Jeff Lynne revived
Electric Light Orchestra in 2015 -- due to legal reasons, they were now called
Jeff Lynne's ELO -- releasing a comeback album called Alone in the Universe and steadily mounting a return to the road. Several dates happened in 2016, but the tour reached its apex in June 2017, when the group played in front of 60,000 people at London's Wembley Stadium. Released five months after that June 24 gig,
Wembley or Bust -- which was accompanied by a concert film -- features the entirety of the gig, and if it's not heard too closely, it could sometimes be mistaken for an
ELO greatest-hits album.
Lynne re-creates the arrangements of his studio work throughout the concert; even when
the Traveling Wilburys' "Handle with Care" is hauled out, it sounds like it did on record. The vocals are where the seams show, as
Lynne is a little rougher and lower than he was at his peak. Although this is a noticeable difference, it's hardly enough to mar what amounts to a thoroughly enjoyable -- and perhaps a tad triumphant -- return to live performance for
Jeff Lynne. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine