Help identify a song I heard (Jethro Tull?)

[Rich Fiscus]

26679353[/URL], member: 245094"]Well, define success. They’ve existed in one form or another over the decades, and mounted the Cropredy Festival for almost 50 years. The biggest hindrance was the personnel turnover, with the Sandy era their highest profile, but I could never see them as a hit single kind of band. They were the benchmark of British folk rock by which all others were measured. Richard Thompson’s solo career has been so vast(talk about a devoted following), and Denny at least had her moment with the masses on “Battle Of Evermore”.
I’m the opposite of you, I got exposed to Fairport, quickly followed by Pentangle, months before This Was, where they were just ‘Cream with a flute’ anyway. I thought Blodwyn Pig was pretty cool, it’s too bad Glenn wasn’t involved in that, but they faded away after two albums. I saw the Passion Play tour in ‘73, and opening for Tull was Steeleye Span, another Brit folk stalwart; it was great that they got the exposure(it didn’t hurt that they were labelmates with Tull).
By Warchild and Too Old I started to loose interest in the band, and later on when it seemed like they(or Anderson)were lost for direction, they glommed on to the Fairport thing for awhile.
Anderson’s work recently has been very interesting; first he did a collaboration with Marc Almond(that’s right, the Soft Cell/“Tainted Love” guy)…


Then, under the Tull name, there was this timely song with a timely message…

I would say struggling in obscurity for years, and not getting much recognition outside of a small, but devoted, following and your fellow musicians isn’t really success by my standards. Even today, almost nobody knows the name Sandy Denny, despite her being featured on one of the most iconic songs on one of the most iconic rock albums of all time.

 

[Michedelic]

I would say struggling in obscurity for years, and not getting much recognition outside of a small, but devoted, following and your fellow musicians isn’t really success by my standards. Even today, almost nobody knows the name Sandy Denny, despite her being featured on one of the most iconic songs on one of the most iconic rock albums of all time.

Well, Sandy was her own worst enemy with her contrary nature and self-destructive urges, and it all sadly ended too soon. Thompson hasn’t had a bad career, I’ve seen him perform somewhere between 25-30 times, in front of all sorts of crowds, clubs to festivals(in the middle of Tower Records even). I’m sure he’s comfortable with how it’s gone. Lastly, for the Cropredy Festival to be an institution for over four decades is a pretty good legacy for Fairport; they were never going to be a band that was going to be huge, certainly not in the US.

 

[consectaneus]

@Michedelic,
This book opened up a world for me, but a world you are already familiar with. Still, if you are of a mind to, and haven't read it yet, I can recommend this:

https://www.amazon.com/Electric-Eden-Unearthing-Britains-Visionary/dp/0865478562

 

[consectaneus]

Aah, that must have been when they ripped off “We Used To Know” for “Hotel California”.

Some will remember another dust-up regarding JT and another band--when they beat out Metallica for the Hard Rock/Heavy Metal Performance Grammy. But this is what I found recently that I think is cool: Kirk Hammett is now a big fan!

“I just really got into prog about five years ago,” Hammett tells Goldmine. “I wasn’t into prog. Just accidentally I heard Jethro Tull's Stand Up and I went, ‘Wow!’ I never ever had paid much attention to Jethro Tull. I just never did.” He added with a laugh: “And it didn’t help losing to them in 1989 for that Grammy!

“But that’s really not the reason why I wasn’t into Jethro Tull, believe me. I just never got around to it. Sometimes you just don’t get around to certain things. So, I ended up checking out their entire catalog and now I’m a full-on Jethro Tull fan.”

 

[Gregc57]

How are they NOT in the RRHOF??????????????

 

[Gorn]

How are they NOT in the RRHOF??????????????

Because rock and roll legend Marshall Mathers was more worthy. Duh.

 

[timmus]

I love the bass on this when it gets going.

Ian is certifiably bonkers...LOL

 

[Michedelic]

How are they NOT in the RRHOF??????????????

The RRHOF is irrelevant, meaningless.

 

[Gregc57]

wholeheartedly agree! It's sad, and a real travesty.

 

[Michedelic]

@Michedelic,
This book opened up a world for me, but a world you are already familiar with. Still, if you are of a mind to, and haven't read it yet, I can recommend this:

https://www.amazon.com/Electric-Eden-Unearthing-Britains-Visionary/dp/0865478562

Thanks, I’m familiar with it, and have read parts of it, but there’s a lot of other resources that I’ve learn from as well(and I didn’t have to have Rick Beato tell me anything). It helped that I was absorbing a good chunk of the scene in real time as it unfolded, Pentangle(plus Jansch and Renbourne on their own), Incredible String Band, Davy Graham(namechecked by Paul Simon), Steeleye, etc, and then I later investigated the roots…Ewan MacColl, Shirley Collins, Ian Campbell(whose sons started UB40)and came to learn about how Cecil Sharp was the equivalent of John and Alan Lomax, preservers of old music being forgotten about in the modernized world. It’s quite a rabbit hole to go down…I later discovered odd little bands like Trees and Mr. Fox, great female vocalists like Vashti Bunyan(who started out being promoted as the next Marianne Faithfull, walked away from it, and had a career revival in the 2000’s)and Bridget St.John.

Some will remember another dust-up regarding JT and another band--when they beat out Metallica for the Hard Rock/Heavy Metal Performance Grammy. But this is what I found recently that I think is cool: Kirk Hammett is now a big fan!

“I just really got into prog about five years ago,” Hammett tells Goldmine. “I wasn’t into prog. Just accidentally I heard Jethro Tull's Stand Up and I went, ‘Wow!’ I never ever had paid much attention to Jethro Tull. I just never did.” He added with a laugh: “And it didn’t help losing to them in 1989 for that Grammy!

