Tubular Bells II

In January 1991, Oldfield's contract with Virgin Records expired, thus ending a partnership that had lasted since 1972 as the first musician signed to the label.{{sfn|Oldfield|2008|p=242}} Virgin had pressed Oldfield to produce a sequel to his debut album Tubular Bells (1973) for a number of years but Oldfield resisted, partly due to his increasing dissatisfaction in Virgin's efforts to promote his albums and his rift with co-founder Richard Branson. Oldfield also felt that making a sequel in the 1970s, so soon after its release, would have been "far too obvious" and may lead to creative burnout. Tubular Bells became Oldfield's best selling album and had continued to sell around 100,000 copies each year.{{cite web|url=https://tubular.net/articles/1992_08/Oh-No-Its-Tubular-Bells-II|title=Oh No, It's Tubular Bells II!|first=Giles|last=Smith|date=27 August 1992|work=The Independent|via=Tubular.net|access-date=8 September 2019}} After releasing Heavens Open (1991), his final album for Virgin, Oldfield felt the time was right to start on a sequel to Tubular Bells. At the same time he signed a two-album recording deal with Warner Music UK following negotiations with chairman Rob Dickins.{{cite web|url=https://tubular.net/articles/1992_xxc/en/Mike-Oldfield-has-regained-his-balance-back|title=Mike Oldfield has regained his balance back|first=Diego|last=Manrique|year=1992|magazine=El Hombre|via=Tubular.net|access-date=8 September 2019}} Oldfield praised management at Warner for expressing interest in his music and offering constructive suggestions that would help sales without feeling "tied by them", as opposed to Virgin.

Before Oldfield started to write music for the album, he revisited Tubular Bells and mapped out its composition into different coloured sections. He kept a progress chart in his home studio, writing directly onto the wallpaper in pen; his first entry was in June 1991 when he recorded the first piano figure for the album.

To produce the album, Oldfield chose Trevor Horn with assistance from Tom Newman, who had also helped to produce Tubular Bells. In 2018, Newman stated that when Horn was brought into the project, he insisted that the instruments be sequenced rather than played by hand, which led to a major falling-out between Newman and Horn. Horn was based in Los Angeles at this time, so Oldfield rented a mansion off Doheny Drive for nine months to record the album and had his home studio equipment and mixing desk shipped to Los Angeles via the Panama Canal.{{cite web|url=https://tubular.net/articles/1992_10b/Mad-Us|title=Mad? Us?|date=October 1992|work=Q|first=Andy|last=Gill|access-date=8 December 2020}} Oldfield gave Horn the nickname Dr. Click, because of his insistence in having each part played in time. Oldfield credited Horn in giving the album "rhythm and groove" which he considered a weak spot in his technique and something that the original Tubular Bells had lacked. Oldfield also credited Horn in encouraging him to play with "more feeling [and] love", as he had become accustomed to playing in an angry way. "When I did, the music started to sing instead of growling at you."

When it came to recording the tubular bells for the album, Oldfield underwent a search to find a set he deemed satisfactory enough as he had destroyed the original bells used on Tubular Bells. He was close to giving up until he visited a percussion shop in London's East End, where he "Found a little set, almost like a toy set. And I hit them once and said, 'yeah, that's it'".

The original Tubular Bells featured a section where Vivian Stanshall was the Master of Ceremonies who calls out instruments being played. For Tubular Bells II, Oldfield and the production team were unsure whether to include a similar part for the sequel and various takes were made, including one of Oldfield doing the part, another featuring Horn in a Scouse accent, a "Disneyland-type voice", and the computer HAL 9000 from 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968). In the end, Oldfield enlisted English actor Alan Rickman to introduce the instruments at the end of "The Bell", which concludes the first half. He was chosen for the "Shakespearean" style of his voice. Rickman's role is credited as "a strolling player", because he had not been chosen to take part when the artwork had been completed. On alternative mixes of "The Bell" released as single B-sides, Billy Connolly and Stanshall each played the Master of Ceremonies. On two alternative language B-sides, German comedian MC Otto and Spanish musician MC Carlos Finaly played the Master of Ceremonies in German and Spanish, respectively.

"Early Stages", which is an early version of what would become "Sentinel", was included as a B-side to the single version of "Sentinel". "Early Stages" has a somewhat darker mood and is from the pre-Trevor Horn development of the album, possibly showing the kind of influence that Horn had.

