Tubular Bells 2003

[richpoyle]

There is now a website for the upcoming release of Mike Oldfield's new recording of Tubular Bells. It includes a very short preview of Part One.

http://www.mikeoldfield-tubularbells.com/

I appreciate that its not fair to judge from such a short clip but this is not what I expected. The bass guitar, in particular, seems way too high in the mix.

[thomasc1982]

May well look into getting this. Finally bought Tubular Bells 2 the other day. Surprisingly good actually

EDIT

DOH! Just noticed the nice complete boxset. Should have waited. Will hold off getting TB3 for a while.
Double Edit
At least TB1 is finally split into more than two tracks!

[TheoGB]

So this is a new remastering of the original Tubular Bells?

That two tracks thing is REALLY annoying. Blooming Virgin have done this to the Orchestral Version (actually better than the original in many parts, IMO) and also to all the Monty Python records...

[richpoyle]

Originally posted by TheoGB
So this is a new remastering of the original Tubular Bells?


Its not a remaster but a completely new recording of TB.

Oldfield had already begun re-aquiring some of the original instruments used to record TB for TBII and this process continued for TB 2003.

He's said many times in interviews that he was unhappy with the original recording of TB; it was a rush job, done during 'downtime' at The Manor Studio and as a result contains a few botched edits and bum notes. It certainly doesn't compare to the immaculate recordings on many of his subsequent albums and this new album is an attempt to record it as he originally intended.

It could be viewed as a shameful attempt to cash in on the TB brand, as were TBII, III and The Millennium Bell. However, as a musician I can understand the desire to re-record an early work. I recorded a suite of my own music some years ago using a 4 track cassette tape recorder and in recent years had the desire to go back and re-record it now that I have a decent PC and keyboard setup capable of making high quality recordings.

It's just that from the preview track on the website, this sounds like yet another 'reinterpretation' rather than an immaculate re-recording of the original.

[Squirrel God]

I have the original recording, and Tubular Bells II and III and I love them all, so quite fancy this. But one can't help but wonder how many times Mike Oldfield can regurgitate the same material out and call it a new release just by sticking a number on the end :lol:

Have to be a little skeptical of Mike's little message :|


30 years ago as a young musician of 19, I was given one week of studio time at The Manor House near Oxford. In this week I recorded the entire first half of the Album that was later to become Tubular Bells.


This Album went on to become the most successfull rock instumental Album of all time. To my ears however I was always aware of it's imperfections. Notes out of tune, out of time, rushed playing, mistakes in performance, electonic noise etc etc... I always meant to re record it but for one reason or another I never got round to it... Untill Now.


The re recording has been a great pleasure and it is so nice to hear my first piece of music realised to it's full potential. The 5.1 mix is especially magical. I hope you will enjoy listening to the 30th anniversary re-recording of Tubular Bells as much as I have enjoyed making it.

Best wishes

Mike Oldfield Feb 2003

Despite what old Mikey says, I doubt the re-recording will have the 'charm' of the original as said above, but I did think the sample showed promise.

What really swung it for me though was that the Limited Edition comes with a DVD that has 5.1 mixes of a few of the tracks - this will be my first venture into multi-channel music and as I will presumably know the tracks quite well, it will be interesting to see how it compares with the added surround element.

Anyway, if anyone is interested, the Limited Edition is only £9 delivered if you use CD-WOW's Hong Kong site :norty:

BTW, I saw an Orchestral Tubular Bells CD here (http://www.playserver2.com/play247.asp?page=title&r=CD&title=10261). Does anyone know if this is really by Mike Oldfield as it says, or is it just by some orchestra doing a cover? Cheers :)

[Halloween Jack]

Originally posted by Squirrel God

BTW, I saw an Orchestral Tubular Bells CD here (http://www.playserver2.com/play247.asp?page=title&r=CD&title=10261). Does anyone know if this is really by Mike Oldfield as it says, or is it just by some orchestra doing a cover? Cheers :) [/B]

Yep, it's definitely with Mike Oldfield, recorded live a few years after the original IIRC with, surprise surprise, an orchestra! ;)

[Squirrel God]

Thanks, have you heard it? What's it like? :)

[TheoGB]

Originally posted by Squirrel God
Thanks, have you heard it? What's it like? :)

You'll note my post where I stated "the Orchestral Version (actually better than the original in many parts, IMO) " ;)

It was scored by a friend of his a few years after the original. He is on it playing classical guitar but the rest is all the London Philharmonic or something like that.

