Jean Michel Jarre - Oxygène 4 | The story behind the song | Top 2000 a gogo

Electronica pioneer Jean Michel Jarre tells the story behind the song 'Oxygène, Part 4). A short documentary by Top 2000 a gogo (Dutch Public TV) from 2016.

[@uncinarynin]

French musician speaking English with Dutch subtitles and I'm a German speaker: I love Europe! Regarding the cover, I remember my mother refused to buy me this album because it had a skull on the cover. I got Équinoxe instead which was fine as well ... but still different.

[@leiferiksson1785]

Equinoxe is not the same thing though, the special thing still with Oxygene is the organic sound (due to the hardware used), not digital sound. Oxygene is timeless!

[@hesperion2]

Oxygene is the wonderful beginning (of JMJ's career as a great electronic soloist), but Equinoxe for me has more sense of unity.

[@einarabelc5]

There's diversity and then there's diversionism.

[@debbiemoore2747]

The equinoxe album cover used to give me nightmares as a child lol

[@RegebroRepairs]

@@leiferiksson1785 "Oxygene is the organic sound (due to the hardware used), not digital sound." - There isn't a single digital synthesizer on Équinoxe.

[@isodoublet]

How on Earth is this man nearly 70 years old?

[@einarabelc5]

Good food.

[@davidlean1060]

He looks fantastic for his age. He doesn't look too worn and he isn't faking that energy and enthusiasm either.

[@grimlund]

Yeah. And probably moderatly intake of alcohol (unusual for wine drinking french people), no drugs and no smoking.

[@mpingo91]

He told a lil' bit about it. No rock'n'roll = no alcohol, no drugs. Only sex. :)

[@gyorgyt.2246]

listen to your music!

[@97channel]

Oxygene 4 is one of the absolute finest pieces of music ever produced, no question. Masterpiece.

[@catey62]

I have it on CD and its still one of my favourites I listen to a lot.

[@B1GDINO]

15

[@waver9932]

2nd Oxygéne is better. But 4th is easier, so I really enjoy playing it on Yamaha. But I can't modulate the sound :(

[@rbhall7ice]

to you

[@fablb9006]

The ret of the album still is much much better than oxygene 4, which is nice, but just a pop hit. The ret of the album is classical music

[@alombo67]

"the difference between noise and music is the hand of the musician". well said!

[@cJ-cr8gp]

Jean Michel Jarre you are the finest musician and instrumentalist of my generation. I salute you sir. A pure genius.

[@Fabi1701A]

I met jean Michel in 2018, he signed my oxygène cassette and the tape cover page that I got for my 10th birthday in 1976. I got 4 selfies with him. I will die with him in mind. I am now 54 and I listen to your music everyday.

[@yourfunnyuncle4784]

Jean-Michel Jarre rules! Oxygène is so iconic and timeless.

[@TheSSMusicChannel]

JMJ and Vangelis were the soundtrack to the 70's. 1976 was the start of the most experimental time ever in music and it was simply magic as we now know.

[@MrJuan310194]

He's almost 70 and he looks younger than me, I'm 24 XD

[@LFOVCF]

Get to bed earlier lol

[@Squab1972]

MrJuan310194 looks amazing for his age

[@Aetila]

Buy some analogue synths! :-)

[@aniltoofaneeram328]

Yes your right, he does look young for his age, probably it's in his oxy--Genes!

[@Sassenhaim]

Damn though 50 and no day older

[@rooismum1023]

When this starts it still sends shudders of anticipation down my spine, all these years later. A GENIUS.

[@josephwhirlwind6086]

Since Oxygene 4 came out in 1976 I was an instant fan of Jean-Michelle Jarre and of electronic music , I was 12 then and am 57 now , but still love this music !!

[@iestyndavies7287]

For anyone who grew up through the 80’s in the UK, Where there’s Life!

[@DJoA]

good old times; great tv-shows, music and the freedom...

[@iraklismoschonas5214]

Probably the only man who is entitled to hit an ARP 2600

[@harijsbelskis492]

lol!!!!

