| "Rock'n'Roll Is King" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Electric Light Orchestra | ||||
| from the album Secret Messages | ||||
| B-side | "After All" | |||
| Released | June 1983 | |||
| Format | 7" | |||
| Recorded | 1983 Wisseloord Studios, Hilversum, the Netherlands | |||
| Genre | Rock, country rock | |||
| Length | 3:07 | |||
| Label | Jet Records | |||
| Writer(s) | Jeff Lynne | |||
| Producer | Jeff Lynne | |||
| Electric Light Orchestra singles chronology | ||||
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"Rock 'n' Roll Is King" is a song written and performed by Electric Light Orchestra released as a single from the 1983 album Secret Messages. The song sees the band return to their rock roots and features a violin solo by Mik Kaminski.
The song went through many changes during recording and at one point was going to be called "Motor Factory" with a completely different set of lyrics. The single proved to be ELO's last UK top twenty hit single, and reached #19 in the U.S.
"I sang on quite a few tracks; I sang on Rock 'N' Roll Is King. I played on that one, but it wasn't called that, it was something about something about working at Austin Longbridge! It was full of car plant sounds, you could hear it going clank, clank, clank, like somebody hitting a lathe with a hammer, and Jeff went away and made it into Rock 'n' Roll Is King, wiped off everything we'd done, no, there was still some backing left in there, It was much better how he finished it off than it was before." Dave Morgan (March 4, 1999 - King Of The Universe #8)
| Chart (1983) | Peak Position |
|---|---|
| Austrailian ARIA Singles Chart | 13 |
| Austrian Ö3 Austria Top 40 | 16 |
| Canadian RPM Top Singles | 4 |
| Dutch Top 40 | 4 |
| German Media Control Singles Chart | 17 |
| Irish Singles Chart | 4 |
| South African Singles Chart | 7 |
| UK Singles Chart[1] | 13 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 19 |
| U.S. Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks | 19 |
| U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary | 36 |
| U.S. Cash Box Top 100 Singles | 22 |