Tubular Bells (Side 2) - (Mike Oldfield) Reaction & Analysis | The Daily Doug (Episode 434)
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- Опубліковано 21 лип 2022
- #tubularbells #mikeoldfield
In this #masterpiecefriday edition of #thedailydoug, I'm listening to Side 2 of Tubular Bells by Mike Oldfield. I listened to Side One back in December (Episode 278), and now I'm completing the album. I vibed along a bit on the keyboard during the slower sections, had a conversation with the Piltdown Man, and tried to figure out the peculiar ending. Come along for the ride!
Reference Video: • Tubular Bells (Pt. II)
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Extraordinary, and humbling, that Mike Oldfield was 19 years old when he recorded this album. Quite an achievement for such a young man.
And only 17 when he started to compose it and record the demos. :-)
Hi Doug ... I was lucky enough to hear the quadraphonic version of Tubular bells. My friend had a copy on quad Vinyl (I am that old ;)) and a quad system. He was a bit of an early adopter and quad didn't really catch on.
Anyhoo the hornpipe at the end in quad actually sounded like the music was dancing around the room and it was an amazing demo of the quadrophonic sound... I think the hornpipe at the end was a tagged on extra.
Loving your analysis, I watch your channel for musical analysis and The Charismatic Voice for vocal analysis and a few other channels of course, but I particularly look out for yours and Elizabeth's vlogs.
Keep up the interesting work .... ;)
@@rockape1954 AIUI, the original ending was intended to be the sound of a radio-controlled plane circling between the 'speakers which would then be expanded for quad release,, but for whatever reason, it was thought that wouldn't work as an ending. The next idea was a recording of a very drunk Viv Stanshall walking around the Manor at 3am pretending to present an arts documentary with an equally drunk Mike and (producer) Tom Newman, playing the Hornpipe on acoustic guitars as Viv walked around from room to room. Funnily enough, that was also rejected, and so the ending we know was used. When it was remixed for "Boxed", they reinstated the Viv Stanshall ending with the trio moving from 'speaker to speaker.
I was 12 and remember my parent's parties "baking out" to this.
Loved it ever since. (2 albums, at least 3 cassettes, and several CDs)
At 16, he was playing bass in the band/orchestra for the Live show 'Hair'.
The sailor's hornpipe section was originally recorded live by Mike after a long night in the pub with Viv Stanshall. Mike was recorded as he stomped around with a mandolin, while Viv - obviously hammered - blathered away like a museum guide. It's hilarious!
I have that version on one of my CD's.
Hey, after the Piltdown-Man silliness (and I mean that with great affection), well, why the hell not have a hornpipe too?
UA-cam has the Viv Stanshall version of course. Absolutely laugh-out-loud hilarious! And to @Doug Helvering's point, it manages to simultaneously fit even less well with what's gone before than the instrumental version does, but also be off-the-wall enough to explain why they included *any* version of the hornpipe, even if they chicke-- umm, thought better of using the Stanshall version for the initial release.
It was originally released on Mike Oldfield Boxed; which was the a rerelease of the first 3 albums, TB, Hergest Ridge and ommadawn , plus a forth album of mixed songs. I think the TB version had the Viv Stanshall ending.
@@keithparker6520 You are correct, the original recording is in the Mike Oldfield Boxed release.
From the accompanying notes: "At the time, the result [of the recording of the drunken stomping around the Manor House] was considered a little too bizarre to place on an album by a complete unknown, so it was replaced by an instrumental version."
I bought "Boxed" in 1977, so I've known the drunken version for a long time! There's another joke track, too : "Speak (tho you only say farewell)" There's also a rather beautiful version of another sea song, "Going Home".
The sailor's hornpipe is just classical British. Completely unexpected and done for fun.
Mike could relate to silly fun
I recommend his album Songs Of Distant Earth. It is inspired by an Authur C. Clark novel of the same name.
I played it one day when I was younger and very sick with a high fever. It helped me get through the haze and day as I focused on the music. Beyond anything I listened to that day, that album stood out as some of the most beautiful music.
Also along these line of music, I like to hear you do some King Crimson or Moody Blues.
This was an extraordinary piece of music especially as Mike played most instruments on the album, and recorded it himself, at the tender age of 19, also credit needed to go to Richard Branson who had the courage to release the album as the first for his new Virgin record label, this would never happen today. Viv Stanshall was an incredible musician ,song writer, wit and raconteur, he was a founder member of The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band, Who were beautifully bonkers.
