On Thursday September 24 - a lucky few journalists were granted a playback of the album in a central London hotel, followed by a Q&A session with the man himself. The assembled hacks have been politely requested to abstain from reviewing the album till nearer the time; suffice to say that it is full of succinct melodic pop of the sort you don't normally get from 67-year-old music biz veterans who last had a Top 40 hit in 1986.

All written and performed by Lynne - who handled, as well as vocals, production and arrangements, the drum, bass, guitar, keyboard and synth duties - Alone In The Universe is a veritable late-period tour de force from a musician who started out over half a century ago with bands such as The Andicaps, The Nightriders and The Idle Race.

The album took 18 months to record, Lynne encouraged by the reaction he received at 2014's Hyde Park concert, where 50,000 ELO lovers sang along with every song.