Tubular Bells
Encyclopedia
Tubular Bells is the debut record album of English musician Mike Oldfield
, released in 1973
. It was the first album released by Virgin Records
and an early cornerstone of the company's success. Vivian Stanshall
provided the voice of the "Master of Ceremonies" who reads off the list of instruments at the end of the first movement.
The piece was later orchestrated by David Bedford
for The Orchestral Tubular Bells
version and it had three sequels in the 1990s, Tubular Bells II
(1992), Tubular Bells III
(1998) and The Millennium Bell
(1999). Finally, the album was fully re-recorded as Tubular Bells 2003
at its 30th anniversary in 2003.
A newly mastered
and mixed
re-issue of the original album appeared in June 2009 on Mercury Records
, with bonus material. On 6 June there were international bell-ringing ceremonies to promote the release.
, except "The Sailor's Hornpipe" (traditional, arranged by Mike Oldfield) Copyright 1973 Virgin Music Publishers Ltd.
, bass guitar
, electric guitar
, Farfisa
, Hammond
, and Lowrey
organ
s; flageolet
, fuzz guitars, glockenspiel
, "honky tonk" piano
(piano modified to sound more percussive), mandolin
, piano
, "Piltdown Man
", percussion
, Spanish guitar, producer, "taped motor drive amplifier organ chord", timpani
, vocals and tubular bell
s.
The cover design was by Trevor Key of Cooke Key Associates (with Brian Cooke), who would go on to create the covers of many Oldfield albums. The concept for the triangular bell on the album cover art originally came from the idea of a bell which had been destroyed. Oldfield had come up with this when he had dented the set of Tubular bell
s used to record the album when playing them.
The "bent bell" image on the cover is also associated with Oldfield, even being used for the logo of his personal music company, Oldfield Music, Ltd. The image was also the main focus for the cover art of the successive Tubular Bells albums. Tubular Bells has also been issued as a vinyl picture disc, showing the bent bell on a skyscape.
The album cover
for Tubular Bells was among the ten chosen by the Royal Mail
for a set of "Classic Album Cover" postage stamp
s issued on 7 January 2010.
; they, along with their boss, Richard Branson
, decided to give Oldfield a chance. Virgin Records
released Oldfield's debut album Tubular Bells as its first album; hence the catalogue number V2001 (although V2002 and V2003 were released on the same date).
The significance of this album to the Virgin empire is not lost on Richard Branson, who named one of his first Virgin America
aircraft, an Airbus A319-112, N527VA Tubular Belle. Prior to this Virgin Atlantic had named a Boeing 747
-4Q8 , G-VHOT Tubular Belle, in 1994.
Virgin reissued the album a number of times including in 2000 for a HDCD
release, and in 2001 for a SACD
release. The HDCD release contained liner notes by David Laing, and the SACD release notes were by Phil Newell and Simon Heyworth.
The 50th Anniversary edition of the music magazine Music Week
features the album in the official Top-Selling UK albums 1959–2009 at No. 35, noting it as the only entry that did not yield a hit single. In the Q
& Mojo
Classic Special Edition Pink Floyd & The Story of Prog Rock
, the album came #9 in its list of "40 Cosmic Rock Albums".
, gave away 2.25 million free copies of the full original Tubular Bells to its readers; this came in a card packet displaying the original artwork.
EMI
(owners of the Virgin Records label) earned between £200,000 and £500,000 from the promotion. The Mail on Sunday claimed that their promotion increased sales of the album by 30%; however industry sources noted that this was not a significant rise for the title at the time. This cover-mount deal came prior to the album's transfer from Virgin/EMI back to Oldfield.
Oldfield attacked EMI in the press for agreeing this deal with The Mail on Sunday, not having been consulted about it. He also stated that he felt that it devalued the work. In a poll conducted by Music Week, to whom Oldfield wrote a letter about the situation, 89.9% of people supported Oldfield's view that EMI and The Mail on Sunday should have at least asked him about the cover-mount promotion.
On 15 April 2009, Mercury announced the transfer of Oldfield's Virgin albums to the label, and the first album, Tubular Bells, was re-released in June 2009. Tubular Bells was released on various formats, which include an original vinyl, a new remix, a 2CD edition and DVD
. There were also bell-ringing events on 6 June 2009 at 6pm, a reference to 666
.
and the piece "Harbinger" on the album Music of the Spheres are clearly derived from the opening of Tubular Bells. The opening is also quoted directly in the song "Five Miles Out
" from the album of the same name
, and the song also features his "trademark" instrument, "Piltdown Man
" (referring to his singing like a caveman, first heard on Tubular Bells).
for 279 weeks. It climbed the charts slowly but steadily, and did not reach number one for over a year. In doing so it displaced Oldfield's second album, Hergest Ridge
, which had been at number one for three weeks. This made Oldfield one of only three artists in the UK to beat himself to the top of the album charts.
The album sold more than 2,630,000 copies in the UK alone (making it the all-time 34th best seller in the UK), and according to some reports 15 to 17 million copies worldwide. The album went gold in the USA and Mike Oldfield received a Grammy Award
for the best Instrumental Composition
in 1975.
, gained the record considerable publicity and introduced the work to a broader audience. Along with a number of other Oldfield pieces it was used in the 1979 NASA
movie, The Space Movie
. The opening theme has been sampled by many other artists such as Janet Jackson
on her song "The Velvet Rope
". The opening theme has also gained cultural significance as a 'haunting theme'; partly due to the association with The Exorcist.
In television it was also used in several episodes of the Dutch children's series Bassie en Adriaan
, an episode ("Ghosts") of the BBC
series My Family and an episode ("Poltergeist III - Dipesto Nothing") of Moonlighting
. It was also used in a television advertisement for the Volkswagen Golf
Diesel in 2002. It has also been used in other films such as 1974's Black Christmas
, 1985's Weird Science
, 2001's Scary Movie 2
, 2002's The Master of Disguise
and 2004's Saved!
.
eventually played verbatim by organ and glockenspiel. This riff is made up of two bars; the first bar is in 7/8, the second bar is in 8/8. These are later joined by a different line in bass guitar. An occasional punchy organ chord, first heard at about 1:02 in, accents this piece, harmonised by variations of the anchor line and a later incorporated 3/4 chord sequence, both in piano. At around 2:55, a gentle flute line appears, which segues into a section of 4/4-7/8-7/8-4/4, and at 3:40 an electric guitar line, the latter entirely in 4/4.
After the electric guitar line ends, a softer, fast guitar line ("speed guitar," as listed in the liner notes) takes over, only to be interrupted by an acoustic guitar line overlaying the original piano phrase in major key. A gentle glockenspiel/piano piece takes over, but is later replaced with a fast piano section, occasionally accented with organ chords.
The mood of the first 6 minutes is soon replaced by edgy electric guitar and, afterwards, a sinister organ chord, with various changes in pitch and duration. But, once again, a more refined, carefree section ensues, dominated by acoustic guitar and piano, eventually returning to the soft riff first heard just past four minutes into the piece.
A 3/4 variation of the original theme comes next, followed by eerie bass and organ playing, segueing into a bluesy shuffle on electric guitar. Once again, when it looks like the piece will be serene (when the nasal choir intervenes), another edgy guitar line ensues, with Oldfield incorporating both 4/4 and 7/8.
After that, a more folky acoustic line plays (with background tambourine
), but is suddenly cut off by the tolling of bells. A weary acoustic guitar line follows, breaking into the eight-and-a-half minute "Finale" section, commencing with a double bass line in 5/4, polyrhythmically played with a 4/4 acoustic line. After the bass and guitar unite into the 4/4 line, the acoustic guitar tacets and is eventually replaced by soft pipe organ notes (usually lasting four or eight full beats) while the bass line plays.
After the 10-bar bass phrase is repeated several times, Stanshall introduces many of the instruments appearing in part one up to then, beginning with the keyboards, followed by glockenspiel and all guitars before the tubular bells are announced, the ensemble becoming more dynamic and full as more instruments are said. Finally, after the tubular bells enter, a wordless feminine chorus starts to sing. Farther down, the Finale ensemble fades out to an acoustic guitar solo, which takes up the remainder of part one.
At around 8:48, the piece becomes edgy and surreal again, as the "bagpipe guitars" enter the piece (electric guitars with added effects to give it the bagpipe-esque sound), playing a 12/8 piece of sorts. About 11 minutes in, the intensity of the section builds as the guitar pitches increase and a heavy piano "roll" plays, climaxed by a sudden ascending glissando on the piano.
What comes next is one of the more unusual parts of the entire album. Timpani rolls and drum kit commence this part, highlighted by unintelligible "lyrical" utterances, growls, and screams by Oldfield (This was alleged to be a rumour, however Simon Hayworth, audio engineer, recalled that Branson was getting impatient pressurising Oldfield to deliver the cut, and flustered they drove down to London and dumped a copy of entire uncut album, and he recalled that Branson wanted vocals on one of the albums, whereas Oldfield had no intentions of doing so. Oldfield said himself in an interview that he angrily stormed out of Branson's office yelling "You want lyrics!? I'll give you lyrics!". He then drank half a bottle of Jameson's whiskey
and demanded the engineer to take him to the studio where, intoxicated, he "screamed his brains out for 10 minutes". This was later used in the album in rebellion against Richard Branson
's desire to include at least one part with lyrics to release as a single).
This is listed in the liner notes as the "Piltdown Man
". Oldfield's yelling is countered by various phrases on piano, guitars, and the "Moribund chorus," with this piece abruptly ending on one loud shout exactly 16:29 in.
As expected, another quiet section ensues, a 12/8 piece mostly dominated by guitars and organ. This section gives an excellent insight into the psychedelic, spacey side of Oldfield (a similar sound to that of Pink Floyd
's David Gilmour
), which would also be present in his third album, Ommadawn
. After about five minutes, an optimistic organ line plays, segueing into a climactic arrangement of "Sailor's Hornpipe".
"Sailor's Hornpipe" begins with a mandolin playing at a moderately slow tempo, but quickly mutates into a gradually accented piece with multiple instruments (including an unlisted violin), ending with two loud, accented notes. In live performances, Oldfield would reach incredible tempos and "Sailor's Hornpipe" alone became a staple of his concerts in the 1970s and 1980s.
at the end of Part Two, the "Sailor's Hornpipe", was originally preceded by a longer slightly bizarre rendition of the piece. Loud marching footsteps trot around the sound channels as the "Sailor's Hornpipe" is played on acoustic instruments, whilst announcer Vivian Stanshall
gives an obviously-inebriated, improvised tour of the Manor. According to the liner notes for the Boxed vinyl set, this session occurred at four in the morning after Oldfield, engineer Tom Newman
and Stanshall had been drinking heavily. They placed microphones in the rooms of the Manor, hit record and set off on an unplanned tour of the house.
It was cut from the final version, though it can be heard "in all its magnificent foolishness" (from the liner notes) on Boxed
. The Boxed set reinstates the section at the end of side two of Tubular Bells. It can also be heard on the SACD
(multi-channel track only) This rendition of "Sailor's Hornpipe" was included in the 2009 Mercury reissue of Tubular Bells.
In addition, a version of Tubular Bells was originally released on the Spanish Boxed compilation such that Part Two ended with the "Ambient Guitars" movement without the "Sailor's Hornpipe" finale.
The use of record vs. equipment warnings re-appeared on album covers when quadraphonic
albums were marketed in the early to mid 1970s, and when Tubular Bells was later issued in quad, the American pressing removed the "tin boxes" statement. British and Australian quad pressings retained the statement, and most quad editions modified the top-right statements to read: "In Glorious Quadraphonic Sound; Can also be played on stereo and mono equipment at a pinch". Some British editions also had a sticker on the front declaring the quad edition to be "for people with four ears".
A small essay about the restoration and remastering of the album, included with the 25th Anniversary limited edition CD, concludes with: "...but (it) still can't be played on old tin boxes". Similarly, the re-recorded album Tubular Bells 2003
reprints the original warning with the word "still" (in italics) added.
A similar humorous "health warning" appeared on Oldfield's Amarok
album, which cautioned:
. This version was an edit of bits from part one which was not authorized by Oldfield. The single was released only in the US, where it peaked at #7 on the Billboard Hot 100
chart on May 11, 1974, making Oldfield a One Hit Wonder on the US charts.
"Mike Oldfield's Single
" was the first UK 7-inch single released by Mike Oldfield, in June 1974. It featured a re-recording (with oboe as the lead instrument) of Tubular Bells part two's "bagpipe guitars" section as the A-side, with "Froggy Went A-Courting" as the B-side. This was included in the 2009 Mercury reissue of Tubular Bells.
