''Five Miles Out'' is the seventh studio album by English recording artist Mike Oldfield, released on 19 February 1982 by Virgin Records in the UK. After touring in support of his previous album, ''

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'' (1980), ended in mid-1981, Oldfield started on a follow-up with members of his touring band performing the music. The album features the 24-minute track "Taurus II" on side one and four shorter songs on side two. The songs "

Family Man Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Ideal ...

" and "Orabidoo" are credited to Oldfield and members of his touring band which included vocalist Maggie Reilly, drummer Morris Pert, and guitarist Rick Fenn. ''Five Miles Out'' marked the beginning of a commercially successful period for Oldfield who scored his first UK top 10 album in seven years, peaking at No. 7. Two of the album's shorter songs, " Five Miles Out" and "Family Man", were released as singles which peaked at Nos. 43 and 45 in the UK, respectively. The latter became a bigger hit when pop duo Hall and Oates recorded a cover of the song. ''Five Miles Out'' was further promoted with the 100-date

Five Miles Out World Tour 1982 5 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 5, five or number 5 may also refer to: * AD 5, the fifth year of the AD era * 5 BC, the fifth year before the AD era Literature * ''5'' (visual novel), a 2008 visual novel by Ram * ''5'' (comics), an awar ...

, the largest tour of Oldfield's career. It was reissued in 2013 with new stereo and 5.1 surround sound mixes and previously unreleased material.

Background

In August 1981, Oldfield completed his

European Adventure Tour 1981 European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to: In general * ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe ** Ethnic groups in Europe ** Demographics of Europe ** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe a ...

which was staged in support of his previous studio album, ''

'' (1980). The tour saw Oldfield perform with a group consisting of drummers/percussionists Mike Frye and Morris Pert, guitarist/bassist Rick Fenn, keyboardist Tim Cross, and vocalist Maggie Reilly. In the month following the tour, Oldfield started work on a follow-up at Tilehouse Studios, his home recording studio in Denham, Buckinghamshire. Recording took place between September 1981 and January 1982 with an Ampex ATR-124 24-track machine. The music was performed by Oldfield and his six-piece band with

Graham Broad Graham Broad (born 10 March 1957) is an English drummer who has been playing professionally since the age of fifteen, after attending the Royal College of Music in 1970. He is a former pupil of drumming educator Lloyd Ryan, who also taught Ph ...

on additional drums.

Songs

Side one

"Taurus II" occupies the entire first side of the album. At 24 minutes in length, it features a variety of melodies and instrumental settings. It features many familiar sounds from his earlier albums, such as uilleann pipes and female

chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song) or refrain, line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in which all verse ...

. The vocal section, called "The Deep Deep Sound", features themes from "Taurus I" from ''QE2''. The main theme from "Taurus I" is referenced once more in the following section. Oldfield's 1981 track "Royal Wedding Anthem", written and performed for the Wedding of Charles, Prince of Wales, and Lady Diana Spencer, also has similarities to "Taurus II".

Side two

" is a rock song that is credited to Oldfield, Cross, Fenn, Frye, Reilly, and Pert. The main guitar riff was devised by Fenn, from which Oldfield wrote the chorus and Reilly the verses with assistance from Cross. Hall & Oates covered the song in 1982 for their album ''H₂O'', with their version reaching No. 6 on the US pop charts and No. 15 in the UK. It thus became one of the very few songs penned by Oldfield to chart in the United States. "Orabidoo" is the second track credited to the group. It features vocals from Oldfield and Reilly through the use of a vocoder. The track opens with the theme to "Conflict" from ''QE2'' and closes with Reilly singing three verses about "

Ireland's Eye Ireland's Eye () is a small long-uninhabited island off the coast of County Dublin, Ireland. Situated directly north of Howth village and harbour, the island is easily reached by regular seasonal tourist boats, which both circumnavigate it an ...

