Customer Reviews

Tubular Bells 2003 (+ Bonus DVD)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

After a 25-year clause in his contract with the EVIL Richard Branson of the Virgin mega-empire, Mike Oldfield was able to re-record his defining masterpiece. This album alone has influenced more musicians during the last 30-years then I dare say Mozart, Bach, and Beethoven (even though the Introduction of Tubular Bells is based on a section from Bach's Tocatta and Fugue in D-minor) or anyone else's instrumental music. You can even hear a copy cat variation of TB's Introduction in the 50-cent hit "In Da Club." Even Janet Jackson used Tubular Bells in her hit "The Velvet Rope."

This re-recording is hopefully the last we will hear of the Tubular Bells franchise. I do believe that Mike kept making TB albums (TB2 and TB3) to deal with his own disappointment with the original and not being able to re-record his original. Tubular Bells 2003 is TB the way it should sound. The beauty of the melodies is truly brought out in this recording! Every track from the original 1973 version is brought to life and given a new life in TB2003 - while remaining faithful to it's roots. The only downfall of this re-recording is the use of synths in sections. In my opinion that is what dates an album - keyboard synths. According to Oldfield only 10 percent of this album is keyboard and 90 percent is played by hand.

Some of the highlights of this album is the beautiful and constant use of the Mandolin. Breathtaking!! In the track 'Harmonics' you can hear, about 30 seconds in, a beautiful vocal by Sally Oldfield (Mike's sister) - very haunting!

The strong points in this album are the more relaxing tracks - Latin, A Minor Tune, Ghost Bells, Russian, Harmonics, Peace, and Ambient Guitars.

One of my favourite tracks is the track 'Blues'. Haunting and when you aren't expecting it, the track blows up into this heavy Blues guitar - full throttle!

'Thrash' was a bit of a disappointment as it didn't do as I thought it should have - seemed a little too programmed and perfect.

'Finale' is very good and John Cleese adds a subtle humor to his MC's of the instruments in his Basil Fawlty-esque voice. As opposed to Alan Rickman's MC'ing on Tubular Bells 2 (1992) - Classy. Mike does employ the use of real Tubular Bells instead of keyboard bells - nice and refreshing change from the other bell albums. For those who understand time signatures - the track bounces along nicely a constant 4/4 (as in club music beats.) After John Cleese annouces 'PLUS Tubular Bells' the beat changes - with the beat on 1 and 3 instead of a constant 1-2-3-4. Took some getting used to. The drums are electronic - I believe.

Funny really Tubular Bells has now employeed two Harry Potter stars Alan Rickman (Professor Snape) on TB2 and John Cleese (Nearly-Headless Nick) on TB2003. Now my favourite album and book series have something in common! :)

The 'Caveman' section is indeed a big change from the original 1973 version. There is a cavewoman with the caveman. And an army of Cavemen in sections - nice touch! The only complaint with this track is the use of electronic-esque drums. For those who care and are wondering why you have this screaming Caveman in the first place need not wonder anymore... In 1972 when Mike was trying to get a record company to buy into Tubular Bells, they all told him to throw some vocals on there and they'd consider it. Well, Mike in his sense of humor got trashed one night during the one-week of recording given to him by Richard Branson - hence all the technical imperfections in the original -Mike started screaming at the top his lungs into a microphone and then replied to the record companies by saying 'here's those vocals you asked for!' It was also based on an archeologist hoax of that time called 'Piltdown Man.' Subtle humor really. The screaming caveman and woman sound alot like two Star Trek Klingons speaking Klingon and Mike is a huge fan of Star Trek - go fig! :)

The Sailors Hornpipe - otherwise known to American's as the Popeye theme - is cleaned up and sounds more brilliant than ever.

As for the most famous part of TB - the Introduction - made famous through its use in William Blakes 'Exorcist' is brilliant in its sound quality. The only unusual change is the synth bass played by way of midi on an actual guitar.

Whether this remake will hold up in the test of time as the original 1973 version did- is up to time itself. Either way Tubular Bells will remain one of rock music's classic albums which will brave the tests of time to still be remembered in 50 years and beyond - as Beethovens Nineth Symphony (Ode to Joy). As a matter of fact, I do believe it was Rolling Stone magazine who stated that Tubular Bells is rocks equivalent to Beethoven's Nineth.

Bottom line - BUY THIS CD!!! You will NOT be disappointed!!! Plus you will hopefully be sending a message to Mike's record company - that Mike Oldfield still has a fan base here in America and they should release this album here and Canada. We shouldn't have to constantly import his music. And the RIAA wonders why people just download music instead of purchasing it. MAKE IT AVAILABLE at a reasonable price in our country and we wouldn't need to download it!!! wink wink ;)

PS I have bought - in spite of the outrageous import price - the Complete TB and TB2003 single album. PLEASE SUPPORT MIKE OLDFIELD - BUY THE ALBUM!!!

