Beautiful video. Im 28 and a huge Oldfield fan. So much of his music has had a profound effect on me. Especially Incantations, which I would say is a strong contender for my favourite album of all-time.
Thanks. In 1979 I drove my college dorm roommates crazy listening to Incantations over and over and over again, especially that gorgeous Maddy Prior Hiawatha part in Part 2. The whole album is beautiful. No words can express how important those first 4 albums were to me. Thanks again.
Yes! The video we've been waiting for, at least I have for sure. Thinking of Richard too who I know is also a deep fan. Wonderful excursion through your memories, impressions, critiques at times...everything. I have a greater idea of just how much he's meant to you over such a long time. Even I don't really think in terms of rankings or hierarchies (musical or otherwise) it was only in the last few years that Hergest Ridge became my second favorite after Ommadawn...some kind of mini epiphany occurred it seems...though yes, I love those first four at the very least. Oh yes...the "Hiawatha part" gets me every time. I've mentioned I think, having just bought the album from a shop in Flagstaff and driving down the mountain mist with that playing, may have even been that section, and just being in rapture! So many you have me wanting to revisit. I'm actually going back to AZ soon, so I'll have further incentives for travel listening. 🙂 I can understand how initially for some that the new age influence infiltrating his music by TB 2 could irk some a bit, though of course he seemed to be an inadvertant innovator and influence on many artists that are slotted into that genre, however arbitrarily or not. I remember seeing displays and flyers for that album in all the shops at the time...and I was just getting into the original from my dad's collection. An aside for a moment, you mentioning early internet in the 90's with the chat groups an all was reminding me of a conversation that I had with a friend who really thought of it as a golden age of all that....in the days before "likes", selfies, "influencers", being online mainly for self-aggrandizement, piling-on-divisiveness, "trending" stuff....there was little or no pressure or anxiety...just people chatting and hanging out it seemed....what do you think of all that? I ask too since I was a late-bloomer, not getting online until well into the 00's. Speaking of that, I've heard so little of him of this century. I do like Return to Ommadawn quite a bit, though agree its no where near the original. I know that too though, certain artists we just stick with, through pretty much all they do. It's like a relationship of sorts, a truset even, perhaps? Thanks much for doing this. Well worth the time for sure, and I believe subsequent revisits. 🙂 -Carm
I should have dedicated this video to you, Carm, for you were the one who requested it so long ago. How does one "review" an Oldfield album? How does one "review" a symphony or concerto? Usually only in the context of comparing different readings of the same work by different interpreters/conductors/etc.. I had no idea how to ever "review" Oldfield, but your request made sense: talk about my "journey" with Oldfield's music over time. I very much enjoyed doing this. At first I thought way WAY too much about it.....which is why it never got done. Eventually I just decided to sit down and talk about it on the fly. I made this hour long video in one take, just chatting.....to YOU (in my mind), Carm. Yes, Oldfield certainly was a primary influence to early New Age music, a genre that I was initially very interested in....but sometimes found to be musically insubstantial (at least to my ears). Still, good New Age is marvelous.....witness my rapt enthusiasm for Larry Cansler, for example. Yes I agree wholeheartedly with your friend regarding the '90s and the "golden years" of the rather innocent and untainted (relatively speaking) experience of internet newsgroups and chat rooms, etc.. Sure, there were "flames" (a word I learned about quickly at the time) but for the most part it was exciting and new. But like most such things, the cons start competing effectively with the pros.....such is as it is..... Yes, trust in an artist has been very beneficial. I trust Oldfield, as well as Rypdal, and a few others, so much that I know better than to knee-jerk a response to whatever they do. That has rewarded me with time. I know you know what I mean. Thanks for your great comment, and I am happy that I didn't disappoint you with my very laid-back chat about Oldfield and how much he means to me as a music lover and musician. Cheers! Jeff
I'm sure it was, Mick. He seems quite confident in the videos I've seen of that time. It is amazing how he went from too-shy-to-step-on-stage one year to Mr-front-man-performer the next year and afterwards. I wonder whether he would have continued his music recording career if he'd never overcome his performing anxiety.
