Tubular Bells III | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 31 August 1998 | |||
Recorded | December 1996–June 1998 | |||
Studio | Oldfield's home studio in Es Cubells, Ibiza and London | |||
Genre | New-age, progressive rock, electronic, chill out | |||
Length | 46:36 | |||
Label | Warner Music UK | |||
Producer | Mike Oldfield | |||
Mike Oldfield chronology | ||||
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Tubular Bells series chronology | ||||
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Singles from Tubular Bells III | ||||
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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. [1]
By mid-1996,Oldfield had put his Buckinghamshire home for sale and relocated to the Spanish island of Ibiza,setting up a recording studio at Casa Atlantis,a cliffside home in Es Cubells which he designed on a virtual reality simulator on his computer and had it built from scratch. With Ibiza being a major club destination,he became inspired by the electronic and dance music that local DJs were playing and decided to make a dance version of the familiar opening to "Tubular Bells (Part One)", [2] which he used with a Nord Lead synthesiser and used the "caveman" beat from "Tubular Bells (Part Two)". [3] [2] Oldfield liked the results,which persuaded him to make a third Tubular Bells album,following Tubular Bells (1973) and Tubular Bells II (1992). [4] Despite not having a recording contract at the time,Oldfield secured a new deal with Warner Music UK by informing the label that he wished to start work on a third Tubular Bells album.
Oldfield later admitted that Ibiza's hedonistic lifestyle was a negative influence on him and succumbed to alcohol and drugs. In one incident,he was caught driving while twice over the legal alcohol limit and received a one-year driving ban. [5] In April 1998,Oldfield left Ibiza and returned to live at Roughwood Croft,his home in Chalfont St. Giles,Buckinghamshire,which he had bought in the late 1980s. He then finished recording Tubular Bells III in London until June 1998.[ citation needed ] In August,he put his Ibiza home,two cars,and powerboat for sale for £2 million. [5] [3] The home was bought by Noel Gallagher.
Unlike Tubular Bells II,Tubular Bells III does not follow the pattern of the two pieces from the original album,but instead references Tubular Bells musically. [6] For example,"The Source of Secrets" takes up music from the "Introduction" section of the original album, [3] while "Far Above the Clouds" references the "Finale" section of "Tubular Bells (Part One)". [1]
An early version of "The Source of Secrets" appears on Oldfield's compilation album XXV:The Essential (1997).
"Man in the Rain" is a pop song with lead vocals by Irish folk singer Cara Dillon and additional vocal takes by Heather Burnett. In the liner notes,Dillon is credited as "Cara from Polar Star",which references the short-lived name for a musical project she was involved in at the time. Oldfield wrote the song about ten years prior to recording and wrote the lyrics,which were influenced by his separation from his third wife. The drums on the song are sampled from Oldfield's 1983 song "Moonlight Shadow" from Crises (1983),originally performed by drummer Simon Phillips.
The tracks "The Source of Secrets","Jewel in the Crown",and "Secrets" feature Amar as a vocalist. Oldfield can be heard on "Outcast". "The Inner Child" features Luar Na Lubre vocalist Rosa Cedrón. The live version of "Man in the Rain" was mostly sung by Helen Pepsi DeMacque,notably at the London Premiere of Tubular Bells III (1998). "Far Above the Clouds" features Clodagh Simonds performing the main vocals while the child's vocals are performed by Francesca Robertson.
Some of the instruments which appear on the album are a Roland D-550,JD-990,JV1080,Clavia Nord Lead,and Korg Trinity synthesisers. The Roland VG8 Guitar synthesiser is used on tracks such as "Man in the Rain".
Oldfield also used sampled drums from his Crises and Ommadawn album on certain tracks. "Man in the Rain" features sampled drums from "Moonlight Shadow","Outcast" features sampled drums from "Shadow on the Wall" and "Far Above the Clouds" features sampled drums from the end of "Ommadawn part 1". "Far Above the Clouds" also features a sampled guitar rhythm from the "Finale" section of "Tubular Bells (Part 1)",though in this instance it is fairly low in the mix and at a much faster tempo.
The album artwork is Oldfield's trademark bent tubular bell shape in silver,based upon the original 1973 Tubular Bells album cover,set upon a grey background. The artwork itself does not contain any text and typically a sticker with Oldfield's name and the album title are placed on the outer packaging.
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [7] |
Q | [8] |
Tubular Bells III is the least successful of the three main Tubular Bells albums,only attaining No. 4 on the UK chart,unlike its two chart topping predecessors. Critical reaction was mixed. The very distinct similarity of "Man in the Rain" to the hit "Moonlight Shadow" was sometimes interpreted by listeners as Oldfield trying to retread old ground.
