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Down Under Unregistered Posted: Mar. 12 2003, 21:12 OK, I found the original part two and I've listened to it as well.  All I can say is that I've completely wasted my time listening to that awful CD version.  The CD version is put completely to shame by the original LP version.  I don't know what MO was thinking when he stripped it down to make that vastly inferior and useless CD version.  It's awful, I mean REALLY awful, to listen to.  I certainly won't bother listening to the CD again.  It's the LP version for me.  What does anybody else think? Back to top

Brewer Group: Members Posts: 60 Joined: July 2002 Posted: Mar. 17 2003, 11:14 I havnt listened to the vinyl version in years. Having bought it back in 1974 its a bit crackly to say the least. But i agree with you in the sense that he remixed it for the Boxed set and then deamed that from then on all versions of HR should be the new remixed version. To my knowledge even Vinyl pressings after that had the remixed version. I think that he should have left it as it was with the remix only on the boxed set. But havnt said that it is his ball. LOL -------------- Maker of MOs favourite beverage No trees were harmed in the creation and sending of this message. However, a large number of electrons were terribly inconvenienced Back to top

raven4x4x Group: Members Posts: 1535 Joined: Jan. 2002 Posted: July 06 2003, 00:12 Well, Hergest Ridge certainly isn't my favourite album, but after listening to it again I like it a lot more: I have been tending to under-rate it a bit. I suppose my main problem with it is that there isn't any bits of it that stand out: it's just all nice and relaxing. That being said, I have tended to ignore it more than I should have, and I'll try to stop doing that. I suppose the other reason I don't like Hergest Ridge as much is the lack of guitar in it. When the the guitar is there, it is very nice, but I could do with a bit more of it. I also love the bass riff in Part One: really catchy. Like Tubular Bells and Ommadawn, I prefer Part One to Part Two. Most of Part Two is taken up by the Thunderstorm section, which has grown on my, but I certainly can't say I like it. However, the short section after the thunderstorm, almost a reprise, is very nice, and would have to be my favourite bit from the album. This is one of the Mike Oldfield albums I like least, but that is only because all of his other albums are great. -------------- Thank-you for helping us help you help us all. Back to top

familyjules Group: Members Posts: 1190 Joined: May 2004 Posted: May 24 2004, 06:12 I bought Hergest Ridge back in '76, immediately pronounced it 'boring' and inferior to both TB and Ommadawn and filed it away. Fast forward 28 years, I buy Boxed, and I give it another chance.  Still nothing.  So I give it a couple more chances, and it finally grows on me.  I love it now (all except the Thunderstorm passage which is beyond annoying and makes me feel ill - I have to skip this part). I guess that's what you call a slow grower..... Now I must dig out my original vinyl and listen afresh to the original mix. Jules -------------- I like beer and I like cheese Back to top

Holger Group: Members Posts: 1506 Joined: Feb. 2003 Posted: May 24 2004, 08:44 I wonder how long it will take for the "thunderstorm" to grow on you then... because it is an essential part of the album, not to be skipped! By the way, Mike calls this section his "Martian Song". Much more fitting than "thunderstorm" IMO... (I think that term was made up by some journalist.) Back to top

familyjules Group: Members Posts: 1190 Joined: May 2004 Posted: May 24 2004, 11:19 Quote (Holger @ May 24 2004, 08:44) I wonder how long it will take for the "thunderstorm" to grow on you then... because it is an essential part of the album, not to be skipped! I really don't think it'll ever happen.  I have a strong aversion to heavy repetitious music, it kind of sits on my chest and makes my brain hurt.  I can't abide techno for this reason.  I find the Martian song/Thunderstorm a real chore to listen to. My Mom was the same.  I remember playing Hergest Ridge at my Grandma's house when I was a kid and she yelled at me to turn it off as it was doing her head in.  At the time I was mortified because it was my new record, but then I played it again back home and I knew why she'd reacted as she had. Mike must have been pretty angry when he did that section.  It's very intense - it actually sounds like a musical representation of madness to my ears.  Maybe that's what he intended, but I still can't listen to it with pleasure. Jules -------------- I like beer and I like cheese Back to top

