News July 00 - Dec 00

31/12/2000 - Another Russian mp3 collection has appeared on e-bay recently. Released on the Home Collection label, the two cd's contain all of the officially released ELO albums from No Answer up to Balance Of Power, the first ELO Part 2 album, plus a selection called Singles Hits from 1981-1986. It also appears to include some other material not ELO-related too ?? System requirements: Win95, Win98, Win NT 4.0, Pentium 166, 16MB RAM, 800x600x256 colours.

30/12/2000 - I have added some recent reviews of various ELO, Roy Wood & Wizzard to the Reviews section.

30/12/2000 - On the main page I have added a link to the new Jeff Lynne Radio channel run by Julian West on 365.com .

29/12/2000 - Thanks to Tobias who posted on the ELO newsgroup that ELO are one of the artists appearing on a 1981 episode of the German music show 'Musikladen' on N3 channel on January 3rd 2001 at 22:50 hrs BST, the complete 'Hold On Tight' video being shown.

29/12/2000 - Below are scanned images of Roy Wood & The Wombles 2 cd singles. The single itself charted at number 22 in the UK Top 40 this week. (Bob The Builder is the Chrimbo No.1 !!!). More details and Roy news can be found at the Official Roy Wood Website at www.roywood.co.uk ).

29/12/2000 - Just added some screen shots of Roy Wood's Army performing 'I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday' on GMTV plus Roy Wood & The Wombles performing their new single on various UK TV shows during the past week. Click here to view.

21/12/2000 - Just added some screen shots from the BBC2 tv show 'Top Of The Pops 2' featuring Roy Wood & The Wombles performing their new single 'I Wish It Could Be A Wombling Merry Christmas Everyday'. Click here to view.

17/12/2000 - Just added some screen shots from the Channel 5 tv show 'Night Fever' featuring Roy Wood & The Wombles performing their new single 'I Wish It Could Be A Wombling Merry Christmas Everyday'. Click here to view.

16/12/2000 - Check out the following link where 'Xanadu' features as this weeks 'Record Of The Week' - http://www.polyholiday.com/century/index.html . Thanks to Michel Lakos Monardes and the Showdown ELO Mailing List for the info.

16/12/2000 - I have added another couple of rare items to My Collection pages including a 3cd Roy Wood rarities set and an excellent Brazilian release by the Geese Fighters - 'Tribute to ELO'.

11/12/2000 - The UK release date for 'I Wish It Could Be A Wombling Merry Christmas Everyday' by Roy Wood and The Wombles is Monday, December 18th. There are 2 cd singles available priced at £3.99 each, but Key Mail Order here in the U.K. are doing a special offer whereby if both cd's are ordered together, the price is only £4.50 including postage!! Website - www.keymailorder.com .

07/12/2000 - Keep a close eye on the Official Roy Wood website at www.roywood.co.uk for details of Roy's upcoming tv and radio appearances throughout December to help promote the release of the Roy Wood / Wombles Christmas single.

07/12/2000 - Two new ELO 3cd box sets have been released this week on the Sony label here in the UK. Box set 1 features Eldorado, A New World Record and Face The Music (Catalogue number 4927332). Box set 2 features Time, Out Of The Blue and Discovery (Catalogue number 4853402). Both sets are priced at £19.99.

07/12/2000 - Just announced this past week is that Jeff Lynne has been in the studio for the past couple of years working on new material which will form part of the new ELO album 'ZOOM' which is to be released in April 2001. Amongst the artists involved in the recordings are Rosie Vela, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. Tracks on the album will be - Alright, Moment In Paradise, State Of Mind, Just For Love, Stranger On A Quiet Street, In My Own Time, Easy Money, Really Doesn't Matter At All, Ordinary Dream, A Long Time Gone, Melting In The Sun, All She Wanted and Lonesome Lullaby. For more details about this album including comments from Jeff Lynne, check out the FTM Website at www.ftmusic.com .

05/12/2000 - Flashback is this weeks album of the week on BBC Radio 2's Ken Bruce show. A new track is played every day at about 10:45am.