There are two versions of this release, the US Version from Rhino, and the Import Version which includes a bonus DVD. I bought the DVD/Import version and I'm glad I did.

The CD is the same in both versions, but the DVD gives you a taste of what Oldfield may have planned for yet another future release. One of the advantages of his re-recording of this masterpiece is that he now has a high end master which he can re-mix in newer audio formats as they come along.

The DVD is only about 9 minutes long, but it does contain a short animated video and an intense audio mix of a couple of tracks in a 5.1 audio format. It would seem to me that producing the entire release in a high end audio format such as DVD Audio or SACD is the next logical step.

One listen to the 5.1 DVD on your surround system and you're hooked.

Despite being Oldfield's most famous work, Tubular Bells is not my favorite of his works; that distinction goes to a tie between Ommadawn and Five Miles Out.

This newly performed version of his first and best-known work is as good as the original, and even better in spots. It's a bit of a shame that he had to go back to The Beginning to produce something that I really enjoyed, though. (Tres Luna, his most recent all-new work, bored me.)

All-in-all, the melody lines are more distinct in this version, there is more energy in virtually every track, and the Caveman section is even odder than in the original. Even the portions of the original Tubular Bells which felt like they went on just a bit too long for what they were doing musically have been spruced up here and are working far more effectively (the sections titled "A Minor Tune" and "Peace" on this CD being the ones that are most improved in my opinion). John Cleese brings a touch of humor to the "introducing the instruments section," as opposed to the more straight up master of ceremonies approach in the original and in Tubular Bells II. Everything about this CD works, and it's well-worth getting for Oldfield fans or lovers of the original Tubular Bell album.

So, why only Three Stars after that rave review? Well, the DVD is a total waste of plastic and money. The video is unimpressive--I could probably have produced it on my Mac, given stock footage and a few days. I can't comment on the Surround Sound mixes, as I don't have a TV set that fancy. Since the "bonus" DVD ups the price, I need to take off stars in relation to its value. And it drags the package down.

Well it is very hard to judge TB 2003. I must say after comparing TB from 1973 with a new version that i prefer Older one. Why? it was spontanic. It was romantic, Melancholic and full of heart. Mike was using only few guitars (for those who do not know it was Fender telecaster, Fender precision bass and one acoustic and classical guitar) and not so many instruments as you may though. Mandolins and some of other sounds were created using Electric guitar mixed and changed in studio to sound like, let's say, bagpipes. In 1973 mike was not a superstar and a well known genius player. He was just lucky guy with a huge talent who had an opportunity to record in a professional Studio his own ideas and melodies. It was all very spontanic...In seventies his music was full of passion and very personal ("ommadawn", "Hergest ridge"), while when he joined more mainstream style of music ("Moonlight shadow") he became a superstar with a lot of money, but with no really original concepts for his new records. yes i agree, "Five miles out" or "Islands" are a brilliant works too, but looking back to seventies it was nothing compared to emotional bombs that "Ommadawn" and other albums were. The music slowly was loosing it's soul. With "Amarok" he proved that he can still compose such a genius music like TB, but later he mostly made mechanic (in real sense - all of his new works were made with computers and synths) works and he lost many of his splendor and talet that he had before.

I am afraid about Mike's.future "guitars" and "millenium bell" were simply some wierd mistakes and they contained only a small shadow of some of his older works. Ok, even compare it to "songs of thr Distant earth" (his best from new period) and see how piontless he had gone. "tres lunas" was not his real studio album. It contained a music to a computer game - to computer game it was originaly composed, and in a computer game it sounds the best. those cyberspace stuff just don't work now.

TB 2003 is Very good album.Very good! But only if you forgot that he recorded the same thirty years ago.
i felt satisfied when i heard the BASS along with main piano motive in first miute.in 1973 it sounded thiny and quiet, now it blows of your subwoofer. the sound is crystal clear and without any noises. But with those changes, the magic of original Tubular bells had vanished. In some parts you could heard Mike's fingers sliding on his guitar, now it is all so crystal-clear perfect, without any sound flaws.
I heard that he is planing to Re-record "OMMADAWN" and "HErgest ridge. for music - 4 STARS
for idea - 2 STARS

for all - 4 STARS...

When I first heard that Mike Oldfield was planning to re-record the original Tubular Bells with updated technology, I thought that was a wonderful idea. But I did not take into account the measure of disrespect the composer must now feel for his once revered composition. Rather than making this a stronger recording than the original, it seems deliberately weak and watered down. Also, the announcing of the instruments and Cave Man lyrics are unbelievably contrived. You just want to say to him, Mike, are you really taking this thing seriously. And he seems to say back, I can't believe you ever took it seriously.

If you pretend that this is PDQ Bach stealing themes from Mike Oldfield it might just be funny. But otherwise it's just plain painful to listen to.

If you've never heard the original and are considering buying this one first, please reconsider. This parody may poison your appreciation of what was originally one of the most innovative and emotionally stirring classical rock compositions of the early 70's.

