Were ELO really the "sons of The Beatles?" | amateur analysis

In a 1974 radio interview, John Lennon praised Jeff Lynne’s Electric Light Orchestra, referring to them as “Son of Beatles”. John would never get to see that within a few decades, Jeff Lynne would play in a band with a former Beatle, produce a load of their solo work, and then go on to produce their reunion album. There’s always been some contention, though, as to whether ELO’s music is an interesting progression of the Beatles’ sound, or just a pale imitation. Let’s talk about that.
SOURCES, LINKS & OTHER INTERESTING TIDBITS
How are Jeff Lynne, ELO and The Beatles connected?
• How are Jeff Lynne, EL...
Guardian article on ELO and the Beatles
www.theguardia...
A contemporary review of Eldorado
web.archive.or...
Jeff Lynne talks about his music
• Video
John Lennon on Roy Wood & Jeff Lynne (whose name he forgets)
• John Lennon loves Roy ...
John Lennon on Showdown
• John Lennon talks abou...
Mr Blue Sky at Glastonbury
• Jeff Lynne's ELO - Mr ...
Turn To Stone from the Zoom Tour
• Video
The Diary of Horace Wimp on Top of the Pops
• ELO - The Diary Of Hor...
A Day in the Life live
• Paul McCartney "A Day ...

[@roobenn]

hope you enjoy! some sources and other things that might interest you linked in the description :)

[@DarianJustinCatmull]

YES THANK YOU!!! perfect way to start the day is to watch a video on youtuben but only watch my favorite youtuber ROOBEN!

[@roobenn]

@@DarianJustinCatmull haha thank you for sticking around! hope you enjoy! :)

[@Josh-os7vn]

while they might've started with that direction, post-eldorado proves that ELO stood on their own two feet and was the epitome of classic rock, classical inspirations and the pop that happened around whatever time their projects were being formed. great video all in all and the editing was SUPERB!

[@roobenn]

thanks for watching and for the compliment on the editing! :) definitely agree. once the band formed its own identity I think any accusations of Jeff “copying” the Beatles fall flatly

[@MusicLover10538]

Very well said!!!

[@classicrockfan8034]

NOT BY POPULARITY, BUT MUSICALLY Jeff Lynne is so much better with orchestration, arrangements and harmonies. He created his own sound with Symphonic Rock and Pop. Jeff Lynne (ELO-Traveling Wilburys-The Move-The Idle Race) has received almost all the awards imaginable: 2009: Golden Note Award from the ASCAP 2013: Songwriters Hall of Fame nominee for 2014 induction 2014: Star on the Birmingham Walk of Stars 2014: Honorary doctorate degree from Birmingham City University 2015: Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame 2015: Songwriters Hall of Fame nominee for 2016 induction 2016: Jeff Lynne's ELO won Band of the Year at the Classic Rock Roll of Honour Awards. 2016: Songwriters Hall of Fame nominee for 2017 induction 2017: Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee as a member of Electric Light Orchestra 2018: Songwriters Hall of Fame nominee for 2019 induction 2019: ASCAP Founders Award from the ASCAP 2020 Appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) 2023: Songwriters Hall of Fame induction ******Plus add 3 Ivor Novello Awards to the list and all the awards he has had as one of the best producers ever in this world.

[@classicrockfan8034]

The few Beatles fans saying Jeff would not exist without the Beatles are so wrong. Jeff Lynne's main influences were in this order: Roy Orbison, Del Shannon and lastly The Beatles...It's like saying Paul McCartney and the Beatles would not have existed without George Martin, Chuck Berry, Johnny Cash, Little Richards, Elvis, Buddy Holly and The Everly Brothers. Everybody got their influences, inspirations from other Bands. The Beatles had songs that sounded like Chuck Berry, Johnny Cash, Little Richards and Elvis. So many people comment without knowledge on social media. The mutual love and admiration between Jeff Lynne and the Beatles has been real. This is why they have worked on so many very successful projects together and provided us with fantastic Music.

[@ChilliCheezdog]

Del Shannon and then Roy Orbison. Tom Petty states this in an interview. Jeff's hero was always Del Shannon.

