“Another heart breaks” is a song written and produced by Jeff Lynne, and performed by the ELO (Electric Light Orchestra).

Playing the Acoustic Guitar, Background Vocal, Electric Guitar, Piano, Synthesizer, Vocal, Composer, Lyricist, Producer was Jeff Lynne. Background Vocal and Bass Guitar by Kelly Groucutt. The Conductor was Rainer Pietsch. Guitar, Piano, Synthesizer played by Richard Tandy Drums. Percussionist was Bev Bevan.

It was track #6 from their 1981 album Time. The track is 3:55 long and mostly instrumental with the verse “Another Heart Breaks” repeated over and over with a 69 BPM tempo, curiously, maybe not so coincidentally, close to a normal heart beat rate. It’s a slow song, in contrast with many others from the album it’s in. It’s meant to be mood-setting, atmospheric, yet it turns out to be a very modern sound for the early 1980s, bringing side A to a conclusion. “Another heart breaks” allows the listener to take a breather while still fitting in the melancholic tone and the concept of the album Time.

This video of “Another Heart Breaks” interprets the melancholic rhythm of psychedelic power that is infused, almost compressed in this song. The energy album Time is still present in this piece, it’s not gone or exhausted, but it’s contained yet it can be easily detected in between the obsessive verses.

Or it can be read as a rushed production, as Jeff Lynne and the ELO were under pressure to produce the single, and that could justify the lack of lyrics and variation in the melody.

Either way, it fits very well in the album Time, and if there isn’t enough variation in the song, which is in great part instrumental, it does introduce variety in the album in a clever way, as most of Jeff Lynne‘s solutions and ideas. It’s the perfect send off without being an abrupt stop and conclusion to a rather frenetic album.

It was released as a single in January 1982 as the B-Side for “The Rain is Falling”.