No amount of success from another band can discredit what the Beatles had going on. They are seen as the roots of music itself. Although many artists came before them, the Beatles marked a turning point in music that broke off a new lineage in the industry. Despite their immeasurable success, Paul McCartney has still spoken about sounds he wished he could’ve come up with. There was one band in particular that made McCartney jealous. Find out which band accomplished that feat below.

The Sound Paul McCartney Was Jealous Of

The Beatles’ breakup left a hole in the music industry. Although no one was genuinely able to fill their shoes, many stepped up to the plate and made an effort. New sounds were coming from all over, taking rock in a direction it had never been before. Prog rock took the genre’s crown, with Electric Light Orchestra being one of its best purveyors.

The man at the helm of ELO, Jeff Lynne, is credited as one of the most inventive rockers in history. Like the Beatles, he enjoyed experimenting with sound. Those experiments caught the ear of McCartney.

The Beatles’ Influence on ELO

While issuing a compliment to ELO, Paul McCartney ceded that part of their era-defining sound was deeply inspired by the Beatles. As all subsequent rockers did, ELO took notes from the Beatles’ more inventive albums. However, McCartney felt that Lynne managed to one-up the Beatles’ already era-defining sound.

“When I heard ELO, it was very what we been doing on Sgt. Pepper’s, very much what we been into, very sort of mathematical strings,” McCartney once said. “So I think the first thing was: ‘Oh, I know where he got that from.’ But then you can’t resist it. It’s just so good. You go, ‘Oh God, it’s a bloody good song, I wish we’d done that one.’”

“Jeff’s got a great voice,” McCartney added. “Being a singer, it’s not easy to do what he does. It’s an individual voice too, it’s distinctive, it’s nobody else, it’s Jeff Lynne.”

It’s somewhat comforting to know that even the Beatles occasionally felt jealous of other groups. It certainly underscores the need to continue creating in the face of so many great works of art already available. If ELO can make McCartney wish he had done things differently, then anything is possible.

(Photo by Cummings Archives/Redferns)