, London in 1971. Oldfield recorded the demos on a Bang & Olufsen
Beocord 1/4" tape machine which he had borrowed from Kevin Ayers
. Oldfield was able to overdub his playing by blocking off the erase head of the tape machine. The demos titled, "Tubular Bells Long", "Caveman Lead-In", "Caveman", "Peace Demo A" and "Peace Demo B" appeared on the DVD-Audio
version of the rerecording of Tubular Bells, Tubular Bells 2003
.
Pieces from Oldfield's 1971 demos appear on the 2009 Ultimate Edition Mercury reissue of Tubular Bells; also included on this release is a scrapped mix of the album from Spring 1973.
's narration with a newly recorded narration by John Cleese
. There is also a new mix of the original album on the 2009 Mercury reissue.
Other versions include a quadrophonic version in 1975 ("For people with four ears", as the sleeve said; the quad mix was later used for the multi-channel part of the SACD
release), an orchestra
l version in the same year (The Orchestral Tubular Bells with David Bedford
), and different live recordings; a complete one can be found on the double live album Exposed from 1979.
Personnel
. Oldfield's Virgin albums were transferred to the label, and re-released, starting 8 June 2009. Tubular Bells was released in four physical variations, and two digital variations in the UK and Ireland, and as five physical editions elsewhere. In April 2009 a new official website, TubularBells2009.com, was unveiled.
The new releases contain a new 2009 stereo mix of the album, which Oldfield created at his home in the Bahamas
in March 2009. The "Deluxe Edition" contains a 5.1 mix, and the "Ultimate Edition" box set contains a 60 page hardback book, a poster, plectrum
s and other pieces such as rough mixes and demo versions of the album. There is also a vinyl version released as part of the Back to Black series.
The liner notes include photos from the time and text written by Mark Powell about Oldfield and the album. The DVD also states on its label that it features the "Tubular Bells film" from The Old Grey Whistle Test as visual content; however, this appears not to be on the DVD and is also not listed on the outer cover of the album.
The Digital Edition contains the same audio content as the Ultimate Edition. The Vinyl Edition is part of the Back to Black series, and contains the original 1973 mix of the album. Downloads are also available from Back to Black website. The Vinyl Edition carries the original seascape
artwork.
Oldfield's albums Hergest Ridge
and Ommadawn
have subsequently also been reissued in remastered and remixed editions.
Audio
Visual
New artwork has also been used, such as the bell on a white background, which was used for the Ultimate Edition, and the bell on a black background, which was used for The Collection.
, containing the album and a disc of Oldfield's tracks from 1974 to 1983 was advertised on television during the run up to Father's Day. The actor Tom Baker
, known for his role as the Doctor
in Doctor Who
, provides his voice-over for the advert. Baker also did the voice-over for the advert for The Best of Tubular Bells
in 2000. The Collection charted at number 11 in the UK Albums Chart
.
Some stores, such as audio/video retailer Richer Sounds
, ran promotions for the album. The Richer Sounds promotion was a prize draw, where first prize was a Cambridge Audio
Hi-Fi system and a signed copy of the Ultimate edition of Tubular Bells. Oldfield has also endorsed Cambridge Audio products.
A short old mix of the introduction piece was released as a promotional single, and was first played on BBC Radio 2
's Radcliffe & Maconie show on 26 May 2009. The single begins with the "Introduction" piece, then moves into the "Fast Guitars" and "Basses" pieces, before returning to the "Introduction" piano part.
Oldfield was interviewed on the Radcliffe & Maconie show on 23 June 2009, and he was also interviewed on Johnnie Walker
's Sounds of the 70s on BBC Radio 2
on 14 June 2009. The Crown Records cover of the finale of part one was played at the end of the Sounds of the 70s interview; Oldfield's version was played on Walker's show the following week.
There was also a special limited edition of 500 signed and numbered copies of the "Ultimate Edition", available from Oldfield's website, but which sold out in under 24 hours. The signed element is a numbered certificate.
) there was a worldwide bell-ringing event; bells were rung in Milan
(on MTV
), Berlin
(Siegessäule
), Brussels
(Atomium
), Paris
(the George Pompidou centre
), Sydney
(Opera House
), Japan
/Narita (at a Japanese Temple) and London
. Official footage has been shown on a YouTube video, linked from Oldfield's website.
One of the events in London was at the British Music Experience
at The O2
. It featured the 29 piece Handbell
Ringers of Great Britain and an Orbular Bells DJ set by The Orb
. There was also bell-ringing workshops and competitions. The Orb had previously remixed "Sentinel
" from Tubular Bells II.
Photos from the London event were posted on the official website on 8 June. An official video of the events was uploaded to the video sharing site YouTube
on 9 June.
The premiere live performance of Tubular Bells was at the Queen Elizabeth Hall
at 7:45pm 25 June 1973. To coax Oldfield into playing the premiere live performance of Tubular Bells Virgin boss Richard Branson gave Oldfield his Bentley
.
Mike Oldfield had been performing "The Sailor's Hornpipe
" for years before including it on Tubular Bells, when he was the bass player with Kevin Ayers and The Whole World.
, filmed on 30 November 1973, originally broadcast on BBC2
on 1 December, with a cast including Oldfield, his brother Terry
(flute), Fred Frith
(and other members of Henry Cow
), Steve Hillage
, Pierre Moerlen
, Tom Newman
, Mike Ratledge
, Mick Taylor
, Karl Jenkins
and others. It includes a new part for oboe
. This has been released on the Elements DVD and is on the 2009 reissue of Tubular Bells.
Live audio releases are on the following albums:
Furthermore, many dance acts and other artists have used the intro to Tubular Bells as the basis for their songs. A long list can be found at Rainer Muenz' discography.
and distributor Nu Wave, Mike Oldfield released an interactive Commodore 64
version of the album in 1986, which utilised the computer's SID
sound chip to play back a simplified re-arrangement of the album, accompanied by some simple 2D visual effects.
The "interactivity" offered by the album/program was limited to controlling the speed and quantity of the visual effects, tuning the sound's volume and filtering, and skipping to any part of the album.
which contains music from the re-recorded Tubular Bells album (Tubular Bells 2003
). The original title of the game was The Tube World. This was the second game which was released under the MusicVR
banner, the first being Tres Lunas
. MusicVR set out to be a real-time virtual reality experience combining imagery and music, as a non-violent and essentially a non-goal driven game.
Mike Oldfield
Michael Gordon Oldfield is an English multi-instrumentalist musician and composer, working a style that blends progressive rock, folk, ethnic or world music, classical music, electronic music, New Age, and more recently, dance. His music is often elaborate and complex in nature...
, released in 1973
1973 in music
-January–April:*January 9 – Mick Jagger's request for a Japanese visa is rejected on account of a 1969 drug conviction, putting an abrupt end to The Rolling Stones' plans to perform in Japan during their forthcoming tour.*January 14...
. It was the first album released by Virgin Records
Virgin Records
Virgin Records is a British record label founded by English entrepreneur Richard Branson, Simon Draper, and Nik Powell in 1972. The company grew to be a worldwide music phenomenon, with platinum performers such as Roy Orbison, Devo, Genesis, Keith Richards, Janet Jackson, Culture Club, Lenny...
and an early cornerstone of the company's success. Vivian Stanshall
Vivian Stanshall
Vivian Stanshall was an English singer-songwriter, painter, musician, author, poet and wit, best known for his work with the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band, for his surreal exploration of the British upper classes in Sir Henry at Rawlinson End, and for narrating Mike Oldfield's Tubular Bells.-The great...
provided the voice of the "Master of Ceremonies" who reads off the list of instruments at the end of the first movement.
The piece was later orchestrated by David Bedford
David Bedford
David Vickerman Bedford , was an English composer and musician. He wrote and played both popular and classical music....
for The Orchestral Tubular Bells
The Orchestral Tubular Bells
The Orchestral Tubular Bells is an orchestral version of Mike Oldfield's album Tubular Bells, arranged by David Bedford and recorded in 1974 by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, featuring Oldfield himself playing the guitar. In 2000 it was reissued by Virgin as a HDCD.Excerpts from the album were...
version and it had three sequels in the 1990s, Tubular Bells II
Tubular Bells II
Tubular Bells II is the 15th music album by Mike Oldfield, released in 1992. The album - the first for his new record label, Warner Bros. Records, following an acrimonious departure from Virgin Records after twenty years - was conceived as a sequel to Oldfield's 1973 Tubular Bells...
(1992), Tubular Bells III
Tubular Bells III
Tubular Bells III is the 18th album by Mike Oldfield, released in 1998. A sequel to Oldfield's 1973 Tubular Bells and his 1992 Tubular Bells II albums, it was released on the 25th anniversary of the first Tubular Bells album....
(1998) and The Millennium Bell
The Millennium Bell
The Millennium Bell is the 20th record album by Mike Oldfield, released in 1999 . The theme of the album is a reflection of different periods of human history. The album borrows its name from the dawning of the 3rd millennium and Oldfield's Tubular Bells series of albums...
(1999). Finally, the album was fully re-recorded as Tubular Bells 2003
Tubular Bells 2003
Tubular Bells 2003 is an album by Mike Oldfield, released in 2003. It is a complete re-recording of Oldfield's 1973 album debut Tubular Bells, which had been released 30 years earlier.- Background :...
at its 30th anniversary in 2003.
A newly mastered
Master recording
A multitrack recording master tape, disk or computer files on which productions are developed for later mixing, is known as the multi-track master, while the tape, disk or computer files holding a mix is called a mixed master.It is standard practice to make a copy of a master recording, known as...
and mixed
Audio mixing (recorded music)
In audio recording, audio mixing is the process by which multiple recorded sounds are combined into one or more channels, most commonly two-channel stereo. In the process, the source signals' level, frequency content, dynamics, and panoramic position are manipulated and effects such as reverb may...
re-issue of the original album appeared in June 2009 on Mercury Records
Mercury Records
Mercury Records is a record label operating as a standalone company in the UK and as part of the Island Def Jam Motown Music Group in the US; both are subsidiaries of Universal Music Group. There is also a Mercury Records in Australia, which is a local artist and repertoire division of Universal...
, with bonus material. On 6 June there were international bell-ringing ceremonies to promote the release.
Track listing
All songs written and composed by Mike OldfieldMike Oldfield
Michael Gordon Oldfield is an English multi-instrumentalist musician and composer, working a style that blends progressive rock, folk, ethnic or world music, classical music, electronic music, New Age, and more recently, dance. His music is often elaborate and complex in nature...
, except "The Sailor's Hornpipe" (traditional, arranged by Mike Oldfield) Copyright 1973 Virgin Music Publishers Ltd.
Mike Oldfield
Acoustic guitarClassical guitar
The classical guitar is a 6-stringed plucked string instrument from the family of instruments called chordophones...
, bass guitar
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, electric guitar
Electric guitar
An electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
, Farfisa
Farfisa
Farfisa is a manufacturer of electronics based in Osimo, Italy.The Farfisa brand name is commonly associated with a series of compact electronic organs, and later, a series of multi-timbral synthesizers. At the height of its production, Farfisa operated three factories to produce instruments, in...
, Hammond
Hammond organ
The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond in 1934 and manufactured by the Hammond Organ Company. While the Hammond organ was originally sold to churches as a lower-cost alternative to the wind-driven pipe organ, in the 1960s and 1970s it became a standard keyboard...
, and Lowrey
Lowrey organ
The Lowrey organ is an electronic organ named after Chicago industrialist Frederick Lowrey.During the 1960s and 1970s, Lowrey was the largest manufacturer of electronic organs in the world. In 1989, the Lowrey Organ Company produced its 1,000,000th organ....
organ
Electronic organ
An electronic organ is an electronic keyboard instrument which was derived from the harmonium, pipe organ and theatre organ. Originally, it was designed to imitate the sound of pipe organs, theatre organs, band sounds, or orchestral sounds....
s; flageolet
Tin whistle
The tin whistle, also called the penny whistle, English Flageolet, Scottish penny whistle, Tin Flageolet, Irish whistle and Clarke London Flageolet is a simple six-holed woodwind instrument. It is an end blown fipple flute, putting it in the same category as the recorder, American Indian flute, and...
, fuzz guitars, glockenspiel
Glockenspiel
A glockenspiel is a percussion instrument composed of a set of tuned keys arranged in the fashion of the keyboard of a piano. In this way, it is similar to the xylophone; however, the xylophone's bars are made of wood, while the glockenspiel's are metal plates or tubes, and making it a metallophone...
, "honky tonk" piano
Tack piano
In music, the tack piano is a permanently altered version of an ordinary piano, in which tacks or nails are placed on the hammers of the instrument at the point where the hammers hit the strings, giving the instrument a tinny, more percussive sound...
