums boasted some of the most dazzling production of the era.
Line-up
Jeff Lynne – vocals, electric and acoustic guitar, bass guitar, keyboards, orchestral arrangements
Bev Bevan – drums, percussion
Richard Tandy – piano, moog synthesizer, guitar, backing vocals, orchestral arrangements
Mike de Albuquerque – bass guitar (credited, though he didn’t play on the album)
Mik Kaminski – violin
Hugh McDowell – cello
Mike Edwards – cello
Louis Clark – orchestra, choral arrangements and conducting
Peter Forbes-Robertson – spoken word
Production
Jeff Lynne
Track list
1. Eldorado Overture (2:12)
2. Can’t Get it Out of My Head (4:26)
3. Boy Blue (5:17)
4. Laredo Tornado (5:26)
5. Poorboy (The Greenwood) (2:56)
6. Mister Kingdom (5:50)
7. Nobody’s Child (3:40)
8. Illusions in ‘G’ Major (2:36)
9. Eldorado (5:20)
10. Eldorado – Finale (1:20)
Album length: 38:42
