Oxygene 3

The third chapter of Oxygène started by accident.

Two years before its release, during the Electronica sessions, Jarre recorded a piece that set him thinking about what the original album would be if he were writing it now. That piece became "Oxygene 19".

He then used the 40th anniversary of the first album as a deadline, and imposed the original constraint on himself: six weeks, start to finish, recorded in one go. Partly to see whether he still could, and partly — by his own account — to avoid spending too long deciding whether it was a good idea at all.

The aim was never to copy the 1976 record. What carried over was its dogma: take the listener on a journey from beginning to end, in distinct chapters, each connected to the next. The tracks continue the original numbering, picking up at Part 14 where Oxygène 7-13 left off, and run to Part 20.

Released 2 December 2016, forty years to the day after the original. Led by the single "Oxygène (Part 17)". Running time 39:54 — close enough to the first album's length to be a decision rather than a coincidence.