As far as I know, Richard Branson knew nothing of music and was just looking for something to bring out on his new label. This was just pure luck for Branson.
You need to hear Ommadawn next. It’s even more successful with the ancient/modern juxtaposition.
That Sally Oldfield chant in Ommadawn just kills me every time. It's so primal.
@@wardka Actually Clodagh Simonds is most responsible for the vocal elements in Ommadawn, Sally was there in support but like Lisa Gerrade in Gladiator, I feel she should almost get a credit en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clodagh_Simonds
It's my all time favorite. Can't help listening this record every month since I am 12.
Agreed, Ommadawn is a great album.
I concur!
It's strange that you said, I feel your pain Mike. Mike was suffering from mental anguish during the making of this album. With The Sailors Hornpipe, Mike used to play in a band called Kevin Ayers and the Whole World and they used to end their shows with this tune. So it's a nod to that.
Tubular Bells 2 was written and recorded when Mike was in a happier place. Saw it live. Still prefer the original Tubular Bells album, though.
Loved your reaction to the "Piltdown Man" segment - Mike Oldfield surely gave us a merry ride on this side of his debut recording. IMHO, Tubular Bells should be in every rock or prog enthusiast's collection. An absolute classic piece. It still amazes me that this was written and performed (mostly, at least) by a 19-year old. Just astounding!
Your face when the caveman section came on - priceless!
I was waiting for that moment..
That wasn't the cavemen it was a demon.
This side is always my ‘go-to’ when suffering from insomnia. As you mentioned, the hypnotic quality of this. The mixed time signature helps immensely. Plus, it’s gorgeous! I can’t believe I bought this LP almost 50 years ago and it’s still in heavy rotation on my turntable.
Tubular Bells 2 is also good for helping me sleep, when I've been watching screens far too late into the night. The CD is permanently in my bedroom player. I put it on a 30 minute timer and it works every time, I've never heard it switch off. 😴
Your confusion at the closing folk line was both hilarous and righteous.. two reasons: Mike was a big folk music fan (which also showed very clear all over the album) and Brit musicians have this thing where they need to 'lighten up' and show that they are not taking themselves too seriously when they were taking a huge and serious work like this..
It's like an encore in a concert :)
@@Silber7 while you get the nearest restroom after an epic concert.
The hornpipe is part of the Fantasia on British Sea Songs which is always part of the British 'Last Night of the Proms' concert in the Royal Albert Hall. ua-cam.com/video/9cZyNtZtSqE/v-deo.html
If the Sailor's Hornpipe threw him off guard, heaven alone knows what he'll make of "On Horseback" 😆
@@martinohyt Or "Guilty". ;o)
The hornpipe is the equivalent of ELP adding songs like "Are You Ready Eddie?" to Tarkus, or using a vulgar stinger to end a serious epic. It's just something that happens on a lot of these prog albums, that tries to dilute any criticisms that the artist is taking themselves too seriously. Even in 1973 -- the apex of prog's heyday -- that was a charge musicians had to deal with. I agree, just sticking a hornpipe on the end doesn't somehow explain away the preceding 15 minutes of music. But hey, it was the 70s.
I love how you just moved into that second last section (called Ambient Guitars) right along with Mike. He wanted a section where he could just improvise and play whatever he was feeling and you followed right with him.
As for Hornpipe, it's fitting that you said "and now for something completely different" because Mike tends to have a very quirky and eccentric sense of humour and he looks at Tubular Bells as kind of more of a chaotic comedy routine than a truly serious piece of music. Finishing on the Sailor's Hornpipe was almost like his punchline to the joke of the album. It was also a great encore and live concert finisher. Also, when he rerecorded this album completely for the 30th anniversary in 2003 he got John Cleese to be the master of ceremonies introducing the instruments at the end of Part 1. He was also considering Rowan Atkinson. He definitely looks at the whole piece as very playful and silly almost in spite of the masterful production and composition. He always likes to make it clear that he never takes anything too seriously. So your reaction is exactly what he was shooting for lol.
Loved your examination and reaction. I'm looking forward to seeing your takes on the rest of his discography!
Please follow this with Hergest Ridge. It is achingly beautiful, and really shows Mike on his journey and struggles with fame and recognition. TB is a masterpiece, by Hergest Ridge just goes far beyond for me - probably one of my most emotional listens
Mike Oldfield is a genius!!!
You've got to listen to Hergest Ridge & Ommadawn as well ! .... Ommadawn is a must !