Unlike the original album there is a recurring theme in Tubular Bells II, first appearing at the end of "Sentinel" that reappears throughout the album, though it is most obvious at the end of "The Bell".

Some of the track titles for the album were taken from Arthur C. Clarke's short stories, including "The Sentinel" and "Sunjammer". Other track titles could just be references to science-fiction or space in general, such as "Dark Star" and "Weightless". Dark Star is also the title of a sci-fi film by John Carpenter which was released in the same year as the original Tubular Bells, 1973.

Oldfield has occasionally called some of the tracks on the album by different names in interviews, such as once when he performed "Red Dawn" on BBC Radio 2 he called it "Russian". The title "Russian" was also later given to the equivalent piece on the re-recorded version of the original Tubular Bells, Tubular Bells 2003.

Tubular Bells II again uses the bent metallic tube (representing a bent tubular bell) as the focus of the album artwork. The bell is a golden colour on a dark blue background as opposed to Tubular Bells' grey/silver bell on top of a sea/skyscape. Both the photos for Tubular Bells and Tubular Bells II were produced by Trevor Key.

{{Album ratings

|rev1 = AllMusic

|rev1score = {{Rating|3|5}}{{AllMusic|class=album|id=r75320}}

}}

The album reached number 1 in the chart in the UK and Spain.{{cite magazine |url=http://tubular.net/articles/1992_09 |title=Tubular Bells II Review |date=19 September 1992 |magazine=Melody Maker |access-date=25 September 2013 |quote= As follow-ups go, it's probably safe to remark that this does not rank alongside Godfather II, French Connection II, or even, God help us, Exorcist II – The Heretic. In short, it's appalling.}}{{cite web |url=http://tubular.net/articles/1993_01 |title=Tubular Bells 2 Review |date=January 1993 |work=Keyboards Magazine |access-date=25 September 2013 |quote=Much of TB2 is glorious, even by comparison to TB1.}}

Critical reception to the album was mixed. Writing in Q magazine, Mat Snow described it as a "more consistent but less tune-happy musical sequence than TBI" and praised "producer Trevor Horn's fairy dust" as an advantage.{{cite web |url=http://www.mikeoldfield.it/mikeoldfield/articoli/archivio/qmagazine2.html |title=Tubular Bells II Review |date= September 1992 |magazine=Q |access-date=24 August 2016}}

The album was supported with a live concert on the esplanade at Edinburgh Castle on 4 September 1992 with 6,000 people in attendance,{{cite web|url=https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/12543672.mike-oldfield-at-edinburgh-castle-esplanade/|title=Mike Oldfield at Edinburgh Castle Esplanade|date=5 September 1992|work=Herald Scotland|access-date=8 December 2020}} which aired on national television one hour after its conclusion. It featured Scottish actor John Gordon Sinclair as the Master of Ceremonies.{{cite web |url=http://www.mikeoldfield.org/info/tourography/1990.htm |title=Tourography 1990 |publisher=The Official Mike Oldfield Information Service |access-date=16 April 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080424122158/http://www.mikeoldfield.org/info/tourography/1990.htm |archive-date=24 April 2008 }} In October 1992, the show was released on home video as Tubular Bells II: The Performance Live at Edinburgh Castle. Oldfield toured the album with his Tubular Bells II 20th Anniversary Tour 1992/93, which visited the US and Europe between March and October 1993.{{cite web |url=http://tubular.net/tours/ |title=Mike Oldfield Tours |publisher=Tubular.net |access-date=14 August 2008}}

All songs written and composed by Mike Oldfield.