I prefer it to the original as a general album, as it's more homogeous, and a lot of the earlier half actually sounds a bit more 'filmic'. There is no Viv Stanshall or announcer stuff, however.

Definitely buy it if you like the original as it's very interesting to contrast and compare the two.

[Squirrel God]

Thanks, I missed that in your original post :| :D

[mikef]

And if you get the picture disk of the Orchestral version it differs slightly in that it contains the noise of a model plane over the close of side two....if I recall correctly...


Yes, I used to be an Oldfield addict, it feels good to come out of the closet....

But I'm not sure if I want a smoothed out version of the original...

mikef

[mrsteve]

Do you think he'll include Viv Stanshall's guide to the Manor (and Mike Oldfield/David Bedford lurching in the background) on the new Sailor's Hornpipe?

I really think he should....

Steve

[neverland]

Originally posted by mrsteve
Do you think he'll include Viv Stanshall's guide to the Manor (and Mike Oldfield/David Bedford lurching in the background) on the new Sailor's Hornpipe?

Probably not. Isn't he with Warner now, and I presume Virgin still hold the rights to the original recordings. And sadly the legendary Mr Stanshall is no longer around to do a re-recording. :(

Funnily enough, I was searching for Mike Oldfield rarities on mp3 a year or so ago, and managed to find a classical guitar version of Tubular Bells, which rather bizarrely includes the original drunken finale, performed stone cold sober. Blinking well baffling really.

I also chanced upon the orchestral version of Hergest Ridge, which as far as I'm aware was never officially released. Well worth tracking down if you're a fan. Then again, I personally prefer Hergest Ridge to Tubular Bells anyway.

[mikef]

Thanks for that post Neverland. I think the orchestral Hergest was a tv thing, I'll have to go hunting for it. There are a lot of other Oldfield live rarities I would love to track down, so I'll spend some time this weekend looking for them.

I'm with you on Hergest, it's wonderful.

cheers

mikef

[mrsteve]

Originally posted by neverland
Probably not. Isn't he with Warner now, and I presume Virgin still hold the rights to the original recordings. And sadly the legendary Mr Stanshall is no longer around to do a re-recording. :(

Funnily enough, I was searching for Mike Oldfield rarities on mp3 a year or so ago, and managed to find a classical guitar version of Tubular Bells, which rather bizarrely includes the original drunken finale, performed stone cold sober. Blinking well baffling really.



A midnight raid on the Virgin vaults for some Stanshallian goodness? It was a vain hope of mine and doomed not to be achieved....

A stone-cold sober version of the Guided Tour? Yikes! It wasn't William Shatner, was it?

Steve

[neverland]

Originally posted by mrsteve
A midnight raid on the Virgin vaults for some Stanshallian goodness? It was a vain hope of mine and doomed not to be achieved....

I agree it would be wonderful. Presumably things are a little less tense between Mike Oldfield and Virgin these days. The TBIII video suggests things have improved since the Morse coded "R B is a EDIT" on Amarok.

It's a shame Warner haven't released a version of TBII with Viv Stanshall instead of that Rickman bloke. Although he didn't make it in time for the album (the story goes that the driver sent to collect him found him in a drunken stupor), a version of "the Bell" featuring his dulcet tones did appear as a B Side.

Although having said that, the CD of TB II is a wee bit too "clean" for me anyway. I much prefer the allegedly live version recorded at Edinburgh Castle. So, the idea of a cleaned up version of the original doesn't really excite me too much.

I'd much rather that Virgin had a bit of a play with the quad remixes of the first three albums and put out 5.1 audio DVD versions. A 5.1 version of Amarok could be pretty interesting too, although it already sounds pretty damn impressive through a Pro-logic decoder.


A stone-cold sober version of the Guided Tour? Yikes! It wasn't William Shatner, was it?
Steve

I believe they went under the name of Duo Sonare. It's an interesting little oddity, but given it's performed entirely on guitar, a little bit one-dimensional. The guided tour part is just demented though. He even ends with the "Vivian Stanshall... Oxfordshire" line. :confused:

[mrsteve]

Neverland - many thanks for your full reply. A friend of mine is collecting and recording all the Viv Stanshall material he can lay his hands on (he has my vinyl boxset for the drunken finale), so the existence of Viv on TB2 will be very useful information indeed! Much obliged for that. :thumbs:

Interesting about the "live" version at Edinburgh castle. I tend to prefer live Jean-Michel Jarre to the studio work, so I might just check out the "TB2/TB3" DVD.