Your next Oldfield experience should be one of the two albums that followed this- "Hergest Ridge" and "Ommadawn". They are very different from each other, yet still clearly of the similar musical construction to "Tubular Bells". I have my preference, just be advised the Oldfield fans have been arguing back and forth between the two since, well, the 1970's! ;-)
What ^ said!
Hergest Ridge is my all time favourite Oldfield album, my go to album, that's not a "somewhat guilty" pleasure, like Crises, or "not guilty, Your Honor" Tubular Bells III. But you should really listen to Ommadawn, because there's no experience like that anywhere else.
I'm a fan of Amarok and Tubular Bells II :)
Ommadawn!! Yes, please!
Doug could do any of Mike's longform songs and have a good time. Amarok would be a good time. I really want to see him to Incantations though, I think Doug will really appreciate an entire double album of circle of fifths. But he's also got to do Moonlight Shadow for the hell of it!
Yeah, Ommadawn for sure. I think it's his best album.
Side 1 of the "Five Miles Out" album is worth a listen for something more heavy - called Taurus II - and has a proper Coda.
Yeah, Five Miles Out, Ommadawn and Crises are gold
10/10 ! Ommadawn and Amarok next. And doug, we don't want to wait a year for that.
As far as an ending goes, after all the dark deep trippy stuff bringing a tune that is nothing other than happy and funny is a great twist, personally i love it.
Yes, Amarok please! A 1 hour long magnificent piece of music!
Did someone say Amarok! My all time favourite next to Incantations!
It's fascinating to get your expert analysis on this, Doug. This is my favourite album of all time from when I first heard it as a teenager back in 1975. Your observations on Mike's choices only confirms what I felt all along - that this is a work of genius. I like your observation that he likes repetition of double measures. I think that he combines a classical sensibility with a pop/rock sensibility. What you demonstrate is how many parts he has, the change in instruments at each stage, the unusual chord and key modulations and the number of tempo and sound variations. It's just staggereing when you actually break it down. Although your analysis confirms it, I have always felt it is the best thing I have ever heard. Never have I heard 48 contimuous minutes of such sheer innovation and musical accomplishment.
Ommadawn, side 1 is my favorite Mike Oldfield experience. Well, I *think* it's side one that has the Sally Oldfield chant at the end. It gives me goosebumps every time.
Ommadawn side 1 is his masterpiece. Such a furiously complex piece of music.
Tubular Bells 2 is basically a re-run of the same schema with different but sounding similar musical ideas. Tubular Bells 3 however is a true updating of the work taking its cue from Ibizan dance music. Brilliant re-think. "Incantations" is where the rock meets classical side of things comes into its own. Its also (for a foursider) very tight as pretty much everything derives from an opening step wise figuration.
There's also The Millenium Bell, a kinda spin-off album the,Ed around the start of a new millennium and the history of humanity, and Tubular Bells 2003 which is a note for note remake. And Mike's been teasing a 4th album for a bit
I'm an Incantations man forever. It has accompanied me through thick and thin for 40+ years.
The 2nd side is arguably even better than the first one , so much creativity Oldfield had in this time of his life. The "Harmonics" section opening up this side is one of my favorite musical moments , I suggest also to take a listen to the 2003 "remake" , it has much better production and playing (and I generally prefer original prints) , original TB sounds more experimental compared to it.
I am glad you got to finish this groundbreaking album, an astounding feat for a 19 year old, it started Mike on an incredible career with some of the most beautiful music you will ever hear, his guitar playing is sublime and totally unique, please continue with his albums in order you will not be disappointed, his greatest achievement is Amarok from 1990 one instrumental covering the whole album which is 60 minutes long, don't rush to that album though, savour his early work first.
Something also notable about this album is that it launched Virgin Records from nowhere into the big leagues. Richard Branson took a massive gamble and it paid off.
Yes. Made Mike a millionaire and Sir Richard a billionaire
From what I have learned - the Sailors Hornpipe section was something that came about after numerous lengthy drinking sessions at the local pub. The version on Tubular Bells from the Boxed album version has Vivian Stanshall narrating the piece walking around the Manor completely pissed. All and all it's just English humour I think 😄 Cheers Doug
When Mike played Tubular Bells 2 (which is a new composition following the exact same structure) live, they finished indeed with a 'true' encore of the jubiliant main melody after the finale. So basically what you expected here
I never listened to Tubular Bells in whole but now thanks to this series I finally did.