Tubular Bells is one of those albums that just pulls me in. What a great composer he was from a young age. Im 19 years old, can't believe he wrote that at the same age as me. Certainly an artist that deserves more recognition. I don't think there are many in my age that has ever heard of him.
He was actually on 17 when he started working on Tubular Bells, while playing bass for Kevin Ayers and the Whole World, David Bedford their arranger encouraged him.
Loved this Jeff...to be honest I only really know a few of Mike's albums but it's great that you've had this journey with him. My dad and I used to listen to Tubular Bells together, so it will always be very special to me. I love the image of you lying on the bed between your two speakers, for months on end - I did exactly the same with TB. Ommadawn always reminds me of the early years of my second son, as I used to listen to it a lot while the two of us sat at the kitchen table doing crayon drawings. . I love the way you always give your favourite artists endless chances when listening to music by them that you're not sure of at first - there's not enough of that in the world, with too many people hasty to jump to judgement because music doesn't immediately tick their boxes. Incidentally, I have a slight tangential Oldfield connection - my former piano teacher played in the brass section on the orchestra version of Tubular Bells. By the way, did you take down your most recent videos? I dropped by to finally catch up with them but I can't see them.
Nice to hear your musical journey. I actually read about Tubular Bells in Rolling Stone before the movie. My dad took me to The Exorcist partly since he liked Tubular Bells too. I taped Hergest Ridge off the radio with my brand new 8-track recorder. I liked it, but not quite as much as TB and didn't buy any more Oldfield until years later. Yes, one of my first record stores, Strawberry Records, was a head shop too. They had import and bootleg LPs, but I didn't know what they were yet. My lunch break (with Dr Pepper) is almost over, so I'll have to watch the rest later. Now I have an hour and a half meeting to look forward to. . .
Hi Stephen. I may have seen the mention of Oldfield/TB in a music rag at the time too, prior to Exorcist. But I was unaware of Kevin Ayers at the time, so wouldn't have known his name in that context. It was pretty much the Exorcist thing. Yeah, I miss those head shops (I was not a druggy at all), because I liked the incense-drenched laid-back vibe of the places......and several of my high school music-loving friends were always there, it seemed. I'll bet some of the LPs that I bought from that place STILL smell a bit like incense (and other things). Haha!
i have been a fan of Mike Oldfield for about 40 years and I really enjoyed this video and tend to agree with your opinions on the albums.I was waiting for you to get to The Millennium Bell as like you I disliked it on release and I had not listened to it since. I was intrighed when you said that you liked it now so I decided to give it another go. I really like it in fact I am listening to it now. It sometimes pays to reassess albums and that turned out to be true in this case. Cheers.
Thanks, Stewart. Yes I think my enjoyment of these later Oldfield albums years after they were released kind of required that I give myself time to break away from any "expectation" I had of him and just listen and enjoy it for the beauty it contained.
Wonderful video, Jeff. I know you love the first four albums but I'm delighted you rate QE2 so highly. I'm even more delighted that you revisited The Millenium Bell which is his most underated album. I also didn't like it when it came out, but after watching a live performance of some of the tracks on a CD/DVD collection I picked up a few years later, I was blown away so I went straight back to the album and loved it. I will still say Amarok is my favourite album although it is slightly dated with the Janet Brown Maggie Thatcher impression. Looking back at his whole career I think the 1990s is my favourite decade for Oldfield's music, the only stinker being Heaven's Open.
Thanks, Richard. I do love the '70s "classic" Oldfield that I grew up with but I think he has released absolutely superb music in all 5 decades. It truly amazes me at how many beautiful and interesting melodic creations he can produce out of relatively simple harmonic progressions.....so beautiful and moving. BTW, I still think the Maggie Thatcher thing in Amarok is hilarious, not so much because it was meant to sound like Thatcher, but just because I am amused at the expressions Janet Brown used and how hoity-toity she made them sound with her voice. As serious as Oldfield comes across sometimes, he seems to also have a very very silly sense of humor. Hahaha!
