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Discography > Tubular Bells 2003

 
     


Tubular Bells 2003

Release Date: May 27, 2003
Location: Roughwood Croft

Tubular Bells 2003 cover

1. Introduction 05:51
2. Fast Guitars 01:04
3. Basses 00:46
4. Latin 02:18
5. A Minor Tune 01:21
6. Blues 02:40
7. Thrash 00:44
8. Jazz 00:48
9. Ghost Bells 00:30
10. Russian 00:44
11. Finale 08:36

Part Two
12. Harmonics 05:21
13. Peace 03:22
14. Bagpipe Guitars 03:07
15. Caveman 04:33
16. Ambient Guitars 05:09
17. Hornpipe 01:39

Tracks     Written by
Part One:    
Introduction   Mike Oldfield
Fast Guitars   Mike Oldfield
Basses   Mike Oldfield
Latin   Mike Oldfield
A Minor Tune   Mike Oldfield
Blues   Mike Oldfield
Thrash   Mike Oldfield
Jazz   Mike Oldfield
Ghost Bells   Mike Oldfield
Russian   Mike Oldfield
Finale   Mike Oldfield
     
Part Two    
Harmonics   Mike Oldfield
Peace   Mike Oldfield

Bagpipe Guitars

  Mike Oldfield
Caveman   Mike Oldfield
Ambient Guitars   Mike Oldfield
Hornpipe   Traditional, arranged by Mike Oldfield

Mike Oldfield plays...

Believed to be...
Grand Piano, Glockenspiel, Electric Organs, Accordion, Synthesisers, Bass Guitar, Electric Guitars, Acoustic Guitars, Mandolin, Spanish Guitar, Piltdown Man, Tympani, Percussion, Tubular Bells.

Other musicians
Sally Oldfield - Background Vocals
John Cleese - Master of ceremonies
Produced by Mike Oldfield, engineered by Ben Darlow
Recorded at Roughwood August 2002 - February 2003

Cover image by Steve Bedford from an original design by Trevor Key, design by e-xentric


Notes

Despite feeling that it was musically his best work, Mike had long been unhappy with the quality of the 1973 recording of Tubular Bells. The recording had been done in a rush, with most of Part One being recorded in a week's trial period which Mike had been allowed in The Manor studio by Virgin boss Richard Branson. Part Two was recorded under even more difficult conditions, with Mike being able to use the studio only in periods when no other artists wanted it, meaning that he often could only work for very short periods, or late at night. Despite the fact that the album went on to become a huge selling, classic recording, Mike later complained that the whole thing sounded out of tune, with there having not even been time to tune the guitars, and that he felt the performances were rushed and out of time. The desire to perfect Tubular Bells may be partly what drove Mike to create Tubular Bells II (1992) and III (1998), but he wasn't able to re-record the original Tubular Bells due to a clause in his contract with Virgin which prevented him from re-recording the album for 25 years after the release of the original album. Come the 30th anniversary in 2003, with the contract recently expired, Mike felt that the time was right to revisit the work and finally do what he wanted with it.

The album was initially recorded into Logic Audio Platinum (v5.3.0) running on a Dual 1GHz Powermac G4 (mirrored drive door model with 1.25 GB RAM, running OS 9 - Mike says 9.4, which doesn't exist; the latest is 9.2.2), with Digidesign Pro Tools (v5.3.1) being used for various pieces of editing, and to provide the half-speed recording capability needed to create the double speed guitars which were very much a feature of the original Tubular Bells. Material was then transferred to a Fairlight Merlin hard disk recorder, from which tracks were mixed down, via Mike's Neve Capricorn digital mixing desk.

The track titles are simply Mike's working titles for the sections they refer to. The division of the album into tracks was done as a result of popular demand rather than any particular desire of Mike's, and as a result Mike chose not to spend any further time thinking up new names for all the sections.

© Richard Carter 2003


Personnel

John Cleese (musician)

Most famous for his role in the ground breaking British comedy sketch show "Monty Python's Flying Circus" (which ran between 1969 and 1974), as well as for his parts in numerous films, including 'A Fish Called Wanda', the James Bond films 'The World is Not Enough' and 'Die Another Day' and of course the Monty Python films. Mike had long been a fan of the Monty Python shows and felt that Tubular Bells had a certain Monty Python-like quality to it, with the way hugely contrasting sections of music were juxtaposed carrying a feel of 'and now for something completely different...'. Therefore John Cleese was, for Mike, a natural choice as a replacement for the late Vivian Stanshall, who had contributed the Master of Ceremonies part to the 1973 Tubular Bells.


