"Sweet Talkin' Woman" | ||||
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Single by Electric Light Orchestra | ||||
from the album Out of the Blue | ||||
B-side |
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Released | 22 September 1978 [1] [2] | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 3:47 | |||
Label | Jet | |||
Songwriter(s) | Jeff Lynne | |||
Producer(s) | Jeff Lynne | |||
Electric Light Orchestra singles chronology | ||||
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Alternative cover | ||||
Audio sample | ||||
"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". [4]
The track became the third top ten hit from the LP in the UK,peaking at number 6. [5] As a novelty,initial copies of the 12-inch and 7-inch single formats were pressed in transparent purple vinyl. "Sweet Talkin’Woman" is written in the key of C major. [6]
The version released in the United States was 10 seconds shorter than its British counterpart due to a slightly faster mix. In the US,it reached number 17 on the Billboard Hot 100. [7]
AllMusic's Donald A. Guarisco said "Sweet Talkin' Woman" was "their first real step into the disco sound [...] a string-laden pop tune whose dance-friendly edge helped it become a disco-era hit",attributing its disco sound to "Bev Bevan's steady drum work lays down a dance-friendly rhythm as pounding piano lines,delirous bursts of swirling strings,and endlessly overdubbed backing vocals mesh seamlessly to form an ornate but driving funhouse of pop hooks". [3] Billboard described the song as a "catchy rocker characterized by semi-classical elements." [8] Cash Box said that it has "syncopated harmonies and fullbodied instrumental accompaniments." [9] Record World said that "rock and doo wop mix with ELO's strings and guitars in a busy but melodic way." [10]
Ultimate Classic Rock critic Michael Gallucci rated it ELO's 6th best song,saying that it has a "one-of-a-kind chorus and that it is "one of ELO's greatest group performances." [11] Stereogum contributor Ryan Reed rated it as ELO's 8th best song,noting the catchy verses and choruses and the intricacy of the songwriting. [12] Reed also suggested that it formed a template for Huey Lewis' 1982 song "Do You Believe In Love." [12]
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
|
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
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United Kingdom (BPI) [2] | Silver | 250,000^ |
United States (RIAA) [23] | Gold | 500,000 |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
Out of the Blue is the seventh studio album by the British rock group Electric Light Orchestra (ELO),released on 28 October 1977. 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.
"Jive Talkin' " is a song by the Bee Gees,released as a single in May 1975 by RSO Records. This was the lead single from the album Main Course and hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100;it also reached the top-five on the UK Singles Chart in the middle of 1975. Largely recognised as the group's "comeback" song,it was their first US top-10 hit since "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" (1971).
"Strange Magic" is a song written Jeff Lynne and performed by Electric Light Orchestra (ELO). It was released on their 1975 Face the Music album.
"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 and number 35 in the US Billboard Charts.
"Can't Get It Out of My Head" is a song written by Jeff Lynne and originally recorded by Electric Light Orchestra.
"What a Fool Believes" is a song written by Michael McDonald and Kenny Loggins. The best-known version was recorded by the Doobie Brothers for their 1978 album Minute by Minute. Debuting at number 73 on January 20,1979,the single reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 on April 14,1979,for one week. The song received Grammy Awards in 1980 for both Song of the Year and Record of the Year.
"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).
"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. It 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.
"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.
"Shine a Little Love" is a song by the English rock band Electric Light Orchestra (ELO). It was released as a single in the US and UK in 1979.
"Confusion" is the second song from the 1979 Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) album Discovery. It features 12-string acoustic guitar and vocoder.
"I'm Alive" is a song by the Electric Light Orchestra (ELO),released as a single in May 1980. It is featured in a sequence near the beginning of the feature film Xanadu. The song also appears on the soundtrack album Xanadu.
"Xanadu" is the title song from the soundtrack of the 1980 film Xanadu. Written by Jeff Lynne of the English rock band Electric Light Orchestra (ELO),the song is performed by English-born Australian singer,songwriter and actress Olivia Newton-John,with Lynne adding parenthetic vocals in the style of his other songs on the Xanadu soundtrack,and ELO providing the instrumentation. It was Lynne's least favourite of his own songs. "Xanadu" reached number one in several countries and was the band's only UK number-one single,when it peaked there for two weeks in July 1980. It was certified silver by the British Phonographic Industry. It also peaked at number eight on the US Billboard Hot 100.
"Hold On Tight" is a song written and performed by Electric Light Orchestra (ELO). The song is track twelve on the band's 1981 album Time and was the first song released as a single. The song went top ten in most countries,hitting the top spot in Spain and Switzerland,number two in Germany,number four in the UK,and number ten on the US Billboard Hot 100,becoming the band's seventh and last top 10 hit,as well as number two on the US Billboard Top Tracks chart the week of 12 September 1981. A verse sung in French,which is a reprise of the first verse,translates as "Hold on to your dream,Hold on to your dream,When you see your ship leaving,When you feel your heart breaking,Hold on to your dream".
Below is the complete Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) discography including imports,videos,and hit singles. ELO's back catalogue is unusual since their compilation albums far outweigh their studio output in number,owing to the large number of hit singles primarily written by Jeff Lynne.