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Tubular Bells

Mike OldfieldAudio CD
4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (124 customer reviews)

Price: $30.49 & FREE Shipping. Details
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Tubular Bells + Tubular Bells, II + Songs of Distant Earth
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Product Details

  • Audio CD (June 29, 1992)
  • Original Release Date: 1973
  • Number of Discs: 1
  • Label: Virgin Records Us
  • ASIN: B000000WG4
  • Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Music
  • Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (124 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #70,143 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

1. Part One - Mike Oldfield
2. Part Two - Mike Oldfield

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

The opening bars of this classic album by Mike Oldfield were heard by audiences that packed theaters to witness one of the scariest films of all time--The Exorcist. And it wasn't long before this debut release, not only from Oldfield but also from Richard Branson's new record label, Virgin, found itself in the upper echelons of pop charts around the world. Primarily an instrumental album, with performances on almost every instrument credited to Oldfield, it takes the listener into widely varying musical territories, ending as Viv Stanshall formally announces each instrument as it joins the mix. --Paul Clark

Product Description

Mike Oldfield Tubular Bells UK CD album

Customer Reviews

The good bits are everything else. Eoin  |  14 reviewers made a similar statement
It's a must buy if you like Oldfield, the movie or classical music. James Blake  |  21 reviewers made a similar statement
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
56 of 59 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Another Excellent Multichannel SACD September 2, 2001
By ALK
Format:Audio CD
When it was released, Tubular Bells brought a lot of critical acclaim to Mike Oldfield. Virgin Records has recently re-released the album on multichannel SACD. The results are outstanding.

The multichannel SACD mix is presented in 4.0 channel sound (rather than the usual 5.1). This is because the original multichannel track was developed for 1970s quad. While usually transfering a quad track to modern multichannel is bad, in this case it works very well. There is no LFE or center channel included in the recording.

There is a very detailed description of the history of Tubular Bells in the CD booklet that accompanies the disc. The disc also contains the original two track Tubular Bells as an SACD layer and a CD layer. Interrestingly enough, some of the original Tubular Bells was re-recorded in the 1970s for the multichannel version. So the stereo and 4.0 mixes truly are different.

While I would normally not recommend taking a quad recording and releasing it in any modern format (see Paul McCartney's "Venus and Mars" on DTS CD as an example of what not to do), Tubular Bells sounds fresh and clean.

For those who have not heard the album before, it really defies categorization. While very "listenable", it is also very experimental in the use of instrumentation and creating an environment of interesting sounds. There are only two tracks on the SACD.

The SACD is playable on CD and SACD players. For high definition sound, you'll need an SACD player. For multichannel high definition sound you'll need a multichannel SACD player, such as Sony's SCD-CE775.

Overall this is very enjoyable music that luckily is now available in 4.0 channel surround sound.

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34 of 37 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Great. Just like I remembered it. April 5, 2000
Format:Audio CD
Back in college, one of the guys in the dorm used to play this VERY LOUD, so that it echoed all through the Quad. Somehow, I rather enjoyed it more in the solitude and exclusivity of a pair of headphones, the sounds just traversing throughout through my head.

This was a thick piece of music. It throbbed, in a rather sensual way. It rose into peaks and dove into valleys. Mike Oldfield took a bunch of instruments, (some electronically created, some all the way live), and melded them together. The last third of the title cut starts with a bass guitar, and starts an inexorable, growing orchestra. He introduces and adds one instrument at a time to create a huge wave of sound.

I love it.

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39 of 44 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars Almost perfect September 16, 2004
Format:Audio CD
The remastering of this classic makes a huge improvement. My only gripe is that they kept the ending of the first album release, and didn't restore Mike Oldfield's original intended ending.

The album was supposed to end with a drunken version of the Sailor's Hornpipe recorded live one morning, with semi-coherent commentary by Vivian Stanshall. That's the version on "Boxed", and I so wish it was the version on this release--so much so that I edited my own version by combining the two.

