Mr. Blue Sky
Encyclopedia
"Mr. Blue Sky" is a song by English rock
group Electric Light Orchestra
, featured on the band's seventh studio album Out of the Blue
(1977). Written and produced by frontman Jeff Lynne
, the song forms the fourth and final track of the "Concerto for a Rainy Day" suite, on side three of the original double LP. "Mr. Blue Sky" was the second Billboard Hot 100
top-40 single to be taken from Out of the Blue, peaking at number 35 in the United States. The single also reached number six on the UK Singles Chart
. The song was played as a wake-up call to astronaut Christopher Ferguson
on Day 3 of STS-135
, the final mission of Space Shuttle Atlantis
.
:
The song's arrangement has been called "Beatlesque", bearing similarities to Beatles
songs "Martha My Dear
and "A Day in the Life
".
voice singing the phrase "Mr. Blue Sky", (from 2:23 to 2:39, or from 2:20 to 2:34 on the 30th anniversary CD). Although a second vocoded segment at the end of the song (4:50-4:55) was often also interpreted as "Mister Blue Sky-yi", it is actually "Please turn me over" as it is the end of side three, and the listener is being instructed to flip the LP over. This was confirmed by original keyboardist Richard Tandy, who did confirm the actual lyric to members of the Showdown ELO fan list.
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
group Electric Light Orchestra
Electric Light Orchestra
Electric Light Orchestra were a British rock group from Birmingham who released eleven studio albums between 1971 and 1986 and another album in 2001. ELO were formed to accommodate Roy Wood and Jeff Lynne's desire to create modern rock and pop songs with classical overtones...
, featured on the band's seventh studio album Out of the Blue
Out of the Blue (Electric Light Orchestra album)
The 30th Anniversary Edition was released on February, 20th 2007 with three bonus tracks.-Personnel:ELO*Jeff Lynne – lead vocals, backing vocals, guitar, keyboards, percussion*Bev Bevan – drums, percussion, backing vocals, fire extinguisher on "Mr...
(1977). Written and produced by frontman Jeff Lynne
Jeff Lynne
Jeffrey "Jeff" Lynne is an English songwriter, composer, arranger, singer, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer who gained fame as the leader and sole constant member of Electric Light Orchestra and was a co-founder and member of The Traveling Wilburys together with George Harrison, Bob...
, the song forms the fourth and final track of the "Concerto for a Rainy Day" suite, on side three of the original double LP. "Mr. Blue Sky" was the second Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
top-40 single to be taken from Out of the Blue, peaking at number 35 in the United States. The single also reached number six on the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
. The song was played as a wake-up call to astronaut Christopher Ferguson
Christopher Ferguson
Christopher J. Ferguson is a United States Navy captain and a NASA astronaut. He was the pilot of Space Shuttle Atlantis on his first mission to space, STS-115, which launched on September 9, 2006 and returned to Earth on September 21, 2006...
on Day 3 of STS-135
STS-135
STS-135 was the final mission of the American Space Shuttle program. It used the orbiter Atlantis and hardware originally processed for the STS-335 contingency mission, which was not flown. STS-135 launched on 8 July and was originally scheduled to land on 20 July 2011, but the mission was...
, the final mission of Space Shuttle Atlantis
Space Shuttle Atlantis
The Space Shuttle Atlantis is a retired Space Shuttle orbiter in the Space Shuttle fleet belonging to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration , the spaceflight and space exploration agency of the United States...
.
Inspiration
In a BBC Radio interview, Lynne talked about writing "Mr. Blue Sky" after locking himself away in a Swiss chalet and attempting to write ELO's follow-up to A New World RecordA New World Record
A New World Record is the sixth studio album by Electric Light Orchestra, released in 1976.-Overview:The second album to be recorded at Musicland Studios in Munich, the LP proved to be the band's long awaited breakthrough in the UK: after seeing their previous three studio recordings fail to chart...
:
The song's arrangement has been called "Beatlesque", bearing similarities to Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
songs "Martha My Dear
Martha My Dear
"Martha My Dear" is a Beatles song written by Paul McCartney , which first appeared on the double album The Beatles . McCartney is the only Beatle to appear on this track.-Style and form:...
and "A Day in the Life
A Day in the Life
"A Day in the Life" is a song by The Beatles, the final track on the group's 1967 album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. Credited to Lennon–McCartney, the song comprises distinct segments written independently by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, with orchestral additions...
".
Vocoded sections
The song features a heavily vocodedVocoder
A vocoder is an analysis/synthesis system, mostly used for speech. In the encoder, the input is passed through a multiband filter, each band is passed through an envelope follower, and the control signals from the envelope followers are communicated to the decoder...
voice singing the phrase "Mr. Blue Sky", (from 2:23 to 2:39, or from 2:20 to 2:34 on the 30th anniversary CD). Although a second vocoded segment at the end of the song (4:50-4:55) was often also interpreted as "Mister Blue Sky-yi", it is actually "Please turn me over" as it is the end of side three, and the listener is being instructed to flip the LP over. This was confirmed by original keyboardist Richard Tandy, who did confirm the actual lyric to members of the Showdown ELO fan list.
Chart performance
| Chart (1978) | Peak Position |
|---|---|
| Australian ARIA ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... Singles Chart |
87 |
| Dutch Top 40 Dutch Top 40 The Dutch Top 40 is a weekly music chart, which started as the "Veronica Top 40", because the offshore radio station Radio Veronica was the first to introduce it. It remained "The Veronica Top 40" until 1974, when the station was forced to stop broadcasting... |
11 |
| German Media Control Singles Chart | 27 |
| UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
6 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 35 |
| U.S. Cash Box Top 100 Singles | 27 |
| U.S. Record World Record World Record World magazine was one of the three main music industry trade publications in the United States, along with Billboard and Cash Box magazines. It was founded in 1946 under the name Music Vendor, but since 1964 changed it to Record World, under the ownership of Sid Parnes and Bob Austin, both... Singles |
33 |
Cover versions
- Mayer HawthorneMayer HawthorneMayer Hawthorne is an American singer, producer, songwriter, arranger, audio engineer, DJ, rapper and multi-instrumentalist based in Los Angeles, California, USA. The stage name "Mayer Hawthorne" is a combination of Cohen's real middle name and the name of the street he grew up on in Michigan...
released a cover on his Impressions - The Covers EP in 2011. - Lily AllenLily AllenLily Rose Beatrice Cooper , better known as Lily Allen, is an English recording artist and fashion designer. She is the daughter of actor and musician Keith Allen and film producer Alison Owen. In her teenage years, her musical tastes evolved from glam rock to alternative...
released it as a single in December 2007.
External links
- "Mr. Blue Sky" promo video at YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
- "Mr. Blue Sky" song review at Allmusic