ELO: Hold On Tight

Saturday is lost classics day. Continuing my focus on artists who died in 2024, today I present a song by ELO. By the time that the band’s ninth album, Time, was released in 1981, ELO had already released all of their most famous albums, including Eldorado (1974), A New World Record (1976), Out of the Blue (1977), and Discovery (1979). After their work on the oft-maligned (although wonderful) film Xanadu in 1980, the world of pop music was quickly moving away from the classic prog-pop sounds of ELO. Even more so, the public was not interested in a concept album (the first for the band) centered around time travel. Sales of the album would have been fine for most artists (peaking at #16) but were a let-down for the band. ELO would never again release an album that charted in the Top 20, but decades later this album is a cult classic and is recognized as influential on the sound of future acts such as Apples In Stereo, Flaming Lips, and Daft Punk. Throughout all of ELO’s ups and down, the work of Richard Tandy on keyboards, piano, and synths was a primary influence on the band’s sound. Tandy died on May 1, 2024. Rest in peace you oft-ignored sideman and thanks for all of the great music.

To learn more about Richard Tandy, check out his Wikipedia page.

To listen to all of the songs of the day, check out the Radio Faux Show Song of the Day playlist.

• Uncategorized