Eldorado Tour

 

Electric Light Orchestra -- Eldorado Tour

An in-depth look at the 1974/1975 tour


Comments and Observations

The tour in support of the Eldorado album ran from November of 1974 to September 1975, with time off for the band May and June.  It started in the USA, moved to the UK for 10 shows, and was followed by various shows throughout continental Europe (with some unexplained cancellations late in the tour). After a break during which the band recorded the Face The Music album and rested, the band returned for a month of USA shows, then final mixes on the Face The Music album and a quick tour of New Zealand and Australia.  There are still a lot of unknown details about the tour, making it difficult to give a complete analysis.  Given the information available, the tour appears to be brief when compared to the schedule of other tours.  However, this brevity is probably just due to timing only as work was begun on the Face The Music album in May of 1975.

It was during this tour that the most well known Electric Light Orchestra lineup would come together.  These seven members would see the band grow to the pinnacle of their popularity over the next four years.  In particular, this tour marks the first appearance of bassist Kelly Groucutt and cellist Melvyn Gale in the band.

For personal reasons, bass player Michael De Albuquerque left the band shortly after the recording of the Eldorado album and as a result, a new bass player had to be quickly recruited for the tour.  In late 1974, Kelly, then known as Michael Groucutt, was seen by members the band performing with a band called Barefoot in a Birmingham nightclub.  They were impressed enough that they asked him on the spot if he'd join the band and he agreed.  Whether it was meant as a joke or seriously, Jeff said that the band had too many "Michaels" already, so Michael Groucutt used the stage name Kelly, a nickname his mother had given to him as a child.  The Eldorado tour was Kelly's trial-by-fire, however, he would go on to give his distinctive bass playing, backing vocals and occasionally lead vocals to the Electric Light Orchestra sound during the peak of their popularity.

The tour also marks the last appearance of cellist Mike Edwards.  He left the band halfway through the tour, during the break after the North American leg of the tour. He is said to have left to seek Zen Buddhist religious goals and changed his name to Deva Pramada in the process.  He had such a wacky sense of humor that this stories of him become a postman may have been only a joke, but that remains unconfirmed. Due to this departure, cellist Melvyn Gale, who had been playing in orchestras and schools in England, was quickly recruited to fill his spot in the band.

During previous tours, Mike Edwards had quickly become known as the wacky cello player of ELO by wearing strange outfits and acting the clown on stage. On his Eldorado performances, he performed his famous "exploding cello" bit where he would (apparently) mime during In The Hall Of The Mountain King on stage (with cellist Hugh McDowell playing the actual tune). At the end of the song, the band would stop and Bev would give a drum roll until, with the press of a button from Mike, the cello exploded. Then the rest of the band would play a short bit of Rule, Brittania! as a sort of funeral tune for the now dead cello, before launching into Great Balls Of Fire. Note that there no evidence of supporting what Mike Edwards did after his cello was destroyed, but it is presumed he retrieved his real, non-exploding cello and continued the concert. This zany visual spectacle thrilled audiences, even if sometimes the exploding mechanism failed to operate properly and Mike had to take bows for a performance he didn't give. Unfortunately, no known visual record of this performance, bootleg or otherwise, is known to exist. Audio evidence from two concerts are known and can be heard from a bootleg performance HERE. The performance, although popular with the audiences, was eventually removed from the show. Various reasons are given for the band no longer doing it, including that Mike Edwards simply didn't like the device exploding between his legs, the unreliability of the trick cello, and the blast too often triggering the venue's alarm systems.

Due to Mike Edward's departure, Hugh McDowell began performing his own cello solo as part of the show. Daytripper was swapped with Ma-Ma-Ma Belle in the running order, with Daytripper seguing into Great Balls Of Fire (and Rule, Brittania! between), replacing In The Hall Of The Mountain King which was altogether dropped from the show. Hugh's solo performance, only known from bootleg recordings, is a self-written and unnamed solo piece which merged with Rimsky-Korsakov's Flight Of The Bumblebee where bass and drums joined in. Violinist Mik Kaminski also performed a violin solo on stage that was prefaced by a largely improvised solo which merged with Orange Blossom Special when the drums, bass and keyboards joined in. Although Mik's violin solo part was improvised at each performance, Hugh's cello solo was not improvised and was always the same performance.

This tour was the last time the band covered The Beatles' Daytripper and Jerry Lee Lewis' Great Balls Of Fire on stage. The version of Daytripper is the same classically tinged version performed during the On The Third Day tour, but it cut much of the extended Daytripper ending. Rumors persisted for years that the band performed a cover of the Rolling Stones' Brown Sugar at a the Madrid show due to a Spanish concert review; however it is now believed that this was in error and the reviewer was confusing the song with ELO's Ma-Ma-Ma Belle.

At the start of the tour, there were apparently plans for ELO to give a few big concerts in the USA using a full orchestra and closer matching the sound of the album, but this idea was abandoned at the time due to budgetary constraints.

It is a performance during this tour that Roy Wood often cites having seen and proclaiming that the Electric Light Orchestra finally achieved the goal that he and Jeff had set out to do with the Eldorado album and stage performances.

The single Can't Get It Out Of My Head was released in the USA at the start of the tour, but it didn't peak on the Billboard charts until well after the band and left and were touring Europe.  Despite touring during the UK release of the single and the band's sell out shows, this popularity failed to translate to single sales and the Can't Get It Out Of My Head single failed to chart at all in the UK.

ELO opened many shows for Deep Purple during this tour. Jeff Lynne was talking with members of Deep Purple about the difficulties they had had recording the Eldorado album at De Lane Lea Studios in England. It was Deep Purple that suggested they try Musicland Studios in Munich Germany (run by engineer Mack). The next album, Face The Music, would be recorded there and ELO would use this studio throughout their most commercially successful years.

The band often cites the tour of Spain, three shows only in April 1975, as being difficult due to the Spanish people working for the band. Exact details are uncertain.

Band and crew members

The band and crew on this tour were:

Jeff Lynne: vocals, guitar
Bev Bevan: drums
Richard Tandy: keyboards
Kelly Groucutt: bass, vocals
Mik Kaminski: violin
Hugh McDowell: cello
Mike Edwards: cello (November and December 1974)
Melvyn Gale: cello (January to September 1975)
Tony Beard: road manager
Don Arden: business and personal management
Dave Arden: business and personal management
Rick Pannell: sound engineer

Other crew is uncertain, although probably Jake Commander, Brian Jones and Phil Copestake were involved as engineers or technicians as they were known to be good friends with the band and involved in most of their tours.

Tour Dates

This tour ran in from November 1974 to September 1975, with a short break at the end of December 1974, a set of cancelled gigs in March of 1975, a break in May and June 1975 to record the Face The Music album and give the band a rest. It is known that the band performed some shows in January of 1975, but details of where and when are unclear. These dates are approximate only, based upon limited information. It is known that the band had completed recording of the Eldorado album by August of 1974 and began work on the Face The Music, the follow up album, in May of 1975. Also the Face The Music album was released in September of 1975, so those dates appear generally accurate. The band did some final recording/mixing on the Face The Music album in August 1975, followed shortly by the band's first ever tour of New Zealand and Australia.

