Michael Oldfield is a popular British instrumental artist. The pinnacle of his work - the album Tubular Bells, released in 1973, lasted in the top ten charts of leading European radio stations for 13 weeks.
In the post-Soviet space, Oldfield's most famous composition is The Wind Chimes, which sounded in the final credits of the TV program Travelers Club.
The singer was married three times, he has seven children from different women.
Childhood
Michael Oldfield was born May 15, 1953 in the family of the English physician Raymond Oldfield and the Irish nurse Maureen Liston in the city of Reading in the UK. His childhood was happy until Michael was 8 years old.
The fact is that after the First World War the grandfather of the future musician returned home with a mental disorder, and the boy’s parents gave birth to a child (the fourth in the family) with Down syndrome. The child was named David. David died a year after birth. This caused mental problems in Michael's mother. Oldfield's father assigned his wife to a psychiatric clinic for treatment.
Michael tried to hide from family problems in his passion for music. The boy’s grandmother was a pianist, and his father loved to play the guitar in his spare time. The boy especially liked folk music. She reminded him of his mother, who often told children Irish legends. As early as seven years old, the boy asked his parents to buy his own guitar, and already at nine he performed at local clubs with music of his own composition.
Career
At the age of fifteen, Mike drops out of school and together with his sister Sally creates the music group Sallyangie. Having recorded several singles and an album, brother and sister go on tour with concerts.
In 1968, the group broke up, and Michael Oldfield first tries to organize a group with his brother, and then joins the band The Whole World as a bass player.
In 1972, having gained enough experience, the musician decides to start a solo career. For a fairly short time, Michael Oldfield records his first disc. Tubular Bells - an album released in 1973, became the pinnacle of Oldfield's musical career. On BBC Radio One, the musician’s album was lost entirely; later, critics described his work as compositions of incredible beauty and strength. Fragments of this record were used in the feature film "The Exorcist", which added popularity to both the album and Michael himself. To date, 16 million copies have been sold.
In subsequent years, the artist first experimented with music, then recorded commercial albums, but eventually returned to Tubular Bells, releasing several more versions that brought him recognition and fame.
