Amarok | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | May 1990 | |||
Recorded | September 1989–March 1990 | |||
Studio | Oldfield's home studio in Roughwood Croft, Chalfont St Giles and CTS Studios, London (choir) | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 60:02 | |||
Label | Virgin | |||
Producer |
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Mike Oldfield chronology | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [1] |
Amarok is the thirteenth studio album by English multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Mike Oldfield, released in May 1990 by Virgin Records. Oldfield originally conceived it as an "angry protest album", showcasing his musical technique. [2] It is presented as a single sixty-minute track of continuous, uninterrupted but constantly changing music.
In July 1989 Oldfield released Earth Moving , his twelfth album for Virgin Records. By this time, his relationship with the label had become increasingly fraught as a result of disagreements over his contract, royalties, and the lack of effort in promoting his albums. Earth Moving was an album whereby he "listened to Virgin totally" in regards to its musical direction, which became a success in continental Europe, but received a disappointing reaction in England, for which Oldfield received "some flak" from Virgin over the matter. [3] Oldfield was now required to deliver two more albums as part of his Virgin contract and in the summer of 1989, he started on one with the aim of pleasing his fans while annoying Virgin executives. Oldfield deemed Amarok his "personal revenge" for Virgin's lack of support. [4]
The idea for Amarok originated in August 1989, when Oldfield recorded a session for broadcast on BBC Radio 1 that included a 7-minute excerpt of his debut album Tubular Bells (1973) performed by himself. Oldfield had fun in the process, which inspired him to make Amarok in such a way. [3] When Oldfield started to write and arrange "Amarok", he ignored the pressures of delivering commercial material for Virgin and instead "let it all come out without any interference [...] I felt I was getting ideas from somewhere inside me, and six months later I had a whole album." [3] He decided upon an album that contained one 60-minute piece which, unlike his previous long tracks, was not split into sections. Such a format would create difficulty for Virgin to market or promote with radio airplay. He avoided letting a theme become something that Virgin might have identified suitable for a single, and developed ideas by "imagining sound, not picture". [3]
Oldfield's contract with Virgin expired on 1 January 1991. [5]
Amarok was recorded at Oldfield's home studio, then located in Roughwood Croft, a converted coach house in Chalfont St Giles, Buckinghamshire. [6] He assigned Tom Newman as co-producer and engineer, who had worked on Oldfield's debut album Tubular Bells (1973). Oldfield was happy to work with Newman again as he previously worked alone, so having assistance in technical operations allowed him to focus more on the music. He also praised Newman's encouragement to give his best performances. A typical day saw the pair work weekdays from 10 a.m. to around 6 p.m. with weekends off; they purposely avoided alcohol and drugs while making the album. [3]
It was recorded on 48-track and mixed with a Harrison mixing console. Oldfield's decision to combine AMS Neve amplifiers with Brüel & Kjær microphones made the album "sound much better than anything I've done". [3] It marked a departure from the sound of his recent albums from the 1980s as he avoided his Fairlight CMI computer and C-Lab sequencer and used little of his synthesisers. He acquired a 1908 baby grand piano, played Hammond, Farfisa, and Lowrey organs and used real percussion instruments. For some sections he created bass and snare drum sounds by hitting his thighs with his hands that were fed into an AMS system. [3]
Oldfield's previous works featured the artist playing a wide variety of instruments. This continued with Amarok, including (in the spirit of techniques such as bricolage and the ethos of Musique Concrète) a number of items such as shoes, spoons, a Hoover vacuum cleaner and the "contents of aeromodeller's toolbox". Though tubular bells are used on the album, they are listed as "long thin metallic hanging tubes" in the liner notes.
Oldfield said Amarok does not fit into the New age genre as "it kicks you in the arse occasionally". [3]
The work has many influences from African music, mainly through the use of both vocal and percussion elements.
Two of the album's sections, "Mandolin Reprise" and "Africa I: Far dip", feature Oldfield's processed "caveman" voice, first used on Tubular Bells – i.e. him shouting partly unintelligible words into the microphone while running the tape at a much higher speed than normal, which resulted in a significantly lowered vocal pitch when played back at normal speed. Various other sections include short samples of Oldfield talking, and the "Intermission" section consists of multi-tracked and delayed recordings of his voice reciting the list of instruments played on the album, at a low volume level.
The final section of "Amarok" features Janet Brown's impersonation of former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. [3]
Oldfield's original concept was to make Amarok a sequel to his third album, Ommadawn (1975). [3] [4] Despite Virgin suggesting to rename the album Tubular Bells II based on its style and strength of the music, [7] Oldfield refused and later said: "if anything, it's Ommadawn II". [8] Many of the people who were involved in the creation of Ommadawn —Jabula, Clodagh Simonds, Bridget St John and Paddy Moloney—also appear on the album.