03/12/2000 - Click here to see a scan of the very limited edition 6-track Flashback Sampler cd issued this week here in the UK. Tracks on the cd are Xanadu (new version), Mr Blue Sky, Don't Bring Me Down, Tears In Your Life (previously unreleased), Do Ya (unedited alternate mix) and Telephone Line.

03/12/2000 - Yet another Russian ELO compilation has become available via auction site ebay and various Eastern-bloc mail order firms. Called 'All The World Is Gold', this single gold cd features the following 20 tracks - Turn To Stone, Sweet Talkin' Woman, It's Over, Here Is The News, So Serious, Is It Alright, Sorrow About To Fall, Calling America, Stranger, Bluebird, Last Train To London, Midnight Blue, On The Run, Twilight, Yours Truly 2095, Ticket To The Moon, The Way Life's Meant To Be, Secret Messages, I'm Alive and All Over The World. Catalogue number - Mekkaphone ESMCD 1003.

03/12/2000 - Orchestra are currently organising some tour dates alongside Uriah Heep in Germany - check out http://www.ModerneWelt.de for more details.

03/12/2000 - For details of what Rosie Vela (Jeff Lynne's 'girlfriend') is up to, then check out her official website at www.rosievela.com .

03/12/2000 - A documentary about Roy Orbison called 'In Dreams' will be shown on VH1 here in the UK on Thursday 7th December at 10 - 11pm. The show will feature artists like Tom Petty, Bob Dylan, U2 and just maybe there'll be a glimpse of Jeff Lynne ??

23/11/2000 - Here's a message posted to the new Parthenon Huxley Mailing List (to subscribe check out the link on the main page) - 'Attention all Los Angelinos! In their first live perfomance in almost a year, P. Hux will be playing a show at the Beverly Center Hard Rock Café (8600 Beverly Blvd.) in Los Angeles on Wednesday, December 13th. Featuring Parthenon Huxley on guitar, Gordon Townsend on drums and Dan Rothchild on bass, they will be performing songs from the new P. Hux release, "Purgatory Falls" as well as many other fan favorites. The cost is $5 at the door and is scheduled to start around 10:30 PM. For further information on the Hard Rock or directions to the club you can call (310) 276-7605.'

20/11/2000 - Click here to see a scan of the U.S.A. promotional 3cd Flashback artwork.

13/11/2000 - There are a couple of promotional releases issued to radio stations, etc for the upcoming Flashback collection. For Europe & the U.K., Sony UK have produced about 100 6-track sampler cd's featuring the tracks Xanadu (new version), Mr. Blue Sky, Don't Bring Me Down, Tears In Your Life (previously unreleased), Do Ya (unedited alternative mix) and Telephone Line.

Meanwhile, in the USA, promo copies of the collection have been issued to radio stations, etc featuring black and white artwork, with all 3 cd's from forthcoming box set in a double hinge CD box. Track Listings Disc 1: 1. 10538 Overture 2. Showdown 3. Ma-Ma-Ma Belle 4. Mr. Radio 5. Roll Over Beethoven 6. Mama - (new edit) 7. One Summer Dream 8. Illusions In G Major 9. Strange Magic 10. Eldorado Overture 11. Can't Get It Out Of My Head 12. Eldorado 13. Eldorado - (Finale) 14. Mister Kingdom 15. Do Ya - (unedited alternative mix, previously unreleased) 16. Grieg's Piano Concerto In A Minor - (previously unreleased) Disc 2: 1. Tightrope 2. Evil Woman 3. Livin' Thing 4. Mr. Blue Sky 5. Mission (A World Record) - (alternative mix, previously unreleased) 6. Turn To Stone 7. Telephone Line 8. Rockaria! 9. Starlight 10. It's Over 11. Whale, The 12. Sweet Talkin' Woman 13. Big Wheels 14. Shangri-La 15. Nightrider 16. Tears In Your Life - (previously unreleased) Disc: 3 1. Don't Bring Me Down 2. Diary Of Horace Wimp, The 3. Twilight 4. Secret Messages 5. Take Me On And On 6. Shine A Little Love 7. Rock And Roll Is King 8. Last Train To London 9. Confusion 10. Getting To The Point 11. Hold On Tight 12. So Serious 13. Calling America 14. Four Little Diamonds 15. Great Balls Of Fire (Live) 16. Xanadu (new version, previously unreleased) 17. Indian Queen (demo, previously unreleased) 18. Love Changes All (previously unreleased) 19. After All (first time on cd) 20. Helpless (previously unreleased) 21. Who's That? (previously unreleased).