Sally Oldfield (musician)

Mike's older sister, who formed a duo named Sallyangie with him when he was 15. She went on to have a successful career as a solo artist.

After her first appearance on one of Mike's albums for 25 years, on Tres Lunas, Mike's sister Sally returned for Tubular Bells 2003, to reprise her role as vocalist on Tubular Bells.

Also appears in: Tubular Bells, Incantations, Tres Lunas


e-xentric (cover artwork)


Steve Bedford (cover artwork)


Trevor Key (cover artwork)

Also appears in: Tubular Bells, Hergest Ridge, Incantations, Platinum



Instruments

Miscellaneous stringed instruments
Mike Vanden 'MJV' F4 style Mandolin Originally bought from John Alvey Turner's music shop. Sold via Chandler Guitars in December 2007.
Photo Photo Photo Photo Photo Photo Photo Photo
Also used in Amarok, Voyager
Percussion instruments
Tambourine
Tubular Bells The 'toy' set bought for the making of Tubular Bells II. Also used in Tubular Bells II
Triangle
Glockenspiel 3 octave concert glockenspiel sold at piano auctions, December 2007. Not the one used on Tubular Bells and Hergest Ridge, but probably all albums after that. Also used in Ommadawn
Tympani
Cymbals
Drum machines and electronic percussion
Boss Dr Rhythm Digital drum machine. Used for drums.
Electric guitars
1963 Fender Stratocaster, fiesta red s/n L08044. Mike once said in an interview (The Raft) that this was his favourite guitar and that he'd never sell it. However, he finally decided to part company with it in December 2007 and sold it through Chandler guitars, fetching £30,000.
Photo Photo Photo Photo Photo Photo Photo Photo Photo Photo
Also used in Discovery, Amarok, Tubular Bells II, The Songs of Distant Earth, Voyager, Tubular Bells III, Guitars, Light + Shade
1965 Fender Telecaster Neck date of November 1965 (s/n L807280). This guitar used to be owned by Marc Bolan. Mike added an extra pickup - made by Bill Lawrence - to it, with the help of his dad in their garden shed. Mike later took all the finish off the guitar, leaving it as bare wood. The guitar was offered through Chandler for £20,000 but wasn’t sold. It was then to be auctioned off by Bonhams on June 20, 2007 (Lot 391) with an estimate of £25,000 - 35,000. Next attempt was on January 15, 2008 (Lot 361, estimate £10,000 - 15,000). The last attempt was made on December 16, 2009 (Lot 277, estimate £8,000 - 12,000). All attempts failed due to low bids and the guitar was withdrawn. It was sold in January 2010 by charity SANE to English guitarist Keith Smart. Video
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Also used in Tubular Bells, Ommadawn, Five Miles Out, Amarok
1989 PRS Signature, Vintage Yellow A particularly high grade, limited edition, version of the Custom 24. In Vintage Yellow.
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Used through GP-8

Also used in Earth Moving, Amarok, Tubular Bells II, The Songs of Distant Earth, Voyager, Tubular Bells III, Guitars, Light + Shade, Return To Ommadawn
1988 or 1989 PRS McCarty Hollowbody II, McCarty Sunburst Photo Photo Photo Photo Photo
Played through Twin Reverb for distorted guitars

Also used in Guitars
PRS Custom 24, Dark Cherry Sunburst – with Roland GK-2AH pickup Modified by Chandler Guitars and Richard Barrie to include a built-in Roland synth pickup. Sold by Chandler Guitars to an English fan in February 2006.
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Used with VG-8

