Wednesday, December 29: Happy Birthday Jeff Lynne

ELO (Electric Light Orchestra) mainman Jeff Lynne turns 68 today (Dec. 30).

During the band's original 13 year period of active recording and touring, they sold over 50 million records worldwide. I personally have been an ELO fan ever since I was a small child going through my dad's record collection and pulling out ELO's Out of the Blue album. I'll never forget seeing this double album as a kid that folded out to show the interior of a giant UFO. I thought it was so cool! And after hearing songs like "Turn to Stone", "Sweet Talkin' Woman", and "Mr. Blue Sky",  I was hooked! The music of ELO was definitely a memory from my childhood that I fondly remember. Of course Jeff Lynne would also go on to a be part of another great group, the supergroup The Traveling Wilburys with Bob Dylan, George Harrison, Roy Orbison, and Tom Petty.

Jeff Lynne has most recently assembled a new lineup of ELO which is now called Jeff Lynne's ELO. The band released a new album called Alone in the Universe in 2015 and tour plans are set for 2016. Check out the official Jeff Lynne's ELO website here.