Tubular Bells III [IMPORT]

Mike Oldfield (Composer), Clodagh Simonds (Performer), Francesca Robertson (Performer), Heather Burnett (Performer), Rosa Cedrón (Performer)

Product Details

• Performer: Clodagh Simonds, Francesca Robertson, Heather Burnett, Rosa Cedrón
• Composer: Mike Oldfield
• Audio CD (March 19, 1999)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: Warner Bros UK
• ASIN: B00000DATR
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (46 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #43,629 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Track Listings

1. Source of Secrets

2. Watchful Eye

3. Jewel in the Crown

4. Outcast

5. Serpent Dream

6. Inner Child

7. Man in the Rain

8. Top of the Morning

9. Moonwatch

10. Secrets

11. Far Above the Clouds

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

1998 album featuring an updated version of his mesmerizing 'Exorcist' theme, 'Tubular Bells'. 11 tracks. Total playing time of 46:38. A WEA International release.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting, fun.. not quite as tired as it may seem., December 23, 2004

By	spiral_mind (Pennsylvania) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

In the beginning there was Tubular Bells, and it was good. And the public heard that it was good (or were effectively creeped out by the part of it used in The Exorcist). And yea, some years later Mike Oldfield did think to revamp it, using better technology and molding the work into a new form. And the public did have mixed feelings; some were thrilled, some felt it was so much fluff. And yea verily, Mike did return yet again with Tubular Bells III, but did not make the album another reworking this time. And this listener, at least, was quite pleased.

In classic Oldfield form, this is a mostly instrumental suite flowing from one section to the next and presenting various tasty sounds/textures throughout. Through shifting atmospheres, middle-eastern trance ("Serpent Dream") and yes, an occasional stretch veering into new-age territory ("The Top of the Morning"), there's still a consistent flow & mood to the whole thing. Some of it's pretty spacey (a-la Songs of Distant Earth) but I don't think the cheese level gets excessive.

Mike probably realized that reworking the first two Bells again would unquestionably be overkill.. hell, this album invited the risk of overkill just by existing. So he sticks to the timeless piano theme - spiced up with some subtle electronic textures this time - and reuses only a couple basic motifs throughout. "Inner Child" is very loosely based on the familiar haunting vocal section. "Outcast" flirts with the same bouncy fuzz-thrash idea that the other albums had, but remains far from a retread. And of course the tubular bells themselves must appear somewhere.

That's where the family resemblance ends. The layer-building section with the voice announcing the instruments is nowhere to be heard. Ditto the growling Piltdown Man sequence, which may be a relief for anyone who thought its treatment in TB2 was too ridiculous. And the closing hoedown is gone; instead we get the most effective finale of the three, a propulsive eargasmic crescendo thundering across the vast sky. (Listen between the lines and you'll hear him integrating the bass line from the grand finale of TB1's first half. Sneaky.) The thing that doesn't quite fit is "Man in the Rain," a catchy pop tune that's inevitably out of place in the middle of the instrumental work. But as someone below said, on its own it's a decent track and the flow of the album isn't harmed if it's skipped.

Obviously the original Bells is the one to begin with. If you'd like something more light and lush, try TB2; if you don't mind some electronic touches, come right here.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful Stuff!, December 23, 1999

By	Steve Miller (United States) - See all my reviews

This is Oldfield's most atmospheric release since 'Ommadawn,' and not since 'Taurus II' (the long instrumental on the 'Five Miles Out' album) have I felt that the work added up to a coherent whole. The only rough spot is that I feel the 'Inner Child' segment goes on *just* a mite too long.

When I was a kid, I used to say that Mike Oldfield was writing truly modern symphonies, using entirely modern means. As I developed more vocabulary and experience relating to music, I abandoned that thinking. 'Tubular Bells III' tempts me to return to my childish ways of viewing Oldfield and his work.

TBIII is a must have for even the most casual Oldfield fan and perhaps all music lovers.

By the way, while I suspect that the 'Tubular Bell' titles may be marketing driven as anything else (at least in America, Oldfield is known as 'the guy who wrote Tubular Bells, right?') and hence think we'll be seeing a IV, I hope that TBIII will be the last in the 'trilogy.' Why? Because 'Far Above the Clouds' seems like such a powerful wrap-up to the cycle that I'd hate to see it spoiled.

Unless, of course, Oldfield finds a way to knock my socks yet again.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Surprisingly good!, December 21, 2001

By	G. Shkodra (Montreal, Canada) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I was very surprised to see TB3 at the music store two years ago since I hadn't heard anything about Mike Oldfield releasing anything new. Of course "Tubular bells" is a very strong commercial brand and one can't help thinking that the good old Mike is trying to get the most out of the impact this label has on music lovers instead of calling this album, I don't know, "The top of the morning" or "Far above the clouds". But since I adored TB and TB2 I decided to give it a try. As a matter of fact the techno intro made me have second thoughts about buying this album, but since I am a patient guy, fortunately I didn't skip it. I ended up buying it as I loved the rest of the album.

Everyone, throughout their life, experiences what they call the tastes' evolution. There were so many bands and singers I was mad about in my teen years whose music seems so childish to me now, and on the other hand, there were so many other ones whose music took so many years to reach me, like classical music for instance. I remember my dad taking me almost by force to every symphonic concert or opera (since he was a musician) when I was around 10-14 years old. I own about four hundred CD-s now and, thanks to my dad, half of them are classical music.

Mike Oldfield is one of the few musicians whose music I loved in my teen years and I love even more now. Yes, TB3 is inferior to TB and TB2, but the Beatles never wrote anything that could at least equal "Yesterday", Led Zeppelin never wrote anything that could even come close to "Stairway to heaven". What is common to all sheer masterpieces is that they're simply hard to top.

And hey, in the nineties' music desert, this album comes out as a true masterpiece!