Balance of Power
Studio album by
Electric Light Orchestra
Released3 March 1986[1]
RecordedLate 1984 to early 1985, remixed mid-to-late 1985
StudioCompass Point Studios, Nassau, Bahamas; Hartmann Digital Untertrubach, Germany
GenreSoft rock,[2] synth-pop
Length34:18
LabelEpic, Jet, CBS
ProducerJeff Lynne
Electric Light Orchestra chronology
Secret Messages
(1983)		 Balance of Power
(1986)		 Afterglow
(1990)
Singles from Balance of Power
  1. "Calling America"
    Released: 24 January 1986
  2. "So Serious"
    Released: 18 April 1986
  3. "Getting to the Point"
    Released: 11 July 1986

Balance of Power is the eleventh studio album by the Electric Light Orchestra (ELO). It was released in 1986.[3] It is the final album by the band to feature co-founder Bev Bevan on drums, as well as the last album to feature a significant contribution from keyboardist Richard Tandy.

Recording

During sessions for the previous album Secret Messages, bass guitarist Kelly Groucutt departed and the group was pared down to a trio of Jeff Lynne (who doubled on bass as a result of Groucutt's absence), Richard Tandy and Bev Bevan.[4][5] Recording for the album began in mid-1984, with a planned release for Spring 1985. The addition of several synthesizer tracks and mixing work by Reinhold Mack to the album caused its release to be pushed back to March 1986.[6]

Bandleader Jeff Lynne took a one-man-band approach to the recording, doing the production, guitar work, synthesizers, and percussion on the album mostly by himself, though keyboardist Richard Tandy made some key musical contributions as well. Describing their recording process, Richard Tandy said that "the usual way was to have a stack of keyboards in the control room, and me and Jeff [Lynne] playing along to a drum track, and Bev [Bevan] adding his things later."[7]

The track "Endless Lies" features Lynne doing a vocal delivery reminiscent of Roy Orbison. Lynne said in a 2013 interview: "I played Roy [Orbison] 'Endless Lies' in his house, and I went, 'This is me trying to copy you in the middle,; have a listen'. He listened and he chuckled, and he went, 'That's actually pretty good'."[8] The song was originally recorded for the double LP version of Secret Messages, but was removed from Secret Messages when that album was downscaled to a single album. It reappears on Balance of Power in a slightly reworked and more compact form.[9]

Release

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[10]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[11]
The Music Box[12]
MusicHoundwoof![13]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[14]

Europe's CD releases were on CDEPC26467 (Epic) in March 1986. The US (ZK40048) and Japan (32DP407) CD releases were on CBS Associated.

The single "Calling America" was a Top 40 hit.[15] The video for "Calling America" was shot in Paris, and contains shots of the band playing in front of Centre Georges Pompidou. A video was also made for the single "So Serious."

A remastered version of the album was released in 2007 by Legacy Recordings. This reissue featured seven bonus tracks, including an alternate version of "Heaven Only Knows", B-sides "Caught in a Trap" and "Destination Unknown", and previously unreleased songs like "In for the Kill".[15][6]

Tour and aftermath

For the first time in four years, ELO played live concerts and TV appearances to promote the album in the UK and Europe.[16] The touring lineup consisted primarily of Lynne on lead vocals and electric guitar, Bevan on drums, and Richard Tandy on keyboards. Also in the touring band were Louis Clark on keyboards, Mik Kaminski on violin and synthesizer, Dave Morgan on backing vocals, acoustic guitar, and vocoder, and Martin Smith on bass guitar.[18] For one UK show, George Harrison also performed in a guest appearance.[6]

They played as the opening act for Rod Stewart a handful of times, including on their final show on 13 July 1986 in Stuttgart, Germany.[16][4] This would be the band's last live concert for fifteen years.

Balance of Power was the last studio album by the Electric Light Orchestra before their initial disbanding. The band name was briefly resurrected in 2001, then changed to "Jeff Lynne's ELO" from 2014 onwards.

Track listing

All songs written by Jeff Lynne.