I hear so much of Metallica stuff in here that is just amazing!
It's like discovering Holst after you listened to John Williams for years. :D
Wow, you just made my day!! First time I listen to side 2 in one go, amazing music from another time... Thank you, and SHOMPA!!!!
You can hear his tubular bell 2 or his album songs of distant earth. They are both instrumental.
From Mike, for a possible 'next time', go for Ommadawn
Yes. Ommadawn was described at the time as something like "bringing on more climaxes in a row than the best 'ladies of the night'". Fabulous album.
I second the motion.
I`ve seen Mike live 11 times in mi life and it is soooo special and brilliant!
Thanx Doug! As always, great to see you listening and responding. Of course you gotta start with TB when reviewing Oldfield, his most famous work, though his works after this debut are musically more interesting, I guess, especially Ommadawn, part one is sublime. And a personal favorite is the double album four part Incantations… Hypnotic yeah!
If he ever gets to Amarok we'll know he's hooked.
Vivian Stanshall was the announcer for side 1. He was with the Bonzo Dog Band (AKA Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band), a comic, psychedelic, and avant-garde band that was active in the late 1960s (Bonzo Dog Band member Neil Innes was responsible for many collaborations with the Monty Python troupe.)
I do vibe with the ending, after the rollecoaster of emotions we have gotten throughout the album it basically says "Don't take life too serious guys!"
You should listen to his album "Ommadawn"...I think it's my favorite Oldfield recording.
Congratulations, Doug, thanks for your message and interpretation about that masterpiece. Mike Oldfield deserves it, he was a teenager when conceived "Tubular Bells".
11:42 Lol if you think he does a lot of pentatonic shifting now wait until you get to his fourth album Incantations. 😁
Thank you for this Doug. It’s been years since I’ve listened to side 2. Your reaction to the “hypnotic” effect makes me want to recommend Manuel Gottsching’s “E2:E4” for your next long listen.
Oooh, yeah. I've just been getting into him recently, so don't know any particular albums well enough to recommend them, but he's definitely worth checking out.
And now that we're talking about Krautrock, Kraftwerk's "Autobahn" could fit either for a Weird Wednesday (though maybe a bit long) or a Masterpiece Friday.
Fun fact: I play TB every year on New Year‘s Eve when the daylight fades like I did the day I bought the record on 31.12.1983. I just have to. I think of the past year, the good and the bad, and somehow the year ends for me with the organ notes dwindling away on the last part of side 2, before Sailor‘s Hornpipe. And on Sailor‘s Hornpipe I shake off all that weird thoughts and go back to the now and here. It’s a feeling of easing off that heavy stuff with a good laugh and a fresh mind. In that way it makes sense to me as the end of TB, even if comes a bit like a slap in the face then.
One of your more enjoyable and insightful reactions. I love the comment about the dual solo near the end where you talk about it not taking you somewhere, but defining an emotional state of being.
There is always humour in his music.....
Loved your reaction to this Doug! One of my favourite albums, pure genius. Thank you for the awesome video! :)
Here are a couple of tidbits about the album.
First an admonition to the purchaser of the album printed in the lower left corner on the back cover of the original 1973 vinyl LP. It is also on the original CD booklet back cover greatly reduced (to near illegibility).
“This stereo record cannot be played on old tin boxes no matter what they are fitted with. If you are in possession (sic) of such equipment please hand it into (sic) the nearest police station.”
Second, you asked, “Why a Sailors Hornpipe?”
This explanation was printed in the companion booklet of the 1075 release, Mike Oldfield Boxed.
“When not engaged in wrestling contests on the Manor lawn, Oldfield and Newman would deflate the tension of hours in the studio on their own by drinking themselves daft at a nearby pub. In the course of such an evening, they decided to enlist a 'master of ceremonies', Vivian Stan shall, to announce the entrance of each instrument at the end of Side One. When this had been accomplished the helplessly intoxicated trio, hatching schemes of ever-increasing surrealism, decided to combine the recording of "The Sailor's Hornpipe" with an early-morning stagger around the Manor House. Microphones were placed in various rooms and corridors, the tape machine set in motion and off they went. Stanshall wandered around inspecting the various items of interest within his focusing capacity like Lord Clark after a night on the tiles, while Oldfield and Newman - by then convinced that the whole world loved a sailor - trudged after him strumming with scotch-sodden conviction. At the time, the result was considered a little too bizarre to place on an album by a complete unknown, so it was replaced by an instrumental version. Now seems as opportune a moment as any to take the antimacassar off the original, which can be heard in all its magnificent foolishness at the end of Side Two.”