In addition, William Murray, who co-wrote the song "On Horseback" for Ommadawn, photographed the Amarok cover photo and wrote the short story included in the liner notes. Murray used David Bailey's Ommadawn cover photograph as an inspiration, and Tom Newman created the brass lettering that accompanies the photograph on the album cover.
Oldfield has said that Amarok was an experiment to see whether he could again create an album without the aid of computers, which he had used increasingly in his work. He said that he wanted to focus more on the musicianship, playing all of the instruments himself, by hand. [9] [10] However, slightly contrarily, he has also discussed the role that Amiga computers had in the album's creation. [11]
Of the album's name, Oldfield has said: "It doesn't have a real meaning but it's similar to many Gaelic words, like those for morning or happy. And if you split the letters up, you get Am-a-rok... it could mean: am a rock. Maybe that implies I don't want to change anything by following trends." [9]
To promote the album, Oldfield spent his own money organising a mailing list for fans who purchased tickets to his shows through Visa and those who had signed up for additional information on Amarok. For them, he offered a £1,000 prize of his own money to the first person to find the hidden message that he had incorporated into the music. [3] The message is a Morse code sequence made from synthesized trumpets, located 48:04 minutes into the piece, that spells out "FUCK OFF RB", a reference to Virgin founder Richard Branson, who had signed Oldfield to the label in 1973. The contest did not receive a winner.[ citation needed ]
In a parody of listening instructions on the sleeve of Tubular Bells, the album's back cover reads: "HEALTH WARNING – This record could be hazardous to the health of cloth-eared nincompoops. If you suffer from this condition, consult your Doctor immediately".
In Australia the album was released in a double pack with Tubular Bells. [12]
The album was not promoted with singles or a concert tour; Oldfield agreed to several interviews and radio commercials on BBC Radio 1. [3]
Although Oldfield has never performed the work live in its entirety, a duo comprising American pianist Gus Fogle and bassist Jason Miller performed the piece in April 2012, [13] after it had been transcribed note for note by Welsh composer and arranger Ryan Yard. [14]
I am told that when men hear its voice, it stays in their ears, they cannot be rid of it. It has many different voices: some happy, but others sad. It roars like a baboon, murmurs like a child, drums like the blazing arms of one thousand drummers, rustles like water in a glass, sings like a lover and laments like a priest...
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Amarok
| 60:02 |
Amarok Sampler is a promotional CD-Maxi released in Germany in May 1990 including 5 excerpts from the album, with catalogue number 663,271,000.
Amarok X-Trax is the name of two promotional CD-Maxis, one was issued in UK with catalogue number AMACD 1DJ, and one was given away free with W H Smith's in-store magazine Insight, with catalogue number AMACD 1. The WH Smith version included I, II & V from AMACD 1DJ.
The album did not chart very highly, but managed to enter the top 50 in various European countries.
Chart (1990) | Position |
---|---|
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria) [16] | 26 |
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [17] | 16 |
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [18] | 66 |
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE) [19] | 27 |
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [20] | 50 |
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [21] | 30 |
UK Albums (OCC) [22] | 49 |
Michael Gordon Oldfield is an English former musician, songwriter and producer best known for his debut studio album Tubular Bells (1973), which became an unexpected critical and commercial success. Though primarily a guitarist, Oldfield played a range of instruments, which includes keyboards and percussion, as well as vocals. He had adopted a range of musical styles throughout his career, including progressive rock, world, folk, classical, electronic, ambient and new age music.
Tubular Bells is the debut studio album by the British musician Mike Oldfield, released on 25 May 1973 as the first album on Virgin Records. It comprises two mostly instrumental tracks. Oldfield, who was 19 years old when it was recorded, played almost all the instruments.
Tubular Bells II is the fifteenth studio album by English guitarist and songwriter Mike Oldfield. It was released on 31 August 1992 by Warner Music UK and is the successor to his debut album Tubular Bells (1973). It was his first album for Warner after having worked with Virgin Records for twenty years. Like its predecessor, Tubular Bells II charted at number 1 in the UK Albums Chart and spun off a top 10 single, "Sentinel".
Hergest Ridge is the second studio album by English musician and songwriter Mike Oldfield, released on 30 August 1974 by Virgin Records. The unexpected commercial and critical success of his debut album, Tubular Bells (1973), affected Oldfield, who decided against touring and avoided the press with his newfound fame. Instead, he retreated to Hergest Ridge on the England–Wales border and wrote the follow-up, which he recorded in 1974 at The Manor in Oxfordshire, with Tom Newman returning as co-producer. Similar to Oldfield's first, the album is a single composition split into two parts covering different moods and musical styles.