[@quaid667]

Imagine popular music without the Fab Four. That would be unthinkable. Even though current pop music is mostly dire.

[@AlexanderGreensmith]

You bring up a great point about how batshit crazy it actually was for a band to declare they are picking up where The Beatles left off on I Am The Walrus, and then for them to actually sort of pull it off is another wild thing in itself. Great vid as ever mate. Hope you get more subs in 2023.

[@roobenn]

totally. like you said, pretty impressive that they managed to deliver on it for the most part too! Thanks for watching :)

[@xylixiian]

Jeff (purposefully or not) very often took from other songs, but always added so much context of his own that even after hearing the "original song," it never feels like a copy at all.

[@roobenn]

thanks for watching! 100% agree, he took ideas in his own direction very well

[@MusicLover10538]

Everyone does it...THE BEATLES COPYING OTHERS... 10 Beatles Hits That 'Rip Off' Other Songs: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bqHJe4WKipt9Z9U

[@fabfour7397]

Talking about inspiration...Well my Beatles could have been sitting in their homes playing with their balls if it wasn't for the following ones... Three great influences that shaped The Beatles' music include Buddy Holly, Little Richard, and The one and only King, Elvis Presley. While all three of these musicians impacted The Beatles strongly, Elvis' style, sound, and all-around charisma left a lasting impression on all four of the young, eager members. The Beatles were also influenced by Cliff Richard and The Shadows, Bob Dylan, Chuck Berry, The Beach Boys, The Everly Brothers, The Byrds, Ravi Shankar and Eric Clapton. 13 Beatles Hits That 'Rip Off' Other Songs kzbin.info/www/bejne/eITOeYWfnNmeqM0

[@soulman902]

I’ve always thought ELO swam in their own lane, I’ve never thought of them as the son of the Beatles

[@chronomatt6990]

It was ELO co-founder Roy Wood, not Jeff Lynne, who made the Beatles comment, and it referred to how ELO’s string sound would integrate with the traditional rock instruments. It’d be more “Walrus” than, let’s say, “The Long And Winding Road.” It lasted a only a couple of albums before Jeff, then in full control of ELO, started using a full orchestra in 1974, rather than overdubbing 1 violin and 2 cellos. The Beatles quote has been falsely attributed to Jeff and its message misrepresented (I say purposely) by simpleton critics who once blasted ELO - you know, the same critics who’ve now reassessed Jeff and call him a genius. Jeff has always worn his musical influences on his sleeve: Del Shannon, Roy Orbison, and The Beatles, with whom he shares much of the same musical ear and songwriting sensibilities. ELO is certainly “Beatle-esque” at times, but listening to the catalog, ELO is as much The Beatles as Heart is Led Zeppelin and Lady Gaga is Madonna. And congrats to Jeff Lynne for being inducted into the Songwriters Hall Of Fame, Class of 2023.

[@roobenn]

I wasn't aware that Roy Wood made the original statement! and Jeff definitely deserves his place in the Songwriters Hall of Fame. thank you for watching!

[@MusicLover10538]

THE BEATLES COPYING OTHERS... 10 Beatles Hits That 'Rip Off' Other Songs: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bqHJe4WKipt9Z9U

[@classicrockfan8034]

What were the Beatles influenced by? Three great influences that shaped The Beatles' music include Buddy Holly, Little Richard, and The one and only King, Elvis Presley. While all three of these musicians impacted The Beatles strongly, Elvis' style, sound, and all around charisma left a lasting impression on all four of the young, eager members. The Beatles were also influenced by Cliff Richard and The Shadows, Bob Dylan, Chuck Berry, The Beach Boys, The Everly Brothers, The Byrds, Ravi Shankar and Eric Clapton.

[@80sPastorDude]

Unpopular opinion, but Jeff Lynne at his best is better.

[@22pcirish]

Jeff was never a Beatles copycat. What he did was to bottle the essence of the Beatles as inspiration to his own music. Hence little bits of ELO sound like the Fab Four, but not quite.

[@andgate2000]

"Hello my old friend" ...definitely beatles in that.

