To France

"To France" is a single by musician Mike Oldfield, released in 1984. It is from the album Discovery and features Maggie Reilly on vocals.

"To France"
Single by Mike Oldfield
from the album Discovery
B-side
  • "In the Pool"
  • "Bones"
Released16 June 1984 (1984-06-16)
Format7", 12" vinyl
Recorded"In the Swiss Alps at 2,000 metres within sight of Lake Geneva on sunny days"[1]
GenreEuropop, rock
Length4:33
LabelVirgin
Songwriter(s)Mike Oldfield
Producer(s)Mike Oldfield
Simon Phillips
Mike Oldfield singles chronology
"Crime of Passion"
(1984)		 "To France"
(1984)		 "Tricks of the Light"
(1984)

The musical theme used in "To France" was also used on the first track on side two of the Discovery album, "Talk About Your Life". It references Mary, Queen of Scots, in its chorus. The B-sides for the single are the non-album tracks "In the Pool" and "Bones".[2] The B-sides later re-appeared on the re-issue of the "Moonlight Shadow" single in 1993.

The music video that appears on the Elements – The Best of Mike Oldfield video for "To France" is a mock-live performance of the song. Oldfield plays a Fender Stratocaster in the video.

Track listing
7" Single
  1. "To France" (4.33)
  2. "In the Pool" (3.40)
12" Single
  1. "To France" (extended version) (5:32)
  2. "In the Pool" (3:40)
  3. "Bones" (3:19)

Charts

The song reached the top 10 in a number of countries in 1984 and topped the French charts for one week in October 1984.

Chart (1984) Peak
position
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[3] 9
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[4] 2
France (SNEP)[5] 23
Germany (Official German Charts)[6] 6
Italy (FIMI)[7] 12
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[8] 3
Spanish Singles Chart 3
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[9] 7
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[10] 48

Year-End Chart
Chart (1984) Peak
position
Spanish Singles Chart 17
Belgian VRT Top 30 33
Dutch Singles Chart 37
German Media Control Charts 37
Italian Singles Chart 56

Maggie Reilly version
"To France"
Single by Maggie Reilly
from the album Elena
Released1 March 1997
FormatCD
Recorded1996
GenreFolk pop
Length5:09
LabelEMI
Songwriter(s)Mike Oldfield
Producer(s)Nick Patrick
Maggie Reilly singles chronology
"Walk on By (The Mixes)"
(1996)		 "To France"
(1997)		 "Listen to Your Heart (The Mixes)"
(1997)

In 1996, Maggie Reilly re-recorded "To France" on her solo album Elena, and in 2009 she recorded another version of the song for her album Looking Back Moving Forward. Compared to the original, this version is significantly Pop-heavy. Maggie Reilly released their version under her initials M. R.

Track listing
Maxi-CD
  1. "To France" (JPO & Beam Video Mix) 3:46
  2. "To France" (Intro) 1:08
  3. "To France" (JPO & Beam Spanish Dream Mix) 5:50
  4. "To France" (JPO & Beam Club Mix) 8:03
  5. ""To France" (Espirito Remix) 6:40
  6. "Mike Oldfield & Maggie Reilly - "To France" (Radio Edit) 3:34
Part II - CD-Maxi
  1. "To France" (DJ Beam's Radio Mix) 3:54
  2. "To France" (De Donatis Remix) 6:16
  3. "To France" (DJ Beam's Club Mix) 6:29

Charts
Chart (1997) Peak
position
German Singles Chart 19
Austria Singles Chart 17
Swiss Singles Chart[11] 22
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40) 53

Kim Wilde version
"To France"
Single by Kim Wilde
from the album Snapshots
Released2 December 2011
FormatDigital download
Recorded2011
GenrePop rock
Length3:59
LabelColumbia SevenOne
Songwriter(s)Mike Oldfield
Producer(s)Andrew Murray
Ricky Wilde
Kim Wilde singles chronology
"It's Alright" / "Sleeping Satellite"
(2011)		 "To France"
(2011)		 "Ever Fallen in Love"
(2012)

"To France" is the second single to be released from Kim Wilde's twelfth studio album Snapshots. It was released digitally on 2 December 2011. Included on the single is a Christmas remix of the song as well as an exclusive remix of "It's Alright" by German Euro-dance band Groove Coverage.

Track listing
  1. "To France" (Christmas edit) – 3:56
  2. "To France" – 3:59
  3. "It's Alright" (Groove Coverage remix edit) – 2:55
  4. "It's Alright" (Groove Coverage remix) – 4:26

Other cover versions
  • In 1996, Blind Guardian released a Power metal cover of "To France" on their album The Forgotten Tales.
  • In 1998, Yamboo used parts from the song in their song "Come With Me".
  • In 1997, Marina Kapuro recorded a Russian version, called "Маленький остров" ("little island").[12]
  • In 2002, Novaspace released a cover of "To France" as a single.
  • In 2002, Hungarian pop group Crystal released a Hungarian language version called "Itt megtalálsz"
  • In 2004, Under:Cover released a trance cover version.
  • In 2006, The Highstreet Allstars released a jumpstyle cover version.
  • In 2008, Alien Market released a house cover version.
  • In 2008, Liz Kay released a techno cover version called "To France 2008".
  • In 2009, E-Mine vs. Disco Punks released a commercial dance remix bundle digitally.
  • In 2010, Brisby & Jingles released an electro house cover version as a digital single.
  • In 2011, Leaves' Eyes released a cover of "To France" on their album Meredead.
  • In 2011, French singer Nolwenn Leroy covered the song on the re-issue of her album Bretonne.
  • In 2015, The German Band Santiano released a cover version called "Lieder der Freiheit" (Songs of freedom).

References
  1. "Mike Oldfield Discography - Discovery". Tubular.net. Retrieved 24 December 2015.
  2. "Singles". Amadian. Retrieved 2010-06-08.
  3. "Austriancharts.at – Mike Oldfield & Maggie Reilly – To France" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 2013-04-08.
  4. "Ultratop.be – Mike Oldfield & Maggie Reilly – To France" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 2013-04-08.
  5. "Lescharts.com – Mike Oldfield & Maggie Reilly – To France" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 2013-04-08.
  6. "Musicline.de – Mike Oldfield & Maggie Reilly Single-Chartverfolgung" (in German). Media Control Charts. PhonoNet GmbH. Retrieved 2013-04-08.
  7. "Hit Parade Italia - Indice per Interprete: O". www.hitparadeitalia.it. Retrieved 21 April 2018.
  8. "Nederlandse Top 40 – Mike Oldfield & Maggie Reilly" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 2013-04-08.
  9. "Swisscharts.com – Mike Oldfield & Maggie Reilly – To France". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 2013-04-08.
  10. "Mike Oldfield & Maggie Reilly: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2013-04-08.
  11. hitparade.ch
  12. Marina Kapuro - "Маленький остров" on YouTube
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