Livin' Thing
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| "Livin' Thing" | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
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| Single by Electric Light Orchestra | ||
| from the album A New World Record | ||
| B-side(s) | "Fire On High" | |
| Released | 1976 | |
| Format | 7" | |
| Recorded | 1976 Musicland Studios , Munich | |
| Genre | Rock | |
| Length | 3:17 | |
| Label | Jet Records, United Artists | |
| Producer(s) | Jeff Lynne | |
| Chart positions | ||
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| Electric Light Orchestra singles chronology | ||
| "Strange Magic" (1976) |
"Livin' Thing"" (1976) |
"Rockaria!" (1977) |
| A New World Record track listing | ||
| "So Fine" (5) |
"Livin' Thing" (6) |
"Above the Clouds" (7) |
"Livin' Thing" is a song written and performed by Electric Light Orchestra.
Contents |
[edit] Overview
It was written by Jeff Lynne and appears on their 1976 platinum selling album A New World Record. In August 2006, it was named by the UK's Q magazine as the number 1 Guilty Pleasure single of all time, a list which celebrated uncool but excellent records.[1].The Single had the added bonus of having "Fire On High" on the flip side, a song that became the band's most popular instrumental piece.
[edit] Meaning
The repeated chorus of the song:
- It's a livin' thing.
- It's a terrible thing to lose.
- It's a given thing.
- What a terrible thing to lose.
have been subjected to frequent interpretation because the song never explicitly identifies what "it" is. This has led to the mistaken impression by some that the song was intended as an anti-abortion or a pro-environmentalist statement. Lyrical imagery elsewhere in the song may also give support to these impressions.
However, a straightforward reading of the lyrics identifies "it" as:
- You and your sweet desire.
Jeff Lynne has confirmed that the song was intended to be about love and the loss of love.
[edit] Chart performance
It reached #4 in the UK Charts and stayed there for 12 weeks. It peaked at #4 on the Canadian charts for three straight weeks (the final week in 1976 and the first two weeks of 1977). In the United States, the song peaked at #13, during Christmastime of 1976.
[edit] Covers
In 2004, The Beautiful South covered the track for their covers album Golddiggas, Headnodders and Pholk Songs. It reached #24 on the UK charts.
[edit] Livin' Thing - CD1
Livin' Thing [3:17]
I'm Living Good [4:00]
(Sony Music UK; 6753711)
[edit] Livin' Thing - CD2
Livin' Thing [3:17]
Lovin' You [2:53]
Another Night With The Boys [3:32]
(Sony Music UK; 6753712)
[edit] Trivia
- ELO's "Livin' Thing" plays over the closing credits of P.T. Anderson's Boogie Nights, used tongue-in-cheek, since the song starts to play when we see Dirk Diggler's penis, and is featured on Volume 1 of the soundtrack.
- JCPenney used Livin' Thing in its 2005 Christmas commercials.
- In Australia, the New South Wales Government uses the song in its "Our Environment, It's A Living Thing" campaign commercials.
| Electric Light Orchestra |
| Founding members: Jeff Lynne | Roy Wood | Bev Bevan Other members in Electric Light Orchestra |
| Electric Light Orchestra discography |
|---|
| Studio albums: The Electric Light Orchestra/No Answer | ELO 2 | On the Third Day | Eldorado, A Symphony | Face the Music | A New World Record | Out of the Blue | Discovery | Xanadu | Time | Secret Messages | Balance of Power | Zoom |
| Live albums: The Night the Light Went On (In Long Beach) | Live at Winterland '76 | Live at Wembley '78 |
| Compilation albums: Showdown | Olé ELO | The Light Shines On | The Light Shines On Vol 2 | ELO's Greatest Hits | A Box of their Best | Afterglow | ELO's Greatest Hits Vol. 2 | Strange Magic | Flashback | The Essential Electric Light Orchestra | All Over the World |
