Posted on 01/28/2022 6:30:00 PM PST by nickcarraway
Ian Anderson has a timely theory for the reason prog-rock — and his band Jethro Tull specifically — wasn't stopped by the rise of punk in the '70s.
“I think the punks thought that they were the triple vaccination that would rid the world forever of the horrible virus of prog rock,” he said in a recent interview with The Telegraph. “Unfortunately, like in the real world, the virus tends to bounce back in a slightly revived or even re-energized form.”
In a separate interview with The Guardian, Anderson noted that where other punk or rock bands were leaning into blues, he was seeking something more avant-garde. “I loved the blues, but for me, it was just a pragmatic way of opening the door because it wasn’t really what I wanted to do musically,” he said. “The signposts were the Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band and then Pink Floyd’s The Piper at the Gates of Dawn. I thought, 'I want to try to do something like that, something that’s eclectic.'”
In Anderson's view, some bands and their respective music-making strategies were too common for his liking, and Jethro Tull's unconventional approach, though it may have baffled listeners from time to time, was worth it in the long run. “Over all those years, Jethro Tull tried hard,” he said. “Some people might say we tried too hard, but it’s better to do that and fall on your face once in a while rather than sit comfortably backpedaling in order to keep on an even keel. I’d get restless if I did generic music like the [Rolling] Stones or even the Who, or the Ramones in the world of punk.”
Still, he hopes his reputation through the decades reflects sincere consideration and reverence for the process of making music. “I fully understand if people look at my meanderings over many years and think, ‘Oh, if you’re making lists of words, the ones that come to mind about Ian Anderson would be pompous, vain, arrogant and self-indulgent,'" he said. "But, hopefully, you might also think serious, studious, passionate and, above all, engaged.”
Jethro Tull did rock.
Thx. I wish Martin would be invited back to the band. But it won’t happen.
Punks didn’t care about being mainstream. They were counter-culture. They thrived on the boundary and made their own way.
Losers who made some good tunes.
https://youtu.be/MZQ2lzaf5rE?t=22
Men in tights.
I’ve been enjoying a review of Supertramp’s catalog from the mid to late 70s. They had a few gems that go beyond “The Logical Song.” I really enjoyed the live version of “Another Man’s Woman” from a 1977 appearance in London. Jam city.
Also, Bill Bruford just launched a youtube channel, and he’s putting up a whole bunch of really old stuff that might be of interest.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGCjL570rm8Gs8j2d5yenZw/videos
No video on the radio.
I don't think the Stones are "generic", just thinking through their catalog: they have light little pop tunes ("She's a Rainbow"), the have lots of blues both Delta blues songs("Love in Vain") and Chicago Blues ("Little Red Rooster") and their own blues-flavored originals ("Sister Morphine"). They have country songs (or mock-country, perhaps) like "Girl with the Far Away Eyes". They have a lot of rockers: "Start me UP" "Brown Sugar" "It's Only Rock and Roll". They had a disco period: "Hot Stuff". Latin Jazz flavored jams "Can't You Hear Me Talking".
They were one of the original British Invasion bands, so they invented a lot of what we consider rock & roll after about 1969.
I don't quite see it as "generic".
I saw him in 2019. Poor guys voice was impacted by throat issues. He could still sing it out. And his flute was great. And still as spry as they came.
They were pretty generic blues cover band in the 70’s. I like their stuff, but very little of it was more than a sugar high. It was fun, but forgettable.
But that applied to most of the 1970’s music.
Just listened to Thick as a Brick in the car last week. As good to me now as it was when it came out. I wish I still had the original album jacket.
Quite an LP.
Watched some reruns of NYPD Blue not too long ago. In one episode one of the cops sees a derelict who might have witnessed a street crime. The cop says ‘Hey, Aqualung, get over here!’. If you are a certain age, you get it.
I do love me some punk. Proper Oi! all the way.
Then again, my taste in music expands across many genres. I can’t do Western or Gangsta stuff, though.
Here is a side to Tull that some people have never heard.
“A Pretty Tune”
Jethro Tull: Elegy (3/16/1985)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFyIDfgStOQ
ping
Sounds like a couple of rappers having a shoot-out somewhere. “Kid-Punk shot and killed Prog-Z”
I think the punk rockers were more interested in partying and playing live shows than in trying to topple the edifice of prog rock.
I never thought of applying the term “progressive rock” to Jethro Tull
... but who am I to argue with the guy who created it? LOL
Ian Anderson is truly a 20th (and now 21st) Century minstrel.
I don’t like all of his tracks but the ones I do like really blow my mind.
They did indeed rock. Ian is an immensely talented composer and musician.
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