"Strange Magic" is a song written

Jeff Lynne Jeffrey Lynne (born 30 December 1947) is an English musician, singer-songwriter, and record producer. He is best known as the co-founder of the rock music, rock band Electric Light Orchestra (ELO), which was formed in 1970. As a songwriter, h ...

and performed by

Electric Light Orchestra The Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) are an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1970 by songwriters and multi-instrumentalists Jeff Lynne and Roy Wood with drummer Bev Bevan. Their music is characterised by a fusion of pop, classical a ...

(ELO). It was released on their 1975 '' Face the Music'' album. Released as a single in 1976, the single was edited in the US, whereas in the UK the song appeared as the album cut minus the orchestral intro. The US single edit can be found on the remastered ''Face the Music'' released in September 2006. The song was also included on the band's 1978 ''

The ELO EP Below is the complete Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) discography including imports, videos, and hit singles. ELO's back catalogue is unusual since their compilation albums far outweigh their studio output in number, owing to the large number of ...

''. A remastered version was included on the box set '' Flashback'' in 2000. The 'weeping' guitar lick was provided by keyboardist

Richard Tandy Richard Tandy (born 26 March 1948) is an English musician. He is best known as the keyboardist in the rock band Electric Light Orchestra ("ELO"). His palette of keyboards (including Minimoog, Clavinet, Mellotron, and piano) was an importan ...

while

played a 12-string acoustic guitar fed through a phase shifter. The song has been described as

psychedelic Psychedelics are a subclass of hallucinogenic drugs whose primary effect is to trigger non-ordinary states of consciousness (known as psychedelic experiences or "trips").Pollan, Michael (2018). ''How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of ...

Critical reception

AllMusic's Donald A. Guarisco considered it one of the best tracks on their "breakthrough" album '' Face the Music'', praising Jeff Lynne's skill at "creating ballads that are as memorably hook-laden as his uptempo pop tunes", noting the "stunning intro full of swirling strings, some

George Harrison George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician and singer-songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian c ...

-styled slide guitar riffs". ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' considered it to be an "easy rocker" with "smooth vocals and skillful string arrangements." ''

Record World ''Record World'' magazine was one of the three main music industry trade magazines in the United States, along with '' Billboard'' and '' Cashbox''. It was founded in 1946 under the name ''Music Vendor'', but in 1964 it was changed to ''Record Wo ...

'' said that "an immaculate production by Jeff Lynne maintains the high calibre of the group's recorded work."

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Jeff Lynne version

re-recorded the song in his own home studio in 2012. It was released in a compilation album with other re-recorded ELO songs, under the ELO name.

References

External links

* 1975 songs 1976 singles 1970s ballads Electric Light Orchestra songs Jet Records singles Song recordings produced by Jeff Lynne Songs written by Jeff Lynne {{1970s-rock-song-stub