So Fine (Electric Light Orchestra song)

Last updated
"So Fine"
Song by Electric Light Orchestra
from the album A New World Record
Released1976
Recorded1976
Genre Rock, art rock, funk rock
Length3:54
Label Jet Records, United Artists
Songwriter(s) Jeff Lynne
Producer(s) Jeff Lynne
A New World Record track listing
9 tracks
Side one
  1. "Tightrope"
  2. "Telephone Line"
  3. "Rockaria!"
  4. "Mission (A World Record)"
Side two
  1. "So Fine"
  2. "Livin' Thing"
  3. "Above the Clouds"
  4. "Do Ya"
  5. "Shangri-La"

"So Fine" is the title of the fifth track from A New World Record by Electric Light Orchestra.

Recorded in 1976 at Musicland Studios in Munich, Germany, this track is peppy and upbeat, contrasting with "Mission (A World Record)", the previous track. It is a typical example of ELO's (at the time) cutting-edge use of technology and recording techniques, which would become the conventional sound of pop music within 10 years.

The middle section contains drums and electronic percussion created by a then state of the art Moog processor, and continues with rising intensity. More and more instruments join in, until the vocal again takes over. As the song fades out, it segues into the violin of "Livin' Thing".

Production and composition

According to ELO drummer Bev Bevan (regarding the Moog processor):

Uh, yeah, I used it on one track on the album, So Fine. It really - It's quite a new item, really. It's made by the Moog people. It's an electronic - It's a drum itself and it's electronic. You plug it through the keyboard setup into the Moog itself. And according to what setting you put on the Moog, you can get a sound accordingly on the drum. And, uh, it's very new. Very innovative." Bev Bevan (1976 - Rock Around The World radio show interview) [1]

Composer Jeff Lynne described writing the song in a 1990 radio interview with Roger Scott:

"So Fine's a bouncy little (number). I really don't know much about it. It's just that I wrote it and sang the thing. And um- I suppose it was along the lines of a - like an American, trying to sound like an American style. Maybe like The Doobie Brothers or something, y'know, trying to sound a bit like an American group with harmonies. I wasn't trying to copy 'em, but it was... it was sort of bouncy American style with a wobbly bit on the top." Jeff Lynne (August 21, 1990 - Classic Albums radio interview by Roger Scott) [1]

Regarding the dropping end of So Fine to segue into the next song on the LP, Livin' Thing:

"(It) was getting the two track and - and just basically switching it off, y'know, the motors off. So that it went '(SQUEAL)' and when it got to the - to the key that, uh, Livin' Thing was in, we cut it there and just but it straight on. So as it reached C, what Livin' Thing was in. So it went down from like - maybe F sharp all the way down to C, y'know, the tape went. Somewhere like that. I can't remember the exact keys. I know it was quite a long drop." Jeff Lynne (August 21, 1990 - Classic Albums radio interview by Roger Scott) [1]

In the book about ELO, Unexpected Messages , the authors expounded:

"The end of the song So Fine fades into Livin' Thing. This was created by unplugging the tape machine and when it got to the key 'A' (which starts off Livin' Thing) Jeff cut it."

Patrik Guttenbacher, Marc Haines, & Alexander von Petersdorff (1996 Unexpected Messages)

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electric Light Orchestra</span> English rock band

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. From this point until their first break-up in 1986, Lynne, Bevan, and keyboardist Richard Tandy were the group's only consistent members.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeff Lynne</span> English musician (born 1947)

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".

<i>Face the Music</i> (Electric Light Orchestra album) 1975 studio album by Electric Light Orchestra

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 from 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 as Face the Music was the first ELO album to go platinum.

<i>A New World Record</i> 1976 studio album by Electric Light Orchestra

A New World Record is the sixth studio album by Electric Light Orchestra (ELO). It was released in 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Livin' Thing</span> 1976 single by Electric Light Orchestra

"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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Tandy</span> British keyboardist

Richard Tandy is an English musician. He is best known as the keyboardist in the rock 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, Out of the Blue, Discovery, and Time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bev Bevan</span> British drummer

Beverley “Bev” Bevan is an English rock musician who was the drummer and one of the original members of the Move and Electric Light Orchestra (ELO). After the end of ELO in 1986, he founded ELO Part II.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fire On High</span> 1976 single by Electric Light Orchestra

"Fire on High" is the opening instrumental track from the 1975 Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) album Face the Music.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ma-Ma-Ma Belle</span> 1974 single by Electric Light Orchestra

"Ma-Ma-Ma Belle" is a song recorded by the Electric Light Orchestra (ELO).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Showdown (Electric Light Orchestra song)</span> 1973 single by Electric Light Orchestra

"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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shine a Little Love</span> 1979 song by the Electric Light Orchestra

"Shine a Little Love" is a song by English rock band Electric Light Orchestra (ELO). It was released as a single in the US and UK in 1979.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Don't Walk Away (Electric Light Orchestra song)</span> 1980 single by Electric Light Orchestra

"Don't Walk Away" is a song by the Electric Light Orchestra (ELO).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Way Life's Meant to Be</span> 1982 single by Electric Light Orchestra

"The Way Life's Meant to Be" is a song written by Jeff Lynne and performed by Electric Light Orchestra (ELO). The single peaked at number 30 on the German Media Control Singles Chart.

<i>Live at Wembley 78</i> 1998 live album by Electric Light Orchestra

Live at Wembley '78 is a live recording by Electric Light Orchestra (ELO). Edited in length as was the VHS/DVD version.

<i>Eldorado</i> (Electric Light Orchestra album) 1974 studio album by Electric Light Orchestra

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.

<i>The Electric Light Orchestra</i> (album) 1971 debut album by Electric Light Orchestra

The Electric Light Orchestra is the debut studio album by English rock band Electric Light Orchestra (ELO), released in December 1971 in the United Kingdom by Harvest Records. In the United States, the album was released in March 1972 as No Answer, after a misunderstood telephone message made by a United Artists Records executive asking about the album name; the caller, having failed to reach the ELO contact, wrote down "no answer" in his notes, and this was misconstrued to be the name of the album.

"Beatles Forever" is an unreleased song by Electric Light Orchestra in 1983, written by Jeff Lynne and intended for the album Secret Messages. Initially, it was to be the seventh track of the double album configuration, featured on side two of the LP. When the album was shortened to a single LP by CBS Records, eight of the eighteen total tracks were removed, including "Beatles Forever." The other seven tracks have since had official releases on various albums and remasters in some form prior to the 2018 double album release. Though this reissue of the parent album was meant to follow the original 1983 intended configuration, "Beatles Forever" was again excluded, making it the only track from the original album not to appear later as an official bonus track or part of a compilation.

<i>Definitive Collection</i> (Electric Light Orchestra album) 1999 greatest hits album by Electric Light Orchestra

Definitive Collection is a compilation album recorded by the Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) and produced by Jeff Lynne. It was released on 13 April 1999 with two discs. Some of the songs include their album versions like "Strange Magic" and "Shine a Little Love", and some tracks include edits seen below.

<i>Alone in the Universe</i> 2015 studio album by Jeff Lynnes ELO

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.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Jeff Lynne Song Database". Jefflynnesongs.com.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.