[@Renzsu]

I saw that and had to laugh knowing how many synth lovers would have a heart attack seeing that!

[@iraklismoschonas5214]

@@Renzsu True! But, what can you do, he's Jarre, so it's natural that he makes music out of anything. A musical genius!

[@Vim-Wolf]

I have to say I still cringed though. Mind you he can probably afford to buy one of the new ones now. Wonder if they do the same thing when you thump them ....

[@iraklismoschonas5214]

@@Vim-Wolf Don't know. I'd love to find out myself, but I don't have that kind of cash 😂 (just kidding, I'd never hit an ARP 2600, old or new). Maybe the new ones do not possess the same analog "quality" as the old ones to make sounds when you hit them.

[@YourreelmemoriesAu]

A true musical pioneer. He brought electronic music to the masses over 40 years ago and it still sounds fantastic. I was transfixed when I heard Oxygene part 4 on the radio in 1976 at the age of 10 and have been a fan of the genre ever since. Timeless!

[@nomebear]

Jean Michel Jarre's Rendezvous Houston was an opportunity in a lifetime to see a master at the top of his game. I will die complete because of it.

[@victoria7t]

Was it just the best! I was there as well. Just amazing!

[@johnp4100]

This album is a MASTERPIECE!

[@tramlad2]

The man is a genius, for all us keyboard music lovers he is in the top 3 , so many great albums, lovely played really loud especially on a 12 inch vinyl , bliss, his live concerts are a thing of beauty, the music, the light show, and the fans, brilliant, still love it, i bet Jan Hammer is a fan

[@pythagorasaurusrex9853]

Still watching this in 2020. JMJ Oxygene was one of my first records I bought when I was a teen. Binge-listened to it over and over and never got bored... still today. One of the best sounds ever created. And all that on (mostly?) analogue synthezisers.

[@rattus3102]

One of my first records too! 😀 And i still love this music today. 🥰

[@Shred_The_Weapon]

“Oxygene 4” is still ahead of its time, even though Jean-Michel composed it in the 70s and assembled it with equipment (some of) which was already considered out of date.

[@PrinceWesterburg]

Still inspiring me 4.5 decades on!

[@Swiatlocien]

Now I have double respect for Mr. Jarre. Not only is he a great composer, but he also is a Frenchman who speaks English when necessary. That doesn't happen often.

[@SpaceCattttt]

I've never heard a Frenchman speak English this well. Never.

[@mrebholz]

@@SpaceCattttt His father lived in California for ages.

[@SpaceCattttt]

@@mrebholz But that's his father...

[@kumasuke1]

His music is timeless, its no wonder he looks so youthful

[@synewparadigm]

No red wine is the best anti oxidant!

[@Renzsu]

Slamming a classic ARP like it's grandma's old TV. Brilliant :D

[@mrebholz]

It hurts though.

[@robbinhasseltof4428]

mrebholz lucky behringer brings out a cheap replacement haha

[@MichaelCoombes776]

And Korg as well - you wait years for an ARP 2600 reissue and then 2 come along at once!

[@jeshkam]

My first CD I ever bought was Oxygene, around 1995...I was 16 and was extremely happy with my purchase even though I've had spent 3 months worth of my pocket money...

[@annother3350]

Thee months of pocket money?! At 16 you were getting about a,pound a week?!

[@patrickhawthorneLS]

People always think of oxgen as space music but i never ever felt that it had anything to do with space,for me its extremely organic and "human' .. it takes my mind back conception,the time in the womb and the strong heart beat,the long struggle down the canal and on to my first breathe in bright white light on this planet. I think this track describes human life

[@mrebholz]

It does.

[@gnoldi]

For me it's space, technology and aliens.

[@optiTHOMAS]

I love all of the early 60s and 70's electronic music! Jean Jacque Perry, Jean Michel Jarre, and Gerson Kingsley are all early electronic legends! such cool stuff! most of it sounds timeless and was truly made ahead of its time!

