Hergest Ridge
| Hergest Ridge | ||||
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| Studio album by Mike Oldfield | ||||
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Publication |
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| Label (s) | Virgin Records | |||
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Format (s) |
CD, LP, MC |
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Title (number) |
2 |
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running time |
40 min 14 s |
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Mike Oldfield and Tom Newman |
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Studio (s) |
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Hergest Ridge is a largely instrumental music album that was composed, produced and largely recorded by Mike Oldfield in the spring of 1974 . It immediately reached number one in the British charts and was replaced after three weeks by its predecessor, which apart from him only the Beatles and Bob Dylan achieved.
Emergence
After Oldfield was more in the limelight with the groundbreaking success of Tubular Bells , the twenty-year-old retired to the country to work on his next work. The result was Hergest Ridge, named after a hill in the border area between Herefordshire and Wales within sight of his accommodation.
In order to do justice to the double-sided medium LP , Hergest Ridge is divided into two sets, as before Tubular Bells. Unlike its predecessor, however, the composition does not rely on a variety of topics , which are presented in rapid succession one after the other, but themes are used sparingly and thoroughly carried out , that is varied.
The sound of the album is characterized by a particularly woody - idyllic orientation compared to other Oldfield works , which is favored by the careful variation of themes and the predominantly acoustic instrumentation. The hectic Thunderstorm part in the second movement, in which over 60 guitar tracks can be heard at the same time, is a contrast to the idyll .
During the recording, Oldfield used innovative recording techniques, in particular to create repetitive sound textures. Some of these textures are made up of guitar tracks, which - in order to achieve an organ-like sustain effect - were played at high volume and then superimposed with the help of overdub technology at reduced volume. Other sound textures are based on various organ sounds and choir singing.
According to co-producer Tom Newman, parts of the album were recorded in the Manor studios in Chipping Norton , where Tubular Bells had already been recorded. The original version was mixed at Air Studios in London .
Alternative versions
In 1976 , Oldfield's Hergest Ridge was made ready for the four-part LP set Boxed Quadrofonie and edited and remixed in the course of this. A section of the Thunderstorm part in the second movement as well as some sound tracks with instruments have been removed, but the overall level of others has been upgraded. Subsequently, Oldfield expressed the wish that this version should henceforth be used on all further releases of the album. As a result, in addition to later reprints on LP and cassette, all releases on compact discs (CD) also contain the boxed version. A remastered bootleg version of the original mix can be found on the internet.
After David Bedford , a confidante of Oldfield's Canterbury scene, had already worked out an orchestral version of Tubular Bells , he also arranged and conducted the orchestral version of Hergest Ridge, which was performed several times but, unlike The Orchestral Tubular Bells, was never officially published . However, excerpts from it were used in the documentary The Space Movie .
On June 11, 2010, the original 1974 version saw a re-release on CD and LP. At the same time, the 2010 remixed version was released in the Deluxe Edition in stereo and Dolby Surround . The following album, Ommadawn , was also re-released on this date. While the new version of Ommadawn has the old cover , Hergest Ridge got a new one, which shows the entire mountain from a bird's eye view.
additional
The land around Hergest Ridge on the Anglo-Welsh border became a popular destination for Oldfield's fan base. The house in which he temporarily lived, The Beacon , is now an inn . The cover picture shows a photo of Hergest Ridge made by Trevor Key with alienated effects. The Irish Wolfhound pictured on it is called Bootleg.
Title List 2010 Deluxe Edition
- Hergest Ridge, Pt. 1 - 21:29
- Hergest Ridge, Pt. 2 - 18:45
- In Dulci Jubilo (For Maureen) - 2:45
- Spanish Tune - 3:11