After ELO's breakup in the mid 1980s, Lynne moved into production work, showing both the influence of The Beatles that characterized much of ELO's work and an influence from rockabilly-style music. The Beatles' connection was strengthened when Lynne produced George Harrison's Cloud Nine, a successful comeback album for the ex-Beatle released in 1987 featuring the popular single "(Got My Mind) Set On You." In 1989, Lynne co-produced the acclaimed album Full Moon Fever by Tom Petty, which included the hit singles "Free Fallin'," "I Won't Back Down" and "Runnin' Down A Dream," all co-written by Lynne. This album and Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1, also co-produced by Lynne, both received nominations for the Grammy as Best Album Of The Year in 1989.
In 1990 Lynne released his first solo album Armchair Theatre, featuring the singles "Every Little Thing" and "Lift Me Up." The album received some positive critical attention but little commercial success.
In February of 1994, Lynne fulfilled a lifelong dream by working with the three surviving Beatles on Anthology album series, and reunion tracks "Free as a Bird" and "Real Love" (overdubbing John Lennon's demos for the songs). He has also produced records individually for George Harrison, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, and worked extensively on the Roy Orbison album Mystery Girl.
In 2001, Lynne released a new ELO album, Zoom, which--save for original ELO keyboardist Richard Tandy on one track--featured none of the original members of the Electric Light Orchestra, but attempted to "return to the classic ELO sound" [1]. The album received positive reviews but had no hit singles. While a concert of the album was filmed and shown on PBS stations, a planned concert tour was cancelled, although the concert was released on DVD. Also that year, Lynne appeared on a VH-1 Storytellers show filmed in New York, and EMI and Sony released remastered editions of part of ELO's catalog.
Lynne went back to the recording studio as a producer in 2002, co-producing and helping complete George Harrison's posthumously-released album, Brainwashed. He was also heavily involved in the memorial Concert for George, held at London's Royal Albert Hall in November 2002, and subsequently produced the Surround Sound audio mix for the Concert For George DVD released in November 2003. The DVD received a Grammy for Best Long Form Music Video.
Also in 2002, a tribute to Lynne called Lynne Me Your Ears was released [2], featuring two CDs full of artists performing Lynne/ELO songs, including Todd Rundgren, SWAG (featuring members of Wilco, The Mavericks and Cheap Trick), Sixpence None The Richer, Doug Powell, PFR, Jason Falkner, Fleming and John, Jerry Chamberlain of Daniel Amos, Rick Altizer and others.
In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine Tom Petty revealed that fellow Wilbury and Full Moon Fever producer Jeff Lynne will reunite with Petty on his upcoming solo album, due in 2006.
Jeff Lynn co-wrote, with John Farrar, the lyrics and music for the 2007 Broadway musical Xanadu. The show used several ELO songs, including "I'm Alive," "Evil Woman" and "Strange Magic."
In 2012 Lynne's second solo album, a covers album entitled Long Wave, was released on 8 October 2012. A greatest hits collection of re-recorded ELO songs by Lynne titled Mr. Blue Sky: The Very Best of Electric Light Orchestra was also released under the ELO moniker on the same day.
On September 24, 2015, under the name Jeff Lynne's ELO, "When I Was a Boy", the first single from Alone in the Universe was released on the internet with a music video released not long after. The album was released on November 13, 2015 and was followed by promotional shows including the first ELO shows in the United States in 30 years. A 2016 European tour has been scheduled.
September Song
Jeff Lynne Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
From May to December
And the days grow short
When you reach September
For when the autumn weather
Turns the leaves to flame
Then you ain't got time
[Chorus]
When the days dwindle down
To a precious few
September, November
And those few golden days
I'd share with you
Those golden days I'd share with you
[Chorus]
Those golden days I'd share with you
Those golden days I'd share with you
Those golden days I'd share with you
The lyrics of Jeff Lynne's "September Song" capture the fleeting nature of time in a relationship. The opening lines highlight the duration of time from spring to fall, which feels like a long time when things are going well. However, when September arrives, the days grow shorter, signaling the approaching end of the season and the end of a relationship. The autumn weather turns the leaves to flame, which can be symbolic of the passion in a relationship, but also signifies the ending of something.
The chorus reinforces the idea that time is running out, with the remaining few months of the year being September and November. The singer acknowledges the preciousness of these few golden days and expresses a desire to share them with a loved one. The repetition of "those golden days I'd share with you" adds emphasis to the need to cherish every moment.
Overall, the lyrics of "September Song" are a poetic reminder to appreciate the time we have with loved ones and not take it for granted, as time can slip away quickly.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh, it's a long, long time
The time between May and December feels endless
From May to December
Referring to a long period of time
And the days grow short
As the year progresses, the days become shorter
When you reach September
September marks the end of summer and beginning of autumn
For when the autumn weather
As the weather changes with the arrival of autumn
Turns the leaves to flame
The leaves on the trees start to change color and fall off
Then you ain't got time
There's not enough time to waste
For the waiting game
To wait around for something to happen
When the days dwindle down
As the days become fewer and fewer
To a precious few
There's only a limited amount of time left
September, November
Referring to the autumn months
And those few golden days
The days that are special and valuable
I'd share with you
Expressing a desire to spend those days with someone else
Those golden days I'd share with you
Repeating the desire to spend valuable time with someone special
Those golden days I'd share with you
Repeating the desire to spend valuable time with someone special
Those golden days I'd share with you
Repeating the desire to spend valuable time with someone special
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Kurt Weill, Maxwell Anderson
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind