INFORMATION ABOUT THE CLUB AND MEMBERSHIP
FROM STEVE RIFKIN, COORDINATOR OF LIGHT!:
LIGHT!, from 1992 to the present...
Since the early seventies, the Electric Light Orchestra has had a huge
following. And, since the final breakup of the original ELO, many fans were unassured as to where they would find new ELO material.
Jeff Lynne had produced several other artists' songs (& albums) with many
having that characteristic ELO/Lynne sound and very melodic elements that
making you feel as if some of ELO was still alive. But 1990 added a new hope
for fans who desired more ELO-with-orchestra type songs. Electric Light
Orchestra Part Two made a lot of people extremely happy.
The song, "Honest Men", gave ELO fans what they had been missing for four years... new orchestrated ELO performed with the true ELO style, a musical dream come true. Some fans felt that ELO Part 2's first album had somewhat too much rock edge for their tastes, but it was a new sound, and it does have quite a lot of ELO elements. And in the mid-90's ELO Part 2's Moment of Truth, with Bev Bevan, Louis Clark, Kelly Groucutt, and Mik Kaminski, all of whom were original ELO members, as a part of this new band (and the fact that the other members of the new group -- Eric Troyer and Phil Bates -- are very talented), certainly gave us a hope that the ELO sound was still very much alive and will carry on.
During the 90's, Jeff Lynne continued producing and performing his own material and others', and we are being given a chance to get even more of that ELO- type melodic sound (causing many of us to become new fans of Tom Petty, George Harrison, Roy Orbison, Del Shannon, Brian Wilson, etc -- the list is still growing). As a member of the Traveling Wilburys, Jeff has given his fans another group whose albums we'll eagerly await and collect (when ARE they going to tour anyway? And, when IS the next album coming out?)
And now, it's 2002, and ELO with Jeff Lynne is once again a reality with their new masterpiece album, ZOOM. ELO Part 2 has disbanded, but many of it's members have formed ORCHESTRA, producing their absolutely terrific new album, NO REWIND.
I have been an avid ELO fan since the mid-seventies, and, since the early eighties, I have become a fan of pre-ELO groups, namely The Move and The Idle Race (for those who haven't listened to the Idle Race, there are lots of ELO/Jeff Lynne-type musical elements there -- a real treat to the ears). Back in 1992, with the activities of ELO Part 2 and Jeff Lynne (although separately), I had been more excited than ever about ELO, both new and old. What I didn't realize is that other people were as well. I used to go into record stores and ask if they had "any new ELO stuff" almost under my breath thinking I was their only fan. I was wrong. (I'm sure you have similar stories.) And back in the early nineties, record shops told me that ELO and Jeff Lynne related material were extremely popular, especially with all the new domestic and import compilations that had become available at that time, many with unreleased (at least outside Europe) songs -- "new ELO material" to which many of us look forward. After ELO Part 2 put out their first album and concert video, I had spoken with a representative from Scotti Bros. Records (their record company a the time) who informed me that the video had been selling well and that she didn't know that there were that many ELO fans. There certainly were still many ELO fans... and thus, in 1992 we formed... LIGHT!.
Back in 1992, in Europe, ELO was extremely popular, and the fans out there had formed a fan club. But, that was in Europe. Things were different here in North America. I wanted to join an ELO fan club out here. I hadn't found any. After speaking with other ELO fans, the thought came about to form our own. I described the concept of this club to the same representative from Scotti Bros. I spoke of earlier and to one of ELO Part 2's promoters, and both thought that a North American group would be a great idea, and it would get some support from each. After spending days thinking up names for the group (and we thought of many), we finally decided on (you guessed it) LIGHT!. There was still much to do. We had to find a direction for the club. Obviously, there are lots of fans out there, and the majority could not attend meetings. This group has to be a newsletter-based organization (although, back then. the concept of an annual convention had crossed our minds... it was a thought that has become a reality... We've been successful in planning regional fan get-togethers.
LIGHT!'s focus has been and will continue to be one of information exchange amongst ELO fans. Many fans are unaware of what is going on in the ELO-world. You may think that everyone is on the Internet... simply not true! We still have people writing in to inquire about the fan club, saying they have had no source for ELO news. LIGHT!'s aim has been to clear that up, i.e. make information available to the fans. Concert updates, recording updates, collectibles, and other items are things all fans want to know more about. In addition, people like me want to know what others think about the ELO-related music that is out there today. What is your favorite ELO album/song and why? What do you think of ELO's new ZOOM album. Or, do you like ORCHESTRA (formerly, ELO Part 2) or not? Or, even just let out those feelings about ELO that you may not have had anybody with whom to discuss them with in the past. These and others are topics that fans would like to discuss. Think of this group as a forum for ELO fans. Where the medium used is a newsletter. Members are welcome to write in and just talk about whatever they want dealing with ELO and related topics. If you want what you write to be published in our newsletter, LIGHT! READING (available to LIGHT! members), let us know that as well. Otherwise, what you write will remain confidential. We will do our darndest to get information directly from the people associated with Jeff Lynne, ELO, Orchestra, and other related bands (including the band members themselves). We hope LIGHT! will serve another major function, that is, to promote the ELO-related music that is and will be available. (There are actually ELO fans who DON'T know that ELO is back with new releases -- we have to change this!)