On 4 September 1998, six years to the day after the premiere of Tubular Bells II at Edinburgh Castle, Oldfield held a premiere concert for Tubular Bells III at Horse Guards Parade in London in front of around 7,000 people. [9] Much of the performance was held during torrential rain. The live version of the complete album from the premiere concert is available on the double DVD Tubular Bells II/Tubular Bells III .
The Live Then & Now 1999 tour was in promotion of this album and his following album, Guitars .
On 27 July 2012 at the 2012 Summer Olympics opening ceremony Mike Oldfield performed renditions of Tubular Bells , "Far Above the Clouds" and "In Dulci Jubilo" during a segment about the NHS. This track was later released on the Isles of Wonder album and as a limited edition blue/pink vinyl single.
Tubular Bells III, along with Tubular Bells II and The Songs of Distant Earth , was reissued on 180g vinyl on 27 April 2015. This follows the recent releases of Tubular Bells , Hergest Ridge , QE2 , Five Miles Out and Crises on the same format.
All tracks by Mike Oldfield.
Chart (1998) | Peak position |
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Australian Albums (ARIA) [10] | 98 |
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria) [11] | 4 |
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [12] | 46 |
French Albums (SNEP) [13] | 47 |
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [14] | 9 |
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE) [15] | 1 |
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [16] | 31 |
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [17] | 26 |
UK Albums (OCC) [18] | 4 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Spain (PROMUSICAE) [19] | 4× Platinum | 400,000^ |
United Kingdom (BPI) [20] | Gold | 100,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
Music
Production
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".
Tubular Bells 2003 is the 22nd studio album by English musician Mike Oldfield, released on 26 May 2003 by Warner Music Spain. It is a digital re-recording of his 1973 album Tubular Bells, released almost 30 years earlier. This is the final album in the Tubular Bells series.
Crises is the eighth studio album by English musician and songwriter Mike Oldfield, released on 27 May 1983 on Virgin Records. Oldfield started recording the album towards the end of his 1982 tour supporting his previous record, Five Miles Out. It marked a continuation of Oldfield's experimentation with more accessible music which began in the late 1970s; side one contains the 20-minute "Crises" and side two contains a collection of shorter songs which feature vocalists Maggie Reilly, Jon Anderson, and Roger Chapman. Oldfield produced Crises with drummer Simon Phillips, who also plays on the album.
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.
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. It is presented as a single sixty-minute track of continuous, uninterrupted but constantly changing music.
"Moonlight Shadow" is a song written and performed by English multi-instrumentalist Mike Oldfield, released as a single in May 1983 by Virgin Records, and included on his eighth album, Crises, of the same year. The vocals were performed by Scottish vocalist Maggie Reilly, who had collaborated with Mike Oldfield since 1980. It is Oldfield's most successful single, reaching number one on numerous charts around Europe. In the UK, it reached number four during a nineteen week chart run and was subsequently listed by the Official Charts Company as the 29th best-selling single of 1983.
Discovery is the ninth studio album by English multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Mike Oldfield, released on 25 June 1984 on Virgin Records. It comprises a number of pop songs, most notably the single "To France", as well as the instrumental "The Lake".
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.
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.
Earth Moving is the 12th record album by British musician Mike Oldfield, released in 1989. Unlike Oldfield's albums released prior to Earth Moving, the album contains no instrumental tracks.
This is the albums discography of English musician Mike Oldfield.
"Man in the Rain" is a pop rock song written and performed by English multi-instrumentalist Mike Oldfield. It was included on the album Tubular Bells III and released as a single on 5 October 1998 by Warner Music. The vocals were performed by Irish folk singer Cara Dillon.
"Far Above the Clouds" is a single by musician Mike Oldfield, released on 12 April 1999. The single is the final track from the album Tubular Bells III. "Far Above the Clouds" similarly features tubular bells in fashion with the part-one-finales of Oldfield's previous works, Tubular Bells and Tubular Bells II. The sound of the bells has a slightly more dramatic tone than in its previous appearances, and it is a combination of actual tubular bells and sampled sounds from various keyboards, most prominently a Korg M1.
XXV: The Essential is a compilation album written and mostly performed by Mike Oldfield and released in 1997. The Roman numerals XXV are to represent that this is a compilation of pieces of the first 25 years of Oldfield's work.
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.
Tubular Bells III, The Premiere Performance is a live concert video by Mike Oldfield released in 1998.
Clodagh Simonds is an Irish musician, songwriter and singer. She was born in Banbridge, County Down, Northern Ireland and raised and educated in Killiney, County Dublin.
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.