They incorporated the sounds of string ensembles, vocoders and dub echos into rock songs, thereby creating a very sophisticated studio version of rock. The musical content of ELO songs often went far beyond usual chord structures, mixing pop songwriting with classical romanticism and synthesized sounds. The band claim that their music "picks up where The Beatles' 1967 song I Am the Walrus left off."
Formed in 1970 by Roy Wood, Jeff Lynne and Bev Bevan (the remaining members of the 1960s rock group The Move). The band used cellos, violin, horns and woodwinds to give their music a classical sound. This was an idea Roy Wood initially had while with The Move, to take rock music in a new direction. In 1970 when Carl Wayne left the The Move, Jeff Lynne, front man with fellow Brum band Idle Race, responded to Wood's second invitation to join the line-up, with the lure of starting the new band. To help finance the fledgling project, two more Move albums were released during the recording of their eponymous first album in 1971 which produced the UK hit 10538 Overture. In the US this album was released with the mistaken title of No Answer, due to a mix-up with an uncompleted telephone call to the American label and subsequent secretarial message.
However, tensions soon surfaced between Roy Wood and Jeff Lynne. With most of the media attention focused on Roy Wood, differences in musical direction, and a disastrous first live outing, it was no surprise when the band went through the first of its many line-up changes as Wood took Hugh McDowell and Bill Hunt with him to form Wizzard. Despite the music press's predictions that the band would fold without Wood, Jeff Lynne stepped up to lead the band, with Bevan remaining on drums, bassist Richard Tandy switching to moog synthesizer, Michael d'Albuquerque on bass, Mike Edwards, Colin Walker (cello) and Wilfred Gibson replacing Steve Woolam on violin. They released ELO 2 in 1973, from which came their first U.S. chart hit, a hugely elaborate version of the Chuck Berry classic Roll Over Beethoven. After their second album, violinist Gibson was dismissed and replaced by Mik Kaminski. They also released On The Third Day in 1973, with Mike Edwards playing all the cello parts due to Colin Walker leaving the band. Later that same year saw the return of Hugh McDowell, who had jumped ship the year previous, to replace cellist Colin Walker.
In 1974 Lynne hired a thirty-piece orchestra, choir and Louis Clark, then began work on the next LP Eldorado, A Symphony, a concept album about dreams, scoring their first U.S. Top Ten hit with Can't Get It Out Of My Head in 1975. Eldorado would become ELO's first gold album.
After the release of Eldorado, bassist and vocalist Kelly Groucutt and cellist Melvyn Gale joined, replacing de Albuquerque and Edwards respectively.
The band split in 1983. In 1985, Lynne, Tandy and Bevan reunited and recorded the album "Balance of Power". This reunion was short lived and the band split once more in 1986. Bev Bevan and Louis Clark, with the consent of Lynne, toured and recorded as ELO Part II from 1988 until Bevan's retirement in 1999. In 2000, Lynne and Tandy reformed Electric Light Orchestra and released a new record, "Zoom". "Zoom" proved to be a commercial failure, and the duo split once more in 2001.
In 2014, following support from BBC Radio 2 DJ Chris Evans, Lynne and Tandy reunited as a part of BBC Radio 2's "Festival in a Day" to perform under the new billing, "Jeff Lynne's ELO", a name Lynne devised as a response to ELO tributes, imitation bands, and offshoots who used ELO to promote their own tours.
In February 2015, Jeff Lynne's ELO performed at the Grammy Awards with Ed Sheeran, and in September of that year they announced a new album would be released under Columbia Records. Jeff Lynne's ELO - Alone in the Universe was released on November 13, 2015, and was ELO’s first album of new material in almost 15 years.
The second album under Jeff Lynne’s ELO, Jeff Lynne's ELO - From Out of Nowhere, was released on November 1, 2019.
There is more than one artist with the name "ELO". The vast majority of scrobbles to "Electric Light Orchestra" are for the rock band from England.
ELO, is a South Korean singer, who debuted with the album, 8 Femmes, on August 26, 2016.
Auntie
Electric Light Orchestra Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I got three or four babies sittin' on my knee
I got good love waitin' for you
I come sneakin' round the corner of the avenue
You gotta Ma-Ma-Ma Belle, or I will get you
You know you gotta Ma-Ma-Ma Belle, before I get you
And that's getting hold of you before I serve my time, I gotta
Keep on, with my heavy load
Till I see you come a strollin' down that open road
You gotta Ma-Ma-Ma Belle, or I will get you
Don't you know you gotta Ma-Ma-Ma Belle, I will get you
And you're feeling sorrow, Ma-Ma-Ma Belle, I will get you
And now it's all about Ma-Ma-Ma Belle, I will get you
I love you Ma-Ma-Ma Belle
That's why I want to get it all well I'm sure you can tell I got
Good soul, runnin' so deep
Gonna get you in the corner so that I can keep
Can't you hear me once Ma-Ma-Ma Belle, oh I will get you
You know I want her Ma-Ma-Ma Belle, or I will get you
And you gotta find Ma-Ma-Ma Belle, or I will get you
Yeah and it's all about Ma-Ma-Ma Belle, I will get you
The Electric Light Orchestra's song "Ma-Ma-Ma Belle" is a love ballad with a sense of urgency. The singer expresses his desire to be with the object of his affection, referred to as "Ma-Ma-Ma Belle". He offers his love and loyalty, emphasizing that he has several "babies" sitting on his knee, possibly indicating his readiness to settle down and start a family. He also mentions the possibility of serving time, which suggests that he may have a criminal past and is possibly on the run from the authorities. Nevertheless, he is committed to seeing things through and getting to his beloved before it's too late.
