The Electric Light Orchestra
by Electric Light Orchestra

The Electric Light Orchestra by Electric Light Orchestra
Year: 1971
Release date: 1971-12-03
Overall rank: 5,682nd   Overall chart history
Average Rating: 
72/100 (from 140 votes)
  Ratings distribution   Average rating history
Accolades:
Award Top albums of 1971 (92nd)
Award Top albums of of the 1970s (899th)
Award Best albums of all time (5,682nd)

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Electric Light Orchestra bestography

The Electric Light Orchestra is ranked 11th best out of 42 albums by Electric Light Orchestra on BestEverAlbums.com.

The best album by Electric Light Orchestra is Out Of The Blue which is ranked number 525 in the list of all-time albums with a total rank score of 3,303.

Electric Light Orchestra album bestography « Higher ranked (5,484th)
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This album (5,682nd)
The Electric Light Orchestra
Lower ranked (6,040th) »
ELO 2

(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).

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The Electric Light Orchestra rankings

The Electric Light Orchestra rankings summary
Overall rank: 5,682nd | 1970s rank: 899th | 1971 rank: 92nd  Overall chart history
(Calculated from aggregate positions across 60,000 charts (2 million album rankings). (Last updated: 6 hours ago).

The Electric Light Orchestra collection

The Electric Light Orchestra ratings

Average Rating: 
72/100 (from 140 votes)
  Ratings distribution Help Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AV
where:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.

Showing latest 5 ratings for this album.  | Show all 140 ratings for this album.

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RatingDate updatedMemberAlbum ratingsAvg. album rating
 
70/100
 !
06/12/2026 20:03 cicadelic  Ratings distribution  13,35273/100
 
65/100
 !
06/04/2026 23:20 AAL2014  Ratings distribution  4,04775/100
 
90/100
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04/25/2026 23:41 Robert Anton Wil  Ratings distribution  1,14984/100
 
65/100
 !
04/17/2026 21:44 MadhattanJack  Ratings distribution  5,97166/100
 
65/100
 !
01/04/2026 13:29 Exist-en-ciel  Ratings distribution  15,10370/100

Rating metrics: Help Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)

This album has a Bayesian average rating of 72.1/100, a mean average of 71.4/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 72.1/100. The standard deviation for this album is 14.9.


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The Electric Light Orchestra favourites

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The Electric Light Orchestra comments

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Rating:  
65/100
I know they will go on to make much better albums, but this sounds like the soundtrack to a bad B-Movie.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
75/100
There's some real innovation originality and beauty on here. Whisper in the night is gorgeous Roy wood song. First movement is entertaining. Mr radio has a curious appeal. 10538 is a classic Some I skipped forever more after first listen. Battle of marston moor, queen of the hours etc.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Pray silence please for the Electric Light Orchestra
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
70/100
A bit underrated. Very good mix of rock or even pop rock melodies and the symphonic elements. Catching attention record.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
75/100
Surprisingly strong and intriguing debut. Very different sound to most ELO albums, with Wood's classical influence apparent. 10538 Overture is the standout, and one of ELO's finest songs. The beautiful Whisper in the Night, and the Classical Gas-esque 1st Movement are also stellar.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

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