If anything I hope this was entertaining and insightful.
Love the Show!
regarding the hornpipe, I would say that here in the UK it isn't so much linked to Popeye, as to the annual "last night of the proms" concert which is shown on TV every year. Within that they have Henry Wood's Fantasia on British Sea Songs which finishes with the hornpipe, usually ending up as a race between the orchestra and the promenaders as to who can finish it first (if you haven't seen any of the last night before, it's worth checking out). In the 60's and 70's with only a couple of TV channels to choose between, I would think almost everyone would have seen that at least once
Amarok, then Tubular Bells I and II were the most significant influences on my young musical mind. Thank you for these tasty, tasty memberberries.
At the "last Night of the Proms" it's traditional, as the finale, to play Henry Woods Fantasia on British Sea-Songs which includes the Sailors Hornpipe. This is a hugely popular moment and I think possibly it's use here was a reference to that.
The dueling guitars section also really reminds me of Vini Reilly/Durutti Column. You should check them out as well.
Love the portion that sounds like Klingon opera
Finally. Thanks for getting back to this 🙂
It's the eccentricities that make Oldfield's music what it is; I like the goofy moments as much as the beautiful ones. As a kid 'Sailor's Hornpipe' was the highlight for me. Everything else is just a huge build-up to get there 😄
AMAROK would be an excellent album for you to analyse, something new every listen.
Or Ommadawn
Happy
New headphones what a fantastic choice especially for listening to complicated music. Grados have that capability of opening and separating each instrument to where they belong in the mix and there made locally to you give or take a few hundred miles.
Tubular Bells is a timeless classic
As a 13 year old Brit in '73 Tubular Bells almost literally blew my mind, its been on heavy rotation for nearly 50 years now, but watching you listen to side 2 takes me back to the 1st time I heard it, you blew my mind all over again. Typing through tears of joy, thank you Doug....Thank You.
OMMADAWN OMMADAWN OMMADAWN OMMADAWN OMMADAWN OMMADAWN next, please!!!!! You won't be disappointed--he was just 21 and created a work which rests with Bach, Mozart and the rest.
HEAR...HEAR..
Going forward chronologically would be the best choice! Hergest Ridge and then my favourite, his masterpiece Ommadawn!
I got this album back in 1975, it's been a long time since I last listened to it but I enjoy Doug's insights, my favourite album though by Mike is Ommadawn.
Check out "Return to Ommadawn" from 2016 - A nice sequel.
I forgot about "Sides" of an album, funnily enough. I was wondering when you were going to get to the "demon voices" in the first video. Anyway, very glad you did this one! I used to hear this on the record player a lot when I was younger.
Oldfield also wrote the song "Family Man", covered by Hall and Oates, among others. "Leave me alone / I'm a family man / and my bark is much worse than my bite / leave me alone / I'm a family man / if you push me too hard I just might."
I've never been a fan of the hornpipe ending, but the way I see it, it's like giving this great, eloquent speech and ending it with, "or something like that, I don't know."
Thanks for this and the A side review. This is my musical awakening as a kid and I still tend to come back to it every now and then. Lovely to see your reaction to both and would love to see you continue on both Ommadawn as an early piece of Mike as well as on Amarok which represents his coming back to the long form after his 80s commercial success (and being driven by Virgin to continue on this rathole). Would be interesting how you would describe this later jarring piece, too.
Personally, I've always loved the sailor's hornpipe ending. It is, indeed, so out of "left field" with the rest of the piece, but it's just so happy-sounding!
Thanks for the 'cleanly mixed - three dimensional nature . . . It was a difficult one!
My late uncle introduced me to this when I was about 13 (and some Vangelis too), so it's always stuck with me. Enjoyed your reaction, it's nice watching you play along, too.
From Mike Oldfield, i would also recommend:
ALBUMS:
- HERGEST RIDGE (1974): The next to Tubular Bells, it's also filled with beautiful acoustic music, more on the countryside mood (it could work as The Shire's theme). It's my favourite album from his.
- OMMADAWN (1975): Same style with some more variations and a little more dramatic tone. The closure to this kind of spiritual-debut trilogy, and the favourite of most Oldfield's fans.
- INCANTATIONS (1978): A double album with a very mystical and hypnotical sound, with excerps of Henry Longfellow and Ben Jonson's poems.
