Armchair Theatre

Received a brand new copy of this wonderful CD. It arrived in perfect condition.

I am a big Jeff Lynne fan and have almost all of his albums. This one was a really pleasant surprise. The songs are lovely and really show off his magnificent voice. On the last track, be sure to listen all the way to the end (about 50 seconds) as he leaves one of his signature little surprises there. He is such a genius and a treasure.

Jeff Lynne can do anything he wants and I'll buy it. The four stars is based on my personal have-to-keep-replaying ratio. Which is 4:11. That's 4 cream of the crop if I'm totally into it on a Tuesday night past bedtime, trading music for sleep which I hate myself in the morning for. But from the point of view of the creative fingerprint of an incomparable individual, aka f**ing genius, it would be 5 stars.I'll elaborate on my two very favorites. 1. Now You're Gone, please Jeff. How did you even think to pull in the Indian trilling or whatever it's called and how on earth did you plunk that little saloon piano run in there, and KNOW those things would enhance the mood? 2. I'm blown away by Blown Away. It's not the first time you've evoked the euphoria of love. (Does anybody else around here know the relatively obscure I Need Her Love from I don't know which album back whenever? Not as simply constructed as it first sounds, btw. Anyone who can make "The boats that sail, the planes that fly, she is with me," make sense can do whatever the heck he wants.)Back to Armchair, it's more stripped-down musically than the original ELO sound and showcases his voice more clearly. I'm really glad to hear that. He has breathed some oxygen into his vocal tones over the years. Case in point, Blown Away. Yet the interplay of sounds is still nicely layered.Not that he has the richest voice I've ever heard, wait BELIEVE ME this is a compliment! I mean some vocalists could live and die on any one note, Stevie, Etta, Aretha, Amy (r.i.p.). I love it when an excellent artist who is not those guys but light years beyond us poor cogs in the wheel doing who knows what all day and listening to our i-pods on the commute, when somebody like Jeff Lynne gets to a point of just off-the-cuff excellence and puts out an album like this. It's a notable happening.

Jeff Lynne released "Armchair Theatre" #83, in the summer of 1990, hard to believe it's been 20 years already. Jeff has only released 2 albums since "Armchair", ELO's "Zoom" in 2001 and The Traveling Wilbury's "Volume 3" in 1991. Here Jeff wrote 8 songs and did 3 covers. This is a very organic affair, not the pop gloss everybody was used to. His first single was the #9 mainstream rock hit "Every Little Thing", with great sax work by Jim Horn. His 2nd single was "Lift Me Up" a song that sounded like late period ELO, heard this a few times back in the day. His covers he covered are "September Song", "Stormy Weather" they have that jazz feel to 'em. The other cover is the twangy rock-a-billy tune "Don't Let Go". Other great songs: "What Would It Take", the indian chant song, "Now Your Gone", I think this is one of Jeff's best here. And his statement for save the whales, "Save Me Now". This album had some special musicians on here Ringo Starr, Tom Petty, and the late George Harrison and Del Shannon. Jeff says he has an album he is doing, but i've never seen anything on it yet. He is also producing Joe Walsh's next album, but I haven't seen anything on it either. Jeff's going to be 63 years old at the end of the year, we need to speed things up here, Jeff won't live forever! P.S. New remaster came out April 23rd, 2013. Excellent remaster, great sound, extra photo's nice text from David Wild and a funny liner from Eric Idle. Nice bonus tracks in "Borderline" and the pleasant "Forecast". If your a Jeff Lynne or ELO fan go out get the remaster.

Jeff Lynne, besides being a power force behind the great Electric Light Orchestra franchise, is, in my humble opinion, one of the most creative minds in modern rock music. This is a good and solid effort from Lynne and one of the many albums where he wrote all of the music and played most of the instruments. And although his drumming is simple and somewhat monotonous, the songs are melodic and surprisingly enchanting. Solid 4-star effort from Mr. Lynne.