Sir Mustapha Group: Musicians Posts: 2802 Joined: April 2003 Posted: May 24 2004, 11:58 That part of Hergest Ridge doesn't sound exactly angry to me. It's a reflection of the wicked, twisted beauty of a storm. It is destructive, but beautiful. That section seems to represent the awe of watching a thunderstorm. Rush did a similar thing with "Jacob's Ladder". I personally adore that part. I'm both able to appreciate the slow, soothing side of music and its destructive side. I like heaviness and loudness when it's done well. I like feeling the heaviness, and Hergest Ridge's 'Sturm Und Drang Theme' does just that. Well, I can understand people that can't stand it, but my collection also includes King Crimson, Wire, Rush and Oasis, so you know where I'm coming from. In short, ROCK 'N' ROLL!!! -------------- Check out http://ferniecanto.com.br for all my music, including my latest albums: Don't Stay in the City, Making Amends and Builders of Worlds. Also check my Bandcamp page: http://ferniecanto.bandcamp.com Back to top

familyjules Group: Members Posts: 1190 Joined: May 2004 Posted: May 25 2004, 05:08 Quote (Sir Mustapha @ May 24 2004, 11:58) Well, I can understand people that can't stand it, but my collection also includes King Crimson, Wire, Rush and Oasis, so you know where I'm coming from. In short, ROCK 'N' ROLL!!! Hey don't get me wrong.  I'm a rocker too.  I sang in rock bands for years.  My favourite music includes The Who, Creedence and Neil Young & Crazy Horse.  Sometimes I like it loud and defiant and ballsy.  But the Thunderstorm music is more, well, nagging and metallic than your regular testosterone fuelled rock music - it really gets under the skin.  Which it's meant to do, I shouldn't wonder.... <sigh>  Maybe I'm just too sensitive.  LOL. Jules -------------- I like beer and I like cheese Back to top

Sir Mustapha Group: Musicians Posts: 2802 Joined: April 2003 Posted: May 25 2004, 07:14 Cool! Nice to know someome listens to stuff like The Who here. Okay, maybe I expressed myself a bit wrong. Yeah, that part of Hergest Ridge isn't the kind of rock we're talking about. But I really like that kind of disturbing, restless music... I like stuff like that. Thunderstorm isn't really a piece of headbanging rock 'n' roll, really, but it produces a great sense of awe... Ok, suffice to say, I know what you're talking about and I understand ya. -------------- Check out http://ferniecanto.com.br for all my music, including my latest albums: Don't Stay in the City, Making Amends and Builders of Worlds. Also check my Bandcamp page: http://ferniecanto.bandcamp.com Back to top

raven4x4x Group: Members Posts: 1535 Joined: Jan. 2002 Posted: May 26 2004, 07:52 I'm also one of the ones who dislikes the thunderstorm (and  I love Tho Who! ) as you will read on my earlier post here. However, I certainly understand where a lot of you are coming from. I won't deny that it is an intense piece, and it's a sound that I haven't heard anywhere else. I just don't think he handled it well: it gets too repetitive for me, and therfore a bit annoying. I'm listening to it now and it really isn't doing anything for me emotionally. It's just sort of there without really meaning anything.   A suppose part of why I don't like it comes from the fact that it is so completely different from anything else on the album. When I listen to Hergest Ridge, I really do feel relaxed by Part One, all that beautiful music. So it is kind of a rude awakening when you just get this huge SMACK when the Thunderstorm hits you. It wouldn't be so bad if there was a bit more lead up to it, but its just bang: there and also bang: gone. That's how I feel about it. -------------- Thank-you for helping us help you help us all. Back to top

Sir Mustapha Group: Musicians Posts: 2802 Joined: April 2003 Posted: May 26 2004, 08:16 Quote (raven4x4x @ May 26 2004, 07:52) A suppose part of why I don't like it comes from the fact that it is so completely different from anything else on the album. When I listen to Hergest Ridge, I really do feel relaxed by Part One, all that beautiful music. So it is kind of a rude awakening when you just get this huge SMACK when the Thunderstorm hits you. It wouldn't be so bad if there was a bit more lead up to it, but its just bang: there and also bang: gone. That's how I feel about it. Hm. Yes, it does come a bit without warning, but the part immediately before it with the stabbing organ really does feel like tension mounting, grey clouds arriving and then, KABOOOM... Yeah, it feels like that for me. One good thing about that part, too, is that it's not difficult to play on keyboards. The bad part is that, towards the end, my left arm begins to ache. -------------- Check out http://ferniecanto.com.br for all my music, including my latest albums: Don't Stay in the City, Making Amends and Builders of Worlds. Also check my Bandcamp page: http://ferniecanto.bandcamp.com Back to top

