© Yuri Dekovic Escobar / CC BY 2.0

As one of Britain's most enduring rock bands, The Electric Light Orchestra is still going strong today. Their sound is described as a unique mix of symphonic rock, progressive pop and classical music. After they formed in Birmingham in 1970, they went on to release 50 singles, 13 studio albums, 33 music videos and more than 40 compilation and live albums. Nine of their albums have been certified platinum and they have sold more than 50 million records worldwide. The band signed a new record deal in 2015, after a 10-year hiatus from recording. They then released their 13th studio album, Alone in the Universe, before embarking on a promotional tour in 2017. Early years It seems somehow ironic that Electric Light Orchestra celebrated their 50th anniversary in 2020, since the music press didn't rate them very highly when they first formed. Vocalist and songwriter, Roy Wood, of 1960s band, The Move, decided to do something different in 1970. With the idea of forming a group that would have a more unusual sound, he wanted to included instruments not normally featured in rock bands. He wanted to play violins, cellos, horns and woodwind instruments to produce a sound that combined classical music with rock. Wood revealed his idea to Jeff Lynne, lead singer with The Idle Race, also from Birmingham. Lynne accepted Wood's invitation to join his new band, calling themselves the Electric Light Orchestra, after taking their name from the light orchestras which were popular at the time. They released their first single, 10538 Overture, written by Lynne, in 1972. Drummer Bev Bevan joined them in the studio and became ELO's third member. Their debut single peaked at number nine in the UK singles chart. However, the music press had mixed feelings about the new band and their unusual sound. They simply weren't "cool" enough when they first emerged and were dismissed by some critics as trying to copy the Beatles. Although they were described as "arguably the most uncool of the lot", ELO went from strength to strength and during the 1970s and '80s, they recorded a succession of top 10 albums and singles. They enjoyed two number one, platinum-certified albums in the UK: Discovery in 1979 and Time in 1981. They also charted in the United States, Australia, Japan, New Zealand and across Europe, becoming global superstars.   Mr Blue Sky Arguably their most famous single, Mr Blue Sky peaked at number six in the UK in 1977. Trying to write a follow up to the top-selling New World Record, the song was written by Lynne while he was living in a reclusive style in a Swiss chalet. He was struggling to come up with any ideas and spent a lot of time gazing out at the misty, dark weather, feeling no inspiration. Finally, after two weeks, he woke up one morning to a change in the weather. Brilliant sunshine shone down from a bright blue sky and the Alps took on a new beauty in the spring weather. Lynne suddenly felt inspired and quickly penned Mr Blue Sky. His writing became prolific and he wrote 13 more songs in a period of just two weeks! Once again, the music press was largely unimpressed, claiming Mr Blue Sky's arrangement was "Beatlesque". The critics said it was too similar to the Fab Four's A Day in the Life, while it was also said to contain four chords that had been used on Yesterday. Regardless of the critics' negative comments, Mr Blue Sky was a hit and has become one of ELO's most famous songs. It still receives airplay today! The song has also featured in many films including Magamind, Role Models, The Magic Roundabout, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, The Invention of Lying, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2. Better than that, it was used in the 2012 Olympics for the Opening and Closing ceremonies.   Recent years The Electric Light Orchestra has had two breaks from performing. They reformed each time, but over the years the band has seen many changes to the line-up. The band has been called Jeff Lynne's ELO since 2014. Lynn and multi-instrumentalist Richard Tandy, who first played with ELO in 1970, are the nucleus of the band. They are joined by a backing orchestra for live shows. Wood left ELO in the 1970s to form Wizzard, but he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2017, along with Lynne, Bevan and Tandy.   Are you enjoying the Blue Sky? MA Grigg’s country store stocks a range of quality summer clothing and footwear - including top brands such as Joules.