The Killing Fields (album)

The Killing Fields
Soundtrack album by Mike Oldfield
Released	26 November 1984 (1984-11-26)
Recorded	England, Germany & Switzerland 1984
Genre	World Music
Length	38:09
Label	Virgin
Producer	Mike Oldfield
Mike Oldfield chronology
Discovery (1984) The Killing Fields (1984) Islands (1987)
Singles from The Killing Fields
"Étude" Released: 26 November 1984

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The Killing Fields is the 10th record album by Mike Oldfield, released in 1984. It was the soundtrack album for the film of the same name and it is the only full score written by Oldfield. The music was orchestrated by David Bedford.

History

Though Oldfield's music had been used in films before (see The Exorcist and The Space Movie), this was the first time he had written specifically for film, and so far the only time. Oldfield composed the album on a Fairlight CMI.

Like many movies, the album is not a comprehensive record of all the Oldfield soundtrack music used in the film. Most notably, the music accompanying the darkroom sequence does not feature on the album. The single from the album, "Étude", is taken from the Francisco Tarrega piece "Recuerdos de la Alhambra".

Oldfield spent six months working on the score for The Killing Fields before going on tour, but when Oldfield returned the producers of the film asked for more music to be written, prompting Oldfield to ask for the use of an orchestra and a choir; three months later the score was finished. It was released just a few months after Oldfield's previous album, Discovery.

Track listing

All tracks written by Mike Oldfield, except where stated.

Side one

1. "Pran's Theme" – 0:44
2. "Requiem for a City" – 2:11
3. "Evacuation" – 5:14
4. "Pran's Theme 2" – 1:41
5. "Capture" – 2:24
6. "Execution" – 4:47
7. "Bad News" – 1:14
8. "Pran's Departure" – 2:08

Side two

1. "Worksite" – 1:16
2. "The Year Zero" – 0:28 (David Bedford)
3. "Blood Sucking" – 1:19
4. "The Year Zero 2" – 0:37
5. "Pran's Escape / The Killing Fields" – 3:17
6. "The Trek" – 2:02
7. "The Boy's Burial / Pran Sees the Red Cross" – 2:24
8. "Good News" – 1:46
9. "Étude" (Francisco Tárrega, arranged by Mike Oldfield) – 4:37

Personnel

• Mike Oldfield – guitars, synthesizers, Fairlight computer, producer, engineer
• Preston Heyman – oriental percussion
• Morris Pert – percussion
• Eberhard Schoener – conductor
• Bavarian State Orchestra
• Tölzer Boys Choir

External links

• Mike Oldfield Discography - The Killing Fields at Tubular.net