"Mr. Blue Sky" | ||||
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Single by Electric Light Orchestra | ||||
from the album Out of the Blue | ||||
B-side | "One Summer Dream" | |||
Released |
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Studio | Musicland, Munich, Germany | |||
Genre | ||||
Length |
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Label | Jet | |||
Songwriter(s) | Jeff Lynne | |||
Producer(s) | Jeff Lynne | |||
Electric Light Orchestra singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Mr. Blue Sky" on YouTube |
"Mr. Blue Sky" is a song by the Electric Light Orchestra (ELO), featured on the band's seventh studio album Out of the Blue (1977). Written and produced by frontman Jeff Lynne, the song forms the fourth and final track of the "Concerto for a Rainy Day" suite on side three of the original double album. "Mr. Blue Sky" was the second single to be taken from Out of the Blue, peaking at number 6 in the UK Singles Chart [4] and number 35 in the US Billboard Charts. [5]
Promotional copies were released on blue vinyl, like the album from which the single was issued. Due to its popularity and frequent use in multiple television shows and movies, it has sometimes been described as the band's signature song. [6]
In a BBC Radio interview, Lynne talked about writing "Mr. Blue Sky" after locking himself away in a Swiss chalet and attempting to write ELO's follow-up to A New World Record :
It was dark and misty for 2 weeks, and I didn't come up with a thing. Suddenly the sun shone and it was, 'Wow, look at those beautiful Alps.' I wrote Mr. Blue Sky and 13 other songs in the next 2 weeks. [7]
Lynne also said:
I suppose this is my most well-known song. Everybody tells me something different about it. It’s even got crazy appeal to kids since it’s like a nursery rhyme. I remember writing the words down. I was at a chalet in the mountains of Switzerland, and it was all misty and cloudy all the way around. I didn’t see any countryside for the first four days or so, and then everything cleared, and there was this enormous view forever, and the sky was blue. [8]
The song's arrangement has been called "Beatlesque", [9] bearing similarities to Beatles songs "Martha My Dear" and "A Day in the Life" [10] while harmonically it shares its unusual first four chords and harmonic rhythm with "Yesterday". [11] The song's piano and drum intro is borrowed from the Kinks' 1968 song "Do You Remember Walter". [12]
The arrangement makes prominent use of a cowbell-like sound, [13] which is credited on the album, to percussionist Bev Bevan, as that of a "fire extinguisher". When the song is performed live, a drumstick strikes the side of a fire extinguisher, producing the sound.
Describing the song for the BBC, Dominic King said:
Lots of Gibb Brothers' vocal inflexions and Beatles' arrangement quotes (Penny Lane bell, Pepper panting, Abbey Road arpeggio guitars). But this fabulous madness creates its own wonder – the bendy guitar solo, funky cello stop-chorus, and the most freakatastic vocoder since Sparky's Magic Piano. Plus, the musical ambush on "way" at 2.51 still thrills. And that's before the Swingle Singers/RKO Tarzan movie/Rachmaninoff symphonic finale gets underway. Kitsch, yet truly exhilarating. [14]
The song features a heavily vocoded voice singing the phrase "Mr. Blue Sky". However, listeners often interpreted a second vocoded segment at the end of the song as "Mr. Blue Sky"; it is actually "Please turn me over" as it is the end of side three, and the listener is being instructed to flip the LP over. [15] Jeff Lynne confirmed this on 3 October 2012 on The One Show .