Date City, Country Venue Headliner/Opening Act(s) Images Comments
North American Tour
November 1, 1974 Detroit, Michigan, USA Michigan Palace Climax Blues Band, Caravan
Ticket for the November 2, 1974 show
Ticket for the November 2, 1974 show
After show party invite for the November 1, 1974 show
After show party invite for the November 1, 1974 show
After show party invite for the November 1, 1974 show
After show party invite for the November 1, 1974 show
Ticket After show
party invite
This was bassist Kelly Groucutt's first live show with the band.

"[Kelly] was playing a six months residence in a Birmingham shop called Snobs, when he was asked to join up. There was no hesitation. Before he really knew it was happening, Kelly joined an earlier ELO tour. His first gig was Detroit, where he frightened himself to death by taking a short cut back to the hotel afterwards. 'You can hear the guns going off from your hotel in Detroit,' he says."
Bob Edmands (April 1976 - New Musical Express)

November 2, 1974 Wayne, New Jersey, USA William Patterson College Unknown
Ticket for the November 2, 1974 show
Ticket for the November 2, 1974 show
Ticket for the November 2, 1974 show
Ticket for the November 2, 1974 show
Tickets
Image kindly provided by Graham Bennett
November 3, 1974 Canton, New York, USA State University of NY at Canton Unknown
November 6, 1974 Upper Darby (Philadelphia), Pennsylvania, USA Tower Theatre UFO
Ticket for the November 2, 1974 show
Ticket for the November 2, 1974 show
Ticket for the November 2, 1974 show
Ticket for the November 2, 1974 show
The Daily Pennsylvanian announcement for the November 6, 1974 show
The Daily Pennsylvanian announcement for the November 6, 1974 show
Tickets Announcements
November 7, 1974 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA Mike Douglas TV show taping N/A Technically this is not a tour performance. The band mimed to the album recordings of Can't Get It Out Of My Head and Poor Boy (The Greenwood).
November 7, 1974 Trenton, New Jersey, USA Trenton War Memorial Unknown
The Bucks County Courier Times announcement for the November 7, 1974 show
The Bucks County Courier Times announcement for the November 7, 1974 show
The Bucks County Courier Times announcement for the November 7, 1974 show
The Bucks County Courier Times announcement for the November 7, 1974 show
Announcements
This concert was originally scheduled for November 15, but was rescheduled to November 7.
November 8, 1974 New York, New York, USA Avery Fisher Hall Unknown
Ticket for the November 8, 1974 show
Ticket for the November 8, 1974 show
Ticket for the November 8, 1974 show
Ticket for the November 8, 1974 show
Announcement for the November 8, 1974 show
Announcement for the November 8, 1974 show
Tickets Announcements
November 9, 1974 Paramus, New Jersey, USA Bergen Community College Unknown
November 10, 1974 Toronto, Ontario, Canada Massey Hall Unknown
November 11, 1974 London, Ontario, Canada University of Western Ontario Unknown
November 13, 1974 San Francisco, California, USA Cow Palace Deep Purple (headliner), Elf The exploding cello bit was performed at this show.
November 15, 1974 Portland, Oregon, USA Memorial Coliseum Deep Purple (headliner), Elf The exploding cello bit was performed at this show.
November 16, 1974 Seattle, Washington, USA Seattle Center Arena Deep Purple (headliner), Elf The exploding cello bit was performed at this show.
November 17, 1974 Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada Pacific Coliseum Deep Purple (headliner), Elf The exploding cello bit was performed at this show. "[Bryan] Adams also caught ELO in the '70's at the Pacific Coliseum as a teenager growing up in Vancouver" -Jane Stevenson in Toronto Sun (October 12, 2015)
November 20, 1974 Long Beach, California, USA Long Beach Arena Deep Purple (headliner), Elf
Photo from the November 20, 1974 show
Photo from the November 20, 1974 show
Photo from the November 20, 1974 show
Photo from the November 20, 1974 show
Photo from the November 20, 1974 show
Photo from the November 20, 1974 show
Photo from the November 20, 1974 show
Photo from the November 20, 1974 show
Ad for November 20, 1974 show
Ad for November 20, 1974 show
Concert photos
Images kindly provided by Julian Baum
Announcements
November 21, 1974 Fresno, California, USA Selland Arena Deep Purple (headliner)
November 22, 1974 Phoenix, Arizona, USA Celebrity Theatre Hello People
Program for November 22 & 23, 1974 shows
Program for November 22 & 23, 1974 shows
Program for November 22 & 23, 1974 shows
Program for November 22 & 23, 1974 shows
Program for November 22 & 23, 1974 shows
Program for November 22 & 23, 1974 shows
Program
ELO played two shows this night, one at 7:30PM and the other at 11:30PM
November 23, 1974 Phoenix, Arizona, USA Celebrity Theatre Hello People
November 24, 1974 Tucson, Arizona, USA Community Center Exhibit Hall Canned Heat
November 25, 1974 Los Angeles, California, USA Loyola Marymount College Unknown
Ticket for the November 25, 1974 show
Ticket for the November 25, 1974 show
Tickets
November 26, 1974 Burbank, California, USA The Midnight Special TV show taping N/A Technically this is not a tour performance.
November 27, 1974 Los Angeles, California, USA Shrine Auditorium Canned Heat, Carmen
Ticket for the November 27, 1974 show
Ticket for the November 27, 1974 show
Ticket for the November 27, 1974 show
Ticket for the November 27, 1974 show
Announcement for the November 27, 1974 show
Announcement for the November 27, 1974 show
Announcement for the November 27, 1974 show
Announcement for the November 27, 1974 show
Announcement for the November 27, 1974 show
Announcement for the November 27, 1974 show
Review for the November 27, 1974 show
Review for the November 27, 1974 show
Tickets
First image kindly provided by Malcolm M. Henderson
Announcements Reviews
November 29, 1974 Detroit, Michigan, USA Olympia Stadium Deep Purple (headliner), Elf
Ticket for the November 29, 1974 show
Ticket for the November 29, 1974 show
Ticket for the November 29, 1974 show
Ticket for the November 29, 1974 show
Tickets
December 1, 1974 Cincinnati, Ohio, USA Cincinatti Gardens Deep Purple (headliner), Elf
December 2, 1974 Indianapolis, Indiana, USA Market Square Arena Deep Purple (headliner), Elf
Ticket for the December 2, 1974 show
Ticket for the December 2, 1974 show
Tickets
December 3, 1974 St. Louis, Missouri, USA Kiel Auditorium Deep Purple (headliner), Elf
December 5, 1974 Chicago, Illinois, USA International Amphitheater Deep Purple (headliner), Elf
December 6, 1974 Cleveland, Ohio, USA The Coliseum Deep Purple (headliner), Elf
Ticket for the December 6, 1974 show
Ticket for the December 6, 1974 show
Announcement for the December 6, 1974 show
Announcement for the December 6, 1974 show
Tickets Announcements
December 7, 1974 Providence, Rhode Island, USA Palace Theater Hello People
Photo from the December 7, 1974 show
Photo from the December 7, 1974 show
Photo from the December 7, 1974 show
Photo from the December 7, 1974 show
Photo from the December 7, 1974 show
Photo from the December 7, 1974 show
Photo from the December 7, 1974 show
Photo from the December 7, 1974 show
Ticket for the December 7, 1974 show
Ticket for the December 7, 1974 show
Concert photos Tickets
December 9, 1974 Bloomington, Minnesota, USA Met Center Deep Purple (headliner), Elf
Ticket for the December 14, 1974 show
Ticket for the December 14, 1974 show
Tickets
December 11, 1974 Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA MECCA Arena Deep Purple (headliner)
Newspaper review of December 11th, 1974 show
Newspaper review of December 11th, 1974 show
Reviews
The exploding cello bit was supposedly at performed at this show, although a bootleg recording reportedly from this show doesn't feature it.!@#
December 14, 1974 Jacksonville, Florida, USA Veterans Memorial Coliseum Deep Purple (headliner), Elf
Ticket for the December 9, 1974 show
Ticket for the December 9, 1974 show
Tickets
The exploding cello bit was supposedly at performed at this show.
December 15, 1974 Columbia, South Carolina, USA Carolina Coliseum Deep Purple (headliner), Elf
December 16, 1974 Washington, DC, USA Constitution Hall Manfred Mann
Ad for December 11th, 1974 show
Ad for December 11th, 1974 show
Poster for December 11th, 1974 show
Poster for December 11th, 1974 show
Announcements
December 17, 1974 Norfolk, Virginia, USA Scope Coliseum Deep Purple (headliner), Elf
Newport News the December 17, 1974 show
Newport News the December 17, 1974 show
Reviews
"Wacky things began to happen during the much-called-for encore. One of the cellists was tapped on the shoulder and hit in the face with a shaving cream pie. A member of the ELO stage crew just let him have it (He the cellist) was trying to play the entire time this was going on. It appeared to be entirely unrehearsed. He couldn't have faced the shocked and well-foamed expression on his face. After the pie and still during the encore Bev Bevan, drummer for the group, had his entire set stolen. That's right while he was playing. Another member of the ELO road crew walked out on stage turing the encore number and began disasembling Bevan's kit. Then one by one other crew members appeared adn began carrying off all his drums, cymbals and stands. Bevan was left with his sticks and his snare drum with which he tried to continue the number while looking about the stage for help. Later the snare was taken off stage and he ran after the thief to retrieve it. The other band members were finding it difficult to play through their laughter.
Unknown (December 20, 1974 - Newport News review of December 17, 1974 show)
December 18, 1974 Baltimore, Maryland, USA (CANCELLED) Baltimore Civic Center Deep Purple (headliner), Elf
UK Tour
February 14, 1975 Newcastle, UK Newcastle Polytechnic Chopyn
February 15, 1975 York, UK York University Chopyn
February 16, 1975 London, UK Theatre Royal, Drury Lane Chopyn
Ticket for the February 16, 1975 show
Ticket for the February 16, 1975 show
Ticket
February 17, 1975 Bristol, UK Colston Hall Chopyn
February 18, 1975 Brighton, UK Sussex University Chopyn
Ticket for the February 18, 1975 show
Ticket for the February 18, 1975 show
Ticket
(Note the incorrect date printed on ticket and hand written correction)