(piano modified to sound more percussive), mandolin
Mandolin
A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
, piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, "Piltdown Man
Piltdown Man
The Piltdown Man was a hoax in which bone fragments were presented as the fossilised remains of a previously unknown early human. These fragments consisted of parts of a skull and jawbone, said to have been collected in 1912 from a gravel pit at Piltdown, East Sussex, England...
", percussion
Percussion instrument
A percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
, Spanish guitar, producer, "taped motor drive amplifier organ chord", timpani
Timpani
Timpani, or kettledrums, are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum, they consist of a skin called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionally made of copper. They are played by striking the head with a specialized drum stick called a timpani stick or timpani mallet...
, vocals and tubular bell
Tubular bell
Tubular bells are musical instruments in the percussion family. Each bell is a metal tube, 30–38 mm in diameter, tuned by altering its length. Its standard range is from C4-F5, though many professional instruments reach G5 . Tubular bells are often replaced by studio chimes, which are a smaller...
s.
Additional personnel
- Steve BroughtonEdgar Broughton BandThe Edgar Broughton Band, founded in 1968 in Warwick, England, is an English Psychedelic Rock group.-Career:The band started their career as a blues group under the name of The Edgar Broughton Blues Band, playing to a dedicated but limited following in the region around their hometown of Warwick...
— percussionPercussion instrumentA percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration... - Lindsay L. CooperLindsay L. CooperLindsay L. Cooper was a Scottish double-bass and cello player. He spent four years working as a ship's musician and had performed and recorded with a number of other musicians and bands, including Michael Jackson, Boy George, Derek Bailey and Mike Oldfield.A native of Glasgow, Cooper moved to...
— string basses, oboeOboeThe oboe is a double reed musical instrument of the woodwind family. In English, prior to 1770, the instrument was called "hautbois" , "hoboy", or "French hoboy". The spelling "oboe" was adopted into English ca... - Mundy Ellis — vocals
- Jon Field — fluteFluteThe flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
s - Sally OldfieldSally OldfieldSally Oldfield is a singer-songwriter, and the sister of the composers Mike Oldfield and Terry Oldfield.-Early life:...
— vocals - Vivian StanshallVivian StanshallVivian Stanshall was an English singer-songwriter, painter, musician, author, poet and wit, best known for his work with the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band, for his surreal exploration of the British upper classes in Sir Henry at Rawlinson End, and for narrating Mike Oldfield's Tubular Bells.-The great...
— Master of Ceremonies - Nasal Choir
- Manor Choir (Simon Heyworth, Tom NewmanTom Newman (musician)Not to be confused with Thomas Newman.Tom Newman is an English record producer and musician...
, Mike Oldfield) - Trevor Key - artwork
Production
- Produced By Mike Oldfield, Simon Heyworth & Tom Newman
- Recorded & Engineered By Simon Heyworth & Tom Newman
- Mastered By Simon Heyworth
Album artwork
Tubular bell
Tubular bells are musical instruments in the percussion family. Each bell is a metal tube, 30–38 mm in diameter, tuned by altering its length. Its standard range is from C4-F5, though many professional instruments reach G5 . Tubular bells are often replaced by studio chimes, which are a smaller...
s used to record the album when playing them.
The "bent bell" image on the cover is also associated with Oldfield, even being used for the logo of his personal music company, Oldfield Music, Ltd. The image was also the main focus for the cover art of the successive Tubular Bells albums. Tubular Bells has also been issued as a vinyl picture disc, showing the bent bell on a skyscape.
The album cover
Album cover
An album cover is the front of the packaging of a commercially released audio recording product, or album. The term can refer to either the printed cardboard covers typically used to package sets of 10" and 12" 78 rpm records, single and sets of 12" LPs, sets of 45 rpm records , or the front-facing...
for Tubular Bells was among the ten chosen by the Royal Mail
Royal Mail
Royal Mail is the government-owned postal service in the United Kingdom. Royal Mail Holdings plc owns Royal Mail Group Limited, which in turn operates the brands Royal Mail and Parcelforce Worldwide...
for a set of "Classic Album Cover" postage stamp
Postage stamp
A postage stamp is a small piece of paper that is purchased and displayed on an item of mail as evidence of payment of postage. Typically, stamps are made from special paper, with a national designation and denomination on the face, and a gum adhesive on the reverse side...
s issued on 7 January 2010.
Virgin
Oldfield approached (and was rejected by) many other established record labels. Some of the rejections were because they believed the piece to be unmarketable. Oldfield then played his demos to some of the engineers at The ManorThe Manor Studio
The Manor Studio was a recording studio in the manor house at the village of Shipton-on-Cherwell in Oxfordshire, England, north of the city of Oxford. It was the first residential recording studio in the UK...
; they, along with their boss, Richard Branson
Richard Branson
Sir Richard Charles Nicholas Branson is an English business magnate, best known for his Virgin Group of more than 400 companies....
, decided to give Oldfield a chance. Virgin Records
Virgin Records
Virgin Records is a British record label founded by English entrepreneur Richard Branson, Simon Draper, and Nik Powell in 1972. The company grew to be a worldwide music phenomenon, with platinum performers such as Roy Orbison, Devo, Genesis, Keith Richards, Janet Jackson, Culture Club, Lenny...
released Oldfield's debut album Tubular Bells as its first album; hence the catalogue number V2001 (although V2002 and V2003 were released on the same date).
The significance of this album to the Virgin empire is not lost on Richard Branson, who named one of his first Virgin America
Virgin America
Virgin America, Inc. is a United States-based low-cost airline that began service on August 8, 2007. The airline's stated aim is to provide low-fare, high-quality service for "long-haul point-to-point service between major metropolitan cities on the Eastern and West Coast seaboards." San Francisco...
aircraft, an Airbus A319-112, N527VA Tubular Belle. Prior to this Virgin Atlantic had named a Boeing 747
Boeing 747
The Boeing 747 is a wide-body commercial airliner and cargo transport, often referred to by its original nickname, Jumbo Jet, or Queen of the Skies. It is among the world's most recognizable aircraft, and was the first wide-body ever produced...
-4Q8 , G-VHOT Tubular Belle, in 1994.
Virgin reissued the album a number of times including in 2000 for a HDCD
High Definition Compatible Digital
High Definition Compatible Digital, or HDCD is a patented encode-decode process, now owned by Microsoft, that improves the audio quality of standard Redbook audio CDs, while retaining backward compatibility with existing Compact disc players....
release, and in 2001 for a SACD
Super Audio CD
Super Audio CD is a high-resolution, read-only optical disc for audio storage. Sony and Philips Electronics jointly developed the technology, and publicized it in 1999. It is designated as the Scarlet Book standard. Sony and Philips previously collaborated to define the Compact Disc standard...
release. The HDCD release contained liner notes by David Laing, and the SACD release notes were by Phil Newell and Simon Heyworth.
The 50th Anniversary edition of the music magazine Music Week
Music Week
Music Week is a trade paper for the UK record industry.Founded in 1959 as Record Retailer, it was relaunched on 18 March 1972 as Music Week . On 17 January 1981 the title was again changed, owing to the increasing importance of sell-through videos, to Music & Video Week...
features the album in the official Top-Selling UK albums 1959–2009 at No. 35, noting it as the only entry that did not yield a hit single. In the Q
Q (magazine)
Q is a popular music magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom.Founders Mark Ellen and David Hepworth were dismayed by the music press of the time, which they felt was ignoring a generation of older music buyers who were buying CDs — then still a new technology...
& Mojo
Mojo (magazine)
MOJO is a popular music magazine published initially by Emap, and since January 2008 by Bauer, monthly in the United Kingdom. Following the success of the magazine Q, publishers Emap were looking for a title which would cater for the burgeoning interest in classic rock music...
Classic Special Edition Pink Floyd & The Story of Prog Rock
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
, the album came #9 in its list of "40 Cosmic Rock Albums".
The Mail on Sunday free edition
On 22 April 2007 a British newspaper, The Mail on SundayThe Mail on Sunday
The Mail on Sunday is a British conservative newspaper, currently published in a tabloid format. First published in 1982 by Lord Rothermere, it became Britain's biggest-selling Sunday newspaper following the closing of The News of the World in July 2011...
, gave away 2.25 million free copies of the full original Tubular Bells to its readers; this came in a card packet displaying the original artwork.
EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
(owners of the Virgin Records label) earned between £200,000 and £500,000 from the promotion. The Mail on Sunday claimed that their promotion increased sales of the album by 30%; however industry sources noted that this was not a significant rise for the title at the time. This cover-mount deal came prior to the album's transfer from Virgin/EMI back to Oldfield.
Oldfield attacked EMI in the press for agreeing this deal with The Mail on Sunday, not having been consulted about it. He also stated that he felt that it devalued the work. In a poll conducted by Music Week, to whom Oldfield wrote a letter about the situation, 89.9% of people supported Oldfield's view that EMI and The Mail on Sunday should have at least asked him about the cover-mount promotion.
Mercury reissue
In 2008 when Oldfield's original 35-year deal with Virgin Records ended, the rights to the piece were returned to him and were transferred to Mercury RecordsMercury Records
Mercury Records is a record label operating as a standalone company in the UK and as part of the Island Def Jam Motown Music Group in the US; both are subsidiaries of Universal Music Group. There is also a Mercury Records in Australia, which is a local artist and repertoire division of Universal...
On 15 April 2009, Mercury announced the transfer of Oldfield's Virgin albums to the label, and the first album, Tubular Bells, was re-released in June 2009. Tubular Bells was released on various formats, which include an original vinyl, a new remix, a 2CD edition and DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
. There were also bell-ringing events on 6 June 2009 at 6pm, a reference to 666
Number of the Beast
The Number of the Beast is a term in the Book of Revelation, of the New Testament, that is associated with the first Beast of Revelation chapter 13, the Beast of the sea. In most manuscripts of the New Testament and in English translations of the Bible, the number of the Beast is...
.
Overdubbing
Mike Oldfield played most of the instruments on the album (see below), recording them one at a time and layering the recordings to create the finished work. Many of his subsequent albums feature this technique. Though fairly common in the music industry now, at the time of the production of Tubular Bells not many musicians made use of it, preferring multi-musician "session" recordings.Reference in other Oldfield works
Tubular Bells is the album most identified with Oldfield, and the reverse may be true as well, as he has frequently returned to it in later works. The opening passage of the title track on the album CrisesCrises
Crises is the eighth record album by Mike Oldfield, released in 1983. Oldfield's well known hit "Moonlight Shadow" appears on the album.- Album analysis :...
and the piece "Harbinger" on the album Music of the Spheres are clearly derived from the opening of Tubular Bells. The opening is also quoted directly in the song "Five Miles Out
Five Miles Out (song)
"Five Miles Out" is a single by musician Mike Oldfield, released in 1982 . It is from the album Five Miles Out and features vocals by Maggie Reilly.- Song analysis :The song make numerous references to flight...
" from the album of the same name
Five Miles Out
Five Miles Out is the seventh record album by Mike Oldfield, released in 1982, at a time when his music was moving away from large-scale symphonic pieces towards a more accessible pop style. It is one of the very few albums on which Oldfield sings lead vocals, as he is noted for not having any...
, and the song also features his "trademark" instrument, "Piltdown Man
Piltdown Man
The Piltdown Man was a hoax in which bone fragments were presented as the fossilised remains of a previously unknown early human. These fragments consisted of parts of a skull and jawbone, said to have been collected in 1912 from a gravel pit at Piltdown, East Sussex, England...
" (referring to his singing like a caveman, first heard on Tubular Bells).
Charts and awards
Tubular Bells stayed in the British chartsUK Albums Chart
The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
for 279 weeks. It climbed the charts slowly but steadily, and did not reach number one for over a year. In doing so it displaced Oldfield's second album, Hergest Ridge
Hergest Ridge (album)
Hergest Ridge is the second record album by Mike Oldfield, released in 1974 on Virgin Records.Oldfield was not comfortable with the public attention that had come from the success of Tubular Bells, and retreated to the English countryside to work on the follow-up...
, which had been at number one for three weeks. This made Oldfield one of only three artists in the UK to beat himself to the top of the album charts.
The album sold more than 2,630,000 copies in the UK alone (making it the all-time 34th best seller in the UK), and according to some reports 15 to 17 million copies worldwide. The album went gold in the USA and Mike Oldfield received a Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
for the best Instrumental Composition
Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Composition
The Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Composition has been awarded since 1960. The award is presented to the composer of the music.There have been several minor changes to the name of the award:...
in 1975.