I really, really love this album by Jeff Lynne!!! Ok, I love anything that Jeff Lynne does. He has one of the most amazing voices ever and incredibly talented as well. The way that he put this CD together by playing instruments in different rooms of his home to get different quality of sound is genius!!! Ok...Jeff Lynne is a genius!!! I really wish that he would go back on tour again!!! I love every song on this album. And, there's not that many bands/singers I can say that about on their music. So, you will hear songs that are like his ELO days and Traveling Wilburys as well. I will say it again...please go back on tour Jeff Lynne!!! Make more music!!! Yes, I'm obsessed :-)

Any chance I get to praise Jeff Lynne I take. This collection of pure Lynne magic is always at the ready in my music selection. Here he offers renditions of two classics "September Song", "Stormy Weather" to a remake of "Don't Let Go" an unknown (at least to myself but a great song)to his always catchy and infectiously toe tapping, steering wheel slapping pop gems. As always he tries new (at the time) production devices and methods and of course the ever faithful old school tricks. He's also incorporated the influences of newfound musical friends and some of the usual suspects. This selection along with 2001's "Zoom" share space on my mp3 player and on a well worn burned cd. Of all the music in my ELO collection to choose from it's these two choices that I listen to at least once a week. I can't ever say enough about my enthusiasm of Jeff Lynnes music. And as always I'm a very satisfied Amazon customer!!

It's a funny album is Armchair Theatre. On its release in 1990 it garnered some reasonable reviews, but didn't really set the world on fire with its sales. Not long after release it quietly faded away as Lynne's other work had much higher profile, becoming a difficult to find rarity, unless you fancied an expensive import from Japan.Until now.With the reissue of his ELO re-recordings  Mr. Blue Sky: The Very Best Of Electric Light Orchestra  and the release of his covers album, Long Wave , this overlooked little gems has been given a 21st century polish up and reissue as part of the ELO ongoing reissue programme.And it's not half bad at all. The thing to say is the distinctive production sound that Lynne had around the turn of the 90s does appear in places (but by no means everywhere), so if you're not a fan of that distinctive snare drum sound, you might have a problem. However, if you do, you are blinding yourself to some top grade songwriting and studio knob-twiddling.The quality is deceptive, but given the personnel involved, from his erstwhile ELO band-mate Richard Tandy, to George Harrison, and Del Shannon among others, it shouldn't be much of a shock. Within a couple of plays, most of the songs immediately embed themselves in your head. The big guns come out quite early, with singles Every Little Thing and Lift Me Up but the faintly Eastern tinge You're Gone provides a surprise. There are some fairly radio-friendly and slightly formulaic songs, like What Would It Take, but this is not meant to be too harsh: most other artists would be very happy to produce material of this quality.Perhaps the most surprising song is the original closer, Save Me Now: a simple little acoustic number with an eco theme. Then there are the covers. Both September Song and Stormy Weather get respectful runs, though the latter's clopping footsteps put me in mind of the beautifully batty Jungle from  Out Of The Blue .On this reissue you get two bonus tracks: Borderline and Forecast. The former is slight, but pleasing, with a starting riff that has echoes of Friday on My Mind. Forecast is a faintly mournful little piece, but watch out for that fade ending!In all, it's a lovely little gem that deserves another listen and a bit more love than it's had in the past. When it's good, it really is a special album. Mr. Blue Sky: The Very Best Of Electric Light OrchestraLong WaveOut Of The Blue

Despite being an avid collector of ELO records, I decided not to buy this in 1990 when it was originally released. Boy, what a mistake I made. This is a fantastic album with potentially only one bad track; track number 2, Don't Let Go, which is very much a '50's throwback.That apart, from the opening track Every Little Thing through to Forecast, this an album that revisits many different musical genders, with the unmistakeable Jeff Lynne melodies and production. Lift Me Up, Save Me Now and especially Blown Away are delicious whilst September Song and Stormy Weather can be enjoyed drinking a latte in a little back street bistro in Paris.I'm disappointed that I've missed out on hearing this album over the last 23 years but maybe I can appreciate it better musically now I'm in my mid-forties.Anyway, a must buy CD for any ELO/Jeff Lynne fan but also a must buy CD if you appreciate really good music!

Jeff Lynne is the best singer-songwriter in the world, in my humble opinion and to hear him doing things under his own name and not that of ELO takes nothing away from his immense talent. A great selection of songs recorded with the help of long-time ELO band member Richard Tandy plus friends and inspirations, Del Shannon and Ringo Starr. Two new bonus tracks completes this great package.

Love Jeff Lynne and this cd doesn't disappoint. My all time fave cd of his is Long Wave, where he sings 11 old classics, all in his own style and this cd is in the same vein, some rockin stuff (Don't let go - brilliant) and some gentle. All in all a great cd for Jeff Lynne fans, and if you are buying this, get Long Wave at the same time !

Im glad I left it late to buy all of ELO's music because I'm having a fantastic time listening to them now, Armchair Theatre shows even more than usual what an unbeatable voice he has, well we always knew that but here he almost croons sometimes.It really is a must for this to be in the collection of any one remotely drawn to his wonderful, wonderful music.