Teresa Spencer
Words by Teresa Spencer
Watch the full interview with Eric Troyer here.
Starting his passion for music at the tender age of 3, musical legend Eric Troyer never imagined that he would eventually perform on various albums as a session musician and backing vocalist or keyboardist on albums by John Lennon, Celine Dion or Bonnie Tyler. Also performing with other legendary artists like Billy Joel, Meat Loaf, Patti Smith, James Taylor and bands like Kiss and Aerosmith, he is on the rise once again and adding more notes of legacy to his amazing and never-ending career.
I caught up with Troyer as a result of his upcoming performance in Jacksonville with the Orchestra, former members of ELO, who are performing with the Jacksonville Rock Orchestra at the Florida Theatre on April 10, 2025. Troyer ended up being a founding member in this band as he was recruited in 1988 by Electric Light Orchestra’s band leader, Bev Bevan, to collaborate as a singer, songwriter, keyboardist and occasional guitarist. They founded ELO Part II and The Orchestra.
We opened the interview with a little laughter about the fact ELO’s hit “Blue Sky” is now popular again as it is being streamed frequently as a background song for folks pushing the new social media platform. He said he had no knowledge about it, but he said he has no doubt as it is an upbeat and happy song and it got lots of play being featured in “Guardians of the Galaxy.”
Having so many years with so many experiences in his musical journey he shared that his most fond crowd memory to date actually came out of a television news interview. Troyer explained that one of the most interesting ELO Part II experiences happened in Buenos Aires. They met with the press for the TV interview, and it quickly became clear that the locals were most excited about their hit song “Last Train to London.” Troyer said that particular song wasn’t even on the set list even though it was No. 1 in South America for many weeks. In an effort to keep the crowd happy, the band got together and did an acoustic set of the song live on television. When the base rift occurred Troyer said “the place went nuts” he said it was a good thing that they ended up doing it. It ended with “the crowd singing louder than we were.”
I couldn’t resist asking one of my favorite questions to longtime rock stars … What is the craziest thing to ever happen to you on a tour bus? Of course, he hesitated momentarily and got an instant smirk on his face. Obviously deciding to give a clean answer he proceeded to explain they had one particular tour manager which had fallen out of favor with the band, and they were thinking of firing him. After a show, they all loaded on the bus and got way down the road to suddenly realize they had actually left the terrible tour manager behind, stranding him. “We had to go back to get him,” Troyer said.
Troyer currently lives in New Jersey where he has a recording studio and is always writing and working with other artists. In addition to music as a career and hobby, he is an avid gardener, something he enjoys with his wife. The Orchestra will be touring all through 2025. They also have a new documentary out on Amazon Prime called “No Rewind,” featuring lots of great memories of the making of the band and their journey since inception.
The Orchestra performs April 10 at the Florida Theatre. For tickets or more information, visit floridatheatre.com.
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