Image kindly provided by Graham Bennett
February 20, 1975 Sheffield, UK Sheffield City Hall Chopyn
Ticket for the February 20, 1975 show
Ticket for the February 20, 1975 show
Ticket
February 21, 1975 Salford, UK Salford University Chopyn
February 22, 1975 Leeds, UK Leeds University Chopyn
February 24, 1975 Birmginham, UK Birmingham Town Hall Chopyn
Ticket for the February 24, 1975 show
Ticket for the February 24, 1975 show
Ticket for the February 24, 1975 show
Ticket for the February 24, 1975 show
Review of the February 24, 1975 show
Review of the February 24, 1975 show
Tickets Reviews
Jasper Carrott, comedian and friend of the band, reportedly came on stage during this show, but what he did while there is currently unknown.
February 25, 1975 Wolverhampton, UK Wolverhampton Civic Hall Chopyn
February 28, 1975 Exeter, UK Exeter University Chopyn, Chick Corea
European Tour
March 7, 1975 Tübingen, Germany Erlangen Stadthalle Barclay James Harvest
March 8, 1975 Erlangen, Germany Tübingen Mensa Uni Barclay James Harvest
March 9, 1975 Stuttgart, Germany Stuttgart Gustav-Siegle-Haus Barclay James Harvest
March 11, 1975 Berlin, Germany Freiburg Paulussaal Barclay James Harvest
March 12, 1975 Hannover, Germany Offenbach Stadthalle Barclay James Harvest ELO was the headliner at this show.
March 13, 1975 Hamburg, Germany Hamburg Musikhalle Barclay James Harvest Some sources indicate that ELO may have been cancelled this show and Barclay James Harvest played the gig alone. Assuming ELO did play, then ELO was the headliner at this show.
March 14, 1975 Köln, Germany (CANCELLED) Köln Satorius Saal Barclay James Harvest
Poster for cancelled March 14, 1975 show
Poster for cancelled March 14, 1975 show
Announcements
March 15, 1975 Saarbrücken, Germany (CANCELLED) Aula der Uni Barclay James Harvest
March 16, 1975 Heidelberg, Germany (CANCELLED) Heidelberg Stadthalle Barclay James Harvest
Ticket for the March 16, 1975 show
Ticket for the March 16, 1975 show
Tickets
March 17, 1975 Munich, Germany (CANCELLED) München Theater an der Brienner Straße Barclay James Harvest
March 20, 1975 Liège, Belgium (CANCELLED) Théâtre de Liège à l'Emulation Barclay James Harvest
March 21, 1975 Veendam, Netherlands (CANCELLED) Veendam Veenlust Barclay James Harvest
March 22, 1975 Amsterdam, Netherlands (CANCELLED) Paradiso Barclay James Harvest
April 2, 1975 Barcelona, Spain Palacio Municipal de Deportes Mike Nesmith
Ticket for the April 2, 1975 show
Ticket for the April 2, 1975 show
Tickets
April 4, 1975 Madrid, Spain Teatro Monumental Mike Nesmith
April 5, 1975 Bilbao, Spain Palacio Deportes Mike Nesmith
April 19, 1975 Arnhem, Netherlands Musis Sacrum Kayak
April 20, 1975 Breda, Netherlands Turfschip Breda Kayak
April 21, 1975 Groningen, Netherlands De Oosterpoort Chopyn
Announcement of April 21, 1975 show from page 6 of Nieuwsblad van het Noorden
Announcement of April 21, 1975 show from page 6 of Nieuwsblad van het Noorden
Announcements
April 23, 1975 Amsterdam, Netherlands Theater Carré Chopyn
Ticket for the April 23, 1975 show
Ticket for the April 23, 1975 show
Announcement of April 23, 1975 show
Announcement of April 23, 1975 show
Review of the April 23, 1975 show
Review of the April 23, 1975 show
Tickets Announcements Reviews
Face The Music recording sessions
May and June, 1975 Munich, Germany Musicland Studios N/A Note that some additional recording of female backing vocals was done in New York City in August and possibly September.
North American Tour
June 28, 1975 Hempstead, New York, USA Calderone Concert Hall Pavlov's Dog
Newspaper ad for the June 28, 1975 show
Newspaper ad for the June 28, 1975 show
Announcements
June 29, 1975 Dayton, Ohio, USA Hara Arena Journey, Pavlov's Dog
Announcement for the June 29, 1975 show
Announcement for the June 29, 1975 show
Review for the June 29, 1975 show
Review for the June 29, 1975 show
Announcements Reviews
July 1, 1975 Clarkston, Michigan, USA Pine Knob Music Theater Pavlov's Dog
Ticket for the July 1, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 1, 1975 show
Tickets
July 2, 1975 Montreal, Quebec, Canada Place des Nations Pavlov's Dog
Newspaper ad for the July 2, 1975 show
Newspaper ad for the July 2, 1975 show
Announcements
July 4, 1975 Ottawa, Ontario, Canada Civic Centre Pavlov's Dog
July 5, 1975 Asbury Park, New Jersey, USA Convention Hall Pavlov's Dog, Triumvirat
Ticket for the July 5, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 5, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 5, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 5, 1975 show
Newspaper ad for the July 5, 1975 show
Newspaper ad for the July 5, 1975 show
Tickets Announcements
July 6, 1975 Wildwood, New Jersey, USA Wildwood Convention Hall Pavlov's Dog, Triumvirat, J. Michael
July 8, 1975 Upper Darby (Philadelphia), Pennsylvania, USA Tower Theatre Pavlov's Dog
Ticket for the July 8, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 8, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 8, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 8, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 8, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 8, 1975 show
Announcement of July 8, 1975 show
Announcement of July 8, 1975 show
Review of the July 8, 1975 show
Review of the July 8, 1975 show
Tickets Announcements Reviews
ELO performed two shows this night.
July 10, 1975 Asheville, North Carolina, USA Asheville Civic Center Pavlov's Dog
July 11, 1975 Charlotte, North Carolina, USA Charlotte Motor Speedway Pavlov's Dog
July 12, 1975 Fayetteville, North Carolina, USA Cumberland County Memorial Auditorium Pavlov's Dog, Triumvirat
July 13, 1975 Washington, DC, USA Unknown Pavlov's Dog
July 14, 1975 Knoxville, Tennessee, USA Knoxville Civic Coliseum Pavlov's Dog, Slade
Newspaper ad for the July 14, 1975 show
Newspaper ad for the July 14, 1975 show
Announcements
July 15, 1975 Johnson City, Tennessee, USA Freedom Hall Civic Center Slade, Pavlov's Dog
Ticket for the July 15, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 15, 1975 show