In popular culture
The opening theme, which was eventually chosen for the 1973 film The ExorcistThe Exorcist (film)
The Exorcist is a 1973 American horror film directed by William Friedkin, adapted from the 1971 novel of the same name by William Peter Blatty and based on the exorcism case of Robbie Mannheim, dealing with the demonic possession of a young girl and her mother’s desperate attempts to win back her...
, gained the record considerable publicity and introduced the work to a broader audience. Along with a number of other Oldfield pieces it was used in the 1979 NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
movie, The Space Movie
The Space Movie
The Space Movie is a documentary film produced in 1979 by Tony Palmer at the request of NASA, to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing.The 78 minute film was released theatrically in 1980, on VHS in 1983 and on DVD in 2007...
. The opening theme has been sampled by many other artists such as Janet Jackson
Janet Jackson
Janet Damita Jo Jackson is an American recording artist and actress. Known for a series of sonically innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows, television and film roles, she has been a prominent figure in popular culture for over 25 years...
on her song "The Velvet Rope
The Velvet Rope
The Velvet Rope is the sixth studio album by American recording artist Janet Jackson, released October 7, 1997 by Virgin Records. Prior to its debut, Jackson had been at the center of a second high-profile bidding war over her recording contract...
". The opening theme has also gained cultural significance as a 'haunting theme'; partly due to the association with The Exorcist.
In television it was also used in several episodes of the Dutch children's series Bassie en Adriaan
Bassie and Adriaan
Bassie & Adriaan were a Dutch circus duo who starred in their own television series. Bassie is a ginger-haired red-nosed clown who wears a red tartan-jacket and green trousers; he's fond of cream-cakes, and calls himself "stupid, but not smart". Adriaan is an acrobat in a blue 1970s-style shirt;...
, an episode ("Ghosts") of the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
series My Family and an episode ("Poltergeist III - Dipesto Nothing") of Moonlighting
Moonlighting (TV series)
Moonlighting is an American television series that aired on ABC from March 3, 1985, to May 14, 1989. The network aired a total of 66 episodes...
. It was also used in a television advertisement for the Volkswagen Golf
Volkswagen Golf
The Volkswagen Golf is a small family car manufactured by Volkswagen since 1974 and marketed worldwide across six generations, in various body configurations and under various nameplates – as the Volkswagen Rabbit in the United States and Canada , and as the Volkswagen Caribe in Mexico .The...
Diesel in 2002. It has also been used in other films such as 1974's Black Christmas
Black Christmas (1974 film)
Black Christmas is a 1974 Canadian slasher film directed by Bob Clark and written by A. Roy Moore, and largely based on a series of murders that took place in Quebec, Canada around Christmas time. The film's score is by Carl Zittrer. It was distributed by Ambassador Film Distributors in Canada and...
, 1985's Weird Science
Weird Science (film)
Weird Science is a 1985 American teen comedy film written and directed by John Hughes and starring Anthony Michael Hall, Ilan Mitchell-Smith, and Kelly LeBrock...
, 2001's Scary Movie 2
Scary Movie 2
Scary Movie 2 is a 2001 parody film. It is the second film of the Scary Movie franchise. Though part of the first Scary Movies tagline read "...No sequel," this film's tagline compensated by adding "We lied"....
, 2002's The Master of Disguise
The Master of Disguise
The Master of Disguise is a family fantasy comedy film released in 2002 starring actors Dana Carvey, Jennifer Esposito, James Brolin and Brent Spiner...
and 2004's Saved!
Saved!
Saved! is a 2004 teen comedy-drama film involving elements of religious satire. It was directed by Brian Dannelly and written by Dannelly and Michael Urban. It stars Jena Malone, Mandy Moore, Macaulay Culkin, Patrick Fugit, Eva Amurri, Martin Donovan, and Mary-Louise Parker...
.
Progression of part one
Part one opens with a soft minor key piano line in 15/8Time signature
The time signature is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats are in each measure and which note value constitutes one beat....
eventually played verbatim by organ and glockenspiel. This riff is made up of two bars; the first bar is in 7/8, the second bar is in 8/8. These are later joined by a different line in bass guitar. An occasional punchy organ chord, first heard at about 1:02 in, accents this piece, harmonised by variations of the anchor line and a later incorporated 3/4 chord sequence, both in piano. At around 2:55, a gentle flute line appears, which segues into a section of 4/4-7/8-7/8-4/4, and at 3:40 an electric guitar line, the latter entirely in 4/4.
After the electric guitar line ends, a softer, fast guitar line ("speed guitar," as listed in the liner notes) takes over, only to be interrupted by an acoustic guitar line overlaying the original piano phrase in major key. A gentle glockenspiel/piano piece takes over, but is later replaced with a fast piano section, occasionally accented with organ chords.
The mood of the first 6 minutes is soon replaced by edgy electric guitar and, afterwards, a sinister organ chord, with various changes in pitch and duration. But, once again, a more refined, carefree section ensues, dominated by acoustic guitar and piano, eventually returning to the soft riff first heard just past four minutes into the piece.
A 3/4 variation of the original theme comes next, followed by eerie bass and organ playing, segueing into a bluesy shuffle on electric guitar. Once again, when it looks like the piece will be serene (when the nasal choir intervenes), another edgy guitar line ensues, with Oldfield incorporating both 4/4 and 7/8.
After that, a more folky acoustic line plays (with background tambourine
Tambourine
The tambourine or marine is a musical instrument of the percussion family consisting of a frame, often of wood or plastic, with pairs of small metal jingles, called "zils". Classically the term tambourine denotes an instrument with a drumhead, though some variants may not have a head at all....
), but is suddenly cut off by the tolling of bells. A weary acoustic guitar line follows, breaking into the eight-and-a-half minute "Finale" section, commencing with a double bass line in 5/4, polyrhythmically played with a 4/4 acoustic line. After the bass and guitar unite into the 4/4 line, the acoustic guitar tacets and is eventually replaced by soft pipe organ notes (usually lasting four or eight full beats) while the bass line plays.
After the 10-bar bass phrase is repeated several times, Stanshall introduces many of the instruments appearing in part one up to then, beginning with the keyboards, followed by glockenspiel and all guitars before the tubular bells are announced, the ensemble becoming more dynamic and full as more instruments are said. Finally, after the tubular bells enter, a wordless feminine chorus starts to sing. Farther down, the Finale ensemble fades out to an acoustic guitar solo, which takes up the remainder of part one.
Progression of part two
Part two begins where part one left off; a soft, simple piece, this time, beginning with bass guitar and working up with other guitars and keyboards. The opening time signature is 6/8, but a later line plays a similar melody in 3/4 on various instruments, beginning with guitar. The opening section builds for five minutes before the second section starts, another 3/4 section at half tempo on acoustic guitar, with accompaniment on organ, mandolin and female chorus.At around 8:48, the piece becomes edgy and surreal again, as the "bagpipe guitars" enter the piece (electric guitars with added effects to give it the bagpipe-esque sound), playing a 12/8 piece of sorts. About 11 minutes in, the intensity of the section builds as the guitar pitches increase and a heavy piano "roll" plays, climaxed by a sudden ascending glissando on the piano.
What comes next is one of the more unusual parts of the entire album. Timpani rolls and drum kit commence this part, highlighted by unintelligible "lyrical" utterances, growls, and screams by Oldfield (This was alleged to be a rumour, however Simon Hayworth, audio engineer, recalled that Branson was getting impatient pressurising Oldfield to deliver the cut, and flustered they drove down to London and dumped a copy of entire uncut album, and he recalled that Branson wanted vocals on one of the albums, whereas Oldfield had no intentions of doing so. Oldfield said himself in an interview that he angrily stormed out of Branson's office yelling "You want lyrics!? I'll give you lyrics!". He then drank half a bottle of Jameson's whiskey
Jameson Irish Whiskey
Jameson is a single distillery Irish whiskey produced by a division of the French distiller Pernod Ricard. Jameson is similar in its adherence to the single distillery principle to the single malt tradition, but Jameson combines malted barley with unmalted or "green" barley...
and demanded the engineer to take him to the studio where, intoxicated, he "screamed his brains out for 10 minutes". This was later used in the album in rebellion against Richard Branson
Richard Branson
Sir Richard Charles Nicholas Branson is an English business magnate, best known for his Virgin Group of more than 400 companies....
's desire to include at least one part with lyrics to release as a single).
This is listed in the liner notes as the "Piltdown Man
Piltdown Man
The Piltdown Man was a hoax in which bone fragments were presented as the fossilised remains of a previously unknown early human. These fragments consisted of parts of a skull and jawbone, said to have been collected in 1912 from a gravel pit at Piltdown, East Sussex, England...
". Oldfield's yelling is countered by various phrases on piano, guitars, and the "Moribund chorus," with this piece abruptly ending on one loud shout exactly 16:29 in.
As expected, another quiet section ensues, a 12/8 piece mostly dominated by guitars and organ. This section gives an excellent insight into the psychedelic, spacey side of Oldfield (a similar sound to that of Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd were an English rock band that achieved worldwide success with their progressive and psychedelic rock music. Their work is marked by the use of philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Pink Floyd are one of the most commercially...
's David Gilmour
David Gilmour
David Jon Gilmour, CBE, D.M. is an English rock musician and multi-instrumentalist who is best known as the guitarist, one of the lead singers and main songwriters in the progressive rock band Pink Floyd. In addition to his work with Pink Floyd, Gilmour has worked as a producer for a variety of...
), which would also be present in his third album, Ommadawn
Ommadawn
Ommadawn is the third record album by Mike Oldfield, released in 1975 on Virgin Records. The cover photograph was by David Bailey. It peaked at #4 on the UK Albums Chart. The album was reissued in June 2010 with additional content.- Album history :...
. After about five minutes, an optimistic organ line plays, segueing into a climactic arrangement of "Sailor's Hornpipe".
"Sailor's Hornpipe" begins with a mandolin playing at a moderately slow tempo, but quickly mutates into a gradually accented piece with multiple instruments (including an unlisted violin), ending with two loud, accented notes. In live performances, Oldfield would reach incredible tempos and "Sailor's Hornpipe" alone became a staple of his concerts in the 1970s and 1980s.
The recording sessions
The two parts of Tubular Bells were recorded between Autumn 1972 and Spring 1973.- Part one was recorded in just one week at The Manor StudioThe Manor StudioThe Manor Studio was a recording studio in the manor house at the village of Shipton-on-Cherwell in Oxfordshire, England, north of the city of Oxford. It was the first residential recording studio in the UK...
, owned by the founder of Virgin Records, Richard Branson. Oldfield used this studio immediately after John CaleJohn CaleJohn Davies Cale, OBE is a Welsh musician, composer, singer-songwriter and record producer who was a founding member of the experimental rock band The Velvet Underground....
's sessions and just before the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah BandBonzo Dog Doo-Dah BandThe Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band are a band created by a group of British art-school denizens of the 1960s...
began recording. - Oldfield's working title for Tubular Bells was Opus One; Richard Branson thought to call it Breakfast in Bed. One of the possible album covers for Breakfast in Bed included a boiled egg with blood pouring out of it. This cover was edited and used as the artwork for Oldfield's final album with Virgin, Heaven's OpenHeaven's OpenHeaven's Open is the 14th record album performed by Mike Oldfield, released in 1991. It was his last album on Virgin, and also the only album he released under the name Michael Oldfield, instead of Mike Oldfield.- History :...
. - The only electric guitar to be used on the album was a 1966 blonde Fender TelecasterFender TelecasterThe Fender Telecaster, colloquially known as the Tele , is typically a dual-pickup, solid-body electric guitar made by Fender.Its simple yet effective design and revolutionary sound broke ground and set trends in electric guitar manufacturing and popular music...
(serial no. 180728) which used to belong to Marc BolanMarc BolanMarc Bolan was an English singer-songwriter, guitarist and poet. He is best known as the founder, frontman, lead singer & guitarist for T. Rex, but also a successful solo artist...
. Oldfield had added an extra Bill LawrenceBill Lawrence (guitar maker)Bill Lawrence is a recording musician and an electric guitar pickup designer/maker and guitar designer/maker in the musical instrument industry, designing pickups and guitars for Fender, Gibson, Peavey and other companies from the 1950s to the present.MusicianThe Bill Lawrence story began...
pickup and has since sold the guitar and donated the money to the SANE charitySANE (charity)SANE is a mental illness charity in the UK. It provides telephone and email support services and has established a research centre. The opinion of SANE's founder and chief executive, Marjorie Wallace, is often quoted in media reports on mental health issues....