{{Track listing

| headline = Side one

| title1 = Sentinel

| length1 = 8:07

| title2 = Dark Star

| length2 = 2:16

| title3 = Clear Light

| length3 = 5:48

| title4 = Blue Saloon

| length4 = 2:59

| title5 = Sunjammer

| length5 = 2:32

| title6 = Red Dawn

| length6 = 1:50

| title7 = The Bell

| length7 = 6:59

}}

{{Track listing

| headline = Side two

| title8 = Weightless

| length8 = 5:43

| title9 = The Great Plain

| length9 = 4:47

| title10 = Sunset Door

| length10 = 2:23

| title11 = Tattoo

| length11 = 4:15

| title12 = Altered State

| length12 = 5:12

| title13 = Maya Gold

| length13 = 4:01

| title14 = Moonshine

| length14 = 1:42

}}

• Mike Oldfield – acoustic guitars, twelve-string guitar, banjo, classical guitar, electric guitar, bass guitar, flamenco guitar, glockenspiel, Lowrey organ, Hammond organ, Farfisa organ, mandolin, percussion, piano, synthesisers, timpani, tubular bells, vocals
• Alan Rickman (credited as "A Strolling Player") – Master of Ceremonies
• Sally Bradshaw – vocals
• Celtic Bevy Band – bagpipes
• Eric Caudieux – programming and digital sounds
• Edie Lehmann – vocals
• Susannah Melvoin – vocals
• Jamie Muhoberac – keyboards, special effects
• Steve Payne – bass guitar
• Pipers from the Los Angeles Police Department (credited as P.D. Scots Pipe Band to avoid controversy following the 1992 Los Angeles riots){{cite web | url=http://tubular.net/discography/TubularBellsII.shtml | title=Notes on the Musicians | publisher=Mike Oldfield | access-date=30 January 2012}} – bagpipes
• John Robinson – drums on "Altered State"

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{{Certification Table Top|caption=Certifications for Tubular Bells II}}

{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=Canada|artist=Mike Oldfield|title=Tubular Bells II|nocert=true|relyear=1992|salesamount=30,000|salesref={{cite web|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/CANADA/RPM/90s/1993/RPM-1993-02-27.pdf|magazine=RPM|title=Retail has become a major playing in breaking records|page=3|date=27 February 1993|accessdate=25 October 2022}}}}

{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=France|artist=Mike Oldfield|title=Tubular Bells II|award=Gold|relyear=1992|certyear=1992|certref=}}

{{certification Table Entry|type=album|region=Germany|artist=Mike Oldfield|title=Tubular Bells II|award=Gold|certyear=1996|relyear=1992|access-date=16 May 2019}}

{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=Hong Kong|artist=Mike Oldfield|title=Tubular Bells II|award=Platinum|relyear=1992|certref={{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/90s/1993/CB-1993-03-20.pdf|title=Artist Spotlight|first=Felicia|last=Scarangello|magazine=Cashbox|page=8|date=20 March 1993|accessdate=18 March 2022}}}}

{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=Ireland|artist=Mike Oldfield|title=Tubular Bells II|award=Platinum|relyear=1992|certref=}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Spain|artist=Mike Oldfield|title=Tubular Bells 2|award=Platinum|number=5|type=album|relyear=1993|certyear=1993|certref={{cite book |last=Salaverrie |first=Fernando |date=September 2005 |url=http://www.mediafire.com/file/vqzno2c0fe48zam/Spanish+Certifications+for+1991-1995.pdf |title=Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 |language=es |edition=1st |location=Madrid |publisher=Fundación Autor/SGAE |page=935 |isbn=84-8048-639-2 |access-date=13 May 2019}}}}

{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=United Kingdom|artist=Mike Oldfield|title=Tubular Bells II|award=Platinum|number=2|id=7794-2671-27794-2671-2certyear=1994|relyear=1992|access-date=16 May 2019}}

{{Certification Table Summary}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Worldwide|nocert=true|salesamount=2,000,000|salesref={{cite magazine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YwgEAAAAMBAJ&q=2+million+units+worldwide+mike+oldfield+billboard+1994&pg=PA14|title=Oldfield Pioneers Music/Cyberspace Border|date=5 November 1995|first=Marilyn|last=Gillen|magazine=Billboard|access-date=16 May 2019}}}}

{{Certification Table Bottom}}

{{Reflist}}

Sources

• {{cite book|title=Changeling: The Autobiography of Mike Oldfield|first=Mike|last=Oldfield|year=2008|isbn=978-0-753-51307-1|publisher=Virgin Books}}

{{Mike Oldfield}}

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Category:Mike Oldfield albums

Category:1992 albums

Category:Albums produced by Trevor Horn

Category:1990s instrumental albums

Category:Warner Music Group albums

Category:Albums produced by Tom Newman (musician)

Category:Reprise Records albums

Category:Sequel albums