regina spektor 'FAR'

Jeff Lynne returns to the producer's chair for the new regina spektor album 'Far' to be released through Sire Records, June 23.

Read more HERE!

GET WOODY A STAR FOR CHRISTMAS!

The Sunday Mercury newspaper need our help to convince the Birmingham City Council that Roy Wood is worthy of a star on Broad Street.

'The Birmingham Walk Of Stars' honours those people who have made a significant contribution to music, television, film, radio, theatre, sport, business and literacy.

Stars such as Ozzy Osbourne, comedian Jasper Carrott, Slade's Noddy Holder, Black Sabbath's Tony Iommi, motor race commentator Murray Walker, Norman Painting from The Archers, actress Julie Walters & even Aston Villa’s 1982 European Cup winning team have all had stars sunk into the sidewalk.

Please visit the The Sunday Mercury website to sign the petition and help get Roy a star for Christmas!

'LET IT ROLL: SONGS BY GEORGE HARRISON'

On June 16, Capitol/EMI released George Harrison's first ever career spanning solo hits collection, showcasing his remastered solo hits from 1970's 'All Things Must Pass' through to 2002's 'Brainwashed' plus live recordings from 'Concert For Bangladesh'.

Jeff Lynne features on several of the tracks - 'Got My Mind Set On You', 'Any Road', 'This Is Love', 'Marwa Blues', 'Rising Sun', 'When We Was Fab' and 'Cheer Down'.

ASCAP EVENT HONOURS JEFF LYNNE

At the 4th Annual ASCAP "I Create Music Expo", Jeff Lynne was presented with the prestigious ASCAP Golden Note Award in recognition of his extraordinary contributions to music.

Following the award presentation made by ASCAP's president Paul Williams, Erik Philbrook carried out a wonderful interview with Jeff in front of a live audience that focused on his early days with the Nightriders/Idle Race and his amazing career as a songwriter, producer and leader of the Electric Light Orchestra. He also talked about his time in The Traveling Wilburys, working with legendary artists The Beatles, George Harrison, Roy Orbison & Tom Petty and revealed his single string plastic guitar technique!

Courtesy of the Showdown Mailing List, list member David Jay and with special thanks to ASCAP, the full interview can be heard here.

Photo © David Jay 2009

NEW SOLO ALBUM FOR JEFF LYNNE!

During a recent interview, Jeff Lynne has revealed that he has been busy on a new solo album that he hopes to release by the end of the year. He also said that he had just finished producing 5 songs for Regina Spektor's new album and is planning to work on some songs with Joe Walsh.

The full news article can be found here.

More news soon.

THE RECORD PRODUCERS: ROY WOOD

On April 13, BBC Radio showcased Roy Wood on their Record Producers series. The show, hosted by Richard Allinson and Steve Levine featured fascinating interviews with Roy, Jeff Lynne, Rick Price, Alan Parsons and Nigel Reeve that were recorded especially for the show.

THE VERY BEST OF THE MOVE

'The Very Best Of The Move' was released earlier this month in the UK.

Featuring over 75 minutes of superbly remastered hit singles, rare b-sides and choice album cuts, this release comes with a 20-page booklet containing an extensive band history and rare, unseen photos.

Fans ordering this CD from the Shop, will also recieve a facsimile of an original Move press release and a sticker, but only while stocks last.

'The Very Best Of The Move' will be available from the Shop very soon, so please keep checking back!

KELLY GROUCUTT 1945-2009

THE MOVE ANTHOLOGY 1966 - 1972
EXCLUSIVE WORLDWIDE OFFER

10 years in the making! 62 career-spanning tracks - over three hours of Move magnificence - on one superbly remastered 4-CD box set approved by The Move! Classic hit singles, b-sides, choice album cuts, a wealth of previously unreleased material including never-before-heard songs, demos, alternate takes & live recordings from 1966-72. Released in the UK-only on 27 October 2008.

EXCLUSIVE! Every copy ordered from the SHOP will come with a new colour Move Collectors Edition Postcard & new Move sticker featuring the classic 5-piece Move line up, but only while stocks last! ORDER NOW!

THE MOVE ONLINE
OFFICIAL WEBSITE BOXSET PROMOTION

To support this momentous release, The Move Online - www.themoveonline.com - will present preview articles prior to the release date. There will be plenty of additional features, photos, memorabilia, original articles & interviews supplementing the boxset liner notes - 11,000 words & 72 colour pages just isn't enough! The UK discography included in the booklet will also be expanded to a fully illustrated worldwide discography. Full details & bonus features for all Move remastered albums will also be included. Please support the members of The Move and future releases by visiting their official website - www.themoveonline.com

THE IDLE RACE - THE BBC SESSIONS 1967 - 1969

They were one of the most recorded bands by the BBC during the sixties, taping a multitude of session & concert performances, yet inexplicably, only a handful of songs survived. All that is about to change as 10 years of research & tape recovery comes to an exciting conclusion & 'The BBC Sessions 1967 - 1969' is prepared for release. Set to include many rare & previously lost session recordings, the album will clearly show why Kenny Everett acclaimed The Idle Race as being "…second only to The Beatles".