The chorus of the song reinforces the urgency of his message, as he warns that he will get Ma-Ma-Ma Belle if she doesn't come to him first. The repetition of the phrase "Ma-Ma-Ma Belle" gives it a hypnotic quality, and the urgency in the singer's voice adds to the intensity of the message. The singer's desperation to be with Ma-Ma-Ma Belle is palpable throughout the song, and the tense guitar riffs coupled with the commanding beat create an atmosphere of urgency and anticipation.
Overall, the song showcases the power of love and the lengths that people are willing to go to be with the object of their affection. It also highlights the theme of desperation, with the singer risking everything to be with Ma-Ma-Ma Belle.
Line by Line Meaning
Got love, if that's what you need
I have love to give you if that's what you desire
I got three or four babies sittin' on my knee
I have many children that I take care of
I got good love waitin' for you
I have a lot of love to give specifically to you
I come sneakin' round the corner of the avenue
I approach you covertly from the street corner
You gotta Ma-Ma-Ma Belle, or I will get you
You need to have Ma-Ma-Ma Belle or I will pursue you
You know you gotta Ma-Ma-Ma Belle, before I get you
You are aware that you need Ma-Ma-Ma Belle before I begin chasing you
There's one thing that's on my mind
My mind is preoccupied with one thing
And that's getting hold of you before I serve my time, I gotta
I need to catch you before I go to jail
Keep on, with my heavy load
I must persevere with my burdensome responsibilities
Till I see you come a strollin' down that open road
I will continue until I see you walking on the open road
Don't you know you gotta Ma-Ma-Ma Belle, I will get you
You should know that you need Ma-Ma-Ma Belle or I will capture you
And you're feeling sorrow, Ma-Ma-Ma Belle, I will get you
Even if you're feeling sad or down, I will still chase after you for Ma-Ma-Ma Belle
And now it's all about Ma-Ma-Ma Belle, I will get you
All my focus is on obtaining Ma-Ma-Ma Belle and catching you
I love you Ma-Ma-Ma Belle
I have strong feelings of affection towards Ma-Ma-Ma Belle
That's why I want to get it all well I'm sure you can tell I got
That is the reason why I want to obtain her, and I'm confident you can tell I'm determined
Good soul, runnin' so deep
I have a good and genuine character deep within me
Gonna get you in the corner so that I can keep
I plan to trap you in a corner so that you can't escape me
Can't you hear me once Ma-Ma-Ma Belle, oh I will get you
Can't you hear me calling out for Ma-Ma-Ma Belle? I will capture you regardless
You know I want her Ma-Ma-Ma Belle, or I will get you
You know I desire Ma-Ma-Ma Belle, and I won't stop pursuing you until I have her
And you gotta find Ma-Ma-Ma Belle, or I will get you
You need to locate Ma-Ma-Ma Belle, or I will begin chasing after you
Yeah and it's all about Ma-Ma-Ma Belle, I will get you
Clearly, everything revolves around obtaining Ma-Ma-Ma Belle and I will stop at nothing to catch you
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: JEFF LYNNE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Robert Cochran
on State of Mind
An overlooked album which more people should listen to
Rodney
on Rockaria!
Weit in die Ferne , man hört, man hört die Musik
Philip Kassabian
on Starlight
A nice ELO song.
Philip Kassabian
on Starlight
A lovely ELO song.
Philip Kassabian
on Wild West Hero
An absolutely beautiful song.
Philip Kassabian
on Last Train to London
Never heard this ELO song before.
Philip Kassabian
on All Over the World
An ELO song that surprisingly few people know about. To me this rivals Mr. Blue Sky.
Philip Kassabian
on Ticket to the Moon
A song about a person being utterly confused in a difficult situation. He can't even fathom the journey he's about to take to the moon. It's surreal to him.
Philip Kassabian
on Strange Magic
A very mysterious and awe inspiring song. Definitely one of ELO's better songs.
Philip Kassabian
on Livin' Thing
It's a great song and to me it symbolizes the meaning of loss and how absolutely devastating it can be for a person.