Moment of Truth (ELO Part II album)

Moment of Truth
Studio album by ELO Part II
Released	October 1994 (UK) 18 July 1995 (US)
Genre	Rock
Length	53:59
Label	Curb Records, Edel Music
Producer	Stephan Galfas
ELO Part II chronology
Performing ELO's Greatest Hits Live (1992) Moment of Truth (1994) One Night (1996)
Singles from Moment of Truth
"Power of a Million Lights" Released: 25 July 1994[1] "Breakin' Down the Walls" Released: 10 October 1994[2] "One More Tomorrow" Released: 1996 (Germany)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[3]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[4]
MusicHound	[5]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[6]

Moment of Truth is the second and final album by ELO Part II, released in October 1994. The cover illustration by Graham Reynolds depicts an incandescent light bulb shattering. The light bulb image continues a visual theme that began with the light bulb depicted on the cover of Electric Light Orchestra's debut album. Moment of Truth and the single "One More Tomorrow" would determine if ELO Part II would continue re-establishing themselves in America.^[7] "The Fox" was originally from the 1985 Kelly Groucutt EP, We Love Animals.^[8][9]

The album was reissued in 2021 by Renaissance Records on CD and 2×LP, the first time Moment of Truth was available on LP. Both the CD and LP releases included bonus tracks.^[10]

Reception

In 1994, Music & Media called Moment of Truth "thin" compared to ELO Part II's predecessor Electric Light Orchestra (ELO).^[11] They also noted that the way ELO Part II handled symphonic rock was similar to the way Alan Parsons handled it.^[11] In an earlier issue that year, Music & Media noted that the single "Power of a Million Lights" had a sound consistent with ELO under Jeff Lynne, the only difference being the change from strings to synthesizers.^[12]

Track listing

Original CD

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Lead vocals	Length
1.	"Moment of Truth (Overture)"	Louis Clark		4:07
2.	"Breakin' Down the Walls"	Phil Bates	Bates	4:27
3.	"Power of a Million Lights"	Eric Troyer	Troyer	4:54
4.	"Interlude 3"	Clark		0:32
5.	"One More Tomorrow"	Bev Bevan, Mik Kaminski, Bates	Bates	5:00
6.	"Don't Wanna"	Troyer	Troyer	3:41
7.	"Voices"	Kaminski, Bates	Bates	4:27
8.	"Interlude 2"	Clark		0:20
9.	"Vixen"			0:04
10.	"The Fox"	Kelly Groucutt	Groucutt	4:35
11.	"Love or Money"	Troyer, Bates	Troyer	4:08
12.	"Blue Violin"	Groucutt, Kaminski	Groucutt	1:10
13.	"Whiskey Girls"	Bevan, Bates	Bates	3:37
14.	"Interlude 1"	Clark		0:58
15.	"Twist of the Knife"	Bevan, Groucutt, Bates	Groucutt	4:30
16.	"So Glad You Said Goodbye"	Bevan, Troyer, Bates	Troyer	4:12
17.	"Underture"	Clark		2:52
18.	"The Leaving"			0:25
Total length:				53:59

Tracks included on 2021 reissue:^[13]

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
19.	"Local Hero (A Story Sad But True)" (demo)	Glen Burtnik, Troyer[14]	3:48
20.	"Power of a Million Lights" (demo)		4:49
21.	"Love or Money" (demo)		3:56
22.	"Rain Down Fire" (demo)		5:19
23.	"Breakin' Down the Walls" (radio edit)		3:51
24.	"Power of a Million Lights" (radio edit)		3:50

Personnel

ELO Part II

• Bev Bevan – drums
• Mik Kaminski – violin
• Louis Clark – orchestral keyboards and orchestral arrangements
• Kelly Groucutt – bass and vocals
• Eric Troyer – keyboards and vocals
• Phil Bates – guitar and vocals

Additional musicians

• Percussion: Hossam Ramzy
• Strings: The London Session Orchestra; leader: Gavyn Wright (included Wilf Gibson)

References

1. "front cover with release date".
2. "front cover with release date".
3. Moment of Truth at AllMusic
4. Larkin, Colin, ed. (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th edn). London: Omnibus Press. p. 916. ISBN 978-0-85712-595-8.
5. Graff, Gary; Durchholz, Daniel, eds. (1999). MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Farmington Hills, MI: Visible Ink Press. pp. 382–83. ISBN 1-57859-061-2.
6. Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian, eds. (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th edn). New York, NY: Fireside/Simon & Schuster. p. 275. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
7. Boehm, Mike (22 July 1995). "ELO Part II: It Can Rise, but Can It Shine?". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 13 August 2020.
8. "Kelly Groucutt". face-the-music.de. Retrieved 18 December 2020.
9. We Love Animals at AllMusic
10. Sinclair, Keith (28 June 2021). "ELO Part II: Renaissance Reissues Update". elobeatlesforever.com. Retrieved 30 August 2021.
11. "New Releases – Albums" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 11. Issue 32. Amsterdam, Netherlands. 6 August 1994. p. 5. Retrieved 4 March 2021 – via WorldRadioHistory.Com.
12. "New Releases – Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 11. Issue 29. Amsterdam, Netherlands. 16 July 1994. p. 8. Retrieved 4 March 2021 – via WorldRadioHistory.Com.
13. Moment of Truth (CD back cover). ELO Part II. United States: Renaissance Records. 2021. RMED-991.
14. The Abbey Road Sessions (CD). Pat Petrillo's NYC Big Rhythm Band. United States: PALMETTO+. 2019.