I listened to Mike Oldfield for the 2nd time in my life all weekend. I'm afraid now that I need to get his total discography. I'm not sure but he may be the father of ambient music (of which I am a big fan). I'm beginning to understand you enthusiasm.
Lunasa,Teada, Four Men and a Dog ,Sharon Shannon,John Kirkpatrick,Kila, Just a few names of Irish Folk Artists. In the beginning of you talk about Mr. Oldfield you mentioned you interest in Irish Folkmusic So I thought to give you some names of Irish musicians I like a lot.(there are quite a few more,it is really a country of musicians and writers) As to Mr. Oldfield (who is very much influenced by Gaelic music,as well as English Folk,but you mention thatin your talk) I never cared much for Tubular Bells(still don,t) but with Incantations (All Four Sides,of course) I had a similar experience as you. Magnificent All the way through. And Ommadawn,and Platinum Have a nice day Jeff
Those first four albums of his (TB, HR, Om, Inc) are four albums that I'd wish to take with me to my grave, they are that important to me. Words can't even express how much I love those albums.
Same destination, different journey. I first got really into my namesake aged around 30 when Tubular Bells II dropped. It instantly hooked me. Did not really care for his earlier work. I also liked Enya and Clannad at that time (not really anymore). I did however purchase Exposed upon release, aged 17, which I loved and still do, so that makes little sense really. Now aged twice 30 I am deep into his holy tetralogy, but I am also now into deep exploring on vinyl record new (to me) other genres that were prominent around that time. Early Genesis, Focus, Magna Carta, Steeleye Span, Curved Air, Renaissance, Fairport Convention to name some. So much good stuff from that (relatively) short time span. I also recently came by the digital deluxe version of Tubular Bells, released in 2009, that has an awesome sounding stereo remix. Even my wife likes that one 😮😊 Mike’s music is endearing and enduring and thanks for making this video, I found it fascinating and inspiring.
thanks for this. A side note: I always thought that a favourite of mine the jazz flavoured orchestral piece Waka Jawaka by Frank Zappa with its tubular bells ending must have been inspired by Mike Oldfield. After listening to this video. I checked out the dates, and I realised that Frank Zappa’s work came out the year before before tubular bells. So I wonder if Mike Oldfield had listened to that and had been inspired to do his own tubular Bell moment at the end of his composition. Or maybe it was just the instrument was in the zeitgeist. ❤
Possibly. Oldfield was just a teenager when he recorded Tubular Bells but he may have been familiar with Zappa, who knows? I think it is more likely that he just had access to all those instruments as he made his music and liked to incorporate them. Thankfully in the early '70s we didn't yet have widespread access to all of the computer/digital gimmickry that we have today which most often sucks every ounce of humanity and soul from music experimentation. So real instruments played by a real person had to do, thankfully. Unfortunately, Oldfield did discover and fall under the spell of that very gimmickry later on......
Has Oldfield done anything good at all since 1990’s Amarok? I remember a time when he really disliked being labeled "Mister Tubular Bells". Then he found out the TB brand and the flogging of that damned piano theme again and again was lucrative business. Few if any artist's development has disappointed me more.
Yes I agree. I really got disgusted with the “franchising” of TB back then. But today I can just sit back and enjoy it, even the cheesy and embarrassing stuff. But yes I do agree with you that he seemed to stop really trying much and just released very predictable (if beautiful) stuff over and over. I too was very disappointed in him, as early as those albums he released in the ‘80s with the pop songs.
Speaking of this topic (being disappointed in artists), I was just thinking about this the other day and I realized that there have been NO artists that didn’t eventually disappoint me at some time. Some a lot more than others, though.