Side One
No.TitleLength
1."Heaven Only Knows"2:52
2."So Serious"2:38
3."Getting to the Point"4:28
4."Secret Lives"3:26
5."Is It Alright"3:25
Side Two
No.TitleLength
6."Sorrow About to Fall"3:59
7."Without Someone"3:48
8."Calling America"3:26
9."Endless Lies"2:55
10."Send It"3:04
Total length:34:18
2007 CD Bonus Tracks
No.TitleLength
11."Opening" (intro for track 12)0:24
12."Heaven Only Knows" (alternate version)2:32
13."In for the Kill" (alternate lyrics to "Caught in a Trap")3:13
14."Secret Lives" (alternate take)3:24
15."Sorrow About to Fall" (alternate mix)3:48
16."Caught in a Trap" (US B-Side to "Calling America" single)3:44
17."Destination Unknown" (UK B-Side to "Calling America" and "So Serious" singles)4:10

Personnel

Additional personnel

Charts and certifications

References

  1. ↑ "BPI".
  2. ↑ Elliott, Paul (19 December 2016). "Every Electric Light Orchestra Album Ranked Worst To Best". Team Rock.
  3. ↑ "The Morning Call, 29 Mar 1986". The Morning Call. 29 March 1986. p. 59. Retrieved 23 December 2020.
  4. 1 2 DeRiso, Nick. "Jeff Lynne and ELO Albums Ranked Worst to Best". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved 18 April 2023.
  5. ↑ Greene, Andy (14 June 2012). "Beyond Buffalo Springfield: A History Of Short-Lived Reunions". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 15 November 2020.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Delve 2022, p. 116, "Balance of Power (1986)".
  7. ↑ DeRiso, Nick. "Why Electric Light Orchestra Blew Apart on 'Balance of Power'". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved 24 April 2023.
  8. ↑ Delve 2022, p. 111, "Endless Lies".
  9. ↑ Delve 2022, p. 120, "Endless Lies".
  10. ↑ Chrispell, James. "Balance of Power – Electric Light Orchestra : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic.
  11. ↑ Larkin, Colin, ed. (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th edn). London: Omnibus Press. p. 915. ISBN 978-0-85712-595-8.
  12. ↑ Metzger, John. "Electric Light Orchestra [ELO] – Balance of Power (Album Review)". Musicbox-online.com.
  13. ↑ Graff, Gary; Durchholz, Daniel, eds. (1999). MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Farmington Hills, MI: Visible Ink Press. p. 382. ISBN 1-57859-061-2.
  14. ↑ Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian, eds. (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th edn). New York, NY: Fireside/Simon & Schuster. p. 274. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  15. 1 2 3 "Balance of Power – Electric Light Orchestra : Awards". AllMusic.
  16. 1 2 Delve 2022, pp. 116–117, "Balance of Power (1986)".
  17. ↑ Delve 2022, p. 96, "Time (1981)".
  18. ↑ According to ELO historian Barry Delve, the Balance of Power tour featured "the same lineup as the Time tour, except with bassist Martin Smith replacing Kelly Groucutt".[6] Describing the Time tour lineup, he said that in addition to the "four core members", the tour featured "Louis Clark on keyboards (covering the orchestral parts), Dave Morgan on guitar, vocals and occasional keyboards and Mik Kaminski returning on violin and keyboards."[17]
  19. ↑ "chartelo". Members.iinet.net.au. Archived from the original on 18 October 2011.
  20. ↑ Steffen Hung. "Electric Light Orchestra – Balance of Power". austriancharts.at. Archived from the original on 19 October 2012.
  21. ↑ "Item Display – RPM – Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca.
  22. ↑ "charts.de". charts.de. Archived from the original on 18 February 2015.
  23. ↑ "Charts Electric Light Orchestra LP – ELO-Wiki" (in German). Jansoppart.de. Archived from the original on 31 March 2012.
  24. ↑ "Oricon Style". Oricon.co.jp.
  25. ↑ Steffen Hung. "Electric Light Orchestra - Balance Of Power". Norwegiancharts.com. Archived from the original on 7 March 2016. Retrieved 14 January 2016.
  26. ↑ Hung, Steffen. "Electric Light Orchestra – Balance of Power". swedishcharts.com. Archived from the original on 18 October 2012.
  27. ↑ Hung, Steffen. "Electric Light Orchestra – Balance of Power". hitparade.ch. Archived from the original on 12 November 2012.
  28. ↑ "Electric Light Orchestra". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 12 March 2013.
  29. ↑ "British album certifications – Electric Light Orchestra – Balance of Power". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 29 December 2020.

Bibliography

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