13/11/2000 - I have added an excellent review plus photos from Orchestra's recent concert in Vega, Denmark. Check out the Concert Reviews page.

09/11/2000 - Top Of The Pops 2 last night featured Wizzard performing 'Ball Park Incident' back in 1973 plus there was a mention of the upcoming Roy Wood and the Wombles christmas single!!

02/11/2000 - The U.K. release date for 'Flashback' (catalogue number - 5009312 / price between £25 - £30), will be December 4th - more details at www.ftmusic.com .

01/11/2000 - One of Wizzard's classic performances from the early 1970's will be shown on 'Top Of The Pops 2' on Wednesday 8th November on BBC2 here in the U.K. Not sure which song yet though.

30/10/2000 - Jeff Lynne & ELO are this weeks featured artists of the week on the Ken Bruce show on BBC Radio 2 here in the U.K. The show is broadcast from 9:30AM to 12:30PM BST.

28/10/2000 - Check out the FTM website at www.ftmusic.com for full details of the upcoming ELO 3cd 'Flashback' release (catalogue number - Epic/Legacy E3K 85123). More details about this excellent set will be released during the next few weeks as the official U.S.A. & U.K. release date of November 21st approaches. Also keep checking the new www.elomusic.com website for more updates.

22/10/2000 - According to Rob Caiger at FTM, full details of the upcoming ELO 3cd 'Flashback' set will hopefully be released within the next few days. In the meantime, check out Epic Records website at www.epiccenter.com , enter ELO in the search box which takes you to the following link www.elomusic.com . On-line music mail order site CD Now is now taking orders for the collection and has the 3cd set available for just under $45 plus postage.

22/10/2000 - Roy Wood will be releasing a Christmas single with Mike Batt and the Wombles entitled "I Wish It Was A Wombling Merry Christmas Everyday" in time for the festive period. For more details (and a photo!) go to the news page at the Official Roy Wood Website at www.roywood.co.uk .

17/10/2000 - A message from the Parthenon Huxley Mail List - "Greetings all! A couple of quick announcements. First of all, when it will be released as a live CD. Parthenon also has a few performances coming up as well. On Saturday, October 21st, he will be playing with "Orchestra" at the Lancaster Performing Arts Center in Lancaster, California. The Antelope Valley Orchestra will be performing with the band as they run through all the hits from ELO and such. It's guaranteed to be a great night of music!

On Thursday, November 16th, Parthenon will be playing an acoustic show at Highland Grounds in Hollywood as part of the Third Thursday songwriters night that will highlight his new CD, Purgatory Falls. That also promises to be a very special evening of music. The new CD, Purgatory Falls, was available at his living room show but only in limited amounts as a CDR. The actual release will be sometime very soon and when it is ready, it will be announced here. His site is also due to go up so you can reach that at www.parthenonhuxley.com . If it is not up yet, keep checking. It will be soon. That's all for now, Gail".

To subscribe to the Parthenon Huxley List, follow the link on the main page.

14/10/2000 - Full details of the new 2cd set 'The Complete ELO Live Collection' just released in the USA last week is actually just the Live At Wembley & Live At Winterland cd's packaged together in a cardboard slipcase. Released on the Purple Pyramid/Cleopatra label, catalogue number CLP0932. Scanned artwork can be viewed on the New Releases page.

03/10/2000 - South American fans may be interested in a 'new' ELO tribute band from Chile called Overtura. More details about the band can be found on their website at http://overtura.virtualave.net .

03/10/2000 - A new compilation of Move tracks called 'The Very Best Of The Move' is to be released on October 16th here in the U.K. The cd features 18 tracks and is released on the Metro label, catalogue number - METRCD031 and priced at just £4.99 .