[@SandsOfArrakis]

May I add Vangelis and Kraftwerk to your list? :)

[@optiTHOMAS]

@@SandsOfArrakis oh yeah, sure! I'll check em out! 😁👍🏻

[@swifty1969]

and to think he's 69 years old. He looks at most 55. Talking about good genes.

[@missFindlesticks]

He gets better looking with age

[@norwedish01]

ofcourse a hairtransplant also helps XD

[@missFindlesticks]

Remco Bruijn spoiler!! He still looks good 😘

[@vocalpro]

That said, who knows when he was interviewed? He might have been 55. :)

[@electronash]

Good Oxy-genes, you mean?

[@cybertaiga9534]

Good documentary. Jean Michel Jarre's live shows are legendary!

[@xheralt]

Oxygene IV was the first JMJ song I ever heard, at a university dance performance in 1984. Blew me away. I was instantly hooked.

[@maxjones5705]

This guy is a legend and yet most people probably don’t know his name.

[@uv77mc85]

everybody knew his name in the 80s. He was massive. His concerts were national events in whichever country he played. I remember he did the docklands in london. That must have been the biggest concert that year

[@carlheinz6699]

This LP was one of the first that I could buy with my first earned money! Still have it today, after 44 years...........

[@namparason]

1976 the same year Star Wars was being made - it was the Fist CD I heard & it blew my mind & I was destined to become a dj & now I’ve played all around the world ... love this album.

[@vahidmirkhani]

His father and him are legends. Thank you for your contributions to music, maestros Jarre.

[@davidforman6191]

Who was his father?

[@phillip5245]

@@davidforman6191 Maurice Jarre. composer that scored the "Lawrence of Arabia" soundtrack (amongst others).

[@davidforman6191]

@@phillip5245 did not know. Thanks

[@rabit818]

Hours of tripping the this music and looking at the cover art.

[@michaelmcelroy6895]

My musical hero of all time. It's mind blowing that he produced this Oxygene masterpiece in the '70s

[@yolloy2372]

He is the most honest genius ever born.

[@SeverityOne]

I have that original LP! And the CD. And the pre-recorded MiniDisc. And about all original albums, plus a couple of bootlegs, visited three concerts, and have a couple of synths myself, and it's all because of this man.

[@soupdragonuk]

Absolutely love Jarre and his music. I even introduced him to my cousin. I think from the early 90's on to today I've bought every single remaster version released in the UK. But Oxygene is sheer brilliance.

[@iammatrix1396]

74 years WoW still looks like teenager

[@Slarti]

I grew up listening to Jean Michelle Jarre's music in the 80's. I would listen to Rendez Vous, Zoolook and the other albums while I was away from home at boarding school. I particularly liked the Zoolok album. I now listen to The Art Of Fugue and The Well-tempered Clavier by J.S. Bach and think that my musical tastes were very much formed by the like of Jarre(and strangely enough Metallica).

[@TheJiminiflix]

I would listen to Oxygene nearly every day while working. .never get sick of it.

[@nigelcarren]

I love that synth... if you get bored composing, simple... Play ten minutes of counter battleship!!! 😂 BRAVO, I started building oscillators just after hearing this back in the day. I would say this the guy who first opened my ears. BRAVO... a true pioneer. 🎹🏆 Maintenance parce-que je suis en france, peut-etre un cafe ave moi Jean Michelle Jarre... je jeux payer!! Un cafe ave mon hero.

[@nigelcarren]

Computer Battleship not Counter

[@jean-yvesmartin6934]

I saw his show at the London docks in 1988 under a heavy rain. despite the risk involved He / They played and it was awesome

[@jasonritchie8475]

I was there too. Shame that they couldn't turn all of the instruments on for fear of electric shocks! And it was so cold that Hank Marvin of The Shadows had to mime his guitar parts, whilst wearing fingerless gloves! Not the musicians fault, of course. This was meant to be a summer concert but the GLC had become such boring, beurocratic monsters that they ruined the spectacle

[@paulmasters8666]

I started with Jean Michel Jarre, Vangelis and AIR and i was hooked, the Orb, Moby, Orbital, Prodigy, Daft Punk, Royksopp and many more...