. - According to Oldfield the "Piltdown Man" shouting sequence came about when he had practically finished recording the instruments for the section, but felt that it needed something else. The whiskey-fueled idea to create the "Piltdown Man" effect was to shout and scream into a microphone while running the tape at a higher speed. Upon playback the tape ran at normal speed, thus dropping the pitch of the voice track.
- The album was recorded on an AmpexAmpexAmpex is an American electronics company founded in 1944 by Alexander M. Poniatoff. The name AMPEX is an acronym, created by its founder, which stands for Alexander M. Poniatoff Excellence...
2" 16 track tape recorderMultitrack recordingMultitrack recording is a method of sound recording that allows for the separate recording of multiple sound sources to create a cohesive whole...
, which was The Manor's main recording equipment at the time. - To create the double speed guitar, the tape was simply run at half speed during recording. Oldfield also used a custom effects unit, named the Glorfindel box, to create the 'fuzz' or 'bagpipe' distortion on some guitar pieces on the album. The Glorfindel box was given to David Bedford at a party, who then subsequently gave it to Oldfield. Tom Newman criticised the wooden cased unit in a 2001 interview with Q magazineQ (magazine)Q is a popular music magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom.Founders Mark Ellen and David Hepworth were dismayed by the music press of the time, which they felt was ignoring a generation of older music buyers who were buying CDs — then still a new technology...
noting that it rarely gave the same result twice. - The set of tubular bells that were used on the album had been left by an instrument hire company after John Cale's sessions at the Manor, at the request of Oldfield.
- According to Phil Newell the Bass guitar used on the album was one of his Fender Telecaster Basses.
- Vivian Stanshall, who was staying at the Manor at the time, was asked to introduce the instruments for the finale of part one. It was the way in which Stanshall had said plus... tubular bells which gave Oldfield the idea to call the album Tubular Bells.
"Sailor's Hornpipe" and the original ending
When recorded in 1973, the codaCoda (music)
Coda is a term used in music in a number of different senses, primarily to designate a passage that brings a piece to an end. Technically, it is an expanded cadence...
at the end of Part Two, the "Sailor's Hornpipe", was originally preceded by a longer slightly bizarre rendition of the piece. Loud marching footsteps trot around the sound channels as the "Sailor's Hornpipe" is played on acoustic instruments, whilst announcer Vivian Stanshall
Vivian Stanshall
Vivian Stanshall was an English singer-songwriter, painter, musician, author, poet and wit, best known for his work with the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band, for his surreal exploration of the British upper classes in Sir Henry at Rawlinson End, and for narrating Mike Oldfield's Tubular Bells.-The great...
gives an obviously-inebriated, improvised tour of the Manor. According to the liner notes for the Boxed vinyl set, this session occurred at four in the morning after Oldfield, engineer Tom Newman
Tom Newman (musician)
Not to be confused with Thomas Newman.Tom Newman is an English record producer and musician...
and Stanshall had been drinking heavily. They placed microphones in the rooms of the Manor, hit record and set off on an unplanned tour of the house.
It was cut from the final version, though it can be heard "in all its magnificent foolishness" (from the liner notes) on Boxed
Boxed (Mike Oldfield album)
Boxed is a compilation album written and mostly performed by Mike Oldfield, released in 1976 . It features quadraphonic remixed versions of his first three albums and some collaborations.- Background :Boxed features quadraphonic remixed versions of his first three albums...
. The Boxed set reinstates the section at the end of side two of Tubular Bells. It can also be heard on the SACD
Super Audio CD
Super Audio CD is a high-resolution, read-only optical disc for audio storage. Sony and Philips Electronics jointly developed the technology, and publicized it in 1999. It is designated as the Scarlet Book standard. Sony and Philips previously collaborated to define the Compact Disc standard...
(multi-channel track only) This rendition of "Sailor's Hornpipe" was included in the 2009 Mercury reissue of Tubular Bells.
In addition, a version of Tubular Bells was originally released on the Spanish Boxed compilation such that Part Two ended with the "Ambient Guitars" movement without the "Sailor's Hornpipe" finale.
Stereo record joke
The album cover contains humorous statements about the record being in stereo. Under the label's logo on the back, there is the statement, "In Glorious Stereophonic Sound", followed by the line: "Can also be played on mono-equipment at a pinch". Another statement appears at the lower left of the back cover, a spoof on the warnings about compatibility between stereo records and mono equipment (or vice versa) as found on older albums:"This stereo record cannot be played on old tin boxes no matter what they are fitted with. If you are in possession of such equipment please hand it into the nearest police station."
The use of record vs. equipment warnings re-appeared on album covers when quadraphonic
Quadraphonic
Quadraphonic sound – the most widely used early term for what is now called 4.0 surround sound – uses four channels in which speakers are positioned at the four corners of the listening space, reproducing signals that are independent of one another...
albums were marketed in the early to mid 1970s, and when Tubular Bells was later issued in quad, the American pressing removed the "tin boxes" statement. British and Australian quad pressings retained the statement, and most quad editions modified the top-right statements to read: "In Glorious Quadraphonic Sound; Can also be played on stereo and mono equipment at a pinch". Some British editions also had a sticker on the front declaring the quad edition to be "for people with four ears".
A small essay about the restoration and remastering of the album, included with the 25th Anniversary limited edition CD, concludes with: "...but (it) still can't be played on old tin boxes". Similarly, the re-recorded album Tubular Bells 2003
Tubular Bells 2003
Tubular Bells 2003 is an album by Mike Oldfield, released in 2003. It is a complete re-recording of Oldfield's 1973 album debut Tubular Bells, which had been released 30 years earlier.- Background :...
reprints the original warning with the word "still" (in italics) added.
A similar humorous "health warning" appeared on Oldfield's Amarok
Amarok (album)
Amarok is the 13th record album by Mike Oldfield, released in 1990. It is considered by fans to be his most distinctive work: a single sixty-minute track of continuous, uninterrupted but constantly-changing music....
album, which cautioned:
"This record could be hazardous to the health of cloth-eared nincompoops. If you suffer from this condition, consult your Doctor immediately."
Vinyl
There are four known variations of the vinyl edition of Tubular Bells:- The standard stereo black vinyl version catalogue number V2001 (white label with twins image or green label with twins image and 25.00 side A). This mix was reissued on vinyl as part of the Back to Black series in 2009.
- A stereo black vinyl version catalogue number VR 13-105 (white label with color twins image). This is the original North American version of the album, distributed by Atlantic RecordsAtlantic RecordsAtlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
. - A quadrophonic version, black vinyl catalogue number QV2001. The first 40,000 copies of this are not true quadrophonic but doctored versions of the stereo issue, thereafter the subsequent copies are true quadrophonic. Unfortunately there is no indication on the record label that this substitution was made.
- The Picture Disc, catalogue number VP2001. This is a stereo remix of the quadrophonic version, the only difference being in the sound of the "Reed and Pipe Organ" during the ceremony of instruments. This version appears in the BoxedBoxed (Mike Oldfield album)Boxed is a compilation album written and mostly performed by Mike Oldfield, released in 1976 . It features quadraphonic remixed versions of his first three albums and some collaborations.- Background :Boxed features quadraphonic remixed versions of his first three albums...
compilation.
CD/DVD
There are a number of different mixes and masters of the album available on CD. Some of the known ones are:- Some CDs contain the original stereo mix.
- The Boxed CD release contains a stereo remix of the quadrophonic version.
- The 2000 reissue (HDCD) contains a remaster of the album.
- The SACD edition contains the remaster and the Boxed quad mix.
- In 2009 two new mixes were released, one a CD stereo mix and one a DVD (Dolby DigitalDolby DigitalDolby Digital is the name for audio compression technologies developed by Dolby Laboratories. It was originally called Dolby Stereo Digital until 1994. Except for Dolby TrueHD, the audio compression is lossy. The first use of Dolby Digital was to provide digital sound in cinemas from 35mm film prints...
) 5.1 surround sound mix.
Chart positions
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1974 | Australian Kent Music Report Kent Music Report The Kent Music Report was a weekly record chart of Australian music singles and albums which was compiled by music enthusiast David Kent from May 1974 through to 1998... Albums Chart |
1 |
| UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
Single
The first single released from the album was created by the original US distributor, Atlantic RecordsAtlantic Records
Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
. This version was an edit of bits from part one which was not authorized by Oldfield. The single was released only in the US, where it peaked at #7 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
chart on May 11, 1974, making Oldfield a One Hit Wonder on the US charts.
"Mike Oldfield's Single
Mike Oldfield's Single
"Mike Oldfield's Single" is the debut authorised single by musician Mike Oldfield, released in 1974 . The A-side is a variation of one of the themes from Oldfield's 1973 debut album, Tubular Bells, and was made in response to an American single containing an excerpt from Tubular Bells which...
" was the first UK 7-inch single released by Mike Oldfield, in June 1974. It featured a re-recording (with oboe as the lead instrument) of Tubular Bells part two's "bagpipe guitars" section as the A-side, with "Froggy Went A-Courting" as the B-side. This was included in the 2009 Mercury reissue of Tubular Bells.
Demo version
Oldfield recorded the demo pieces of Tubular Bells in his flat in TottenhamTottenham
Tottenham is an area of the London Borough of Haringey, England, situated north north east of Charing Cross.-Toponymy:Tottenham is believed to have been named after Tota, a farmer, whose hamlet was mentioned in the Domesday Book; hence Tota's hamlet became Tottenham...
, London in 1971. Oldfield recorded the demos on a Bang & Olufsen
Bang & Olufsen
Bang & Olufsen is a Danish company that designs and manufactures audio products, television sets and telephones. It was founded in 1925 by Peter Bang and Svend Olufsen, whose first significant product was a radio that worked with alternating current, when most radios were run from batteries...
Beocord 1/4" tape machine which he had borrowed from Kevin Ayers
Kevin Ayers
Kevin Ayers is an English singer-songwriter and was a major influential force in the English psychedelic movement...
. Oldfield was able to overdub his playing by blocking off the erase head of the tape machine. The demos titled, "Tubular Bells Long", "Caveman Lead-In", "Caveman", "Peace Demo A" and "Peace Demo B" appeared on the DVD-Audio
DVD-Audio
DVD-Audio is a digital format for delivering high-fidelity audio content on a DVD. DVD-Audio is not intended to be a video delivery format and is not the same as video DVDs containing concert films or music videos....
version of the rerecording of Tubular Bells, Tubular Bells 2003
Tubular Bells 2003
Tubular Bells 2003 is an album by Mike Oldfield, released in 2003. It is a complete re-recording of Oldfield's 1973 album debut Tubular Bells, which had been released 30 years earlier.- Background :...
.
Pieces from Oldfield's 1971 demos appear on the 2009 Ultimate Edition Mercury reissue of Tubular Bells; also included on this release is a scrapped mix of the album from Spring 1973.
Tubular Bells series
Tubular Bells can be seen as the first of a "series" of albums continuing with Tubular Bells II (1992), Tubular Bells III (1998) and The Millennium Bell (1999). Finally in 2003 Oldfield released Tubular Bells 2003, a re-recording of the original Tubular Bells with updated digital technology and several "corrections" to what he saw as flaws in the first album's production. This version is notable for replacing the late Vivian StanshallVivian Stanshall
Vivian Stanshall was an English singer-songwriter, painter, musician, author, poet and wit, best known for his work with the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band, for his surreal exploration of the British upper classes in Sir Henry at Rawlinson End, and for narrating Mike Oldfield's Tubular Bells.-The great...
's narration with a newly recorded narration by John Cleese
John Cleese
John Marwood Cleese is an English actor, comedian, writer, and film producer. He achieved success at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and as a scriptwriter and performer on The Frost Report...
. There is also a new mix of the original album on the 2009 Mercury reissue.
Other versions include a quadrophonic version in 1975 ("For people with four ears", as the sleeve said; the quad mix was later used for the multi-channel part of the SACD
Super Audio CD
Super Audio CD is a high-resolution, read-only optical disc for audio storage. Sony and Philips Electronics jointly developed the technology, and publicized it in 1999. It is designated as the Scarlet Book standard. Sony and Philips previously collaborated to define the Compact Disc standard...
release), an orchestra
Orchestra
An orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
l version in the same year (The Orchestral Tubular Bells with David Bedford
David Bedford
David Vickerman Bedford , was an English composer and musician. He wrote and played both popular and classical music....
), and different live recordings; a complete one can be found on the double live album Exposed from 1979.
Studio and Live
- Tubular Bells (1973)
- The Orchestral Tubular BellsThe Orchestral Tubular BellsThe Orchestral Tubular Bells is an orchestral version of Mike Oldfield's album Tubular Bells, arranged by David Bedford and recorded in 1974 by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, featuring Oldfield himself playing the guitar. In 2000 it was reissued by Virgin as a HDCD.Excerpts from the album were...
