Why does ELO have a spaceship?

As a passionate ELO fan and aficionado of prog rock concept albums, I am obsessed with the cosmic narrative that permeates the band‘s music and visual aesthetic. This interstellar inspiration stems directly from lead singer and songwriter Jeff Lynne‘s long-time fascination with outer space and sci-fi. For Lynne, the signature ELO spaceship encapsulates his ambition to use catchy orchestral rock as a vessel to launch listeners on melodic moon missions.

The Spaceship‘s Origins

The first appearance of ELO‘s now-iconic spaceship was on the cover art for their 1977 album "Out of the Blue." This synth-heavy concept album wove songs about space travel like "Starlight" and "Across the Border" into a cohesive galactic narrative. The blue UFO emerging from the clouds, designed by artist Shusei Nagaoka, represented ELO "arriving out of the blue" as hitmakers. According to Lynne, the ship symbolized riding a wave of newfound mainstream popularity.

By the Numbers:

• ELO album sales post-"Out of the Blue": Over 50 million
• Peak US chart position for "Out of the Blue": #4
• "Mr. Blue Sky" streams on Spotify (as of 2023): Over 300 million

Buoyed by their breakout, Lynne doubled down on the celestial concept. ELO‘s 1978 world tour in support of "Out of the Blue" featured stunning spaceship staging.

Inside the Iconic Spaceship Stage

For their 78/79 "Out of the Blue" tour, ELO designed an enormous 30-ton aluminum spacecraft stage set piece that could house the entire band during concerts. Intricate details made concertgoers feel they were inside a fantasy spaceship, including:

• Otherworldly fog effects
• Orb-like disco lighting
• A winding spaceship hallway entrance
• Multi-level metal platforms for each band member
• A lighting rig resembling a UFO on top

By the Numbers:

This walk-in metallic spacecraft combined with ELO‘s galactic silver jumpsuits created an immersive interstellar concert experience that transported audiences lightyears away.

The Spaceship‘s Lasting Legacy

While the "Out of the Blue" era spaceship stage was only used for one tour, the cosmic UFO remains an iconic ELO symbol nearly 50 years later. It encapsulates Jeff Lynne‘s recurring musical mission: using orchestral rock as a vessel to launch listeners towards the stars.

Even recent ELO albums like 2015‘s "Alone in the Universe" reference their signature spaceship, with Lynne crooning "I‘m leaving today aboard a flight of my own design" in the title track. And the music video for 2019 single "Time of Our Life" features ELO‘s spaceship zooming across the cosmos.

For longtime captain Jeff Lynne, ELO‘s adventurous musical astronauts may reshape their sonic vehicles over time. But their collective passion for weaving galactic experiences through the power of song remains an unchanging constant. Like all great prog rock concept albums, ELO‘s obsession with cosmic lore continues evolving across a creative universe grounded in that very first "Out of the Blue" spaceship. It connected then – and connects still – binding ELO‘s community of starry-eyed dreamers across the decades.