I guess it's an artist's right to return to his most famous work and attempt to improve on it. I certainly do not wish to presume to tell Mike Oldfield what he should be doing artistically, but lately his work has been very uninspired. Voyager was the last cd he produced that was truely a great piece of work, and Tubular Bells II was a beautiful and worthy follow-up to the original. I wish Mike would release the dvd of the live Tubular Bells II concert at Edinburgh Castle for the U.S. market. It's a fabulous concert video. The say it takes two artists to paint a picture. One to paint it, and the other to tell him when it's done. Mike, TB was done in 1973. For all of it's electronic innovations of that time, it never lost it's immediacy or warmth. It was a brilliant statement of how pop/rock and folk music could exceed their boundries, and still keep the essence of what makes all three genres exciting and moving. I still believe Mike has the talent to produce great work. I'm giving this cd 3 stars because the original material is so good. My hope is that Mike will realize that his masterworks are complete as they are, and that it is time to move on to new things. Buy it and compare it yourself. It's well worth the money, and you may like it better than the original. Me, I'm still waiting for some inspired new music from Mike Oldfield.

This one totally knocks the tar out of the original. The original TB shows its age on a good stereo system, and it was one of Mike's first recording efforts, so it's not exactly polished, even if it was awesome. With this edition, Mike's bringing an extra 30 some years of experience to the table and it really shows. There are a few minor changes, all for the better in my opinion. Still, it's basically a note for note remake with timing so perfect you'd swear you were listening to the original most of the time if it didn't sound so much clearer, deeper, and resonant. I've seen a lot of complaints from people over the years about the quality of the original TB and how they'd like it so much better if it were cleaned up... this version is made for those people.

Isn't it an amazing coincidence that the 2003rd version of Tubular Bells just happened to come out in the year 2003? :-D But seriously, believe what the other reviewers have written here - this is one good record.

Is there room in this world for yet another Tubular Bells spin-off? Apparently Yes. The original is beyond reproach, warts and all, but Oldfield still decided that now was the time to re-record it, rather than release another variation on a theme as with the orchestral version, live version and TB2 ¡V all of which are terrific ¡V and TB3 which was only sporadically worthy of the name. However, since the Millennium Bell¡¦s shameless use of the iconic Tubular Bells logo for marketing purposes, and the wholly pointless ¡¥Best of Tubular Bells¡¦ it¡¦s understandable that interest may begin to wane.

Despite being a note-for-note remake ¡V even using exactly the same instruments as far as I can tell ¡V this is NOT a replacement for the beloved original, but a fresh sounding and beautifully recorded alternative. If the original was the sound of a shy young musician feverishly bringing his opus to life by grabbing whatever studio time he could, then TB2003 is the sound of a rich, mature musician with plenty of time on his hands to tweak, tinker and perfect as much as his heart desires. The difference is tangible.

It is not complete replica: one or two short sections have subtle changes and some sections do not work quite as well as on the original. For example the guitar heavy mid-section of Part One of the original is better than the equivalent section on TB2003 (now called Blues, Thrash and Jazz for CD convenience). Also, John Cleese¡¦s MC instrument introductions come across as a little too affected compared to Viv Stanshell¡¦s original, though this may be just a matter of getting used to it.

So, is it worth buying? Definitely yes if you loved the original as huge enjoyment can be had from spotting little differences and hearing the same instruments in glorious sound quality, and for those unfamiliar with the original this will still be a real treat for entirely different reasons. Having said that, if I¡¦m still around in another thirty years I imagine it will be the ¡¦73 version that will played the most on my old tin box. Now then, any chance of a new version of Hergest Ridge?

Favourite bits: Introduction; Finale; Harmonics; Peace.

I was seriously scratching my head and asking "Why?" when I heard that Mike Oldfield was re-recording his debut masterwork "Tubular Bells". After all, the 1973 original is something genuine and special. Also, we've got two sequels which were released 20 and 25 years later respectively plus an orchestral version and a "Tubular Bells" best-of. Why on earth do we need another "Tubular Bells" disc?
For the answer, one needs to do no more than buy the CD and pop it into your player. The 2003 remake of "Tubular Bells" is simply astounding. While this is a note-for-note remake of the original version, there are some subtle but noticable differences. With the advancements in technology, many parts of this piece have a more defined sound especially in the bass and percussion. Also, the vocals in the "Caveman" section are more shouted than growled like on the original. The "Caveman" also has a duet partner on the new version whereas on the original, he was alone.

This re-recording of "Tubular Bells" needed to be done. It's like dusting off an old painting that had been in the attic for 30 years. While nothing compares to the original, it's great to have this classic work updated. It's also fun to play the original and the remake side by side and spot the differences. Like the great classical works of Mozart, Beethoven and Bach, Mike Oldfield's "Tubular Bells" will probably be listened to for generations more to come. May the Tubular Bells keep ringing!!