Jeff Lynne brings ELO to the Forum one last time
As a seasoned cinephile and music enthusiast who has had the privilege of witnessing some of the most iconic acts in history, I must say that Jeff Lynne‘s performance at Inglewood’s Kia Forum was nothing short of awe-inspiring. At 76 years young, Lynne effortlessly transported us back to the ’70s with his timeless charm and enchanting voice.
One benefit of not adopting an extravagant rock ‘n’ roll image is that you can always maintain the appearance, regardless of your age.
On Saturday night at Inglewood’s Kia Forum, Jeff Lynne, now 76 years old, fronted a band that was formerly known as the Electric Light Orchestra. Just as he has for the past five decades, he appeared in dark pants and jacket, with a fuzzy hair and beard. He wore aviator sunglasses to conceal his eyes while he sang his beautifully crafted melodies with a voice still capable of winning hearts.
As a die-hard movie enthusiast, I’d say, “The 90-minute performance left me with the impression that Lynne could keep going with this for a lifetime if he so chose – but there was nothing in his performance that hinted at a burning ambition to carry on.
Regardless of the longevity of his style, Lynne announced last March that the current tour by Jeff Lynne’s ELO will be their final one; a concert planned for next summer at London’s Hyde Park, where ELO performed in 2014 following a long absence, is being promoted as his grand finale.
Is there a reason for retiring it? Age seems to play a significant role: For instance, Elton John was 76 when he concluded his extensive Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour, much like Don Henley who started the Eagles’ latest farewell journey, which they continue to extend at the Sphere in Las Vegas.
On another occasion, during my 2015 visit to Lynne’s house in Beverly Hills, he confided in me that he had disliked touring, despite being a younger man. “You wake up at nine, grab a terrible airport hot dog for breakfast, then endure three flights to reach your destination,” he explained. “As soon as I could stop, I decided, ‘That’s enough.’
It appeared during Saturday’s show in Inglewood that Lynne may have come to terms with the fact that he no longer needs or desires the rock-star admiration that comes with touring. As the music director introduced ELO’s numerous band members on stage, Lynne seemed visibly uncomfortable when his name was called and he received another round of applause from the crowd.
The funny thing about Lynne’s almost radically low-key presence is how insanely vivid his music is. As a singles act in the ’70s, ELO was up there with Elton, ABBA and Paul McCartney’s Wings; the band’s string of Top 40 hits — “Evil Woman,” “Strange Magic,” “Livin’ Thing,” “Turn to Stone,” “Mr. Blue Sky,” “Shine a Little Love” — delivered one delight after another, each connected to Lynne’s stated goal of blending rock and classical music yet each with its own distinct flavor: a little folkier, a little more disco, a little harder-edged, a little more R&B.
On Spotify, numerous tracks by the band are streamed hundreds of millions of times; remarkably, ELO boasts more monthly listeners on this platform than Tom Petty, George Harrison, Roy Orbison – three rock icons who collaborated with Lynne in the late ’80s to form The Traveling Wilburys. Only Bob Dylan, the fifth member of the supergroup, has a higher number of monthly listeners. Additionally, you can discern traces of ELO’s grand yet meticulous style in the creations of contemporary indie-rock producers who are studio enthusiasts, such as Tame Impala, Phoenix, and Vampire Weekend.
As a film enthusiast, let me say that no one has quite captured the unique sound of ELO like they did. At The Forum, where they performed under an immense prop spaceship, Jeff Lynne and his bandmates managed to be crisp, lush, funky, and biting all at once – it was a remarkable blend. Often, during performances like the energetic “Don’t Bring Me Down,” I found myself wondering how they could still infuse so much vitality into riffs that were already so familiar.
During the entire evening, Lynne barely spoke much – what was remarkable was that this performance could potentially be his last one in the town he now calls home. As the night ended, he guided the band through the pop-psychedelic journey of “Mr. Blue Sky,” then bid farewell with a bow before leisurely departing the stage, leaving behind a life that appears to hold few changes for him.
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2024-10-28 01:01