"Cuckoo Song" is a musical piece written by

Michael Praetorius Michael Praetorius (probably 28 September 1571 – 15 February 1621) was a German composer, organist, and music theorist. He was one of the most versatile composers of his age, being particularly significant in the development of musical forms ba ...

(1571 – 1621). In 1977 British musician

Mike Oldfield Mike may refer to: Animals * Mike (cat), cat and guardian of the British Museum * Mike the Headless Chicken, chicken that lived for 18 months after his head had been cut off * Mike (chimpanzee), a chimpanzee featured in several books and documen ...

released an arrangement of the piece as a

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

Mike Oldfield single

Mike Oldfield released a version of "Cuckoo Song" in 1977 as a non-album single on

Virgin Records Virgin Records is a record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman. It grew to be a worldwid ...

. The B side, a musical precursor of

Incantations An incantation, a spell, a charm, an enchantment or a bewitchery, is a magical formula intended to trigger a magical effect on a person or objects. The formula can be spoken, sung or chanted. An incantation can also be performed during ceremo ...

and which could almost be a part of it, is an original composition by Oldfield. The single (in a plain white sleeve) was included as a free bonus when the double LP ''

'' was released in 1978. It is one of the many non-album singles which Oldfield released in the 1970s. "Cuckoo Song" also features Les Penning.

Track listing

# "Cuckoo Song" – 3:13 # "Pipe Tune" – 3:27

References

1977 singles Mike Oldfield songs Virgin Records singles Year of song unknown {{1970s-single-stub