(orchestral version; 1975) - Tubular Bells IITubular Bells IITubular Bells II is the 15th music album by Mike Oldfield, released in 1992. The album - the first for his new record label, Warner Bros. Records, following an acrimonious departure from Virgin Records after twenty years - was conceived as a sequel to Oldfield's 1973 Tubular Bells...
(1992) - Tubular Bells IIITubular Bells IIITubular Bells III is the 18th album by Mike Oldfield, released in 1998. A sequel to Oldfield's 1973 Tubular Bells and his 1992 Tubular Bells II albums, it was released on the 25th anniversary of the first Tubular Bells album....
(1998) - The Millennium BellThe Millennium BellThe Millennium Bell is the 20th record album by Mike Oldfield, released in 1999 . The theme of the album is a reflection of different periods of human history. The album borrows its name from the dawning of the 3rd millennium and Oldfield's Tubular Bells series of albums...
(1999) - Tubular Bells 2003Tubular Bells 2003Tubular Bells 2003 is an album by Mike Oldfield, released in 2003. It is a complete re-recording of Oldfield's 1973 album debut Tubular Bells, which had been released 30 years earlier.- Background :...
(2003)
Compilations
- The Best of Tubular BellsThe Best of Tubular BellsThe Best of Tubular Bells is a compilation album written and mostly performed by Mike Oldfield. It was released in 2001 and features segments from all of the Tubular Bells albums up to that year....
(2001) - The Complete Tubular BellsThe Complete Tubular BellsThe Complete Tubular Bells is a compilation album that comprises the three main releases under the name of Tubular Bells by Mike Oldfield, released in 2003 alongside Tubular Bells 2003....
(2003)
2000/2001 Re-issues
In 2000 the album was remastered and released as a HDCD and an SACD. Some copies were labelled as the "25th Anniversary Edition".Personnel
- Simon Heyworth - remastered at Chop Em' Out Mastering, London March/April 2000
- David Glasser, Airshow Mastering, Boulder, ColoradoBoulder, ColoradoBoulder is the county seat and most populous city of Boulder County and the 11th most populous city in the U.S. state of Colorado. Boulder is located at the base of the foothills of the Rocky Mountains at an elevation of...
, USA March 2000 - master - Gus Skinas - DSDDirect Stream DigitalDirect-Stream Digital is the trademark name used by Sony and Philips for their system of recreating audible signals which uses pulse-density modulation encoding, a technology to store audio signals on digital storage media which is used for the Super Audio CD .The signal is stored as delta-sigma...
SACDSuper Audio CDSuper Audio CD is a high-resolution, read-only optical disc for audio storage. Sony and Philips Electronics jointly developed the technology, and publicized it in 1999. It is designated as the Scarlet Book standard. Sony and Philips previously collaborated to define the Compact Disc standard... - Ed Meitner - A2DAnalog-to-digital converterAn analog-to-digital converter is a device that converts a continuous quantity to a discrete time digital representation. An ADC may also provide an isolated measurement...
and D2ADigital-to-analog converterIn electronics, a digital-to-analog converter is a device that converts a digital code to an analog signal . An analog-to-digital converter performs the reverse operation...
Converters - Arbernaut/Rina Cheung @ Public Art Creative Consultants Limited - artwork
- Jason Day - Remastered series co-ordinator
2009 Re-issue
In 2008, when Oldfield's original 35-year deal with Virgin Records ended, the rights to the piece were returned to him, and were transferred to Mercury RecordsMercury Records
Mercury Records is a record label operating as a standalone company in the UK and as part of the Island Def Jam Motown Music Group in the US; both are subsidiaries of Universal Music Group. There is also a Mercury Records in Australia, which is a local artist and repertoire division of Universal...
. Oldfield's Virgin albums were transferred to the label, and re-released, starting 8 June 2009. Tubular Bells was released in four physical variations, and two digital variations in the UK and Ireland, and as five physical editions elsewhere. In April 2009 a new official website, TubularBells2009.com, was unveiled.
The new releases contain a new 2009 stereo mix of the album, which Oldfield created at his home in the Bahamas
The Bahamas
The Bahamas , officially the Commonwealth of the Bahamas, is a nation consisting of 29 islands, 661 cays, and 2,387 islets . It is located in the Atlantic Ocean north of Cuba and Hispaniola , northwest of the Turks and Caicos Islands, and southeast of the United States...
in March 2009. The "Deluxe Edition" contains a 5.1 mix, and the "Ultimate Edition" box set contains a 60 page hardback book, a poster, plectrum
Plectrum
A plectrum is a small flat tool used to pluck or strum a stringed instrument. For hand-held instruments such as guitars and mandolins, the plectrum is often called a pick, and is a separate tool held in the player's hand...
s and other pieces such as rough mixes and demo versions of the album. There is also a vinyl version released as part of the Back to Black series.
The liner notes include photos from the time and text written by Mark Powell about Oldfield and the album. The DVD also states on its label that it features the "Tubular Bells film" from The Old Grey Whistle Test as visual content; however, this appears not to be on the DVD and is also not listed on the outer cover of the album.
The Digital Edition contains the same audio content as the Ultimate Edition. The Vinyl Edition is part of the Back to Black series, and contains the original 1973 mix of the album. Downloads are also available from Back to Black website. The Vinyl Edition carries the original seascape
Seascape
A seascape is a photograph, painting, or other work of art which depicts the sea, in other words an example of marine art. By a backwards development, the word has also come to mean the view of the sea itself, and be applied in planning contexts to geographical locations possessing a good view of...
artwork.
Oldfield's albums Hergest Ridge
Hergest Ridge (album)
Hergest Ridge is the second record album by Mike Oldfield, released in 1974 on Virgin Records.Oldfield was not comfortable with the public attention that had come from the success of Tubular Bells, and retreated to the English countryside to work on the follow-up...
and Ommadawn
Ommadawn
Ommadawn is the third record album by Mike Oldfield, released in 1975 on Virgin Records. The cover photograph was by David Bailey. It peaked at #4 on the UK Albums Chart. The album was reissued in June 2010 with additional content.- Album history :...
have subsequently also been reissued in remastered and remixed editions.
Tubular Bells Standard Edition (1CD)
The Standard Edition carries the original artwork, and features the new mix, and two bonus tracks. UK release code number 060252735055.- "Tubular Bells Part One" (New stereo mix) - 25:58
- "Tubular Bells Part Two" (New stereo mix) - 23:20
- "Mike Oldfield's Single" - 3:53
- "Sailor's Hornpipe" (Vivian Stanshall version) - 2:48
Tubular Bells / The Mike Oldfield Collection 1974–1983
The Mike Oldfield Collection 1974–1983 carries a black cover with the Tubular Bells logo. It contains the same first disc as the Standard Edition as well as a compilation of some of Oldfield's work from Ommadawn to Crises.Tubular Bells Deluxe Edition (2CD & 1DVD)
The Deluxe Edition carries the original seascape artwork with a "Deluxe Edition" white banner at the bottom. The DVD is incorrectly labelled as "Disc 4", even though there are only three discs in this version. This is due to the same DVD being the fourth disc in the Ultimate Edition. UK release code number 270 354-1.CD two
- "Tubular Bells Part One" (Original stereo mix)
- "Tubular Bells Part Two" (Original stereo mix)
DVD
Audio
- "Tubular Bells Part One" (5.1 surround mix)
- "Tubular Bells Part Two" (5.1 surround mix)
- "Mike Oldfield's Single" (5.1 surround mix)
- "Sailor's Hornpipe" (Vivian Stanshall version)
Visual
- "BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
TV 2nd House Performance"
Tubular Bells - The Ultimate Edition
The Ultimate Edition comes complete with 60-page hardback book with a foreword by Mike Oldfield, plectrums, poster, copy of Manor Studios recording brochure, concert ticket, postcard and recording information. The Ultimate Edition carries the white artwork, with the bell logo. UK release code number 270 353-9 (04).- CD one - (As Standard edition)
- CD two - (As Deluxe edition)
- DVD - (As Deluxe edition)
- Vinyl - (As Vinyl edition)
- Bonus CD
- "Tubular Bells (long)" (demo) - 22:55
- "Caveman Lead-in" (demo) - 2:44
- "Caveman" (demo) - 5:06
- "Peace Demo A" (1971 demo) - 7:01
- "Peace Demo B" (1971 demo) - 4:22
- "Tubular Bells, Part One" (scrapped first mix Spring 1973) - 25:13
Personnel
- Mike Oldfield - Stereo and 5.1 mixes, project director
- Adam Barker - project director
- Daryl Easlea - project director
- Joe Black - product manager
- Mark Powell - master tape research, artist liaison
- Paschal Byrne, The Audio Archiving Company, London - 24-bit digital remastering
- Phil Smee, Waldo's Design & Dream Emporium - artwork package and design
- Trevor Key - original artwork
- Rupert and Alex Smee - New Bell 3D image
- Tom Newman - Recording engineer
- Simon Heyworth - Recording engineer, Photographs
- Barry Plumber - Photographs
- Getty ImagesGetty ImagesGetty Images, Inc. is a stock photo agency, based in Seattle, Washington, USA. It is a supplier of stock images for business and consumers with an archive of 80 million still images and illustrations and more than 50,000 hours of stock film footage...
- Photographs - Ben Wiseman and Craig Thompson, Audio Archiving Company - Analogue to Digital Transfers
- Emma Sutcliffe - Numbers
Artwork
Where the original artwork has been used, the photographs have been digitally enhanced, and the bell logo has been replaced with a computer-generated version. Interestingly, the shapes of some of the clouds have changed: the image is a richer blue; the detail on the bell, including reflections, has been simplified; and what appear to be birds have been removed from the front cover image.New artwork has also been used, such as the bell on a white background, which was used for the Ultimate Edition, and the bell on a black background, which was used for The Collection.
Promotion
The 2-CD version, The Mike Oldfield Collection 1974–1983The Mike Oldfield Collection 1974–1983
The Mike Oldfield Collection 1974–1983 is a compilation album by Mike Oldfield, released in 2009, to coincide with the reissue of Oldfield's debut album, Tubular Bells, by Mercury Records....
, containing the album and a disc of Oldfield's tracks from 1974 to 1983 was advertised on television during the run up to Father's Day. The actor Tom Baker
Tom Baker
Thomas Stewart "Tom" Baker is a British actor. He is best known for playing the fourth incarnation of the Doctor in the science fiction television series Doctor Who, a role he played from 1974 to 1981.-Early life:...
, known for his role as the Doctor
Doctor (Doctor Who)
The Doctor is the central character in the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who, and has also featured in two cinema feature films, a vast range of spin-off novels, audio dramas and comic strips connected to the series....
in Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
, provides his voice-over for the advert. Baker also did the voice-over for the advert for The Best of Tubular Bells
The Best of Tubular Bells
The Best of Tubular Bells is a compilation album written and mostly performed by Mike Oldfield. It was released in 2001 and features segments from all of the Tubular Bells albums up to that year....
in 2000. The Collection charted at number 11 in the UK Albums Chart
UK Albums Chart
The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
.
Some stores, such as audio/video retailer Richer Sounds
Richer Sounds
Richer Sounds is a British home entertainment retailer that operates online and through a chain of 51 stores distributed across the United Kingdom. The business is 100% owned by Julian Richer, the founder and managing director of the company....
, ran promotions for the album. The Richer Sounds promotion was a prize draw, where first prize was a Cambridge Audio
Cambridge Audio
Cambridge Audio is a brand acquired in 1994 by Audio Partnership Plc and is used on a range of hi-fi, home cinema and multi-room products. The original Cambridge Audio company was founded in 1968 and was primarily known for its range of amplifiers and tuners, many of which featured novel technical...
Hi-Fi system and a signed copy of the Ultimate edition of Tubular Bells. Oldfield has also endorsed Cambridge Audio products.
Single
BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2 is one of the BBC's national radio stations and the most popular station in the United Kingdom. Much of its daytime playlist-based programming is best described as Adult Contemporary or AOR, although the station is also noted for its specialist broadcasting of other musical genres...
's Radcliffe & Maconie show on 26 May 2009. The single begins with the "Introduction" piece, then moves into the "Fast Guitars" and "Basses" pieces, before returning to the "Introduction" piano part.
Oldfield was interviewed on the Radcliffe & Maconie show on 23 June 2009, and he was also interviewed on Johnnie Walker
Johnnie Walker (DJ)
Johnnie Walker MBE is a popular British veteran radio disc jockey and broadcaster....
