Current:Home > ContactIs there a better live sonic feast than Jeff Lynne's ELO? Not a chance. -Elevate Money Guide
Is there a better live sonic feast than Jeff Lynne's ELO? Not a chance.
View
Date:2025-04-14 20:28:56
WASHINGTON – Six years ago, Jeff Lynne delighted fans when he brought his Electric Light Orchestra to the U.S. for the first time in decades.
Never one to tiptoe out of his preferred studio confines with any regularity, Lynne nonetheless crafted an absolutely dazzling production stocked with gripping visuals (in a pre-Sphere world) and perhaps the most pristine sound ever heard at a rock show.
Guess who’s back and as aurally flawless as ever?
This Over and Out Tour – a believable farewell given his age (76) and the reality that he isn’t a road dog – is in the middle of its 31 dates and will wrap Oct. 26 in Los Angeles. At Capital One Arena in D.C. Wednesday, Lynne, still shaggy, sporting tinted glasses and mostly in supple voice, didn’t have much to say other than many humble acknowledgements of the crowd’s affection. But who needs to blather on when there is a brisk 90-minute set of lush ‘70s and ‘80s classics to administer?
More:The Eagles deploy pristine sound, dazzling visuals at Vegas Sphere kickoff concert: Review
Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.
ELO dropped a setlist that romped through '70s classics
Aside from the opening “One More Time” – obviously chosen for its literalness – from ELO’s 2019 album “From Out of Nowhere,” the sonic feast concentrated on the band’s ‘70s output, seesawing from Top 10 rock smashes (“Don’t Bring Me Down”) to deep cuts (“Showdown”).
Complementing these impeccably recreated gems was a slew of eye candy. Lasers and videos and spaceships (oh my) buttressed each offering in the 20-song set, with an animated witch morphing into a creepy eyeball (“Evil Woman”) and green lasers enveloping the arena like ribbons in the sky (“Telephone Line”).
Lynne’s band was loaded with familiar names from the previous tour, including the rich string section of Jessie Murphy (violin) and Amy Langley and Jess Cox (cello) and standout vocalists – really more than mere backup singers – Iain Hornal and Melanie Lewis-McDonald, who handled the heavy lifting on the giddy “Rockaria!”
One unexpected offering, “Believe Me Now,” was added to the setlist a couple of weeks ago. An instrumental album track from ELO’s 1977 mega-selling double album, “Out of the Blue,” the song, an intro to the equally moving "Steppin' Out," exhales chord changes so sumptuous, they’ll make your eyes water.
More:Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band still rock, quake and shake after 50 years
Jeff Lynne and ELO say goodbye with a smile
But that’s a feeling frequently evoked during the show, coupled with the joy of hearing these sculpted beauties one final time.
The crisp opening guitar riff of “Do Ya,” the disco-fied “Last Train to London,” the wistful dreamscape “Strange Magic,” all unfurled with precision, but not sterility.
A sea of phone lights held aloft accented “Can’t Get it Out of My Head,” a technological illumination replacing the lighters that reigned 50 years ago when the song was released.
But that all preceded the standout in a show stuffed with them – the musical masterpiece “Turn to Stone.” Between the rapid-fire vocal breakdown nailed by Hornal and Lewis-McDonald – which earned its own ovation – and the furious, frenetic build to a musical climax, the orchestral pop dazzler electrified the arena.
Close to the bliss of that corker was show closer “Mr. Blue Sky,” an anthem of optimism that still sounds like sunshine. Bassist Lee Pomeroy high-stepped through its Beatles-esque bouncy rhythm while Lynne and the band traded layered harmonies on the pop treasure.
It was as obvious a closer as “One More Time” was the opener, but really, how else could Lynne leave a multigenerational throng of fans other than with a smile?
veryGood! (3)
Related
- US appeals court rejects Nasdaq’s diversity rules for company boards
- Caitlin Clark would 'pay' to see Notre Dame's Hannah Hidalgo, USC's JuJu Watkins play ball
- Remains of 19-year-old Virginia sailor killed in Pearl Harbor attack identified
- Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Mixed Nuts
- B.A. Parker is learning the banjo
- Judge questions Border Patrol stand that it’s not required to care for children at migrant camps
- Take a Trip To Flavortown With Guy Fieri’s New Sauces That Taste Good On Literally Everything
- Truck driver in fatal Texas school bus crash arrested Friday; admitted drug use before wreck, police say
- A South Texas lawmaker’s 15
- At collapsed Baltimore bridge, focus shifts to the weighty job of removing the massive structure
Ranking
- Military service academies see drop in reported sexual assaults after alarming surge
- Can 'villain' Colorado Buffaloes overcome Caitlin Clark, Iowa (and the refs)?
- EPA's new auto emissions rules boost electric vehicles and hybrids
- Closed bridges highlight years of neglect, backlog of repairs awaiting funding
- Highlights from Trump’s interview with Time magazine
- Powerball drawing nears $935 million jackpot that has been growing for months
- Funeral held for slain New York City police Officer Jonathan Diller
- Nate Oats channels Nick Saban's 'rat poison' talk as former Alabama football coach provides support
Recommendation
B.A. Parker is learning the banjo
Brittney Griner re-signs with the Phoenix Mercury, will return for 11th season in WNBA
Deer with 'rare' genetic mutation photographed in Oregon: See pics here
A big airline is relaxing its pet policy to let owners bring the companion and a rolling carry-on
Brianna LaPaglia Reveals The Meaning Behind Her "Chickenfry" Nickname
Harvard applications drop 5% after year of turmoil on the Ivy League campus
American tourist dies, U.S. Marine missing in separate incidents off Puerto Rico coast
Inside Princess Beatrice’s Co-Parenting Relationship With Husband’s Ex Dara Huang