“But that’s really not the reason why I wasn’t into Jethro Tull, believe me. I just never got around to it. Sometimes you just don’t get around to certain things. So, I ended up checking out their entire catalog and now I’m a full-on Jethro Tull fan.”

That wasn’t so much animosity between bands, but an example of cluelessness and the out of touch status of NARAS(the voting organization of the Grammys).

 

[consectaneus]

Thanks, I’m familiar with it, and have read parts of it, but there’s a lot of other resources that I’ve learn from as well(and I didn’t have to have Rick Beato tell me anything). It helped that I was absorbing a good chunk of the scene in real time as it unfolded, Pentangle(plus Jansch and Renbourne on their own), Incredible String Band, Davy Graham(namechecked by Paul Simon), Steeleye, etc, and then I later investigated the roots…Ewan MacColl, Shirley Collins, Ian Campbell(whose sons started UB40)and came to learn about how Cecil Sharp was the equivalent of John and Alan Lomax, preservers of old music being forgotten about in the modernized world. It’s quite a rabbit hole to go down…I later discovered odd little bands like Trees and Mr. Fox, great female vocalists like Vashti Bunyan(who started out being promoted as the next Marianne Faithfull, walked away from it, and had a career revival in the 2000’s)and Bridget St.John.

That wasn’t so much animosity between bands, but an example of cluelessness and the out of touch status of NARAS(the voting organization of the Grammys).

Yes, the roots of British Folk and Folk Rock are much more pervasive than I would have imagined. There is even a case for Yes, Led Zeppelin, and Traffic (John Barleycorn of course) and Tull. After reading that book I dove into Fairport Convention and Pentangle. Very good gateway. Nick Drake is phenomenal and Vashti Bunyan is an angel. Rabbit hole is right. Anyway, very good for this beginner to get your thoughts. There is beautiful music everywhere.

 

[Michedelic]

Yes, the roots of British Folk and Folk Rock are much more pervasive than I would have imagined. There is even a case for Yes, Led Zeppelin, and Traffic (John Barleycorn of course) and Tull. After reading that book I dove into Fairport Convention and Pentangle. Very good gateway. Nick Drake is phenomenal and Vashti Bunyan is an angel. Rabbit hole is right. Anyway, very good for this beginner to get your thoughts. There is beautiful music everywhere.

It’s funny about Nick Drake, it took me a while to catch up to him(but way way before that Volkswagen ad); all the clues were there, Joe Boyd producing, Richard Thompson, Danny Thompson, and John Cale playing on his stuff, the tragic early death, and so on. Just got distracted, I guess. And Zeppelin? Oh yeah, once again, Page has a lot to answer for…

 

[5StringBlues]

Aaah,Bach...

 

[hbarcat]

Yeah exactly, their earlier heavy blues were really something - made me think of "A New Day Yesterday" from "Standup" (also the orignal album of Bouree', fwiw). Also "Nothing Is Easy" and "We Used To Know". Great stuff.

My former cover band played "We Used to Know" at every show for about 4 years and it always went over very well. In fact, we'd often get fans coming up to us after the set asking what the song was and who wrote it.

 

[Rich Fiscus]

Well, Sandy was her own worst enemy with her contrary nature and self-destructive urges, and it all sadly ended too soon. Thompson hasn’t had a bad career, I’ve seen him perform somewhere between 25-30 times, in front of all sorts of crowds, clubs to festivals(in the middle of Tower Records even). I’m sure he’s comfortable with how it’s gone. Lastly, for the Cropredy Festival to be an institution for over four decades is a pretty good legacy for Fairport; they were never going to be a band that was going to be huge, certainly not in the US.

All fair points, and even having Led Zeppelin as almost patrons of the band didn’t put them over the top. And just to come full circle here, Dave Pegg had a longer tenure in Jethro Tull than either Glenn Cornick or John Glascock. While that does include some downright cringeworthy attempts to stay relevant in the 80s, Crest Of A Knave and Catfish Rising are both on my short list when I need a Tull fix.

Having said that, I think it’s a little self serving for us, as fans, to give too much weight to legacy, versus success in their own time, and perhaps from their own perspectives. I don’t think Sandy or Richard felt like it was successful when they were there, and certainly not when they left. Whether success would have been better or worse for Sandy is, of course, a whole other discussion.

 

[PhR75]

No, but Dave Pegg is much better than you would guess from most of his recordings with Tull.

In my opinion his playing on any record leaves no doubt how good he is. Especially on "A" where he does some dazzling things.
The live sets on the quite recently released expanded editions of both "Stormwatch" and "A" have also excellent bass work from Peggy.

 

[Rich Fiscus]

In my opinion his playing on any record leaves no doubt how good he is. Especially on "A" where he does some dazzling things.
The live sets on the quite recently released expanded editions of both "Stormwatch" and "A" have also excellent bass work from Peggy.

I love the bass playing throughout his tenure, although not always the music or the bass tone. I wasn’t even thinking about A, which has some great playing on it. Being a teenager in the 80s, and not discovering Tull until Crest Of A Knave, I never have really connected with much between Broadsword and Crest. It’s an aversion to the production more than anything, I suppose.

No question, though, about Dave Pegg’s playing, or about Tull’s live output from the time. The Hammersmith concert from 1991 and A Little Light Music from 1992 are cool to listen to back to back. With Dave Mattacks on drums, A Little Light Music is kind of like a Tull/Fairport collaboration. The Hammersmith show, from the Catfish Rising tour, and with Doane Perry on drums, is the hard rock side of the band that allowed them to go where Fairport couldn’t.