Mr Blue Sky – The Story of Jeff Lynne and ELO
Friay, 21.00, BBC4
We were disappointed this week to hear that the new manager of Coventry City has decided to stop the team running out to Mr Blue Sky because apparently it’s too boring to get the fans fired up, and it’s being replaced by some landfill indie, although surely a further issue is the fact Birmingham run out to it too. They’ll play it again when it becomes the national anthem anyway. It’s easy to laugh at Jeff Lynne with his silly hair and his desperation to be George Martin, but he certainly had an ear for a tune and we’ll hear many irresistible ELO tunes during this new documentary, which is followed by the classic concert film from 1978, Rock Family Trees on Brum Beat and an acoustic performance, though we’re not too sure about that as surely it’s the kitchen sink production that makes the songs really great.
It will be great to see Rock Family Trees again, I really enjoyed seeing it when it was first on, but was hardly repeated.
ELO seem to have gone up in pop culture circles in recent years, at one time they seemed to be almost as trendy as Status Quo.
Now their songs seem to turn up everywhere, especially Mr Blue Sky.