THEY came in search of paradise, the fans that time forgot. In Tubular
Bells II, the world premiere performance of, they sought a Tolkien tale
filled with little furry animals; a hash-fuelled dream /memory where
music was played on real instruments.
And lo! Real instruments beyond number and a stage peopled by four
singers, two percussionists, a drummer, four guitarists, three keyboard
players, Mike Oldfield, and a conductor in tails. Progressive rock as
the most reactionary form of music, you betcha!
Real musical moments, the bits where you forget the cold and the crowd
came few and far between, the pipes of the Great Plain compensating for
the truly awful Blue Saloon, before reverting to the elaborate test card
for the audio buff that is Tubular Bells II.
They came in search of paradise and got chocolate-box fantasies
complete with toy soldiers and the sound of pipe and drums drowned only
by the sound of 6000 people being patronised.
They came in search of paradise but the Bounty generation stopped
listening in 1973 and Jane Siberry supporting in conversational style
rubbed their noses in thirtysomething reality and paid the price by
dying disgracefully.
Oh, and there was a castle.
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