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"So Serious" | ||||
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Single by Electric Light Orchestra | ||||
from the album Balance of Power | ||||
B-side |
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Released |
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Recorded | 1985 | |||
Studio |
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Genre | Pop rock | |||
Length | 2:42 | |||
Label |
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Songwriter(s) | Jeff Lynne | |||
Producer(s) | Jeff Lynne | |||
Electric Light Orchestra singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"So Serious" on YouTube |
"So Serious" is a song by the rock music group Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) from their 1986 album Balance of Power , released in the UK as the second single from the album in 1986.
The song's lyrics hint at Jeff Lynne's growing disenchantment with his involvement with ELO at this point; much like the majority of the songs from the album, the lyrical content was in sharp contrast to the upbeat synthpop of the album.
There was also a UK 12 inch EPIC three-track version with "A Matter of Fact (Alternate Lyrics)" on the B-Side.
On this heavy-hearted record [Balance of Power] with an ironically cheerful musical sound and no strings whatsoever, songs like "So Serious" and "Getting To The Point" could be ruing the loss of a romance, but both are indicative of Lynne's feelings about the group that had been the focus of his musical life for so many years. 'I guess we've really been out of touch,' he sings in the former, the latter he mourns, 'It's getting to the point of no return/And all that I can do is stand and watch it burn.'
— Ira Robbins [1]
Cash Box said it "has a classic ELO melody hook" and "a serious shot for wide radio attention." [2]
Biographer and music writer John Van der Kiste called it a "deceptively upbeat number, failing to conceal a sad theme, with the narrator lying awake night after night as he tries to fit it all together." [3]
All songs written by Jeff Lynne.
Chart (1986) | Peak Position |
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UK Singles Chart [4] | 77 |
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, classical arrangements and 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. For their initial tenure, Lynne, Bevan and keyboardist Richard Tandy were the group's only consistent members.
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