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"Kuiama"
Song by Electric Light Orchestra
from the album ELO 2
Released1973
Recorded1972, Air Studios, London, England
GenreProgressive rock
Length11:19
LabelHarvest Records
Songwriter(s)Jeff Lynne
Producer(s)Jeff Lynne
ELO 2 track listing
5 tracks
Side one
  1. "In Old England Town (Boogie No. 2)"
  2. "Momma"
  3. "Roll Over Beethoven"
Side two
  2. "From the Sun to the World (Boogie No. 1)"
  3. "Kuiama"

"Kuiama" is a song written by Jeff Lynne and performed by Electric Light Orchestra. Singer Jeff Lynne pronounces it 'Ki-ama'.

The song is the last track of the ELO 2 LP. At 11:19, it is the longest track on the album, and the longest song ever recorded by Electric Light Orchestra. It tells the tale of a soldier and an orphan girl. The soldier is trying to comfort the girl and also to explain how he was the one who killed her parents.

Although not released as a single, the song has been included on compilation albums, such as Olé ELO, Afterglow and The Light Shines On Vol 2, and has been performed live. It was also a favourite of the ELO band members at the time.

"This one, without doubt, is the favourite of all the band. It's a sad story about a war orphan with a soldier explaining to her all about the war—and that it was he that killed her parents. The most sensitive thing we do."—Bev Bevan (1973, Birmingham Post & Mail article entitled: Chart Boost Coming For Brum And E.L.O.)

"I like Kuiama even though the opening reminds me of the opening of You Only Live Twice."—Wilfred Gibson.[1]

"That aside, however, we still have only a tenuously connected group of songs, as opposed to anything on the order of 'Kuiama,' on the last album, which used its length and the group's unique approach to music to achieve real emotional impact."—Greg Shaw[2]

References

  1. ^ Gibson, Wilf (October 2003). "The Wilf Gibson Interview". Cherry Blossom Clinic (Interview). Interviewed by Martin Kinch. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2016-01-14.
  2. ^ Shaw, Greg (31 January 1974). "On the Third Day". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 25 August 2007. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
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