OMMADAWN

"Tubular Bells" is certainly the best known of MO's albums, but "Ommadawn" is probably the most complete of his first three albums. If you like Celtic Music, this Mike Oldfield record is definitely the one which has the most Celtic influence to it. It starts out with the same somber mood found throughout much of his previous album, "Hergest Ridge", and then takes a more positive tone... and off you go !

The Good: The guitar on this album is outstanding. Without giving away too much of the album(I don't like playing the role of spoiler), I will say that the two or three minutes where it switches from a minor to major key are a few of my favorite minutes in music. Pay attention ! Mike Oldfield, like most progressive music is best listened to closely, not passively as background music.

The Bad: "On Horseback" is a song which I have to be in the mood for. It's definitely one which conjures up memories of riding horseback through a snowy countryside, but sometimes I find it rather annoying. I suspect many Prog fans would find it annoying as well.

The Ugly: A trend in Oldfield's three first albums is that the "B" side seems to be sort of "filler." Sure, there are beautiful segments on Part 2 here, but it does seem to be "stretched" to fill up the second side.

If you wish to experience Mike Oldfield's music, this is probably the place to start rather than the more popular (but rookie effort) "Tubular Bells" or the perhaps better but less accessible "Amarok."