hiram.k.hackenbacker Posted January 25, 2021 Share Posted January 25, 2021 I've been playing a few tunes on JamKazam with a few of mates from my various bands and we thought we would have a stab at Mr.Blue Sky by ELO. It's fairly straight forward as far as the bass is concerned, but the keys player directed us towards Jeff Lynne's Glastonbury 2016 version below. When I originally learnt this song, I used the studio version from my vinyl edition of Out Of The Blue. For those familiar with it, there's a small off-beat section which is played in place of a chorus and it happens twice in the original. The live version only does it the second time around and when it does finally get there (at 2:53), it's dumbed down. I thought it might be a mistake at first, but when I checked the other live versions from 2013 & 2014, they are the same. It just seems a really odd change to make given the Jeff Lynne almost certainly chooses the talent he has on stage with him. I can't figure why on earth he would do that given he has a reputation for being quite particular. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hiram.k.hackenbacker Posted January 25, 2021 Author Share Posted January 25, 2021 Original for comparison. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bass_dinger Posted January 26, 2021 Share Posted January 26, 2021 This animated version also seems to miss out all but one of the syncopated sections. Having played the original with my ukulele band, the repeats got a bit, well, repetitive. So the musical director edited out a few of the repeats. It seems that this video independently made the same changes - it is shorter, but unless you are following the song against a chord chart, one won't notice it. So, the live version may have been edited for brevity, rather than to reflect any lack of talent on stage! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hiram.k.hackenbacker Posted January 26, 2021 Author Share Posted January 26, 2021 1 hour ago, bass_dinger said: This animated version also seems to miss out all but one of the syncopated sections. Having played the original with my ukulele band, the repeats got a bit, well, repetitive. So the musical director edited out a few of the repeats. It seems that this video independently made the same changes - it is shorter, but unless you are following the song against a chord chart, one won't notice it. So, the live version may have been edited for brevity, rather than to reflect any lack of talent on stage! That video does indeed omit the first instance of it as per Jeff Lynne's live version, but when the video gets to the point where it does it for the second time, it is actually the same as the original recording. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TJ1 Posted January 27, 2021 Share Posted January 27, 2021 'The live version only does it the second time around and when it does finally get there (at 2:53), it's dumbed down. I thought it might be a mistake at first, but when I checked the other live versions from 2013 & 2014, they are the same.' It could be that Lynne decided that it was'nt worth the risk of trying to the complex version as a one off performance in a live stage in Glastonbury. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hiram.k.hackenbacker Posted January 27, 2021 Author Share Posted January 27, 2021 40 minutes ago, TJ1 said: It could be that Lynne decided that it was'nt worth the risk of trying to the complex version as a one off performance in a live stage in Glastonbury. I think it could be for ease of live performance, but as I said before, it’s been that way since at least 2013, so wasn’t just for Glasto. Just strikes me as odd. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wateroftyne Posted January 27, 2021 Share Posted January 27, 2021 (edited) The animated version above is based on a remake Jeff Lynne released in 2012, which he’s gone on record to say he prefers. So it seems to me that he’s simply looked back on the old arrangement and - with the benefit of hindsight - decided that those changes will improve the song. Edited January 27, 2021 by wateroftyne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bass_dinger Posted January 27, 2021 Share Posted January 27, 2021 2 hours ago, wateroftyne said: The animated version above is based on a remake Jeff Lynne released in 2012, which he’s gone on record to say he prefers. So it seems to me that he’s simply looked back on the old arrangement and - with the benefit of hindsight - decided that those changes will improve the song. Yes. My ukulele group agree with him. After the re-arrangement, we managed to get the whole song onto one sheet of A4. "Sevenukes - Saving paper, with Jeff Lynne." 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fretmeister Posted January 27, 2021 Share Posted January 27, 2021 I used to do a big band version of that. It was great fun. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hiram.k.hackenbacker Posted January 27, 2021 Author Share Posted January 27, 2021 7 hours ago, wateroftyne said: The animated version above is based on a remake Jeff Lynne released in 2012, which he’s gone on record to say he prefers. So it seems to me that he’s simply looked back on the old arrangement and - with the benefit of hindsight - decided that those changes will improve the song. Quite possibly. I wonder if Lee Pomeroy is on here 😂. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bass_dinger Posted January 27, 2021 Share Posted January 27, 2021 1 hour ago, hiram.k.hackenbacker said: Quite possibly. I wonder if Lee Pomeroy is on here 😂. "I'm Lee Pomeroy. Ask me Anything" "Did the band struggle with the small off-beat section which is played in place of a chorus, which happens twice in the original? It's just that everyone on this thread can manage it, twice, and if you wanted to take a comfort break during that song when you next play live . . . " Or maybe not... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hiram.k.hackenbacker Posted January 27, 2021 Author Share Posted January 27, 2021 5 minutes ago, bass_dinger said: "I'm Lee Pomeroy. Ask me Anything" "Did the band struggle with the small off-beat section which is played in place of a chorus, which happens twice in the original? It's just that everyone on this thread can manage it, twice, and if you wanted to take a comfort break during that song when you next play live . . . " Or maybe not... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stub Mandrel Posted January 28, 2021 Share Posted January 28, 2021 (edited) On 26/01/2021 at 12:33, bass_dinger said: So, the live version may have been edited for brevity, rather than to reflect any lack of talent on stage! The Galsto version is significantly longer (about 15s) - on the 'official video' the song doesn't start until 20 seconds in. Edited January 28, 2021 by Stub Mandrel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Owen Posted January 28, 2021 Share Posted January 28, 2021 On 25/01/2021 at 23:26, hiram.k.hackenbacker said: The live version only does it the second time around and when it does finally get there (at 2:53), it's dumbed down. I thought it might be a mistake at first, but when I checked the other live versions from 2013 & 2014, they are the same. I must admit that I am VERY familiar with the original and did not notice the change in the Glasto version. Something cracking happened at 2:51 though so that might account for moving swiftly on? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stub Mandrel Posted January 28, 2021 Share Posted January 28, 2021 In thought the fire extinguisher was a nice touch - works on a few levels 🙂 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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