" accompanied by acoustic guitar. A sample from the

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featur ...

film '' Young and Innocent'' (1937) is heard, specifically the moment where the conductor of a dance band criticises the drummer: "Don't come in again like that. It isn't funny and I pay someone else to make the orchestrations!" "Mount Teidi" is an instrumental named after

Mount Teide Teide, or Mount Teide, ( es, El Teide, Pico del Teide, , "Peak of Teide") is a volcano on Tenerife in the Canary Islands, Spain. Its summit (at ) is the highest point in Spain and the highest point above sea level in the islands of the Atlan ...

on Tenerife,

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; es, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are west of Morocc ...

and features drummer Carl Palmer. Oldfield recalled that some of the music was originally scribed on a sheet of cigarette rolling paper so that he would not forget the idea. " Five Miles Out" features vocals from Reilly and Oldfield, who sings through a vocoder. It was inspired by a near fatal flight that Oldfield had experienced from Barcelona to

San Sebastián San Sebastian, officially known as Donostia–San Sebastián (names in both local languages: ''Donostia'' () and ''San Sebastián'' ()) is a city and Municipalities of Spain, municipality located in the Basque Country (autonomous community), B ...

, where the inexperienced pilot received an incorrect weather forecast and flew through a thunderstorm. When it came to writing the lyrics, Oldfield visited a local pub, "lined up a few pints of Guinness", and wrote the words using a rhyming dictionary with the aeronautical terms he could think of as a basis. The song features the same guitar riff that appears at the beginning of "Taurus II".

Cover

The cover features a Lockheed Model 10 Electra aircraft, with similar markings to the one flown by

Amelia Earhart Amelia Mary Earhart ( , born July 24, 1897; disappeared July 2, 1937; declared dead January 5, 1939) was an American aviation pioneer and writer. Earhart was the first female aviator to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. She set many oth ...

in 1937. This is often mistaken for a Beechcraft Model 18 (a very similar aircraft) and is referred to in the lyrics of "Five Miles Out" ; "''lost in static, 18''" and "''automatic, 18''". The aeroplane has registration G-MOVJ, as also referenced in the lyrics (as "Golf Mike Oscar Victor Juliet"). The inner liner notes (originally the inner gatefold of the vinyl sleeve) feature the track sheet for "Taurus II", with the lyrics of "Five Miles Out" embedded within. The track sheet shows the layout of instruments on the 24 track tape.

Release and reception

''Five Miles Out'', the album, was more popular than Oldfield's previous few releases. It charted at No. 7 in the UK, whereas both ''

'' (1980) and '' Platinum'' (1979) had failed to reach the top twenty. Oldfield's commercial revival would continue with subsequent albums '' Crises'' (1983) and ''

Discovery Discovery may refer to: * Discovery (observation), observing or finding something unknown * Discovery (fiction), a character's learning something unknown * Discovery (law), a process in courts of law relating to evidence Discovery, The Discovery ...

'' (1984). The

was staged to promote the album. In September 2013, the album was reissued as a single CD, vinyl, and a special 2 CD and DVD Deluxe Edition with a new remaster by Oldfield. The Deluxe Edition contains additional videos, live tracks from the 1982 tour, and a 5.1 surround sound mix. The reissue reached No. 48 in Germany.

Track listing

Personnel

Music * Mike Oldfield – guitars, bass guitars, keyboards, percussion, Linn LM-1 drum machine, vocals, vocoder, Fairlight CMI *

– drums * Tim Cross – keyboards * Rick Fenn – guitar * Mike Frye – percussion * Maggie Reilly – vocals *

Paddy Moloney Paddy Moloney ( ga, Pádraig Ó Maoldomhnaigh; 1 August 1938 – 12 October 2021) was an Irish musician, composer, and record producer. He co-founded and led the Irish musical group the Chieftains, playing on all of their 44 albums. He was parti ...

– Uilleann pipes on "Taurus II" * Carl Palmer – drums on "Mount Teidi" * Morris Pert – percussion, keyboards, strings arrangement on "Five Miles Out" *

Martyn Ford Martyn Ford (born 28 April 1944) is an English musician, best known for his orchestral contributions to rock music albums of the 1970s and 1980s. Born in Rugby, Warwickshire,Lebanon, Ford was originally classically trained; he studied French hor ...

– conductor on "Five Miles Out" Production * Mike Oldfield – producer, engineer * Tom Newman – producer and engineer on "Five Miles Out" * Richard Mainwaring – engineer on "Mount Teidi" * Richard Barrie – technical assistant * Fin Costello – photographer * Gerald Coulson – cover artwork

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications and sales

References

External links

Mike Oldfield Discography – ''Five Miles Out''
at Tubular.net
Explanation of the radio message
in "Five Miles Out" {{Authority control Mike Oldfield albums 1982 albums Virgin Records albums