verdegris Group: Members Posts: 3 Joined: July 2004 Posted: July 23 2004, 17:47 Well, first post here. Hi everyone! I actually took more than 20 years for me to realise that HR was my favorite record. Started with Ommadawn, went through all the other ones. Then a few years later went back to HR... Probably coz, even if it's underrated, it contains (a lot more than TBs) the seeds of Mike's musique. And the version I like the most is the Box-one... The lp version is a treat on a good high-end stereo system. Back to top

Delfín Group: Members Posts: 667 Joined: Nov. 2000 Posted: Sep. 13 2004, 13:40 Incantations si by far the most underrated Mike'a album. It is a complete masterpiece and almost nobody seems to regard it. -------------- The most precious thing I possess, is knowing the answer's yes Back to top

Craig Evans Group: Members Posts: 253 Joined: Sep. 2004 Posted: Sep. 13 2004, 14:03 Mike Oldfield uses the following electric guitars for the Thunderstorm part of Hergest Ridge Part 2; a blonde Fender Telecaster, a Gibson Les Paul Custom black beauty, and a yellow Gibson Les Paul TV along with a cherry red Gibson Les Paul SG Junior from 1966 and a blue Fender Stratocaster.  In addition to these electric guitars Mike Oldfield also uses a red Fender Precision bass guitar and cherry red Gibson EB3 bass guitar, which play the heavy basslines behind the overdubbed guitars in the Thunderstorm on Hergest Ridge Part 2.  These guitars are played through fuzz boxes and are overdubbed and speeded up in a similar fashion to the mandolin like guitar and guitars sounding like bagpipes from Tubular Bells Part 2.   Towards the very end of the Thunderstorm Mike Oldfield plays a final little pitch bend electric guitar solo on the right-hand side of the remix edition of Hergest Ridge before the rest of the Thunderstorm ends.  The electric guitar that Mike Oldfield uses for this final little pitch bend solo is his blue Fender Stratocaster, which is played through a distortion and compression pedal possably the Glorfindal Box that Mike Oldfield used for the Bagpipe Electric Guitars from Tubular Bells Part 2.   Mike Oldfield is able to achieve a heavy tremolo effect by making heavy use of his blue Fender Stratocaster's tremolo arm and also by scrubbing the recording head over the tape that contains the final little guitar solo in the Thunderstorm (similar to a Disk Jocky scratching a needle over a record).     -------------- "It is good to be on Horseback" - Mike Oldfield "On Horseback" "(Insert "The Thunderstorm" here)" Back to top

Ratty Group: Members Posts: 386 Joined: Jan. 2005 Posted: April 07 2005, 18:26 Hergest Ridge.. Ah yes, best played on your own in a dimly lit room with a beer or two!!! Just let the emotion of this piece carry you away, why the debate about it? Just listen to the music, you wont hear anything as mellow as this from anybody!!! The only album by Mike to bring tears to my eyes!!!! -------------- Far away across the field The tolling of the iron bell Calls the faithful to their knees To hear the softly spoken magic spells Back to top

Baggiesfaninessex Group: Members Posts: 682 Joined: Mar. 2002 Posted: April 07 2005, 18:37 Quote (Sir Mustapha @ May 24 2004, 11:58) That part of Hergest Ridge doesn't sound exactly angry to me. It's a reflection of the wicked, twisted beauty of a storm. It is destructive, but beautiful. That section seems to represent the awe of watching a thunderstorm. Rush did a similar thing with "Jacob's Ladder". I personally adore that part. I'm both able to appreciate the slow, soothing side of music and its destructive side. I like heaviness and loudness when it's done well. I like feeling the heaviness, and Hergest Ridge's 'Sturm Und Drang Theme' does just that. Well, I can understand people that can't stand it, but my collection also includes King Crimson, Wire, Rush and Oasis, so you know where I'm coming from. In short, ROCK 'N' ROLL!!! I adore the entire Side 2 of Hergest Ridge due mainly to the manner in which both sides of the spectrum are represented; light and dark; calm and anger; peace and pain..... it is simply beautiful through and through. Side 1 didn't really appeal so much many years ago, yet it has really grown on me too in recent weeks. So, all in all, a fantastic album!   -------------- “A dog is not intelligent. Never trust an animal that's surprised by its own farts.” - Frank Skinner Back to top

