That old 'strange magic' music still sounds new as Jeff Lynne’s ELO enchants Chicago

 By Tom Siebert

When Jeff Lynne founded the Electric Light Orchestra in 1970, his musical vision was to pick up where the recently disbanded Beatles had left off.

Nearly 50 years later, the legendary Lynne showed more than 20,000 fans at the United Center that his dazzling, dizzying songs still sound light years ahead of most music played before or since then.

The symphonic rock band opened the Chicago show of their 2019 North American tour with the orchestral “Standin’ In The Rain,” from ELO’s mega-selling 1977 double-album “Out of the Blue.”

The somewhat obscure song was elevated to stunning stature, with brilliant laser lights shooting across the sports arena and colorful images of rain, clouds, and lightning projected across five Stonehenge-like video screens.

But the music alone quickly stole center stage during the opening of the second song, as Mr. Lynne sang some familiar lines that thrilled and chilled the crowd:

“You made a fool of me. But them broken dreams have got to end.”

As if on cue, the audience joyfully rose up and clapped to the hypnotic piano groove of “Evil Woman,” the smash hit from 1975’s “Face the Music” album.

“Hello, Chicago!” Mr. Lynne shouted out to the cheering Baby Boomer-heavy audience. “You seem to be in good spirits tonight.”

Those spirits were lifted higher and higher throughout the nearly two-hour musical feast that featured some of the most sophisticated songs ever written and arranged––accompanied by a kaleidoscopic video and laser-light show that depicted and danced along with the perfectly performed music.

The 12-piece band played and sang lush, lively versions of  the irresistible sing-alongs “Do Ya” and “Livin’ Thing,” as well as the playful “Turn To Stone” and the beautifully bittersweet “Can’t Get It Out Of My Head,” on which Mr. Lynne paid homage to the late John Lennon’s serrated singing voice.

ELO’s music has always been futuristic but fun too. During the thunderous “Don’t Bring Me Down,” from 1979’s “Discovery” LP, the crowd delighted in shouting the name “Bruce!” following the title line.

And has there ever been a more entertaining tune than 1977’s “Mr. Blue Sky,” with its  bending guitar solo, cello chorus stop, and more cowbell than Christopher Walken could ever want?

The inventive songs of the Electric Light Orchestra dominated Top 40 radio in the 1970s and are now a staple of classic rock stations. The progressive rock band went through revolving-door personnel changes, with Lynne now its sole original member.

But the current ELO lineup is as good and gifted as any of the group’s previous iterations.

They are Mike Stevens, musical director, guitar, and backing vocals; Milton McDonald, lead guitar, backing vocals; Lee Pomeroy, bass guitar, backing vocals; Iain Hornal, guitar, vocals; Melanie Lewis-McDonald, backing vocals; Marcus Byrne, piano, keyboards; Jo Webb, keyboards; Steve Turner, keyboards; Donavan Hepburn, drums; Jessie Murphy, violin; and celloists Amy Langley and Jess Cox.

And besides, for many years there was no version of ELO either recording or touring. That gave Mr. Lynne time to perform his studio wizardry, producing Tom Petty’s masterpiece “Full Moon Fever” in 1989, and the surviving Beatles’ reunion songs “Free As A Bird” and “Real Love” for their “Anthology” TV special/album in 1995.

Oh, and in 1988, Jeff joined a short-lived band that had a lot of potential, the Traveling Wilburys, whose other members were named Bob Dylan, Roy Orbison, the aforementioned Mr. Petty, and George Harrison.

The late Beatles’ son, Dhani Harrison, was the opening act at the United Center rock extravaganza. He can’t help that he looks and sounds like his famous dad. But the younger Harrison is a fine performer in his own right, deftly playing rhythm guitar and leading a taut five-piece band whose songs ranged from progressive rock to melancholy blues to Beatlesesque psychedelia.

Dhani was brought back on stage during the main show to sing some of the clever verses from the Wilburys’ 1988 hit “Handle With Care,” a world-wise song that brought tears to some in the audience as iconic photos of the late Messrs. Orbison, Harrison, and Petty were displayed on the massive video screens.

Jeff Lynne is a genius and a gentleman, a self-effacing guitar hero whose voice can still reach the high notes of ELO’s operatic songs.

The evening’s encore was fittingly “Roll Over Beethoven,” which opens with the master composer’s dramatic first movement from his fabled “Fifth Symphony,” heady stuff for the pop music world of 1973 when the hit single was featured on the album “ELO 2.”

The classic song was written by Chuck Berry, who invented rock ‘n’ roll, and in recent years led a sad procession of music giants who have left us, including David Bowie, Tom Petty, and Glenn Frey of The Eagles.

All of which makes Jeff Lynne’s ELO even more of a treasure and pleasure to see, feel, and hear in concert.