01/10/2000 - Spotted for auction on e-bay this week is yet another East European ELO compilation released on the Polystar Records label, catalogue number P2000. It is called 'Collection 2000' and is an updated version of the collection released earlier this year. 20 tracks in total - Ticket To The Moon, Strange Magic, Sweet Talkin' Woman, Here Is The News, Evil Woman, Train Of Gold, Rock N Roll Is King, Livin' Thing, The Lights Go Down, Sorrow About To Fall, Yours Truly 2095, Last Train To London, From The End Of The World, Telephone Line, Don't Bring Me Down, Hold On Tight, Turn To Stone, It's Over, Can't Get It Out Of My Head and 21st Century Man.

01/10/2000 - Ex-Move lead singer Carl Wayne will be interviewed on BBC Radio Essex this Monday at 11.30am (2nd October) to promote the fast approaching Hollies tour. Frequency 103.5 and 95.3 FM. Further info can be found on his official website at www.carlwayne.co.uk .

24/09/2000 - For California-based ELO Part 2 & Parthenon Huxley fans, Gail George has asked me to post details of an upcoming event being organised - "Hello there, I just wanted to announce that Parthenon Huxley, of ELO Pt. 2, will be doing a rare living room show here in Los Angeles on Saturday, October 14th at 8pm. If anyone is living in the L.A. area and would like to attend this very intimate performance, please email me at gailgpop@earthlink.net for more information. The show will be held in a lovely home in Encino on Saturday, October 14th at 8:00pm. The living room will only hold about 40 people so expect a very intimate show and expect it to fill up fast. The cost is $10 per person (all monies go to Parthenon) at the door (front door, that is) and should last about 2 hours. There will be light snacks and drinks available and Parthenon will have plenty of CDs, including a brand new one and other assorted merch to sell. He is also looking into recording this show for future release on CD, which will make a tremendous momento for those who were there and a wonderful opportunity to hear what an amazing performer he is for those who weren't. When all 40 spots are filled another email will go out to those who were confirmed, giving them directions to the house and any other details. I think that's it. Thank so much for your help. Gail."

24/09/2000 - Jeff Lynne's brief appearance on MTV's Tom Petty 'Behind The Music' programme which was broadcast in South America last week can now be viewed at the Secret Messages website at the following url - http://members.nbci.com/moodie/reporta3.htm .

17/09/2000 - ELO's 'Mr Blue Sky' was featured as the background music during an article about the sci-fi programme 'Blake's 7' on last nights BBC2 show - 'I Love 1978'.

13/09/2000 - Check out Sony's website at the link below to view details of an upcoming NEW ELO 3cd set called 'Flashback' - on Sony's Legacy label, catalogue number Epic/Legacy E3K 085123. Release date is scheduled for November 21st in the USA. Track listing at the moment is as follows.............

DISK 1

DISK 2

DISK 3

1. 10538 Overture
2. Showdown
3. Ma-Ma-Ma Belle
4. Mr. Radio
5. Roll Over Beethoven
6. Mama (new edit)
7. One Summer Dream
8. Illusions In G Major
9. Strange Magic
10. Eldorado Overture
11. Can't Get It Out Of My Head
12. Eldorado
13. Eldorado - Finale
14. Do Ya (unedited alt mix)
15. Mister Kingdom
16. Grieg's Piano Concerto In A Minor
(unreleased)

1. Tightrope
2. Evil Woman
3. Livin' Thing
4. Mr. Blue Sky
5. Mission (A World Record) (alt mix)
6. Turn To Stone
7. Telephone Line
8. Rockaria!
9. Starlight
10. It's Over
11. The Whale
12. Sweet Talkin' Woman
13. Big Wheels
14. Shangri-La
15. Nightrider
16. Tears In Your Life (unreleased)