More details soon!

ELO REMASTERED

Check out the ELO Reissues section for full details of the critically acclaimed ELO Remaster Series. From 'No Answer' ('Electric Light Orchestra' in the UK) to 'Balance Of Power' plus the compilations 'All Over The World' & 'Ticket To The Moon', each album has been meticulously upgraded under the full supervision of ELO songwriter & producer Jeff Lynne. Digitally remastered from the original master tapes by Lynne with engineer Jeff Magid, all albums have upgraded booklets with original memorabilia & previously unseen & rare photos from band member archives, restored & improved front sleeve artwork plus new liner notes from both Jeff Lynne & ELO archivist Rob Caiger.

All ELO remasters & compilations come with EXCLUSIVE ELO COLLECTORS EDITION POSTCARDS (while stocks last) & can be orders from the Shop.

THE MOVE REMASTERED

Cruelly neglected for almost forty years, The Move's original album catalogue has at last been treated with the full remaster & deluxe packaging treatment it has long deserved. Comprehensive & lovingly compiled, each reissue has been digitally remastered from the original master tapes for the first time ever & expanded with rare & previously unreleased bonus tracks. Deluxe packaging includes rare & previously unpublished photos plus in-depth liner notes & band member interviews. And all are available WORLDWIDE with EXCLUSIVE MOVE COLLECTORS EDITION POSTCARDS from the SHOP.

Full details in The Move Remasters section where you will find News, Lyrics, Downloads, Sound & much more! Please click HERE….

BOULDERS REMASTERED

The stunning ROY WOOD solo album, originally recorded alongside 'THE ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA', 'LOOKING ON' and 'MESSAGE FROM THE COUNTRY' albums & now remastered with bonus material & fully illustrated booklet - with commentary by Roy Wood! Full details HERE…

THE TRAVELING WILBURYS COLLECTION

EXCLUSIVE commentary from JEFF LYNNE & updated news on the magnificent Wilbury's CD/DVD & limited edition 3-LP sets HERE…

NEWS ROUNDUP

On November 4, Jeff Lynne was awarded two BMI (Broadcast Music, Inc) Million-Air certificates for "Turn To Stone" (one million airplays) and "Don't Bring Me Down" (two million airplays).

In achieving the award for a million airplays, the song must be of 3 minutes average length and has to have been broadcast over a million times. This means that "Turn To Stone" has been on air for over 50,000 broadcast hours which equates to almost 6 years of continuous airplay!

Well done Jeff!

Eagles guitarist Joe Walsh has revealed during recent interviews that he has been working on new songs with Jeff Lynne.

Rob has been prevented from dealing with day-to-day correspondence for most of this year due to the extra work involved in readying the boxset for release. He is also working on some new & exciting projects involving ELO, The Idle Race & more. Details to appear soon, as will the start of his new behind-the-scenes column, "Glimmers From The Twilight…". Plus Rob promises to get round to everyone's queries over the next few weeks.

COMING SOON…

CURRENT RELEASES
An ever-changing round-up ELO & related artist releases from all over the world…

JEFF LYNNE - ARMCHAIR THEATRE / ELO - GREATEST HITS LIVE
Both albums are mastered & awaiting a release date. As soon as we get more information, you'll be the first to know…

THE IDLE RACE - ON WITH THE SHOW
The tape search and restoration for the definitive Idle Race career retrospective boxset is still ongoing but details will be coming soon. In the meantime, watch out for the imminent announcement of the release date & details of 'The Idle Race BBC Sessions 1967 - 1969' CD. One not to be missed!

"glimmers from the twilight…"
There's been too much work "behind-the-scenes" for Rob to begin his new column but rest assured, this regular look at work in progress promises to be a fascinating & revealing series…

ELO REISSUE SERIES - WHAT NEXT?!
On the list is an ELO Singles Boxset (or three), expanded & remastered editions of 'ZOOM', 'XANADU', 'THE NIGHT THE LIGHT WENT ON (IN LONG BEACH)' and 'ELO'S GREATEST HITS'. Plus, there's unfinished business for the 2001 remasters of 'ELDORADO', 'DISCOVERY', 'TIME' & 'SECRET MESSAGES' as all need to be upgraded with improved packaging & additional bonus tracks.

JAPANESE CD FACSIMILE EDITIONS
An in-depth look at the high quality CD replicas of original LP's by ELO, ROY WOOD, WIZZARD, THE IDLE RACE & more.

ELO LIVE AT WEMBLEY 1978
Soon to be upgraded with new packaging & bonus material.