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Tubular Bells [Original recording remastered]

~ Mike Oldfield

4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (18 customer reviews)

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Product details

Audio CD (29 May 2000)
SPARS Code: DDD
Number of Discs: 1
Format: Original recording remastered
Label: Virgin
ASIN: B00004T9AF
Other Editions: Audio CD | Mini-Disc | MP3 Download

Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (18 customer reviews)

Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 3,402 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)
Popular in these categories:
#1 in Music > Classical Instrumental > Solo Instrumental > Percussion
#50 in Music > Classical Instrumental > Classical for Beginners
#67 in Music > Rock > Classic Rock > Progressive Rock

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Track Listings

1. Tubular Bells

Product Description

Amazon.co.uk Review
The opening bars of this classic album by Mike Oldfield were heard by audiences that packed theatres 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

CD Description
Debut album from instrumental wonderkid Mike Oldfield, the first million seller for both Oldfield and his label boss Richard Branson. The eerie music was used to great effect in the film 'The Exorcist' and remains synonymous with it still.Apart from Vivian Stanshall, who announces the instruments as they appear, every note was played by Oldfield himself.

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Customer Reviews

18 Reviews

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

Average Customer Review

4.1 out of 5 stars (18 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

46 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Not just for technophiles and geeks, 1 Sep 2002

By	Andrew Wilkinson (Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne & Wear United Kingdom) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I'm a longstanding Oldfield fan, and I know this album intimately. I used to think that remastered releases were just a way for fleecing the record buying public. But I took a chance on this, and I was flabbergasted. The remastering makes all the difference, the sound quality is crystal clear and I can hear flutes and pedal basses that I didn't know existed. It's like hearing this album for the first time all over again!

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18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great music with fantastic sound quality., 27 Sep 2006

By	DSR (out beyond the sticks) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

This release was groundbreaking for many reasons and I'm sure Virgin Records owe their success to this album. There's an innocent charm to the compositions, although excessive exposure spoiled my enjoyment for many years, having used it as a "demo" disc many times over the seventies and early eighties.

I was saddened that the original CD sounded so muffled, as I remember - CD promised so much in the early days and didn't always deliver for various reasons. Those days are thankfully long behind us and THIS release realises, for me, how good the original recording could be in its stereo version.

There's a clarity here that really helps you to delve into the mix and discover elements that were all but inaudible in the original LP and CD versions. The early "Quad" mixes on the boxed set were good too, but sufficiently different that they were almost different pieces of music to me... My CD player is good, but quite conventional - no HDCD or the dreaded sacharin sweet SACD here... and the sound is perfectly good without all the latest commercial "tricks".... It seems one of the original production team did the remastering for this release, so hopefully, what we're hearing now is about as good as the original mix gets.

I must admit I'm getting really confused with the large number of *versions* of this album available as of 2006... I think that it's now time for both Mr Oldfield and the record companies to leave alone and move on - PLEASE!

RECOMMENDED as the definitive mastering of the original mix! If it's not in your collection, at this price you can't go wrong.

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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A rock classic, 3 Mar 2003

By	Mitch "robwmitch" (Norwich, UK) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

This massive rock symphony was a great idea and Oldfield pulls it off very well.
The distict , haunting piano opening followed by all sorts of instruments providing a whole 50 minutes worth of tunes may sound daunting and possibly boring, but this work keeps you gripped. theres humour with the Piltdown man, and theres something wierd about the bagpipe passage.

A change of mood for the second half- a more relaxed guitar orientated movement.

Its a touch of genius to end with the sailors hornpipe.
Fantastic revolutiuonary music that hasn't been betterd in its field.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

1.0 out of 5 stars Why bother?
Why remaster utter garbage like this? Rubbish then worse now. if you've never heard this and are curious, then take my advice; Go mow the lawn instead. Read more

Published 4 months ago by J. E. Holmes

1.0 out of 5 stars Maybe you were really looking for Parsifal?
Amazon, for some reason, has suggested to me that I might want to buy this.

Ah no.

If you are really desperate to hear tubular bells, can I suggest a... Read more

Published 11 months ago by S. Matthews

5.0 out of 5 stars This is how music should be
Alone amongst the arts, music has the ability to reach inside our weather beaten shells, grab our soul by the scruff of the neck and beat us to death in a darkened room. Read more

Published 14 months ago by Fat Boy Fat

4.0 out of 5 stars Grand Piano!
For a teenager to compose and record an album of this scale, playing every instrument himself, is quite an astonishing achievement and is something of a lost art these days. Read more

Published 15 months ago by Stotty

5.0 out of 5 stars Everyone should own a copy!
I've had this album since I was 17 on LP, cassette, eight track stereo! And now recently purchased on CD. I listen to it every day and never tire of it. Read more

Published 21 months ago by PAULINE STAVES

5.0 out of 5 stars Time for a re-think?
I first heard this from a friend in the 70s who was very good at ferreting out the interesting and unexpected. Read more

Published 21 months ago by Jonathan P. Talbot

3.0 out of 5 stars Curate's Egg
A good re-mastering of the origial for the most part. Tarnished however by some truly atrocious mixing. Read more

Published on 30 May 2007 by Mr. J. Jenkins

5.0 out of 5 stars Improving melody after 34 years at the TOP
Looking at Sir Richard Bransons multi Billon pound empire its hard to believe that this experimental percussion album launched Virgin as a world wide empire. Read more

Published on 27 April 2007 by Mr. P. J. R. LEWIS

5.0 out of 5 stars No Tubular Bells, no Virgin Records
Virgin records would never have become the huge company that it is without this record - if it hadn't been the huge success that it was, the company would never have been... Read more

Published on 18 Mar 2004 by robojam

5.0 out of 5 stars A well worth listening investment. . .
I think Tubular Bells has to be the most courageous piece of music I have heard. This is simply and innocently brilliant from its beginning with a haunting piano intro that... Read more

Published on 4 Jun 2002

› See all 18 customer reviews...

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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

	71% buy the item featured on this page: Tubular Bells 4.1 out of 5 stars (18)
	11% buy Tubular Bells II 4.9 out of 5 stars (13) �4.98
	9% buy Tubular Bells (2009 Remaster Deluxe Edition) 4.6 out of 5 stars (5) �12.48
	5% buy The Mike Oldfield Collection (Tubular Bells / The Mike Oldfield Collection 1974-1983) 4.0 out of 5 stars (4) �8.98

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