| Armchair Theatre | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 12 June 1990 | |||
| Recorded | Posh Studios, England 1989-1990 | |||
| Genre | Roots rock [1] | |||
| Length | 36:41 | |||
| Label | Reprise | |||
| Producer | Jeff Lynne | |||
| Jeff Lynne chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [2] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B− [3] |
| Goldmine | [4] |
| Los Angeles Times | [5] |
| MusicHound Rock |  [6] |
| Q | [7] |
| Rolling Stone | [7] |
Armchair Theatre is the first solo album by Jeff Lynne, released in 1990. [8]
The album reunited Lynne with Electric Light Orchestra's keyboard player Richard Tandy and featured fellow Traveling Wilburys member George Harrison (both Harrison and the Wilburys were signed to Warner Bros. Records, parent of Reprise Records which released this album). Lynne wrote and recorded "Now You're Gone" as a tribute to his late mother.[ citation needed ] The album also features cover versions of two classics: "September Song" and "Stormy Weather". [8]
The songs "Every Little Thing" and "Lift Me Up" were released as singles, both featuring non-album b-sides, "I'm Gone" from the former and "Borderline" and "Sirens" from the latter. Despite positive reviews the album became only a minor hit.
A remaster by Frontiers was released on 19 April 2013 in the UK, and on 23 April 2013 in the US, and included two bonus tracks, one of them being previously unreleased. [9] An additional bonus track was included in the Japanese re-release.
All songs written by Jeff Lynne, except where noted.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Every Little Thing" | 3:41 | |
| 2. | "Don't Let Go" | Jesse Stone | 3:00 |
| 3. | "Lift Me Up" | 3:36 | |
| 4. | "Nobody Home" | 3:51 | |
| 5. | "September Song" | Maxwell Anderson, Kurt Weill | 2:57 |
| 6. | "Now You're Gone" | 3:57 | |
| 7. | "Don't Say Goodbye" | 3:09 | |
| 8. | "What Would It Take" | 2:40 | |
| 9. | "Stormy Weather" | Ted Koehler, Harold Arlen | 3:42 |
| 10. | "Blown Away" | Lynne, Tom Petty | 3:29 |
| 11. | "Save Me Now" ( A ) | 2:39 | |
| Total length: | 36:41 | ||
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 12. | "Borderline" (Recorded 1989; previously unreleased version. Original version previously released as non-album track on "Lift Me Up" 12" and CD single.) | 2:24 |
| 13. | "Forecast" (Recorded 1989; previously unreleased song.) | 3:54 |
| Total length: | 42:26 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 14. | "Strange Magic" (Live from Bungalow Palace) | 3:02 |
| Chart (1990) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (ARIA) [11] | 35 |
| Canada Top Albums/CDs ( RPM ) [12] | 23 |
| Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [13] | 44 |
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [14] | 52 |
| Norwegian Albums (VG-lista) [15] | 7 |
| Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [16] | 8 |
| UK Albums (OCC) [17] | 24 |
| US Billboard 200 [18] | 83 |
The Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) are an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1970 by songwriters and multi-instrumentalists Jeff Lynne and Roy Wood with drummer Bev Bevan. Their music is characterised by a fusion of pop and classical arrangements with futuristic iconography. After Wood's departure in 1972, Lynne became the band's sole leader, arranging and producing every album while writing nearly all of their original material. During their first run from 1970 to 1986, Lynne and Bevan were the group's only consistent members.
Jeffrey Lynne is an English musician, singer-songwriter and record producer. He is the co-founder, and latterly the sole member, of the rock band Electric Light Orchestra (ELO), which was formed in 1970, and has written all of the band's music since 1972. This includes hits such as "Evil Woman", "Livin' Thing", "Telephone Line", "Mr. Blue Sky", "Don't Bring Me Down", and "Hold On Tight". He also has had a solo career, with two albums: Armchair Theatre (1990) and Long Wave (2012).
Face the Music is the fifth studio album by Electric Light Orchestra (ELO). It was released in September 1975 by United Artists Records and on 14 November 1975 in the United Kingdom by Jet Records. The album moves away from the large-scale classical orchestrated sound of the previous album, Eldorado, in favour of more "radio-friendly" pop/rock songs, though the string sections are still very prominent. The new sound proved successful for the group, for Face the Music was the first ELO album to go platinum.
A New World Record is the sixth studio album by Electric Light Orchestra (ELO). It was released on 15 October 1976 on United Artists Records in the U.S., and on 19 November 1976 on Jet Records in the United Kingdom. A New World Record marked ELO's shift towards shorter pop songs, a trend which would continue across their career.
Discovery is the eighth studio album by English rock band Electric Light Orchestra (ELO). It was released on 1 June 1979 in the United Kingdom by Jet Records, where it topped record charts, and on 8 June in the United States on Jet through Columbia Records distribution. A music video album featuring all the songs being played by the band was then released on VHS in 1979, then re-released as part of the Out of the Blue: Live at Wembley DVD and VHS in 1998.