AllMusic's Donald A. Guarisco considered "Mr. Blue Sky" a "miniature pop symphony" and a "multi-layered pop treat that was a pure Beatles pastiche", saying that "the music divides its time between verses that repeat the same two notes to hypnotic effect a la 'I Am the Walrus' and an effervescent, constantly-ascending chorus". Guarisco also pointed out other references to the Beatles, such as "the staccato bassline [recalling] the chorus of 'Hello Goodbye' and pounding piano lines and panting background vocals [recalling] the midsection of 'A Day in the Life '". [16] Music critic Nick DeRiso identified several references to Beatles' songs, including "Hello, Goodbye", "I Am the Walrus", "Maxwell's Silver Hammer" and "A Day in the Life." [17]
Billboard described the beat as "catchy" and said that the song builds from a "thumping intro" to a "harmonic operatic" ending. [18] Cash Box said that the song "features a characteristically full sound and effective use of breaks" and that "fast pace, airy singing and strings provide musical dramatics." [19] Record World said that "this up-tempo tune guarantees Lynne's legend as both writer and producer and shows off ELO's unique sound." [20]
Ultimate Classic Rock critic Michael Gallucci rated it ELO's best song. [21] Classic Rock History critic Brian Kachejian rated it as ELO's 2nd best song, highlighting the "bouncing piano groove at the beginning of the song that is one of the coolest rock and pop licks you have ever heard." [22] Stereogum contributor Ryan Reed also rated it as ELO's 2nd best song, saying that although it was released on the album as part of "Concerto for a Rainy Day", it actually "functions best as a stand-alone art-pop epic, a sort of engorged 'Penny Lane' – built on stomping pianos, manic cowbell...and an octave-spanning choral vocal arrangement." [23]
In 2022 Lynne listed it as one of his nine favorite ELO songs. [24]
The song has been used in the films Role Models , The Magic Roundabout (or Doogal in the USA), Wild Mussels , Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind , Paul Blart: Mall Cop , The Game Plan , Martian Child , The Invention of Lying, Megamind , Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 , and The Super Mario Bros. Movie . [25] [26]
The song was the popular choice to be the theme song for the NBC television show, The Office. However, it had already been chosen to be the theme for another show on the network, LAX, that premiered the year before in 2004. [27] The song was also used in the British television show Doctor Who . It was also featured during the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2012 Summer Olympics, the awards ceremony following the 2011 Football League Cup Final, and the closing ceremony of the 2018 Commonwealth Games from the Gold Coast, in a promotion for the 2022 Games, which was held in Birmingham - with the track used to celebrate ELO originating from the city. [28] The song played as "completely different" characters and props, which included flying bicycles and a giant cannon populated the stage and set the mood for Monty Python's Eric Idle and his musical appearance during the Closing Ceremony of the London Olympics in 2012.
The song was also featured in Just Dance 2022 , albeit covered by The Sunlight Shakers. [29]
On October 23, 2021, Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem of the Muppets released their cover for the Dear Earth special by YouTube and Google. [30]
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
|
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Denmark (IFPI Danmark) [54] | Gold | 45,000‡ |
Germany (BVMI) [55] | Gold | 250,000‡ |
Italy (FIMI) [56] | Gold | 35,000‡ |
United Kingdom (BPI) [57] | 4× Platinum | 2,400,000‡ |
United States (RIAA) [58] | 3× Platinum | 3,000,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
"Mr. Blue Sky" | |
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Song by Electric Light Orchestra | |
from the album Mr. Blue Sky: The Very Best of Electric Light Orchestra | |
Released |
|
Recorded | 2001–2008 |
Studio | Bungalow Palace |
Length | 3:44 |
Label | Frontiers |
Songwriter(s) | Jeff Lynne |
Producer(s) | Jeff Lynne |
Mr. Blue Sky: The Very Best of Electric Light Orchestra track listing | |
12 tracks
| |
Music video | |
"Mr. Blue Sky" on YouTube |
Jeff Lynne re-recorded the song and other ELO tracks in his home studio in 2012. The resulting album, Mr. Blue Sky: The Very Best of Electric Light Orchestra , was released under the ELO name. A difference that this version has is that it doesn't include the ending orchestral piece. [59] An earlier version of the song with different vocal takes was heard on the 2010 film, Megamind , and in American Dad! during the episode Fart-Break Hotel from 2011.
A music video was released in late 2012 via the official ELO website [60] and YouTube, [61] a colourful animation directed by Michael Patterson and Candace Reckinger with animation sequences designed and animated by University of Southern California students. [62]
Others to record the song include Nerf Herder (1998), The Delgados (2002), Lily Allen (2006), Connie Talbot (2014), [63] Weezer (2019), and Pomplamoose (2019). [64]
The Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) is 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. From this point until their first break-up in 1986, Lynne, Bevan, and keyboardist Richard Tandy were the group's only consistent members.
