Can't Get It Out of My Head

Can't Get It Out of My Head is a song written by Jeff Lynne and originally recorded by Electric Light Orchestra (also known as ELO).

"Can't Get It Out of My Head"
Single by Electric Light Orchestra
from the album Eldorado
B-side"Illusions in G Major"
ReleasedJanuary 1975[1] (UK)
November 1974[1] (US)
Format7" single
Recorded1974 De Lane Lea Studios
GenreSoft rock[2]
Length4:23 (Album version)
3:07 (Single edit)
LabelWarner Bros. (UK)
United Artists (US)
Songwriter(s)Jeff Lynne
Producer(s)Jeff Lynne
Electric Light Orchestra singles chronology
"Ma-Ma-Ma Belle"
(1974)		 "Can't Get It Out of My Head"
(1975)		 "Boy Blue"
(1975)
Eldorado track listing
10 tracks
Side one
  1. "Eldorado Overture"
  2. "Can't Get It Out of My Head"
  3. "Boy Blue"
  4. "Laredo Tornado"
  5. "Poor Boy (The Greenwood)"
Side two
  1. "Mister Kingdom"
  2. "Nobody's Child"
  3. "Illusions in G Major"
  4. "Eldorado"
  5. "Eldorado Finale"

First released on the band's fourth album Eldorado in September 1974, the song is the second track on the album and follows "Eldorado Overture". The song was released in November the same year as a single.

The song became the band's first top 10 single in the United States, reaching number 9,[3] and helped boost public awareness of the band in the U.S.; however, back in the UK the single and LP failed to chart. In 1978, it was included as the lead song on the four-track The ELO EP (UK release), reaching number 34 on the UK charts. The song has appeared on many ELO compilation albums.

Critical reception

AllMusic's Mike DeGagne said the song would become "one of Electric Light Orchestra's most beautiful ballads" thanks to "the rich backdrop of strings (especially cello) and the steady, delicate cymbal taps that enhance the song's charm", adding: "there's an honest simplicity built around the dynamics of the relaxed rhythm and it's this enchanting air, mixed with the storybook lyrics and poetic wonderment of the song that carries the listener away, even if they're indecipherable at times", considering the song as "the band's best example of this recipe implemented toward a slower style".[4]

Personnel

Credits adapted from "Can't Get It Out of My Head" liner notes.[5][6][7]

Electric Light Orchestra

Additional musicians

Production

  • Jeff Lynne – production
  • Dick Plant – engineering
  • Mike Pela – engineering
  • Kenny Denton – engineering assistance
  • John Richards – engineering assistance

Recording

Chart performance

Jeff Lynne version
"Can't Get It Out of My Head"
Song by Electric Light Orchestra
from the album Mr. Blue Sky: The Very Best of Electric Light Orchestra
Released8 October 2012 (UK)
9 October 2012 (US)
Recorded2001–2012 Bungalow Palace
Length4:35
LabelFrontiers
Songwriter(s)Jeff Lynne
Producer(s)Jeff Lynne
Mr. Blue Sky: The Very Best of Electric Light Orchestra track listing
12 tracks
  1. "Mr. Blue Sky"
  2. "Evil Woman"
  3. "Strange Magic"
  4. "Don't Bring Me Down"
  5. "Turn to Stone"
  6. "Showdown"
  7. "Telephone Line"
  8. "Livin' Thing"
  9. "Do Ya"
  10. "Can't Get It Out of My Head"
  11. "10538 Overture"
  12. "Point of No Return"

Jeff Lynne re-recorded the song in his own home studio. It was released in a compilation album with other re-recorded ELO songs under the ELO name.[17]

Covers
  • Hard rock band Silent Rage recorded a version on their 1989 album Don't Touch Me There, but changed a few lyrics and renamed it to "Can't Get Her Out of My Head".
  • A live cover version by Fountains of Wayne appeared as a B-side on the 1997 single "Sink to the Bottom" and later on the 2005 album Out of State Plates.
  • In 2006, the teenage drama The OC featured a cover version of the song in an episode and also commissioned the indie artist John Paul White to cover the track for Music from the OC: Mix 6 "Covering Our Tracks".
  • The song was covered by the hard rock group Velvet Revolver on their 2007 album Libertad.
  • Telekinesis covered the song on the 2010 American Laundromat Records release Sing Me to Sleep - Indie Lullabies.
  • Progressive rock band Transatlantic covered the song on their 2014 album Kaleidoscope, featured on disc 2 of the special edition.
  • Patty Pravo covered the song in Italian as "Come un Ponte Sull'Acqua Che Va" on her album Incontro (1975).
  • The Silent League covered the song on the bonus disc of their 2010 album But You've Always Been the Caretaker.

References
  1. "Jeff Lynne Song Database - Electric Light Orchestra - Can't Get It Out Of My Head song analysis". Jefflynnesongs.com. Retrieved 9 October 2016.
  2. Farley, Keith. "Various Artists – Songs You Know by Heart: Songs of Love". AllMusic. Retrieved 9 October 2016.
  3. "Chart History - Can't Get It Out Of My Head". Billboard. Retrieved 8 June 2020.
  4. DeGagne, Mike. "Can't Get It Out of My Head - Electric Light Orchestra | Song Info". AllMusic. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
  5. "Can't Get It Out of My Head" (single liner notes). Electric Light Orchestra. United Artists Records. 1974. Back cover.CS1 maint: others (link) CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  6. "Electric Light Orchestra - Can't Get It Out Of My Head". Discogs. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
  7. "Jeff Lynne Song Database - Electric Light Orchestra - Can't Get It Out Of My Head song analysis". www.jefflynnesongs.com. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
  8. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  9. "Image : RPM Weekly - Library and Archives Canada". Bac-lac.gc.ca. Retrieved 9 October 2016.
  10. Hung, Steffen. "Discografie Electric Light Orchestra". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 22 April 2013.
  11. Cash Box Top 100. 22 March 1975. Retrieved 8 June 2020.
  12. Hawtin, Steve. "Song artist 171 - Electric Light Orchestra". Tsort.info. Retrieved 2 May 2013.
  13. "ELO". Wweb.uta.edu. Retrieved 9 October 2016.
  14. "Charts". Wweb.uta.edu. Retrieved 9 October 2016.
  15. "Image : RPM Weekly - Library and Archives Canada". Bac-lac.gc.ca. Archived from the original on 6 October 2016. Retrieved 2016-10-09.
  16. "Top 100 Hits of 1975/Top 100 Songs of 1975". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 9 October 2016.
  17. "Releases : elo - Mr. Blue Sky - The Very Best of Electric Light Orchestra". Elo.biz. 5 October 2012. Retrieved 28 February 2013.
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