Cheers

Steve

[neverland]

Originally posted by mrsteve
Neverland - many thanks for your full reply. A friend of mine is collecting and recording all the Viv Stanshall material he can lay his hands on (he has my vinyl boxset for the drunken finale), so the existence of Viv on TB2 will be very useful information indeed! Much obliged for that. :thumbs:

As I say, it never made it to the album, but it was a single B side, along with versions featuring Billy Connolly and MC Otto whoever he may be.

I only ever saw the single once, and made the mistake of not picking it up. Eventually, I found a site full of mp3s of B sides from long deleted MO singles. Not only did it help plug that little gap, but it saved me the hassle of converting a lot of my old vinyl. Unfortunately I can't remember the URL, but it's well worth trying to track the site down if you're a Mike Oldfield completist.

Did your friend catch the documentary Big Shot - A Journey Through the Canyon's of Viv Stanshall's Mind? I think it went out on Radio 2 a year or two ago, but I could be wrong. If not, feel free to drop me an email...


Interesting about the "live" version at Edinburgh castle. I tend to prefer live Jean-Michel Jarre to the studio work, so I might just check out the "TB2/TB3" DVD.

Although the live TB2 seems to feature a bit of obvious miming, it's still a bit rougher round the edges than the studio version. It's hard to put into words, but the studio version just sounded far too polished and clinical for my liking. Also, it just kind of peters out at the end, whereas the live version has a much more impressive finale.

[belgarion_v]

There was an interview with MO on Radio 2 last week (or earier this week) and he said on there that as part of his original contract, he wasn't allowed to re-record TB for at least 25 years. IIRC he also said that he didn't like the orchestral version.

For anyone who hasn't heard the drunken version of the sailors hornpipe etc, if you get the box set of the first three albums, they have replaced the track on there, I found this out when I bought the box set to complete my MO back catalogue on CD.

IIRC the sleeve notes state that MO wanted this on the original, but Virgin weren't keen since MO was an unknown at the time.:nuts:

Vince

[neverland]

Originally posted by belgarion_v
IIRC he also said that he didn't like the orchestral version.


I seem to remember reading that Dave Bedford was pestering him for ages to let him do the orchestral recording, because he wasn't keen at all.

It's a shame if he doesn't like the finished result though. If nothing else, it's a pretty imaginative arrangement, unlike those classic rock albums that my dad bought so many of in the 80s. :gag:

[mrsteve]

Neverland - cheers for the steer, will start googling.
I've got the TB2 CD which I've enjoyed. But I am a fan of live LPs , even if they are extensively retouched - yes, I mean you Eagles and Fleetwood Mac in the late 1970- or feature use of backing tapes - I mean you, ELO Wembley 1978....

I'll check out the Viv Stanshall radio documentary with my friend/colleague. Cheers for that!

Belgarion_V - The drunken hornpipe is definitely on the CD boxset? Wasn't sure if you meant they had replaced the drunken with the instrumental on the CD incarnation of the box. Just want to be sure....

Steve

[neverland]

Originally posted by mrsteve
Belgarion_V - The drunken hornpipe is definitely on the CD boxset? Wasn't sure if you meant they had replaced the drunken with the instrumental on the CD incarnation of the box. Just want to be sure....

I presume he's referring to the "Mike Oldfield Boxed" Boxset, which is the 3 CD version of the 4 LP boxset that contains remixed versions of Tubular Bells, Hergest Ridge and Ommadawn, as well as well as a Colaborations disc, the tracks from which are spread over the 3 CDs.

I've got the CD of that, and I can confirm that Tubular Bells on there includes the drunken hornpipe. Basically, Oldfield and crew had wanted it on from the start, but Virgin thought they were already taking enough of a risk, and so replaced it with an instrumental for the original release. But for the remixed box set, it was reinstated.

[mrsteve]

Cheers! I thought that's what he meant but just wanted to be sure.... May have to upgrade by vinyl.

Many thanks

Steve:thumbs:

[neverland]

I should perhaps note that my CD copy of Boxed is over ten years old now. However, I very much doubt Virgin would have removed the thing again. They seem far more interested in milking the original release to death.

[richpoyle]

TB 2003 will be released on DVD Audio on 25 August 2003.

The disk is compatible with DVD Video players and includes both a DTS 5.1 and Dolby Digital 5.1 mix.

[micksea241]

I have had a copy of TB 2003 for the last couple of months, but yesterday spotted it in HMV and bought the orginal on CD. A word of warning it's copy copyrighted (software protected) and it doesn't play on a PC.