In an interview with CNN Money, Richard Branson tells how Mike Oldfield’s “Tubular Bells” laid the foundation for his vast commercial empire. “I went to seven record companies, and none of them would put Tubular Bells out. So I formed a little record company on my own,” Branson said.
Via CNN:
“Branson’s first business was a magazine for young people called Student. He was 15 when he started it, and dropped out of school to talk to people around the world and learn about what was happening.
“I felt that I could get out and start creating things that would make a difference in the world,” he said.
To support the magazine, Branson started selling records by mail. Ultimately, the magazine failed. But the mail-order record business turned into something huge: Virgin Records.”
“It [Tubular Bells] sold millions and millions of albums,” Branson recalled.
After Oldfield, Branson kept signing “bands that nobody else would sign,” including The Rolling Stones, Sex Pistols and Janet Jackson.
See the complete interview with Richard Branson here.
If you want to learn more about Tubular Bells and the fascinating story behind it, check out this post The Making of Mike Oldfield’s Tubular Bells here on New Age Music Guide!
Who said New Age music couldn’t change the world? 🙂