LIGHT! is over nine years old now, and we have grown quite a lot in both numbers of members and number of submitters to the newsletter. Please write! Fan submittals (articles, reviews, fan letters) are an important source of material. We are in contact with the various record companies, management personnel, and promoters to get the latest information to include in the newsletters. One thing though, if, in between newsletters we receive some important ELO related news (such as concert schedule updates), we will make special mailings to get the word out. Also, if you get any ELO news, please pass it along to us. We need to make that information available. Any ideas/suggestions you have to help define LIGHT! are greatly appreciated. We want to make this a great ELO/Jeff Lynne/Related artists fan club.
Ok, now the tough part. As with many clubs, dues are used to keep those
clubs rolling. Dues have been an issue since the idea for LIGHT! came about. It would be nice it there were no dues needed,
but that's impossible. It does cost money to get the word out, but not a hefty
sum. LIGHT!'s
dues for U.S. residents are $10 for 2 years. The dues basically cover the cost
of preparing and mailing out the various newsletters, updates, etc. Our goal is
to keep the dues the same year after year, attempting to keep costs low and
quality high. We are not producing more costly fanzine-type publications.
Although many of them are quite nice, that is not what we're about. We are
about information and correspondence, and what we found is that it doesn't have
to cost a lot to make this group work. We don't want to turn people away
because of the money. Because costs are different to send the newsletter
outside the
One other club-business type item: We do not have club presidents, vice-presidents, etc. We want this group to be somewhat less formal, so that more time can be spent enjoying the fruits of our efforts, namely ELO-related music and the correspondence amongst fans. I act as a coordinator, a central hub, to get the information together and out to the fans. I sincerely hope that you are as excited about LIGHT! as I am and that other LIGHT! members have been. I've always wanted to be a part of an ELO fan club, so that I could talk with other fans about a music style that means so much to me. Now I have the chance. The club is open to anyone with an interest in anything dealing with ELO or any related artist. You don't have to submit to the newsletter to be a member. You can merely sit back and enjoy it. However, if you do want to submit, it is VERY IMPORTANT that you let me know in your correspondence that what you are writing can be included in the newsletter.
As part of the newsletter, we have a Collector's Corner where you will be kept up to date as to what collectables are out there in the ELO world. We also offer free classified ads for ELO-related items. This is the place to advertise your WANTS/TRADES/SELLS. If you have a nagging question regarding anything related to ELO (such as "What DOES that vocoder say at the end of 'Mr.Blue Sky'?"), send it on in, and we can publish it in the newsletter to get an answer. Oh... and the answer to that "Mr. Blue Sky" question? Why, "Please Turn Me Over" is the phrase spoken into the vocoder, as told to me by both Bev and Kelly. The phrase was telling listeners to turn the LP (remember those?) over to the other side.
So, how do you join LIGHT!? Please send your name and address
and a check or money order for $10.00 (
LIGHT!
c/o Steve Rifkin
If possible, include your phone number. If I need to get in touch with you in a more immediate manner, I could do so. If you also have an e-mail address (and perhaps, web page address), you can send that along as well. Remember, your name, address (and phone number, e-mail, and/or web page, info if you include it) is confidential unless you decide to make it otherwise. Please let me know if any of the above information can be made available to other members.
To submit to the newsletter, you may hand-write or type your article, and mail it on in. However, if you submit your article in pretty much any PC word processor or notepad form, it will gladly be accepted as well. You can mail in the floppy... OR you can e-mail your submission directly to LIGHT! using the e-mail address, steve410@erols.com
I've spoken with many members of the club, and all feel that LIGHT! will continue to be successful. We really want to make people aware of what is going on with all aspects of ELO. Please let other ELO fans know about LIGHT! Don't hesitate to contact LIGHT! at any time if you have questions or just have something to say.
Please Write! Somehow, we'll try to answer all letters. And when you do write, tell us about what kind of ELO you like and why -- the old songs?, the new ELO?, The Move?, ORCHESTRA?, The Wilburys?, XANADU?, or whatever.
Hope to hear from you soon!
Steve Rifkin, March, 2002
Coordinator of LIGHT!