Newspaper ad for the July 15, 1975 show
Newspaper ad for the July 15, 1975 show
Tickets Announcements
July 17, 1975 Houston, Texas, USA Music Hall Pavlov's Dog, Triumvirat
ELO on the Eldorado tour (Houston, Texas - July 17, 1975)
Photo from the July 17, 1975 show
ELO on the Eldorado tour (Houston, Texas - July 17, 1975)
Photo from the July 17, 1975 show
ELO on the Eldorado tour (Houston, Texas - July 17, 1975)
Photo from the July 17, 1975 show
ELO on the Eldorado tour (Houston, Texas - July 17, 1975)
Photo from the July 17, 1975 show
ELO on the Eldorado tour (Houston, Texas - July 17, 1975)
Photo from the July 17, 1975 show
ELO on the Eldorado tour (Houston, Texas - July 17, 1975)
Photo from the July 17, 1975 show
ELO on the Eldorado tour (Houston, Texas - July 17, 1975)
Photo from the July 17, 1975 show
ELO on the Eldorado tour (Houston, Texas - July 17, 1975)
Photo from the July 17, 1975 show
ELO on the Eldorado tour (Houston, Texas - July 17, 1975)
Photo from the July 17, 1975 show
ELO on the Eldorado tour (Houston, Texas - July 17, 1975)
Photo from the July 17, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 17, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 17, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 17, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 17, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 17, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 17, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 17, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 17, 1975 show
Poster for the July 15, 1975 show
Poster for the July 15, 1975 show
Concert photos
Images kindly provided by RockinHouston.com
Tickets
Last image kindly provided by RockinHouston.com
Announcements
July 18, 1975 Fort Worth, Texas, USA Panther Hall Pavlov's Dog, Triumvirat
July 19, 1975 Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA Tulsa Fairgrounds Educational Building Pavlov's Dog, Triumvirat
July 20, 1975 Kansas City, Kansas, USA Memorial Hall Pavlov's Dog
Photo from the June 20, 1975 show
Photo from the June 20, 1975 show
Photo from the June 20, 1975 show
Photo from the June 20, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 20, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 20, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 20, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 20, 1975 show
Concert photos Tickets
July 22, 1975 Atlanta, Georgia, USA Municipal Auditorium Pavlov's Dog
Ticket for the July 22, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 22, 1975 show
Unknown newspaper announcement for the July 25, 1975 show
Unknown newspaper announcement for the July 25, 1975 show
Advertisement for the July 25, 1975 show
Advertisement for the July 25, 1975 show
Tickets Announcements
July 23, 1975 Chicago, Illinois, USA Unknown Unknown
July 24, 1975 Hammond, Indiana, USA Unknown Unknown
July 25, 1975 Allendale, Michigan, USA Grand Valley State College Pavlov's Dog, Triumvirat
Poster for the July 25, 1975 show
Poster for the July 25, 1975 show
Announcements
"Don Arden, personal manager of the Electric Light Orchestra, that group and its booking wing, Polygon Publishing, have filed superior court suits against two concert promoters charging breach of contract and misrepresentation. Plaintiffs accuse Steve Glantz Productions, Detroit concert firm, and Michigan Concert Palace of owing them $4,000 on a July 25 gig at Grand Valley State College Field - house, Grand Rapids. Pact shows group signed for $5,000 flat, plus $1,500 for sound and lights."
Unknown (November 8, 1975 - Billboard)
July 26, 1975 Madison, Wisconsin, USA Dane County Coliseum Pavlov's Dog, Triumvirat
Poster for the July 26, 1975 show
Poster for the July 26, 1975 show
Announcements
July 28, 1975 St. Louis, Missouri, USA The Ambassador Triumvirat
Ticket for the July 28, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 28, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 28, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 28, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 28, 1975 show
Ticket for the July 28, 1975 show
Tickets
August 1, 1975 El Paso, Texas, USA Civic Center El Chicano
El Paso Herald Post announcement for the August 1, 1975 show
El Paso Herald Post announcement for the August 1, 1975 show
Announcements
August 3, 1975 Las Vegas, Nevada, USA Stardust Resort & Casino Batdorf & Rodney "Don Arden, personal manager of the Electric Light Orchestra, that group and its booking wing, Polygon Publishing, have filed superior court suits against two concert promoters charging breach of contract and misrepresentation. [One is] against Gary Naseef Presents, Double or Nothing Productions, of which Ken C. Moultray is president, alleges $4,250 is still owed. Two -show contract called for $2,500 for each show and $1,250 for sound and lights for the July 15, 1975, date at the auditorium of the Stardust Hotel, Las Vegas."
Unknown (November 8, 1975 - Billboard)
Editor's Note: It is believed that the date for this gig in Las Vegas is a misprint.
Face The Music recording sessions
August, 1975 New York City, USA The Record Plant N/A Note that this is a recording of the female backing vocals and final mixing only.
Australia/New Zealand Tour
August ?, 1975 Dunedin, New Zealand Regent Theatre Unknown
August ?, 1975 Christchurch, New Zealand Christchurch Town Hall Unknown
August ?, 1975 Wellington, New Zealand Wellington Town Hall Unknown
August 28, 1975 Auckland, New Zealand Auckland Town Hall Unknown
August 29, 1975 Brisbane, Australia Unknown Unknown
September 1, 1975 Sydney, Australia Hordern Pavilion Unknown
Ticket for the September 1, 1975 show
Ticket for the September 1, 1975 show
Tickets
Image kindly provided by Graham Bennett
September 2, 1975 Melbourne, Australia Festival Hall Unknown
September 5, 1975 Adelaide, Australia Unknown Unknown
September 6, 1975 Perth, Australia Her Majesty’s Theatre Unknown
Newspaper ad for the September 6, 1975 show
Newspaper ad for the September 6, 1975 show
Announcements

