Alone in the Universe

This article is about the album by Electric Light Orchestra. For the book by John Gribbin, see Alone in the Universe (book).
Alone in the Universe
Studio album by Jeff Lynne's ELO
Released November 13, 2015 (2015-11-13)
Recorded 2014–15
Studio Bungalow Palace
Length 32:31
Label Columbia
Producer Jeff Lynne
Electric Light Orchestra chronology
Electric Light Orchestra Live
(2013)		 Alone in the Universe
(2015)
Electric Light Orchestra studio album chronology
Zoom
(2001)		 Alone in the Universe
(2015)
Singles from Alone in the Universe
  1. "When I Was a Boy"
    Released: September 23, 2015
  2. "When the Night Comes"
    Released: October 15, 2015
  3. "One Step at a Time"
    Released: October 30, 2015
  4. "Ain't It a Drag"
    Released: April 1, 2016

Alone in the Universe is the thirteenth studio album by British rock band Electric Light Orchestra (ELO), and the first credited to Jeff Lynne's ELO.[1][2] The moniker came out from Lynne as a response to ELO tribute and imitation bands, who repeatedly used ELO for promoting their own tours.[3] Released on 13 November 2015, the album is the first of new original material credited to the group since Zoom in 2001, and the second since the original group's disbandment in 1986. The album was met with generally favourable reviews, peaking at number two on the Billboard Top Rock Albums and number four on the UK Albums Chart, where it has been certified Platinum.

Background and recording

ELO originally disbanded in 1986. In 2001, co-founder Jeff Lynne attempted to reform the band for a new tour to promote Zoom, the last studio album of original material credited to ELO, but the tour was cancelled due to low ticket sales.[4] Lynne returned to freelance record producing. Years later, BBC DJ Chris Evans invited Lynne on the air and, with listener backing, urged him to tour again.[4] The recording of his solo covers album, Long Wave (2012), was also inspirational for Lynne, and led him to experiment more with his songwriting based on the described "adventurous" qualities of the traditional pop standards he had chosen.[5]

The group subsequently returned for a single performance at Hyde Park in September 2014 as Jeff Lynne's ELO. Of the original ELO members, Lynne was the only founding member present, accompanied by Richard Tandy, the band's veteran keyboardist.[4] Lynne said he hadn't spoken to co-founder Bev Bevan in about 30 years, adding "Richard is my lifetime man in the group. ... He's a great musician, a great piano player and I really enjoy his company."[4] Alone in the Universe would be recorded at Lynne's home studio, Bungalow Palace, over the course of 18 months.[4] Lynne played nearly every instrument himself; the only other two people involved in the album's production were Laura Lynne, Jeff's daughter, who sings background vocals on "Love and Rain" and "One Step at a Time", and Steve Jay, the album's engineer, who plays the shaker and tambourine.[6][7]

On 24 September 2015, Alone in the Universe was announced.[2] When asked by a journalist what he had been doing since Zoom, the previous ELO album, Lynne jokingly responded: "I have no idea. I like a drink. I did lots of things. I just can’t think what it was."[8]

Songs

The album begins with its first single, "When I Was a Boy". The lyrics are about Lynne's childhood and teenage years in Birmingham, a part of his life he had visited through "Long Black Road" on Zoom. He said in an interview with Rolling Stone: "It's the most autobiographical song I've ever done. The words just wrote themselves, whereas normally I'd sweat them out and chain myself to my desk. It was about growing up and listening to my little crystal-set radio with headphones."[6] "Love and Rain", which began as an old recording demo, is one of Lynne's favourite songs. In his own words, the main riff sounded like a giant Clavinet, but it was actually a Telecaster. His daughter Laura sings backing vocals on it.[6]

The album's second single was "When the Night Comes". The song has a reggae rhythm, and it's one of the few songs on the album that features a string section.[9] The track started life as a demo recorded on cassette, featuring a few basic chords, before it developed into the song featured on the album.[10] "The Sun Will Shine on You" is a slow song that Lynne wrote for somebody he loved who was facing some big trouble, and at the same time to cheer himself up. As he said, the song made him feel better, a little more alone in the universe.[11]

