Rock 'n Roll Is King - ELO, 1983

 
 

Well - listen everybody let me tell you 'bout the Rock 'n Roll
Feel that rhythm and it's really gonna thrill your soul
Umm - come along with me, to a land of make believe
She said whamalamabamalama Rock 'n Roll is king

She loves that Rock 'n Roll and she plays it all night long
That's all she ever tells me when I call her on the telephone
She says feel that jumpin' beat, and git up on your feet
She said whamalamabamalama Rock 'n Roll is king

Oh let those guitars play
Play for me play for me
Oh let that song ring out
That's how it's meant to be

It rolls like a train that's comin' on down the track
She rolled over Beethoven and she gave Tchaikovsky back
She loves that drivin' beat, she goes dancin' on down the street
She said whamalamabamalama Rock 'n Roll is king

Oh let those guitars play
Play for me play for me
Oh let that song ring out
That's how it's meant to be

Well - when she comes around and I'm listenin' to the radio
She says you can't do that 'cos all I wanna do is Rock 'n Roll
Now here I'm gonna stay when that music starts to play
She said whamalamabamalama Rock 'n Roll is king

Uh, yeah - whamalamabamalama rock'n'roll is king

Uh, huh - whamalamabamalama Rock 'n Roll is king

Ooo yeah - whamalamabamalama Rock 'n Roll is king

She said whamalamabamalama Rock 'n Roll is king

 
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A brain-child of Roy Wood and Jeff Lynne, the Electric Light Orchestra has roots going back to 1970. The project started out as The Move, using classic instruments such as strings and horns. The idea was to pick up where the Beatles left off with earlier songs like Strawberry Fields Forever. Roy Wood left in 1972, and Jeff Lynne took command at that point.
 
ELO, as they are usually referred to, has been a very prolific group, releasing some 40 singles since 1972. The more notable include: Strange Magic, Can't Get It Out Of My Head, Turn To Stone, Don't Bring Me Down, Confusion, and of course, Rock 'n Roll Is King. The latter was a return to the roots of rock and roll, and you can hear this clearly in the lyrics (She rolled over Beethoven and she gave Tchaikovsky back).
 
The name Electric Light Orchestra was originally intended as a pun; Electric describing the guitars, and Light Orchestra referring to British orchestras that contained the bare minimum of cellos and violins. Their first logo was a parody of General Electrics famous logo.
 
Jeff Lynne also participated in a wonderful, and supposedly anonymous supergroup in the late '80s: The Travelling Wilburys. Other members included George Harrison, Tom Petty and Bob Dylan.