@@CalicoSilverHello Jeff, sincerely hope you are doing well? I had the same feelings of disappointment over many of my favorite artists, however, I learned to temper that by being realistic and realizing that most magnus opi were created when these artists were relatively quite young. We all develop in different ways and quite profoundly as we age. Add to that changing trends and tastes across the musical landscape as indeed in society itself. We cannot reasonably expect one artists entire catalog to be pleasing, especially when spanning musical decades. Right? I tend as a general rule to favour the first 5 albums of any given artists, following which there might be occasional highlights further down the road. This is *especially* true for artists beginning early 70’s and then crossing into the 80’s. If I compare the 70’s output of Genesis, Lou Reed, Roxy Music and Mike Oldfield (4 of my favorites) against their 80’s output, it is like night and day (or day and night in this case!). Or chalk and cheese. Or class and schmalz. Take care bud! PS: I will even go leftfield and allay any cries of “70’s bias!” and go on record as saying that I really rather enjoy (again) the first 5 albums of Madonna and R.E.M. (80’s) and really do not care for their later works (90’s and on). Perhaps all artists should retire earlier! 😊
@@mike_burke I agree 100%, Mike. You make an excellent point: it does seem that in most cases, the first 4-6 albums by an artist are the most rewarding. Sometimes it takes a few albums before an artist gets going well, like in the case with Bob Dylan. As for Lou, I honestly (or, I should say, personally) think that he’s one of a very few of my favorite artists who released a consistent quality throughout the decades. Again, just my subjective opinion on that one. But yes, most artists have something to offer and a handful of albums get the job done; the rest of the albums are often leftovers or less successful experiments. Great topic. Thanks. Jeff
Beautiful video. Im 28 and a huge Oldfield fan. So much of his music has had a profound effect on me. Especially Incantations, which I would say is a strong contender for my favourite album of all-time.
Thanks. In 1979 I drove my college dorm roommates crazy listening to Incantations over and over and over again, especially that gorgeous Maddy Prior Hiawatha part in Part 2. The whole album is beautiful. No words can express how important those first 4 albums were to me. Thanks again.
Another great show. Loved Mike oldfield since high school. 72-76. Glad I found your channel
Indeed! Few artists have been so important to me as Oldfield (and Rypdal too....and of course Dylan and some others). Thanks for commenting. Jeff
Fantastic podcast, I would be more than happy to hear you do another 2 hours on Mike Oldfield. Cheers
Thanks, Mike. I might just do that one day!
Yes! The video we've been waiting for, at least I have for sure. Thinking of Richard too who I know is also a deep fan. Wonderful excursion through your memories, impressions, critiques at times...everything. I have a greater idea of just how much he's meant to you over such a long time.
Even I don't really think in terms of rankings or hierarchies (musical or otherwise) it was only in the last few years that Hergest Ridge became my second favorite after Ommadawn...some kind of mini epiphany occurred it seems...though yes, I love those first four at the very least.
Oh yes...the "Hiawatha part" gets me every time. I've mentioned I think, having just bought the album from a shop in Flagstaff and driving down the mountain mist with that playing, may have even been that section, and just being in rapture!
So many you have me wanting to revisit. I'm actually going back to AZ soon, so I'll have further incentives for travel listening. 🙂
I can understand how initially for some that the new age influence infiltrating his music by TB 2 could irk some a bit, though of course he seemed to be an inadvertant innovator and influence on many artists that are slotted into that genre, however arbitrarily or not. I remember seeing displays and flyers for that album in all the shops at the time...and I was just getting into the original from my dad's collection.
An aside for a moment, you mentioning early internet in the 90's with the chat groups an all was reminding me of a conversation that I had with a friend who really thought of it as a golden age of all that....in the days before "likes", selfies, "influencers", being online mainly for self-aggrandizement, piling-on-divisiveness, "trending" stuff....there was little or no pressure or anxiety...just people chatting and hanging out it seemed....what do you think of all that? I ask too since I was a late-bloomer, not getting online until well into the 00's.
Speaking of that, I've heard so little of him of this century. I do like Return to Ommadawn quite a bit, though agree its no where near the original.
I know that too though, certain artists we just stick with, through pretty much all they do. It's like a relationship of sorts, a truset even, perhaps?
