1984: Электронные вариации Энтони Филлипса

1984 is the sixth studio album by English musician and composer Anthony Phillips, released in June 1981 on RCA Records. The album marks a change in musical style for Phillips as it is synthesiser oriented compared to most of his previous albums which focused on more folk and acoustic music. After the music had been recorded, Phillips named the album after George Orwell's dystopian novel Nineteen Eighty Four (1949).

In June 1980, at the time of the release of Private Parts & Pieces II: Back to the Pavilion, the second in his Private Parts & Pieces album series, Phillips was still under contract with the US based independent label Passport Records but without one in the UK as his deal with Arista Records had come to an end with the release of Sides in 1979. He wished to incorporate a rhythm throughout in an effort to avoid the composition having a "background music" feel,

1984 was recorded from 14 August 1980 to January 1981 at Send Barns, Phillips's recording facility set up at his parents’ house in Woking, Surrey. It was put down on 8 track Ampex tape. with assistance from Phillips's friend Richard Scott, who is credited in the liner notes for helping with production and engineering. Scott also listened to rough mixes of the tracks that Phillips had completed for feedback. The keyboards were recorded after, and the basic tracks had been put to tape by January 1981. Alan Coulthard gave a positive review of the "Prelude '84" single in Record Mirror, writing: "It's about time that the ex Genesis guitarist received the attention his undoubted talent warrants, and this release is surely the one to bring him to a wider audience". He went on to describe the track's "powerful" and "moody, spherical tones" which he could appreciate out of context to the rest of the album or the novel itself. In the US, Joan Tortorici Ruppert wrote a positive review in the Illinois Entertainer. She thought that despite being a "compact instrumental story", the album avoids falling into "any of the normal traps" and displays Phillips's "keyboard savvy" which results in a "lean and tidy effort". Ruppert continued: "'1984' moves from 'Prelude' to 'Anthem' without excessive drama; the themes don't make themselves particularly obvious. But you do travel from an energetic, mechanized, non frantic ambience to a slow, emotionally thick resolution, a peaceful, yet somehow melancholy shift during the last few moments". She wondered what Phillips had in mind while writing the piece, but such "mystery adds much to the enjoyment". In a review published in Boston Rock, reviewer Marc English commented on the flow of the album, that "Basic themes are embellished and then transposed into other forms causing the album to literally flow from beginning to end". He noted the music is "far from Orwellian", it is "sprightly, almost happy music". English concluded that 1984 was perhaps meant to be more optimistic in nature with electronic instruments of the day, which he then wrote: "Sounds good to me". Jim Aikin for Keyboard magazine praised the "solid" album which he thought displayed elements of "the quasi orchestral Genesis mold", with "highly dramatic riffs" and "consistently excellent and sometimes spectacular" orchestration which maintains the listener's interest. Aikin suggested 1984 could have been named "something more original". The Las Vegas Sun published a review from Dennishee Askew, who recognised Phillips's exploration outside the boundaries of progressive rock music. She praised "some brilliant ensemble movements that blend in and out of subtle melodies" and the "crispy produced" music, "arranged in a fashion that takes the monotony out of their long journey from beginning to end". Ron Kress hailed 1984 in the Princetown Spectrum, pointing out that Phillips had undergone a change in musical direction, abandoning "the path of his initial five albums and journeys into percussive, electronic fantasy". He thought the album creates a "pseudo cinematic effect", and rated it "the best electronic album to date".

In July 2007, a remastered 2 disc version of 1984 was released in Japan by Arcangelo Records with a limited edition mini vinyl sleeve. A standard jewel case version was released by Voiceprint Records in June 2008. Both releases contained a bonus disc with a new stereo mix from the original 8 track masters. Dann had the original reels sent to FX in Acton, London for processing where they were baked and transferred onto digital format where a new mix was constructed. The set also contains music Phillips recorded for the 1981 UK television series Rule Britannia: Pictures of a People Like Us which was recorded at the same time as 1984; "Ascension", a track rediscovered on the original multi track tapes during the research for the reissue; and the 16 minute demo of "Poly Piece", originally written for inclusion on Sides and considered for inclusion for 1984 in the formative stages of the album. It contains a booklet with extensive liner notes by Jonathan Dann. On 24 June 2016, Esoteric Recordings released a 3 disc Deluxe Edition of 1984 with new stereo and 5.1 surround sound mixes, the latter on DVD, plus a disc of the bonus tracks included in the 2007 reissue. Also included is a poster and a 16 page booklet with photos and Dann's essay.