Mike Oldfield Tickets

A multi-instrumentalist who is able to blend various styles with progressive rock in a highly distinctive manner, Mike Oldfield is a composer and artist who is probably best known for his Tubular Bells album of 1973. Oldfield is a skilled guitarist, percussionist, bassist and banjo player. He can also perform well on the mandolin, as well as playing the keyboard, the vibraphone, and of course, tubular bells. The musician has been operating professionally since 1967 and continues to produce recordings on a regular basis. His 2017 album, Return to Ommadawn, reached number four in the UK album charts.

Mike Oldfield's early work

Raised in Reading, Oldfield is a self-taught musician who began on the guitar. He started performing in local folk clubs, often mixing new age elements and rock to his style. As a teenager, he joined a rock 'n' roll band playing in the style of the Shadows. An early album release, a work he made with his sister, came out on Transatlantic Records,. Children of the Sun was put out in 1968, but his musical partnership with his sibling soon folded.

In 1970, the musician joined a band called the Whole World, along with a keyboard player by the name of David Bedford. On hearing Oldfield's sketches for what would become Tubular Bells, Bedford encouraged fuller arrangements and a recording of a new demo. While working at Richard Branson's studios as a session musician, Oldfield managed to persuade the owner of the soon-to-be-launched Virgin record label to allow him studio time for the project. This was granted and 'Part One' of the aforementioned album was recorded within a week.

Mike Oldfield's breakthrough

Released in 1973 by Virgin, after months of work on 'Part Two', Tubular Bells was a sonic sensation and a huge commercial success. It became one of the UK's best selling albums ever. Music from it was taken for the Hollywood movie, The Exorcist, and Oldfield won a Grammy for this. He recorded with various bands and for TV shows in the 1980s, as well as producing well-received albums, although none had the same level of commercial success that Tubular Bells had generated.

Mike Oldfield trivia

Oldfield was invited by the BBC children's TV show Blue Peter to revamp their theme tune, a track that was put out as a single. In 1981, the composer wrote a piece of music to celebrate the royal wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer. Music of Spheres, an Oldfield album of 2008, received a BRIT nomination for a classical work.

Similar to Mike Oldfield

Check out tickets for Oldfield's long-time collaborator Maggie Reilly, at StubHub. Alternatively, look for concerts by Jean Michel Jarre.