Jethro Tull: a rock band named after an agricultural experimenter

Jethro Tull is a British rock band formed in 1967 in the city of Blackpool. Its leader Ian Anderson pioneered the use of the flute in rock music. The band is named after the English farmhand and inventor Jethro Tull, who made the breakthrough in developments planters and hoes.

The band has released more than 30 albums and sold more than 60 million copies around the globe. Among their most famous The songs include "Aqualung", "Locomotive Breath", "Thick as a Brick" and "Bungle in the Jungle". In 2023 the band is going to release a new album "RökFlöte".

The beginning of the story

Jethro Tull Group appeared in 1967. The band originally played blues-rock and jazz-fusion, but soon began to incorporate elements of English folk, hard rock and classical music into their style, creating unique progressive sound. The band's founder, leader, main composer, and sole permanent member is Ian Anderson, a multi-instrumentalist who predominantly plays flute and acoustic guitar and is also the leading vocalist.

In all the time of the existence of the group through it "passed." many musicians. Some of them have left their mark. These are artists such as the electric guitarist Martin Barr (longest-serving member besides Anderson), keyboardists John Evan, Dee Palmer, Peter-John Vettese and Andrew Giddings, drummers Clive Bunker, Barry "Barrymore" Barlow and Doane Perry, bassists Glenn Cornick, Jeffrey Hammond, John Glasscock, Dave Pegg and Jonathan Noyce.

Title The group was borrowed from the English rural host and inventor Jethro Tull, who lived in the 17th and 18th centuries and improved agrarian technology. Anderson named the band after him simply as they "tasted" different aliases at the London venues.

Debut album "This Was." (1968) brought Jethro Tull praise from critics and fans. With the arrival of guitarist Martin Barr to replace Mick Abrahams, they achieved pinnacles The band was a major success on the British charts with Stand Up (1969) and became commercially lucrative. Since then, the band has not stopped tour The band has been touring the U.K. and the U.S. and has been delighting fans with new albums every year.

Stages of creativity

Jethro Tull went from blues-rock to progressive-rock on the albums "Aqualung" (1971), "Thick as a Brick" (1972) and "A Passion Play" (1973), and then to folk-rock on "Songs from the Wood" (1977), "Heavy Horses" (1978) and "Stormwatch" (1979). In the 1980s, the band's lineup sharply changed, and she began to work in the direction of electronic The albums "A" (1980), "The Broadsword and the Beast" (1982) and "Under Wraps" (1984) prove it.

For the hard rock album "Crest of a Knave" (1987), Jethro Tull received its only Grammy. They sold 60 million albums, 11 of which were gold and five platinum. Magazine Rolling Stone called them "the most successful and eccentric prog-rock band. After "J-Tull Dot Com" (1999) and the Christmas album (2003) they did not release new material, but toured until 2011. Anderson and Barr focused on solo projects. Anderson said in 2014 that Jethro Tull was no longer the same.

The most popular works

The band Jethro Tull has released over 30 albums in its long history, but some of them are considered especially prominent and influential. Among them are. highlight, for example, "Aqualung." (1971) is one of the band's most famous and successful albums, containing such hits as "Aqualung," "Locomotive Breath" and "Cross-Eyed Mary. The album is considered conceptual and touches on themes of religion, society, and human nature.

"Thick as a Brick." (1972) is a 43-minute prog-rock parody in the form of a poem from 8-year-old Gerald Bostock. "Songs from the Wood." (1977) is a folk-rock album with Celtic overtones and medieval flavor. It features "Songs from the Wood", "The Whistler" and "Jack-in-the-Green".

"Heavy Horses. (1978) is a folk-rock album with heavy riffs and social themes. The album is dedicated to country life and horses, just as the title says. "Crest of a Knave (1987) was the hard rock album that won Jethro Tull a Grammy, surpassing Metallica and AC/DC. It features "Steel Monkey", "Farm on the Freeway" and "Budapest".

Impact on the music industry

Experiments Jethro Tull with different instruments, styles and album concepts showed the breadth of their creative potential and inspired many other musicians. Among the bands and artists who acknowledge their influence on their music, you can name the likes of Iron Maiden, Pearl Jam, Joe Bonamassa and Nick Cave. Iron Maiden even recorded cover version of the song "Cross-Eyed Mary" on their album "The Number of the Beast" (1982). Pearl Jam played "Aqualung" in concert, Joe Bonamassa admired Anderson's flute, and Nick Cave named his son after the band.

Ian Anderson now is engaged in a wide variety of activities. He continues to perform and record music as solo artist and as the leader of Jethro Tull - for example, they released a new album called "The Zealot Gene," which was released in January 2022. Anderson is interested in politics and history and often gives his opinion on various issues. At the same time he is also involved in agriculture and charity: He has several farms in Scotland and England where he grows different plants and animals. He also created the Ian Anderson Trust, which supports various environmental and children's projects.