http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1804&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rssThough something of a historical footnote to the American rock audience, Mike Oldfield is a veteran who continues to appeal to a large sector of listeners in his native Britain, more than 30 years after his debut solo album. Born in Reading, England, in 1953, Oldfield was something of a prodigy. His first LP, folk music recorded with his sister Sally (with whom he would continue to collaborate over the years), came in 1967 under the name Sallyangie. Oldfield followed that up by joining Kevin Ayers in the art-rock band Whole World, and they recorded <I>Shooting at the Moon</I>. Soon, Oldfield was at work on what was, quite literally, a solo project -- he played most of the 30 instruments on the album-length composition <I>Tubular Bells</I>. Budding entrepreneur Richard Branson bankrolled the sessions, but none of the established British labels was interested in the somewhat <I>outre</I> disc. Eventually, Branson founded his own company to issue the LP, and Virgin Records became the base of his empire after <I>Tubular Bells</I> spent months at No. 1 in the U.K. charts. The record also won a Grammy, and its main theme was used in the demonic-possession saga <I>The Exorcist</I>. Oldfield has celebrated the title with a 1975 orchestral version, as well as <I>Tubular Bells II</I> (1992), <I>Tubular Bells III</I> (1998) and <I>Tubular Bells 2003</I>. <br><br> Oldfield followed the original with <I>Hergest Ridge</I>, which also took top position on the U.K. bestseller lists. By 1980, he'd submerged his leanings toward progressive, proto-New Age sounds in favor of a more pop-oriented approach; Hall and Oates would even take his witty song "Family Man" into the U.S. singles charts. At the same time, Oldfield continued to display his instrumental composing talents on soundtracks to such films as <I>The Killing Fields</I>. Though doubtless considered more a purveyor of lifestyle music than a progressive artist at this point in his career, Oldfield has remained prolific and is looked upon as something of a forerunner of a wide variety of artists. Certainly his eclectic jaunts into various world musics led the way to the acceptance of someone like Enya. And <I>Tubular Bells</I> itself has long outlasted its reputation as "the music from <I>The Exorcist</I>." - Jaan UhelszkiArt & Progressive Rocken720Sat, 19 Dec 2009 13:24:50 -0800 http://static.realone.com/rotw/images/logo_rhapsody_113x22.gif http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1804&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss Though something of a historical footnote to the American rock audience, Mike Oldfield is a veteran who continues to appeal to a large sector of listeners in his native Britain, more than 30 years after his debut solo album. Born in Reading, England, in 1953, Oldfield was something of a prodigy. His first LP, folk music recorded with his sister Sally (with whom he would continue to collaborate over the years), came in 1967 under the name Sallyangie. Oldfield followed that up by joining Kevin Ayers in the art-rock band Whole World, and they recorded <I>Shooting at the Moon</I>. Soon, Oldfield was at work on what was, quite literally, a solo project -- he played most of the 30 instruments on the album-length composition <I>Tubular Bells</I>. Budding entrepreneur Richard Branson bankrolled the sessions, but none of the established British labels was interested in the somewhat <I>outre</I> disc. Eventually, Branson founded his own company to issue the LP, and Virgin Records became the base of his empire after <I>Tubular Bells</I> spent months at No. 1 in the U.K. charts. The record also won a Grammy, and its main theme was used in the demonic-possession saga <I>The Exorcist</I>. Oldfield has celebrated the title with a 1975 orchestral version, as well as <I>Tubular Bells II</I> (1992), <I>Tubular Bells III</I> (1998) and <I>Tubular Bells 2003</I>. <br><br> Oldfield followed the original with <I>Hergest Ridge</I>, which also took top position on the U.K. bestseller lists. By 1980, he'd submerged his leanings toward progressive, proto-New Age sounds in favor of a more pop-oriented approach; Hall and Oates would even take his witty song "Family Man" into the U.S. singles charts. At the same time, Oldfield continued to display his instrumental composing talents on soundtracks to such films as <I>The Killing Fields</I>. Though doubtless considered more a purveyor of lifestyle music than a progressive artist at this point in his career, Oldfield has remained prolific and is looked upon as something of a forerunner of a wide variety of artists. Certainly his eclectic jaunts into various world musics led the way to the acceptance of someone like Enya. And <I>Tubular Bells</I> itself has long outlasted its reputation as "the music from <I>The Exorcist</I>." - Jaan Uhelszki http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.28882174&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss Art & Progressive Rock Tue, 30 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0700 Mike Oldfield Discography on Rhapsody Online alb.28882174 alb.28882174 Mike Oldfield art.1804 22.99 Tubular Bells Digital Box Set alb.28882174 http://image.listen.com/img/170x170/8/6/4/0/1720468_170x170.jpg 2009-06-30 00:00:00.0 2009-06-30 00:00:00.0 true false main-release http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.28882174&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.28882174&variant=data&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.19878941&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss Art & Progressive Rock Tue, 8 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0700 Mike Oldfield Discography on Rhapsody Online alb.19878941 alb.19878941 Mike Oldfield art.1804 18.99 Music Of The Spheres & Live at Bilbao alb.19878941 http://image.listen.com/img/170x170/5/8/4/2/1212485_170x170.jpg 2008-04-08 00:00:00.0 null true false main-release http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.19878941&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.19878941&variant=data&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.19666892&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss Art & Progressive Rock Tue, 25 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0700 Mike Oldfield Discography on Rhapsody Online alb.19666892 alb.19666892 Mike Oldfield art.1804 9.99 Music Of The Spheres alb.19666892 http://image.listen.com/img/170x170/1/1/6/9/1209611_170x170.jpg 2008-03-25 00:00:00.0 2008-03-25 00:00:00.0 true false main-release http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.19666892&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.19666892&variant=data&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.10967321&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss Art & Progressive Rock Thu, 26 Jan 2006 00:00:00 -0800 Mike Oldfield Discography on Rhapsody Online alb.10967321 alb.10967321 Mike Oldfield art.1804 1.99 Mike Oldfield alb.10967321 http://image.listen.com/img/170x170/0/0/7/3/1393700_170x170.jpg 2006-01-26 00:00:00.0 2006-01-26 00:00:00.0 true false single http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.10967321&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.10967321&variant=data&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.28380253&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss Art & Progressive Rock Tue, 10 Mar 2009 00:00:00 -0700 Mike Oldfield Discography on Rhapsody Online alb.28380253 alb.28380253 Mike Oldfield art.1804 13.99 Light and Shade alb.28380253 http://image.listen.com/img/170x170/3/0/2/0/1680203_170x170.jpg 2009-03-10 00:00:00.0 2005-11-01 00:00:00.0 true false main-release http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.28380253&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.28380253&variant=data&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.203533&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss Art & Progressive Rock Thu, 15 Jan 2004 00:00:00 -0800 Mike Oldfield Discography on Rhapsody Online alb.203533 alb.203533 Mike Oldfield art.1804 8.99 Tubular Bells II alb.203533 http://image.listen.com/img/170x170/4/7/4/1/1371474_170x170.jpg 2004-01-15 00:00:00.0 1992-01-01 00:00:00.0 true false main-release http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.203533&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.203533&variant=data&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.167866&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss Art & Progressive Rock Tue, 10 Dec 2002 00:00:00 -0800 Mike Oldfield Discography on Rhapsody Online alb.167866 alb.167866 Mike Oldfield art.1804 27.99 Boxed alb.167866 http://image.listen.com/img/170x170/5/4/5/3/663545_170x170.jpg 2002-12-10 00:00:00.0 1976-01-01 00:00:00.0 true false main-release http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.167866&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.167866&variant=data&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.203525&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss Art & Progressive Rock Tue, 25 Apr 2006 00:00:00 -0700 Mike Oldfield Discography on Rhapsody Online alb.203525 alb.203525 Mike Oldfield art.1804 9.99 Ommadawn alb.203525 http://image.listen.com/img/170x170/5/2/7/2/832725_170x170.jpg 2006-04-25 00:00:00.0 1975-01-01 00:00:00.0 true false main-release http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.203525&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.203525&variant=data&rws=%2Fmike-oldfield%2Fdiscography.rss