This elderly recording has an earnestness and heart that shines through the limited recording technology available; warts and all, it's a better album than the 2003 re-recording.
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17 of 18 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars A Classic, Improved March 25, 2005
Format:Audio CD
When I think of albums which have retained their popularity over the years, two come to mind. Pink Floyd's "Dark Side of the Moon" is one; "Tubular Bells" is the other. And the fact that both have been released on hybrid SACD attests to their popularity. In the case of "Tubular Bells", this was not the first quad mix of the album to be released. The first, which was released as a CD-4 "Quadradisc" in the US, and as both SQ and QS in most of the rest of the world, pretty much mimicked the stereo version, except for the slow fade-in of the beginning and a few music-spins-around-you effects. The mix on this SACD features one that was originally created to convince Mike Oldfield to allow this recording to be released in multichannel. In addition, the original stereo mix is included on both the CD layer and the SACD stereo track. The 4.0 mix on the SACD multichannel track is cleaner and less cluttered sounding than that first released quad mix, and is more straight-forward. This mix was also released as a quad LP as part of a box set (now available on CD, and despite claims to the contrary, is the SQ version). That set, "Mike Oldfield Boxed", is worth seeking out. It also includes quad mixes of "Ommadawn", "Hergest Ridge", and "Collaborations".Now, if only they could release this box set in SACD... I digress. I highly recommend this SACD for those who want to hear what this system can do, and for MO fans, to finally hear everything he wanted you to hear.
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20 of 22 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars A pop-classical masterpiece... October 28, 1999
By A Customer
Format:Audio CD
I first heard the 4-minute (Highly edited) cut of the beginning of "Tubular Bells Part 1" on the "Pure Moods" compilation. I later saw "The Exorcist" and found that the movie used the song as well. When I got the CD I didn't realize that the whole thing (parts 1 and 2) was almost 50 minutes long. And I LOVED it!!! This is one of the most eclectic musical masterpieces of all time. Covering the range from rock to classical to funk to ambient and back like a frantic marathon runner, this is a true original piece of music. Mike Oldfield has melded the genres of rock and classical unlike any other. Only the progressive greats like Yes, King Crimson, Emerson Lake & Palmer, and Pink Floyd have succeeded at such eccentricity and even then, this truly a different and original musical masterpiece! A classic!!!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
1.0 out of 5 stars this is the worst version i have heard
this is the worst version i have heard!! i bought this because the sample you hear is like the movie but when you download it and listen to the beginning, it is something else all... Read more
Published 22 days ago by Melody A. Luse
1.0 out of 5 stars I am not able to play this disk in any of my audio programs.
The title says it all. I stuck this disk into my windows 7 professional computer and none of my audio programs would play it or even see it. Window just doen't recognize this disk.
Published 2 months ago by Chrissy M. Strawn
5.0 out of 5 stars inventive prog rock that goes on and on.
This isn't for everyday listening often. It's prog rock and it's good stuff but like alot of prog rock you need to be in the mood for music that meanders around and does what it... Read more
Published 19 months ago by Michael Dobey
5.0 out of 5 stars A bona fide masterpiece from the progressive era
Arguably the seminal release of the progressive era, Oldfield weaves a hypnotic web of guitar and keyboard lines that gradually builds into a pinnacle of real grandeur. Read more
Published on December 3, 2010 by Dave Deubler
2.0 out of 5 stars not what I expected
I was disappointed with this cd. The only section I had ever heard was the "Exorcist" music. The remaining content is not the same and falls far short. Read more
Published on November 14, 2010 by taughannock215
5.0 out of 5 stars A masterpiece for the time it was released
I remember hearing "Tubular Bells" when it was first released back in 1973 on a radio station that played albums during the evening hours. Read more
Published on October 9, 2010 by 2shred
3.0 out of 5 stars Titular swells
Massively cited hodgepodge of prog-new-age-folk is not without its brilliant, albeit short-lived, passages, though I can't help but hear the majority as overly contrived.
Published on May 29, 2010 by IRate
5.0 out of 5 stars Unreal. Awesome.
Ages ago, I heard of "Tubular Bells". I even owned the music-video piece for the Commodore 64. I had no idea what it was at the time. Read more
Published on February 25, 2010 by justsomeguy
2.0 out of 5 stars Way way way too lengthy...
This is only scary because it is associated with the Exorcist film. The ending sections are either humorous or hokey depending on your perspective. Read more
Published on December 31, 2009 by Ted2112
5.0 out of 5 stars 70s very progressive music
1st heard this on the radio as referenced as a tie-in to the linda blair movie- the excorist. was blown away by whole album, very melodic and a good mood filler for a sunday... Read more
Published on July 26, 2009 by William B. Hamner
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