's Sounds of the 70s on BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2 is one of the BBC's national radio stations and the most popular station in the United Kingdom. Much of its daytime playlist-based programming is best described as Adult Contemporary or AOR, although the station is also noted for its specialist broadcasting of other musical genres...
on 14 June 2009. The Crown Records cover of the finale of part one was played at the end of the Sounds of the 70s interview; Oldfield's version was played on Walker's show the following week.
Post-release bonus material
For a short period of time after the release, when the album was inserted into a computer, and the user visited the URL mikeoldfield.com/bonus, additional material was available, such as an interview with Mike Oldfield which was filmed on a rainy day in the Bahamas in May 2009. Since the creation of the releases more material has been unearthed, such as another alternate version (second take) of "Caveman"; these may be released on the website at a later date.Online store
The online store was opened to those who registered in advance on 15 May, and was publicly opened on 18 May. All editions of the album, an art canvas, and t-shirts displaying the Tubular Bells logo are available.There was also a special limited edition of 500 signed and numbered copies of the "Ultimate Edition", available from Oldfield's website, but which sold out in under 24 hours. The signed element is a numbered certificate.
Bell-ringing events
On 6 June at 6pm (a reference to 666Number of the Beast
The Number of the Beast is a term in the Book of Revelation, of the New Testament, that is associated with the first Beast of Revelation chapter 13, the Beast of the sea. In most manuscripts of the New Testament and in English translations of the Bible, the number of the Beast is...
) there was a worldwide bell-ringing event; bells were rung in Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
(on MTV
MTV Italy
MTV Italy is the Italian speaking version of the popular 24 hour music and youth entertainment channel. Unlike its counterparts elsewhere in Europe, MTV Italia is a national channel available free-to-air on terrestrial television since September 1, 1997 and available on digital terrestrial...
), Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
(Siegessäule
Berlin Victory Column
The Victory Column is a monument in Berlin, Germany. Designed by Heinrich Strack after 1864 to commemorate the Prussian victory in the Danish-Prussian War, by the time it was inaugurated on 2 September 1873, Prussia had also defeated Austria in the Austro-Prussian War and France in the...
), Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
(Atomium
Atomium
The Atomium is a monument in Brussels, originally built for Expo '58, the 1958 Brussels World's Fair. Designed by André Waterkeyn, it stands 102 metres tall...
), Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
(the George Pompidou centre
Centre Georges Pompidou
Centre Georges Pompidou is a complex in the Beaubourg area of the 4th arrondissement of Paris, near Les Halles, rue Montorgueil and the Marais...
), Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
(Opera House
Sydney Opera House
The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in the Australian city of Sydney. It was conceived and largely built by Danish architect Jørn Utzon, finally opening in 1973 after a long gestation starting with his competition-winning design in 1957...
), Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
/Narita (at a Japanese Temple) and London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. Official footage has been shown on a YouTube video, linked from Oldfield's website.
One of the events in London was at the British Music Experience
British Music Experience
The British Music Experience is a permanent exhibition, taking up more than 20,000 square feet, installed into The O2 Bubble, part of The O2 in Greenwich, London...
at The O2
The O2 (London)
The O2, visually typeset in branding as The O2, is a large entertainment district on the Greenwich peninsula in South East London, England, including an indoor arena, a music club, a Cineworld cinema, an exhibition space, piazzas, bars and restaurants...
. It featured the 29 piece Handbell
Handbell
A handbell is a bell designed to be rung by hand. To ring a handbell, a ringer grasps the bell by its slightly flexible handle — traditionally made of leather, but often now made of plastic — and moves the wrist to make the hinged clapper inside the bell strike...
Ringers of Great Britain and an Orbular Bells DJ set by The Orb
The Orb
Throughout 1989, the Orb, along with Martin Glover, developed the musical genre of ambient house through the use of a diverse array of samples and recordings. The culmination of its musical work came toward the end of the year when the group recorded a session for John Peel on BBC Radio 1...
. There was also bell-ringing workshops and competitions. The Orb had previously remixed "Sentinel
Sentinel (song)
"Sentinel" is a single by musician Mike Oldfield, released in 1992. The single features a restructured, shorter version of "Sentinel", from the album Tubular Bells II.- Charts :...
" from Tubular Bells II.
Photos from the London event were posted on the official website on 8 June. An official video of the events was uploaded to the video sharing site YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
on 9 June.
Equipment
For the 2009 remix, the following equipment was utilised. A screenshot of the session in Steinberg Nuendo was included in the Ultimate Edition book.- Steinberg Nuendo 4.2.2
- Apple Mac ProMac ProThe Mac Pro is a workstation computer manufactured by Apple Inc. The machines are based on Xeon microprocessors, but are similar to the Power Mac G5 they replaced in terms of outward appearance and expansion capabilities...
, 2 x Quad 3 GHz - 24 Channel EuphonixEuphonixEuphonix was a professional audio company located in Mountain View, California, United States. Euphonix produced the first successful line of large digitally controlled analog audio mixing consoles in the late 1980s and has since moved on to all-digital systems....
MC Mix System and one MC Control - DigidesignDigidesignAvid Audio is an American digital audio technology company. It was founded in 1984 by Peter Gotcher and Evan Brooks. The company began as a project to raise money for the founders' band, selling EPROM chips for drum machines. It is a subsidiary of Avid Technology, and during 2010 the Digidesign...
003 + audio interface - DynaudioDynaudioDynaudio is a Danish loudspeaker maker, founded in 1977. Originally Dynaudio built speakers using their own crossover but relying on OEM drivers, but later they started to make their own drivers...
Acoustic Air Series networking 5.1 loudspeaker system - Solid State LogicSolid State LogicSolid State Logic is a manufacturer of high-end mixing consoles and recording studio hardware headquartered in Begbroke, Oxfordshire, UK.- Company information :...
Duende - TCC Electronic Powercore
- DVR 2 digital vintage reverb
- Coffee machineCoffeemakerCoffeemakers or coffee machines are cooking appliances used to brew coffee without having to boil water in a separate container. While there are many different types of coffeemakers using a number of different brewing principles, in the most common devices, coffee grounds are placed in a paper or...
(Included in the actual liner notes as a joke by Oldfield)
Live performances
There have been a number of live performances of the work. It is typically one of the pieces that Oldfield plays at the majority of his concerts, due to its popularity.The premiere live performance of Tubular Bells was at the Queen Elizabeth Hall
Queen Elizabeth Hall
The Queen Elizabeth Hall is a music venue on the South Bank in London, United Kingdom that hosts daily classical, jazz, and avant-garde music and dance performances. The QEH forms part of Southbank Centre arts complex and stands alongside the Royal Festival Hall, which was built for the Festival...
at 7:45pm 25 June 1973. To coax Oldfield into playing the premiere live performance of Tubular Bells Virgin boss Richard Branson gave Oldfield his Bentley
Bentley
Bentley Motors Limited is a British manufacturer of automobiles founded on 18 January 1919 by Walter Owen Bentley known as W.O. Bentley or just "W O". Bentley had been previously known for his range of rotary aero-engines in World War I, the most famous being the Bentley BR1 as used in later...
.
Mike Oldfield had been performing "The Sailor's Hornpipe
The Sailor's Hornpipe
The Sailor's Hornpipe is a traditional hornpipe melody.- History :The usual tune for this dance was first printed as the "College Hornpipe" in 1797 or 1798 by J. Dale of London....
" for years before including it on Tubular Bells, when he was the bass player with Kevin Ayers and The Whole World.
BBC Second House performance
Footage exists of a live-in-the-studio performance for the BBCBBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
, filmed on 30 November 1973, originally broadcast on BBC2
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
on 1 December, with a cast including Oldfield, his brother Terry
Terry Oldfield
Terence "Terry" Oldfield is an English composer. He is brother to well-known music composers and performers Sally and Mike Oldfield.- Early life :...
(flute), Fred Frith
Fred Frith
Fred Frith is an English multi-instrumentalist, composer and improvisor.Probably best known for his guitar work, Frith first came to attention as one of the founding members of the English avant-rock group Henry Cow. Frith was also a member of Art Bears, Massacre and Skeleton Crew...
(and other members of Henry Cow
Henry Cow
Henry Cow were an English avant-rock group, founded at Cambridge University in 1968 by multi-instrumentalists Fred Frith and Tim Hodgkinson. Henry Cow's personnel fluctuated over their decade together, but drummer Chris Cutler and bassoonist/oboist Lindsay Cooper were important long-term members...
), Steve Hillage
Steve Hillage
Steve Hillage is an English musician, best known as a guitarist. He is associated with the Canterbury scene and has worked in experimental domains since the late 1960s...
, Pierre Moerlen
Pierre Moerlen
Pierre Moerlen was a French drummer and percussionist, best known for his work with Gong and Mike Oldfield.-Biography:...
, Tom Newman
Tom Newman (musician)
Not to be confused with Thomas Newman.Tom Newman is an English record producer and musician...
, Mike Ratledge
Mike Ratledge
Michael Roland "Mike" Ratledge is a British musician. Ratledge was part of the Canterbury scene and a long-time member of Soft Machine.-Biography and career:...
, Mick Taylor
Mick Taylor
Michael Kevin "Mick" Taylor is an English musician, best known as a former member of John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and The Rolling Stones...
, Karl Jenkins
Karl Jenkins
-Other works:*Adiemus: Live — live versions of Adiemus music*Palladio *Eloise *Imagined Oceans *The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace...
and others. It includes a new part for oboe
Oboe
The oboe is a double reed musical instrument of the woodwind family. In English, prior to 1770, the instrument was called "hautbois" , "hoboy", or "French hoboy". The spelling "oboe" was adopted into English ca...
. This has been released on the Elements DVD and is on the 2009 reissue of Tubular Bells.
Live releases
Live video performances are available on the following releases:- ExposedExposed (Mike Oldfield video)Exposed is a live concert video by Mike Oldfield recorded in 1979 at Wembley Conference Centre. The live album of the same name was released in 1979; it also had the same artwork. A DVD version of the concert was released in 2005...
- The Essential LiveThe Essential LiveThe Essential Live is a live concert video by Mike Oldfield. It was recorded live at the Knebworth Festival on 21 July 1980 and the interviews are in Oldfield's studio...
- Live at Montreux 1981Live at Montreux 1981Live at Montreux 1981 is a live video album released by Mike Oldfield. The concert was recorded at Montreux Jazz Festival in 1981 and later released on DVD in 2006 by Eagle Vision and Montreux Sounds, with thanks to Virgin Records....
- Elements (BBC 2nd House, part one)
- Tubular Bells (2009 reissue, Deluxe/Ultimate Edition, BBC 2nd House, part one)
- The Art in Heaven ConcertThe Art in Heaven ConcertThe Art in Heaven Concert is a Mike Oldfield concert video taken from 2000 New Year's night concert at the Victory Column in Berlin, Germany, which is currently available on both CD and DVD.In a press conference in July 1999 in Langeland, Oldfield revealed that some ideas for the venue...
(only an excerpt from part one)
Live audio releases are on the following albums:
- The Orchestral Tubular BellsThe Orchestral Tubular BellsThe Orchestral Tubular Bells is an orchestral version of Mike Oldfield's album Tubular Bells, arranged by David Bedford and recorded in 1974 by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, featuring Oldfield himself playing the guitar. In 2000 it was reissued by Virgin as a HDCD.Excerpts from the album were...
(orchestral arrangement) - Exposed
- Airborn
- Night of the PromsNight of the PromsNight of the Proms is a series of concerts held yearly in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Denmark and Poland. Regularly there are also shows in France, Spain, Austria, Switzerland and Luxembourg...
2006/Best of, Volume 2 (CD, excerpt from part one)
Cover versions
Various sections of Tubular Bells have been covered by many artists, with the most used part being the introduction piano piece.- Lol CoxhillLol CoxhillLowen Coxhill, generally known as Lol Coxhill is a free improvising saxophonist and raconteur...
recorded a very short track of "doubled and echoed flexatoneFlexatoneThe flexatone is a modern percussion instrument consisting of a small flexible metal sheet suspended in a wire frame ending in a handle. -History, construction and technique:...
s" (a flexatone is a hand percussion instrument consisting of two balls striking a piece of metal, which makes a "spooky" sound effect), titled "Tubercular Balls" on his 1974 Caroline RecordsCaroline RecordsCaroline Records started out as a subsidiary of Richard Branson's Virgin Records label during the early to mid 1970s. The label originally specialized in putting out budget price LPs by mainly progressive rock and jazz artists generally not considered to have a great deal of 'mainstream' or...
half-album, ...Oh Really? (the other side being The Story So Far... by Stephen Miller, a.k.a. Steve Miller, ex Caravan; the album is often referred to by a combination of its two titles: The Story So Far ... Oh Really?). - The Champs Boys Orchestra released a short rendition of Tubular Bells in 1976.