[@ruaridhcurrie110]

Amazing interview, brings back such incredible memories from my childhood

[@Gamble4-26]

It's truly wonderful to watch this interview.

[@user-lz5kp5qg8g]

The piece, Oxygene 4, specifically was what first introduced me to JMJ back in 89. I was sorry for all the years I had missed prior, not knowing who this amazing man was.

[@AgeofMachines]

Loved this song for 25 years.... Gets me ready for night work. All the unsung hours flying by perfecting my craft. Fond memories. I agree with his view of electronic music being more organic and orgasmic and not cold at all.

[@01stum]

Takes me straight back to air shows in the 80’s, as it was always played when Concorde flew over. Brilliant

[@rightuppercut1426]

Beautiful and a bit mysterious song. Haunting even. Still love it after all these years. Brings back memories to my early childhood.

[@donaldpriola1807]

He seems so kind , and insightful in every interview.

[@beller8501]

I love the creative process, these ideas come from the universe

[@dennisschenning1388]

Ik vind het duistere aspekt van elektronische muziek just geweldig. Zonnebril op, handen in je zaken en gaan met die banana. 😎

[@dazzyd1964]

a classic of my childhood!

[@SuperDiddzz]

you sir are a genius, my friends and i were blown away and i still am! evokes more emotion in me than most music i have ever heard. COLD EMOTIONLESS MUSIC, that's people without any soul talking!

[@stevebatty2518]

Just amazing what he created. Wish I had the talent of his little finger. ❤️JMJ

[@oddities-whatnot]

I wore the cassette tape of this out I think. Brilliant album.

[@12qwertyuiop90]

Me too!

[@RTK171]

A pure genius a fore father and he is spot on about electronic music

[@GoodMrDawes]

Pairing this with Gallipoli was Brilliance

[@davidmillins]

I was wrong. There is an afterlife. It will consist of sitting at a table outside a European café in early Summer, with a cup of coffee, and Jean Michel Jarre, talking about 70s analogue synths, Berlin-school music, and the Smallstone phaser. Maybe one or two of Les Six will be there. Maybe even M. Satie himself. This is why I get up in the mornrng.

[@federicogamboafrausto8796]

My fav electronic song, Oxigene 4! Blessings from México.

[@AvithOrtega]

De mis favoritas también!

[@fokaolsen]

Thank you for the report, great stuff.

[@Bitfreakie]

Mooie reportage!

[@stretchhfab7315]

So out of the box thinking it’s just awesomeness, pure awesomeness. That’s art

[@tangerine825]

Oxygenius Of Electronic Music ! Poland Love JMJ ;-)

[@Naughtybaz]

Saw him at docklands, he was brilliant.

[@bramvdworp2388]

Jean michel jarre is the hero of electronic music. I love all his albums.

[@paulmcdonough1093]

o m d are the best really

[@Dawnseeker2000]

He is a genius and is absolutely the king of progressive electronic music.

[@kerryknight4612]

As much as I love his music, and I do. I have to disagree with you. Sorry mate but he is not Vangelis... I grew up with this music, from Vangelis to Jarre to Kraftwerk to Garry Numan. I loved them all but the big V was and is number1.

[@ErelfBow]

He looks sooo young. So happy to see the one of the pioneers of synth experimental music très jeune :)

[@pablov1973]

I still have my original vinyl of Oxygene, yes, it have some clicks and pops, but it´s so enjoyable in that format, much better than the CD edition.

[@SpaceCattttt]

I have the original cassette version. It's horrible.

[@SvenTviking]

To clean a vinyl record, get PVA woodworking glue. Spread it evenly over the grooved surface out to the edges, fairly thickly and leave to dry. When completely set, pick at an edge with your fingernail until it lifts off the record in one sheet, taking all the dirt with it. Repeat with the other side, you will be amazed.

[@joselares9031]

YEAH...¡¡¡ Stunning sound...

[@crickella]

Legendary! Timeless song.

