After Dinner Speakers: Electric Light Orchestra 2, Stevie Wonder, Anton Edelmann

One cannot begin to realise the impact the Electric Light Orchestra have made upon the world's music scene. And yet, for a band which has achieved so much, both commercially and musically, they have remained strangely non-renowned and, to a degree, obscure. Over the fifteen years, the Jeff Lynne-led unit produced a vast array of music, from symphonic masterpieces to electronic disco to sensual love songs to hard edged rock and roll. Intending to 'continue on the musical vein first recognised with the Beatles "I am the Walrus", the Electric Light Orchestra (ELO for short) far surpassed this initial goal, developing a sound and a level of production which is instantly recognisable and unforgettably unique. At their height of fame, they were the number one stadium attraction playing an entire American tour to 100,000 plus audiences, but Jeff Lynne tired of the relentlessness of touring and they retired to the studio. Herein lay their downfall but also some of the most highly polished (some would say overly polished) albums to date. ELO are now back, or planning to come back. The spirit has never really faded, the light very much carried by ELO Part II who proved themselves to be an excellent live unit, if failing to live up to the legacy of Lynne in the studio department.