Setlist

Based upon limited bootleg material only (there are no official releases from this tour), the setlist shown below is the most consistently known setlist, although variations did occur. There is known to be some fluctuation in the setlist for each show, with some songs being omitted or rearranged. In particular, there were typically a clump of songs in the middle of the show from the Eldorado album. Although Eldorado Overture and Can't Get It Out Of My Head were apparently performed at all shows, the following Eldorado songs were typically mixed up in the order they were performed or some songs were omitted altogether. These songs include Larado Tornado, Poor Boy (The Greenwood), Illusions In G Major, Eldorado and Eldorado Finale.

It also appears (from the available information) that the early tour performances featured the song Daytripper after the cello solo earlier in the show and the song Ma-Ma-Ma Belle after the violin solo later in the show. However, at the later shows, these songs in the line up were switched. Early tour performances also included the song In The Hall Of The Mountain King immediately before Great Balls Of Fire (in a sort of medley) as they were performed on the On The Third Day tour, but later tour performances dropped In The Hall Of The Mountain King and used Great Balls Of Fire alone. In fact, Daytripper was shortened in these later shows and played immediately before Great Balls Of Fire as if they were a medley together.

Mike Edwards performed his exploding cello routine during his last years with the band during In The Hall Of The Mountain King, particularly at the start of the Eldorado tour. At the end of the song, the band would pause and Bev would give a big drumroll until the cello exploded and the rest of the band afterward played a short bit of Rule, Brittania! as a death march. This was replaced during the second have of the tour with Hugh's Hugh's Cello Solo/Flight Of The Bumblebee solo, due to Mike Edwards leaving the band.

Song Title Arrangement Song comments
Daybreaker This is the On The Third Day album arrangement, but there is a long keyboard and string intro and the ending is slightly extended, adding the same keyboard part from the beginning of the song and a new finish.
Showdown This is the standard single arrangement except everything after the "Y'know I need you child" is cut and replaced with a guitar outro.
On The Third Day Suite This is basically side 1 of the On The Third Day album with a different arrangement. Jeff Lynne typically introduces the song on stage as simply "On the Third Day" only.
*
Ocean Breakup/King Of The Universe Based upon the On The Third Day album version, this one is quite different. Kelly Groucutt sings most vocal parts with Jeff adding harmony, except the last verse which Jeff sings alone. The humming parts are cut altogether. And the string plucking ending is greatly extended with a violin taking over most of the string plucking part before moving into a unique solo part.
*
Oh No Not Susan (Part 1) Only a short section of Oh No Not Susan, the guitar and moog part from the song's end, is played.
*
Bluebird Is Dead Almost the same as the On The Third Day album version, this arrangement includes Kelly Groucutt on backing vocals and a more prominent piano part at the end of the instrumental bridge.
*
Oh No Not Susan (Part 2) A repeat of the short guitar and moog part is included after Bluebird Is Dead.
*
New World Rising/Ocean Breakup Reprise This song is the same arrangement as the On The Third Day album version, but with a slightly extended ending to allow for a bigger finish to the song and the entire suite of On The Third Day songs.
Daytripper N/A This is a classically tinged version including the following bits in order: Daytripper, an excerpt of Handel's Arrival Of The Queen Of Sheba (Sinfonia Of Act 3 From Solomon), more of Daytripper, a short guitar riff from the Rolling Stones' Satisfaction, an excerpt of Mozart's Piano Sonota In C-Major (First Subject), and finally long Daytripper jam ending. This song was later switched with Ma-Ma-Ma Belle in the setlist running order. When it was moved to later in the show, effectively replacing In The Hall Of The Mountain King, the long Daytripper jam was replaced with a short bit of Rule, Brittania!, which allowed it to segue into Great Balls Of Fire (with no exploding cello bit in the middle).
Eldorado Overture Eldorado album version This is a taped intro from the Eldorado album, with the band joining in shortly after the spoken part.
Can't Get It Out Of My Head This is the Eldorado album arrangement except the keyboard is different on the bridge.
Illusions In G Major This is the Eldorado album arrangement except it has a slightly different and harder guitar on the intro and end. Kelly Groucutt sings lead on the second verse (and possibly the first verse-- it's difficult to know with the poor quality bootleg that is available) and adds harmony vocals throughout. Additionally, the song is played slightly faster than the album version. This song was not performed at all shows.
Laredo Tornado This is the Eldorado album arrangement except it cuts the second verse. This song was not performed at all shows.
Poor Boy (The Greenwood) This is the Eldorado album arrangement except there is an additional string riff at the song's start. Additionally Kelly Groucutt sings lead on all choruses and the first two lines of the first two verses. This song was not performed at all shows.
Eldorado This is the basic Eldorado album arrangement but it cuts the third verse ("Say goodbye, the city's heroes sing...") and the second chorus. Also, Kelly Groucutt sings lead on the choruses. This song was not performed at all shows.
Eldorado Finale Eldorado arrangement, but cuts the vocal line at song's end. This song was not performed at all shows.
Mik's Violin Solo/Orange Blossom Special N/A This is an unnamed solo piece written by Mik that merge's with Orange Blossom Special when the drums, bass and keyboards join in. The violin solo part is improvised by Mik and varied from show to show.
In The Hall Of The Mountain King This used the On The Third Day album arrangement except it ended before the slow down part with a drum roll and Mike's exploding cello, then the ending of Rule, Brittania!. After Mike left the band, they did the same arrangement but instead of the drum roll, it simply merged with the start of Great Balls Of Fire. This song was dropped from later shows on the tour, after Mike Edwards left the band.
Great Balls Of Fire N/A This is the heavy cello riff version.
Roll Over Beethoven This is the ELO 2 UK album arrangement, but cuts the mellotron intro; also, the third and fourth verses and second chorus are cut, replaced by a long instrumental jam and picks up at the repeated "Roll Over Beethoven" part; the ending is extended, drawing out the last notes in a long jam. All performances also include a special intro that inserts a short section of Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata (First Movement) between the opening notes of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony and the rock 'n' roll guitar intro.

