From The Guardian.
‘Hi-fi shops played it as an example of state-of-the-art music. I didn’t tell them I made it with Sellotape in my kitchen’
Jean-Michel Jarre, musician, composer
I played in rock bands as a teenager and would use a tape machine my grandfather gave me to get processed sounds out of my guitar. During the French student uprisings of 1968, this felt like a way of being rebellious. I loved it when people said: “What is this crap?” But by the mid-70s, I wanted to bridge the gap between experimental music and pop.
I had done production work for some rock artists, earning enough to set up a studio in my kitchen. I didn’t have much equipment, though, just a few guitar pedals and my first synthesiser, an EMS VCS3, which looked like a telephone exchange. I realised that using a Revox tape machine to delay the sound that came out of one loudspeaker created a huge sense of space.
With so little to work with, I had to be creative. My old Mellotron had only a few working keys, but I still managed to write Oxygène (Part II) on it. My primitive drum machine – a Korg Mini Pops – was the sort of thing people played in pubs, but by using Sellotape I could make it play two preset rhythms at the same time, creating cool beats. Part IV, which became iconic, was a mixture of “slow rock” and “rock” , while Part VI combined “rumba” and “bossa nova”.
Nobody knew about synthesisers back then. When I first heard Kraftwerk’s Autobahn, I thought they were a Californian band trying to imitate the Beach Boys. But I still saw Autobahn as a pop song with vocals – and I was into electronic music with no singing. Somehow, I wanted to link it all with nature and environmental issues. Then in an art gallery one day, I saw a painting of the Earth peeling away to reveal a skull and thought: “That’s the album cover!”
For the full article, please see The Guardian website.
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- Jean-Michel Jarre - The Concerts In China - EX - UK - 2-LP vinyl set - £15.00, $18.75, €17.55 (New Item) (arrived 03-May-2024 12:05)
JEAN-MICHEL JARRE The Concerts In China (1982 UK 15-track double LP, recorded live during five concerts in Peking & Shanghai, the first performances of rock or contemporary music ever given in the People's Republic of China; includes forty minutes ofthen-new material, gatefold picture sleeve with illustrated inners. The sleeve is Excellent with some edge scuffing and a small top split due to vinyl shift whilst the discs remains in Excellent condition PODV3)
- Jean-Michel Jarre - Equinoxe - EX - UK - vinyl LP - £10.00, $12.50, €11.70 (New Item) (arrived 03-May-2024 11:27)
JEAN-MICHEL JARRE Equinoxe (1978 UK 8-track LP, featuring Parts One through to Eight of the classic title composition. The fully laminated picture sleeve shows just a little light shelfwear & the vinyl remains in Excellent condition POLD5007)
- Jean-Michel Jarre - Zoolook - UK - vinyl LP - £15.00, $18.75, €17.55 (New Item) (arrived 03-May-2024 11:20)
JEAN-MICHEL JARRE Zoolook (1984 UK 7-track vinyl LP with picture labels, the fourth overall mainstream studio album from the French composer, guest starring Laurie Anderson & Adrian Belew. The glossy picture sleeve shows a little shelfwear & the vinyl is clean & in Excellent condition POLH15)
- Jean-Michel Jarre - Oxygene - 1st - UK - vinyl LP - £15.00, $18.75, €17.55 (New Item) (arrived 01-May-2024 12:47)
JEAN-MICHEL JARRE Oxygene (1977 UK first press 6-track vinyl LP, the mainstream breakthrough for the French electronic instrumentalist / composer, containing the first six movements to the Oxygene piece [the sequel was released in 1997], housed in a fully laminated picture sleeve. The sleeve shows minimal wear and the vinyl appears barely played)
- Jean-Michel Jarre - The Concerts In China - Complete - Stickered - UK - 2-LP vinyl set - £30.00, $37.50, €35.10 (New Item) (arrived 27-Apr-2024 10:41)
JEAN-MICHEL JARRE The Concerts In China (1982 UK 15-track double LP, recorded live during five concerts presented in Peking & Shanghai, the first performances of rock or contemporary music ever given in the People's Republic of China, including forty minutes of then-new material, complete with illustrated tracklisting inners, hype stickered gatefold picture sleeve & rare merchandise insert. The cover shows a little mild scuffing & ring wear, the flyer has a few creases and both vinyl discs appear near 'as new' PODV3)
- Jean-Michel Jarre - Oxygene - 2nd - EX - UK - vinyl LP - £10.00, $12.50, €11.70 (New Item) (arrived 22-Apr-2024 11:24)
JEAN MICHEL JARRE Oxygene (1977 UK 6-track vinyl LP, glossy picture sleeve. The sleeve shows some mild shelfwear & the vinyl remains in excellent condition with very little play)
- Jean-Michel Jarre - Oxygene - 3rd - UK - vinyl LP - £10.00, $12.50, €11.70 (New Item) (arrived 19-Apr-2024 08:53)
JEAN-MICHEL JARRE Oxygene (1980s UK Dreyfus issue of the 1977 UK 6-track vinyl LP - the mainstream breakthrough for the now-iconic French electronic instrumentalist/composer, containing the first six movements to the Oxygene piece. Certainly amust have for any electro fans... this is where it all began! unique glossy picture sleeve with picture variant on the reverse. The sleeve shows light wear with a small area of paper loss to the reverse & the vinyl looks barely played)
- Jean-Michel Jarre - The Essential Jean Michel Jarre - UK - vinyl LP - £10.00, $12.50, €11.70 (New Item) (arrived 10-Apr-2024 14:55)
JEAN-MICHEL JARRE The Essential Jean Michel Jarre (1983 UK 14-track compilation LP featuring a collection of his much loved recordings, picture sleeve. The sleeve shows just a little light shelfwear & the vinyl remains in Excellent condition with few signs of play PROLP3)
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