Tubular Bells

[m20gull]

He did one about Pompey too, don't forget.

how could we?

 

[Lady Whistledown]

The last that ever she saw him
Carried away by a moonlight shadow
He passed on worried and warning
Carried away by a moonlight shadow.
Lost in a river last saturday night
Far away on the other side.
He was caught in the middle of a desperate fight
And she couldnt find how to push through

The trees that whisper in the evening
Carried away by a moonlight shadow
Sing a song of sorrow and grieving
Carried away by a moonlight shadow
All she saw was a silhouette of a gun
Far away on the other side.
He was shot six times by a man on the run
And she couldnt find how to push through

I stay
I pray
I see you in heaven far away

I stay
I pray
I see you in heaven far away

Four am in the morning
Carried away by a moonlight shadow
I watched your vision forming
Carried away by a moonlight shadow
Star was light in a silvery night
Far away on the other side
Will you come to talk to me this night
But she couldnt find how to push through

I stay
I pray
I see you in heaven far away

I stay
I pray
I see you in heaven far away

Far away on the other side.

Caught in the middle of a hundred and five
The night was heavy but the air was alive
She couldnt find how to push through

Carried away by a moonlight shadow
Carried away by a moonlight shadow
Far away on the other side.

 

[Freddie Goodwin.]

I always thought Tubular bells was crap. But then, I was into Slade and the like and those pnoncy hairy music types went on about how great it was and they all seemed to have itm so what did i know?

Except that it was and still is crap.

Like Bohemian Crapsody, you tell people it's good and nobody wants to stand out and say NO IT'S CRAP!

 

[Binney on acid]

Tubular Bells is a pile of crap. End of.

 

[Wienergull]

I can remember John Peel playing the whole thing on his Sounds of the 70s show (I was probably listening under the bed covers), which just goes to show how his tastes evolved over the years. Haven't heard it in ages, but am sure it would sound very dated now. Quite liked Viv Stanshall's contribution though, even if it doesn't match up to the Bonzos' own marvellous "Intro Outro".

 

[m20gull]

Like Bohemian Crapsody, you tell people it's good and nobody wants to stand out and say NO IT'S CRAP!

Alright, I'll say it. It's crap. And that was one of the first albums I ever bought (just after a superb live Shanana album that I have carelessly managed to lose). Can't bear listening to it now. Never did like Tubular Bells though.

 

[Freddie Goodwin.]

Mt dislike of BR was increased when Southern FM chose to play it straight after the 1st news bullitien of the Dunblane shootings. How crass can you get?

 

[Frank Inkerman]

Mt dislike of BR was increased when Southern FM chose to play it straight after the 1st news bullitien of the Dunblane shootings. How crass can you get?

Surely that should increase your dislike of Southern FM and not of the song that they played?

 

[Freddie Goodwin.]

Very true, the poorest of the local radio stations, and that's saying something!

 

[Cian]

Mt dislike of BR was increased when Southern FM chose to play it straight after the 1st news bullitien of the Dunblane shootings. How crass can you get?

That being so long ago as to predate computerised playlists, I guarantee you that some crappy local DJ thought it was incredibly witty to play it...

 

[Lord Bracknell]

Oldfield also made a recording of a tune called 'Portsmouth' that was a bland, saccharine version of something that a couple of mates of mine had recorded a year or so earlier.

Listening to the two versions, side by side, just proves that masses of work in the studio doesn't make a performance better. It just smoothes away the rough edges that give a real 'as live' performance so much more substance.

 

[Kosh]

Tubular Bells is an absolute classic of the prog. era... As for Oldfield he's one of the best guitarists ever and a fantastic arranger... also Ommadawn just ROCKS from start to finish and destroys "Bells" in my humble opinion.

Kosh

Mike Oldfied forever.

 

[Kosh]

For the Oldfield few.

Kosh

 

[Kosh]

One for the road.

God...

Kosh - farewell.

 

[bhaexpress]

Although I try to discover the better of avant garde, psychedelic, artistic and the more imaginative progressive music - the Mike Oldfield 'Tubular Bells' album was one sound excursion I never really 'got'.

Everyone at my school, seemingly, extolled the virtues of this 'work', and spoke enraptured in its' praises.
"Glockenspeil...." muttered Mr Oldfield, as it shipped millions of units, to the space-odyssey grunting noises of a delighted - or were they really? - record-buying public. It's noticeable that his follow-ups were virtually ignored!

I always held a suspicion for records that were TOO highly rated, TOO well-received. The proof of the pudding had to be eaten a few times without spitting out, before I'd accede to any perceivable merits.

The twitterings of an Edgar Froese (Tangerine Dream), knob-twiddling of a Tomita, or inane effects of a Faust, but is it just, somehow accessible rubbish.

Well, is this album REALLY anything special? Is it just a few ideas plonked together in a shrugging of an engineers hunched shoulders?
An experiment gone right? ....or just an accidental stumbling by a dodgy student, into a massed public perception?

Over to NSC, for those that know the record.
How do/did you perceive 'Tubular Bells'?

It was very different at the time and the notoriously bad Virgin pressings meant that many people bought more than one copy. Nowadays is seems very dated and oh so boring !

 

[Freddie Goodwin.]

Kosh, you are from the North East so are excused for having strange musical tastes, fella!

Whatever happened to that geordie band Nazareth?

 

[Freddie Goodwin.]

Kosh, you are from the North East so are excused for having strange musical tastes, fella!

Whatever happened to that geordie band Nazareth?

 

[Icy Gull]

The album that launched Richard Branson. It was ok after a couple of joints in the 70's but doesn't really stand the test of time. I believe he played all the instruments which in itself is a pretty admirable and his fear of publicity and lack of appearances probably fuelled the hype for what is really a rather over rated album very much of it's time.

6/10

 

[Frank Inkerman]

Kosh, you are from the North East so are excused for having strange musical tastes, fella!

Whatever happened to that geordie band Nazareth?

You can say that again ................ ooh you did !!

 

[Tony Le Mesmer]

Moonlight Shadow.
Written about John Lennon's murder