Releases

No performance from this tour has seen official release. Four performances from this concert tour are known to have been bootlegged, with the December 7th performance being of exceptional quality (although missing several songs from the Eldorado album). The exploding cello bit can be heard at the end of In The Hall Of The Mountain King from the 1974 bootlegs.

The known bootlegs are:

Date Location Source Quality Comments
November 1, 1974 Detroit, Michigan, USA Audience Very good This is the first public performance with new bassist, Kelly Groucutt.
December 7, 1974 Providence, Rhode Island, USA Audience Excellent The bootleg includes Eldorado Overture, Can't Get It Out Of My Head and Laredo Tornado, however unknown songs from the Eldorado album are missing between the performances of Can't Get It Out Of My Head and Laredo Tornado. These songs may include Illusions In G Major and Poor Boy (The Greenwood).
December 11, 1974 Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA Audience Good The bootleg does not include the On The Third Day suite, Illusions In G Major, Poor Boy (The Greenwood), Eldorado or Eldorado Finale. It's unclear if these songs were not performed at this show or they were not recorded for the bootleg. Some reports state that the exploding cello bit was included at this show, but the bootleg only contains the regular Hugh solo of Flight Of The Bumblebee.
February 24, 1975 Birmingham, UK Audience Poor
April 5, 1975 Bilbao, Spain Audience Poor Performances from the On The Third Day suite and Ma-Ma-Ma Belle are incomplete. Performances of Laredo Tornado, Eldorado and Eldorado Finale are missing and do not appear to have been performed at this show.
A clever fan made a bootleg for the Bilbao concert, entitled 25 años antes... (25 Years Before...). It is so titled because there is an accompanying bootleg entitled 25 años despues... (25 Years Later...) featuring ELO Part II (sans Jeff Lynne) performing in Madrid, Spain almost exactly 25 years later on July 21, 2000. The only performers at both concerts were Kelly Groucutt and Mik Kaminski.

Headlining/Opening Acts

There is currently incomplete information on headlining or opening acts for this tour. It is known that ELO was the opening act for Deep Purple (for whom they were openers on the On The Third Day tour as well) on some shows as they had not quite reached superstar status by this tour. However, they were known to be the headliner at several shows, with opening acts for them including UFO, Chopyn (who probably opened all UK shows in February 1975), Sugarloaf, Jo Jo Gunne, Pavlov's Dog and Triumvirat. Barclay James Harvest also opened several shows on the March 1975 continental Europe part of the tour. In mid-March, for unknown reasons ELO cancelled their appearances at these shows Barclay James Harvest went on to headline the rest of these shows themselves.

Promotions

This section is TBD as more information becomes available.

Photos

ELO in concert
ELO in concert
Eldorado ad showing UK tour dates
Eldorado ad showing UK tour dates
Record Mirror article about UK tour dates
Record Mirror article about UK tour dates
Record Mirror article about remaining Eldorado tour dates
Record Mirror article about remaining Eldorado tour dates
Poster for Spain concerts
Poster for Spain concerts
ELO in concert Magazine advertisement for Eldorado album showing UK tour dates
Image kindly provided by Graham Bennett
Record Mirror article about UK tour dates Record Mirror article about remaining Eldorado tour dates Poster for Spain concerts
Image kindly provided by Raúl Monclús
Newspaper clipping for Spain concerts
Newspaper clipping for Spain concerts
Newspaper clipping for Spain concerts
Newspaper clipping for Spain concerts
Poster for Germany concerts
Poster for Germany concerts
Poster for Netherlands concerts
Poster for Netherlands concerts
Newspaper ad for Netherlands concerts
Newspaper ad for Netherlands concerts
Newspaper clipping for Spain concerts
Image kindly provided by Raúl Monclús
Newspaper clipping for Spain concerts
Image kindly provided by Raúl Monclús
Poster for Germany concerts Poster for Netherlands concerts
Image kindly provided by Raúl Monclús
Newspaper ad for Netherlands concerts
Newspaper ad for Netherlands concerts
Newspaper ad for Netherlands concerts
Newspaper ad for Netherlands concerts
UK tour program front cover UK tour program page 1 UK tour program page 2 UK tour program page 3 UK tour program page 4 UK tour program page 5 UK tour program page 6
UK tour program page 7 UK tour program page 8 UK tour program page 9 UK tour program page 10 UK tour program back cover
UK Tour program - Front cover / All pages / Back cover
No other photos from this tour are currently available. If you have any to share, please contact me at the email address at the bottom of this page.

Fan Comments

Enter comments only about this tour. (Inappropriate comments will be removed.)


Phil Copestake was on the US tours in 75 as a roadie for the band. Sadly I don't recall the other roadie's name.

Sound and light crew that toured with ELO using Frank Zappa's lights and sound included myself., Paul Hoff and I believe Coy Fetherstone plus at least two others...

Great band to tour with an work for....

Mark Linett


Concert in Hamburg, Musikhalle, March 13th 1975:
ELO definitely played the concert as the main band and Barclay James Harvest also played in the "opening act".
After the concert I got autographs from Mik Kaminski, Bev Bevan, Richard Tandy and Malvyn Gale on the album "Eldorado" in the tour bus. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough for more, because afterwards I was kindly "asked out" of the tour bus.
I still have the signed album today.

I saw ELO and Triumvirat at the July 18, 1975 show in Ft. Worth, Texas. What a deal for $6.00! ELO opened with "Fire on High" with the intro spoken words taped. All dark until the words stopped and the band started. House lights went up as Jeff played those famous chords on a 12 string Ovation guitar - really rang through! It was a great show!

December 18, 1974 Baltimore, Maryland, USA Baltimore Civic Center Deep Purple (headliner), Elf

Made the drive to Baltimore only to find the marquee said "Show Cancelled".


July 8, 1975, Tower in Philly, two shows. Pavlov's Dog opened. I was at both. Fire on High was the opener for ELO. Remember it well. Don't see it mentioned here but I am positive of this.

Was March 1975 the only dates they played in Germany between summer 1974 and summer 1977? I remember AFRTS AM in Ramstein actually running promos for an ELO concert in the area and announcing a laser show. It sounded like the coolest thing ever; I loved the ELO sound and I wanted my dad to take me to the show (I was 7) but it was not to be. I could have sworn this concert was 1976 or 1977 but I guess not...it's also possible I misheard something and they were using ELO music to promote a laser show. Anyway I wonder if any US military remember this.

23 april 1975 in Carre Amsterdam was supported by Chopyn, not Kayak.

I was at the Newcastle Polytechnic gig on February 14, 1975. It was a great night and Daytripper was the highlight as it was unexpected!

I was at the concert in Charlotte, NC on July 11, 1975. It says unknown venue but it was held at the Charlotte Motor Speedway. Of course it's not there anymore. The Allman Brothers Band was there too.
Kim A. Now in Colorado


When ELO played Providence, RI in December 1974, the "Hello People" opened for them.

I saw ELO at the Schubert Theatre in Philadelphia. I can't seem to find the date of the show but it is in this time frame.

Anybody know for sure?

Fantastic barebones show before all of the electronics took over.

