Secret Messages [Original recording remastered]

It's puzzling from this remove, twenty five years (that long!) after release that this is still a somewhat neglected corner of the ELO back catalogue. To say that it doesn't match the heights of Lynne's more prolific earlier output would accurate, but rather unfairly damning if stated that baldly. True, the increasing use of electronic instruments is becoming apparent, even more so than 1981's Time, but here the songs have bent a little to accommodate. and there are treasures aplenty to be discovered.

The title track kicks things off, playing with Lynne's interest in backwards masking, playing with the contemporaneous obsession (and ELO's own previous brushes) with it. Loser Gone Wild is a schizo number, oddly two-paced and flitting between heavily downbeat verses and up-tempo chorus.

Third is, for me, the track of the album, Bluebird. This is a song that would fit easily onto ANY of their albums, with a title giving a gentle nod to the Beatles' Blackbird and a mix of keyboards and acoustic guitar that has more than a sniff of the McCartneyesque about it.

The wistful and dreamy Take Me On And On (possibly a little too much so for my taste) leads into Time After Time, a song that didn't appear on the original vinyl release but crept into later reissues. It has a quite thin premise, but the heavy percussive influence carries it along really nicely, making it another favourite of mine.

From there we hit another gem: Four Little Diamonds, a rockin' crunchy guitar romp that has echoes of older stuff like Ma Ma Ma Belle and is plainly fabulous.

The remainder of the album alternates in pace between slower and more uptempo numbers. Stranger is, for me at least, the weakest of the album tracks. Danger Ahead is another rollicking uptempo number, while Letter form Spain is a meandering, yet haunting little vignette which subject matter makes me think of the later Calling America, even if the style doesn't. Train of Gold has a slightly plodding feel but also reminds me a little of The The's Heartland for some reason I can't quite explain. The album proper rounds off with Rock n Roll is King, a nod to 50's Rock n Roll which most fans know and either love/hate anyway. So no more said.

The bonus tracks are interesting. No Way Out is yet another 50's-tinged number, while After All a slightly mournful and rather downbeat way to finish a disc. The pick though is Endless Lies, which has an unmistakable air of Roy Orbison to it, in amongst its faintly disquieting carousel sounds.

It's sad that by this point ELO's commercial star was on the wane in the face of an many-headed onslaught from the tail end of the New Romantic and the explosion of sometimes one-dimensional synth pop, because the electronica here is deployed to rather neat effect. Perhaps though, by this point Lynne was just starting to lose interest a little in the whole ELO project. If so, it's a shame because, actually, this compares well with anything else the band ever did, with at least two or three songs that were the equal of any of their previous glories.

The remastering and the presence of the bonus tracks justify the purchase for any fan and even casual listeners may be surprised by the quality of what's on offer here. Certainly worth a listen.

ELO are the rock music equivalent of Abba. When it's fashionable to admit to being a fan of either of these bands, they have lots of fans. And when it isn't, they don't. Currently, Abba are 'in' and ELO are 'out'. And that's simply daft, because the music on the albums doesn't change. It can't. It's just trends and fashions influencing perceptions.

And when this album was released, the trends and fashions had moved against ELO. The album's better than 'Out of the Blue' - "but let's ignore it", they said. And it's close to 'Time' - "we ignored that one as well". That's ELOs problem - by the time that Time was released, they'd been branded 'dinosaurs' thanks to Johnny Rotten's 'I Hate ELO' T-shirt and a general anti-ELO groundswell.

This is clearly a concept album, into which a great deal of work had gone. That's clear from the front and rear covers of the album sleeve. But, exactly what the 'secret messages' are seeking to convey to the listener, well that's not so clear. Time was far better executed in that regard, because it's a true concept album. Maybe there wssn't enough space in a single vinyl album, or studio time, to fully realise the intention - if so, the album is regrettably incomplete. But, it contains some stunning material. One might say 'only four stars' because of this, but I think that would undervalue the album. It's typical late-period ELO, superbly recorded, with great melodies and arrangements, and a very strong 'drive' on many of the tracks. Personally I can do without the 'Rock and Roll is King' material, because it lacks creativity, doesn't fit with the rest of the album, and 1950s rockers might have been more likely to punch an ELO fan than to share his taste in music! But that's just my view. Buy it.

This is well worth buying for the sleeve notes and the extra tracks. However, they have chopped the end bit off 'Rock and roll is king' which was on the original cd release - why ??

The music is really good - quite why this album was not a big success when it came out in 83 must be down to the fact that people were sick of ELO by then and were out buying Depeche Mode and the like. Tracks such as 'Stranger', 'Bluebird' and 'Danger ahead' are superb whilst the hit single 'Rock and roll is king' although similar in style to 'Hold on tight' from 'Time' really does get your feet tapping.

One final thought, 'Buildings have eyes' the b-side of 'Secret Messages' is not included so it feels like a missed opportunity.