Ommadawn is the third studio album by English musician, multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Mike Oldfield, released on 31 October 1975 on Virgin Records.
Incantations is the fourth studio album by English musician, songwriter, and producer Mike Oldfield, released on 1 December 1978 by Virgin Records. Following the release of his previous album Ommadawn (1975), Oldfield moved into a new home in Bisley, Gloucestershire, where he set up a new recording studio. He started on a follow-up in 1977 which took form as a double album with one, side-long track on each side of the LP record. Oldfield wished to use real incantations in the music, but ended up using folklore as a loose running theme, such as Diana the Huntress. Though primarily instrumental, lyrical sections are adapted from works by poets Henry Longfellow and Ben Jonson. Oldfield completed the self-awareness seminar Exegesis while recording Incantations.
Platinum is the fifth studio album by English multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Mike Oldfield, released on 23 November 1979 on Virgin Records. It was Oldfield's first album to include shorter songs and music written by others. A modified version of the album was released in the United States and Canada and titled Airborn.
QE2 is the sixth studio album by Mike Oldfield, released in 1980 on Virgin Records. The album was named after the ocean liner Queen Elizabeth 2.
Five Miles Out is the seventh studio album by English recording artist Mike Oldfield, released on 19 March 1982 by Virgin Records in the UK. After touring in support of his previous album, QE2 (1980), ended in mid-1981, Oldfield started on a follow-up with members of his touring band performing the music. The album features the 24-minute track "Taurus II" on side one and four shorter songs on side two. The songs "Family Man" and "Orabidoo" are credited to Oldfield and members of his touring band which included vocalist Maggie Reilly, drummer Morris Pert, and guitarist Rick Fenn.
Islands is the 11th album by Mike Oldfield, released on 28 September 1987 by Virgin in the UK. Guest singers on the album are Bonnie Tyler, Kevin Ayers, Anita Hegerland, Max Bacon, and Jim Price. A different track list and cover was used for the American edition.
Voyager is the 17th music album by Mike Oldfield, released in 1996 by Warner Music UK. It is a Celtic-themed album with new compositions intertwined with traditional pieces.
Tubular Bells III is the eighteenth studio album by English guitarist, songwriter, and producer Mike Oldfield. It was released on 31 August 1998 by Warner Music UK as the third instalment in his Tubular Bells album series. After relocating from England to the Spanish island of Ibiza in 1996, Oldfield started work on the album and gained inspiration to incorporate electronic music from the island's local bars and clubs.
Elements – The Best of Mike Oldfield is a compilation album by Mike Oldfield, released in 1993 by Virgin Records.
The Complete Mike Oldfield is a compilation album by Mike Oldfield, released on 21 October 1985 by Virgin Records in the UK.
"Guilty" is a single by English musician Mike Oldfield, released in 1979 on Virgin Records. It reached number 22 in the UK Singles Chart. It is notable for being Oldfield's first obvious attempt to capitalise on a current musical trend, in this case disco/dance music. The UK 12" edition was originally issued on pale blue vinyl.
"In Dulci Jubilo"/"On Horseback" is a double A-side single and third overall by English musician Mike Oldfield, released in November 1975 by Virgin Records. It features an instrumental version of the German traditional Christmas carol "In dulci jubilo" and Oldfield's second version of the song following an earlier recording released as the B-side to his previous single, "Don Alfonso". The song "On Horseback" is the final and previously untitled section to "Ommadawn " from his third studio album Ommadawn, released just one month before. The single is certified silver by the British Phonographic Industry for selling 200,000 copies in the UK.
"Heaven's Open" is a single by musician Mike Oldfield, released in 1991. It was the lead single from the album of the same name. The various formats were backed by a mix of the A-side which featured a melodic guitar line not included in the album version, along with two excerpts from Amarok, Oldfield's previous album.
The Platinum Collection is a 2006 Virgin Records compilation album written and mostly performed by Mike Oldfield. It contains most of Oldfield's best known work, and some rare mixes of songs that had previously only been available as B-sides to singles.
Man on the Rocks is the twenty-fifth studio album by British musician Mike Oldfield, released on 3 March 2014 on the Virgin EMI label. The album is Oldfield's second full album of exclusively songs with no long or instrumental pieces, the first being 1989's Earth Moving.
Return to Ommadawn is the twenty-sixth and final studio album by English musician and songwriter Mike Oldfield. It was released on 20 January 2017 on Virgin EMI Records and is the sequel to his 1975 album Ommadawn. The CD/DVD-Audio set contains a 5.1 surround sound mix of the album. Return to Ommadawn is the last studio album Oldfield released before the announcement of his retirement in 2023.
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