What is pop music? Is it vapid, unchallenging, artless? Few would make an argument that most pop music is not those things. But can pop be more than that? Can pop music be ambitious? Sophisticated? Enduring? Jeff Lynne and his Electric Light Orchestra make a certainly convincing argument for that stance on their magnum opus, Out of the Blue.

Everything about the album, from its composition to its arrangement to its songwriting to its playing to its production is masterfully executed, creating a pop record that even the most die-hard pop music detractors would enjoy. Songs like Turn to Stone, Sweet Talking Woman, Night in the City, and Mr. Blue Sky (my nomination for Best Pop Song Ever) are complex yet enjoyable pop numbers that blur the line between ambition and accessibility. The rest of the album ain’t bad either. It’s a little much for one sitting at seventy minutes, but every second is worth it.