Fretplay.com Mike Oldfield CD reviews Mike Oldfield guitar tabs Mike Oldfield CD reviews Mike Oldfield tabs Tubular Bells (Amazon.com Exclusive)


Mike Oldfield - Tubular Bells (Amazon.com Exclusive) Audio CD

A fair review of the Mike Oldfield "Tubular Bells (Amazon.com Exclusive)" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Mike Oldfield reviews here, or go back to the Mike Oldfield tabs.

Mike Oldfield Band: Mike Oldfield
Title: Tubular Bells (Amazon.com Exclusive)
Rating:
Release Date: 2009-06-30
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: TUBULAR BELLS PART ONE (new stereo mix by Mike Oldfield, Bahamas, March 2009) 2: TUBULAR BELLS PART TWO (new stereo mix by Mike Oldfield, Bahamas, March 2009) 3: MIKE OLDFIELD'S SINGLE 4: SAILOR'S HORNPIPE (Vivian Stanshall version) 5: TUBULAR BELLS PART ONE (original stereo mix May 1973) 6: TUBULAR BELLS PART TWO (original stereo mix May 1973) 7: TUBULAR BELLS PART ONE (5.1 Surround mix by Mike Oldfield Bahamas 2009) 8: TUBULAR BELLS PART TWO (5.1 Surround Mix by Mike Oldfield Bahamas 2009) 9: MIKE OLDFIELD'S SINGLE (5.1 Surround Mix by Mike Oldfield Bahamas 2009) 10: BBC TV 2ND HOUSE - 3RD DECEMBER 1973 11: TUBULAR BELLS PART ONE (original stereo mix May 1973) 12: TUBULAR BELLS PART TWO (original stereo mix May 1973) 13: TUBULAR BELLS (1971 demos) 14: TUBULAR BELLS (Scrapped first mix Spring 1973)

A Masterpiece
Although the second version of the album was lusher, the original remains the yardstick for clarity, energy, and excitement. Mike Oldfield's Tubular Bells was a fabulous concept album. I've worn out LP's, tapes, and CD's of this album, and it remains among my favorites. Along with his much later "Crisis" it remains a hallmark of an incredible career.


Top Notch
I assume you are already a fan and know Tubular Bells. This is a review about the sound quality only, not the music.

The mixing and mastering are near perfect. The new mix on disk one is a real improvement, imo, over the original. Things are clearer and there is a better blending of music. It is my preferred mix. The other mixes sound great too, the remastering was done extremely well. There is no clipping, and any compression that occurs is subtle and does not damage anything. There are tons of dynamics in these disks. Kudos Mike.

As an aside, the record label owned Tubular Bells for 35 years and that ownership ended in 2008, which is why we are getting this awesome set now as Mike gets to own his creation again. So if you buy this set, it is a good way of thanking Mike with your money.

For more information on what good mastering and good sound quality is about you can check out wikipedia's entry on the 'loudness war'.


totally tubular
It is beautifully assembled and hernia inducing in heft, with a fantastic hard bound book and other pleasant surprises. While this heavyweight set is for the fan-atic, it must be praised as the all-inclusive (as far as we know) documentation of Oldfield's initial masterpiece. The 5. 1 mix is much better than the surround SACD issue of some years ago. A well done collectible, to be sure.


You can see a complete list of all Mike Oldfield discography, or go back to the Mike Oldfield tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.

Search guitar tabs

#ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
[ Search tabs | Guitar tabs | Bass tabs |
Easy guitar tabs | Guitar solo tabs |
Acoustic guitar tabs | Guitar chords |
How to read guitar tabs ]
Forum topics
Music forums
- Bands and artists - Songwriting and lyrics - Tablature talk - Promote your band
Instrument forums
- Guitar basics - Gear & accessories - Bass guitar
Community
- The pit - Site Feedback - Reviews
[ User survey | About us | Privacy statement ]