Man on the Rocks is the twenty-fifth studio album by British musician Mike Oldfield, released
on 3 March 2014 on the Virgin EMI label.
The album is Oldfield's second full album of exclusively songs with no long or instrumental
pieces; the first was 1989's Earth Moving.
Recording and production Man on the Rocks was produced by Stephen Lipson
together with Oldfield.
The album features bassist Leland Sklar, drummer John Robinson, keyboardist Matt Rollings,
guitarist Michael Thompson and singer Luke Spiller together with Oldfield himself on
guitar.
The backing tracks were recorded during June 2013 in Studio D of Village Studios, Los Angeles
with producer Steve Lipson; Oldfield participated in these sessions via Skype.
Oldfield has also recorded part of the album in his home studio in the Bahamas.
The album marks a return of Oldfield to a Virgin branded label since leaving Virgin
Records in the 1990s, through the merger of Mercury Records UK and Virgin Records after
Universal Music's purchase of EMI.
Luke Spiller is the singer of another of Virgin EMI's British artists, The Struts.
Lyrical content The album deals with topics ranging from Oldfield's
experiences with mental health to a track inspired by the 2012 Summer Olympics.
The piece "Irene" is inspired by Hurricane Irene which hit the Bahamas in 2011.
The final track is a cover of William McDowell's gospel piece "I Give Myself Away".
The working title for the album had been Rock.
Oldfield has used the title "Moonshine" once before for the final piece on 1992's Tubular
Bells II.
The song itself is a reworking of his 1994 instrumental "The Song Of The Boat Men", which
was featured as a B-side of the "Hibernaculum" single.
The song "Nuclear" deals with his grandfather's experiences during World War 1.
When interviewed by the Daily Telegraph, he tells the background to writing the song.
“I never knew him,” he says, “So I hired a company to find out about him.
It turned out he was a great character before the war but came home a very different man.
My mum was one of ten or eleven kids and all the children born after the war had problems
like hers.
I wanted to see if I could spread my senses in the place he was.
I travelled around Ypres and the battlefield museums and I saw the graves of his regiment:
the Royal Munster Fusiliers.
And I could feel it.
Still there.
It’s a blessing and a curse for those of us who have this extra sensitivity.”
Release Man on the Rocks was released on 3 March 2014,
after initially being announced that it would have been released on 27 January.
The album is available on single CD, double CD, double vinyl, coloured double vinyl, digital
download and a box set.
The two CD Deluxe Edition contains the album and a second instrumental disc.
In the UK the boxed set is available exclusively through mikeoldfieldofficial.com - this includes
the content from the Deluxe Edition as well as Oldfield's demos of the songs and 4 alternate
mixes of songs.
The boxed set also includes a 16-page CD size booklet, four art cards and a certificate
of authenticity.
Singles and promotion The first public airing of the album was an
excerpt of "Sailing" that was played on Stuart Maconie's radio show on BBC Radio 6 Music
in November 2013.
The first full play of "Sailing" was on BBC Radio 2 on 14 January 2014.
"Sailing" was a record of the week on BBC Radio 2 during the first week of February.
The music video for "Sailing" was released on YouTube on 8 February.
The video features Oldfield and Spiller in The Bahamas on a beach, a boat and in Oldfield's
studio there.
The song became available to buy on online retailers such as iTunes from 19 February.
Behind the scenes footage and acoustic versions of tracks from the album, including "Man on
the Rocks" and "Chariots", were released online ahead of the album.
The second single was "Moonshine"; a video was released for purchase on iTunes on 14
April.
"Nuclear" was featured in the E3 2014 trailer for the stealth action game Metal Gear Solid
V: The Phantom Pain.
Critical reception Critical reception of the album has been mixed
to positive.
Music critics and journalists have noted its contrast from Oldfield's progressive rock
works such as Tubular Bells, and the album's orientation to more standard rock music.
The Guardian newspaper called the album "a curious but likable diversion from his multilayered
new-age work."
"Sailing" reached BBC Radio 2's "A List" rotation.
Jeremy Williams of So So Gay noted "Man on the Rocks excels as it feels truly personal."
Weekly charts Track listing
Disc 1 All tracks written by Mike Oldfield, except
where noted.
"Sailing" - 4:46 "Moonshine" - 5:49
"Man on the Rocks" - 6:10 "Castaway" - 6:34
"Minutes" - 4:51 "Dreaming in the Wind" - 5:28
"Nuclear" - 5:03 "Chariots" - 4:38
"Following the Angels" - 7:04 "Irene" - 3:59
"I Give Myself Away" - 5:10 Disc 2 - Deluxe Edition
"Sailing" "Moonshine"
"Man on the Rocks" "Castaway"
"Minutes" "Dreaming in the Wind"
"Nuclear" "Chariots"
"Following the Angels" "Irene"
"I Give Myself Away" Disc 3 - Bonus Disc
"Sailing" "Moonshine"
"Man on the Rocks" "Castaway"
"Minutes" "Dreaming in the Wind"
"Nuclear" "Chariots"
"Following the Angels" "Irene"
"I Give Myself Away" "Sailing"
"Dreaming in the Wind" "Following the Angels"
"I Give Myself Away" Disc 3 Tracks 1–11: All Instruments and
Vocals by Mike Oldfield Personnel
Mike Oldfield – Electric guitars, Acoustic guitars, Bass guitar, Backing vocals, Keyboards
Luke Spiller – Lead vocals John Robinson – Drums
Leland Sklar – Bass guitar Matt Rollings – Piano & Hammond B-3
Michael Thompson – Electric guitars & Acoustic guitars
Stephen Lipson – Electric guitars & Acoustic guitars
Davy Spillane – Whistles on "Moonshine" Paul Dooley – Violin on "Moonshine"
Backing Vocalists – Bill Champlain, Alfie Silas Durio, Carmel Echols, Rochelle Gilliard,
Judith Hill, Kirsten Joy, Jason Morales, Louis Price, Tiffany Smith
Engineers – Mike Oldfield & Stephen Lipson; Howard Willing with Chris Owens; Steve MacMillan
Produced by – Mike Oldfield and Stephen Lipson
References
External links Mike Oldfield
Interview with Mike Oldfield discussing the making of Man on the Rocks at Innerviews