The Definitive 1000 Songs Of All Time 1955 to 2005: Number 965

Friday, August 04, 2006

Number 965 - Jethro Tull

Number 965

Jethro Tull

"Aqualung"

(1971)
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Genre:Rock

I always remember Jethro affectionately as "The pipe blowing old codger hippy dude"
I wonder how many of Generation "Y" actually know who he is?

"Released at a time when a lot of bands were embracing pop-Christianity (Ã la Jesus Christ Superstar) Aqualung was a bold statement for a rock group, a pro-God antichurch tract that probably got lots of teenagers wrestling with these ideas for the first time in their lives."

"Mixing hard rock and folk melodies with Ian Anderson's dour musings on faith and religion (mostly how organized religion had restricted man's relationship with God), the record was extremely profound for a number seven chart hit, one of the most cerebral albums ever to reach millions of rock listeners"

Jethro Tull is probably more recognised for the song "Thick as a Brick" from 1972, I would have included in this list but it was a staggering 22 minutes long!

What does Rolling Sone think of Jethro Tull?

Named for no apparent reason after an 18th-century British agronomist who invented the machine drill for sowing seed, Jethro Tull has been one of the most commercially successful and eccentric progressive-rock bands. In 1987, two decades after its founding, Jethro Tull won a Grammy for Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance, Vocal or Instrumental, for Crest of a Knave.

By far the band’s most successful record in the United States, Aqualung (#7, 1971) was an antichurch/pro-God concept album, which eventually sold over 5 million copies worldwide, yielding FM standards like “Cross-Eyed Mary,” “Hymn 43,” and “Locomotive Breath.” Then Bunker left to form the abortive Jude with ex–Procol Harum Robin Trower, ex–Stone the Crows Jim Dewar, and Frankie Miller. His replacement was Barriemore Barlow, whose superlative technique was put to good use on Thick as a Brick, another concept album in which one song stretched over two sides in a themes-and-variations suite, a vague protest against Life Itself. The album reached #1 in the U.S and went gold. A Passion Play (#1, 1973) followed the same format but was even more elaborate; critics soundly thrashed Anderson for his indulgence, resulting in his permanent mistrust of the music press and a two-year touring layoff. ~ [Source:Rolling Stone -from The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll Simon & Schuster]

Rolling Stone Top 500 Songs ranked this song at Number (Nope they hated it) and the Album ranked at Number 337

This Song has a crowbarred rating of 52.2 out of 108