Secret Messages is the tenth studio album by Electric Light Orchestra (ELO), released in 1983 on Jet Records. It was the last ELO album with bass guitarist Kelly Groucutt, conductor Louis Clark and a full orchestra, and the last ELO album to be released on the Jet label. It was also the final ELO studio album to become a worldwide top 40 hit upon release.
Zoom is the twelfth studio album by British symphonic rock band Electric Light Orchestra (ELO), released on 12 June 2001 on Epic Records. It was the first official ELO album since 1986's Balance of Power.
Balance of Power is the eleventh studio album by the Electric Light Orchestra (ELO). It was released in 1986. It is the final album by the band to feature co-founder Bev Bevan on drums, as well as the last album to feature a significant contribution from keyboardist Richard Tandy.
Mystery Girl is the twenty-second album by American singer Roy Orbison. It was his last album to be recorded during his lifetime, as he completed the album in November 1988, a month before his death at the age of 52, and it was released posthumously by Virgin Records on January 31, 1989. It includes the hit singles "You Got It", which was co-written by Orbison and his Traveling Wilburys bandmates Jeff Lynne and Tom Petty, and "She's a Mystery to Me", written by Bono and The Edge. The album was a critical and commercial success; it peaked at number 5 on the Billboard 200 in the United States, the highest position Orbison had achieved on that chart, and number 2 on the UK Albums Chart.
ELO's Greatest Hits is a compilation by the Electric Light Orchestra (ELO), released 23 November 1979. Despite being released after the album Discovery, this album omitted the band's most recent hits, "Don't Bring Me Down" and "Shine a Little Love".
The Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1 is the debut studio album by the English-American supergroup Traveling Wilburys, comprising George Harrison, Jeff Lynne, Bob Dylan, Roy Orbison and Tom Petty. It was released in October 1988 to commercial success and critical acclaim. Although Harrison had long planned to start such a band, the project came about through happenstance. Harrison was in Los Angeles and in need of a B-side for a single from his album Cloud Nine, which resulted in the participants collaborating informally on the song "Handle with Care" at Dylan's home.
Richard Tandy was an English musician. He was the full-time keyboardist in the band Electric Light Orchestra ("ELO"). His palette of keyboards was an important ingredient in the group's sound, especially on the albums A New World Record (1976), Out of the Blue (1977), Discovery (1979) and Time (1981). He collaborated musically with ELO frontman Jeff Lynne on many projects, among them songs for the Electric Dreams soundtrack, Lynne's solo album Armchair Theatre and Lynne-produced Dave Edmunds album Information.
Traveling Wilburys Vol. 3 is the second and final studio album by the Traveling Wilburys, a group consisting of George Harrison, Jeff Lynne, Bob Dylan and Tom Petty. It was released on October 29, 1990, as the follow-up to their 1988 debut, Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1. The band members again adopted pseudonyms for their contributions, using new names from the fictitious Wilbury brothers.
ELO's Greatest Hits Vol. 2 is an album by the Electric Light Orchestra (ELO), released in 1992 as a follow-up to their more successful ELO's Greatest Hits, though it was not issued in the U.S.
The Traveling Wilburys Collection is a box set compilation album by the British-American supergroup the Traveling Wilburys. It comprises the two studio albums recorded by the band in 1988 and 1990, with additional bonus tracks, and a DVD containing their music videos and a documentary about the group. The box set was released on 11 June 2007 by Rhino, in association with Wilbury Records.
Electric Light Orchestra Live is a live album by Electric Light Orchestra. It was released on 19 April 2013 in the UK, and on 23 April in the US on Frontiers Records.
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. The moniker came out from Lynne as a response to ELO tribute and imitation bands, who repeatedly used ELO for promoting their own tours. 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 group's original disbandment in 1986.
Give More Love is the nineteenth studio album by English musician Ringo Starr. It was recorded primarily in Starr's home studio in Los Angeles and was released on 15 September 2017 by UMe. The album features Starr's frequent collaborators such as Joe Walsh, Dave Stewart, Gary Nicholson and Bob Malone, members of his All-Starr Band, and guest appearances by Starr's former Beatles bandmate Paul McCartney.
From Out of Nowhere is the fourteenth studio album by British rock band Electric Light Orchestra (ELO), and the second credited to Jeff Lynne's ELO. The band's first studio album in four years, it was released on 1 November 2019 through Big Trilby and Columbia Records. The title track was released as the lead single on 26 September 2019. Lynne played most instruments on the album. Keyboardist Richard Tandy returned to play on one track, prior to his death in 2024.
Wembley or Bust is a live album and concert film by Jeff Lynne's ELO. It was recorded during the Alone in the Universe Tour at Wembley Stadium. The album peaked at number 8 on the UK Albums Chart and at number 12 on the Billboard Top Rock Albums. The album was also certified silver in the United Kingdom.
| Studio albums |
|
|---|---|
| Singles |
|
| Compilation | |
| With The Idle Race | |
| Related articles | |