- PLATINUM (1979): A turning point in his discography, falling more into Pop / Pop Rock, and with a new recurrent structure: one long piece at the intro, followed up by some shorter ones. Very catchy.
- AMAROK (1990): His uncommercional rebellion against the record label. 1 full hour track filled with changing music and all kinds of sounds and volumes. After Tubular Bells, probably his most breaking piece. MUST HEAR.
- TUBULAR BELLS II (1992): A kind of self-ripp off from the first Tubular Bells, section by section. Kind of familiar, but new.
- THE SONGS OF DISTANT EARTH (1994): His most New-Age/atmospheric album, based on the science-fiction novel by Arthur C. Clarke. Beatiful. Should be used in films and trailers.
- TUBULAR BELLS III (1998): Electronic music, with its own electronic Tubular Bells' intro version (song "The Source of Secrets", "Secrets" and "Far Above the Clouds"). Also recommend the songs "The Watchful Eye" and "Serpent Dream".
- TUBULAR BELLS 2003 (2003): Mike's remake of the first album, re-recording everything, section by section, and fixing a lot of issues with which he was uncomfortable, like mistakes from the original rushed record. Most people probably prefer the original 1973 version, but i really prefer and recommend this 2003 version, which feels more polished and with more detail in each instrument.
- MUSIC OF THE SPHERES (2008): Classical/Orchestral album, based on the concept of a celestial Musica universalis, consisting on two long pieces, like in his first albums. It sounds like a dramatic and epic soundtrack. I would say, his last great work.
- RETURN TO OMMADAWN (2017): A sequel to Ommadawn and a comeback to his original more acoustic style, consisting in two long pieces again. While it has some beautiful and catchy moments, i wouldn't say it reaches the same level as his first original works, but it's good nonetheless. Till today, 2022, his last album.
LOOSE SONGS FROM OTHER ALBUMS:
- From QE2 (1980): "Taurus I" (long one); "Sheba"; and "QE2".
- From FIVE MILES OUT (1982): "Taurus II" (long one).
- From CRISES (1983): "Crises" (long one); "Moonlight Shadow" (his most famous Pop hit); "Taurus 3" (this time short).
- From THE MILLENIUM BELL (1999): "The Doge's Palace"; "The Millenium Bell".
- From TR3S LUNAS (2002): "Turtle Island", "To Be Free" or "To Be Free (Radio Edit)", and "Daydream" (beautiful short piano piece).
- From LIGHT + SHADE (2005): "Rocky" (short piano piece).
To understand the Sailor's Hornpipe's place in the British psyche, you have to experience the Last Night of the Proms - there are numerous UA-cam videos - check one out searching for Last Night at the Proms Sailor's Hornpipe. It's fun!
Please react to Music of the spheres. Perhaps the most beautiful album composed by the great Mike Oldfield
Great reaction to a great composition, Doug. Thank you.
I would like also see a reaction for Ommadawn, but also for his newest album Return to Ommadawn, which is amazingly enjoyable too
I enjoyed your back and forth banter with his growling sounds, 'I feel your pain' brought a laugh out loud. Your inclusion of you playing the piano at spots certainly gave validity to your knowledge of music. Don't mean that to sound bad but I do not know anything about the musical scale and to hear you add the piano along with all the verbal music note information was a nice pairing. Thank you!
I've always thought the idea of finishing with "The Sailor's Hornpipe" was a way of saying "I've taken you on this journey through places strange and beautiful, but the ship must return to port and take you back to your daily life, so celebrate the things we've seen together!"
A suggestion for a much shorter (only 5:22) musical excursion to places strange and wonderful - Toto's 2019 live performance of "Dune (Desert Theme)" from their score to David Lynch's 1984 version of the classic sci-fi story! Toto is, of course, most known for their radio-friendly hits "Rosanna" and "Africa", but they were capable of much deeper music - the "Dune" score is an excellent demonstration of that, and "Desert Theme" is possibly the pinnacle of that work!
Mike Oldfield has a very distinct sense of humour, Comes through a lot in his music where he throws in funny little pieces just for the hell of it. Near the end of Amarok is a peace with Margaret Thatcher (ex British Prime Minister) dancing, ending with her crashing through some glass (I think of it as being a glass coffee table, but could just as easily be a window or door)
His album covers often had funny comments on the too.
".....and now we're getting to listen in on a Klingon conversation". 😂😂
Mike Oldfield was a playful composer to be sure. You must listen to Hergest Ridge next followed by Ommadawn. Both albums are beautiful.
