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.
Kelly Groucutt was an English musician, best known as the bassist and occasional vocalist for the rock band Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) between 1974 and 1982.
Retro Active is a compilation album by the English rock band Def Leppard, released in 1993. The album features touched-up versions of B-sides and previously unreleased recordings from the band's recording sessions from 1984 to 1993. The album charted at number 9 on the Billboard 200 and No. 6 on the UK Albums Chart.
The Clarks are an American rock band from the Pittsburgh region, originating at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Over the course of thirty-plus years, they have produced eleven studio albums, two live albums, 2 compilation albums, an EP, and four solo releases, selling near to a half-million copies.
"Renegade" is a 1979 hit song recorded by the American rock band Styx on their Pieces of Eight album. Although songwriter Tommy Shaw and fellow Styx guitarist James Young usually played lead guitar on their own compositions, Shaw asked Young if he could take the solo on "Renegade". Young agreed, and Young later returned the favor by allowing Shaw to play lead on his "Half-Penny, Two-Penny" on the Paradise Theatre album. When performed live from 1978 to 1983, drummer John Panozzo increased the tempo of the drum pattern during the guitar solo sections. Also, the track would serve as the drum solo spot for Panozzo during that time frame.
Poi Dog Pondering is an American musical group which is noted for its cross-pollination of diverse musical genres, including various forms of acoustic and electronic music. Frank Orrall founded the band in Hawaii in 1984, initially as a solo project. In 1985 Orrall formed the first line-up of PDP to perform its first concert at the Honolulu Academy of Arts. The band embarked on a yearlong street performance busking tour across North America. They eventually settled down in Austin, Texas in 1987, where they recorded their first three albums. In 1992, the band relocated to Chicago and they began to incorporate orchestral arrangements and elements of electronic, house music, and soul music into their acoustic rock style. The membership of Poi Dog Pondering has evolved from album to album, with Frank Orrall being a constant player since the inception of the band.
Let It Go is the fifth studio album by Pittsburgh band The Clarks, released on June 20, 2000. The album outsold many major national releases in the Pittsburgh area and generated huge local radio hits. The release was the band's first on Razor & Tie, the New York-based minor rock label. Let It Go has been critically acclaimed, despite being unknown to rock fans in most parts of the country. However, the success of the album's singles in the Pittsburgh market led to their spread to audiences in nearby Cleveland and Central Pennsylvania.
"The Carpet Crawlers" is a song by the English progressive rock band Genesis, recorded for their sixth studio album The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway. Mike Rutherford and Tony Banks wrote most of the music, with the help of Peter Gabriel. Lyrically, the song tells the section of the album's story whereby Rael, the lead character, finds himself in a red carpeted corridor surrounded by kneeling people slowly crawling towards a wooden door. Rael dashes by them towards the door and goes through it. Behind the door is a table with a candlelit feast on it, and behind that, a spiral staircase that leads upwards out of sight.
"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.
I'll Tell You What Man... is the 1988 debut album by Pittsburgh band the Clarks. The album was the band's first release, created while the musicians were still in college at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. The fast-paced song "Help Me Out" gained some airplay on Western Pennsylvania college radio stations, but at this point, the Clarks had yet to achieve success.
Love Gone Sour, Suspicion, and Bad Debt is the third album by the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, band the Clarks. The first single, "Cigarette", makes reference to Fayette County, the rural county located 35 miles south of Pittsburgh from which lead singer Scott Blasey hails. "Treehouse" and "Madeline" were local radio hits.
Someday Maybe is the 1996 fourth album by Pittsburgh band The Clarks. The record constituted both the band's first and last major label release. After two successful local records on a self-created label, MCA signed a deal with the band, giving them at least a shot at national success. However, MCA was in financial disarray at the time, due to it being bought out by a larger corporation. In turn, many struggling or newly signed bands were cut from the label. Before 'Someday Maybe' received any promotion, The Clarks were one of many bands that saw their contracts with MCA be terminated in 1997. Despite this heartbreak, the album did perform well in Pittsburgh. 'Stop!', a song that could draw comparison's 'For What It's Worth' by Buffalo Springfield, was intended to be the band's first nation single. Instead, it was relegated to only local success. The traditional rock love song 'Caroline' and the Southern rock influenced 'Mercury' were also major hits in the Pittsburgh market. The Clarks' problems with MCA nearly ruined their careers, and it certainly left them disillusioned with the recording industry. It would take 4 years for the band to release their next album.
Another Happy Ending is the sixth album by Pittsburgh band The Clarks.
Fast Moving Cars is the seventh album by Pittsburgh band The Clarks. The album is more optimistic than previous Clarks albums, mainly because the band members were becoming increasingly satisfied in their personal relationships. The band remained a force in the Pittsburgh market and in several surrounding areas, but still failed to break out into the national scene. This was despite a much hyped performance on the Late Show with David Letterman. Singles from the album still had regional popularity. "Hell on Wheels" became an instant classic in terms of driving songs, while "Shimmy Low" featured an excellent hook and optimistic lyrics. However, the band was not ready to give up on its long history of depressing songs just yet. The third single, the title track "Fast Moving Cars," invoked the feelings of drunkenness and loneliness.
Between Now and Then is the 2005 retrospective album by Pittsburgh band The Clarks. The interesting fact about this album is that it is a greatest hits compilation for a band that never achieved national prominence. However, this album allowed the band to combine all of their biggest songs with the intent of drawing in casual listeners. Fifteen of the band's hits were included in this collection, with the former singles "Boys Lie" and "Hell On Wheels" notably absent. Two new songs also were featured, including the upbeat single "Bona Fide." For this album, the band also did a rendition of the 1970s Badfinger classic "No Matter What."
¡Viva Terlingua! is a progressive country album by Jerry Jeff Walker and The Lost Gonzo Band. It was recorded in August 1973 at the Luckenbach Dancehall in Luckenbach, Texas, and released three months later, in November 1973, on MCA Nashville Records. The album captures Walker's strived-for "gonzo country" sound, a laid-back country base with notes of "outlaw" rock, blues, and traditional Mexican norteño and Tejano styles. The album was mostly recorded live in the dancehall without an audience over several days, but two songs were recorded live with an audience.
Prom is the second solo album by Amy Ray of Indigo Girls, released in 2005 on her Daemon Records label.
Live is the first live album by Pittsburgh rock band the Clarks, released in 1998.
Still Live is the second live album by Pittsburgh rock band The Clarks, released in 2006. It was released both as a live CD and as a concert DVD.
Scott Blasey is an American rock musician best known as the lead vocalist for The Clarks, a position he has held since the band's inception in the mid-1980s. Blasey has also released three solo albums.