On "Ain't it a Drag", Lynne said "It began because I wanted a rocker for the album. You always need a rocker – at least I do. I was in the mood to do almost a Mersey Beat number and to me there’s something about Ain’t It a Drag that sounds a bit like Mersey Beat. All these years later, that whole Mersey Beat thing still works!".[12] "I'm Leaving You" was a song Lynne wrote in tribute of his close friend and fellow Wilbury, Roy Orbison. He said: "I tried to write a Roy Orbison song like he would have written with his pal Joe Melson. That kind of style. Obviously not the singing. But the tune could've been a Roy Orbison song. It would have been a great one if he had sung it. But of course, I’m a bit late for that by about 28 years. He was a lovely guy anyway that I wanted to give him a nod on this album." [3]

The last single released before the album saw the light was "One Step at a Time", which has a slightly more modern disco kind of vibe. Lynne said: "I didn’t have quite enough up-tempo songs. It’s got some very intricate chords in the verse, which I like a lot, because it’s sort of old-fashioned music but with a regular rock and roll beat."[13] Lynne also described the start of the title song, "Alone in the Universe": It was inspired by an article he read about the Voyager 1 probe leaving the solar system, becoming the first man-made object to enter interstellar space. "It tickled me thinking about that. I mean, how lonely can you get? I sort of turned it into a missing-somebody type of deal like Voyager 1 was missing Voyager 2, so I turned it into people," he said.[4]

Release

The first single, "When I Was a Boy", was released digitally on 24 September 2015 and a music video for the single was soon released.[14] "When The Night Comes" was released as the second single on 15 October 2015.[9] "One Step at a Time" was released on 30 October 2015. These first three singles could be downloaded digitally when pre-ordering the album. "Ain't It a Drag" was released as a single on 1 April 2016 with an animated videoclip, nearly five months after the album's release.[12]

Alone in the Universe was eventually released on 13 November 2015 via record label Columbia. The album was made available on CD, vinyl and digital download, on both regular and Deluxe editions.[2][15] Deluxe edition contains two extra tracks: "Fault Line" and "Blue". Japanese editions (both standard and Deluxe) contain all tracks plus "On My Mind", exclusive to that country. The album reached number 4 in the UK Albums Chart, best result since 1983's Secret Messages. Meanwhile, in the USA, it peaked at number 2 on Billboard's Top Rock Albums chart,[16] then at number 23 on The Billboard 200 album chart, best result since 1981's Time.[17]

Alone in the Universe Tour

On 9 November 2015, four days before the album's release, Jeff Lynne's ELO gave an intimate live performance at Porchester Hall, London.[18] Following the album's release, Jeff Lynne's ELO set out on a small promotional tour which included a full performance for BBC Radio 2 on 12 November 2015 at the BBC Radio Theatre in London, presented by Jo Whiley, and played on the Royal Variety Performance the day after.[19][20] In late November 2015, ELO performed their first shows in the United States in 30 years in New York City and Los Angeles. Both shows quickly sold out. The band also gave television performances on The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel Live and CBS This Morning.[21] The performance on CBS was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award.[22] On 5 April 2016, Jeff Lynne's ELO embarked on the Alone in the Universe Tour, performing at various arena venues in Europe and UK, like the O2 and the Barclaycard Arena. Also, ELO filled the legendary Sunday teatime slot for Glastonbury's 2016 Festival.[23] On June 27 it was announced that the band will play Wembley Stadium as a one night only on June 24, 2017. In September the band will play at the Radio City Music Hall in New York City.[19][24] English rock band The Feeling supported Jeff Lynne's ELO on every UK and European show, except for one in Birmingham and one in Dublin.[25] The latter was postponed, following doctor's advice, for 8 days due to Jeff contracting laryngitis. The support band for the rescheduled gig came from local band, The Shoos.[26] The Los Angeles Philharmonic Association announced that the band is going to perform three shows at the Hollywood Bowl Fireworks Finale on September 2016.[27]

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic78/100 [28]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[29]
Classic Rock9/10[30]
The Independent[31]
American Songwriter[32]
Pitchfork6.3/10[33]
Música Nueva[34]
Slant Magazine [35]
Rolling Stone [36]

The album received generally favourable reviews,[28] with Q declaring Alone in the Universe "warm-hearted, consummate, just about perfect."[28] Most discourse surrounding the album discussed how it fits in with the rest of their discography, with Pitchfork calling it "a fine addition to their catalog" and "much better than these late-career albums tend to sound."[33] The Guardian suggested in its four of five star review: "While he only once comes close to matching the pop perfection of his 70s imperial phase ... there’s plenty to enjoy elsewhere. ... There is only one misstep – the clumsy, Whitesnake-worthy lyrics to "Dirty to the Bone" are rooted a little too firmly in the 70s – but otherwise this is an excellent return."[37] Trucking concluded a two of five star review by suggesting: "While not necessarily horrendous, AITU hardly recaptures ELO’s glory days, sounding empty, under-produced, and more like a collection of 1970s B-sides."[38]

Track listing

All tracks written by Jeff Lynne. 

