Track Listing

1. Aqualung
2. Cross-Eyed Mary
3. Cheap Day Return
4. Mother Goose
5. Wond'ring Aloud
6. Up To Me
7. My God
8. Hymn 43
9. Slipstream
10. Locomotive Breath
11. Wind-Up
12. Lick Your Fingers Clean
13. Wind-Up (Quad Version)
14. Excerpts From The Ian Anderson Interview
15. Songs for Jeffrey
16. Fat Man
17. Bouree

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #560 in Music
• Released on: 1999-02-09
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Original recording reissued, Extra tracks

Amazon.com
After veering sharply from the blues inluences of their debut, This Was, Jethro Tull's sound quickly coalesced around jazz-tinged English folk influences and the antics of frontman/flautist Ian Anderson. But it was guitarist Martin Barre's swaggering riff off the title track of the band's fourth album that would become Tull's indelibly clichéd trademark--and the band's entrée into a long reign as arena-rock perennials. But there's a lot more to Aqualung than the riffage of that cut and its cousins, "Cross-Eyed Mary" and "Locomotive Breath." In an era when pseudo-Christian spirituality was a de rigueur, if cheap, musical commodity (from the overblown operatics of Jesus Christ Superstar to one-hit pop wonders such as "Spirit in the Sky" and "Put Your Hand in the Hand"), Anderson and company openly challenged the value of organized religion with a thematic album savvy enough to layer its thought-provoking lyrics between heavy strata of FM-friendly guitar bedrock. A cliché, perhaps; a landmark, no doubt. And a record many maintain is still Tull's finest hour. --Jerry McCulley

Customer Reviews

"His cross was rather bloody/ He could hardly roll his stone..."
When people talk about progressive rock being dull and dated and pretentious, they surely can't be thinking of Aqualung. Jethro Tull's gospel-weary opus may be full of flute solos and lyrics about man's relationship to God, but it still rocks more righteously than anything Guns `N' Roses ever did. There's not a Moog synthesizer or an extended suite to be found (except for the title track, and it's not really all that extended), and pyrotechnical displays of instrumental prowess are kept to a tasteful minimum. Classical influences share space with strains of blues, folk, and a bit of gospel. The lyrics, even when they become abstract, make sense more often than not, and they're almost always poignant. The band even insists that it isn't a concept album, and sometimes it seems that they might actually be telling the truth! So, if it makes you feel uncomfortable, don't consider Aqualung a prog rock album. Just think of it as a blistering rock `n' roll record that happens to be, well, smart.

And then listen to it. Let that ludicrously good title track smash you in the gut. Listen to Ian Anderson's grizzled sneer, to that insistent guitar riff, to the sudden (and totally cool) tempo changes, to those fantastic lyrics. It's one of the greatest album openers ever, and it isn't even the best song here. That honor probably goes to "Hymn 43," a barnstorming surge of mutant gospel that burns with Biblical fury and melodic intensity. The lyrics are sheer bombastic brilliance, a scathing indictment of opportunistic religious leaders and human selfishness. My personal favorite line on the album has to be "and the unsung Western hero/ he killed an Indian or three/ then he made his name in Hollywood/ to set the white man free/ ah, Jesus save me!" Either that or "if Jesus saves/ well he'd better save himself." Other brilliant songs about organized religions and their failure to bring man closer to God (hey, maybe it really is a concept album!) include "My God" and "Wind Up," and both of them drip with dark genius. "Cross-Eyed Mary" ain't so bad either. I also love "Mother Goose," with its poetic childhood imagery and vaguely Medieval melody (okay, I guess it really is a prog rock album), and "Locomotive Breath," which rules on every level. Just like the rest of the album.

vinyl replacement
Have always loved this recording. Now I enjoy what was once only on vinyl or tape.

The same problems as all Tull albums.
The selections are great, there is no denying that. But, as with the other albums, it is technically lacking. I don't know if someone is trying to save some money by using below standard technicians or equipment, but as a rule, albums by other groups just have a higher technical quality than Tull's. The one thing that jumps out at me is the difference of volume settings when going from one track to the next. Then there is something else, I can't quite put my finger on it, it's as if the group is a half beat behind where they want to be on some selections and are playing a bit too fast trying to catch up. I know that's not the case, but it is the best way I can think of to describe the hint of something not quite right.