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Editorial Reviews
2012 two CD collection from the British guitarist. The music of Mike Oldfield is some of the most spiritual, ethereal, reflective and sensual in rock, and above all, incomparable: it's no wonder he is a true British icon. Two Sides is a career retrospective, personally compiled and sequenced by Mike himself. The self-taught multi-instrumentalist, producer and composer has worked throughout his career across a staggering variety of music styles: from Folk and Progressive Rock to Jazz, Electronic, Ambient, New Age, World, Pop and even Disco. So it is fitting that a broad palette of his work is reflected here. On Disc One, he takes us on a musical journey through his more esoteric, experimental side, and on Disc Two you'll find his best loved tracks and hit singles.
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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
Is this the best way to get a taster of Mike Oldfield? Well yes it is.
The fans will tell you that there is a lot of great stuff missing from this disc and they would be right. There's nothing here from Incantations, Platinum or QE2 for example which is a lot of people's favourite Oldfield era but nevermind! If you like what's on Two Sides and investigate further you'll get to that stuff sure enough. Oldfield's output is a bit of a mine field because over 40 years his taste has been very broad indeed. So this collection may show you what to avoid as much as what to delve deeper into. I recommend taking the plunge.
On a slight tangent; don't let the sleeve convince you this just another Tubular Bells release! It's sleekness and chill-out vibes may also give the impression of a chill-out artist but Oldfield's music is much more than that. He's at times earthy, gutsy, dramatic and highly emotive, the sleeve fom 1985's complete Mike Oldfield painted a more appropraite picture.
And to sign off...I've gotten into the habit of telling Oldfield fans about a young whipper-snapper by the name of Andrew Taylor who has released an album called Mohribold (google it). If you like Oldfield you'll love Mohribold! There are some Oldfield-esque moments but he's got his own style too. Maybe he's one to watch out for since Oldfield has called for an instrumetnal rock renaissence after his Olympics appearance.
The fans will tell you that there is a lot of great stuff missing from this disc and they would be right. There's nothing here from Incantations, Platinum or QE2 for example which is a lot of people's favourite Oldfield era but nevermind! If you like what's on Two Sides and investigate further you'll get to that stuff sure enough. Oldfield's output is a bit of a mine field because over 40 years his taste has been very broad indeed. So this collection may show you what to avoid as much as what to delve deeper into. I recommend taking the plunge.
On a slight tangent; don't let the sleeve convince you this just another Tubular Bells release! It's sleekness and chill-out vibes may also give the impression of a chill-out artist but Oldfield's music is much more than that. He's at times earthy, gutsy, dramatic and highly emotive, the sleeve fom 1985's complete Mike Oldfield painted a more appropraite picture.
And to sign off...I've gotten into the habit of telling Oldfield fans about a young whipper-snapper by the name of Andrew Taylor who has released an album called Mohribold (google it). If you like Oldfield you'll love Mohribold! There are some Oldfield-esque moments but he's got his own style too. Maybe he's one to watch out for since Oldfield has called for an instrumetnal rock renaissence after his Olympics appearance.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
Like many reviewers here - I am a long time fan and have all of the recordings included in this compilation and am very familiar with them. Also, I read the other reviews several times before making the purchase and was fairly warned. So here's my take for those of you who are still not convinced. Being somewhat of an audiophile but not totally overboard I was hoping that the recordings themselves had also been upgraded to reflect a quality of at least say Songs From Distant Earth which was okay but not great sonically (shouldn't be too much of a stretch to ask for at least 1994 level music quality should it?). Bottom line - I love a lot of the music from the time frame that this compilation covers but frankly find it unlistenable on any equipment with more than basic AM radio capability. This means that if you have any of these recordings you will not have any reason to purchase them again. As far as the acutal compilation itself and having read that Mike put this together himself - my only comment is that if he considers these his best efforts I sure as heck don't - seriously, all of Amarok and only the first part of Ommadawn? (yeah I know it took him three decades to write the first side and 20 minutes for the second but I still think the second side [of the LP] is by far the best). I am pretty sure I could have put together a better compilation for him - for example how do you manage to leave Far Above the Clouds off? or Dark Island from Voyager? If you are looking for something new or better sound don't expect it here.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
I have been a fan of Mike Oldfield for years, since tubular bells. I was surprised and disappointed there were no tracks from "Earth Moving" in this collection. I love that CD. However, there are some really great tracks in this set. Two Sides covers a lot of time and you can get a feel for the various moods Mike Oldfield records. From the mystic and beyond. I recommend this CD to any one who really likes good music.
Listmania!
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