No. Title Length
1. "When I Was a Boy"   3:12
2. "Love and Rain"   3:29
3. "Dirty to the Bone"   3:06
4. "When the Night Comes"   3:22
5. "The Sun Will Shine on You"   3:29
6. "Ain't It a Drag"   2:34
7. "All My Life"   2:50
8. "I'm Leaving You"   3:07
9. "One Step at a Time"   3:21
10. "Alone in the Universe"   3:54
11. "On My Mind" (Japan only)  
Total length:
 32:31

Personnel

Per liner notes.[7]

Additional personnel

Per liner notes.[7]

Charts and certifications

Charts

Chart (2015) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[39] 15
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[40] 14
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[41] 8
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[42] 24
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[43] 34
Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[44] 38
Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)[45] 5
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[46] 22
French Albums (SNEP)[47] 127
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[48] 7
Irish Albums (IRMA)[49] 6
Italian Albums (FIMI)[50] 70
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[51] 24
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[52] 9
Polish Albums (ZPAV)[53] 23
Scottish Albums (OCC)[54] 4
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[55] 26
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[56] 5
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[57] 7
UK Albums (OCC)[58] 4
UK Rock & Metal Albums (OCC)[59] 1
US Billboard Top Rock Albums[16] 2
US Billboard 200[17] 23

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/Sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[60] Platinum 300,000^