- Metal band PossessedPossessed (band)Possessed is an American death metal band, originally formed in 1983. Noted for their fast style of playing and Jeff Becerra's guttural vocals, they are routinely called the first band in the death metal genre...
played the intro in the first song of the record Seven ChurchesSeven Churches (album)- Personnel :*Jeff Becerra − Vocals, Bass*Larry LaLonde − Guitar*Mike Torrao − Guitar*Mike Sus − Drums*Randy Burns - Keyboard on Tracks 1 and 9....
(in 1985), which is titled "The Exorcist". - Paul HardcastlePaul HardcastlePaul Hardcastle is an English composer and musician, specialising in the synthesizer.-Discography:In the early 1980s, Hardcastle played the keyboards on several singles on the Oval record label by the dance music groups Direct Drive and First Light, before going solo.He achieved some acclaim for...
based his 1985 single "1919 (song)"19" is a song by British musician Paul Hardcastle released as the first single from his self-titled third studio album Paul Hardcastle ....
" around the piano theme of Tubular Bells. - Another thrash metal band called Death AngelDeath AngelDeath Angel is a Filipino-American thrash metal band from Concord, California, initially active from 1982 to 1991 and again since 2001. Death Angel has released six studio albums, two demo tapes, one box set and two live albums....
played the main theme in the title track of the album The Ultra-ViolenceThe Ultra-ViolenceThe Ultra-Violence is the first album by the Bay Area thrash band Death Angel, released in 1987. The album was recorded while all members were under 20, with drummer Andy Galeon just 14 years old...
in 1987. - Book of Love opened their 1988 album Lullaby with a cover version, stretched to 4/4 time by adding stretching a note to make it danceable.
- Ed StarinkEd StarinkEd Starink , also known as Star Inc., is a Dutch composer, arranger, session musician and record producer. Since his childhood he was fascinated by music and taught himself to play many musical instruments....
made an abridged cover for an album Synthesizer Greatest (the first album in a multi-volume series) that was released in 1989. Tubular Bells appears only on the CD-version as a "bonus track". Other tracks on the album are cover versions of famous synthesizer songs but the original Tubular Bells features no synthesizer. - Italian Keyboarder Claudio SimonettiClaudio SimonettiClaudio Simonetti is an Italian composer who has specialized in the scores for Italian and American horror films since the 1970s.- Biography :...
covered the song on his Days of Confusion album in 1992. - American artist Tori AmosTori AmosTori Amos is an American pianist, singer-songwriter and composer. She was at the forefront of a number of female singer-songwriters in the early 1990s and was noteworthy early in her career as one of the few alternative rock performers to use a piano as her primary instrument...
has frequently been using the opening Tubular Bells theme in her live shows. It began during the 1996 Dew Drop Inn Tour where she would let "Father Lucifer" segue into Tubular Bells on the piano while singing words from Bronski BeatBronski BeatBronski Beat were a popular British synthpop trio who achieved success in the mid 1980s, particularly with the 1984 chart hit "Smalltown Boy". All members of the group were openly homosexual and their songs reflected this, often containing political commentary on gay-related issues...
's "Smalltown BoySmalltown Boy"Smalltown Boy" is the debut single of the British synthpop group Bronski Beat, released in June 1984. It would also appear on the band's debut album The Age of Consent, released in December 1984....
" as well as playing it on the harpsichord during songs "Love Song" (a CureThe CureThe Cure are an English rock band formed in Crawley, West Sussex in 1976. The band has experienced several line-up changes, with frontman, vocalist, guitarist and principal songwriter Robert Smith being the only constant member...
cover) and "Bells for Her" (from the album Under the PinkUnder the PinkUnder the Pink is the second solo album by singer-songwriter Tori Amos. Upon its release in January 1994, the album peaked at US #12 and on the back of the hit single "Cornflake Girl", the album debuted at UK #1, her highest-charting UK album debut to date. It had sold around 220,000 copies in the...
), usually while mixing in lyrics from a third song such as BjörkBjörkBjörk Guðmundsdóttir , known as Björk , is an Icelandic singer-songwriter. Her eclectic musical style has achieved popular acknowledgement and popularity within many musical genres, such as rock, jazz, electronic dance music, classical and folk...
's "Hyperballad" or "Blue Skies". It appeared again in 2005 as part of "Yes, Anastasia" and on the current 2007 tour promoting her album American Doll PosseAmerican Doll PosseAmerican Doll Posse is the ninth studio album by singer-songwriter Tori Amos; it was released in 2007. Like her previous albums Strange Little Girls and Scarlet's Walk , American Doll Posse is a concept album, which entails five female personae Amos developed based on Greek mythology. Musically,...
it is being performed with full band as an intro to "Devils and Gods". - Forma TadreForma TadreForma Tadre is a German musical project that can best be described as electro with a feel of soundtracks and ambient but has also been categorized as industrial or electronic body music...
use the intro guitars from the second part of Tubular Bells in their song "Automate" on the 1998 album of the same nameAutomate (album)Automate is the second album of Forma Tadre, a German musical project. This album is quite different from Forma Tadre's previous album, Navigator as it has a much more ambient feel.-Track listing:# "La Cité" – 3:24# "Passage North" – 1:13...
. Their version is done with synth and only repeats the first two bars. - Therapy?Therapy?Therapy? is an alternative metal band from Northern Ireland. The band was formed in 1989 by guitarist–vocalist Andy Cairns from Ballyclare and drummer-vocalist Fyfe Ewing from Larne, Northern Ireland. The band initially recorded their first demo with Cairns filling in on bass guitar...
jokingly covered the opening theme live in 1998 as part of a medley, which opened with "Tubular Bells", segued into Judas PriestJudas PriestJudas Priest are an English heavy metal band from Birmingham, England, formed in 1969. The current line-up consists of lead vocalist Rob Halford, guitarists Glenn Tipton and Richie Faulkner, bassist Ian Hill, and drummer Scott Travis. The band has gone through several drummers over the years,...
's "Breaking the LawBreaking the Law"Breaking the Law" is a song by British heavy metal band Judas Priest, originally released on their 1980 album British Steel. The song is one of the band's better known singles, and is recognized by its opening guitar riff.-Music video:...
", and ended with their own "Nowhere". - Duo Sonare, a German classical guitar duo, made a complete re-recording of Tubular Bells for two guitars in 2000.
- Rapper Tech N9neTech N9neAaron Dontez Yates , better known by his stage name Tech N9ne , is an American rapper from Kansas City, Missouri. In 1999, Yates and Travis O'Guin founded the record label Strange Music. Throughout his career, Yates has sold over one million albums and has had his music featured in film,...
used a version of the intro in the song "Be Warned" in 2002, only he moved it to 4/4 time. - Interactivo, lead by bandleader Roberto CarcassésRoberto CarcassésRobert Carcassés is a Cuban jazz pianist. He was born on May 19, 1972, in Havana, Cuba. He has collaborated with many musicians, such as Chucho Valdés, Changuito, Wynton Marsalis, George Benson, and Descemer Bueno...
, based their 2005 Cuban jazz-funkJazz-funkJazz-funk is a sub-genre of jazz music characterized by a strong back beat , electrified sounds, and often, the presence of the first electronic analog synthesizers...
arrangement entitled Escriba y Lea Con las Tubular Bells on themes from late in the second half of Tubular Bells, Part One. - Finnish a cappellaA cappellaA cappella music is specifically solo or group singing without instrumental sound, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. It is the opposite of cantata, which is accompanied singing. A cappella was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato...
performer PaskaPaska (band)Paska is a Finnish one-man a cappella rock band formed in 1984. Paska is a Finnish word for feces, usually translated as "shit". The band was named such because the idea of the band was to prove that anybody can make music, no matter how "paska" he or she happens to be.The band consists of Ari...
recorded an abridged version for his 2005 album Women Are From Venus, Men From AnusWomen Are from Venus, Men from AnusWomen Are from Venus, Men from Anus is the debut album and come back album by Paska. It was released in 2005. The album title is a parody of the popular psychology book Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus....
. Paska has also performed the song at his live performances. In a concert on 1 October 2007, before performing it, Ari PeltonenAri PeltonenAri Pekka "Paska" Peltonen is a Finnish radio reporter, author and musician.Since 1985, Peltonen has given musical performances under the name of Paska , his one-man-band. Peltonen has also used the pseudonyms Jeesus, Jorma and Johnny-Blue, usually as opening acts for Paska...
gave a speech about his hatred towards the song and progressive rock. - Crown Records - iTunesITunesiTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....
download - A cover of Tubular Bells by the Crown Star Records studio musicians. - Marcel Bergmann made two arrangements of Tubular Bells "Part One", in 2005 (for two pianos and two synthesizers as well as four pianos); A CD with both versions was released by Brilliant Classics in 2008.
- California Guitar TrioCalifornia Guitar TrioCalifornia Guitar Trio is a band of threeguitar players founded in 1991. Paul Richards of Salt Lake City, Utah, Bert Lams of Brussels,...
covers most of the first side of the original album on their album Echoes released in late March 2008. - Tubular Bells for Two - in April and July 2009, and March 2010, in association with Universal Music Australia, two multi-instrumentalists Aidan Roberts and Daniel Holdsworth performed the work live in its entirety, in two exclusive performances in Sydney. Holdsworth and Roberts had spent 9 months arranging and rehearsing the work, and in order to represent Oldfield's complex original arrangements they utilised loop pedals, multiple percussion and keyboard setups, various guitars and a custom-made set of abstract tubular bells. Holdsworth and Roberts made a recorded version of their arrangement but for copyright reasons it has not been released.
- Happy HardcoreHappy hardcoreHappy hardcore, also known as happycore, is a genre of music typified by a very fast tempo , often coupled with solo vocals and sentimental lyrics. Its characteristically 4/4 beat "happy" sound distinguishes it from most other forms of hardcore techno, which tend to be "darker". It is typically in...
DJ and producer Trixxy also used the intro melody for the song "Sunrize".
Furthermore, many dance acts and other artists have used the intro to Tubular Bells as the basis for their songs. A long list can be found at Rainer Muenz' discography.
Commodore 64
With the aid of the software house CRLCRL Group PLC
CRL Group plc is a defunct British video game development and publishing company. Originally CRL stood for "Computer Rentals Ltd.". It was based in King's Yard, London and run by Clem Chambers....
and distributor Nu Wave, Mike Oldfield released an interactive Commodore 64
Commodore 64
The Commodore 64 is an 8-bit home computer introduced by Commodore International in January 1982.Volume production started in the spring of 1982, with machines being released on to the market in August at a price of US$595...
version of the album in 1986, which utilised the computer's SID
MOS Technology SID
The MOS Technology 6581/8580 SID is the built-in Programmable Sound Generator chip of Commodore's CBM-II, Commodore 64, Commodore 128 and Commodore MAX Machine home computers...
sound chip to play back a simplified re-arrangement of the album, accompanied by some simple 2D visual effects.
The "interactivity" offered by the album/program was limited to controlling the speed and quantity of the visual effects, tuning the sound's volume and filtering, and skipping to any part of the album.
Maestro
In 2004 Oldfield launched a virtual reality project called MaestroMaestro (video game)
Maestro is a MusicVR video game by British musician Mike Oldfield. It is the second publicly released MusicVR game after 2002's Tres Lunas.- History :Oldfield had been working on the idea of melding virtual reality and music throughout the 1990s...
which contains music from the re-recorded Tubular Bells album (Tubular Bells 2003
Tubular Bells 2003
Tubular Bells 2003 is an album by Mike Oldfield, released in 2003. It is a complete re-recording of Oldfield's 1973 album debut Tubular Bells, which had been released 30 years earlier.- Background :...
). The original title of the game was The Tube World. This was the second game which was released under the MusicVR
MusicVR
MusicVR is a virtual reality project created and developed by the musician Mike Oldfield. To date it has produced two standalone simulation games and inspired content for some of Oldfield's albums...
banner, the first being Tres Lunas
Tres Lunas (video game)
Tres Lunas is a MusicVR video game published in 2002 by British musician Mike Oldfield.- History :Oldfield had been working on the idea of melding virtual reality and music throughout the 1990s. Oldfield worked with 3D graphics programmer Colin Dooley and graphic artist Nick Catcheside...
. MusicVR set out to be a real-time virtual reality experience combining imagery and music, as a non-violent and essentially a non-goal driven game.
External links
- MikeOldfieldOfficial.com – The official Mike Oldfield website
- TubularBells2009.com
- Tubular Bells store at Band Stores
- Mike Oldfield Discography - Tubular Bells at Tubular.net