Thanks much for doing this. Well worth the time for sure, and I believe subsequent revisits. 🙂 -Carm
I should have dedicated this video to you, Carm, for you were the one who requested it so long ago. How does one "review" an Oldfield album? How does one "review" a symphony or concerto? Usually only in the context of comparing different readings of the same work by different interpreters/conductors/etc.. I had no idea how to ever "review" Oldfield, but your request made sense: talk about my "journey" with Oldfield's music over time. I very much enjoyed doing this. At first I thought way WAY too much about it.....which is why it never got done. Eventually I just decided to sit down and talk about it on the fly. I made this hour long video in one take, just chatting.....to YOU (in my mind), Carm.
Yes, Oldfield certainly was a primary influence to early New Age music, a genre that I was initially very interested in....but sometimes found to be musically insubstantial (at least to my ears). Still, good New Age is marvelous.....witness my rapt enthusiasm for Larry Cansler, for example.
Yes I agree wholeheartedly with your friend regarding the '90s and the "golden years" of the rather innocent and untainted (relatively speaking) experience of internet newsgroups and chat rooms, etc.. Sure, there were "flames" (a word I learned about quickly at the time) but for the most part it was exciting and new. But like most such things, the cons start competing effectively with the pros.....such is as it is.....
Yes, trust in an artist has been very beneficial. I trust Oldfield, as well as Rypdal, and a few others, so much that I know better than to knee-jerk a response to whatever they do. That has rewarded me with time. I know you know what I mean.
Thanks for your great comment, and I am happy that I didn't disappoint you with my very laid-back chat about Oldfield and how much he means to me as a music lover and musician.
Cheers! Jeff
Fascinating Jeff, thank you 😊
I saw him live in the late 70s..l still remember it was a great gig.
I'm sure it was, Mick. He seems quite confident in the videos I've seen of that time. It is amazing how he went from too-shy-to-step-on-stage one year to Mr-front-man-performer the next year and afterwards. I wonder whether he would have continued his music recording career if he'd never overcome his performing anxiety.
Tubular Bells is one of those albums that just pulls me in. What a great composer he was from a young age. Im 19 years old, can't believe he wrote that at the same age as me. Certainly an artist that deserves more recognition. I don't think there are many in my age that has ever heard of him.
Yes, I remember being shocked at the time to find out that he was still a teenager when he recorded Tubular Bells! What an inspiration he was.
He was actually on 17 when he started working on Tubular Bells, while playing bass for Kevin Ayers and the Whole World, David Bedford their arranger encouraged him.
Loved this Jeff...to be honest I only really know a few of Mike's albums but it's great that you've had this journey with him. My dad and I used to listen to Tubular Bells together, so it will always be very special to me. I love the image of you lying on the bed between your two speakers, for months on end - I did exactly the same with TB. Ommadawn always reminds me of the early years of my second son, as I used to listen to it a lot while the two of us sat at the kitchen table doing crayon drawings. . I love the way you always give your favourite artists endless chances when listening to music by them that you're not sure of at first - there's not enough of that in the world, with too many people hasty to jump to judgement because music doesn't immediately tick their boxes. Incidentally, I have a slight tangential Oldfield connection - my former piano teacher played in the brass section on the orchestra version of Tubular Bells. By the way, did you take down your most recent videos? I dropped by to finally catch up with them but I can't see them.
Nice to hear your musical journey. I actually read about Tubular Bells in Rolling Stone before the movie. My dad took me to The Exorcist partly since he liked Tubular Bells too. I taped Hergest Ridge off the radio with my brand new 8-track recorder. I liked it, but not quite as much as TB and didn't buy any more Oldfield until years later. Yes, one of my first record stores, Strawberry Records, was a head shop too. They had import and bootleg LPs, but I didn't know what they were yet. My lunch break (with Dr Pepper) is almost over, so I'll have to watch the rest later. Now I have an hour and a half meeting to look forward to. . .