Nice headphones Doug, got to love the Grado reference series, very nice indeed, no wonder you are loving this through those beauties.
With you, Doug. Always whipped the stylus off before the hornpipe kicked in. Completely murdered the mood he'd set for me.
And it's the same guy that did Moonlight Shadow and To France...
I just finished watching side 1 and 2 back to back, and this was outstanding. I've been a massive fan of Tubular Bells ever since I first saw The Exorcist in the mid 80s, well before I was 18.
I can read simple sheet music (but I'm absolute crap at sight reading), so it was very cool to see you going through the score in Part 1.
This whole review gave me a new appreciation for an absolutely timeless piece of music, thanks!
Such a soothing experience. I love your variety of reactions to different genres. if you haven’t heard of Dimash Kudaibergen doing S.O.S. at the Chinese “Singer” competition, you need to hear him. He will absolutely blow you away with every song he does. He’s only about age 27 now but good God what a talent and quickly becoming known world wide.
I personally see the hornpipe at the ending as a return to the shores of normality after a voyage across the sea of stars. It's deliberately grounding and re-orienting, like a ship returning to port.
1. Thanks for your fascinating analysis. Great work.
2. Did you recognize the baseline at the beginning playing the same melody as the main instrument, but a few times slower? Very interesting.
3. I see Sailors Hornpipe as Mike didn't want the listener to stay in the dreamy mood before that last piece. He did the same in TB II. By the way, it would be very interesting to hear from you how you compare the two.
I'm 68 and a very big fan of Mikes music. I'm looking forward to watching Tubular Bells II...
Best regards from Switzerland
Jürg👍
Don't forget Mike Oldfield's follow up album 'Hergest Ridge' also a superb album!
I knew the hornpipe would, as we say here, "do yer head in"..🤣🤣
The piltdown man section was only written after it was suggested that the piece needed some singing
The opening theme on side one tricks the brain as the time signature varies. It moves from 4/4 to 15/8 (that's a joke son). Count the beats. It's actually 4/4; 3/4; 4/4. That's why it works. If you listen really closely, you'll hear the main theme moving entirely throughout side one, either stretched, as a diminished chord, within the chord changes themselves. Then the bass playing the modified melody at 10:05 and hearing it transfer to the speed guitar one octave up and then another octave up until it climbs beyond human hearing. A haunting glockenspiel playing the opening sequence hiding behind the blues guitars three octaves up, and then changing from a minor melody to a major melody over the climatic sequence to the last chords played on the acoustic guitar, but with the same rhythmic figure as the opening. Brilliant. Side two is a departure. The opening composition is actually called "Peace".
The sea and boats are recurring elements in Mike Oldfield's music and life, although they are not the central themes of his work. Whether it is the cover of "Tubular Bells" or "Voyager", the albums "QE2" r (in reference to the liner Queen Elizabeth II), "Islands", "Crises" or "Incantations" (2nd cover). I have always interpreted "Tubular Bells" as an initiatory journey aboard a boat, from what makes man find himself taking to the sea (the introduction theme with its “stumbling“ rytmic of 7/4), the preparations, numerous and repetitive, the discovery of each element of the ship itself (the introduction of many elements all serving the theme) and the departure. Part II is more the journey itself, the long moments with no winds or the more dangerous moments like in a storm where a man truly have to manoeuvre the boat just not to die, having that deep inside rage to survive in the Piltdown man, and every situations in between, just to finally reach the harbor (thinking also of the Coolridge Rime of the Ancient Mariner). With that vision ending the piece with “the Sailor Hornpipe“ makes total sense as this reprensents, in my own view, the need to share the experience of the sea with others that went through the same experience. .. well this is just me thinking right. (By the way I enjoyed this video way more than the one on TB part I) :)
Glad you are having a crack at this one...probably not as complecated as we think once broken down but still the feel for a teenager in 1973 takes some beating
If you think this Album is nuts, you should listem to Mike's Amorak Album, It's nuts but it's good, including a tap dancing Margaret Thatcher :)
Oddly enough its one of my favourite albums. Recorded in 1990.
Good idea for a handle
Amarok hit me so hard that I spent an hour wandering my neighborhood at night laughing to myself after my first listen. Lucky I wasn't spotted by some concerned citizen thinking I was an escaped mental patient.
@@MBighk
Or even a cloth eared nincompoop!
