Five Miles Out


Five Miles Out is the seventh record album by English multi-instrumentalist and composer Mike Oldfield, released in 1982. It is one of the very few albums on which Oldfield sings lead vocals, as he is noted for not having any confidence in his voice's qualities. The album produced two singles.

Album analysis

The first track, "Taurus II", is a long-form piece with changing melodies and instrumental settings. It features many familiar sounds from his earlier albums, such as uilleann pipes and female chorus. During the vocal section the music quotes a theme from "Taurus I", a song from Oldfield's previous album, QE2. Immediately after the vocal section the main theme from "Taurus I" is also quoted. In 1981 Oldfield was commissioned to write and perform a piece for the Royal Wedding of Charles, Prince of Wales, and Lady Diana Spencer, titled "Royal Wedding Anthem"; the piece has similarities to "Taurus II" released the following year.
"Family Man" - with Maggie Reilly on vocals - was Oldfield's first real rock song. It was released as a single. 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 another long and changing tune. It features vocals sung by Oldfield and Reilly, both through a vocoder. At the end of the track, there is a song, "Ireland's Eye", sung by Reilly and accompanied by acoustic guitar. The beginning of the tune quotes "Conflict" from Oldfield's previous album, QE2. The song also features segments from "Taurus II" played in counterpoint and changing scales. At 9'12" there can be heard a sample from near the climax of Alfred Hitchcock's 1937 Young and Innocent, when 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 a shorter instrumental piece, named after Mount Teide, a mountain on the Spanish island of Tenerife which Oldfield has climbed. According to Oldfield some of the music for "Mount Teidi" was originally scribed on a sheet of cigarette rolling paper so that he would not forget the idea.
"Five Miles Out" was also released as a single. Despite being less than five minutes long, it has an unusually complex structure, with multiple vocal parts. The lyrics concern Oldfield's experience of a near-fatal aeroplane flight. Reilly sings with a clean voice while Oldfield uses a vocoder most of the time himself. The song features the same guitar riff that appears in the beginning of "Taurus II".
Five Miles Out, the album, was more popular than Oldfield's previous few releases. It charted at No. 7 in the UK, whereas both QE2 and Platinum had failed to reach the top twenty. Oldfield's commercial revival would continue with subsequent albums Crises and Discovery.
The album was recorded in Buckinghamshire in 1981 and 1982, and the Five Miles Out World Tour 1982 was in promotion of the album.

Album artwork

The cover of the album features a vintage Lockheed Model 10 Electra aircraft, with similar markings to the one flown by Amelia Earhart in 1937. This is often mistaken for a Beechcraft Model 18 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.
The inner liner notes 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 and indicates that it was recorded on an Ampex ATR-124 between September 1981 and January 1982.

Charts

The album peaked at No. 7 in the UK Album Chart and at No. 16 on Norway's album chart, staying there for 7 weeks.
ChartPosition

Certifications

Track listing

Side one

  1. "Taurus II" – 24:43

    Side two

  2. "Family Man" – 3:45
  3. "Orabidoo" – 13:03
  4. "Mount Teidi" – 4:10
  5. "Five Miles Out" – 4:16

    2013 re-issue

On 2 September 2013 Mercury Records reissued Five Miles Out, the same day as Crises. It is available as a single CD, vinyl and a 2CD/DVD Deluxe Edition. The vinyl also has a 500 copy limited edition on transparent yellow vinyl. The DVD contains video clips from the BBC's Six Fifty Five Special from 28 July 1982.
This reissue reached #48 in Germany's Media Control Charts in September 2013.
Track listing
Disc 1
  1. "Taurus II" – 24:45
  2. "Family Man" – 3:45
  3. "Orabidoo" – 13:03
  4. "Mount Teidi" – 4:10
  5. "Five Miles Out" – 4:22
  6. "Waldberg " – 3:27
  7. "Five Miles Out" – 4:10
Disc 2
; Live in Cologne, Germany – 6 December 1982 – Five Miles Out Tour
  1. "Tubular Bells Part One" – 23:12
  2. "Sheba" – 4:22
  3. "Mirage" – 5:37
  4. "Family Man" – 3:45
  5. "Taurus II" – 25:32
  6. "Mount Teidi" – 4:21
  7. "Five Miles Out" – 7:23
  8. "Guilty" – 5:38
Disc 3 - DVD
; 5.1 surround sound mix
  1. "Taurus II" – 24:45
  2. "Family Man" – 3:45
  3. "Orabidoo" – 13:03
  4. "Mount Teidi" – 4:10
  5. "Five Miles Out" – 4:22
; Videos
  1. "Five Miles Out" – 4:13
  2. "Mistake"
  3. "Five Miles Out"

    Personnel