Electric Light Orchestra leader Jeff Lynne did more than figuratively reach for the sky on Eldorado. Daring to be bold, and creating imaginative worlds that invite the listener to escape the mundane, the visionary composer-musician achieved a multidisciplinary fantasia and, in the process, a prog-rock landmark. Nearly 50 years later, the concept album's brilliance can be experienced like never before in cinematic fashion.
Presenting the album with breathtaking clarity yet retaining the warmth, texture, and emotion that differentiate live music from reproduced sounds, this collectible reissue features reference-quality levels of in-the-moment presence, grand-scale soundstaging, and instrumental balance. Bursting with a veritable cornucopia of stimuli, MoFi's Eldorado SACD also benefits from superb separation and immersive atmospherics that stem from the meticulous remastering process.
An artistic breakthrough that established Electric Light Orchestra as a pioneering band (and confirmed Lynne as the leading practicing Beatles disciple), the 1974 effort remains notable for its involvement of a full orchestra and choral section, the range of which are captured with exquisite results on this SACD. Eldorado distinguished itself from the band's first two works not only via Lynne's sharpened songwriting but due to the hiring of an orchestra that augmented the group's three string players. Co-arranged by Lynne and conductor Louis Clark, the symphonic movements bolster the contagious fare without ever drowning it. The accents also act as transports into the varied narrative universes.