I was there! Anyone know the date?
-DT (Jzshore6@gmail.com)
Editor's Note: I have no record of them playing Shubert Theatre on this tour, although it's possible they played there in late November when they returned to the city for the taping of the Mike Douglas show. Or you could have the dates mixed up as ELO did play Shubert Theatre the previous year/tour on December 15, 1973.


Saw the Salford Uni gig. First time I saw the band live. Wasn't sure what to expect when the production and orchestration on Eldorado (still my favourite album along with Face The Music)were such a key element but they were fantastic and this remains one of my favourite gigs at a venue I always loved. Will be at the Leeds arena gig over 40 years later in April 2016

I saw ELO at York Uni Central Hall on the 15th Feb 1975 - I seem to remember the guy playing the cello fell of stage and hurt himself but kept on playing. I remember it as a great concert - happy days!

The exploding cello bit was performed at the Dec. 14th, 1974, show in Jacksonville, Fl.
-Anonymous

I was at the Wolverhampton gig in 1975. The audience were evacuated from the hall at one point because of a bomb scare (common at that time) and we froze outside for half an hour. The exploding cello was a total failure that night, probably just as well as I was stood right in front of it. There was a puff of smoke and the front just flopped off, to the amusement of everyone concerned. One of the best gigs I ever attended, ELO were absolutely at the top of their game in those days.
-Anonymous

I was at the show at the Milwaukee Arena on December 11, 1974. It was my first rock concert and I was seventeen at the time. I hadn't heard of ELO but was familiar with their rendition of Roll Over Beathoven. They most definately performed the exploding bass at this show. I will never forget it.
-Anonymous

November 13 1974, Cow Palace, I enter the realm of the Rock Concert World. I went for Deep Purple, who didn't disappoint, and I became an instant ELO fan on this night. I have told the exploding cello story many many times. If you don't go to those live shows you will never know what treats my occur. Support live music, if only for your own soul. I can't get it out of my head. And that's a good thing!
-Anonymous

I was at the London concert which was one of my first, having previously only seen Medicine Head and the Pink Fairies (a poor substitute for Stackridge who cancelled). Pure chance really, I bought ELO 2 because I liked the string arrangement of Roll Over Beethoven and was completely hooked by the rest of the album, and later, by On the the Third Day when it was released. I purchased my imported copy of Eldorado (still in its plastic wrapping!) from Richard Branson when he operated from a small room above a shoe shop in Oxford Street!

I thought ELO would be good live but didn't imagine just how good live music could be. From the opening bars of Daytripper I thought this is it, what performance could be better? Over 1,000 gigs later, it's still in my top 5. I particularly enjoyed On the Third Day and the two string solos - and for me, the first experience of a laser show. Jeff commented when they played Laredo Tornado 'next time I want to do something really strange' - I guess that was Fire on High. I thought they played Boy Blue but I have never found a reference to that track being played live so have probably got that wrong. I do have to disagree with Ashley though because from where I was sitting, I could see a lot of empty seats.

I then travelled to Birmingham a few days later to to see it again at the Town Hall. I think that show had the edge on London - possibly the home crowd? I don't recall Jasper Carrot making an appearance but I did meet Roy Wood afterwards - what great ending! Still have my tickets and program - can anyone make sense of the cover?
-Dave Lockyear - East Anglia


I was 18. I had seen Genesis, with Peter Gabriel the year before. But on the American Holiday, in 1975, I was treated to an unbelievable show in Ottawa, Canada. Blue violins, spinning cellos, loud rock music. I loved it !!!

Even though Ottawa is the capital of Canada, it was a small city, but conveniently situated between Montreal and Toronto. Because of its proximity, to those major-league cities, we got to see many bands that would normally not visit a city of 300K.

In addition to the above-mentioned Genesis and ELO concerts, we were treated to David Bowie's Spiders concert, Rick Wakeman's Journey to the Centre concert, King Crimson's Larks Tongue concert, Bob Marley's last tour in 1979, as well as Peter Frampton opening for Carlos Santana, while recording his Frampton Comes Alive album, complete with vocoder.

Good times....

NOTE TO EDITOR: Thanks for listing all the material for this ELO Tour, I really appreciate it.
-Steve in Calgary, Alberta, Canada



I saw the Electric Light Orchestra with Pavlov's Dog on July 3rd 1975 at Place des Nations in Montreal which seems to be missing here.I'm guessing the Portland, Maine concert was in fact on July 2,1975 the evening before the Montreal gig.Amazing concert btw!
-Anonymous

I was at the ELO show Nov. 13, 1974 when they were middle bill for Deep Purple. The exploding cello happend at that show as well, totally crazy..... ELF with Ronnie James Dio opened the show. It was truely an amazing event.Thanks for the fine detail on your website.
-Dave Tonner, San Francisco Ca.

jasper carrott came on stage during the Birmingham Town Hall gig, if my memory serves me correctly.
-Martin Curley, Rugby Warwickshire,UK.

I wish I was there but I was only 2. Elo's music makes me want to fly in the heavens.
-Anonymous

I was at the Vancouver concert in 1974 as a Deep Purple fan. Well, ELO just blew the doors off as the "warmup act" and Deep Purple fell flat with most of the audience. One of the most entertaining and musical performances I've ever seen.
-Anonymous

The exploding cello. On Nov 16th 1974 it blew up just fine! I was 19 and in the Army (aviation) at Ft Lewis Wa. I had gone to the concert to see Deep Purple and I guess Elo was not on my radar but when they started playing I was captured by them. Cellos in a rock band! I was only one year removed from having played them in high school and junior high. The memory of that cello exploding has been one image that I haven't lost of those days. As I recall Flight Of The Bumble Bee was what he was playing when he held it at arms length (it was white by the way) and it blew to pieces. With not a beat missed, it seemed, he was handed another one and carried on. I still have the Deep Purple T shirt, whats left of it, but I don't recall a thing about their set. I was watching the ELO Live DVD tonight and that set off my memory and the Google search for the "ELO Exploding Cello" Thanks
-Monty Thompson

What a great site and thank you for your hard work in putting this together. History will mark this band as one of the Greatest of all time!
-Anonymous

The support act for the Dutch concerts in may 1975 was Dutch band Kayak. There were 4 shows, but Kayak only joined ELO 3 times (according to the tour poster). And the official Kayak websiet even only mentions the concert in Arnhem (the first one)...
-Jeroen Kooistra, The Netherlands
kayakhistory.blogspot.com

I attended the July 28th 1975 show at the ambassador in St.Louis. I am certain the opening act was Triumvirat. It was an outstanding show. Played to a full house. Which at the amassador was about 2500. It had the best acoustics in town. My best friend and I had tickets in the front section of the left side balcony. I think we were about 6 rows back from the front of the balcony,but there wasn't a bad seat anywhere in the ambassador.
-Ron Brown

The venue for the 1 Dec 74 concert was Cincinnati Gardens (home of the Royals until they left town). I was at that concert...it evokes several images for me, and to this day ranks as the best overall concert memory I have. It was the first date of my wife of 33 years and I. She really liked and shared my enjoyment of ELO. That concert also featured the most effective and simplest opening song visual impact I have ever seen...Deep Purple's Smoke on the Water.
-Robert N. Marzig