moonchildhippy Group: Members Posts: 1807 Joined: Dec. 2004 Posted: April 09 2005, 21:06 Quote (T4 @ April 07 2005, 23:37) Quote (Sir Mustapha @ May 24 2004, 11:58) That part of Hergest Ridge doesn't sound exactly angry to me. It's a reflection of the wicked, twisted beauty of a storm. It is destructive, but beautiful. That section seems to represent the awe of watching a thunderstorm. Rush did a similar thing with "Jacob's Ladder". I personally adore that part. I'm both able to appreciate the slow, soothing side of music and its destructive side. I like heaviness and loudness when it's done well. I like feeling the heaviness, and Hergest Ridge's 'Sturm Und Drang Theme' does just that. Well, I can understand people that can't stand it, but my collection also includes King Crimson, Wire, Rush and Oasis, so you know where I'm coming from. In short, ROCK 'N' ROLL!!! I adore the entire Side 2 of Hergest Ridge due mainly to the manner in which both sides of the spectrum are represented; light and dark; calm and anger; peace and pain..... it is simply beautiful through and through. Side 1 didn't really appeal so much many years ago, yet it has really grown on me too in recent weeks. So, all in all, a fantastic album!   Yes Hergest Ridge IS VASTLY UNDERRATED.  it's unfortunate that HR has always been overshadowed by Tubular Bells   ,  both great albums   .  There's very few albums that stir up so much emotion as Hergest Ridge can.  If I'm a little little sad , then Hergest Ridge lifts my spirits.  It's one of few albums on part1 at about 8mins 53secs, I can be moved to tears. Idon't know why, maybe it's the sheer beauty of the music. It sometimes depends upon my emotions as well.  By the start of the "Thunderstorm" or "Martian" section of side two I have this desire to dance or skip around the house.   I think Mike has the balance of Ying and Yang energies damn near perfect   . -------------- I'm going slightly mad, It finally happened, I'm slightly mad , just very slightly mad If you feel a little glum to Hergest Ridge you should come. I'm challenging  taboos surrounding mental health "Part time hippy" I'M SUPPORTING OUR SOLDIERS BRING OUR TROOPS HOME NOW!! Back to top

tansy Unregistered Posted: April 15 2005, 08:47 Hello to all,  only just stumbled upon this topic and would like to comment re:hergest ridge.My grandmother was very ill in hospital when I first began listening to this composition.Sadly,she didnt survive and I continued to play H.R  over and over as I attempted to accept the situation. I can honestly say that,in my opinion and also given the fact that I only had a tape to hear the music by that this is a wonderful peice of work.  Although it helped me through so much my emotional state of mind at that point in time did not mar my critical judgement and at present time I still enjoy listening to it and to this day would love to be able to go this beautiful place in reality if someone could tell me exactly where it is?    will force son to get in car and drive! Back to top

Alan D Group: Members Posts: 3670 Joined: Aug. 2004 Posted: April 15 2005, 09:35 It's near Kington, Herefordshire, on the English/Welsh border. See HERE Take a personal stereo player with you and listen to the music as you walk the Ridge. Back to top

hiawatha Group: Members Posts: 2391 Joined: Mar. 2004 Posted: April 15 2005, 15:34 Does anyone remember a magazine called "Future"? It was a spinoff from "Starlog", the scifi magazine. "Future" is long gone and forgotten, but "Starlog" and (I'm pretty sure) its other sister publication "Fangoria" survive. I recall one issue from the mid 1970s that had an article about electronic music. It listed Mike Oldfield's Hertzfield Ridge as an example. I think they hit it wrong not only with the name, but the classification. I always thought that HR was very electric, but not electronic. -------------- "In the land of the Dacotahs, Where the Falls of Minnehaha Flash and gleam among the oak-trees, Laugh and leap into the valley." - Song of Hiawatha Back to top

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