A New World Record (Remastered) Electric Light Orchestra

• 1 Tightrope 05:04
• 2 Telephone Line 04:40
• 3 Rockaria! 03:13
• 4 Mission (A World Record) 04:26
• 5 So Fine 03:55
• 6 Livin' Thing 03:32
• 7 Above the Clouds 02:17
• 8 Do Ya 03:45
• 9 Shangri-La 05:34
• Total Runtime 36:26

Info for A New World Record (Remastered)

„Jeff Lynne reportedly regards this album and its follow-up, Out of the Blue, as the high points in the band's history. One might be better off opting for A New World Record over its successor, however, as a more modest-sized creation chock full of superb songs that are produced even better. Opening with the opulently orchestrated "Tightrope," which heralds the perfect production found throughout this album, A New World Record contains seven of the best songs ever to come out of the group. The Beatles influence is present, to be sure, but developed to a very high degree of sophistication and on Lynne's own terms, rather than being imitative of specific songs. "Telephone Line" might be the best Lennon-McCartney collaboration that never was, lyrical and soaring in a way that manages to echo elements of Revolver and the Beatles without ever mimicking them. The original LP's second side opened with "So Fine," which seems like the perfect pop synthesis of guitar, percussion, and orchestral sounds, embodying precisely what Lynne had first set out to do with Roy Wood at the moment ELO was conceived. From there, the album soars through stomping rock numbers like "Livin' Thing" and "Do Ya," interspersed with lyrical pieces like "Above the Clouds" (which makes striking use of pizzicato bass strings).“ (Bruce Eder, AMG)

Jeff Lynne, vocals, guitars, percussion, electric piano
Bev Bevan, drums, Minimoog drum, percussion, backing vocals
Richard Tandy, electric piano, synthesizer, Clavinet, percussion, backing vocals, Systech flanger
Kelly Groucutt, vocals, bass, percussion, backing vocals
Mik Kaminski, violin, Maestro Echoplex, Univox Univibe
Hugh McDowell, cello, Systech Phaser, Mu-Tron III, Mu-Tron Phasor, Maestro Echoplex
Melvyn Gale, cello, Maestro Echoplex
Additional musicians:
Mary Thomas, operatic vocals
Patti Quatro, vocals
Brie Brandt, vocals
Addie Lee, vocals

Recorded July 1976 at Musicland Studios, Munich
Engineered by Ryan Ulyate, Marc Mann, Dick Plant, Duane Scott, John Richards
Produced by Jeff Lynne

Digitally remastered

The Electric Light Orchestra
The Electric Light Orchestra's ambitious yet irresistible fusion of Beatlesque pop, classical arrangements, and futuristic iconography rocketed the group to massive commercial success throughout the 1970s. ELO was formed in Birmingham, England in the autumn of 1970 from the ashes of the eccentric art-pop combo the Move, reuniting frontman Roy Wood with guitarist/composer Jeff Lynne, bassist Rick Price, and drummer Bev Bevan. Announcing their intentions to 'pick up where 'I Am the Walrus' left off,' the quartet sought to embellish their engagingly melodic rock with classical flourishes, tapping French horn player Bill Hunt and violinist Steve Woolam to record their self-titled debut LP (issued as No Answer in the U.S.). In the months between the sessions for the album and its eventual release, the Move embarked on their farewell tour, with Woolam exiting the ELO lineup prior to the enlistment of violinist Wilf Gibson, bassist Richard Tandy, and cellists Andy Craig and Hugh McDowell; despite the lengthy delay, Electric Light Orchestra sold strongly, buoyed by the success of the U.K. Top Ten hit '10538 Overture.'

However, Wood soon left ELO to form Wizzard, taking Hunt and McDowell with him; Price and Craig were soon out as well, and with the additions of bassist Michael D'Albuquerque, keyboardist Richard Tandy, and cellists Mike Edwards and Colin Walker, Lynne assumed vocal duties, with his Lennonesque tenor proving the ideal complement to his increasingly sophisticated melodies. With 1973's ELO II, the group returned to the Top Ten with their grandiose cover of the Chuck Berry chestnut 'Roll Over Beethoven'; the record was also their first American hit, with 1974's Eldorado yielding their first U.S. Top Ten, the lovely 'Can't Get It Out of My Head.' Despite Electric Light Orchestra's commercial success, the band remained relatively faceless; the lineup changed constantly, with sole mainstays Lynne and Bevan preferring to let their elaborate stage shows and omnipresent spaceship imagery instead serve as the group's public persona. 1975's Face the Music went gold, generating the hits 'Evil Woman' and 'Strange Magic,' while the follow-up, A New World Record, sold five million copies internationally thanks to standouts like 'Telephone Line' and 'Livin' Thing.'

The platinum-selling double-LP, Out of the Blue, appeared in 1977, although the record's success was tempered somewhat by a lawsuit filed by Electric Light Orchestra against their former distributor, United Artists, whom the band charged flooded the market with defective copies of the album. Columbia distributed the remainder of the group's output, issued through their own Jet Records imprint, beginning with 1979's Discovery, which notched the Top Ten entries 'Shine a Little Love' and 'Don't Bring Me Down.' In the wake of ELO's best-selling Greatest Hits compilation, Lynne wrote several songs for the soundtrack of the Olivia Newton-John film Xanadu, including the hit title track. The next proper Electric Light Orchestra album, 1981's Time, generated their final Top Ten hit, 'Hold on Tight.' Following 1983's Secret Messages, Bevan left the group to join Black Sabbath, although he returned to the fold for 1986's Balance of Power, which despite the presence of the Top 20 hit 'Calling America' received little interest from fans and media alike.

However, as Electric Light Orchestra's career descended, Lynne emerged as a sought-after producer, helming well-received comebacks from George Harrison (1987's Cloud Nine) and Roy Orbison (1989's Mystery Girl) and additionally re-teaming with both rock legends as well as Bob Dylan and Tom Petty in the hit supergroup the Traveling Wilburys. Lynne made his solo debut in 1990 with Armchair Theatre but otherwise spent the decade out of the limelight, instead producing material for Joe Cocker, Tom Jones, and Paul McCartney in addition to working on the Beatles' Anthology project. In 1988, meanwhile, Bevan formed Electric Light Orchestra Part II with vocalist Neil Lockwood, keyboardist Eric Troyer, and bassist Pete Haycock; although Lynne filed suit against the group (hence the 'Part II' tag), a self-titled LP followed in 1991, with a live collection recorded with the Moscow Symphony Orchestra appearing a year later. Outside of 1994's Moment of Truth, subsequent ELO II releases have been live efforts as well. (Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide)

This album contains no booklet.