659 Jethro Tull - Songs from the Wood (1977)

 659 Jethro Tull - Songs from the Wood (1977)

Studio Album - Progressive Folk Rock



About the Act:

Jethro Tull have been in existence since 1967, with a 5-year break recently. They were named after an 18th Century agriculturalist. They are a British band, and could be thought of as a curiosity, had they not been so successful.

Folk in Britain comes in two main varieties, English Folk and Celtic Folk (mostly from Scotland and Ireland, but Northumberland and other places also join in). English Folk has developed a distinctive nasal style of singing. Jethro Tull have managed to successfully merge English Folk, Heavy Rock, and at times Classical and Progressive elements. They have managed to change styles with the times, while maintaining their Folk-Rock core sound.

Their frontman, Ian Anderson is a charismatic, mad wizard, who sings lead vocals and plays the flute (famously on one leg). He took flute playing into some quite inventive sounds, and with Heavy Rock (and sometimes otherwise) backing, writes and sings observational songs about life and people, in good Folk tradition, delivered in a heavily Folk vocal style. The result is instantly recognisable, iconic, and unique. The whole thing is delivered with humour, admittedly sometimes quite dark humour. To be honest, they probably would be thought of as a curiosity, if not for the consummate skill and musicianship of the whole band.

They have released 21 studio albums, have had a good deal of success, and have gone through musicians at quite a rate.

About the Album:

This was the band's 10th album, and signals a return to more folky roots.

My History with this Album:

None

Review:

Heavy Metal does supernatural evil, Country does relationship misery, and Folk Rock does paganism. This album is a thematic collection of songs inspired by pagan myths and country living. Some songs are about personification of nature, some are about sex, and some I'm not so sure about. Oh, one is about bells. Solstice bells.

The music is a complement between rock (electric guitar, drums, synth, bass) and folk (acoustic guitar, mandolin, medieval percussion, other things and of course flute.) This is all wrapped up in complex counterpoint, odd time signatures and unusual progressions and structures, the sort of thing that is usually labelled as "Prog Rock", and the sort of thing I enjoy quite a lot. The playing is superb, the music is complex, the singing is mumbled and nasal, the songs are interesting.

I enjoyed it.

8/10


Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/3hqr2lQ7zQdnyguyuID177

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8C0E1E6459D10DCE

Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Songs_from_the_Wood



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

944 Manu Chao - Próxima Estación Esperanza (2001)

Image
 944 Manu Chao - Próxima Estación Esperanza (2001) Studio Album - World Music About the Act: Manu Chao is a French-Spanish musician of Spanish descent who grew up on the outskirts of Paris. In the mid-80s he was in a Spanish/English rockabilly group called Hot Pants. In 1987, with his brother and cousin he founded the band Mano Negra, combining punk and world music influences and playing on the Paris Metro. This band took off and had 4 studio albums. In 1995 Manu "went solo", forming the band Radio Bemba Sound System to be his backing band. The punk elements were less prominent, but he started to make music that "replicates the sound of street music and bar scenes from a variety of cultures". He has been really popular in parts of Europe.  About the Album: This album was Manu Chao's second studio album as a "solo" artist. In Spanish, the name means "Next Station: Hope", after a real station on the Madrid Metro. The album reached top 10 slots ...
Read more

840 Various Artists - The Best of Girl Groups Volumes 1 and 2 (1990)

Image
 840 Various Artists - The Best of Girl Groups Volumes 1 and 2 (1990) Compilation (double) - Girl Group (Soul/Bobby Soxer/Do-Wop) About the Album: This is a highly acclaimed compilation in 2CDs by Rhino Records. It's the sort of thing that in this country you might expect to see at 3.99 in a Garden Centre. My History with this Album: None Review: There are not many multi-artist compilations in this series for reviewing. There is not information about it on Wikipedia, but the reception seems to have been positive. It is choc-full of hits with a smattering of lesser-known songs, and it's hard not to imagine Grease or similar situations - girls with cardigans and white socks, listening to the juke box while sipping milkshakes in the drug store. On one level it's a fun collection of songs that you could use to feel nostalgic, or as the music for a themed party. On another level it's kind of like a cultural artefact. I feel honour-bound to describe it, even though if I drop ...
Read more

843 Chambers Brothers - The Time has Come (1967)

Image
 843 Chambers Brothers - The Time has Come (1967) Studio Album - Psychedelic Soul About the Act: The Chambers Brothers are an American Psychedelic Soul band from LA, who were formed in 1954 and are still going. They were at heart four brothers, but I think they have now all left the band.  About the Album: This was their debut album (12 years on from forming as a band), and it spawned their most successful single Time Has Come Today. My History with this Album: None. I had never heard of the Chambers Brothers before this list. Review: I am not an American, nor a Social Historian, but I think I can accurately claim that in 1960s America there was a certain separation between the Black community and other communities. As a result of this, and for marketing reasons, the idea of music that was created with a Black audience in mind was an actual thing. I'm not sure if today we would be quite so sure about what constitutes "Black Music", but then, I think, they were generally q...
Read more