1. Don't Bring Me Down
2. The Diary Of Horace Wimp
3. Twilight
4. Secret Messages
5. Take Me On And On
6. Shine A Little Love
7. Rock 'N' Roll Is King
8. Last Train To London
9. Confusion
10. Getting To The Point
11. Hold On Tight
12. So Serious
13. Calling America
14. Four Little Diamonds
15. Great Balls Of Fire (live)
16. Xanadu (new version)
17. Indian Queen (unreleased demo)
18. Love Changes All (unreleased)
19. After All (first time on CD)
20. Helpless (unreleased)
21. Who's That? (unreleased)

12/09/2000 - Check out the Photomusik Magazine Website at www.photomusik.com to view some great photos of ELO2's concert in Madrid on July 21st. Click on "Photoconciertos", and then scroll down until you see EL RESPLANDOR DE LA "LUZ ELECTRICA". There's other music information on this site as well. Send your comments to photomusik@mi.madritel.es .

07/09/2000 - Due out next Monday, September 11th here in the U.K. is a 2cd release of Out Of The Blue / Discovery on the Sony label. Catalogue number is 4998622 and priced at £14.99 from Key Mail Order at www.keymailorder.com .

02/09/2000 - ELO's classic song 'Livin' Thing' featured on the BBC2 show 'I Love 1976' tonight as the backing track to a feature about Peter Powell who created the kite-flying craze of that year.

02/09/2000 - Yet another Electric Light Orchestra compilation has also become available via Russia this time called 'Collection 2000'. There are 20 tracks in total which are as follows.....Ticket To The Moon, Here Is The News, Strange Magic, Telephone Line, Another Heart Breaks, Need Her Love, It's Over, Can't Get It Out Of My Head, Yours Truly 2095, Evil Woman, Last Train To London, Hold On Tight, Rock N Roll Is King, The Lights Go Down, 21st Century Man, Shine A Little Love, Confusion, Midnight Blue, Sorrow About To Fall and Epilogue.

30/08/2000 - Another Electric Light Orchestra compilation has become available via Russia called 'The Golden Collection 2000'. There are 17 tracks in total which are as follows..... Train Of Gold, Strange Magic, Rain Is Falling, Last Train To London, Loser Gone Wild, Livin' Thing, The Lights Go Down, Starlight, From The End Of The World, Sorrow About To Fall, Ticket To The Moon, Confusion, Sweet Talkin' Woman, Evil Woman, Can't Get It Out Of My Head, Showdown and last but not least Midnight Blue.

27/08/2000 - Fans of ex-Move man Trevor Burton may be interested in the following Swedish website - 'Knights In Blue Denim' at home.swipnet.se/~w-53855/xtrevorbu.html which has details of a couple of Trevor's albums - "Double Zero" (1985) and "Blue Moons" (2000).

27/08/2000 - Because the name 'ELO Part 2' cannot be used in reference to the band anymore, the ELO Part 2 fanzine 'Part II Unlimited' has been renamed and from Issue 8 onwards will now be called 'Under London Skies'. The website has also undergone a name-change and a new look, the new url is www.underlondonskies.cjb.net .

26/08/2000 - Just updated the Tour Dates section with new gigs for the Eleanor Rigby Experience, Roy Wood & 'Orchestra'.

08/08/2000 - For those who missed it first time round, BBC2 here in the U.K. are repeating 'Never Mind The Buzzcocks' with Roy Wood on Friday 11th August at 10pm.

08/08/2000 - The September issue of Q magazine features a short review of the recently released 1976 Wizzard album 'Main Street'.

08/08/2000 - Thanks go to Andrzej Piotr Gilek who has noticed that ELO's 'Greatest Hits' album has just sold its 4 millionth copy in the USA according to the RIAA - certification date is July 25th 2000.

30/07/2000 - Out now is Issue 7 of Part 2 Unlimited fanzine. This will be the last issue under this name but will be relaunched under a new name as soon as the guys choose their new band-name. Click here for more details.

29/07/2000 - There are a couple of Roy Wood items in the August issue of 'Record Buyer & Music Collector' magazine. Firstly there's a short review of the 'Wizzard - Singles As & Bs' cd collection plus a two page spread under the section 'Whatever happened to.......?'. There's a quick resume of Roy's career from The Move up to the present day, plus news on Carl Wayne, Bev Bevan, Trevor Burton and news of forthcoming releases. More details at www.recordbuyer.co.uk .