Hi Stephen. I may have seen the mention of Oldfield/TB in a music rag at the time too, prior to Exorcist. But I was unaware of Kevin Ayers at the time, so wouldn't have known his name in that context. It was pretty much the Exorcist thing. Yeah, I miss those head shops (I was not a druggy at all), because I liked the incense-drenched laid-back vibe of the places......and several of my high school music-loving friends were always there, it seemed. I'll bet some of the LPs that I bought from that place STILL smell a bit like incense (and other things). Haha!
i have been a fan of Mike Oldfield for about 40 years and I really enjoyed this video and tend to agree with your opinions on the albums.I was waiting for you to get to The Millennium Bell as like you I disliked it on release and I had not listened to it since. I was intrighed when you said that you liked it now so I decided to give it another go. I really like it in fact I am listening to it now. It sometimes pays to reassess albums and that turned out to be true in this case. Cheers.
Thanks, Stewart. Yes I think my enjoyment of these later Oldfield albums years after they were released kind of required that I give myself time to break away from any "expectation" I had of him and just listen and enjoy it for the beauty it contained.
Wonderful video, Jeff. I know you love the first four albums but I'm delighted you rate QE2 so highly. I'm even more delighted that you revisited The Millenium Bell which is his most underated album. I also didn't like it when it came out, but after watching a live performance of some of the tracks on a CD/DVD collection I picked up a few years later, I was blown away so I went straight back to the album and loved it. I will still say Amarok is my favourite album although it is slightly dated with the Janet Brown Maggie Thatcher impression. Looking back at his whole career I think the 1990s is my favourite decade for Oldfield's music, the only stinker being Heaven's Open.
Thanks, Richard. I do love the '70s "classic" Oldfield that I grew up with but I think he has released absolutely superb music in all 5 decades. It truly amazes me at how many beautiful and interesting melodic creations he can produce out of relatively simple harmonic progressions.....so beautiful and moving. BTW, I still think the Maggie Thatcher thing in Amarok is hilarious, not so much because it was meant to sound like Thatcher, but just because I am amused at the expressions Janet Brown used and how hoity-toity she made them sound with her voice. As serious as Oldfield comes across sometimes, he seems to also have a very very silly sense of humor. Hahaha!
I listened to Mike Oldfield for the 2nd time in my life all weekend. I'm afraid now that I need to get his total discography. I'm not sure but he may be the father of ambient music (of which I am a big fan). I'm beginning to understand you enthusiasm.
Glad that you enjoyed it, Tony. Yes, he played a role in starting or boosting several genres of music, I'd say.
Lunasa,Teada, Four Men and a Dog ,Sharon Shannon,John Kirkpatrick,Kila,
Just a few names of Irish Folk Artists. In the beginning of you talk about Mr. Oldfield
you mentioned you interest in Irish Folkmusic So I thought to give you some names
of Irish musicians I like a lot.(there are quite a few more,it is really a country of musicians and
writers)
As to Mr. Oldfield (who is very much influenced by Gaelic music,as well as English Folk,but you mention thatin your talk) I never cared much for Tubular Bells(still don,t) but with
Incantations (All Four Sides,of course) I had a similar experience as you. Magnificent All the way through. And Ommadawn,and Platinum
Have a nice day Jeff
Hello Alexander! Thanks for the Irish folksters. I will have to check them out. Cheers! Jeff
Incantations is my favourite Olfield album. I was very disappointed when they couldn't do a surround sound mix.
Those first four albums of his (TB, HR, Om, Inc) are four albums that I'd wish to take with me to my grave, they are that important to me. Words can't even express how much I love those albums.
Same destination, different journey. I first got really into my namesake aged around 30 when Tubular Bells II dropped. It instantly hooked me. Did not really care for his earlier work. I also liked Enya and Clannad at that time (not really anymore). I did however purchase Exposed upon release, aged 17, which I loved and still do, so that makes little sense really.