*sales figures based on certification alone

References

  1. ↑ Beviglia, Jim (28 September 2015). "LYRIC OF THE WEEK: Electric Light Orchestra, "Can't Get It Out Of My Head"". American Songwriter.
  2. 1 2 3 Gordon, Jeremy (24 September 2015). "Jeff Lynne's ELO announce new album Alone in the Universe, share When I Was a Boy". Pitchfork.
  3. 1 2 Miller, Joshua (10 November 2015). "Jeff Lynne's Long-Awaited Return to Electric Light Orchestra".
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Greene, Andy (October 22, 2015). "Jeff Lynne Explains How Electric Light Orchestra Came Back to Life". Rolling Stone.
  5. ↑ Wood, Mikael (October 31, 2015). "Call him Mr. New Sky: How Jeff Lynne revived ELO for 'Alone in the Universe'". The Los Angeles Times.
  6. 1 2 3 Greene, Andy (21 January 2016). "ELO's Jeff Lynne: My Life in 15 Songs". Rolling Stone.
  7. 1 2 3 Alone in the Universe (Booklet). Jeff Lynne's ELO. Columbia. 2015. 88875145112.
  8. ↑ Lester, Paul (25 September 2015). "Jeff Lynne's new ELO album received its first public airing last night at a London hotel, and Classic Rock were there". Classic Rock Magazine. Retrieved 25 September 2015.
  9. 1 2 Breihan, Tom (15 October 2015). "Jeff Lynne's ELO - When the Night Comes". Stereogum.
  10. ↑ "Listen to a new track by Jeff Lynne's ELO - When the Night Comes". The Guardian. 15 October 2015.
  11. ↑ "ELO - Jeff Lynne's ELO - EPK". ELOVEVO. 14 November 2015.
  12. 1 2 Stokes, Paul (1 April 2016). ""Mersey Beat Still Works!" Watch Jeff Lynne's New Video". MOJO.
  13. ↑ Renner, Eric (29 October 2015). "Jeff Lynne debuts new ELO track One Step at a Time". EW!.
  14. ↑ Hilton, Robin (24 September 2015). "Electric Light Orchestra Returns In Fine Form". NPR Music.
  15. ↑ Vanderbilt, Mike (24 September 2015). "Meet the new ELO song, same as the old ELO songs". The A.V. Club.
  16. 1 2 Billboard
  17. 1 2 "Jeff Lynne's ELO - Chart history (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 24 November 2015.
  18. ↑ Brannon, Sophie (16 November 2015). "ELO, Porchester Hall, London, 9 November 2015 Live Review". Contactmusic.
  19. 1 2 "Jeff Lynne's ELO to tour 2016!".
  20. ↑ SHepherd, Jack (8 December 2015). "Royal Variety Performance 2015: What time, who's performing and all you need to know". The Independent.
  21. ↑ "Livin' Thing: Jeff Lynne's ELO Triumph at First U.S. Show in 30 Years". RollingStone. 21 November 2014.
  22. ↑ "See who was nominated for a 2016 Daytime Emmy Award". 24 March 2016.
  23. ↑ "Jeff Lynne's ELO announced for Glastonbury 2016". 1 February 2016.
  24. ↑ Stubbs, Dan (16 November 2015). "ELO: What Their BBC 'In Concert' Performance Tells Us About Next Year's Arena Tour". NME.
  25. ↑ Johnson, Laura (4 March 2016). "The Feeling to support Jeff Lynne's ELO on upcoming arena tour".
  26. ↑ Worsdale, Jess (8 May 2016). "We review Jeff Lynne's Electric Light Orchestra at 3Arena". Golden Plec.
  27. ↑ "Jeff Lynne's ELO to perform three shows at the Hollywood Bowl Fireworks Finale".
  28. 1 2 3 "Reviews for Alone In The Universe". Metacritic. Retrieved 11 November 2015.
  29. ↑ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. Jeff Lynne's ELO: "Alone in the Universe" > Review at AllMusic. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
  30. ↑ Lester, Paul (October 30, 2015). "Jeff Lynne's ELO: Alone In The Universe". Classic Rock. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
  31. ↑ Coleman, Nick (November 7, 2015). "Jeff Lynne's Elo, Alone in the Universe - album review". The Independent. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
  32. ↑ Horowitz, Hal (November 11, 2015). "Jeff Lynne's ELO: Alone in the Universe". American Songwriter. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
  33. 1 2 Deusner, Stephen M. (November 13, 2015). "Jeff Lynne's ELO: Alone In The Universe". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
  34. ↑ Elia, Alessandro (2015) "ELO Alone in the Universe album review", Música Nueva, 16 November 2015.
  35. ↑ "Slant review".
  36. ↑ "Rolling Stone review".
  37. ↑ "Alone In The Universe". theguardian.com. Retrieved 2015-11-20.
  38. ↑ Connors, Shaun (December 2015). "Review: Alone In The Universe". Trucking. Cudham, England: Kelsey Publishing Group: 38.
  39. ↑ "Australiancharts.com – Jeff Lynne's ELO – Alone in the Universe". Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 November 2015.
  40. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Jeff Lynne's ELO – Alone in the Universe" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 26 November 2015.
  41. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Jeff Lynne's ELO – Alone in the Universe" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 November 2015.
  42. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Jeff Lynne's ELO – Alone in the Universe" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 November 2015.
  43. ↑ "Jeff Lynne's ELO - Chart history (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 24 November 2015.
  44. ↑ "Danishcharts.com – Jeff Lynne's ELO – Alone in the Universe". Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 November 2015.
  45. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Jeff Lynne's ELO – Alone in the Universe" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 November 2015.
  46. ↑ "ELO, Jeff Lynne's: Alone in the Universe" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 22 November 2015.
  47. ↑ "Lescharts.com – Jeff Lynne's ELO – Alone in the Universe". Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 November 2015.
  48. ↑ "Longplay-Chartverfolgung at Musicline" (in German). Musicline.de. Phononet GmbH. Retrieved November 20, 2015.
  49. ↑ "GFK Chart-Track Albums: Week 47, 2015". Chart-Track. IRMA. Retrieved 21 November 2015.
  50. ↑ "Italiancharts.com – Jeff Lynne's ELO – Alone in the Universe". Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 November 2015.
  51. ↑ "Charts.org.nz – Jeff Lynne's ELO – Alone in the Universe". Hung Medien. Retrieved 20 November 2015.
  52. ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – Jeff Lynne's ELO – Alone in the Universe". Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 November 2015.
  53. ↑ "Oficjalna lista sprzedaży :: OLIS - Official Retail Sales Chart". OLiS. Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
  54. ↑ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 21 November 2015.
  55. ↑ "Spanishcharts.com – Jeff Lynne's ELO – Alone in the Universe". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2 December 2015.
  56. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Jeff Lynne's ELO – Alone in the Universe". Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 November 2015.
  57. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Jeff Lynne's ELO – Alone in the Universe". Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 November 2015.
  58. ↑ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 21 November 2015.
  59. ↑ "Official Rock & Metal Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 21 November 2015.
  60. ↑ "British album certifications – Jeff Lynne – Alone in the Universe". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 5 December 2015. Enter Alone in the Universe in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select album in the field By Format. Select Platinum in the field By Award. Click Search
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