23/07/2000 - Just added a couple of reviews of Eric Troyer, Lou Clark, Mik Kaminski, Kelly Groucutt, Parthenon Huxley & Gordon Townsend's recent gigs at the Orange County Fair in Costa Mesa, USA on July 14th by Brian Barton and also at the Patio Conde Duque, Madrid, Spain on July 21st by Diana Lago. Click here to go to the Concert Reviews section.

22/07/2000 - A repeat showing of the 1970's pop show 'Supersonic' on Granada Plus here in the U.K. had Roy Wood performing 'Looking Through The Eyes Of A Fool' from a show back in 1975.

22/07/2000 - Until the current legal 'situation' between ex-members of ELO Part 2 and Jeff Lynne is concluded, I have removed any future planned gigs by Eric Troyer, Lou Clark, Mik Kaminski, Kelly Groucutt, Parthenon Huxley & Gordon Townsend from the tour dates section. For further news please e-mail me privately or check out the alt.music.elo newsgroup or the ELO Mailing List.

19/07/2000 - A couple of Roy Wood photos and a live version of California Man released on a new compilation cd can be found at www.sasband.com .

19/07/2000 - Just added photos to the two Arlington Heights gig reviews by Rich Heintz & Eldon Warfield.

11/07/2000 - Just added a new review and more photos of the gig at Maddies, PA, USA on July 6th by Susan Murphy to the Gig Reviews page.

10/07/2000 - Check out the Concert Photos page where I have just added some new photos from the gig at Maddies, PA on July 6th.

08/07/2000 - Just added a new review of ELO Part 2's gig at Arlington Heights, Illinois on July 3rd to the Gig Reviews page.

08/07/2000 - Jeff Lynne has 'allegedly' won a temporary injunction at his court case preventing the ex-ELO Part 2 guys from using the names ELO, ELO 2 or ELO Part 2. Prior to the bands gig at Maddies, PA on July 6th, the venue put up a poster which said........
'Tonight's Performance Of The Music of E.L.O. Is Being Performed By Former E.L.O. Members (this line was underlined)

Mik Kaminski (Violin)
Kelly Groucutt (Vocals & Bass)
Louis Clark (Keyboards)

And Former E.L.O. Part II Members (again underlined)

Eric Troyer (Vocals & Keyboards)
Parthenon Huxley (Vocals and Guitar)
Gordon Townsend (Drums)

E.L.O. Part II is not the name of this band. If you require a refund, please see a
ticket seller BEFORE the performance.' (this whole paragraph was underlined).

(Click here to see the actual poster !!!).

The band have confirmed that they will be continuing to perform as normal but are currently looking for a new name. Any suggestions are welcome and should be sent either to Lynn Hoskins who runs the ELO Mailing List at lhoskins@mediatones.com or send them direct to me and I will forward them to Lynn.

04/07/2000 - Check out the following link to listen to Twilight 2000 - a personal remix of the classic ELO song featuring ELO Part 2 with the Halle Orchestra - http://www.schirmer.freeserve.co.uk/tunes1.html .

02/07/2000 - The Light Brigade are a new group receiving a lot of radio airplay in Dublin, Ireland at the moment with their ELO / Jeff Lynne influenced music. They are huge ELO and Beatles fans, with John Walsh being the brains behind the band. "I just love writing and recording and now with the introduction of the internet, the whole world can listen to my music. I have received e-mails from all over the world and I am just overwhelmed at the positive response to the e.p. I am currently working on the final tracks for the album which will be released just in time for Christmas. I am using two guys from the live band, Robbie Dunne on lead guitar and Tony Brophy on rhythm guitar to speed things up." Check out the following link for a free download of two songs, 'Big City Lights' and 'Photograph' - www.peoplesound.com/artist/thelightbrigade . The bands' current 4-track cd single can be purchased directly from this website also, which I highly recommend.

01/07/2000 - Check out the link on the main page to the new ELO Message Board, launched by Ken Petty and which is maintained by the ELO Appreciation Society.