Now aged twice 30 I am deep into his holy tetralogy, but I am also now into deep exploring on vinyl record new (to me) other genres that were prominent around that time. Early Genesis, Focus, Magna Carta, Steeleye Span, Curved Air, Renaissance, Fairport Convention to name some. So much good stuff from that (relatively) short time span.
I also recently came by the digital deluxe version of Tubular Bells, released in 2009, that has an awesome sounding stereo remix. Even my wife likes that one 😮😊
Mike’s music is endearing and enduring and thanks for making this video, I found it fascinating and inspiring.
Wow, thanks Mike, for this amazing comment. I enjoyed it so much I read it three times! Jeff
thanks for this. A side note: I always thought that a favourite of mine the jazz flavoured orchestral piece Waka Jawaka by Frank Zappa with its tubular bells ending must have been inspired by Mike Oldfield. After listening to this video. I checked out the dates, and I realised that Frank Zappa’s work came out the year before before tubular bells. So I wonder if Mike Oldfield had listened to that and had been inspired to do his own tubular Bell moment at the end of his composition. Or maybe it was just the instrument was in the zeitgeist. ❤
Possibly. Oldfield was just a teenager when he recorded Tubular Bells but he may have been familiar with Zappa, who knows? I think it is more likely that he just had access to all those instruments as he made his music and liked to incorporate them. Thankfully in the early '70s we didn't yet have widespread access to all of the computer/digital gimmickry that we have today which most often sucks every ounce of humanity and soul from music experimentation. So real instruments played by a real person had to do, thankfully. Unfortunately, Oldfield did discover and fall under the spell of that very gimmickry later on......
Has Oldfield done anything good at all since 1990’s Amarok? I remember a time when he really disliked being labeled "Mister Tubular Bells". Then he found out the TB brand and the flogging of that damned piano theme again and again was lucrative business. Few if any artist's development has disappointed me more.
Yes I agree. I really got disgusted with the “franchising” of TB back then. But today I can just sit back and enjoy it, even the cheesy and embarrassing stuff. But yes I do agree with you that he seemed to stop really trying much and just released very predictable (if beautiful) stuff over and over. I too was very disappointed in him, as early as those albums he released in the ‘80s with the pop songs.
Speaking of this topic (being disappointed in artists), I was just thinking about this the other day and I realized that there have been NO artists that didn’t eventually disappoint me at some time. Some a lot more than others, though.
@@CalicoSilverHello Jeff, sincerely hope you are doing well?
I had the same feelings of disappointment over many of my favorite artists, however, I learned to temper that by being realistic and realizing that most magnus opi were created when these artists were relatively quite young. We all develop in different ways and quite profoundly as we age. Add to that changing trends and tastes across the musical landscape as indeed in society itself. We cannot reasonably expect one artists entire catalog to be pleasing, especially when spanning musical decades. Right?
I tend as a general rule to favour the first 5 albums of any given artists, following which there might be occasional highlights further down the road. This is *especially* true for artists beginning early 70’s and then crossing into the 80’s. If I compare the 70’s output of Genesis, Lou Reed, Roxy Music and Mike Oldfield (4 of my favorites) against their 80’s output, it is like night and day (or day and night in this case!). Or chalk and cheese. Or class and schmalz.
Take care bud!
PS: I will even go leftfield and allay any cries of “70’s bias!” and go on record as saying that I really rather enjoy (again) the first 5 albums of Madonna and R.E.M. (80’s) and really do not care for their later works (90’s and on). Perhaps all artists should retire earlier! 😊
@@mike_burke I agree 100%, Mike. You make an excellent point: it does seem that in most cases, the first 4-6 albums by an artist are the most rewarding. Sometimes it takes a few albums before an artist gets going well, like in the case with Bob Dylan. As for Lou, I honestly (or, I should say, personally) think that he’s one of a very few of my favorite artists who released a consistent quality throughout the decades. Again, just my subjective opinion on that one. But yes, most artists have something to offer and a handful of albums get the job done; the rest of the albums are often leftovers or less successful experiments. Great topic. Thanks. Jeff