[@Unklechopchop]

my favourite Jean Michel jarre compositions

[@Arfabiscuit]

Rendevouz Houston best concert i have ever been to .

[@HanVZulu]

Best album of all time.

[@eyesopen66]

One of the greatest most awe inspiring pieces of music ever? Watch the sun rise with a loved one, listening to this? It inspires AWE! It's Awe inspiring

[@staytoobrenner3982]

GENIUS.

[@ZaydDepaor]

he looks good...and very insightful commentary on the nature of his work, I had a whole bunch of his albums on CDs but got rid of all my music.

[@marguskiis7711]

How I love the evil cleverness of Jarre. He recorded the Oxygen with cheap and second hand instruments but made everybody believe his stuff if state of art and very expensive.

[@syntheticvisionsmusic]

Arp2600 or mellotron wouldn't have been cheap.

[@RegebroRepairs]

@@syntheticvisionsmusic No, but I for many years thought he was using only state of the art amazing synthesizers, and in fact some of my favourite sounds from Oxygene turn out to be an organ and a cheap rhythm machine. :-)

[@synthetic24]

At the time of Oxygene all those instruments where very expensive. Not cheap at all.

[@RegebroRepairs]

@@synthetic24 The Korg Minipops was a budget series of drum machines, and the Eminent 310 was an organ aimed at the home market. They certainly wasn't very expensive for the time. But he also used a Mellotron, and they certainly was expensive. I don't know how much an ARP or a EMS cost back then.

[@synthetic24]

@@RegebroRepairs Don't know about the minipops 7 but the original price in 1973 of the Eminent 310 was around 2000 euro, that was a lot of money back then. This is the original pricelist from Eminent: docs.google.com/file/d/0B9gdWYH0CWGdajhnOTc1R2RTSXc/edit

[@mcfcguvnors]

i had the 2 albums on a long play tape,used to just lie in bed with the missis n listen it was amazing music n still stands the test of time

[@scottphillips7108]

If I had my own radio show this would be the lead intro, commercial break, and outro tune... To be honest I'm surprised George Noory [Coast to Coast AM] never grabbed it up for his long time running radio show... For his type topic discussion this song would fit like a hit...

[@flipshroomz9379]

Oxygen part 2 blew my mind as a 9 year old... still does!!

[@benji.B-side]

“We don't make mistakes, just happy little accidents.”

[@gyorgyt.2246]

Happy birthday J.M.J. :D

[@Sartori1970]

Spookily I have just listened to this album while doing the dishes

[@isanvicente1974]

my first vynil i was a child, i kept asking my mum to buy me the album, oxygene is a master piece, i remember the first time i played it, it brought me to a new dimension, nowadays i see that the synths are returning wihch is very good, but i still like the sound of analog synths is like art...

[@allisonhunter2940]

Takes me back to youth, before it's time! How young looking is he!!!!???🤔😊

[@willfomes406]

This dude is my hero

[@starastronomer]

MASTERPIECE...

[@n3r0n3]

I always thought it was incredible how this guy could reach the charts when most krautrock is still niche... I am also thinking White Noise in the 60s... some incredible Italian synth prog in the early 70s... but I guess this is how life goes, people that are truly ahead of their time never make it!

[@roucoupse]

I'm 92 and I look older. Unbelievable.

[@mikehydropneumatic2583]

Everybody needs Oxygene.

[@mantriccaravan8228]

Simply brilliant Frenchman!

[@srico7313]

Electronic music is a far superior music made for and by a far superior people.

[@basalbers3900]

I can listen for hours to this man, to bad it is so short here

[@franconero585]

EXTRAORDINARY ARTIST!!

[@liamobrien5738]

OXYGENE IS GREAT,,,JARRE IS GREAT,,,SYNTHS ARE GREAT...

[@curriehot]

To me JMJ is a music god

[@ant1georgiou]

Always good to see Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen helping the stars with their room designs

[@ChaosNetworx]

Trancendant sound that traverses time and space which is as fresh today as it was when it was first recorded