[@ChilliCheezdog]

A wonderful song 💙

[@Cosmo-Kramer]

Rooben, I almost *never* Subscribe to a channel after watching only one video, but I just Subbed yours because of the stellar job you did on this analysis. While at just over 5 minutes, it wasn't particularly extensive, but what you did break down was very well done. The editing and animation, as others have said, is also quite well done. But I'll throw a new compliment out there, and that is, you have an excellent voice for narration. As good as any TV commercial voice actor. Sure, it was a bit monotone, but I assume that's because of the subject matter, and that if you had to animate your voice more, you could. But let me get to ELO, as they have been my favorite band since I first heard, "Evil Woman", in the autumn of 1975. You picked some good songs to highlight, but there's at least one track conspicuously missing from your analysis. It is the most obvious example of Beatles-borrowing by Jeff, but it's on a deep cut, and it sounds like you're somewhere between a diehard and casual fan, so perhaps you've never heard it. How 'bout this? I'll name the album, and leave it to you--or one of your viewers if they can beat you to it--to name the ELO song and the Beatles track from which it heavily borrows. The ELO album is 1974's Eldorado. And I'll give you one hint. The most glaring part of the similarity is found mostly in the song's first minute, at which point the music deviates from The Beatles song significantly....at least for a while. ps~Be forewarned, Rooben, if you delay, that commenter known as ChronoMATT will swoop in and name the songs faster than you can say, "Mike de Albuquerque". ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[@hadavisjr]

Mr. Kingdom

[@Cosmo-Kramer]

@@hadavisjr Correct! But that's just half the answer. What's The Beatles' song?

[@hadavisjr]

@@Cosmo-Kramer Across the Universe 🙂

[@Cosmo-Kramer]

@@hadavisjr Bingo! It took a year, lol, but somebody got it!

[@hadavisjr]

@@Cosmo-Kramer Yeah, I just saw this video, and then saw the year+ and thought, “Really? This isn’t difficult.” But, like you said, the creator might be a casual listener. There are those of us who, for example, analyze the discography down to the gnat’s rear end and see the continuous threads Jeff has sewn from even before ELO, namely, the Idle Race.

[@SeanMoran-zf1ie]

Great video. Did you also do the artwork? It captures the subjects well. You might consider analyzing "When I was a Boy". It seems to me to have both some aspects of Beatles music and the telling of a narrative.

[@roobenn]

thank you! and yes, I did the artwork :) that’s a really good idea. it’s kind of penny-lane esque in its lyrics

[@ChilliCheezdog]

(Disco)very. How have I never noticed this?

[@dosvdan]

The Beatles had problems finishing A Day in the Life and ended up combining songs. Lynne actually took their idea and made a complete song out of it. That said, different bands, different eras, different songs.

[@GNF54]

Eldorado Finale Moment

[@raymondbonington9355]

He also mentioned the move .

[@wahidfm]

Great Content

[@roobenn]

thank you & thanks for watching! :)

[@bazza5699]

i find Time to carry a lot of beatles motifs

[@roobenn]

that’s interesting - which songs in particular were you thinking of??

[@bazza5699]

@@roobenn off the top of my head.. twilight has a lovely piano in it that reminds me of lovely rita plastic flowers are mentioned, as they are in lucy in the sky the end of epilogue is the end of day in the life.. 21st century man was said to have been written about john lennon. i heard the news today oh boy and here is the news

[@therealisbjrn9653]

Good video!

[@roobenn]

thank you :)

[@jaronimo1976]

Lennon should really have stayed a radio DJ. It suits him so well. A missed opportunity. He may have been alive today if he had done that.

[@alanburge2725]

We could argue this and that. A big claim. Son of the Beatles etcetera. ELO still put some amazing material together in their own right. Quite a few groups were influenced by the Beatles. Moody Blues sorta spring to mind. Many others though of course. The Moody Blues are also special and unique. So talking about the sons of the Beatles and so on feels like a very tired old song that some remember but the world has since moved on from those days and times......

[@MusicLover10538]

THE BEATLES COPYING OTHERS... 10 Beatles Hits That 'Rip Off' Other Songs: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bqHJe4WKipt9Z9U

[@stevendudley9499]

no.. it was the magnificent band... Badfinger