Mike Oldfield (ranked)
I like him, I hate him. |
| 1 |  | Mike Oldfield
Ommadawn
While "Tubular bells" went on to haunt his entire career, this right here is his artistic peak. Especially the build up in the finale of Pt. 1 is pure genius. |
| 2 |  | Mike Oldfield
Amarok
What happens if a musician spontaneously decides to piss off his record label? The answer: 60 minutes of madness. "Amarok" contains some of Oldfield's greatest melodies, it also loses itself at times. But the last minute might be the greatest moment ever recorded. |
| 3 |  | Mike Oldfield
Hergest Ridge
Ethereal. That's the first word I could think of. "Hergest ridge" delves deep into folk music. I especially love the "thunderstorm" part. It shreds. |
| 4 |  | Mike Oldfield
Tubular Bells
There it is. The one that started it all. You know the story: Young guy, lots of studio time, millions of overdubs. Richard Branson largely owes his wealth to this piece of music. Thanks Mike. The first five minutes are perfection, I also like the ending of Pt. 1. Pt. 2 is all over the place, but still enjoyable. |
| 5 |  | Mike Oldfield
QE2
I grew up with this album, it was one of my brother's favourite records. It's from a transitional period and contains an ABBA cover and a Phil Collins appearance. Luckily, only on drums. I recommend the Montreux show from this era. |
| 6 |  | Mike Oldfield
Incantations
That's a difficult one. It's very Philip Glass if that makes sense. At times, it creates great atmospheres, but overall, it's a bit too long and unfocused. |
| 7 |  | Mike Oldfield
Five Miles Out
This is the one before Oldfield became a real pop star. The title track rules. The rest is a mixed bag. |
| 8 |  | Mike Oldfield
Platinum
Oldfield went through a deep personal crisis before he made this album which explains the radical stylistic shift. It's not bad, but the magic from his first few albums is gone. |
| 9 |  | Mike Oldfield
Songs Of Distant Earth
The 90s were rough for the Englishman. But somehow, he managed to record at least one good album. It's clearly influenced by contemporary easy listening trends, but offers some fantastic melodic work. |
| 10 |  | Mike Oldfield
Return to Ommadawn
When he announced "Return to Ommadawn", I was very afraid. But the album turned out alright. Lots of nostalgia and self-plagiarism, but still enjoyable. |
| 11 |  | Mike Oldfield
Crises
Hits, hits, hits. I love Maggie Reilly's voice, but some of these songs are beyond overplayed. "Foreign affair" is great, though. |
| 12 |  | Mike Oldfield
Discovery
"To France" clearly is the classic on here, but the rest ain't too shabby either. His last good 80s record. |
| 13 |  | Mike Oldfield
Voyager
"Mont St. Michel" deserves a special mention. It towers over the rest of "Voyager" which is a focused, but mediocre album. |
| 14 |  | Mike Oldfield
Tubular Bells II
This album simply does nothing for me. I don't like it but I don't hate it either. |
| 15 |  | Mike Oldfield
Guitars
This is Oldfield's best impression of "Hours" era David Bowie. |
| 16 |  | Mike Oldfield
Music of the Spheres
His best album from the 00s. |
| 17 |  | Mike Oldfield
Tr3s Lunas
Mike Oldfield, background noise edition. |
| 18 |  | Mike Oldfield
Light + Shade
See 17. |
| 19 |  | Mike Oldfield
Islands
Now it's getting interesting. Here we can witness a man losing touch to his artistic self. |
| 20 |  | Mike Oldfield
Heaven's Open
It's mindboggling that this album came out after "Amarok". Mike tried to be a singer on here and he could have done worse. |
| 21 |  | Mike Oldfield
Man on the Rocks
The cover speaks for the entire record. Rich guy sits on island and creates bland songs with bland lyrics and invites a bland singer to sing them. |
| 22 |  | Mike Oldfield
The Millennium Bell
While not as bad as "Tubular bells 3", this is still pretty bad. |
| 23 |  | Mike Oldfield
Tubular Bells III
I know some people like this one. But LISTEN to it. These cheap synths, the terrible dance beats. Nah. |
| 24 |  | Mike Oldfield
The Killing Fields
A bad soundtrack for a forgotten movie. |
| 25 |  | Mike Oldfield
Earth Moving
Compare this to other music from 1989, and it's shit. Compare it to Oldfield's discography and it's utterly embarrassing. |
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