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Jethro Tull Hymn 43

#46
Honch said:
Glenn Cornick, has made about just the only one bass solo I can stand to listen to for repeated amounts of time. Bourée from Stand Up. Hymn 43 is considered by many, as one of the filler materials on Aqualung. Lots of "b-sides" acoustic guitar with Ian singing over it, apart from Hymn 43. The album has just 2-3 really great and legendary tunes on it, Aqualung, Locomotive Breath, and maybe Crossed Eyed Mary (covered by Iron Maiden later on, no less). I think Hymn 43 is not one of them. The bassist on Aqualung was Jeffrey Hammond-Hammond but the bass line is probably (as everything else) composed and made up by Ian Anderson, if not even played by himself too. The Aqualung "band" had shifted, from previous line up. Clive Bunker, the drummer couldn't really cut the more intricate and harder parts and Ian had to play some of them (!). So Barrie Barlow was brought in into the next album. Jeffrey had not the "quick-on-the-take-up" knack as the rest of the band had. He always had to walk that extra mile in rehearsals to be able to make it in the end, even the simpler things. That's why he left Tull later on, it wasn't his core, or bona fide thing. Painting was. He was a tad stiffer, and daft playing as opposed to Cornicks more fluid style, albeit limited too in some ways.

My fave album, and bass part of Tull, came 5-6 years later on on "Songs From The Wood" where John Glascock had took over the bass. "Hunting Girl" bass line at the break at the tricky (and long) intro section makes my day, just before the double bass drums rolls in... seems superficial pentatonic, but try to cut the syncopated and accented notes if you can... properly...;) .

Today, I can't still fathom why Aqualung is considered their apex and highlight album. Just because one or two songs. There are too many snorefests and filler material on that album IMHO. "Thick As A Brick" is far better in spite of its tounge in cheek "concept" send up orientation, and "Songs From The Wood" more refined, finesse, and thorough arrangements. Albeit in a more folky way, than medieval as was the thing with Aqualung with its "Gothic" themed songs. Even "Crest Of A Knave" from 1987 I hold higher than Aqualung. The one album that didn't had any thing on that struck a nerve with me was the "yellow" one... "too old to rock'n'roll... too many concession towards the record company and US market" as I call it. ;)

Hymn 43 is a filler song, by my standards. Glad that it makes waves with some other person.
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I feel the opposite... I think Hymn 43 is one of the highlights and there are some really powerful live versions out there on bootlegs.
 
#47
CryingBass said:
I remember the first time that I heard Hymn 43 on Aqualung. My Aunt bought me that album because my Mom was too terrified of my musical choices at the time ( e.g. Paranoid, Court of, etc. - you can't really blame her ). Hymn 43 could very well have been the song ( if not one of the top-catalysts ) that made me want to get into bass guitar. There were other distractions ( Chris Squire as a notable relevant mention ) that pushed me in that direction too. But listen again to that song - not bad bass!

Are there any other big fans of that tune, or other tunes in a similar timeframe of Tull, that really turned you on in regards to the bass riffs? And the way that those riffs turned on much of the listening audience?

And remember: If you remember, then you weren't there! Also remember that when you discuss "good or bad or great" in terms of those long-ago timeframes: Imagine what that sounded like when it 1st came out.

( PS - just thought of Kansas bass lines too - xxit! Man, ALL the best music was made in the 60's and 70's. Now I'm in for it eh? )
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I am listening to Jethro Tull right now thanks to you! Thank U!
 
#50
Tull is still in my rotation and high on the list of favorites. At that time i was listening to a lot of Tull, Yes, King Crimson, ELP, lots of prog. The first time I played benefit, I hated it and thought I had wasted my money. It sat in my stack of albums for long time and one night when I was saturated with everything else I had, I gave it a spin and loved it. Guess I had grown musically in the interim. went on to buy Stand Up and Aqualung, good stuff to this day.
 
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#51
Joebone said:
Hmm…isn't "odd" meter where you have a 5 or 7 (or a 10 or an 11) in the numerator? On "Driving Song" I'm hearing 12/8 and 4/4 in alternation; great fun but nothing particularly odd. OTOH, "Living in the Past" is a great example of 5/4 that rocks….and yes, JT should get big credit for playing with meter…I'm not familiar with their material after "Living in the Past," but always found their use of odd meter and 3 and 6 to be tasteful and organic, as compared to Rush doing some very sophisticated things that were intellectually cool but somehow, for me, not very compelling.

Final thought - if you want to dig into really cool use of 5 and 7, there is some great Brazilian music...
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Rush have used a lot of 7/8 over the years, and it may just be a natural feel for them. Jacob's Ladder feels more intellectual, but sometimes alternating bars of odd meters does feel organic, and there are a couple of English folk dances that do it. I wrote a piece once, just in a natural way to then realise it was in 13/8... A piece in 15/16 written by our keyboard player was a bit extreme!
 
#53
-Asdfgh- said:
Rush have used a lot of 7/8 over the years, and it may just be a natural feel for them. Jacob's Ladder feels more intellectual, but sometimes alternating bars of odd meters does feel organic, and there are a couple of English folk dances that do it. I wrote a piece once, just in a natural way to then realise it was in 13/8... A piece in 15/16 written by our keyboard player was a bit extreme!
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Next on my listening list... MY favorite Rush album... Permanent Waves.
 
#55
I want to thank all of you for your thoughtful replies. I never thought that I would get so much cool feedback on a Tull topic and in 60/70's-era progressive/fusion music in general.

So many similar memories. So many basses! May we all live in as-interesting times as those were...
 
#57
I really like Hymn 43 and learned to play it along time ago. A couple other Tull tunes I enjoy playing because of the bass line are Teacher, Living in the Past and For a Thousand Mothers. The latter is pretty simple and repetitive, but I really like that it is a driving bass line.
 
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