Have you ever watched the piano player Gus Fogle's live version of Amarok (with a bass player) ? He could barely stand up from the piano bench when it was over. It should be here on UA-cam.
Edit: The bass player's name is Jason Miller.
@@sneakyfox4651
I certainly have
As Ray Bishop says, listen to the original version of The Sailor's Hornpipe with the wonderfully pissed Viv Stanshall commenting on various artworks and small pieces of eggshell. It's only available on the Boxed compilation as it was considered too eccentric to be included on the actual album release.
Dude l can't believe it's taken you over 6 months to listen to side 2 of Tubular Bells after listening to the first side. In that time I've probably listened to the full album a dozen times lol. Mike Oldfield has done so many more masterpieces too.
...loved your way of journeying and commenting of the b-side, Doug, and when you started this dialogue with Mike in the middle part of his wailing ('I feel your pain, Mike') I just couldn't stop laughing - it was so funny!! :) There's another story about that part, that you didn't mention, so maybe you haven't heard it yet: Mike was nagged by his record manager to bring vocals onto the record, which made Mike furious (how dare he interfering with my musical compositions), and he thought: 'I'll give you some vocals - see what you get' - and then recorded those humms and screams.. :) PS. the next 4 albums are for me as brilliant: 'Hergest Ridge', 'Ommadawn', 'Incantations' and 'Platinum' - fabulous stuff to this very day!!
The Sailor's Hornpipe is there because that's how Mike would end his folk sets back when he performed live with his sister, as the duo. Side One ends with the grand build up and crescendo, followed by a quiet denouement. It was all painstakingly composed. Side Two was much more improvisational and mostly made up of separate pieces he had written previously and performed live. The Caveman song dates back to his early teens and his attempts to write a "teen angst" rock song. He kept the music and dropped the lyrics, opting to scream and growl nonsense for the album. Basically, Side Two is a miniature live concert and the hornpipe is there as a bit of fun to contrast the serious ending of Side One. It's cheeky and irreverent and I love it. It's funny, though, that musician friends I know balk at it, yet non-musicians (me included) seem to 'get it.' Maybe we just know when to stop taking things so seriously. I think it's a perfect ending, one last surprise just when you think you know what this album is about when you reach its closing minutes, a wink and a smile from Mike to the audience as he finishes off his masterpiece.
So glad you revisited this ♥
With the "Sailor's Hornpipe" ending, it brings to mind a Monty Python transition between pieces, essentially going "And now, for something completely different..."
I agree with you about the inclusion of Sailor's Hornpipe, it always crashed the mood of the album. Great in its own way and I love to hear it, but it just doesn't fit with the rest of Tubular Bells. However, it is Mike's signature tune!
He said: "The first really difficult thing I learnt to play was The Sailor’s Hornpipe on this mandolin, which I bought when I was 16 for a tenner in Reading where I grew up.
I was in a folk group called Kevin Ayers And The Whole World at the time, and that tune always got the audience jumping and clapping, so it ended up as the last piece of music on Tubular Bells.
I love the mandolin’s stringy, folky sound so much that I’ve used that tune on every album I’ve made since."
Surprise. That's the only constant with Mike's music. I'm glad you enjoyed.
I own a lot of Mike Oldfield, love all of it. Did you notice the folk music edge to some of the arrangements?
The similarity to Yes is pronounced in more than one place - that's what led me to buy the album back in probably, early 74, based on just hearing a bit on the radio.
Re: the ending - Hey, Doug, it was the '70s. That was a humorous effect for comic relief. If you were stoned or tripping, it probably made sense... and you probably laughed. "Time to wake up, little Johnny!" Tee Hee.
Brilliant analysis as ever, Doug on the soundtrack to my life. A few thoughts:
- Part 1 was fully formed by the time Mike had got to the Manor as part of Arthur Louis' band. Part 2 had a couple of parts as a demo ("caveman" and "Peace" - the opening) but most of that was composed in the studio with the second recording sessions after Virgin committed to recording a whole album.
- The guitar section that comes after "caveman" and before "hornpipe", was something he had been working up on the road with Kevin Ayers and the Whole World. If you listen to the BBC "In Concert" recording, he plays virtually the same solo in the long instrumental break in "Why Are We Sleeping?".
- A lot of the guitar sounds through Part 2 are double speed.
Now, how about that "Hergest Ridge" video?
Mike Oldfield's Hornpipe was used for the theme tune for long-running BBC British kid's show "Blue Peter" in the 70s :)