Also used in Voyager, Tubular Bells III, Guitars
Nylon-string guitars
1974 Jose Ramirez 1A Traditional s/n 7987
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Also used in Hergest Ridge, The Orchestral Tubular Bells, Ommadawn, Amarok, Voyager, Guitars, Light + Shade
1975 Jose Ramirez 1A Flamenco s/n 8666. Sold through Chandler to a French Fan and later resold to a German fan.
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Also used in Ommadawn, QE2, Amarok, Tubular Bells II, Guitars
Steel-string acoustic guitars
1960 Martin 00-21NY Sold via Chandler Guitars to a Scottish fan in December 2007.
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Also used in Amarok, Voyager, Guitars
1984 Ovation 1687-2 Adamas – Reverse Red Burst Electroacoustic guitar with carbon fibre top.
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Also used in Crises, Discovery
1985 Taylor K-22 Koa-bodied acoustic guitar, sold via Chandler Guitars to a fan in February 2006.
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Bass guitars
1991 Wal Custom bass s/n W3557. Sold to a German fan via Chandler Guitars in February 2006.
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Also used in Tubular Bells II, Tubular Bells III, Guitars
Guitar effects
Roland VG-8 Guitar modelling processor, able to model the sounds of different guitars and other instruments. It uses a GK-series synth pickup to provide the unit with an uncoloured signal, but the VG-8 is not technically a synthesiser as it purely remodels the signal from the pickup. One was sold via ebay in December 2007, but he lists one as having been used on Tubular Bells 2003, so presumably he had a spare!
Photo Photo
Also used in Voyager, Tubular Bells III, Guitars, The Millennium Bell, Tres Lunas
Roland GP-8 Guitar effects processor used for Mike's trademark 90s distorted guitar sound. Sold via ebay in December 2007. Also used in Amarok, Tubular Bells II, The Songs of Distant Earth, Return To Ommadawn
Amps
Fender Twin Reverb Also used in Ommadawn, Incantations, Exposed, Discovery, Return To Ommadawn
Mesa/Boogie To get his distorted guitar sound from this amp, Mike overloaded the input by running the guitar through a preamp first. The sound then went into the mixer, where the input was overloaded, then through the Vocal Stresser and a parametric EQ, then a gate and a limiter. (Guitarist, 1984) Also used in Exposed, Five Miles Out, Discovery
Pianos
Steinway Model B Studio grand piano. No 137655. When this piano was auctioned, it was listed as being a 6'11" piano, c.1910, with a rosewood case. Also used in Amarok
Steinway Model C Grand piano. The notes for Tubular Bells 2003 list an 8 foot Steinway grand. The model C is 7'5" 1/2", the Model D is 8'11 3/4" - it could be either of those! The frame was from the 1920s, but the piano was rebuilt. Also used in Voyager, Light + Shade
Organs
Farfisa Professional Organ Return To Ommadawn used a Farfisa sotware emulation.
Photo
Also used in Tubular Bells, Hergest Ridge, Ommadawn, Incantations, Crises, Amarok, Tubular Bells II, Return To Ommadawn
1970 Hammond L.122 Organ Return To Ommadawn used an Hammond software simulation. Also used in Amarok, Heaven's Open, Tubular Bells II, Return To Ommadawn
Lowrey Organ Also used in Tubular Bells, Hergest Ridge, Amarok, Tubular Bells II
Synthesisers
Clavia Nord Lead Used for bass and 'sequency synths'.

Also used in Tubular Bells III, The Millennium Bell, Tres Lunas
Korg Trinity Also used in Voyager, Tubular Bells III, The Millennium Bell
Roland XP-50 Digital synthesiser workstation. Bought by a fan in 2008 from Chandler Guitars. Can be seen in the Millenium Bells DVD, used for the beats for Art In Heaven among other things.
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Used for pianos and percussion.

Also used in Voyager, Tubular Bells III, The Millennium Bell, Tres Lunas, Light + Shade
Roland JD-990 Rackmountable module version of the JD-800, with slightly enhanced synthesis engine, but missing its numerous sliders! Used for pads.

Also used in The Songs of Distant Earth, Voyager, Tubular Bells III, The Millennium Bell, Tres Lunas
Roland JV-2080 Digital synth module Used for 'ethnic sounds' and bass.

Also used in Tres Lunas
Samplers
Akai S-6000 Digital rackmount sampler. Used for playing back Mike's sample library.

Also used in Tres Lunas
Other keyboards
Parrot Piano Accordion Chinese-made 30 key, 32 bass piano accordion. Also used in Ommadawn
Microphones
AKG C12 Multi pattern large diaphragm valve condenser microphone. Used for piano.
Beyerdynamic M160 Ribbon microphone. Used on piano.
Bruel & Kjaer 4040 Large diaphragm omnidirectional condenser microphone. Serial Number 001. Used for classical guitar, flamenco guitar and steelstring acoustic guitar.