I have been to my fair share of outstanding concerts/festivals (Frank Zappa playing with Pink Floyd in Belgium 1969, the Isle of Wight 1970 five day festival with Hendrix and The Doors) BUT the show that ELO put on inside the 3,119 capacity movie house built in 1927 WAS the absolutely the HIGH LIGHT of any that I have ever attended without a doubt! This was when they released and were supporting El Dorado which of course was being played on the radio station WMMR in Philly and I bought the LP immediately after the concert. I had never seen or heard any music as presented by ELO that night with the string ensemble playing with and jamming out with a rock band. They had the entire audience rockin' and jumpin' around as it was impossible to sit in the seats. It is something I will never forget and about the only other "concert" that has come remotely as jumpin' and a jivin' was a Queen concert at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum in Biloxi, Mississippi on August 19, 1982. The funny thing about the ELO concert is I paid maybe ten dollars at the most for the ticket and when concert tickets started to cost more than that is when I stopped going to concerts.
-Paul Strauser

I was actually at the London gig at The Theatre Royal Drury Lane on Sunday 16th february 1975 and as i remember, the place was packed, which kind of bucks the misconception that ELO weren't so popular in the UK at the time. The support act were a band called Chopyn. You'll find a set of scans of the program that i sent to the Mr. Blue Sky list a few years ago, they are still up on the pictures files, here's the link - http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mr-blue-sky/photos/album/0/list I can re-scan them for you if needed, I've also still got two ticket stubs £1.00 each in the upper circle, good value eh ? Your set list as far as i remember is spot on. The first few bars of Daybreaker before the lights came up at the beginning of the show are etched in my mind, indeed the sound of the Moog tuning up during the break before ELO came on was a hairs on the back of the neck moment. Roll Over Beethoven was the encore which just went on and on, in fact we nearly missed the last train out of Kings Cross because of it, Sunday service in those days meant just that, a skeleton service. I was 16 and had my girlfriend with me, running for that train was a hairy moment, her dad was a farmer and i didn't want any part of my anatomy nailed to a barn door !
-Ashley Cox

I was at the Nov. 17, 1974 Vancouver, BC concert, to see Deep Purple. I had no idea who Jeff Lynne or ELO was at the time. As the opening act, they were amazing. And of course they closed with their long rendition of Roll Over Beethoven.

When Deep Purple came out, everyone was jazzed. For the first 20 minutes, DP was great, then it turned into a Ritchie Blackmore guitar solo fest. They were terrible and It just got worse. Maybe because it was the 3rd night in a row.The entire crowd started screaming ELO ELO ELO. I, along with the rest of my guys, and half of the Pacific Coliseum , walked out halfway through the DP performance, but sure could have used some more Jeff Lynne / ELO.

That was the day I became a Jeff Lynne / ELO fan and have continued to be a huge fan.

And to update your North American Eldorado Tour information, the exploding cello bit WAS performed at this show.
-Kim

Song Comments

Daybreaker (Eldorado Tour)
On the Eldorado tour, Daybreaker had a lengthy taped intro while the band came on stage and joined in.

Showdown (Eldorado Tour)

Ocean Breakup/King Of The Universe (Eldorado Tour)

Bluebird Is Dead (Eldorado Tour)

New World Rising/Ocean Breakup Reprise (Eldorado Tour)
Bass player Kelly Groucutt sings some of the lead vocals on New World Rising during the Eldorado tour.

In The Hall Of The Mountain King (Eldorado Tour)
This version was only performed in late 1974 when Mike Edward was still with the band. It included the exploding cello bit, where the band performed the song as usual, but before the slowdown part, the band stopped and Bev began a series of drum rolls. The cello then "exploded" on Mike Edwards and the band played the ending of Rule, Brittania! as a sort of death march tune for the "dead" cello.

"Also heard were Flight Of The Bumblebee (a segment of a spotlighted cello solo) and a strong rendition of In The Hall Of The Mountain King."
Unknown (December 20, 1974 - Newport News review of December 17, 1974 show)

Hugh's Cello Solo/Flight Of The Bumblebee (Eldorado Tour)
"The band handled the Beatle's Day Tripper along with rockers like Roll Over Beethoven (laced with Ludwig's fifth symphony) and the Jerry Lee Lewis hit, Great Balls Of Fire with comparative ease."
Unknown (December 20, 1974 - Newport News review of December 17, 1974 show)

Ma-Ma-Ma Belle (Eldorado Tour)

Eldorado Overture (Eldorado Tour)

Can't Get It Out Of My Head (Eldorado Tour)

Illusions In G Major (Eldorado Tour)

Laredo Tornado (Eldorado Tour)

Poor Boy (The Greenwood) (Eldorado Tour)
"[Jeff Lynne and I] used to share the lead [vocals in concert] on things like Poor Boy."
Kelly Groucutt (March 3, 2006 - Guitar & Bass magazine)

Eldorado (Eldorado Tour)

Eldorado Finale (Eldorado Tour)

Mik's Violin Solo/Orange Blossom Special (Eldorado Tour)

Daytripper (Eldorado Tour)
"The band handled the Beatle's Day Tripper along with rockers like Roll Over Beethoven (laced with Ludwig's fifth symphony) and the Jerry Lee Lewis hit, Great Balls Of Fire with comparative ease."
Unknown (December 20, 1974 - Newport News review of December 17, 1974 show)

Great Balls Of Fire (Eldorado Tour)
"The band handled the Beatle's Day Tripper along with rockers like Roll Over Beethoven (laced with Ludwig's fifth symphony) and the Jerry Lee Lewis hit, Great Balls Of Fire with comparative ease."
Unknown (December 20, 1974 - Newport News review of December 17, 1974 show)

"But as the evening warmed up, rock and roll became the order of the day, and we had the bizarre sight of two cellists and a violinist backing Lynne on Roll Over Beethoven and Great Balls Of Fire."
David Gritten (circa 1975 - Unknown newspaper review of February 24, 1975 show)

Roll Over Beethoven (Eldorado Tour)
"The band handled the Beatle's Day Tripper along with rockers like Roll Over Beethoven (laced with Ludwig's fifth symphony) and the Jerry Lee Lewis hit, Great Balls Of Fire with comparative ease."
Unknown (December 20, 1974 - Newport News review of December 17, 1974 show)

"ELO did several songs from the recent El Dorado [sic] album and finished its set with Roll Over Beethoven, which alternates between Beethoven's Fifth Symphony and Chuck Berry's rock 'n' roll."
Peggy Mulloy Glad (December 12, 1974 - The Milwaukee Journal)

"But as the evening warmed up, rock and roll became the order of the day, and we had the bizarre sight of two cellists and a violinist backing Lynne on Roll Over Beethoven and Great Balls Of Fire."
David Gritten (circa 1975 - Unknown newspaper review of February 24, 1975 show)

"On Roll Over Beethoven [in concert] we used to do verse and verse about; someone does a verse and gets a rest on the next one."
Kelly Groucutt (March 3, 2006 - Guitar & Bass magazine)


This page is intended to be a complete record of information on the Electric Light Orchestra Eldorado tour. If you notice any errors or omissions (which there are many), please contact me at jefflynnesongs@gmail.com and let me know. I strive for accuracy.

Robert Porter
October 2023