So it was in Cherokee Studios in Los Angeles that engineers Duane Scott and Kevin Gray were instructed to manually add the effect to the completed stereo master. The recording was completed and Jeff was bringing the tapes from England to California when he got the idea to add the effect to the song. This was a very late addition to the song. The other interesting bit about the intro is the muted, mono telephone sound, as if the listener is listening through the telephone to the song's intro. If one listens closely, they are clearly not a match. The band did not simply record the tone and insert that into the record as has been stated in some interviews, but rather they studied the sounds and then recreated them on synthesizer. It was likely to have been the Jet Records office in California because the time zones from England or Germany to America would have likely meant the offices were closed when the call was made. To get the sound just right, the band called to an office in America in when they knew no one would answer. A sample can be heard HERE comparing first the 1970s North American ringback, followed by a sample in the original Telephone Line song, then the 1970s British ringback. The band was having much greater success in America at the time and this inspired them to use the North American sound rather than the British sound. First, the ringback tone heard (as one would hear when waiting for the line to pick up) is a North American ringback tone which is quite distinctive from that heard in the U.K. Telephone Effects: The telephone intro for the song has drawn a lot of attention over the years. The early working title was Bad Salad Telephone (a play on the term 'sad ballad'), so it appears that the telephone theme was an early concept for the song. Just before release, other minor edits (including the muted telephone intro) were done at Cherokee Studios in Los Angeles, California, USA.

The orchestra was recorded later at De Lane Lea Studios, Wembley, England. This recording was for the backing track only. Telephone Line was originally recorded at Musicland Studios in Munich, Germany during July of 1976. Blue Sky The Very Best Of Electric Light Orchestra LP album (2012 October 5 - Europe - Frontiers Records FR LP 570) Performed By: Jeff Lynne (vocals, guitar, piano, bass, drums, keyboards), Marc Mann (strings), Steve Jay (shakers, tambourine).Engineered By: Steve Jay, Ryan Ulyate & Marc Mann.Record Location: Bungalow Palace Studio, California USA (Jeff Lynne's home studio).Initially Released On: A New World Record LP album (1976 October - UK - Jet UAG 30017) Performed By: Jeff Lynne (guitar, vocals), Bev Bevan (drums, percussion), Richard Tandy (piano, moog synthesizer, guitar, clavinet), Kelly Groucutt (bass, vocals), Mik Kaminski (violin), Hugh McDowell (cello), Melvyn Gale (cello), Louis Clark (orchestra conductor).Engineered By: Mack (Musicland) John Richards & Dick Plant (De Lane Lea) Duane Scott (Cherokee).Record Location: Musicland Studios, Munich, Germany (all music except the orchestra and choir) De Lane Lea Studios, Wembley, England (orchestra and choir) Cherokee Studios, Los Angeles, California, USA (edits and things).Electric Light Orchestra - Telephone LineĮlectric Light Orchestra (Original Version)

Electric light orchestra telephone line