Also used in Amarok, Heaven's Open, Voyager
Bruel & Kjaer 4011 Small diaphragm cardioid condenser microphone. Used for piano, guitar amps, leslie speaker, glockenspiel, percussion and vocals.

Also used in Amarok, Heaven's Open, Voyager
Bruel & Kjaer 4006 Small diaphragm omnidirectional condenser microphone.
Photo
Also used in Amarok, Heaven's Open, Voyager
Neumann M249 Large diaphragm, multi pattern valve condenser microphone. A broadcast version of the M49, with 7 pin tuchel connector for superior rejection of RF interference.
Neumann U67 Large diaphragm, multi-pattern valve condenser microphone.
Shure SM57 Dynamic cardioid microphone. Used for vocals and guitar amps.

Also used in QE2
Loudspeakers
Coastal Acoustics Boxer T4 Also used in Tubular Bells II, The Songs of Distant Earth, Voyager, Tubular Bells III, Guitars, The Millennium Bell, Tres Lunas
Coastal Acoustics Boxer T2 Large studio monitoring speakers. Also used in Tres Lunas
Studio effects and outboard
Manor Module (mic preamp, EQ, compressor) Taken from the original Walsall Timing Developments mixer which was used to record Tubular Bells. Used for Mike's distinctive clean guitar sound. Also used in The Songs of Distant Earth
2 Belcaman C-102 valve limiters Bought at the Sale Of The Century at Abbey Road Studios on 16/10/1980 for $220.
Photo
Also used in Tubular Bells
BSS DI Box Used for the Telecaster.
Digidesign 888/24 8 channel 24 bit I/O unit for Digidesign Pro Tools. Sold via Chandler Guitars in September 2008.
Photo
Mike used four of these for Tubular Bells 2003
Digidesign Pro Tools Mix Plus card DSP card for Digidesign Pro Tools. Mike had two of these installed in his Power Mac G4 for Tubular Bells 2003.
Eventide DSP-4000 High end digital effects unit, part of Eventide's successful Harmonizer series. Also used in The Songs of Distant Earth
Lexicon 300 Used for delays
MOTU 828 Firewire Used with ASIO drivers for virtual synths and VST plugins.
Neve 1073 Mic Preamps Used on Amarok Mike used 5 of these.

Also used in Amarok
TC Electronic M-5000 Also used in The Songs of Distant Earth
Urei 1176 Peak Limiter Mike originally borrowed some of these from the Manor Mobile, but later acquired his own. Also used in Ommadawn, Incantations, Platinum, Tubular Bells II
Urei 1178 dual channel peak limiter Also used in Crises, Tubular Bells II
Yamaha SPX-1000 Multieffects processor.
Mixing desks
AMS Neve Capricorn 33238 Digital mixing desk. Also used in The Songs of Distant Earth, Voyager, Tubular Bells III, Guitars, The Millennium Bell
Computers
Apple PowerMac G4 466MHz With 1GB RAM, running OS 9.1, Logic Audio Platinum 4.8.1 and Pro Tools
Apple Powerbook 5300 Used for recalls and general word processing
Apple PowerMac G4 1GHz mirrored drive door With 1.25GB RAM, running OS 9.2 With Emagic Logic Audio Platinum 5.3.0 and Digidesign Pro Tools 5.3.1
Sequencers
Emagic Logic Platinum 5.3.0 Mike started with version 4.8.1 and upgraded to 5.3.0 during the recording.
Hard Disk Recorders
Digidesign Pro Tools Mike used version 5.3.1
Emagic Logic Platinum 5.3.0 Mike started with version 4.8.1 and upgraded to 5.3.0 during the recording.
Fairlight Merlin Hard disk recorder. Recording at 24 bit, 48KHz

Also used in Tres Lunas
Computer software
Digidesign Pro Tools Mike used version 5.3.1
Emagic Logic Platinum 5.3.0 Mike started with version 4.8.1 and upgraded to 5.3.0 during the recording.
Emagic EXS24 Used for strings, flutes and organs.
Emagic EVP88 Virtual Wurlitzer electric piano
Emagic ES1 Virtual bass
Focusrite EQ and Compression plugins
Line 6 Amp Farm TDM plugin for Pro Tools.
Native Instruments Pro 53 Virtual Prophet V plugin, an update of the Pro52 Used for synth and organ sounds.


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Mike Oldfield Tubular.net