Jeff Lynne

09/02/21 • 35 min

In episode three of Gary Barlow’s ‘We Write the Songs’ Gary talks to Jeff Lynne. Not only a songwriter, but also producer, sound engineer, instrumentalist and singer. The two discuss the inspiration behind the Electric Light Orchestra, how Lynne works in the studio to achieve his tracks, how the musical ideas are born and how he writes his lyrics. They talk about the importance of chord sequences to his work and how one of Jeff Lynne’s most famous songs ‘Mr Blue Sky’ came to be. They also discuss Lynne’s collaborations and producing successes with ‘The Travelling Wilburys, Roy Orbison and Tom Petty.

Previous Episode

Sir Paul McCartney

The legendary Sir Paul McCartney talks to Gary Barlow about the art of songwriting and what it was really like to work with everyone from John Lennon to George Martin to Kanye West. He reveals how he and John Lennon only began writing songs because other bands were performing the same covers as them at The Cavern Club. He shares the powerful influence Sir George Martin had on their songs and how he and John Lennon rarely wrote any musical notation down. That meant they would often arrive in the studio, not remembering their own melodies and having to recall them just from the chords and lyrics. Sir Paul also describes how the brilliance of George Harrison and Ringo Starr in the studio added to the magic of some of the best songs ever made.

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