Jeffrey Lynne is an English musician, singer-songwriter and record producer. He is the co-founder and leader of the rock band Electric Light Orchestra (ELO), which was formed in 1970, and as a songwriter has written most of the band's hits, including "Evil Woman", "Livin' Thing", "Telephone Line", "Mr. Blue Sky", "Don't Bring Me Down" and "Hold On Tight".
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.
Out of the Blue is the seventh studio album by the British rock group Electric Light Orchestra (ELO), released on 24 October 1977 in the United States and four days after in the UK on 28 October. Written and produced by ELO frontman Jeff Lynne, the double album is among the most commercially successful records in the group's history, selling about 10 million copies worldwide by 2007.
"Livin' Thing" is a song written by Jeff Lynne and performed by Electric Light Orchestra (ELO). It appears on ELO's 1976 album A New World Record and was also released as a single. Patti Quatro sang uncredited vocals, particularly the "higher and higher" parts.
"Strange Magic" is a song written by Jeff Lynne and performed by Electric Light Orchestra (ELO). It was originally released on their 1975 Face the Music album.
"Can't Get It Out of My Head" is a song written by Jeff Lynne and originally recorded by Electric Light Orchestra.
"Rockaria!" is a song by Electric Light Orchestra (ELO), written by Jeff Lynne. It was the third track on the band's successful 1976 album A New World Record, and was the second single from the album. On some CD pressings of A New World Record, the title appears without the exclamation mark.
"Do Ya" is a song written by Jeff Lynne, that was originally recorded by The Move, which became a hit for the Electric Light Orchestra in 1977.
"Turn to Stone" is a 1977 song by Electric Light Orchestra (ELO).
"Ma-Ma-Ma Belle" is a song recorded by the Electric Light Orchestra (ELO).
"Sweet Talkin' Woman" is a 1978 single by Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) from the album Out of the Blue (1977). Its original title was "Dead End Street", but it was changed during recording. Some words that survived from that version can be heard in the opening of the third verse, "I've been livin' on a dead end street".
"Showdown" is a 1973 song written by Jeff Lynne and recorded by the Electric Light Orchestra (ELO). It was the band's last contemporary recording to be released on the Harvest label. The song was released as a single and reached No 12 in the UK Singles Chart, in the week beginning 28 October, and No 9 on the Norwegian chart VG-lista.
"Evil Woman" is a song written by lead vocalist Jeff Lynne and recorded by Electric Light Orchestra (ELO). It was first released on the band's fifth album, 1975's Face the Music.
"Telephone Line" is a song by English rock band Electric Light Orchestra (ELO). It was released in May 1977 through Jet Records and United Artists Records as part of the album A New World Record. It was very successful, reaching the Top 10 in Australia, US, and UK, and number 1 in Canada. The song appears in the 1995 Adam Sandler film Billy Madison.
"Don't Bring Me Down" is the ninth and final track on the English rock band the Electric Light Orchestra's 1979 album Discovery. It is their highest-charting hit in the United States to date.
Eldorado is the fourth studio album by the Electric Light Orchestra (ELO). It was released in the United States in September 1974 by United Artists Records and in the United Kingdom in October 1974 by Warner Bros. Records.
"Boy Blue" is a song written by Jeff Lynne and performed by the Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) which first appeared as track number 3 from their 1974 album Eldorado.
Mr. Blue Sky: The Very Best of Electric Light Orchestra is an album of re-recordings by Jeff Lynne of hits by Electric Light Orchestra. It was issued in 2012 by Frontiers Music simultaneously with Lynne's cover album Long Wave.
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. Despite only playing on one track, keyboardist Richard Tandy finally returned to Jeff Lynne's ELO as a permanent member.
...but ELO really committed to the symphonic concept without sacrificing hooks, as proggier bands did.
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